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Effective Operations Management in a Seasonal Business

Summer Boaze

Entrepreneurship and Business Academy, Kempsville High School

TE 4550-A41: EBA Senior Internship

Mrs. Sarah Routsis

May 26, 2023

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Introduction

Water splashing, children laughing, and the sun shining sounds like an amazing time, but

what goes on behind the scenes of Ocean Breeze that ensures a great experience for everyone? I

am interning at Ocean Breeze WaterPark with the marketing and sales department for my EBA

Senior Capstone. During this time, I have had the opportunity to work with Ms. Myra Wood, the

Director of Marketing, as well as Shelby Haggerty (Marketing and Sales Representative).

Throughout my internship, I have been able to experience working on-season and off-season and

see how much really goes on “behind the scenes” of a seasonal business. I acquired this

internship through a previous connection I had with Mrs. Angela New, the Director of Sales at

13NewsNow. Mrs. New connected me with Mrs. Wood through email and recommended me as

an intern. After Mrs. Wood and I got connected, she quickly offered me this incredible

opportunity and we started with the hiring process. I was intrigued by this internship when it was

first presented to me because I knew I wanted to learn more about marketing. It was not until I

started working that I realized the importance each small detail plays in the long-term goals of a

company such as Ocean Breeze Waterpark.

What I Want to Know

After going through the internship and research process, I decided I wanted to know more

about the effects of operations management, specifically in a seasonal business. Most businesses

or organizations are made up of several different departments that intertwine and collaborate to

have the most optimal operations. The marketing and sales department at Ocean Breeze performs

a multitude of tasks that help keep the business running smoothly on a daily basis, such as

planning and preparing for each season of operation and ensuring that the organization follows

all rules and regulations. These tiny tasks help Ocean Breeze accomplish each season of
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operation to the best of their ability, but how? I want to further my knowledge and understanding

of operations management specifically so that I can not only help Ocean Breeze expand their

success but use this information in my future marketing career.

Marketing

Marketing is an extremely important part of the smooth running of Ocean Breeze, and I

quickly realized this once I was acquainted with my internship. Each task we performed had

some aspect of it that related back to marketing. Marketing itself is when a business promotes

and sells its products/services. Most of a business's sales come from effective marketing tactics

because it is a way to indirectly communicate with customers. A firm’s ability to use available

resources in order to complete marketing and similar tasks to achieve a desired marketing

outcome is called firm-level marketing capability. Firm performance and marketing capabilities

relate positively, allowing firms to gain market knowledge and use it to provide exceptional

value to customers. Ocean Breeze uses many different marketing techniques and strategies in

order to appeal to their customers. Some of the most prominent methods of marketing at Ocean

Breeze include the use of social media, announcements in the park, and email blasts. Through the

use of social media, Ocean Breeze promotes its products and services in creative ways that

appeal to families, their target market. One of the projects that I had the opportunity to work on

was creating Tik-Toks that promote the business. With this, I was able to view analytics and see

how customers were responding to the videos, which helped me understand how to reach the

target market. At Ocean Breeze, I was also tasked with making live announcements to the entire

waterpark, upselling products, and announcing special events. Email blasts, which customers can

opt to receive, send information directly to customers about upsells and special events as well.
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Each of these tasks exemplify the exceptional firm-level marketing capabilities that I found to be

prominent in the operations of Ocean Breeze.

Planning & Preparing

For any seasonal business planning and preparing for each season is almost detrimental to

having smooth operations. Setting goals includes establishing the relationship a business yearns

for between themselves and the environment. A goal or target is set so an organization can

determine what steps to take to obtain results. With this, achieving goals requires action to be

taken for future outcomes. Management must predict the future for them to take control of it and

achieve their short-term and long-term goals. Evidence suggests that the prompt development of

a business is due to its willingness to be open-minded when developing plans by avoiding

traditional methods and forming new goals. A functional firm should be able to accurately

forecast its next season of operations so that the firms are able to set goals and work towards

them in the most efficient way. At Ocean Breeze specifically, one of the techniques they use to

plan for each season is consignments. This is where they individually reach out to individual

customers or organizations and re-sell or up-sell season passes and tickets. By obtaining this

information, Ocean Breeze can expect the number of large groups/events they will hold in the

upcoming season. Without the planning and preparation of each operating season at Ocean

Breeze, there would be a significant decrease in efficiency and the overall success of the

business. When Ocean Breeze is in the off-season, all employees that work during that time

develop important plans and strategies to make the next season's operations run smoother.

