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March 2006
HARRAH’S DIDN’T GAMBLE WHEN SELECTING A SALES TRAINING PARTNER
Consider the task of taking six unique sales teams – a total of 50 people, all previous competitors – and combining them into one cohesive sales force with one common goal. That, under any circumstance, would be a huge undertaking.
And that is exactly what Michael Massari, Vice President of Sales was faced with when Harrah’s Entertainment of Las Vegas purchased Caesar’s Entertainment’s Las Vegas hotel group in mid-2005. Massari suddenly found himself with six hotels and six different, competing sales teams – all within a few blocks of each other along the Las Vegas strip.
Massari and his Regional Director of Sales, Jordan Clark quickly determined that the most effective way to leverage the strength of the combined hotel group would be to merge the sales teams, thereby offering one-stop-shopping for meeting and event planners. To help accomplish this gargantuan task, Masarri enlisted the help of the hospitality training experts at Houston-based Achievers International. And a successful partnership it is!
Throughout several months in late 2005, Achievers co-owner Louise Upshaw-McClenny and Pamela Nice of Achievers’ Las Vegas regional office worked side-by-side with Harrah’s sales leadership team. Together they discussed sales standards, procedures and strategies designed to successfully blend the strengths and selling cultures of each of the six hotels (Caesar’s Palace, Paris, Bally’s The Flamingo, The Rio, and Harrah’s). The end result is a new streamlined booking process, and strategic re-deployment of the sales team designed to assist meeting planners in finding the most appropriate hotel for their events.
A series of sales training sessions took place throughout last 2005 and early 2006. Achievers International’s relaxed, interactive learning environment helped foster communication and teamwork among the new co-workers and provide the building blocks for the new “Las Vegas Meetings by Harrah’s” sales culture. This was an important step in Mike Massari’s vision of developing trust, camaraderie, and mutual support between groups of people who were formerly competitors.
How effective has the Achievers International/Harrah’s Entertainment partnership been? An increase in year-to-date group revenue of 32% vs. the same period last year indicates it has been very successful indeed. And the relationship continues: Massari and Clark are firm believers in the fundamental Achievers principle that effective learning is not just a seminar – it is an ongoing process. Throughout 2006 plans are in place to conduct ongoing training workshops, building on the fundamentals that have already been established. Jordan Clark notes, “The support that Achievers brings in helping us accomplish our goals, with everything we have on our plate, has been incredibly valuable. We really enjoy having them on board as they continue to help us be successful.”
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