‘It’s about making people smile’ says SunSquare Montecasino GM:

Wilma Swart, GM of SunSquare Montecasino (https://www.tsogosun.com/sunsquare-montecasino), says her ‘never give up’ life mantra has contributed richly to her strong and steady rise through the ranks to her position at the helm of the busiest hotel in Montecasino (https://www.tsogosun.com/montecasino), and she quotes lyrics from a song by Shawn Mendes, “Sometimes I feel like giving up, but I just can’t. It isn’t in my blood”. She has been passionate about hospitality and “making people smile” since she was a small child, and believes her strengths of energy, fun, and focus are adding value to the hotel, staff, and guests.

Swart has worked for seven different hotels since 1996 and says SunSquare Montecasino is the most exciting. “The SunSquare brand is quirky and trendy, and very attractive to guests of all ages. It’s a fun brand to work for, and it lives out its fun style more readily than more formal five-star hotels possibly would. Here at SunSquare Montecasino there is always a buzz and always something happening – in the highly popular Aarya restaurant, at the front desk – at all hours, long after other hotels and restaurants have quietened down for the night. I love it – it’s my kind of crazy.”

SunSquare Montecasino is a 179-room hotel located on the Piazza which features modern styling and bright, contemporary design. It offers a friendly and welcoming atmosphere, an excellent standard of service, a wide range of amenities and facilities in the hotel and on the Montecasino property and is a popular choice for both business and leisure travellers.

Swart started at the Garden Court Pietersburg (now Polokwane) in 1995 as Guest Services Attendant, Front Office, and soon after joining, her potential was recognised, and she was identified as excellent management material. She moved to Pretoria to Holiday Inn Garden Court Burgerspark as PA to the GM and then as Reservations Manager. In 1998 she joined Holiday Inn Garden Court Eastgate in Johannesburg as Food and Beverage Manager and Front Office Manager, which was followed by four years at Holiday Inn Pretoria as Executive Housekeeper and Rooms Division Manager, which she thoroughly enjoyed “because housekeeping is the heartbeat of the hotel”. She then spent five years in the hospitality services industry for experience in sales, where she also excelled, winning awards and incentives. She was head-hunted back to Tsogo Sun (https://www.tsogosun.com/) to Southern Sun Pretoria as Assistant GM in 2009 to familiarise herself with the systems, and in 2010 took over as GM of Southern Sun Katherine Street Sandton (https://www.tsogosun.com/southern-sun-katherine-street-sandton). In September 2017 she left to join SunSquare Montecasino.

Through the years Swart has notched up a formidable collection of qualifications, which include Certified Hotel Administrator through the American Hotel and Lodging Educational Institute, an MBA from GIBS Business School, where she won Action Learning Project of the year, a Hotel Management Diploma from Wits Hotel School (Student of the Year Award 1999), several Damelin Management diplomas, and numerous courses in training, coaching, finance, management, and risk.

At SunSquare Montecasino she has a staff of 99, who are her primary focus. “Helping them grow is vitally important. If they don’t have job satisfaction and a passion for what they are doing, they are not going to deliver the excellent service that we pride ourselves in at the hotel.” Swart’s philosophy is to be accessible, compassionate, realistic in her expectations, and to be hands-on, helping out in any and every department when necessary. “Every staff member has their own unique circumstances in life and I need to understand that and determine what they need to give their best. Our staff need to smile all the time to ensure our guests get the best experience here – I need to make sure they have reason to smile at work.”

Her advice to youngsters starting out in the industry or considering a career in hospitality is first to be sure that they know what they’re getting into. “The hotel industry is hard work and long hours, weekends, and public holiday shift work. It is not all glitz and glamour. If you don’t have a passion for people, for attention to detail, and for service, you are not going to be happy in this environment.” She adds that qualities essential for a good hotel GM include grit (as in resilience, the ability to get up after being knocked down, and consistency of effort rather than short bursts), time management, an enjoyment of variety in a day, and respect for all people. “Good management starts with good manners,” she says.

Swart is married with two small children, aged ten and four, and is a firm believer in having a successful career as well as a great family life. Her downtime is spent with her family and in creative activities –and in continuing “to do what makes people happy.”

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Author: Business News