Welcome to the Front Line/Bottom Line Project Briefing A joint project of Haywood, Southwestern, & Tri-County Community Colleges Laura Leatherwood Haywood Community College (828) Connie Haire Southwestern Community College (828) Bo Gray Tri County Community College (828)

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What is RCCI? The mission of the Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) is to strengthen rural communities by assisting their community colleges in assuming a more active leadership role in three distinct, yet interrelated areas:  Civic Engagement  Economic Development  Educational Access

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What is the Western Carolina Partnership? The Western Carolina Partnership of the Rural Community College Initiative (WCP) is comprised of representatives from Haywood, Southwestern and Tri-County Community Colleges. It was formed in 2003 by the Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) to operate as a regional cooperative.

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Vision and Goal  Vision: “The Western North Carolina tourism industry is renowned for hospitality and customer service and is a model of effectiveness and competitiveness”  Goal: Enhance the tourism and hospitality industry in the region as it relates to economic development

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Project Strategies  STRATEGY #1: Assessing the needs of the area for customer service programs  METHODS: Identify travel and hospitality industry employers/employees in the region Collect date regarding needs and determine expectations of employers/employees/visitors Analyze data Gauge employer/employee "buy in" (participation)

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Project Strategies  STRATEGY #2: Develop strategies to address the identified needs  METHODS: Benchmark successful customer service programs - research employee incentives Inventory community college resources Assess hospitality network of organizations (Chamber of Commerce, travel and tourism, Smoky Mountain Host, Tribal marketing, promotions, Heritage Tourism, designated areas. Develop a pilot program for the Qualla Boundary Create a customer service certification

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Project Strategies  STRATEGY # 3: Implement customer service programs  METHODS: Rollout program to tourism/hospitality network (“Qualla Customer Service Project”) Refine project as presented Initiate pilot on the Qualla boundary Certification program developed after pilot project completed Modify/refine Qualla Customer Service Project for seven county region

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Project Strategies  STRATEGY #4: Evaluate customer service needs for effectiveness and competitiveness  METHODS: Employee performance Visitor satisfaction Employer satisfaction (indicators identified, pay for training, incentives, recommendations for others) Participants evaluate Qualla programs Evaluation (will be important for subsequent customer service programs)

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What is this project? The Western Carolina Partnership is engaged in a project focused on improving frontline customer service in the Qualla Boundary and North Carolina's seven western counties.

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  Why is the project called "Front Line/Bottom Line"? Experts recognize the key information source for visitors are the folks on the front lines - gas stations, convenience stores, motels, restaurants, attractions, etc. The level of customer service provided by front line employees affects the profitability (the "bottom line") of a business.

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What is the objective of the project? The main objective of this project phase is to examine how our educational institutions can help the Qualla Boundary and seven counties not only to identify gaps in employer needs, but also suggest education and training options to employees that will aid retention and job satisfaction.

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What types of businesses will participate in this project? Shops, hotels and motels, gas stations, convenience stores – in general, businesses serving visitors to our region.  Why focus on improving customer service in the travel & tourism industry? Because travel and tourism has been identified as a key component for economic development in the region.

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What benefits do you expect from improved customer service? Visitors will expand their stay Visitors will return again, bringing others More visitor time spent in the region means more revenue will be generated for business owners More likely that employees will be rewarded

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  What will the training look like? Be financially self-sustaining Create a transferable "certification" for the employees completing the training Create a recognizable "brand" for tourism in the project area Result in concrete, basic improvements in customer service skills Respect regional cultures

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  Will the training cost the participating businesses money? Undetermined at this time

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Frequently Asked Questions  How is the project organized? The project is being developed in two phases:  Phase 1: Project planning and development  Phase 2: Project implementation

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Work Plan  Establish project identity: Establish telephone number and remote- accessed voic for project inquiries (800) , ext. 421 (828) , ext. 421 Establish physical address: P.O. Box 504, Cherokee, NC Create basic web page for project?  Establish baseline visitor data:

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Work Plan: May-July 2004  Conduct a needs assessment – Design & Research Establish a profile for study participants Design assessment tool  Conduct a needs assessment – Survey Qualla Boundary Telephone survey begins week of June 1  Conduct a needs assessment – Seven Counties Refine survey and mail to businesses  Inventory community college resources

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Work Plan: May-July 2004  Research best practices for training front line employees  Benchmark other successful programs KiwiHost, New Zealand South Dakota's “Great Service STAR” Montana Superhost “H.M.S.- Hospitality, Maryland Style” Oklahoma PRIDE Program

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Work Plan: Aug.-Oct  Compare customer service programs from other tribes, public or private industry  Develop a pilot customer service program for the Qualla Boundary. An ideal program would: Be financially self-sustaining Create a transferable "certification" for the employees completing the training Create a recognizable "brand" for tourism in the project area Result in concrete, basic improvements in customer service skills Respect local culture

Front Line/Bottom Line Briefing Sponsorship & Support  This project is being made possible by the generous financial support from the Cherokee Preservation Foundation, the RCCI, and vital assistance from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension Service