I think it would be nice if we could respond to your comments .I agree with the comment last time about upper management visiting the employees,I very rarely see them.
I think you can respond just by leaving another comment or emailing directly. However I can look into the ability to add comments to the response if there are others that feel that would be helpful.
-Jeremy Riss
I’m pretty upset with how ski school is being run this year. I have repeated requests to get my schedule fixed to no avail, and I have sent emails to Managers that have not been returned.
This is an extremely unprofessional way to run a ski environment. I understand that there has been issues with call outs and short staffing, but these issues have always been the case. Never have I been apart of an operation that is so inept at dealing with a variety of problems. The communication between managers and employees in ski school is terrible with no one taking responsibility for issues that occur. I have repeatedly requested clarifications about personal issues and health concerns that have not been addressed, which then leads to me being scheduled incorrectly. I have very little faith that this will get corrected this year.
I also have been forced to work through my lunch to please guests only to be “absolutely needed” for an afternoon lesson with no breaks. This is an absolutely illegal practice.
Most of all I am disappointed in the lack of response and lack of perpetual stoke that seems to be missing. Possibly getting your act together and treating your employees appropriately can be a great way to improve that stoke.
One final note: this is my 5th season teaching and it will likely be my last unless these issues begin to be addressed. I’m upset by the lack of response and lack of caring that exists.
I'm sorry you feel that way. If you are open to it please shoot me an email, I'd love to discuss in person.
-Jeremy.Riss@skihood.com
Follow up response from Tyler:
It sounds like you and Mark Fischer are going to meet next time you are up to correct your scheduling issues in person. I do recall the day when we were very busy and many instructors had called in sick, and we needed extra help with afternoon lessons. Thank you so much for putting in the extra effort on that day. Later on that day I also learned of your injury and the need for modified work assignments. In the future, if you are feeling like you cannot do what was being asked of you at the time, please let us know, and we will do our best to accommodate.
Regarding your comment about emails sent to managers without response about scheduling issues - the last email I received directly from you was on 11/30/2018 regarding resetting your password on the MHM Instructor Portal, the same day you submitted your season schedule. Password resets may also be completed on the Instructor Portal without needing a manager or supervisor to reset it for you.
Following the proper procedures for calling in and requesting schedule changes should be followed to avoid these scheduling issues in the future, rather than sending an email to a manager. Managers take days off too, and when a schedule change sits in an inbox for a few days it can get buried. When you request a schedule change or use the call in form on the instructor portal, the entire management and supervisor team is alerted, and can adjust your schedule.
Also, when someone misses a shift we send a text and email message alerting team members that they missed their shift - it appears we have sent this message to you during Christmas break. In that email are instructions and links to the proper forms on the instructor portal to call in or make a schedule change request. It also appears you do know how to use the Call In form, as we received one from you for 1/5 and 2/2 as well as a Schedule Change Request on 2/9.
This is so helpful and we appreciate you using the proper procedures for these requests. My reasons for sharing all this information with you and others is so that others may avoid a similar situation. Let's hope the rest of the season we can adjust the stoke level up for you - and all the new snow we are receiving might help with that too!
Tyler
--
Tyler Barnes
Learning Center Operations Manager
tyler.barnes@skihood.com
O: (503) 337-2222 ext.1276
Just maybe a little compensation for gas if you don’t get a lesson
Also I AM REALLY PROUD TO WORK FOR A COMPANY THAT RECOGNIZES THE NEED TO HELP THOSE INVOLVED IN THE SHUTDOWN OF OUR GOVT.
Thanks the Furlough ticket seems to have worked out very well. I believe it was the Marketing teams idea. Regarding gas compensation if you don't get a lesson, please reach out to the Learning Center Management team with what you think would be fair. Certainly no guarantees but it seems like it is at least worth having the discussion.
-Jeremy Riss
It has definitely been a transitional year for my department. New management has caused some tension in some areas. Ski Patrol is an experienced based job. It requires knowledge of the hill and experience making decisions that can only come with time spent working. This year I’ve seen experienced patrollers told they don’t have a place on the roster due to commitment issues. These are patrollers who would otherwise be an important employee on their work days. Now they can’t work at all. Even as the department continues to hire throughout the season. Bringing on new rookies that can’t work full time mid season is not a good way to add to the team. It takes patrollers out of the loop for training and puts a more stressful work load on everyone else. If this job is so competitive like we’ve been told, why can’t we hire more people that can do the job?
I appreciate your feedback. We hired to the budgeted levels this season and staffing has still been tight during a few periods. This has been noted and is not satisfactory - staffing solutions are my top priority. We will be looking to add staff and infrastructure for future seasons.
Perhaps something was lost in translation, see highlights, because no patrollers have been prevented from working due to commitment issues. We strongly value senior patrollers and have commitment packages to meet each person’s availability from intermittent employees who can only work 10 shifts/season, to full time work throughout the 7 day operational calendar, with several commitment levels in between. We’d love to have veteran patrollers work 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 shifts/wk depending on their situation. We may not always be able to fully utilize senior patrollers with highly inconsistent availabilities.
Thanks for your patience as we flex to meet current employee needs and attempt new staffing solutions.
-John Bain
We need to have speakers at every lift. Customers love having music at the lifts and it makes for a more inviting and fun environment for them and helps keep lifties happy at work. MHX has not had one all season and is the central hub where most of our guests are first greeted on the hill I feel it is very important to get a speaker there ASAP.
Also just an idea but healthy competition never hurt maybe we can have a ramp competition day where we switch section supervisors around for a day and they judge our ramps and the lift with the best maintained ramp all day in each section gets a new speaker when they come in and the other lifts then get the old ones, so really everyone wins but it can reward the teams that really focus on it and I think a competition between the lifts would be fun.
I love this idea! We are actually currently working to get even more speakers for more lifts but in the meantime, this kind of friendly competition sounds like a great way to reward hard work. In seasons past, we have actually had a program similar to this where the supervisors took into account the ramp, the cleanliness off the work area, among other things. I think it is time to bring it back with the speakers as an incentive!
- Marshal Ellison, Lift Operations Assistant Manager