Group Sales

Sales teams are vital for any business's success because they build important customer

relationships that stem retention and loyalty. Sales teams are able to collect customer data in
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order to enhance competition within their industry. With the information the sales teams gather,

businesses increase lead conversion rates and can create direct marketing campaigns. At Ocean

Breeze the sales team plays an integral part in their operations by overseeing all large sales

transactions such as season passes, birthday parties, and large group events. The sales team also

collects data from customers based off their purchases and habits. Ocean Breeze analyzes this

information in order to gain insight on what was most popular among customers. Another way

data is collected from customers is by conducting surveys that ask for feedback and suggestions.

The sales team at Ocean Breeze takes each individual survey response they receive and they

organize it in a way that is easier to analyze. I completed a project during my time at Ocean

Breeze where I optimized a survey given about special events for the upcoming season and ideas

for the new big screen located at the wave pool. By analyzing the data, I was able to predict

which events would create the most sales. When Ocean Breeze uses this data in their next season

of operations, their customers will feel like their opinions/suggestions are heard, which increases

overall satisfaction. Through these tasks, I gained a true understanding of how Ocean Breeze’s

sales team operates, and furthermore, why these operations are important.

Customer Relationships Management

Customer relationship management (CRM) involves direct interactions with customers

that are typically sales-related and that increase overall customer satisfaction (Hargrave, 2022). It

also includes analyzing customers’ trends and behaviors in order to forecast their decisions.

CRM can be seen in many different formats depending on the organization's operations. Since

Ocean Breeze is an extremely large company, they use social media, mass emailing, and phone

calls to create customer relationships. Each of these methods contributes to Ocean Breeze’s

growth of returning customers because they make it easier to create relationships with customers.
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One of the projects I was given during my time at Ocean Breeze was Consignments. This is a

process by which Ocean Breeze creates a contract with the many groups/organizations that

purchase from them. This contract is an agreement between the customer and the organization

that thoroughly explains each term and condition and a breakdown of what they are purchasing.

Consignments ensure that all information customers may need is transparent so that there are no

issues on either the receiving or distributing end. This also greatly contributes to the customer

loyalty seen at Ocean Breeze. CRM relates very closely to the sales team and marketing because

alike, they all focus on creating relationships with customers by either providing or receiving

data.

Workplace Compliance

All organizations have rules and regulations that they have to follow no matter the size.

Workplace compliance is ensuring that each employee within the workplace is adhering to those

rules and regulations. This could also include specific safety, privacy, or security concerns within

the organization. Employees have access to information personal to their organization, meaning

that they need to understand the importance of handling it. When employees fall short of

workplace compliance it costs them a lot of money which affects the overall operations of a

business. According to a blog titled “Workplace Compliance: What is Workplace Compliance

and Why is it Important?” on Envoy.com, the total cost of non-compliance in the workplace

around the world is about 14.82 billion dollars (Kirkham, 2022). This is an extremely large

amount of money that could set a business back in regular operations and decrease its overall

revenue. Even though workplace compliance seems to be a difficult task, especially for larger

companies, it is extremely important to the way the business operates on a day-to-day basis. At

Ocean Breeze, all employees are required to take an online training course and occasionally sign
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agreements to comply with all regulations. During my online training course, I learned about HR

policies and proper safety/training protocols. This was crucial information to gain, even before

my first day at Ocean Breeze. I was able to understand the basic protocols to follow so that I did

not disrupt the regular operations of the waterpark. Later during the season, all employees were

mandated to read over and sign the agreements about compliance. These included topics such as

horseplay, safe walkie-talkie use, and bullying. By mandating all employees to sign these, Ocean

Breeze successfully reinforced compliance procedures.

