Interview with Philip Cram, Facilities Manager 
Wolgan Valley 
Resort and Spa

Wolgan Valley resort and Spa borders the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage region, less than 3 hours by road from Sydney, this carbon-neutral resort actively protects its surrounding habitat and indigenous wildlife species while delivering first-class standards and quality expected in luxury resorts around the world. L&A’s Liz Lycette, recently visited the resort and had the opportunity to meet with Phil Cram, the resort’s facility manager and found out more about the challenges Phil faces maintaining the resort’s carbon neutral status while ensuring the functionality of all the resort’s support services.

Here Phil tells us a bit more about his background and daily routine.

What is your cultural background?
Australian Born – Scottish Parents and Wife.

Where were you born and where did you grow up?
Born In Lithgow NSW Grew up in Fairfield and North Parramatta. Sydney NSW

What was your career path to date?
Starting With 17 years with the Naval Dockyard – Garden Island as a Naval Architect working on all ship systems connected to the hull – Air conditioning, heating ventilation, refrigeration, fire fighting etc. Moved to Peppers Fairmont Resort at Leura as Chief Engineer (8 Years) then moved to Mirvac Hotels as the NSW Regional Chief Engineer and finally Emirates as the Facility Manager.

What was your first role as Facilities Manager?
Peppers Hotels and Resorts – I moved from the Chief Engineer for Fairmont Resort into a group role assisting with all Assets

What challenges did that bring?
The transition from ships to hotels was less challenging than expected, as most systems are fairly common. And at least hotels don’t move around.

What is your current position and Hotel? What are your current job responsibilities at your hotel? I am currently the Facilities Manager which is part of the hotel’s executive. I am directly responsible for :
1. The Engineering Team – who look after the assets
2. The Field Guide Team – whom provide the guest experiences and
3. The Security Team. I am also responsible for the Conservation Reserve and the Flora and Fauna in the reserve.

How many staff are you responsible for?
3 x Security,  9 X Field Guides and 8 x Engineering

What areas are you responsible for?
1. Engineering 2. Field Guide 3. Security 4. Conservation

What would your typical day be like?
Currently a lot of my day is taken up with the engagement of contractors to supplement  the current workforce. Assisting with Engineering decisions. Guest Interaction and Staff administration.

What are your top three challenges this week?
1. To have our Waste Water Treatment plant certified
2. Recruit a qualified Pool Technician.
3. To complete the installation of a gas pool water heating system.

How did you choose those staff under you?
We usually have 2 interviews 1 x phone and 1 x face to face where we look for attitude firstly and skills/experience. If they pass through the interview stage we then invite them to work with us for a day so we can both see if it will work between us.

What criteria?
Firstly we look for the correct attitude – the applicant wants to be part of the Wolgan family. And secondly experience and skills relevant to the position applied for.

How does pre-opening work compare with working in an existing property? What are the top 3 challenges in an opening?
Pre opening is hectic compared to operating an existing property. There are tight deadlines to be met and materials purchase and supply, recruitment of staff and establishment of policies and procedures. An existing property that has been properly set up with a computer based management system requires a lot less engineering input.

What are your top 3 tips for success in Facilities Management?
1. A good engineering Knowledge
2. A strong organization skill.
3. Strong communication skills

If you had to do it all over again what would you do differently?
Yes. Tougher attitude to builder/contractors

What advice would you give someone starting out in facilities Management?
Be prepared to work 24/7.

How about your personal life? How do you balance work and home life?
Badly, Facilities Management is 24/7and requires a commitment from the Facilities Manager’s family.

What do you do for fun?
I shoot (hunt and target) I fly (own my own plane) and motorcycle riding.

How do you think facilities management has changed since you started?
Since I became a Facilities Manager the greatest change is a move to more sustainable solutions and to become ‘greener’ in business.

Where do you think it is heading?
There will always be a need for this type of position. The changes will come with the use of in-house and out sourced labour. There will be an ever-increasing need to find better Eco solutions to the way we do business. To be successful in Facilities Management will require the manager to keep abreast of what is happening in the Eco/Conservation/Sustainability areas.
About Lycette & Associates
L&A specialises in all aspects of Housekeeping Management including on-site consulting, training and development workshops, assistance with initial set-up of housekeeping operations at pre-opening. The Company also undertakes customised operational reviews of existing housekeeping operations identifying and further improving the effectiveness and efficiency of current departmental procedures. For more information visit www.lycetteandassociates.com or e-mail info@lycetteandassociates.com