Paul Button

After taking over from the entrepreuerial founder, I have lead the transformation of Rotorua Canopy Tours into a premier adventure tourism business in New Zealand. Achieved recognition as the number one tourism activity or business in NZ six times in seven years. Established a strong business culture that customers feel and high standards of health and safety, while driving innovative digital strategies. Spearheaded world-leading conservation efforts and built strong relationships with stakeholders, earning B Corp certification as the first zipline B Corp in the southern hemisphere. Improved profitability and guided the company through COVID-19 challenges, surpassing pre-pandemic performance by F23

• Company Overview: Operations Manager for busy multi-activity adventure tourism company offering Rafting, RZR/ATV, Snowmobile, Zipline, Treetops Adventures and Snowshoe tours
• Managing off site food and beverage, on-site cafes, building and vehicle maintenance department
• This role was fundamental to the success of TAG, which was the busiest and best adventure tourism operation in Canada
• Liaison with guides, drivers, office staff, sales and marketing department and clients to ensure successful running of the operation
• Hired and managed in excess of 200 employees (inclusive of Wedge Rafting)
• Built and followed budgets, created business plans for acquisitions, purchases and expansions
• Involved in capital planning and purchasing, strategic thinking, product development and implementation
• Intuitive of the changing needs of the business, communicated and conceptualised ideas to the President and Leadership Team
• Continual updating of risk management procedures to reflect changes in the weather and conditions, implemented company-wide training programs
• In charge of security on site
• Led critical incident response, follow up, patient communications, debriefs and managed liability claims
• Managed fleet of 70 commercial vehicles including buses, vans, SUV’s, snowmobiles, ATV’s, RZR’s and snowcats
• Oversaw the maintenance facility and dealt with the provincial vehicle insurer ICBC
• Main driver for visitor experience, spent time with guests, trained guides and ensured visitors were satisfied with their experience
• All branded activities (Wedge Rafting/SuperFly Ziplines and TAG) were consistently in the top activities on TripAdvisor in Whistler
• Created strong culture with improved work ethic, focus on safety, enjoyable working environment with better customer service
• Contributed significantly to the bottom line by taking 20% off the operating costs in my first year overseeing all the activities
• My contribution and changes to processes had a net effect of six figures and we experienced sales growth year on year
• Operations Manager for busy multi-activity adventure tourism company offering Rafting, RZR/ATV, Snowmobile, Zipline, Treetops Adventures and Snowshoe tours

• Company Overview: General Manager of Western Canada’s busiest white-water rafting company
• Responsible for all operations including vehicles, financials, equipment, communication, sales and employees
• Under my leadership we had an impeccable safety record and 125% revenue growth ($850,000 in 2009 to $1,800,000 in 2017) with the same footprint
• Managed 35 full time and 10 part time staff with responsibility for all recruitment, payroll, scheduling, tour delivery and risk management
• Motivated and trained staff to enable them to succeed
• Achieved a turnover in excess of seven figures, and over 14,000 clients in a short summer rafting season
• Complied by all safety legislation and regulation
• British Columbia Commercial Rafting Operators Association (BCROA) Raft Guide Assessor, training and assessing all new guides in the area to ensure safety standards were met
• Coordinated staff, clients and vehicles to run 11 trips on 3 rivers for up to 400 clients a day
• In charge of all inventory control and maximizing daily sales
• Constantly updating risk management procedures to reflect changes in the environment and assessing river conditions daily
• Led incident response, patient communications, debriefs and managed liability claims
• I had an impeccable safety record during the 15 seasons I was involved at Wedge Rafting, in rivers that are inherently risky
• Fully accountable for a successful business in an ever-changing operating landscape
• Running fleet of 12 commercial vehicles including all commercial inspections, servicing, maintenance, breakdown recovery, staffing and cleaning
• Provincial representative for the overhaul of the Federal Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program from 2011 onwards
• General Manager of Western Canada’s busiest white-water rafting company

• Full time whitewater rafting guide and safety kayaker doing continuous summers for nearly a decade
• I trained up to be a commercial guide in Rotorua and worked around New Zealand, North America, and Central America, on rivers classed 1-5 and on trips that ranged from 1 hour to 17 days long

• Trip Leader, Raft Guide, Safety Kayaker and driver on the Landsborough, Shotover and the Kawarau Rivers
• Led the Landsborough River trips - this helicopter access multi day tour was a high-end NZ river trip and was in an extremely remote, diverse and changeable environment