12/21/2011 11:38:56 AM
Paul Parsons is the room manager at the Greenwood Inn and Suites in Corner Brook, NL. As a teenager, he took an entry level position at a resort, never expecting the move to determine his future career in the hotel and hospitality industry.
As a teenager, Paul Parsons made the momentous decision to head to the west coast of Canada. He sold his hockey gear to pay for the plane ticket, never expecting the move would determine his future career in the tourism industry.
“When I first left, I sold my hockey equipment and bought a plane ticket and moved to Jasper, Alberta, I don’t think I had any idea what to expect, other than that I wanted to take a year off and travel a little bit. I thought I would work for a while and go back to school,” recalls Paul.
The key to his decision to take the entry level position with the resort in Jasper was the living accommodations, which alleviated the majority of the stress involved in a move this far from home.
“It worked well for me. I knew the dishwasher position was an entry level position and knew there was opportunity for advancement. What I didn’t know was that it would lead me down the road to a supervisor position after three months, and then a manager job exactly a year to the day from my first day as a dishwasher.”
While he stayed with Fairmont’s Jasper Park Lodge for over three years the one thing that continued to bother Paul was his lack of post-secondary education.
“I didn’t complete post-secondary education before I moved as I was very young.”
He didn’t feel he could move into senior management levels without completing his education first, so he returned to Newfoundland to enroll in the Business Administration program at the Corner Brook campus of College of the North Atlantic (CNA) in 2000.
“I wanted to come back and I thought what better place to do it than Newfoundland? CNA has continued to grow and the reputation precedes it. I felt quite confident to have an education from CNA. I had been gone a little over four years at that point. It was nice to be able to do post-secondary education at home and it was a combination of financial and accreditation – it offered both of what I was looking for. It was also an affordable education.”
Paul describes the program at CNA in just one word: fantastic.
“It was very well organized. I like the practical side versus theory and it certainly did that for that specific program. It was a lot of information. Everything I was doing program wise with the Business Administration program that I had chosen, I deemed to be very much beneficial.”
Shortly after graduating, he gained employment as the western representative for Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador. During his five years in the position, he learned a lot about what this province has to offer, hosted numerous events and even co-hosted a television show for NTV where he worked with some well-known Newfoundland personalities including; Gordon Pinsent, Sharon Snow and Stan Cook.
He feels the opportunities he has received came from a combination of his education and previous training.
“You need to be outgoing in this industry and I’ve never been the shy type. I wanted to combine my outgoing personality with an industry that allows you to continually meet new people and see new things. It’s a great industry and I always say that tourism has longevity.”
After discovering an interest for the tourism industry in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, Paul feels the sky is the limit for what he considers a valued career choice.
“I wanted to take what I learned from my experience and add that with my education. I thought it would be good to bring that knowledge back to Newfoundland rather than learning that in Newfoundland and taking off.”
Paul came full circle in his career five years ago. He continues his work in the tourism industry today but through his current position as Rooms Manager of the Greenwood Inn and Suites in Corner Brook. He feels he’s been fortunate since embarking on his career a decade ago.
“I’m always learning and will continue to learn every day in my job. I have been very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to learn so much in my career from great people and to get a great education from CNA. I consider myself quite lucky.”
He considers himself even luckier to be able to live and work in this wonderful province.
“Newfoundland is still Newfoundland. If you’re part of Newfoundland, if you’re from Newfoundland, or if you’ve ever been to Newfoundland, the hardest thing about it is leaving it,” he explains. “Anyone who leaves it will always want to come back. It is a fantastic place to raise a family and the lifestyle is great. I love the fact I’m from Newfoundland. I am a fan of Newfoundland music, food and culture and so I wanted to bring tourists here to see what we have instead of explaining it to tourists abroad.”
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Media Contact:
Glenda McCarthy
Public Relations Assistant
College of the North Atlantic
(709) 643-6408
glenda.mccarthy@cna.nl.ca