Luke Gosney

At Coppa Club Guildford we consist of a small team but with a big task set out before us. I am solely in charge of a large amount of tables at once which are usually all filled throughout the day. We have a 'five base' policy at Coppa where we must touch base at the tables at least five times throughout someones dining experience. This demands me to deliver excellent customer service through friendly and polite interaction at all times. Time management, organisational skills, efficiency are all traits that I push to execute every shift I work but I believe the number one skill needed to perfect any role where you are socializing constantly is charisma and kindness and passion. I would always strive for the customer to feel at home and safe in the environment, going further and beyond when on shift.

I have worked as an activity leader between these dates as it is a seasonal job:

- May 2022 - September 2022

- May 2023

- June 2023 - September 2023

- June 2024 - September 2024

As well as working as a residence assistant for 'Education First,' my main role was an activities leader for the students who came to England. This would consist of spending my days and evenings with a group of foreign students and leading a wide spread of different enjoyable and educational activities.

I had a parental responsibility for children aged between 12 - 17 who had never been to England before so I had to make sure that I was putting in place the correct safety precautions and keeping track of where my group was at all times.

We were given a brief overview of what our activity would consist of but many a time, I would have to create my own activities and add extra creative possibilities to the days calendar. To do this I had to make sure that I listened to my group and their needs and what they are interested in to make it the best experience for them.

I had to keep my students occupied with an energetic and friendly outlet with the key to being communications and energy throughout the day. I also integrated academic and vocational based curriculum into all the activities to help students learn the English language and acquire life skills.

On the weekends, I managed and led offsite excursions to big cities like London, Brighton, Oxford etc. This took a whole load of planning and organizing due to me having to collect money from the students and buying the appropriate train tickets for the trip. I had to plan the day and the activities which would surround the day, making sure that I knew which route we would take and where each stop would take place. My knowledge of these cities were not the broadest so extensive research prior to the trip was necessary to make it educational and visually stimulating as possible.

Education First is a company that gives international students a once in a life time opportunity to travel to England and learn about our culture whilst also learning English and taking part in exciting activities for the summer. One of my occupations was to look after the residence where most of the students stayed for their duration with us. This came with lots of responsibilities;

Worked quickly to complete cleaning within allotted time-frames. I followed health and safety standards governing correct use of chemicals and took great care in making sure the residence was to a correct standard for the guests.

I needed to have great communication skills as there would be a language barrier between me and the guests but that wouldn't stop me from guaranteeing a positive customer experience by efficiently resolving customer concerns and complaints. I was also in charge of organizing arrivals and departures which would be on the weekends and would need refined organisation and problem solving for room bookings.

As part of my paintball experience I would come into the site at 7:30 which needed prompt time managing skills and because I was working with customers from the get go, I needed to make sure I was awake and sufficiently prepared for the day. Throughout the day I was in charge of a big group of up to 40 people which pressured me into improving my multi-tasking skills whilst always being aware of the groups well-being as a whole. Linking onto this, I needed to make sure I offered professional, friendly service at all times to maximize customers safety and moral. I also made sure I created a positive rapport with the customers, using certain phrases to encourage the game and to keep the customers satisfied. Between games it was crucial for us to be as fast as we could be to help get the customers out on the field as quickly as possible. This pushed us to work as a team efficiently, it was vital that we would always be helping other peoples groups duties even if you had finished your own. Finally, I supported a swift yet detailed take down where everything had to be cleaned up to a respectful standard and the equipment safely 'Decocked' and packed away. This quite usually took over a couple of hours due to the care I made sure I put into the companies equipment.

I worked many hours either front of house or in the kitchen dedicated to the customers needs during my shifts.

When i was working front of house, I took orders with the upmost politeness and relayed these to the kitchen. I kept tables neat by clearing away dirty dishes, wiping down surfaces and refreshing glasses or beverages. I liaised with customers during meals to ensure orders were received correctly and were enjoyed. Usually on the weekdays I managed closing duties, including restocking items and locking all the doors which was a huge responsibility.

Most days I was put in charge of the kitchen cleanliness and dessert duties independently behind the scenes. I facilitated smooth kitchen operations, continuously monitoring cleaning supply inventory, promptly ordering low-stock items to avoid disruptions. I cleaned sensitive kitchen equipment, such as big cooking pans and restaurant utensils, to the highest sanitary standards. This is including polishing the cutlery and preparing the table service equipment. A few of the days I prepared desserts and sides for a few of the customers which gave me experience in preparing food and drinks.

The kitchen was very small so I had to make sure that my organisational skills were in tact due to the lack of room and the deadlines I had to keep to, this was difficult but I succeeded with a slick routine quite promptly.