OPERATING world-class resorts in Fiji is an experience Tim Bathke never envisioned considering where he started from.
Prior to joining Warwick Hotels and Resorts in Fiji, Mr Bathke was General Manager of Warwick Seattle in the United States the previous six years.
Before Warwick Tim worked at a top global franchise in Portland, Oregon, overseeing a hotel with restaurant and banquet facilities.
Simultaneously he operated an 80-seat off-site Italian restaurant while managing aspects of the construction of another hotel for the same company.
At just 37, he has 18 years of executive management experience with international hotel chains ranging from General Manager to Area Operations Manager.
Tim has managed properties in the states of Oregon and Washington and was responsible for all aspects of operations and sales and marketing.
Today he is the Area General Manager – Fiji Islands for Warwick Hotels and Resorts and General Manager of The Naviti Resort, the latter a position he was appointed to in June 2018.
“I started in the hotels at the age of 18 as a housekeeper and a front desk agent,” he said with a smile.
“I started cleaning rooms and it kind of led from one job to another and the next thing I knew I was doing maintenance, then laundry, then other departments and it just continued and gave me a good exposure in nearly every area.”
It was through a former boss that he was given the opportunity to become assistant manager and then a general manager.
Bathke said the experience gave him the confidence to work his way up.
“I got my first hotel at the age of 19. A couple of years later I was overseeing a couple of hotels and it’s just been continuing. To be honest I just kind of fell into the hotel industry, it wasn’t planned,” the Salem, Oregon native said.
We met Mr Bathke at the Naviti Resort earlier this month as they lit up their annual Christmas tree with guests, staff and villagers of Votua.
Coconut palm trees that lined up the picturesque beachfront were wrapped in bright lights, as the resort entered its festive season including the upcoming New Year celebrations.
Located about 90 minutes’ drive from Nadi and two hours from Suva, the resort faces out towards Beqa Island where you find some of the finest Scuba Diving sites.
It is a one-stop holiday destination with a huge range of facilities to enjoy complementing its pleasant beachfront environment.
“It’s a beautiful place to work at, with a wonderful culture; this is actually one of the reasons I came because I felt like it was a good and safe place to continue raising my young children while exposing them to something different than they were accustomed to in the United States,” said Mr Bathke.
“I first came to Fiji from November 2017 to review the projects we were planning for Naviti.
I then transferred here officially in June this year after receiving permit approval.
It’s different to what I’m used to in the US. I operated a hotel downtown in a city that is in a metro area that has a population of between two to three million people, so more than the entire country here.
It’s different from the day to day but the base of how to run a resort or hotel all comes down to service – so it doesn’t matter if you’re at a resort or in a city hotel, you have the same goal which is to provide a great high-class experience for your guests.”
Various articles have described Bathke’s philosophy of never asking an employee to do something that he wouldn’t personally do. This is evident with how he approaches his work at Naviti.
“I don’t call challenges obstacles in my work – I call them opportunities and you know it’s about mindset,” he shares.
“The things that have proved hard is an opportunity to overcome because when they come they are something that makes you think a little more and makes you try a little harder, it develops your character as a person so I’ve certainly grown in the six months I’ve been here. I hope my team can say the same thing during my time here.”
“The coming year is going to have a lot of changes, some in the services we provide, some in the physical structures and improvements to the grounds and buildings here, but mostly it’s just about continuing the momentum that we have, continuing the great services that Naviti has become known for over the years and just trying to continue doing that in a way that represents Fiji and our community here,” he said with finality.
