Employer Spotlight: Broadmoor Resort and Hotel

Discover how U.S. employers are partnering with CIEE BridgeUSA Intern and Trainee programs to create dynamic work environments, benefiting from the diverse skills and viewpoints of participants from around the world. 

Q: Please introduce yourself. 

A: My name is Alyssa Graudins. I am the director of recruiting for the Broadmoor Resort and Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I've been with the Broadmoor for almost three years, overseeing both our international and domestic recruiting efforts. 

Q: How long has the business hosted or trained BridgeUSA participants? 

A: The Broadmoor has hosted and trained BridgeUSA participants for a number of years. This has been a long-standing partnership program that we've had at the Broadmoor and something that we are incredibly proud of. 

Q: What does the work entail for the BridgeUSA participants at the Broadmoor? 

The work and the training that our BridgeUSA participants participate in will really depend on the program that they're a part of. We have back-of-house culinary programs, we have front-of-house food and beverage programs, and we have operations programs. 

In culinary, they'll rotate between kitchens. In our front-of-house food and beverage, they'll rotate between outlets and positions to really expand and learn all the different operations of a front-of-house kitchen and restaurant outlet. And then our operations team members will start in front desk and rotate to concierge or start in concierge and rotate to reservations. Depending on the program, our BridgeUSA participants are really able to have an expanded skill set and understand hospitality and resort management. 

Q: How many BridgeUSA participants has the Broadmoor hosted over the years? 

Over the years, the Broadmoor has hosted hundreds, if not thousands, of BridgeUSA students. This program has had a tremendous impact on us. It helps our managers feel inspired. It impacts our community in such a positive way. The Broadmoor really sees the value in continuing to bring BridgeUSA students to our resort to train them, to help them learn, to help them expand their knowledge, and we just feel the great impact they have coming to our resort. 

Q: How would your business be affected if you no longer had access to the BridgeUSA program?  

A: If we no longer had access to the BridgeUSA program, our organization would be impacted through a lack of inspiration, through a lack of knowledge. These students come to the resort and they bring a wealth of knowledge. They are also helping us learn and be better as an organization. Without the program, we wouldn't be inspired. This program has a tremendous impact, not just on us as an organization, not just on the guests that come through our doors every day, but on the community as a whole, just to really ensure we have a diverse population. 

Q: What impact has the BridgeUSA program had on your domestic employees? 

A: The impact the BridgeUSA program has on our domestic team members is insurmountable. Our domestic team members are working alongside BridgeUSA students, and they are learning about different cultures. Oftentimes, this is also learning different languages as well. It is an incredible experience to watch our domestic team members interact with our BridgeUSA students and come together to learn from one another – whether that's language or whether that's a cultural experience. They sit alongside each other, they work alongside each other, they train alongside each other, and they are helping each other learn every single day at the Broadmoor. 

Q: What do the BridgeUSA participants do when they're not working? 

A: When the BridgeUSA students aren't working or training at the Broadmoor, they are experiencing everything that Colorado and Colorado Springs has to offer. Their employee housing is located close to downtown. They're out, they're eating at new restaurants, they're trying new foods, they're exploring. Colorado Springs is in the backyard of everything that Colorado has to offer. They are exploring and getting out and learning more about the culture that either Colorado or U.S. has. We are a short distance from Denver, so many of our students are taking trips up to Denver and exploring what that big city has to offer. 

The Broadmoor will host a wide variety of events for our BridgeUSA students where they're able to go out and go alongside other BridgeUSA students and experience a part of the culture sponsored by the Broadmoor. We feel that these experiences only enhance their program and ensure that they get the most out of their time with us in the program. 

Q: Do you believe the local community prospers from the BridgeUSA participants activity in the area? 

A: I believe that the local community does prosper from having BridgeUSA students in the area. Not only are the businesses able to have more business and the restaurants are having more patrons, but overall, the community prospers from having a much more diverse population. Students come in and are enjoying a wide variety of activities. It is a tremendous community impact, and the Colorado Springs community is better because of the BridgeUSA students that come. 

Q: What are some aspects of American values and achievements that you hope your participants take back with them to their home countries? 

A: The one thing that I hope our BridgeUSA students take back with them after completing the program is just the sense of community, a sense of helping one another, a sense of being open to different cultures and different environments and understanding people, that maybe you didn't understand before. That's why this program is so important and can really help our BridgeUSA students have an open mind when they come in, make new connections, make new friends, make lifelong friends that will help them professionally and be a part of their personal lives in the future. 

Q: Has hosting participants increased the number of people from their country coming specifically to Colorado Springs? 

A: Our experience at the Broadmoor is that BridgeUSA students go home, they talk about their experience with their friends and families, school colleagues, and then those people in turn want to come back. We see a huge return of students coming to us – or interest from students coming to us – because their friend, their cousin, their brother, their sister participated in this program. Much of how we get our BridgeUSA participants is through word of mouth, and we are so grateful for that. We know we're doing something right if our students are going back and talking to their professors in their schools, and then in turn wanting to come back in the future. 

Engage the services of the CIEE BridgeUSA Intern and Trainee programs to learn more about hosting international talent within your organization.