Tourism Development Forum puts spotlight on hospitality

Restaurant hosts and hostesses, motel and hotel front-desk staff and others who serve a frontline role in welcoming visitors to Columbia may soon become certified hospitality ambassadors.
Providing an online training program to help hotel and restaurant staff guide tourists to local activities was one idea discussed among more than a dozen leaders of the local restaurant and lodging industries and members of the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau who gathered for the Tourism Development Forum.
Held June 19 at the Courtyard by Marriott, the forum focused on how to better coordinate the services extended from hotels, motels and restaurants to visitors to the community. The series of monthly breakfasts began in January and are presented by the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Columbia Business Times.
Amy Schneider, acting director of the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau, kicked off the discussion by telling the group that Columbia is unique among comparable cities in that hotels and restaurants work well together.

“Travel writers and others whom we have invited to visit Columbia almost always comment on how well the Columbia hospitality community works together,” she said. “Whether through the Columbia Hospitality Association, the Missouri Restaurant Association, the Mid-Missouri Tourism Council or individual businesses in general, the Columbia community is the exception to the rule, and I believe they’re one of the main reasons why Columbia is so successful.”
Forum attendees agreed that strong leadership among organizations related to the hotel and restaurant industries has helped to create a positive synergy.
The climate of cooperation is a great way for new businesses to feel like they’re part of the community. “You get a sense from really any organization around here that they really try hard to reach out to newcomers — new businesses — and to help them find their way,” said Bob McDonald, general manager of Courtyard by Marriott. “It’s very inviting, especially among tourism-related businesses.”
Although cooperation is strong among both industries, the group conceded that communication needs improvement.
“We have boards for these tourism-related industries, but the boards don’t always talk to one another,” said John LaRocca of the University Club. LaRocca said that because all of the local hospitality businesses draw from roughly the same labor pool and from the same customers — tourists — communicating more often would enable business owners and managers to share their resources more effectively.

Carrie Gartner, director of The District, said a top priority is getting word out about community events and activities to area businesses. “We need to find a way to connect more regularly with front desk staff at hotels and restaurant servers to make sure visitors know more about what’s happening,” she said.
Mike Kelly of Stoney Creek Inn and Conference Center said one problem is that front-desk employees, especially those who work the 3 to 11 p.m. shift, are frequently young college students who aren’t necessarily very familiar with the area.
“Most questions from visitors go through the front-desk,“ Kelly said. “And we need to figure out a way to better educate our front-desk staff. The CVB has expanded its website to include more of what’s going on, but it’s difficult to keep up with everything.”
Schneider responded that the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau has been emailing its “What’s Going On” newsletter to area businesses, and some hotels and motels print the information and post it for front-desk staff to use.
The forum attendees then discussed ways to incorporate more effective communication of community events into training that’s provided to frontline staff at hotels, motels and restaurants.

“What if we offered that type of training four times a year for front-desk personnel and restaurant servers?” Schneider asked. Heather Hargrove of the Holiday Inn Executive Center and hotel developer Dave Parmley said the biggest obstacle would be in getting staff to attend because of their busy schedules.
The group responded enthusiastically to a suggestion of offering training online similar to the training that alcohol servers already receive. “It would be easier for staff to do, and maybe there could be some type of certification similar to Leadership Columbia,” said Susan Bell, general manager of Hampton Inn & Suites.