guest service agent

maintenance technician

executive housekeeper

cleaner

division manager

Smoky Mountain Resorts

A Typical Day at Work:
Working at Smoky Mountain Resorts, especially during the peak seasons of summer and fall, can be quite hectic. Employees are often on their toes, ensuring that the high standards of guest satisfaction are maintained. This involves managing various guest activities, addressing concerns, and maintaining the amenities of the resort. Conversely, during the winter months, the pace slows significantly, allowing for more focus on maintenance and preparation for the busier seasons.

What You Learn:
Working at this company provides ample opportunities for personal and professional growth. Employees learn essential skills in managing and leading teams and identifying personal strengths and areas for improvement. The dynamic environment fosters resilience and adaptability, crucial traits for anyone looking to learn about the hospitality industry.

Management:
Management at Smoky Mountain Resorts can be a mixed experience. While the overall structure is designed to run smoothly, it can feel overbearing at times, depending on the property. Each manager brings their strengths and weaknesses to the table, contributing to a varied experience. The organizational structure is unique compared to typical hotels or resorts, which can be an adjustment for new employees.

Workplace Culture:
The workplace culture at Smoky Mountain Resorts is one of its strongest attributes. The team spirit and camaraderie among employees are commendable. Despite personal or professional differences, everyone works together to create the best vacation experience for guests. This positive and inclusive culture makes it a pleasant place to work and fosters a sense of belonging among employees.

Work / Life Balance:
Achieving a work-life balance can be challenging in the hospitality industry, and these resorts are no exception. The demanding nature of the job, especially during peak seasons, can make it difficult to find time for personal life, particularly for those with families out of state. While the company has made strides to relax restrictions on time off and blackout dates, these measures still fall short of meeting most employees' expectations, contributing to a higher turnover rate.

The Most Challenging Part of the Job:
One of the most significant challenges at Smoky Mountain Resorts is communication and maintaining employee satisfaction. The focus on updates and renovations across the properties sometimes overshadows the needs and morale of the employees. Improving communication and prioritizing employee well-being could significantly enhance the overall operation and reduce costs associated with high turnover rates.

The Most Enjoyable Part of the Job:
The most rewarding aspect of working at Smoky Mountain Resorts is hearing guests express their joy and satisfaction, saying, "This has been the best vacation!" Knowing that your efforts have contributed to a memorable and positive experience for guests provides immense satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment, making all the hard work worthwhile.

This company had the potential for an amazing career for anyone. Pay upfront is decent. and the proposed culture is great. When you get into the organization at either property you will experience endless hours. Zero planning for management or hourly workers as work days do not have a dedicated end time. Work load is typically much higher than expected for a given person and relief is typically not provided due to lack of staffing constantly. Expect to know your schedules the day of the following work week or the day before. this makes family planning and medical appointments very challenging to plan for. Days off and vacation requests are typically denied due to staffing issues and coverage issues. Health care coverage is great though. Compensation for salaried workers was rough. expect to do 6 days a week often and do not plan family or social activities on the days you work as you will typically not get to attend due to working on average 2-6 hours past your scheduled shift. Termination culture is the fix-all for employees and hourly employees are terminated at a rate higher than in any place I have seen. It is not uncommon to see entire classes of new hires retain 1 out of 10 people hired for more than a month. Overall, work-life balance is nonexistent. job security is far and few between. most managers fear termination like hourly workers does for any small mistake. Could be awesome place to work. Health insurance was good though. inflated good reviews from new hires in orientation don't reflect the reality of the current working culture and structure in place. 

I signed up for a water park supervisor.  I was told i needed to complete a lifeguard class. I said okay. And took the course. I was told it would be 5 days to complete it. Its a 368 Page Manual. The instructor ended up rushing the course & crammed all of the information into 2 days & on the third day, was all of the tests. We did all of the swimming tests for about 4 hours, then rushed upstairs, to take the final written exam, without a break. We only took 2 breaks out of a 7 or 8 hour day. And we was only taught or showed once & expected to be able to perfect it. 4 people started the course & only one was able to complete it. I failed the exam by 1 question & was asked if i wanted to do the whole course again. So if you sign up with anything lifeguard wise. Expect to have your mind crammed with all of the information & if you can't perfect the demonstration or pass a exam on the first time, you will be told to do the whole course again. The instructor Sierra, would take advantage of the younger applicants & give them rude remarks, also would change the answers up, when questioning her about something. Shes more worried about getting off & going to a pool hall, then to do her proper training. I lost out on 3 other job interviews during this time. I have been thru many training programs in my career, but this ranks as the most horrible, unorganized, not help you understand the training, your recieving. 

