Maria Benezit
Johns Island,SC
Summary
Bilingual hospitality and travel professional with over a decade of experience, including nine years in international air travel. Expertise in project management, prioritization, and multitasking to drive successful outcomes. Known for exceptional listening skills and the ability to adapt to diverse working styles, fostering strong team collaboration. Aspires to leverage extensive background in hospitality to enhance customer experiences in dynamic environments.
Overview
25
25
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Catering & Conference Services Manager
SEA ISLAND
, Georgia
01.2022 - Current
- Responsible for planning and facilitating all aspects of resort group conferences and events at 4 properties within the Sea Island Collection, totaling $38M in Banquet F&B Revenue
- Maintain business relationships by focusing on and satisfying clients' needs, acting as planner and on-site liaison
- Responsible for forecasting group rooms, food and beverage, and any other potential group spend
- Manage group room blocks, banquet/outlet food and beverage, transportation, and activities
- Partner with the internal Event Design Team to upsell décor, lighting, and entertainment
- Communicate client objectives to all property departments, facilitate pre/post conference meetings, internal overviews, and client meetings
- Work closely with the culinary team to create custom menus
- Assist the Director of CCS & Event Design to implement new SOPs
- Mentor and develop new team members
- Member of the internal Quality Assurance Team
- Responsible for auditing all Forbes rated departments and submitting detailed reports to leadership
Chief of Staff
CGI+ REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
Los Angeles, California
01.2021 - 01.2022
- Served as the right hand of the CEO and Founder of the company
- Gatekeeping and monitoring the flow of communications to and from the CEO
- Managing the CEO’s schedule
- Manage CEO preparation for important internal and external meetings and events
- Serve as liaison between the CEO and employees
- Collaborating with executive team members to determine and prioritize business strategies
- Aiding in and insuring the timely completion of projects
- Providing department leaders with recommendations and consultation to improve communications with the CEO
- Oversee management of CEO’s Personal Assistant & Bookkeeper
- Assist with Fundraising & Investor Relations
- Assist with Business Development
Senior Catering & Conference Services Manager
GRAND WAILEA RESORT & SPA
Maui, Hawaii
01.2018 - 01.2020
- Responsible for planning and facilitating all aspects of hotel group conferences and events at a property with 26,700 square feet of meeting space and 776 guest rooms
- Maintain business relationships by focusing on and satisfying clients' needs, acting as planner and on-site liaison
- Achieve and exceed team and personal sales goals
- Responsible for forecasting group rooms, food and beverage, and any other potential group spend
- Manage group room blocks and food and beverage spend, coordinating with accounting any collection of attrition
- Manage and train Catering Administrative Assistant, responsible for yearly performance review
- Communicate client objectives to all property departments, facilitate pre/post conference meetings, internal overviews, and client meetings
- Develop and distribute all communications relating to planning and execution of group functions, including but not limited to group resumes, banquet event orders, and diagrams
- Work closely with the culinary team to create custom menus
- Maintain professional relationships with various vendors for entertainment and décor, to create unique event experiences
- Assist Sales team with site visits and FAM trips to capture future group business
Restaurant Event Manager
FOUR SEASONS D.C.
Washington, D.C.
01.2017 - 01.2018
- Responsible for booking and executing private events in Bourbon Steak, a Michael Mina restaurant, and ENO Wine Bar
- Prospect new and repeat business to reach monthly goals
- Generate restaurant event orders and distribute to Chefs and Restaurant Staff
- Develop menus for clients working with the Executive Chef and Head Sommelier
- Responsible for overseeing the execution of each event, communicating clients’ specific requests
- Responsible for producing monthly revenue reports
- Maintain event calendars
Events Assistant
WASHINGTON HILTON
Washington, D.C.
01.2016 - 01.2017
- Responsible for assisting the Director of Catering and Events, two Senior Event Managers, and one Catering Manager
- Upheld the highest level of customer service to include immediate response time on my managers’ behalf
- Generate daily, weekly, and monthly reports
- Developed training manuals for new assistants
- Provided training and orientation to new staff
- Responsible for producing banquet event orders based on clients’ specifications
- Responsible for distributing all BEOs to appropriate departments within the Hotel
- Maintain scheduling and event calendars
Executive Assistant
WALDORF ASTORIA ORLANDO
Orlando, Florida
01.2010 - 01.2016
- Responsible for assisting the General Manager, Director of Golf, and the Golf and Landscaping Superintendent; meanwhile assisting guests and providing leadership to other administrative assistants
- Managed calendars and emails for three executives
- Coordinated and set up high level conference calls, owner and management meetings, special events, and travel arrangements
- Coordinated preparation and timely dissemination of company reports
- Acted as liaison and maintained open lines of communication among senior executives, middle management, and administrative staff
- Assisted with VIP and service recovery guests
- Managed orders and checkbooks for three departments, one of which had a budget of over one million dollars per year
Guest Service Agent
HILTON KEY LARGO
Key Largo, Florida
01.2009 - 01.2010
- Responsible for checking guests in and out of the hotel, while providing excellent customer service
- Acted as a concierge assisting guests with any inquiries about the area and making reservations and recommendations
- Successfully and quickly trained in Night Audit, where I was responsible for posting all charges to guest’s rooms and organizing all necessary receipts for accounting
- Successfully learned how to work the hotels telephone lines in PBX
- Handled and was responsible for cash daily
Supervisor / TCO
VIRGIN ATLANTIC
Orlando, Florida
01.2000 - 01.2009
- Accountable for full spectrum of supervisory management, including monitoring and ensuring strict compliance of contract companies with policies and procedures
- Audit daily revenue collected from ticket sales, excess baggage, and other fees
- Manage the loading and unloading of cargo and baggage in accordance to weight and balance parameters of the aircraft
- Supervising ticket counter and boarding gates
- Efficiently calmed passengers and maintained smooth flow of operation when delays or cancellation occurred
- Acquired full knowledge of international ticketing, check-in system, fraudulent documents, prohibited goods, customer service and company policy
- Collaborated with TSA to adhere safety compliance
- Successfully trained safety and dangerous goods to colleagues and contract companies
- Audited daily employee work files
Education
High School Diploma -
David Glascow Farragut High School
Rota Spain05-1999
Skills
- Budgetary planning
- Detail-oriented
- Client service
- Logistics management
- Event technology
- Onsite execution
- Menu planning
- Event planning expertise
- Strong organizational skills
- Detail-oriented approach
- Creative thinking
- Networking and relationship building
References
Provided upon request
Timeline
Senior Catering & Conference Services Manager
SEA ISLAND
01.2022 - Current
Chief of Staff
CGI+ REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
01.2021 - 01.2022
Senior Catering & Conference Services Manager
GRAND WAILEA RESORT & SPA
01.2018 - 01.2020
Restaurant Event Manager
FOUR SEASONS D.C.
01.2017 - 01.2018
Events Assistant
WASHINGTON HILTON
01.2016 - 01.2017
Executive Assistant
WALDORF ASTORIA ORLANDO
01.2010 - 01.2016
Guest Service Agent
HILTON KEY LARGO
01.2009 - 01.2010
Supervisor / TCO
VIRGIN ATLANTIC
01.2000 - 01.2009
High School Diploma -
David Glascow Farragut High School
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