Help Wanted
Finding the right managers is hard work
by Jodi Helmer
It’s challenging enough to find high school and college students willing to scoop ice cream cones, dress as costumed characters,, or work as lifeguards. It’s something entirely more complicated, though, for attractions to hire those same applicants as managers.
Students are known for sleeping in and not arriving at the park in the pre-dawn hours to prepare for thousands of guests, and most would prefer hanging out with friends to managing them. The good news: With the right training and incentives, teens and 20-somethings can be great managers.
“You can’t judge someone’s abilities as a supervisor based on age alone,” notes Jerry Brick, general manager of Lake Compounce, an amusement park in Bristol, Connecticut. “It’s about finding the right person for the job.”
Watch and Learn
At Lake Compounce, most of the 80 managers in the park worked as a staff member for at least one season. Brick almost never hires a manager without park experience because he believes it takes at least one season to determine management potential.
“A lot of times, a returning staff member, even if it’s not someone who’s been a manager before, will have a leg up over someone new,” he explains. “It’s easier for us to hire managers we know—staff who are familiar with the park and have a track record with us.”
During the season, Claudia Whitacre, director of resale operations at The Beach Waterpark in Mason, Ohio, is evaluating staff, taking notes on who arrives on time, has a positive attitude, works well with others, and connects with guests. She believes it isn’t that difficult to spot staff with management potential.
“Of the 157 staff members we had last season, there were just 30 who stood out,” Whitacre explains. “Those were the 30 people who never missed work, never showed up hung - over, and worked hard all the time. We recognized their potential to be good managers from watching them throughout the season.”
Be Prepared
 Before the season starts, Brick begins preparing questions to ask interviewees in the hopes of getting a sense of the management potential of incoming staff. But the interview is more than just an endless list of questions. Brick also uses the time to get to know the candidates and set expectations for their roles in the park.
“It’s a time for us to have a conversation,” he explains. “I do ask questions but I also use the time to gauge their excitement about the job.”
When it comes to determining who is the right fit for the park, first impressions are important. Brick discovered firsthand looks can be deceiving and second chances are important. When an interviewee showed up wearing inappropriate clothes and sporting blue hair, Brick used it as a teaching moment. Instead of turning him down for a job, he explained the park’s grooming standards and invited the candidate to come back when he conformed to those standards. To Brick’s surprise, he did come back—and ended up securing a job and working at Lake Compounce for four seasons. “Setting the expectations up front does pay dividends in the long run,” Brick says.
Making the right hiring decisions is the first step. After that, it’s important to prepare new managers to excel at their roles. Comprehensive training programs are essential for both new and returning managers.
Before the season starts, managers at The Beach Waterpark undergo extensive training, including an eight-hour session that covers topics from paychecks and managing peers to safety and sexual harassment. There is a test at the end of the session, and managers are required to earn a grade of at least 80 percent to demonstrate their understanding of park operations and policies.
The preseason training program also includes a practice session at the park that gives managers a chance to meet and interact with their staff, get a better understanding of park operations, and run through possible scenarios that might occur during the season.
“We want to give supervisors a chance to take ownership of their areas before the season begins to help set them up for success,” Whitacre explains. Canada’s Wonderland in Toronto, Ontario, has an extensive training program that includes four preseason sessions, including general park training and department training. Throughout the season, supervisors participate in a specialized training program that teaches new management techniques and helps sharpen their existing skills. The park also offers a supervisor-in-training program to help up-and-coming supervisors test the waters and develop their skills before being promoted.
“We can have the best rides, the best restaurants and games and shows, and if we’re not providing great customer service, guests may think twice about visiting the park,” says Susan Edwards, director of human resources at Canada’s Wonderland. “Our managers play a key role in the quality of our customer service; they’re the lifeline to our success.”
Provide Support
During the season, managers will face a number of challenges from disciplining staff to dealing with dissatisfied guests. Offering support to managers who have questions or need advice on how to handle a certain scenario is essential.
Luke Berger, group food sales manager at Coney Island, a seasonal theme park in Cincinnati, Ohio, has an open-door policy and encourages his management team to come to him if there are issues or concerns.
“One of the challenges of having managers who are in high school and college is that they are still figuring out their strengths and weaknesses and growing up in the process,” Berger explains. “It’s my job to help support them as they develop their management skills and also to empower them to make decisions.”
The tactic has been successful. With Berger’s encouragement and support, managers in their teens and 20s have taken initiative to improve group food sales and streamline picnic operations. His willingness to listen to suggestions and empower management staff to take ownership of their departments has improved the park experience for corporate groups. Canada’s Wonderland has a representative from human resources on duty during park operating hours to provide support to management staff. “Support is always just a phone call away,” says Edwards. “Knowing that we’re there to support them helps make our supervisors feel more confident in their roles.”
Offer Incentives
The frenzied pace of the season requires managers to work long hours with little time off. Incentive programs can help keep them motivated to work hard and represent the park well.
“We know that if supervisors aren’t performing well, their staff won’t perform well, either,” notes Mary Schumacker, vice president of sales and marketing for Coney Island. “We work hard to take care of our supervisors because they have the biggest impact on our guests.”
Incentive programs don’t have to be elaborate or expensive. Through the Customer Service Incentive (CSI) program at Coney Island, team members are recognized for stellar performance with a CSI card. After earning two cards, staff can spin a wheel for prizes like concert tickets and DVDs. Lake Compounce has a similar program, giving Star Cards for good performance, which can earn a chance to win prizes or be named Service Superstars. At both parks, managers and staff participate in these programs.
Coney Island also offers a management bonus program. Managers who work in revenue-generating operations like gift shops and concession stands have a chance to earn a percentage of their profits. Schumacker believes that rewarding managers for the performance of their departments keeps the park operations in top form. The bonus program also has another benefit: “It keeps our managers returning season after season,” Schumacker notes.
Offering end-of-season picnics and parties is also a popular way for parks to show their appreciation to management and staff. The Beach Waterpark hosts pancake breakfasts and supervisor banquets complete with limousines and prizes.
“We want [our managers] to think, ‘The Beach takes care of me so I’ll work hard to do things for them,’” explains Whitacre. “Our managers have a big impact on our business, and it’s in our best interest to keep them happy.”
Jodi Helmer is a freelance writer in Charlotte, North Carolina. www.jodihelmer.com.
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