“Our staff is truly the centre of everything
we do, and can make or break a client experience,”
said Willett. “I wanted to experience
what was working well in our kitchen and
what needed to be improved so we could
make our associates’ lives a little easier and
our high-demand systems a little better.”
Having one of the highest staff retention
rates in Canada’s hospitality industry,
the senior team at MTCC also understood
the challenges this achievement presented
when major changes were in the works.
“While we were proud of the loyalty
and staying power of MTCC’s long service
staff, we also knew that new systems,
new equipment and new approaches to
customer service could appear daunting
for some staff,” said Esther Lee, MTCC’s
vice president, Human Resources. “In
some cases, it could promote resistance to
change. We determined that training support
was a critical part of the blueprint for
modernization success.”
DEVELOPING THOROUGH
TRAINING
Willett and his team worked closely with
the venue’s human resources department
to ensure staff received the support needed
to be successful and that a substantial
training budget was protected within the
overall renovation expenditures. His time
back in the kitchen proved invaluable. But
Willett was no ‘Undercover Boss.’
“We started the conversation really
early in the process, explaining that the
transition was necessary in order to stay
“WHILE WE WERE PROUD OF THE LOYALTY AND STAYING
POWER OF MTCC’S LONG SERVICE STAFF, WE ALSO KNEW THAT
NEW SYSTEMS, NEW EQUIPMENT AND NEW APPROACHES TO
CUSTOMER SERVICE COULD APPEAR DAUNTING FOR SOME STAFF.
IN SOME CASES, IT COULD PROMOTE RESISTANCE TO CHANGE.
WE DETERMINED THAT TRAINING SUPPORT WAS A CRITICAL
PART OF THE BLUEPRINT FOR MODERNIZATION SUCCESS.”
– ESTHER LEE, VICE PRESIDENT, HUMAN RESOURCES, METRO TORONTO CONVENTION CENTRE
50 ❚ FEBRUARY 2014 ❚ HR PROFESSIONAL