I am writing this review to express my extreme dissatisfaction with my employment experience with smoky mountain resorts. During my time there, I encountered a number of serious issues, primarily stemming from poor management and an unfair work environment.
 * Constant Job Switching: I was consistently moved between various roles within the resort, often with little to no training. This created a chaotic and unproductive atmosphere, hindering my ability to perform effectively in any one position.
 * Unclear Expectations and Micromanagement: Management provided vague instructions and then micromanaged every aspect of my work, leading to constant confusion and a feeling of being constantly under scrutiny.
 * Unfair Punishment: On several occasions, I was unfairly punished for following the specific instructions given to me by management. This created a demoralizing and stressful work environment.
 * Lack of Communication: Communication between management and employees was consistently poor. Important information was often withheld or communicated inaccurately, leading to confusion and frustration.
 * Unprofessional Behavior: I witnessed instances of unprofessional behavior from management, including favoritism and inappropriate interactions with employees.


Cons: The application gives false incentives and false marketing. The job application states PTO, but its only after a YEAR of service. The job application also states a paid employee vacation after a calender year of service, but its ONLY for the second and third year employees. They also have be known to hire in people with less experiencr at higher rates then people who been there for years. If you call out, you need a doctors note or will get written up multiple times for same thing. I also heard bad stories about disrespect in tone an attitude from upper management to certain individuals, but my experience has been good with them so far.. everyone is different an is treated different. The elevator maintenance is neglected hardcore, but getting replaced.
Need a employee discounted meal badly.

Pros: Good fair pay. Good hours. There is plenty of food, drinks, candy, snacks, icecream sellers at job site. Good break room, although tablet is slow. The owners are friendly. The health, dental and eye insurance is like 12$ a week (48$ month). Offer free coffee and tea to all employees at beverage station.  

What is the best part of working at the company?
Everyone treats you like part of a big family! The work environment is friendly, and I have so much fun with my job. I feel valued in my work. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
I do not experience a lot of stress within my role at Smoky Mountain Resorts. If I do, it is usually that I have been assigned a large task I have never done before, but they provide all the resources that I need to learn how to do them!

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is very friendly and open. I feel like my team is willing to hear and consider my ideas, provide effective support, and encourage me to grow. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical day in my role consists of building and fostering relationships with our guests and community online. I interact with guests, share important and fun information, and advertise our offerings across our digital channels, including social media and our website. I also create and edit content to provide an accurate representation of our properties online.

The pay and the benefits are great for this area for hospitality work. So why are so many people quitting daily?  They will approve your vacation, then deny it days before your supposed to take it. Your schedule? Will come out the day before it starts. The person your helping train? Makes more money than you. You make a computer mistake? “Training opportunities” and “write up’s” will be given. Need to miss or leave work early? You better have good insurance so you can get a doctors note every time or it will be a write up. They will make you attend mandatory meetings on our “core values” and how we don’t believe in favoritism and if you see it you can confidently report it to the DOO or the owner…. but that’s untrue. Your work ethic, experience, years at the company, and knowledge doesn’t matter as long as your a “higher-up’s”  favorite. This company has refused and forgotten to take care of their long-term employees and adjust our pay rate to their new pay range and as a result, we’re all leaving. Then the new employees come in WITH better pay and still quit because of all the things mentioned above. 

Very top-down micromanagement style company. Employees have their eventual firing loomed over their head from Day 1. At first you I think it's a joke but then you start to see employees dropping like flies and realize that you could be next at any time. walking into work day-to-day wondering whether I would still have a job tomorrow was absolutely terrifying. Support from upper management was sparse at best. Lack of anything but negative feedback. Company president/leadership seems to have the best of intentions but are rarley seen on properties - leaving day to day responsibilities to unprofessional corporate who would pass along to lower level managers and employees. Corporate leadership was often blatantly rude, disrespectful, and unprofessional in front of managers and employees alike. Retaliation is common, especially if you wind up on corporate or upper managements "bad side". Hard work isn't valued here, an unprofessional game of office politics rules everything. 

The H.R. is known to exaggerate the job details just to get the people they want. It's pretty common for management to assign you work that is not related to your job title. Management attempts to claim their all for job fairness and equality. Despite this there's still a lot of favoritism in the management of this place. Management is very disorganized and don't have any problems to threaten someone with being wrote up or fired over the smallest things.

The only good things I can say is the pay and benefits are nice compared to other places but it honestly makes you question if the pay and benefits are even worth it for what you have to put up with. Your not allowed to use any PTO until your second year of employment. Managers almost expect you to devote your life to this resort. There were a few decent people I knew here but overall I do not recommend working here.

I started in the pool and when it closed down for the winter I was given the opportunity to learn every department. I don't have to worry about burnout like I have had at other jobs since I get to work everywhere. I honestly enjoy working here. Just like any job, it has its ups and downs but here, the ups heavily outweigh the downs. There is drama and stress just like at any job, don't get me wrong, and there will be times you aren't 100% happy with management but again, that is with any job. The thing about here that helps set it apart is the family environment it creates. When people from corporate come in, they know you by name. Your managers take time to get to know you and they do their best to make sure you are getting the best out of your time working here. I feel comfortable talking with my managers and I enjoy getting to work with those who I supervise. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Guest service agent 74 salaries reported	$19.34 per hour
Maintenance technician 4 salaries reported	$25.50 per hour
Executive housekeeper 64 salaries reported	$25.92 per hour
Cleaner 5 salaries reported	$20.00 per hour
Division manager 29 salaries reported	$63,448 per year

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