Benjamin Sharples Email & Phone Number

Ballantrae, Scotland, United Kingdom

Scottish Borders, Scotland, United Kingdom

Scotland, United Kingdom

Mpumalanga, South Africa

Singita is an award-winning safari company with 12 lodges and camps across five regions of Africa. As a part of the team, we continued to build a reputation for excellence in the hospitality and conservation industry. I started off as an Amureki Intern in 2018 where I began as the Front of House, responsible for catering to all guests by providing personalized, professional concierge services. I continued to grow my skills and due to the guidance of Singita’s excellent managers and my concerted effort, I was promoted to a leadership role as a Senior Anchor in 2019. I have the exciting opportunity to do the following:*Lead a team of amukeri, storeman and junior staff, including daily support, training, leave management, and career development to ensure successful outcomes of the Guest Relations department *Guests Relations management including check-ins and check-out; Front of House management, hosting guests dining at the lodge, and performing consistent check-ins with guests to ensure satisfaction and address complaints swiftly*Coordinating guest activities including wine tastings, bush stops, and wellness treatments*Database management including record keeping, stocktaking, and ensuring that daily operations including staff check-outs are accurately completed and uploaded to the system *Business administration including month-end reporting of orders, invoicing and billing relevant guests or suppliers, budget and cash float management, balancing invoices and statements, and maintaining all records of relevant vendors*Coaching and training junior staff on relevant processes to ensure the successful delivery of services at the lodge*Internal stakeholder management by partnering with the Assistant Manager and Finance Team to coordinate lodge operations including payments, orders, and supplier/vendor engagement to ensure alignment and that effective processes are implemented

Mpumalanga, South Africa

After successfully completing my 12-month internship as an Amureki, I was offered an opportunity to join the team on a full-time basis which was an opportunity I am grateful for. I was able to get first-hand experience of the operational side of hospitality management which provided me with a deeper understanding of the daily running of the lodge which included:*Administration and paperwork such as updating the Property Management System (PMS, in our case Springer Miller) and editing and printing of menus*Ensuring bills are printed and payed off*Responding to emails from guests and suppliers*Updating back of house boards and catering to guests as a Front of House Manager

Mpumalanga, South Africa

The Amukeri – from MaAmukeri is the Shangaan word for “the one who welcomes you and takes care of your needs. As an Intern, I was able to grow my skills in guest relations, verbal and written communication, and hospitality management. This was a great opportunity to work in a professional environment to sharpen my understanding whilst learning from others in the service industry. My role included the following:*Guests Relations management including check-ins and check-out, hosting guests dining at the lodge, and performing consistent check-ins with guests to ensure satisfaction and address complaints swiftly*Front of House management, which included managing the switchboard and providing all guests with relevant information within a swift manner*Coordinating guest activities including wine tastings, bush stops, and wellness treatments*Database management including record keeping, stocktaking, and ensuring that daily operations including staff check-outs are accurately completed and uploaded to the system *Answering questions about the menu and making recommendations when requested*Communicating with kitchen and bar staff to ensure timely delivery of all orders*Ensuring the food service area is left clean and tidy once all the guests have left*Relaying, preparing, and setting tables for the next guests

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Being a part of one of Cape Town's most coveted events and especially for its 25th year was a privilege and honour. I had the chance to collaborate with multiple departments to manage several aspects of the Guest Speakers and Overseas Media experience as well as showing them what South African hospitality is all about and why we are unmatched. My role included the following: *Oversaw and coordinated arrivals, experiences, and departures of special guests including the Guest Speakers and Overseas Media*Collaborated with internal departments to ensure guest satisfaction by recommending and promoting South African tourist activities to guests which successfully accomplished the goals of the Design Indaba event*Responded to guest questions/needs, proactively anticipated their unstated ones, and followed up to ensure their requests have been met to their satisfactionEnsured that the hotel rooms were ready and prepared to the best standard for incoming guests *Set up all event venues and ensured that all event programs were seamlessly adhered to *Managed the food and beverage service to ensure excellent delivery to guests*Partnered with the Design Indaba Founder to align on event goals and ensure execution thereof *Handled escalated or complex cases, and provided guidance to empower team members*Analyzed guest feedback and provided strategic direction to continuously improve overall rating

