Getting jab is cruise with Coral
A flight attendant who lost her 33-year career to Covid redundancy is now flying high in a new role at a vaccination centre — and making sure people have a first-class experience along the way.
After losing her job at Air New Zealand last year, Aucklander Coral Davies decided she wanted to do something positive and worthwhile for the community. Davies and hundreds of others have a retrained for the newly created vaccination-centre jobs.
“It is making history and it’s exciting and interesting. I wanted to do my part for something I believe in,” she said.
“I work as part of an amazing team who have all come together from different roles and we have done it very quickly.”
Davies and the vaccination-centre workers around New Zealand are today’s Lockdown Heroes.
After starting in a “flow coordinator” role, she was recently promoted and now leads the registration team. She has been putting her leadership and customerservice skills towards getting Kiwis vaccinated.
Davies has worked at two large Auckland vaccination centres and said the team ran a smooth operation with a focus on “customer experience”.
“We have a lot from the travel and medical industries, some who were retired but most are from customer service roles. We are committed to creating an upbeat environment and making sure everyone who comes in is looked after so they have a great experience.”
Skills and knowledge from her Air New Zealand career had been invaluable.
Davies is proud of the streamlined system of taking people through check-in, vaccination and check-out and said it was similar to taking a flight.
“It’s all about people, and working at the vaccination centre is very much like working on an aircraft. There is just no plane there and we don’t go anywhere. It is still moving people through a site and because it is so new they are unsure what is happening.”
Making people comfortable and ensuring they had a good experience so they returned for jab two was essential.
Davies said she missed Air New Zealand but understood the company had to downsize.
“I had an amazing time there, it was a huge part of my life, but I accepted it. I felt for the talented people early in their careers who lost their jobs and I had to write references for.”
Daughter Emily Davies saw how well her mother performed at work when she got her jab.
“She is so upbeat and welcoming and just puts people at ease . . . She treats every person who walks through the door like they are walking into business class and she coaches her team to do the same.”