As general operations and hospitality manager of Minter Gardens, Jennifer McLennan oversees one of British Columbia's best-known tourism attractions.
The Chilliwack-area venue features a 32-acre world-class show garden and such hospitality facilities as the Garden Café in the Envision Conservatory and the Trillium Restaurant, which are popular for weddings and other festivities. Overseeing the café and restaurant, their buffets and parties, as well as the admission desk, the gift shop and the grounds, McLennan likens her position to that of an attractions general manager.
It is a far cry from her first hospitality job — waitressing in her hometown of Niagara Falls, Ont. McLennan began her career that way while also studying horticulture at the Niagara College of Applied Arts and Technology. “I worked in landscaping in the summer and waitressing in the winter," she recalls. "I flipped back and forth.” She then moved to New Brunswick as a hotel restaurant supervisor, which in turn led to a position as a restaurant and dinner-theatre manager near the cruise ship docks on the Bay of Fundy. McLennan enjoyed mixing with both the tourists and the theatre people.
Shortly after moving to BC and settling in Victoria, McLennan had an opportunity to go to Baffin Island as food and beverage manager for a hotel there. "This was always my dream — to see my whole country. So far I haven’t been to Newfoundland, but that’s about all,” she says. The job in the North was surprisingly busy. “Nunavut being the newest territory in Canada, there was a lot of activity, including new construction, scientists looking into climate change, and people working for the government."
Back in Victoria, she saw a job posting on the go2 website for a management position at Minter Gardens. Given her horticultural education and her hospitality experience, she felt this would be an ideal fit. “I went after it aggressively,” says McLennan, interviewed finally by marketing and administration executive Erin Minter. “I’ve been here for about a year and a half now, and it is everything I hoped it would be.”
McLennan says a typical day is long and begins early. She checks that the gate and gift shop are ready for business and that the café has coffee brewing. When a busload of guests arrives, she might be out front greeting people. She may even lead a walking tour of the gardens. The lunchtime buffet at the Trillium Restaurant can be so busy she might wait on tables or work at the till. If there is a wedding ceremony about to take place, she will be "keeping an eye out for the bride.” Each day is interesting, "and there is always something to do.” Meanwhile, unusual things occur to make everyone’s job more fun — like a recent wedding when the bridal couple wanted to include two Newfoundland dogs. “Both dogs were wearing tuxedo bibs. It was a unique scene, and touching that their dogs were such a part of their life.”
McLennan regards time management as her biggest challenge: “So many things are going on in all the different departments that sometimes it’s a matter of delegation. Luckily, the people who come to work here are great.” Many of the staff are veteran employees. “Our chef has been with us for 20 years, but I was also happy with the two 16-year-olds I hired this past season. They were really young, and it was their first job, but they blossomed."
Her advice for tourism job-seekers is based on her own experience: find a part-time job in the hospitality industry while going to school. Tourism offers a broad spectrum, says McLennan. “If you like people, this is the industry to be in. Knowing that you’re helping people have a good time makes your job rewarding. And it’s a great way to learn people skills. No matter what job you might have in the future, you’ll always need those people skills.”
