Mercure Auckland's Reception Star

MEDIA RELEASE
10 July 2007

Mercure Auckland's Reception Star

Winner of Regional Final, ARDENZ Hotel Receptionist of the Year

Mercure Hotel Auckland's Helen Kay has won the Regional Final of the ARDENZ Hotel Receptionist of the Year, held on July 5.

The ARDENZ (Association of Rooms Division Executives of New Zealand) event required Helen to first submit a personal profile and then to perform several role plays tackling various scenarios in front of five judges, made up of a Training Advisor from the Hospitality Standards Institute, Former Front Office Manager, the President of ARDENZ and Head of School Catering and Hospitality from Manukau Institute of Technology. The competition aims to identify and recognise excellence in the field of Hotel Reception and to promote it as a career choice for those entering the hospitality industry. It was held at Manukau Institute of Technology.

Mercure Auckland General Manager Jim Moore says they are all extremely proud but not surprised.

"Helen obviously showed the judges the warmth and professionalism we know that she consistently displays to our guests."

Helen and the runner up (Kathy Bradford from Langham Hotel, who was previously working for another Accor hotel) will fly to Christchurch in September to compete in the National Finals. The winner of the national competition will fly to Dubai in April next year to compete in the international final.

Mr Moore says it is great to see ARDENZ acknowledging the importance of professionalism in the Front Office Department of the hotel industry.

"All finalists should be proud of their efforts while the competition was close, we are very pleased to see that Helen proved to the judges what an excellent receptionist she is. Helen's warmth and sincerity, especially when dealing with difficult situations, shone through on the day, just as it does in her daily dealings with customers at Mercure Hotel Auckland."

ENDS

Picture available: Helen Kay with Terry Johnston, Senior Academic Staff Member at Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology and Founding Member of ARDENZ.

Accor is the worldwide leader in hotels, tourism and corporate services, employing 170,000 people in 100 countries. . It offers to its individual and corporate clients nearly 40 years of expertise in its two core businesses:
- Hotels: over 4,000 hotels (475,000 rooms) in 90 countries (including 150 hotels and resorts in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific under the brands Sofitel, Grand Mercure, Novotel, Mercure, All Seasons, Ibis and Formule 1) as well as backpacker hostels, travel agencies, restaurants and casinos;
- Services to corporate clients and public institutions: 21 million people in 35 countries benefit from Accor Services' products employee assistance programs, people care and services, incentive, loyalty programs, events, food vouchers.

Ends

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