Finding Joy on the Job: Meet Mandy Gray, 2023 Women in Hospitality Leadership Star of the Year1/31/2024 Mandy Gray thought she wanted to be a lawyer. As a teenager, she worked as a proud “sandwich artist” at Subway, then took a job at The Highlands in Harbor Springs, an all-season resort in Northern Michigan, while still thinking about attending law school. Plans and passions changed. At The Highlands, Mandy found herself energized by a love for people, both the guests she served and the colleagues she served alongside. In Michigan’s hospitality industry, she formed a uniquely close-knit team, forged friendships, and found her professional passion. “Hospitality had stolen my heart,” says Mandy, now the Director of Resort Accommodations at The Highlands and the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging Association’s 2023 Women in Hospitality Leadership Star of the Year. With a stellar drive and dedication to self-improvement, she worked up from her first job as a cashier at the resort’s Skier Cafeteria to her current role as Director of Resort Accommodations at The Highlands, experiencing almost every role in the hospitality business along the way. When nominating her for the MRLA’s annual Stars of the Industry awards, honoring the best and brightest of hospitality leaders across the state, her colleagues credited The Highlands’ first-place performance and accolades to her five-star supervision. “Her path has been nothing short of inspiring," they wrote. That path has turned into a 27-year career in hospitality. So far, Mandy has no regrets and no plans to change gears. She’s happy to be lodged in the northern Michigan hospitality industry; growing up with a mother in the navy, she moved several times when she was a child before her family settled in Harbor Springs, a place that she says was so hard to leave that she just didn’t. “Michigan is so special,” she says. “You just walk out your door for inner peace.” That inner peace has been helpful. The past few years, being a leader in the hospitality industry has been tough, with the pandemic causing extraordinary stress on the industry and its workforce. The housing crisis, staffing shortages, childcare issues, and more have been additional headaches for an industry rediscovering its rhythm. But Mandy says the pressures are overwhelmingly outweighed by the joys. “I can get lost in my thoughts, thinking of all the fun I have had in my career. Sometimes people catch me smiling, remembering some of the adventures I have had over the years.” Working at the Highlands, she’s learned to golf and ski, and she’s also thankful to The Highlands for encouraging learning, providing access to incredible educational opportunities like coaching sessions, conferences, food shows, summits, and more. Her colleagues noted her commitment to professional development and her impressive record of glowing reviews from both her team and The Highlands’ guests. Her team’s satisfaction consistently ranks among the highest in the entire resort, while the resort also keeps scoring top-notch comments from those who stay at The Highlands. Mandy explains that the longevity and success of her hospitality career is partly due to her ability to maintain balance. Outside of work, she likes to spend time with her dog and plan camping trips with family, explaining that balance is how she stays connected to her passion for hospitality. For those who love what they do, and stay loving what they do, she promises “it truly doesn’t feel like work.” A common misconception about the hospitality industry is that long-term careers are not viable. In Mandy’s experience, that’s not the case at all. “I found myself captivated by the joy of being paid for something I love so dearly,” she says, reflecting on her 27-year hospitality career. “Each day brought new opportunities for learning. I was constantly learning something new – which just made every day more exciting.” With a hard work ethic and a can-do attitude, this 2023 Stars of the Industry award-winner assures anyone new to the industry that there are plenty of ways to make a living, build a community, and meet with lifelong success and satisfaction in a career in hospitality. "It's worth it," she says.
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