Spirit of Queenstown is a professional development programme for all businesses, large or small, involved in customer contact and visitor experiences.
Put together by QRC training and development manager Fiona Boyer after 12 months of consultation with clients, the programme had been built to address the specific needs of Queenstown businesses, and reflected the college's aim to be known as a "centre of excellence" in New Zealand.
"We're delivering a product that Queenstown Inc has asked for; that addresses the specific needs of our resort town, can be dynamic, adapted season by season, and will recognise changes in visitor demographics over time.
"Unlike other training programmes, this is a specialised Queenstown product being delivered by a specialist Queenstown team, with the flexibility of customised programmes on request and group rates for 10 or more staff," Ms Boyer said.
The one-day Spirit of Queenstown programme had four modules covering business, culture, service and sales.
QRC had a pool of trainers to lead each module, where attendees would gain experience in increasing sales, cross-cultural communication, creating great interpretation, and exceptional service "Queenstown-style".
To officially launch the programme, QRC presented an overview of it to senior members of Chamber of Commerce businesses last week.
Ms Boyer said the programme was a chance for service providers and tourism operators to become well-known, friendly and familiar brands for visitors to the town, and was about much more than customer service.
"We have high levels of interest in all our professional development programmes, so we're going full steam ahead with the Spirit of Queenstown.
"Businesses that have completed the programme will receive an easily identifiable `spirit of excellence' red badge that will mark them as businesses committed to delivering excellence in customer experiences in their field."
Ziptrek Ecotours marketing and sales manager Nicky Busst was one of the representatives at the launch and was full of praise for the programme.
"We're thrilled to see QRC leading the way in driving such an important focus.
"This will definitely be a must-do course for all new and existing staff this summer," she said.
• To enrol on the Spirit of Queenstown course or for further information, email training@qrc.ac.nz or call QRC on (03) 409-0500.
