SANDALS Resorts International (SRI) last Thursday staged the latest in its series of leadership workshops for managers at Sandals Montego Bay.

The series of workshops is aimed at gearing its cadre of managers to meet the rigours of the COVID-19 era workplace, focusing on not just the technical competence of its managers, but their mental fortitude as well.

In the latest staging presentations were made by a number of SRI senior officers, including Chief Executive Officer Gebhard Rainer who praised the managers for their outstanding performance during the resort closure period, as well as since reopening. Rainer pointed to the high guest satisfaction scores the resort had received from guests who vacationed recently as well as the hotel’s strict adherence to the Sandals Platinum Protocols of Cleanliness.

He also outlined the vision of the company for the future, pointed out its strength and strategic moves made recently with an eye on expansion, and that Sandals will, in time, emerge stronger after the pandemic.

Also presenting were group directors for Learning and Development and Human Resources Dr Phillip Brown and Ryan Matthew, who shared on ‘Leadership in the New Normal’, pin-pointing leadership techniques useful during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.

Director, corporate services, Jeremy Jones, in making his presentation on ‘The Sandals Experience’, tracked his journey since joining Sandals Resorts, outlining the myriad of opportunities available for growth as well as the strength of the company to outlast the pandemic.

And Marsha-Ann Donaldson-Brown, director of romance, addressed the topic of change management, urging the Sandals Royal Caribbean managers to become agents of change and to offer strong technical and emotional leadership to the team members in their various departments.

A special session on ‘Mentally Recovering from the Pandemic’ was delivered by psychologist Dr Sydney McGill, who gave tips on a number of physical and mental exercises which would help the managers cope during these challenging times.

Dr McGill said it is now a very stressful period for persons in the hospitality industry which will test their mental fortitude, and urged managers to work as a team, leaning on each other for support as well as accessing all the resources which Sandals Resorts had to offer.