The trouble with the Adventure Centre is that we tend to forget it's there. It appears to have receded into the Smoke Bluffs landscape for a lot of locals who never set foot in the building. Then again, some of us are still grumbling over how much the place cost to build, and how much we're shelling out to operate it. We need to get over that and move on. We should realize this is a first-class operation that does us all proud.Sometimes it takes an outsider to shed light on the gems in our own backyard. I spoke with one of the organizers recently of a weekend event held at the Adventure Centre. He passed up other venues because he was not only smitten by the cutting edge design of the building, but also by the professionalism of the staff. For visitors the Adventure Centre presents a relaxed, welcoming, and unpretentious setting that is a reflection of this community. To be sure, the exterior design of the structure sets a high standard for architecture in the corridor. And the spacious nature of the interior is well laid out and easy to get around. But this is not just another pretty face, a kind of superficial architectural eye candy, resting on its laurels. What is equally striking about the AC is the attention to customer satisfaction the staff promotes. A walk up to the information counter, or gift shop, brings a genuinely friendly greeting and inquiries about how the staff can help. Booking a function, or the use of the theatre, is an exercise in how business should be conducted: cordial, prompt, hassle-free and efficient.There was a time when service in this town, especially at the municipal level, was akin to running a gauntlet of indifference and negative attitude, with the subtext being you can like it or lump it. Anybody who does business these days has to understand that happy customers are the reason they will stay in business. And anybody in the service industry, which we are told is slated to fill the vacuum created by the exit of Woodfibre and forestry-related enterprises, should send their staff over to the AC for a primer on exceptional service.This stuff doesn't come naturally. The Adventure Centre brass has hired staff from every nook and cranny of the globe. Training up front and continual refreshers keep the place on an even and consistent keel. Frankly, the whole Adventure Centre operation trumps most establishments up the road in North America's premier ski resort, where service may have seven letters but it has become a four-letter word in the wake of the 2010 Games bandwagon.
