Career Report Paper

Bridget Engle
Patty Kleban
RPTM 101- 001
April 28, 2021
Nicole Tam- Career Interview & Report
1. Introduction
For this assignment, on February 20th, 2021, I interviewed Nicole M. Tam, a Wedding Sales
and Services Manager with Disney’s Fairytale Weddings at Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa.
When I tell people what my dream job is, I tell them that it is to be a wedding planner for
Disney, preferably at their Aulani location. I used LinkedIn and found Nicole and reached out to
her to see if she’d be willing to do an interview with me. She was more than happy to help.
Nicole’s role is to start her journey with a couple as soon as they show interest in a wedding.
She takes them through the sale of services and through the actual planning and coordination of
the wedding. She explained to me how, in Disney World, there are different people for each of
these roles, but at Aulani, she stays with the couple through the entirety of the process.
Nicole got her start in the industry at the Hawaiian Convention Center working for the
Pacific Marketing Company. During her time there she met a Sales Manager for Aulani before it
even opened and stayed persistent, trying to find a job there. She got her foot in the door with
Aulani as a food and beverage secretary, working with banquets. She got to sit in on meetings
and followed the “best of the best” of Disney as they made plans for the resort. She then made
her way up to an event coordinator position, working with birthday parties and small gatherings.
Nicole explained to me how she continually showed interest in a manager position, and when
one opened up, she took it, leading to her career today. Nicole is about to celebrate her 10 year
anniversary with Disney this June.
2. Mission//Purpose of Agency/Department
Nicole expressed that the mission of Disney’s Fairytale Weddings and Honeymoons is “A
one stop shop to making dreams come true.” She shared that they work to provide couples with
their own personal, tropical, fairytale. The mission of Aulani is to provide people and families
with their own story. Aulani is built upon the principle of storytelling. Nicole emphasized that
they work to help their guests answer the following questions through experiences: “What’s your
story? What’s your legend?” Being on the island of Hawaii, she sees her job as a local to
welcome people, tell stories, and share them with others.
3. Clientele Served
The clientele that Nicole serves are mainly couples looking for a tropical wedding. Most of
them are already Disney fans, but she said that they often get couples who type “Hawaii
Wedding” into Google and find them that way. Nicole’s clients range from young couples who
just got engaged to those who are celebrating their 60th and 70th anniversaries. Nicole expressed
that no matter the age, gender, race, sexual orientation, etc., she simply wants to create the best
day for someone. While there are not membership requirements, Nicole often serves guests who
are part of the Disney Vacation Club. She gets to interact with clients from all over the world.
Hawaii is such a unique location, which leads to clientele coming from the US, Australia,
Canada, and Asia.
4. Services & Programs Provided
Disney’s Fairytale Weddings at Aulani offers multiple services to couples. First, there’s the
actual planning and coordination of the event, even including food tastings. Nicole acts as the
couple’s personal concierge, so she is ready to be their “fairy godmother” whenever they need
her. Couples and their parties have access to all the amenities that the resort offers including the
pools, spa, private beach, and childcare. While they are there, the couple are considered VIP
guests. Their photos are sent out to all the managers with a specific message. This way, when
they are walking around the resort, cast members can go the extra mile to include a little more
magic in their day.
In Disney World, there is an entire bridal studio, and a ballroom in Disneyland. Because of
space constraints at Aulani, Nicole shares all the facilities and grounds with the other
departments of the hotel. There is nothing specifically dedicated to the Weddings division. Due
to these constraints, Nicole says that she has to “work a little harder to provide the same services
that guests get at Disney.” Something really interesting that she shared with me was how
interwoven all the departments of the hotel are and how the Weddings department couldn’t
function without any of them.
5. Staffing
The staff of Disney’s Fairytale Weddings at Aulani includes four planners on the team.
Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, three were furloughed at the time I talked to Nicole. Before
the pandemic, there were about 3,000 cast members who worked at Aulani. Now, there are
about 800. The pandemic severely impacted the way the hotel functioned as a whole. The Walt
Disney Company had to let go of 30% of its employees due to COVID. When thinking about
these numbers, it struck me how lucky I was to be able to meet Nicole and interview her.
6. Funding Source(s)
Nicole was not able to share much about where the company gets its funding. She shared
that because of the pandemic, they were mostly using reserves. At the resort(Aulani), they had
to very carefully manage labor, only using essential employees to keep the hotel running
smoothly. Currently, Disney’s biggest source of revenue is their streaming platform, Disney+.
7. Professional Issues
The biggest challenge that Nicole feels she faces is how she often has grand visions for her
couples that do not align with the visions of other departments. Her least favorite thing to do is
having to tell the couples “no.” She shared that she often has to manage logistics and be a
mediator between her couples and the different departments of the hotel. Despite all this,
Nicole’s face lit up as she shared her favorite part of her job with me. She shared how much she
loved that she provides magic daily, no matter what she is doing. She gets to watch dreams
come true right before her eyes. I have no doubt that Nicole has the most magical career that
exists.

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Bridget Engle

RPTM 101- 001

April 28, 2021

Nicole Tam- Career Interview & Report

anniversary with Disney this June.

welcome people, tell stories, and share them with others.

Canada, and Asia.

4. Services & Programs Provided

magic in their day.

function without any of them.

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