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

My role was a part of work-integrated learning within my university curriculum. This was an excellent opportunity to work in a professional environment to sharpen my guest relations and restaurant management skills whilst learning from colleagues in the hospitality industry. This was a three-part apprenticeship which was 22 weeks in total from July 2016 to September 2016; October 2017 to January 2018 and March 2018 to April 2018. My role included the following:*Food and beverage management training involving front and back of house duties*Learning to manage multiple food and beverage sectors of a hotel including the bar service, kitchen food preparation, and stock taking*Front Office support which included check-in and out of guests, as well as payment processing*Setting up and co-planning larger events and boardroom meetings for guests*Management training which formed a part of my work-integrated learning*Front of House services, guest relations management and problem-solving

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

*Barman responsible for stock checks and running the bar during service hours *Host and concierge responsible for allocating waiters their positions on the floor; registration of guests, as well as maintaining an inventory of reservations, vacancies, and room assignments*Guest Relations Officer responsible for answering questions regarding the hotel services, explaining menu items and specials, and offering personal attentive treatment*Performed restaurant supervision duties which included overseeing stocktakes, maintaining the hygiene and appearance of the hotel, planning staff rosters, resolving issues, and ensuring that guest’s expectations are superseded *Switchboard Operator responsible for handling administrative tasks, taking and transferring phone calls, providing information, updating records, and answering caller inquiries*Table Runner and In-Room Dining Waiter duties which included accurately recording, pre-checking, and picking-up all food and beverage orders to ensure that they are delivered in a prompt, courteous manner as per the standard sequence of service

Springfield, Missouri, United States

*Maintaining high standards of health and safety in all activities for campers (aged 8 to 16 years)*Lifeguard duties including supervising swimming activities ensuring that policies, guidelines, and safety procedures were followed, administering first aid in the event of injury, and rescuing swimmers in distress or danger of drowning*Being a positive role model to campers and teaching skills across multiple activities including rugby and bow and arrow training *Setting a good example to campers regarding general camp procedures and practices including sanitation, schedule, and sportsmanship *Collaborating with my camp staff teammates to deliver and supervise evening programs, special events, overnights, and other all-camp activities and functions *Providing outstanding and consistent services to all camp guests

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

In 2012 I was fortunate enough to gain some well-rounded experience in the sporting industry as a Sports Coach and Referee. This was a formidable opportunity to work with children from different backgrounds as a Sports coach where I was able to share knowledge that would help them succeed in the game of rugby. One of the things I like the most about sports is that it is an amazing equalizer in life - no matter what age, privilege, race, or gender, we are all striving towards a common goal. I predominantly coached children between the ages of 6-10 on how to have a healthier lifestyle and understand the benefits sports can do for them. During my time with Tag, I also refereed adult league games which further motivated me to learn more about the sporting industry and referring. This highlighted my maturity and helped me in the future to stay calm under pressure.A summary of my role includes:*Helping participants (children aged 6 to 10 years) to develop rugby union skills and positive attitudes to physical activity and sport generally*Encouraging players to become involved as a safe, healthy, and enjoyable activity*Introducing programs to improve player fitness levels for a healthier lifestyle*Refereeing matches played in the Adult Tag Rugby Union*Taking charge of matches played by players older than me. This highlighted my maturity and ability to stay calm under pressure

Higher National Diploma, Hospitality Business Management: Accomodation/Administration

Activities and Societies: Head of Student Representative: 2016 & 2017 Events Chairman: 2018I Graduated with Cum Laude which was one.

National Senior Certificate/Bachelor Degree, General Studies, Grade 10-12

Activities and Societies: SACS was an amazing challenge for me and one which I thrived in. It's where I truly found my love for coaching.

Grade 1 To 9

Activities and Societies: At Bishops it was all about getting to explore and figure out who I was. I tried fencing to rugby, school plays.