Originally named the St Kilda Parkview Hotel, recently rebranded Melbourne Parkview Hotel is located in the stylish and trendy Melbourne suburb of St Kilda. A long time GuestCentrix client, we chatted recently with Andrew Goldfinch, Director of Operations of this great hotel.
CMS : Hi Andrew , it was great to break bread with you and Laurie recently at the beautiful Parkview Melbourne . How long have you been with the Parkview and what is it about the role that keeps you coming back for more each day ?
Andrew : I started at the Parkview in October 2000 so it’s been almost 16 years of living the dream. The reason I’ve been here for that long is pretty simple, it’s just a great place to work. We have an owner who has invested more than $12m with refurbs in 2005/6 of the Public Areas and 2011 of rooms & corridors which keeps the facilities up to date and well regarded by our customers. Combining this with our strategy of “Happy Customers + Happy Staff = Success” means we have developed a culture where all the staff are really engaged in a supportive environment that inspires them. Look at the length of tenure of our Management Team below, this represents 128 years of management experience gained AT the Parkview.
- DOO – 16 Years
- Head Concierge – 15 Years
- GM – 14 Years
- Exec Chef – 14 Years
- Housekeeper – 11 Years
- Restaurant Manager – 10 Years
- Finance Manager – 10 Years
- C&E Manager – 9 Years
- Maintenance Manager – 9 Years
- Night Manager – 9 Years
- FOM – 6 Years
- DOSM – 5 Years
On top of that list we have 36 other staff members who have been with us for 5 years or more totalling an additional 511 years of Parkview experience.
CMS: The Parkview has adapted significantly to the changing demands and tastes of your guests . How have you managed to stay on trend without losing your unique identity ?
Andrew: I think the challenge for us is that we are providing an old fashioned full service hotel in a brave new digital world. So we have developed new media in taking our product to market and in communicating with our guests whilst within the property we are deliberating aiming for a slower, gentler pace that allows people an opportunity to relax and feel at home among friendly, helpful people.
CMS: Like an old married couple out for a Sunday walk , the Parkview has been with CMS since day one . What do you value most about your partnership with CMS?
Andrew: That it is in fact a partnership. We are in a relationship business and being able to work together over many, many years and many, many versions of CMS’s offerings has seen a lot of give and take from both sides. When I started here we were using the MS-DOS based Hotel XL as our PMS and we have since updated to the latest windows version, added Point of Sale, Conference & Banqueting, Repairs & Maintenance and the indispensable GPhone App. We have introduced the software to our other 2 properties the Brisbane Riverview and North Sydney Harbourview and at every stage we have been supported by CMS and have never had any cause to be anything other than delighted in the operational advantages afforded to us by the products and services you have supplied. We are already looking forward to moving to the browser based, cloud hosted version of the PMS over the next year or two.
CMS: Andrew , Melbourne is one of our favourite cities to visit . What is coming up that should tempt us down to St Kilda Road?
Andrew: Well Melbourne is certainly an event powerhouse and over the next couple of months we have the AFL final series culminating in the AFL Grand Final on October 1. The Royal Melbourne Show runs from 17 – 27 September. World Skills Vocational training National Championships are on from 6 – 8 October. The Spring Racing Carnival featuring The Caulfield Cup (15 October) The Cox Plate (22 October) the Victoria Derby (29 October) Melbourne Cup (1 Nov) Oaks Day (3 Nov) and Stakes Day (5 Nov). The Melbourne Fringe Festival which runs from 15 Sept – 6 Oct is an adventurous multi art form festival and it combines neatly with The Melbourne Festival which runs from 6 – 23 October featuring Food, Arts & Culture events giving us over a month of wonderful Melbourne culture.
CMS: With the tennis and the F1 early on in 2017 , what are the chances of bumping into Venus Williams or Lewis Hamilton at the Cornflakes on the buffet ?
Andrew: Well we do have a long history of F1 race teams staying with us. We have had Sauber here since the very first Melbourne Grand Prix along with more recent arrivals, Force India and Manor. Though I suspect you may have to make a booking at Crown if you want to have breakfast with Lewis or Venus!
CMS: Pass the milk please Venus!
To book your next stay in St Kilda, head on over to the Melbourne Parkview Hotel website for a direct booking