Alex Simmons is our State Manager of Sales and Guest Experience in NSW and was recently invited by the Aquatics and Recreation Institute NSW (ARI) to share his insights on the importance of training our teams to provide each and every customer with an excellent guest experience.
The Belgravia Leisure guest experience team saw the COVID closures as an opportunity to pause and reflect on how they could improve and expand on their guest experience strategy.
Our Guest Experience Manager, Tim Hutchison says “Alex and Terry Terzioski have played crucial roles in leading the sales and guest experience rollout for our new frontline model and contact centres.”
- More on how we’re putting the customer at the centre of everything we do here.
Alex has been with Belgravia Leisure for four years and started as the Venue Manager of Annette Kellerman and Fanny Durack Aquatic Centres and Steel Park Waterplay. He was then promoted to Area Manager of Inner West Sydney before moving into his current role of State Manager Sales and Guest Experience.
We asked Alex a few questions to get to know him and his journey with Belgravia Leisure a bit better.
What are your highlights/magic moments working with Belgravia?
There have been loads of highlights and magic moments! The awards and accolades were great (Belgravia Leisure Facility of the Year 2019, Aquatic and Recreation Institute Facility of the year 2018) but the real highlights have been watching my team grow and develop.
I have also really enjoyed attending the Belgravia Leadership College (BLC) and the conferences are awesome!
Tell us more about the people you work with
I work really closely with the Sales and Guest Experience/Marketing teams. I love working with Tim Hutchison as the Group Manager Guest Experience. Tim is a really supportive and empowering leader. Tim was actually on the interview panel all those years ago!
The relationship that Terry Terzioski (Sales and Guest Experience Manager Vic/Tas), Tim and I have is great. Even though we are all in separate states it feels like we work side by side in the same office and are always there to collaborate and support each other.
I spend a lot of time collaborating with the marketing and comms teams. It’s really impressive to watch them work! Abby, Sharon and I have a ball working on campaigns! My relationships with Venue, Area and Regional Managers are also really important as well as the Venue Sales and Guest Experience Managers. It’s great to have a genuine team approach to what we do!
What is your favourite thing about your career?
Having the opportunity to influence the success and direction from a sales and experience perspective across so many levels within the workplace.
What I do impacts everyone connected with the business, starting with our guests and all staff, whether that is a new team member on their first day or senior leadership, I can have an impact and I love it!
I also love the diversity of scope. On any given day I get to bounce between health clubs, GOswim, group fitness, personal training, contact centres, marketing strategy and learning and development.
Belgravia Leisure is really unique in that way and one of the best parts of working in the business!
What are three things you’re most passionate about in life and why?
My greatest passions are easily defined by the below three things:
- My family
- My cavoodles
- My career
I love my family and dogs for the unconditional support and my career because I can genuinely say I wake up every day happy to go to work!
Thank you for sharing Alex! Is there anything else you would like to add?
Our business has over 45% of team members under the age of 24, many of whom are working part time or casually whilst studying or figuring out what they want to do in the future.
I was the same, studying a totally different field and after some really solid guidance finally realised that the fitness, leisure and recreation industry was a massive opportunity and where I wanted to make a career.
I encourage people not only under 24 but of any age to look at the industry as a career. You are already part of a company that can take you wherever you want to go, reach out to your leaders and explore where it could take you!
