In the fall, Hammond-native, Jennifer Buckler was a recipient of the South Shore Convention & Visitors Authority (SSCVA) R.O.S.E. Award at a ceremony held at the Radisson in Merrillville. The award recognized Buckler for routinely going above and beyond to serve each guest at Residence Inn in Hammond, where she serves as a guest service representative.
The Recognition of Service Excellence (R.O.S.E.) Awards were created to acknowledge and celebrate the non-managerial or hourly employees who exceed usual expectations when providing hospitality services to guests and customers. Those front-line employees who have made a lasting impression on guests are nominated for this award by either their managers or the guests themselves.
Buckler has been in the hotel industry for around eight years, and in the service industry since first going to work during high school.
“I actually started at our corporate office in a temporary position and when that ended I looked for something within that company,” Buckler said of working her way towards her current position. “They found a hotel that was close to my house and the rest is history!”
Initially, Buckler wanted to stay with the company because of the convenience and location, but over time, she found the industry well-suited to her skills and personality.
“Once I got in it, I found that I had a natural ability for service,” described Buckler. “I do like serving people and I really like hospitality. One of the best things about being here is that you get to meet people from different areas of our country, and even different countries as well.’
“It’s always interesting to learn what brings people to our area. It was a bit of a surprise to me. When I was newer to the hotel industry it was interesting to see that our area draws people from all over.”
R.O.S.E. Award nominees are surprised at their place of work when their nominations are announced and that was definitely the case when the SSCVA came to let Buckler know that she was a finalist for the award.
“When they came in, it was a complete shock to me,” Buckler said. “Someone came in to present the invitation to me letting me know that I was nominated, and took a picture and did a short article for the paper. It was a shock to me and very flattering.”
“Being in the service industry is something that comes naturally. To me, it’s just day-to-day life so you don’t necessarily expect recognition for it.”
R.O.S.E. Award nominees are treated and pampered before the actual ceremony, which is just one of the many ways that the SSCVA says ‘Thank You’ to these front-line workers for welcoming visitors to Northwest Indiana.
“They really rolled out the red carpet,” said Buckler. “They had us picked up at the Radisson Hotel in a party bus and then drove us to a salon where we could choose a massage, a manicure, or to get our hair done, which was all very nice. It was like a VIP experience. They closed down the salon so it was only the R.O.S.E. Award participants that were there, so it was a really neat experience to get to do that.”
“What’s funny is that when I was called up to be presented, the award they gave us was a really nice cutting board with our name on it. To be honest, I thought that was like my parting gift; sort of, ‘Here you go. Sorry you didn’t win but congratulations on being nominated!’ So I went back to my table and that’s when I found out I was actually a winner!”
At the ceremony, Buckler had some fellow employees celebrating with her which, along with all the gifts and prizes that she received, made for a great, inspiring evening.
“It’s absolutely motivating,” Buckler said. “It does make you strive to keep up your best and continue to provide great service to our guests.”
To find out more about the R.O.S.E. Awards and how you can nominate someone from the service and hospitality industry that you believe is worth recognizing, go to: http://www.southshorecva.com/rose/!
