The Western Development Museum (WDM) has five locations across the province participating in the Transforming the Tourism Workforce project, including Moose Jaw, North Battleford, Saskatoon, Saskatoon Curatorial Centre, and Yorkton.  The WDM provides a range of services from banquets and catering to meeting facilities, a gift shop, full service restaurant, programming, picnic area, special events, exhibits, volunteer management, and more.

 

By the end of the project, 32 staff and volunteers are expected to be certified as Banquet Servers, Event Coordinators, Event Managers, Heritage Interpreters, Retail Sales Associates, Tour Guides, Supervisors, and Tourism Visitor Information Counsellors.

 

In order to ensure that staff and volunteers are successful in becoming certified, Hourie said all participants are given a "study day" in order to come in and study as a group.  This is in line with the WDM's HR strategy, which is to employ the most qualified and capable individuals, as well as to become an Employer of Choice.  Other aspects of the strategy include training and mentoring, inclusive decision-making, analysis of salary and job description, the administration of employee performance reviews, and team building.

 

Although training and mentoring were part of the WDM's HR strategy prior to its participation in the Transforming the Tourism Workforce project, Hourie said the extent of this training would not have been possible without the support of the project.

 

"[This is a] great opportunity that the WDM couldn't afford through its training budget," he explained.

 

Hourie said that he expects this project to have a positive impact by empowering participants and motivating them to engage in better teamwork.  He anticipated that this positive change within the organization will increase customer service and satisfaction, proving that everyone involved in training, from employers to employees and customers, benefit.