Updated May 31, 2022
Congratulations to Corporate Services Host of the Quarter for the 1st Quarter of 2022 – PAM NIESZ!
Since 2006 when Pam joined Outrigger, she has been an integral part of the legal department. I would like to thank Pam for contributing to Outrigger’s success over the years and to acknowledge how much we appreciate and value her work.
Pam has many great qualities, but I truly value her attention to detail and determination to complete any task given to her. This is truly evident when dealing with the Company’s complicated financings and acquisitions which require her to tackle a large workload amongst multiple parties. While the workload is large, Pam manages to keep a sunny disposition and positive outlook with the bigger picture in mind – Outrigger’s success.
Pam was one of the first hosts when the legal department was formed 16 years ago and she has been the one remaining constant in the department and a valuable asset when it comes to historical knowledge. Pam has been willing to challenge herself in the last several years by expanding her role in the department by conducting initial reviews of contracts, amendments to leases, to creating templates that are utilized by other departments. She is a team player who brings invaluable insight and motivation to her work while never turning down a project because she hasn’t done it before.
Pam is a perfect example of what we want in a host and we’re thankful to have her as part of the Outrigger legal team.
– Nominated by Scott Miyasato, SVP and General Counsel
Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort April Host of the Month — BARRY CHUN
Barry has always been helpful in assisting fellow bell hosts with whatever we need. For example, he helped plan and organize ahead before the “Curacao” Group from the west coast arrived, so their stay would be enjoyable and run smoothly. One day that really stood out was when a group of young keiki went into the ABC Store across from the bell desk. They were looking at candies and goodies, but didn’t have money. Barry saw this and paid for goodies for them with his own money. The keiki were so appreciative and thanked Barry with big smiles on their way out. He did this out of pure kindness without saying anything. His caring for his department, guests and especially of keiki does not go unnoticed.
– Nomination submitted by Clinton Ogata, Front Service Supervisor
Mahalo and congratulations also to nominees Ligaya martin, Jacky Zheng and Arnel Vea.
OHANA Waikiki East by Outrigger March Host of the Month – ANGIE PARANGAN
Angie has shown and given the greatest of Aloha to all of the guests she interacts with on a daily basis. Her quick thinking and kind heart reaches the guests and is just the extra push for making their stay not just good, but amazing. Her praises can be seen everywhere on 5-star reviews and is what contributed in making us #48 on Tripadvisor:
For these reasons and so much more, I nominate Angie Parangan as Host of the Month for March.
– Nominated by Kiana MacDonald, Area Director of Front Services
OHANA Waikiki East by Outrigger April Host of the Month – CASSANDRA MERCER
Cassandra is a true team player. Although she has the least amount of seniority, her knowledge of the front desk is what largely contributes to the success of the overall operation. Cassandra’s shifts change often and occasionally have only 8 hours in between; however, her positive attitude and resilient energy is what motivates her to show up as the best version of herself every day. Although we encountered a few unexpected sick calls in April, Cassandra was willing to change her days off and even return to work after just getting off her previous shift to cover. We are very grateful for her flexibility and helpfulness. As many may recall, OHANA Waikiki East (OEH) experienced an electrical fire on the night of April 9. Cassandra was the night audit and manager on duty that night. Despite the chaos of the incident, Cassandra remained calm and gave direction to all staff working before she called the managers to alert them. She manned the fire panel, answered the phones and gave instruction via radio without any visible signs of panic. Cassandra’s quick action allowed for smooth evacuation and zero injuries. She was even recognized and praised via post-departure surveys for her professionalism. The day went on, but the chaos did not stop. Without asking, Cassandra volunteered to stay until order was restored. Unfortunately, the generator had stopped running after 11 hours, and the panic started all over again. Once again, Cassandra remained calm and did her best to ease the hysteria. In total, Cassandra worked from 9:30 p.m. – 3 p.m., 17.50 hours! It truly goes without saying that she was a genuine hero that day! Cassandra is also a comedian at heart. She is always finding ways to make everyone around her laugh or smile. When she’s not doing that, she’s also ordering food or coffee for her team. She has a naturally selfless disposition, and she can never do too much for others. In addition, she is a guest favorite. She was mentioned 3 times on UniFocus for her activation of the 4 Keys. Cassandra is an asset to the OHANA Waikiki East by Outrigger, but in the month of April, she absolutely shined as a superstar and has earned the honor of being named OEH Host of the Month April 2022.
– Nominated by Kiana MacDonald, Area Director of Front Services
Congratulations and thank you also to nominee, Bei Yun Zhou.
OHANA Waikiki East by Outrigger Manager of the 1st Quarter 2022 – JASON NAGAMINE
Jason joined the OHANA Waikiki East by Outrigger (OEH) toward the end of 2021. Since his arrival, he has drastically improved several aspects of the hotel, ranging from operations to host morale. As many know, OEH is one of Outrigger’s oldest properties and up next for renovation. As a result of this, the property itself needs extra TLC. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon that certain units will not have hot water or that fixtures will often come off unintentionally. Despite its setbacks, OEH remains a return guest favorite because of the shining service from our hosts.
