posted May 20, 2008
) Diamond General Manager of the Year Andrea Anderson is honored by Marriott’s Brian King, Ed Fuller and Tim Sheldon. |
These awards include the Community Service Hotel of the Year, General Manager Andrea Anderson’s Diamond General Manager of the Year and Guest Service Representative Shareef Smith’s Associate of the Year, three of the highest honors at the conference.
“The hotel team at the Courtyard Downtown Chattanooga continues to go beyond the ordinary in serving our guests,” said management company CEO John McKibbon. “The sense of pride that these men and women carry with them throughout their day on property shines through to both their fellow associates and guests, and we are so proud that Marriott has recognized them for their accomplishments.”
Honors received at the conference include:
Diamond General Manager of the Year (highest honor)-
Andrea Anderson, Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Chattanooga
Andrea Anderson began her career as the operations manager for the Chattanooga Downtown Courtyard at the property’s opening in March 2001. In January 2005, she was promoted to general manager.
Her strong sense of spirit and culture help to create an outstanding work environment at the Courtyard Downtown Chattanooga. The associates who work at the property truly feel like family, and through her leadership, teamwork and training, turnover rates have been reduced by 67% over last year.
Through cross training and development of the property’s leadership team, she leads the way in creating a positive environment for both associates and hotel guests.
In addition to her tireless efforts leading her McKibbon designated training hotel, she is also very active in the community, serving as president of the Greater Chattanooga Lodging Association and involving her hotel and associates in a variety of service activities, including work with Chattanooga’s Ronald McDonald House and Erlanger Hospital.
Associate of the Year-
Shareef Smith, Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Chattanooga
Shareef Smith began working for the Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Chattanooga in September 2005 as a guest service representative. He is known for his “whatever it takes” attitude, always putting the guests’ needs first. As a result of his caring nature, the property’s guest service scores consistently rank in the top 10% of the Courtyard brand.
He demonstrates great pride in his hotel and his community. His goal with each guest is to ensure that they want to return to the property on their next visit to Chattanooga. He takes it upon himself to learn of new businesses and restaurants in the area and visit them personally before recommending them to guests.
According to the owner of a local seafood restaurant, “I think my business would fail if Shareef was not sending your guests to my restaurant. He sets us in such a high standard; I never want to disappoint him or your team.”
As an economics major at the University of Tennessee in his junior year, he is very aware of the business aspects of running a hotel. Through his attention and efforts, the property experienced an increase in average daily revenue and revenue per available room in 2007. As a result of his dedication, he has recently been promoted to sales and services coordinator for the hotel.
Community Service Hotel of the Year-
Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Chattanooga
The Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Chattanooga team has adopted the “it takes a village” attitude at their hotel. Through sharing their hearts and their time with each other and the community, this property selected an organization to serve and provided direct assistance to one of their own associates in 2007.
Each year, the associates of the hotel work together to select a worthy beneficiary to serve through community service and fundraising events. This year’s organization was the Ronald McDonald House in Chattanooga. The largest fundraising event, the “Potty Pass” for the “Riverbend Festival” occurred in June. For a $2 one-time entry, or a $5 unlimited entry, participants could utilize restrooms inside of the hotel, rather than temporary port-a-johns set up for the event.
The entire team of associates worked together to help create a fun atmosphere for the event, and the result was $7000 raised for Ronald McDonald House. Several news agencies and television networks featured the hotel’s efforts on local newscasts during the ten-day event.
In early December 2007, Mildred Ector, a tenured associate with the Courtyard Chattanooga Downtown, lost everything due to a fire in her home. To show support, several associates rallied together to deliver home-cooked meals, shop for groceries, and even buy Christmas gifts for the family. The entire team wanted to raise monies to help Mildred’s family establish a new home. All of the hotel’s linen had recently been replaced, so the team decided to sell the surplus linen in sets for $3 each, and any monies raised would be donated to Mildred and her family. In seven days, they were able to raise $600, presenting the family with a $200 Wal-Mart gift card and $400 in cash.
Silver Hotel-
Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Chattanooga
Excellence in overall guest satisfaction scores of 85-86.9% for the year.
Award winners and their guests were honored by Marriott with an expenses-paid trip to California for the conference and special recognition at an awards celebration event.
Winners were selected from nearly 800 Courtyard properties worldwide.
) Associate of the Year Shareef Smith is honored by Marriott’s Brian King, Ed Fuller and Tim Sheldon. |
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