CHIEF Executive Officer (CEO), Mr. Gerry Gouveia has assured that Roraima Group of Companies will continue to expand and contribute to the economic development of Guyana.

‘PROUD MOMENT’: The awardees with their plaques along with Captain Gerry Gouveia (at top of stairs)

He gave the assurance at a ceremony, last week Tuesday, to honour several staff members for their outstanding performance, at Duke Lodge on Duke Street, Kingston, Georgetown.

The 18 awardees, who were each recognised with a plaque, are Andrew Fernandes (Chef); Sacha Persaud (Ground Handling Department Manager); Simone Morgan ( Hospitality Supervisor); Audwin Ashby (Hotel Maintenance Officer); Shellon Nicholas (Assistant Hotel Manager); Raymond Khan (Ground Handling Operations Officer); Godfrey Thomas (Ground Handling Operations Officer); Basudewa Rupchand (Flight Operations Superintendent); Deroop Etwaroo (Assistant Maintenance Coordinator); Sheneza Mohamed (Lounge Attendant); Kim Headecker (Aviation Security Officer); Cheryl Haynes (Chef); Micheal Patterson ( Tours Superintendent); Dennis Andrews (Driver); Denise Samuels (Resort Chef); Captain Alvin Clarke (Senior Pilot); Bholanauth Baijnath (Operations Supervisor) and Captain Debra Gouveia (General Manager).

Roraima Group of Companies, comprising Roraima Airways, Roraima Inn, Arrowpoint Nature Resort, Roraima Residence Inn and Duke Lodge, is celebrating its 17th year in operation, with the last being its newest acquisition, to date.

At the same forum, Gouveia also announced a 25 per cent pay increase for employees, in 2010, for the groomers and rank staff, fulfilling a promise he made previously.

Additionally, several senior operational employees were each presented with a ‘Blackberry’ cellular phone to help increase internal communication, which is important to the level of efficiency within the company.

Gouveia acknowledged that the group has grown extensively in the past 17 years. He declared the staffers are a wonderful team to work with and said Guyana should be proud of them.

“We are selling a product but we are selling an intangible product. We are selling a concept. We are selling confidence and we are selling issues of safety, hygiene and security, which has everything to do with the way we conduct ourselves, generating that type of confidence in the public to use our services,” he pointed out.

Gouveia said it is all about the generation of confidence in the public, adding: “I want to say that, I believe, everyone of you have been doing a wonderful job in helping us, the Roraima management team, in generating that public confidence.”

POSITIVE REPORTS
He said employees would even work way beyond the call and reported that his highly professional security and ground handling teams have received positive reports from Delta (Airlines).

“And I want to say to the ground handling team and to the security team how very proud I am, because you are not only doing a good job for Roriama, but you are doing a wonderful job for Guyana,” Gouveia said.

He continued: “When I look at Duke Lodge, it is like a cruise ship. It comes into port, it is cleaned up and it goes out sailing again with a different team. Sometimes the Roraima team is hosting conferences, weddings, workshops, birthday parties, among other activities.”

Gouveia recalled that, when Duke Lodge was acquired, persons told him to make it an exclusive club but he thought, to himself, that all Guyanese need to go here and enjoy the facility, as part of Guyana.

He said his desire was to open the place to people of all walks of life.

“…for me, it gives me great satisfaction to have been able to open Duke Lodge so that Guyanese of all walks of life to come here and enjoy this facility and come into a safe environment,” Gouveia maintained.

He pledged that Roraima will continue to make it a flagship of Guyana in the hospitality industry.

Referring to some recent criticism about an incident there, he admitted it hut him when he saw some of the comments by people about the Duke Lodge operations.

“But I am determined to continue to make sure Duke Lodge is enjoyed by all manner and all kinds of Guyanese.

“It is never going to become an exclusive club, but we are going to change it like a cruise ship. There are going to be times when we are going to have birthday parties, diplomatic functions, dinner and it is going to be transformed from day to day and from moment to moment to suit the needs of our clients,” he explained.