FOUR years after his training engagement, Wayne Fitzharris, director of The International Guild of Butlers & Household Managers, recently set foot anew at the Pan Pacific Manila, just in time for the launching of the hotel’s newly renovated guest rooms.

“It’s great to be back,” Fitzharris told the BusinessMirror in an interview. “This hotel is very dear to my heart, and I’ve been delighted to return to help further its service excellence and standards of service.”

Fitzharris flew in to Manila last week to continue the “Butler Education” he has brought to the hotel a few years ago. But unlike in the previous training, he said the current course was very different.

“We have upgraded the course. There are similar messages but [we teach them] in a fresh way,” he stressed.

The courses are aimed at helping redefine service excellence, demeanor and people skills. What’s more, they sought to redevelop and evolve Pan Pacific standards and services in accordance with the changing needs of today’s travelers.

“We need to redefine and meet the challenge of the time, and all the time ensure that we are in synch with the expectations of our guests,” Pan Pacific Manila General Manager Richard Masselin said. “Given that Wayne Fitzharris’s reputation is synonymous with service excellence, his visit will definitely bring our butler service to new heights.”

During the weeklong training, Fitzharris taught advanced modules on guest communication etiquette, food service, performance and advanced butler skills. Also, he imparted to select participants—about 40 of the hotel staff—deportment and fun methods covering the many intangible service aspects of butlering.

“We have been teaching butlers—and we continue to do so—to be more free-thinking [and] to learn essential leadership skills so that more are actually in charged when they are with guests. We try to ensure that our butlers are more intuitive so they can really understand or interpret the needs of their guests,” Fitzharris said.

Since technology and forms of communication are developing very fast, not to mention the rise of different types of media, Pan Pacific keeps abreast with these changes by enabling its butlers to adapt to the fast transfer of information.

“So we’re also improving in terms of our technology and, of course, the knowledge of our butlers when it comes to these because we cannot ignore these very evidences of change and modernity at present,” said Aubrey Ada, director of rooms of Pan Pacific Manila.

After undergoing the training, Jessie Llanera of the Front Office Department said the first thing he learned is the principle of responsibility. “We need to serve the guests with proper attitude. It’s not just all about cleaning the rooms. I think we need to have the passion. The guest should see the butler himself that it’s [the service] genuine. It’s all about the heart, the mindset. It’s all about serving them with all our hearts,” Llanera said.

Taking note of the world-renowned Filipino hospitality, James Riego de Dios of the Housekeeping Department believes it’s almost expected for them to excel in butler service.

“We Filipinos are naturally born to be hospitable. This is where we can even excel more [in the butler service]. This training being given to us by Mr. Fitzharris will just be a sort of [help to] polish and enhance more of our natural skills. And I think that could give us an edge to be more competitive with our foreign counterparts,” he said.

Passing the baton

JUST like his first training in 2007, parting ways with Pan Pacific Manila, especially to its trainee-butlers, was difficult for Fitzharris.

“I cried as I did the last time [I came here] because they became part of my family,” he said.

This time, however, he stressed it was more meaningful as he handed over for the first time the baton of responsibility to the most promising butler in the hotel who would continue his work.

Chosen by Fitzharris himself and the Pan Pacific executive committee, the “Butler Ambassador” is the one who excelled during the five-day course. He will be responsible to help the continuity of the program by cascading the principles of the courses to other butlers, especially those not chosen to attend the training.

“I’m going to leave them with a legacy. This [the baton] is the significance of time, punctuality, organization, efficiency, management and leadership—all synonymous with this personal pocket watch of mine,” he noted.

Makeover time

COMPLEMENTING its improved butler service, Pan Pacific Manila has also undergone a major face-lift with newly refurbished rooms.

“We recently completed our room renovation project and the return of Master Butler Fitzharris gives us the timely opportunity to refresh our Butler concept and service,” Masselin said in a statement.

Each room now boasts of well-lit, spacious interiors that display a mix of modern design and hints of Filipiniana via art pieces showcasing the people, lifestyle, cityscape, street life, early modes of transportation and the many interesting places around the country—all depicting the rich Filipino culture and heritage.

Guests may opt to billet in a chic city-view room or another that gives them breathtaking vistas of the famed Manila Bay and its signature sunsets, with their choice of king or twin bed made with the finest of beddings.

Mindful of the needs of business travelers, all rooms are equipped with an oversized work desk and high-speed wired or wireless broadband Internet, thus, allowing them to stay connected to the cyberspace, and transform their domain into a private office.

For entertainment, an LCD TV and a DVD player are provided. As a bonus, a mini TV is installed in the roomy bathroom with separate shower room and bathtub.

Strategically nestled at the heart of Malate, Pan Pacific Manila is a short drive to the city’s convention, exhibition and business centers and a walk away from shopping, food and entertainment establishments. This business hotel has 236 all-executive rooms and suites and seven spacious function rooms.