Denver Gears up for Democratic National Convention with Largest Hospitality Training Program in City’s History

In preparation for the Democratic National Convention (DNC) on August 25-28, 2009, the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau has created the largest hospitality training program in the city’s history. Called “Go the EXTRA Mile,” the program has trained more than 2,400 people so far as well as offering training to more than 500 hotels, restaurants and hospitality businesses.

“From airport TSA employees to taxi drivers, from restaurants to rental cars, we have reached out to every front-line tourism employee who could possibly have contact with a DNC delegate or visiting media and provided them with an intensive hospitality training class,” states Jayne Buck, vice president of tourism for the Bureau.

            Denver is expecting 50,000 people for the convention, including 17,000 domestic and international media.  It will be the largest event in Denver’s history and the second time the Democrats have met in the Mile High City, coming exactly 100 years after their first convention here in 1908.

            The Bureau’s “Go the EXTRA Mile” hospitality program includes videos, Denver brochures and information, customer service tips and interactive skill building exercises. A full day training session also includes a motorcoach tour of the city.

            “The key point of the training is to make sure all our front-line tourism employees understand the connection between their jobs and creating an overall positive experience for our customers.  A lot of the training is to make them more aware of what Denver offers as a travel destination, so that they in turn can provide this information to our visitors.  We also want to make all front-line employees feel like they are an important part of the hospitality industry,” Buck says. 

            While the DNC was the inspiration behind the training, the hospitality training will become a legacy program for the Bureau and will be continued in the future.

Through mid-July, the “Go the EXTRA Mile” hospitality program has:

·        Trained more than 2,400 employees with plans to train 700 airport employees of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in August. 

·        Trained 250 taxi and shuttle drivers, as well as hundreds of employees at the airport, Colorado Convention Center, hotels, rental car agencies, restaurants, attractions, etc.

·        Planned a “Celebrity Car Wash” for taxi drivers to show the city’s appreciation to them and give them additional tips on hospitality.  The event is scheduled for August 19.

·        Completed 71 “road show” trainings at Denver businesses.

·        Scheduled 40 additional “road shows” that will take place before the DNC.