Jason leads through his resilient example. There is nothing too tough for Jason to handle. During Quarter 1 of 2022, Jason spearheaded our ongoing issues with our parking structure. He consistently communicated and collaborated with both our Elite Parking representative as well as our internal security team. While the issue is still pending, Jason’s innovative thinking and quick action are what have helped us to simultaneously save our service scores monumentally! When the parking gate would not read guest keys after several attempts, he created a communication process that would manually override the gate by sending daily updates to Elite. This remedy has proven to be a successful hack while IT continues to investigate. If all else failed, he would run down to the parking area and manually allow guests to leave by utilizing our proxy card. Guests even commented on Jason’s rapid reaction to the issues and praised him for running down to help without question.
In addition to saving our parking issues, Jason has also championed several billing processes at the front desk for Priceline/Agoda, Hawaiian Airlines and more. These individual tasks are extremely time-sensitive, time-consuming and can be very challenging when unable to balance properly. With his expertise, Jason single-handedly reconciled all billing from when he first arrived back in 2021. Now that he is confident in the procedures, he is now focusing on mentoring the rest of his team, so as to delegate tasks and empower them.
With the departures of our maintenance manager and area director of engineering, Jason has truly shined beyond his immediate role. Not only has he exceeded as a manager for front desk and bell desk, but he has also taken the time to understand fellow departments like housekeeping and assist with delegating our maintenance crew for work orders. By expanding his knowledge of OEH and connection with our personnel, Jason has been able to provide tailored solutions that continue to validate all hosts and their concerns. In these last few months, Jason has earned the trust of his team and, in turn, their respect for him has grown exponentially. We are extremely proud of the progress Jason has made, and we can’t wait to see the amazing things he will do in the next quarter! Mahalo for you have done and continue to do, Jason!
– Nominated by Kiana MacDonald, Area Director of Front Services
Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger April Host of the Month – JENNY PANG
As our senior host, Jenny is the pillar of the Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger (OBC) front desk. She comes to work early every morning and ignites each day with her positive energy. Hosts and guests love interacting with Jenny and are often seen laughing alongside her as they exchanges stories. In the month of April, we were very sad to lose three valued hosts. With occupancies in the 90s and three bodies short, Jenny truly came through to save the month. She willingly worked overtime, changed her days off and stayed late when unanticipated sick calls came in. At times, Jenny even offered to stay later than management asked. This is because of Jenny’s high level of emotional intelligence. She is able to recognize when others need assistance and takes it upon herself to do all she can to help. In addition to her impact on personnel, she is also a trailblazer in rectifying booking errors. Jenny has memorized almost all of OBC’s rate codes and inclusions. With this knowledge at hand, she screens all bookings as they come in and ensures they are set up correctly. As she checks guests out, she also verifies the bill to ensure it is correct before presenting to the guests. Jenny’s expertise in Opera has saved us thousands of dollars in disputes and adjustments. As she catches errors, she forwards them to management, so they can address and prevent user error moving forward. Jenny is a phenomenal host and asset to the Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger. The front services team appreciates her upbeat disposition and caring nature. In addition, the management team cannot thank her enough for her exceeding efforts in the month of April. It is without doubt that Jenny’s extreme flexibility and impactful support are what promoted smooth execution of the operation, despite massive transition. With great joy, we are excited to nominate Jenny Pang for OBC Host of the Month for April 2022! Mahalo, Jenny!
– Nominated by Kiana MacDonald, Area Director of Front Services
Mahalo and congratulations to nominee Virgil Dungalen!
Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger Manager of the 1st Quarter 2022 – MARY LOY
As the area director of corporate and leisure sales, Mary Loy has been the key player in the exponential growth of the North America and Oceania wholesale segments at the Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger (in 2019, WHL-B made up 5.3% of total revenue; in 2022, it comprises nearly 14.64%). She curates strong, mutually beneficial partnerships and works tirelessly to ensure that she communicates the unique, vibrant personalities of the properties she represents.
Mary is a consummate professional and integral member of both the commercial and property-based operations teams. We are incredibly grateful for all that she does for Beachcomber and the entire Waikiki Collection.
– Nominated by Edwin Torres, General Manager
Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort Celebrates Exceptional Hosts
We held our Host Recognition (Vuvale Get Together) event and congratulate:
Manager of the Month — RAMANU SOLIMOCE (OHS and security) – Ramanu is a very competent manager who does not require any follow-up. He delivers required reports and requests in a prompt manner.
Supervisor of the Month — MALAKAI KUNASAU (food and beverage) – Malakai has led the team in a very proactive manner while showing great leadership skills. He certainly is a hands-on leader.
APOROSA TABULAWAKI (food and beverage) – Aporosa has actively assisted the team in absence of supervisors and managers; a very loyal and hardworking host.
SEREMAIA SIGANISUCU (grounds and landscaping) – Seremaia is a tremendous and skillful worker who keeps our gardens and especially our coconut trees clean and attractive.
Here to Help — FOZIYA ALI (Bebe Spa) – Foziya is a pleasant host who assists guests and staff in a very exceptional manner. She showcases our Bula Spirit.
How Can I Help — SANJALICA PILLAY (Human Resources) – Sanjalica is a host who is very dedicated to her work. In her manager’s absence, she guides the team in all HR matters.