Seasonal Unemployment

During certain seasons a business may have to let some employees go due to several

different reasons, and this is called seasonal unemployment. Seasonal unemployment can be due

to agricultural issues, lack of demand, or holiday seasons. Ocean Breeze has seasonal

unemployment because there is no demand for a waterpark during the fall or winter. There are

also fewer tourists, which is a huge part of Ocean Breeze’s demand. As a result of this, there are

only certain employees that keep working when the season is over, most of them being managers

or supervisors. This makes Ocean Breeze a hot spot for teen employment opportunities since

there would be no conflict with school. If Ocean Breeze were to keep full employment all year

long they would end up losing money and become less productive. Seasonal unemployment is

not always a negative thing, it has benefits. Especially when the labor is flexible, seasonal

unemployment can give employees the opportunity to sharpen their skills, focus on other

commitments, and better their saving/spending habits.

Analysis

Throughout the course of my internship, I have learned an immense amount of

information about the integral parts of operations management ranging from marketing to
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seasonal unemployment. I had the opportunity to explore many different aspects of the seasonal

business and gain an understanding of how they work together to create harmony within

operations. I was originally hired to be apart of the marketing and sales department at Ocean

Breeze, but as I was being trained I noticed that there are many other tasks that we had to

complete that did not necessarily fall under sales or marketing operations. With this, I

categorized each main operation that I experienced at Ocean Breeze and learned how important

each detail can be to the overall success of the business. This experience has left me with

valuable insight inside of a seasonal business and hands-on experience with many different

projects. I will use these understandings and insights throughout the rest of my life, especially in

my future career. The knowledge I gained about each operation will provide me with a

foreground for any future job I hold. Along with the things I learned throughout the internship

experience, I have also learned a vast amount through my research. I have read many articles that

further explains each operation task and how it should contribute to the success of a business.

This information helped me make real connections between my education and comprehension

with skills in a workforce.

Conclusion

Ocean Breeze has been an incredible experience and opportunity for myself. I gained

beneficial knowledge and skills during my time there that furthers my understanding of a

businesses operations and that will help me succeed in any future career. The skills and

knowledge I earned during my time at Ocean Breeze and through my research, will allow me to

effectively break down a businesses operations tasks and departments in order to optimize the

businesses success. During my internship, I have been able to assist Ocean Breeze with

extremely important tasks such as creating content, building customer relationships, and editing
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important documents for the upcoming season of operation. I have also gained beneficial

network connections with the on and off-season employees at Ocean Breeze. By creating these

connections, I will be able to receive new opportunities and share my own skills and knowledge

with others. Overall this has been an incredible experience that has furthered my understanding

of operations management in a business.

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Sources

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Performance. Journal of Marketing, 79(5), 1–20.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/43784415

Dufty, N. F. (1961). The Planning Function in the Business Enterprise. The Journal of the

Academy of Management, 4(1), 51–58.

https://doi.org/10.2307/254590

Dearmer, A. (2023, January 18). The Importance of a Sales Team. FiveCRM. Retrieved March 8,

2023, from

https://www.fivecrm.com/blog/blog-the-importance-of-a-sales-team/

Hargrave, M., & Anderson, S. (2022). What Is CRM? Customer Relationship Management

Defined. Investopedia. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/customer_relation_management.asp

Kirkham, A. (2022, May 18). Workplace compliance: What is workplace compliance and why is

it important? Envoy. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from

https://envoy.com/blog/workplace-compliance/
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Seasonal Unemployment - Examples, Pros, Cons and Solutions. (2022, September 19).

Economics Online. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from

https://www.economicsonline.co.uk/labour_markets/seasonal-unemployment.html/