With the preparations for the next school session well underway, I am very excited to tell you about some additional courses.  The Charles MacPherson Academy now offers the following courses to both Hospitality & Residential clients either at the Academy or on-site,

·    Butler 101 - ten class program
·    Concierge 101 - three day program
·    Housekeeping 101 - one day program
·    Advanced Housekeeping - five day program

Despite the current economic climate, learning and skills improvement are always cost effective methods to cross-train and ensure that current staff is operating at the highest level. Additionally, education provides an opportunity to improve the delivery of customer service at an optimal level so that hoteliers can successfully compete within a cutthroat hospitality market.

Interestingly enough, we have also had considerable interest in cross-training from our residential clients to optimize and expand the skills of their current staff.

For those of us who are curious by nature and always interested in professional development, these difficult times present great opportunity.

On Saturday February 28th, Virgin radio 99.9 in Toronto visited The Charles MacPherson Academy and spent some time with Charles. 

The station had Charles on-air to talk about the Academy and to run a contest that offered the prize winners a day of "White Glove treatment" at the Academy.

There were three winners on Valentine's Day and they were each invited to bring a guest to the Academy.  The day began with a discussion of the Role of a Butler.  There was a lot of interest in the job and a lot of humorous chatter about butlers and both real and fictional.  The group then participated in an exercise game to identify unusual pieces of cutlery.

Charles Demonstrated proper table setting and then the group worked with Charles to learn how a rotary iron works.  Our Housekeeping instructor Ms. Bonnie Aprile then taught all of the students how to properly iron a shirt.  The winners pronounced real surprise and delight at how much they had learned and they all received an Honourary Certificate in Housekeeping.

 

Luxury service and staffing is still a priority for our clients and Charles MacPherson Associates rises to the occasion once again.  In February we began a return assignment to provide a luxury hotel in Manhattan with a team of 12 Butlers providing 24/7 guest services for a prominent guest and delegation.

Working on such projects enables us to provide our client with the essential staffing expertise and tools that will be a positive addition to their current guest services and will enhance their guest's stay.  

After initial consultation and discussions we proceeded to provide the following:

·    A staffing plan to support a 24/7 schedule for a team of 12 Butlers
·    Providing a comprehensive Training Manual
·    Providing on-site training for the Butler team
·    Working with the hotel to emphasize guest services
·    Advising correct Middle Eastern protocols for the guest and delegation
·    On going visits and follow up by our office
·    Locating our Lead Butler on-site available to the hotel and Butler team
·    Providing a detailed and appropriate payroll budget
·    On going visits and follow up by our office

We look forward to our continued association within the hospitality establishment and will continue to build on our emphasis for providing staffing solutions and training for the benefit of our clients and their guests.

 

The course teaches students how to avoid common housekeeping mistakes.  Students deal with laundry using state of the art Miele washers and dryers (fabric overview, laundry symbol chart, pre-treatment and stain removal) ironing best practices.  Students are also introduced to Clothing steamers and the Miele Rotary iron.

The Students also spend time on best practices for bathroom and kitchen sanitization and correct technique and process for cleaning a room.  Common commercial cleaning products and environmentally friendly substitutes are discussed and additional time is spent on cleaning fine surfaces like marble, Corian®, slate, granite and various wood surfaces.

 

Charles MacPherson Associates Inc. has over twelve years experience in the luxury residential market and the luxury hospitality market. We have four complimentary lines of business:

* Advisory & Consulting
* Placement
* Academy
* Software

 

Contact Information


Toronto:
507 King Street East
Suite 100
Toronto, Ontario, M5A 1M3
CANADA

(416) 369-1146 office
(416) 369-1743 facsimile

New York:
134 West 82 Street
Suite 3B
New York, New York 10024
United States

(212) 877-6962 office
(917) 441-0064 facsimile