Design your Career Graduate > Catering Sales Manager

What motivated you to join Hospitality, and what brought you to this Group?

I’ve always had a passion for making people happy, so I found hospitality through connection with others. I fell in love with it in college because of a professor that I bonded with, as well as the closeness to all my peers with similar drive. So, when I came across a Design Your Career post on LinkedIn from one of my connections that offered the potential for international travel, I jumped at the opportunity and the rest is history.

 

What was your first role here, and how has your career progressed over time?

My story with Lore Group began with the company’s very first year of the Design Your Career Program. I was excited to be a part of the inaugural class and help to set the standard for the program for future graduates. An opportunity presented itself to join the Sales team and I enthusiastically accepted! It has offered me the chance to continue to exercise my passion for customer service, but in a different capacity at Lyle. Now I can have a bigger and more direct on the hotel’s performance.

 

What does a typical day look like for you?

A typical day for me always begins with digging myself out of my inbox. After that, I could be chatting on the phone with clients, hosting tours of the hotel, or welcoming clients and making sure their events go off without a hitch. I could also be conducting meetings with my team, or just having a desk day doing work on my computer. The beauty of my days is that they are never the same.

 

What are some of your proudest achievements during your time here?

I am so grateful that I was named the Lyle 2023 Leader of the Year. I am humbled that my colleagues deemed me worthy of this title, and I always strive to prove to them that they  made the right decision. After all, not only do I do this job for my clients, but even more so for my peers.

 

What opportunities have you had here to develop new skills or advance your career?

As a Food and Beverage MIT, I was focused on building my operational management skillset. I never thought I would be in Sales, so when my interest was gauged for this job I was very surprised. I knew it was going to be a challenge and there was a lot to learn, but I was confident I could do the job and do it well. I was lucky to be onboarded by people who cared about me to invest in my learning and growth. I am happy that I am able to learn something new every day.

 

 

How has Lore Group supported your career growth?

The Lore team has always shown their support in my growth at the company. When personal and property needs surpassed my program progression, the process was adjusted to my timeline. When opportunity arose to step into a new role, I was encouraged and celebrated. When another role opened up that maybe wasn’t right for me, they helped me to understand why and how to get me to where I wanted to be. Lore has invested a lot in me, and this has very much followed me throughout my career here.

 

How would you describe the culture at Lore Group?

The culture at Lore is so unique because the Group is so tight-knit. The leadership invests so much in each person at each property that you do genuinely feel cared for. It is captivating to hear leadership talk about their dreams for the company’s future that it fosters a culture of people that actually want to be there and help shape that future. We are a smaller company but that intimacy is what I love so much about us.

 

What values or aspects of the Lore Group culture resonate most with you?

The most powerful Lore value that I appreciate every day is family. It’s so important to have positive relationships with those in the workplace especially when what we do can be so draining at times. When you have a culture like we do at Lyle, our family is able to support each other so well during busy and hard times, which makes celebrating the successes so much better.

 

What advice would you give to someone looking to start or advance their career in this field?

I would tell people to get to know everyone around you, even if they aren’t in your department. You never know what you can learn from someone or when an opportunity might arise for you to step into a new position. Relationships are everything in this industry, so foster all of them and never burn bridges.

 

What do you find most rewarding about your job?

I am a deep people pleaser to my core, so seeing a client’s face light up when they enter the event space for the first time will always give me that sparkle of satisfaction and pride. The high achiever in me is always looking for that unexpected plus one that will make their experience that much better. I just love to make other people happy, so that drives me every day in my position.

 

What’s your favourite thing about working here?

My colleagues are hands down the best thing about Lyle and Lore. A lot of people dread going to work every day, but I’m in a unique place where I don’t because the people I spend 9 hours a day with are both coworkers and friends. There is an exceptionally close culture at Lyle where I know I will stay connected with my peers throughout our careers, wherever they take us.