IT’S 9:00 am and already Okley Cunningham has met with three couples. One couple was forced to cut their vacation short due to a medical issue; one needed an urgent update on their lost luggage, misplaced by the airline; and another — first-time visitors to Jamaica — was seeking help with adjusting to vacation mode. But he’s at ease, as a multiplicity of requests and guests who all need his undivided attention are just part of a normal day for this Sandals Royal Caribbean director of guest services.

With over 20 years experience in the hospitality industry and now occupying an interesting vantage point between the organisation and the customer, Cunningham knows that getting the job done requires understanding the client’s needs, evaluating each situation and delivering on guest satisfaction without eroding internal relations and affecting the bottom line.

Cunningham has seen the business from all angles and that is what makes him so good at what he does. Starting out in the industry as a bellman at Sea Castles in the early 90s exposed him to the grass roots of customer service and developed his social skills.

“I’m actually very shy so I had dreams of working in the kitchen as a chef with minimal guest interaction, but then General Manager Patricia Samuels saw my potential and placed me at the bell desk.”

In retrospect, Cunningham admits that Samuels was very instrumental in helping him to find his path.

With culinary dreams on stand-by, he immersed himself into the job at hand and was soon transferred to the front office. Thereafter he worked at Sea Castles as a front desk agent, telephone operator and reservationist until 1995 when he joined the Sandals family as a night auditor at Sandals Royal Caribbean (SRC).

“During those first years with Sandals, I was on a mission to learn as much as I could about the business, there were so many opportunities and I wasn’t about to let any of them pass me by,” said Cunningham. He soon found himself working in the sales office and at the tour desk.

“Back then the sales office was in charge of weddings and the tour desk, so I helped out in both areas.”

Cunningham’s defining moment came in 2005 as Sandals was about to launch its Butler Programme.

“I was one of four young men from SRC sent to Nassau, Bahamas, to undergo a five-week training by the Guild of Professional English Butlers,” said Cunningham. “I was so proud to be a part of that experience, it was an exciting time. Butlers take customer service to another level and I truly believe that training and my experience working as a butler is what has really prepared me for the position that I hold today.”

However, being at the forefront of a new initiative with the pressures of making it work is never easy.

“Three of us returned to SRC as trained butlers and together we were responsible for 14 suites. It was a rough start with extremely long hours,” he said. Today his role is that of an executive and his scope has increased from 14 couples to 197.

Cunningham has received many accolades and awards. And with each award a promotion seemed never too far behind.

“In 2008 I was awarded Front of the House Employee of the Year and offered the evening duty manager position, which combined guest relations (my passion) as well as elements of hotel operations. Once again there was an opportunity to develop my knowledge of the business so I took it,” said Cunningham.

For three years he honed his skills as an evening duty manager and night manager.

“I wouldn’t say I had it easy but I took each job offer as a new challenge and an opportunity for capacity building.”

In 2011 Cunningham was presented with the Manager of the Year Award for a second time and offered the director of guest services position, which he accepted with open arms.

Throughout the years, Cunningham has witnessed many changes within the Sandals group. Twelve butlers now tend to the needs of Sandals Royal Caribbean’s most discerning clients and the growing pains of butler services have all subsided.

There have been many changes but the basics remain unchanged.

“Customer service remains at the core of this business,” says Cunningham, and for that reason, so does he.

In an environment where maintaining high scores, meeting revenue targets and staying within budget is top priority, Cunningham is the gatekeeper; he brings everyone back to the proverbial middle.

“I ensure that the client’s voice is heard and that above all else their needs are met,” he says. “The best part of my job now is when a guest comes to me and expresses true happiness. Sometimes they depart from the resort reluctantly with tears in their eyes and it signifies that we’ve made a real connection.”

Cunningham’s extremely personable character has earned him the title ‘Director of Smiles’. Anything outside of excellent service is, however, no laughing matter for Cunningham.

“Service is the key, excellent service is the goal, and delivering on that service is what motivates me everyday,” he says.