Sockeye Cycle Employment Opportunities

Company History by owner, Thom Ely

I first arrived in Haines in 1982 after a two-month sea kayak trip through Southeast Alaska. A few of my friends had just moved here. I spent a month visiting and had a great first impression of the area. I moved here permanently in 1987 and bought an existing bike business in 1988. I first developed the retail and service aspects of the business, then expanded the following year into rentals and tours.

I built a bike shack in Skagway during the summer of 1992 to provide for the bicycle needs of the local and visitor industry. I expanded the business in 2000 and built a new store with an apartment and employee housing on the floors above. We have a full service sales, repair, rental and tour business there. This year we had twenty-five employees. The majority of the seasonal positions are in Skagway.

Area Information

Haines is located eighty miles north of Juneau in the Southeast panhandle of Alaska on the Lynn Canal, North America's longest fjord. Skagway is fifteen miles by water north of Haines at the end of the Inside Passage. Haines has a year round population of 2200. Skagway's population is 700 year round and 1500 in the summer. You can drive to both communities from the Alaska/Canadian Highway.

The climate is somewhat drier then other areas of Southeast due to a combination of coastal and interior climates. We are at the northern end of the Tongass National Forest, the country's largest at 16 million acres. It is the last remaining largely intact temperate rain forest in North America, home to grizzly bears, moose, mountain goats, black tailed deer, bald eagles, five species of salmon and a multitude of other wildlife.

Recreational opportunities abound depending on your abilities and cooperation from the Alaskan environment. Locals and visitors partake in running, climbing, skiing, biking, boarding, dog mushing, kite surfing, paragliding, fishing, hunting, hiking, kayaking, tennis and whatever else there is to do outside.

Job Qualifications

All Employees must be US Citizens or have a green card or work visa for the USA. You need to have a clean driving record and provide a Department of Motor Vehicles report from your license state covering the past three years. All employees must obtain an Alaska drivers license and have current CPR/First Aid certification and a DOT medical certificate before you are eligible to work. All employees will sign a contract when hired. Not all positions may be currently open for hire.

Guide/Driver - You need to be twenty-three years or older. Public speaking and a yearn to learn and talk about the local region is a major part of the job. You need to have solid leadership qualities and be organized and punctual. A positive, outgoing, friendly attitude is necessary at all hours of the day. It helps to have a basic knowledge of bike mechanics. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Tour Manager. You must be available from May 1st or June 1st - August 31 or September 30th. The position is based in Skagway. Compensation is $10/hr. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a bonus.

Mechanic/Driver - You need to be twenty-three years or older. Bicycle mechanic certification is preferred or at least two years of shop mechanic experience. You must have current component and sales knowledge. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You must be precise, focused, organized and motivated. This position might also be combined with guiding tours part time, (see guide qualifications). You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Service and Operations Managers. You need to be available from May 1st or June 1st - August 31 or September 30th. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. This position is based in Skagway. Compensation is $12/hr. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a bonus.

Retail Sales/Driver - You need to be twenty-three years or older. Retail sales knowledge of bicycles, accessories, apparel and POS computer experience is preferred. You must be outgoing, positive, focused, organized, motivatedm and possess excellent customer service skillls. Duties include: customer sales, POS, stocking, pricing, cleaning, organizing and rentals. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You need to be available from June 1 - August 31. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Retail Sales and Operations Managers. The position is based in Skagway. Pay is DOE. Upon successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a performance bonus.

Office Assistant/Dock Rep - You need to be twenty-three years or older.  Office administrative experience, sales and computer proficiency is required.  A positive and outgoing personality is necessary with the ability to be flexible and contribute to a stress free teamwork environment.  Duties include: settling, invoicing, scheduling, filing, cleaning, tour promotion, sales outreach, reservations, correspondence. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Tour Manager. The position is based in Skagway from May - August. Compensation is salaried, DOE, with a 30-day training and evaluation period. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a bonus.

Service Manager - You need to be twenty-three years or older have certification and senior mechanic experience. An excellent work ethic, honesty, flexibility, and management skills to facilitate a stress free teamwork environment are required. Duties include: servicing and overseeing work on all customer and company bikes, scheduling repairs and overseeing mechanics, maintaining the highest quality of customer service, parts ordering, inventory and POS, special orders, and maintaining revenue targets. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You will coordinate with the tour operations. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Operations Manager. You must be available to work from April 15 - September 30th. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. The position is in Skagway. Compensation is salaried, DOE, with a 30-day training and evaluation period. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a bonus.

Retail Sales Manager - You need to be twenty-three years or older and have previous retail management experience, preferably in the cycling field. Some mechanical experience is also preferred. An excellent work ethic, honesty, flexibility, and management skills in order to facilitate a stress free teamwork environment are required. Duties include: overseeing retail operations, sales of apparel, accessories, rentals, inventory, ordering, POS system, retail staff oversight, retail appearance, organization and cleanliness. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You will also assist with daily tours. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Operations Manager. You must be available for the full season, April 15 - September 30th. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. You will be required to drive for this job. The position is in Skagway. Compensation is salaried, DOE, with a 30-day training and evaluation period. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a bonus.

Shop Manager (Haines) - You need to be twenty-three years or older and have mechanic certification and or at least two years of shop experience. Duties include: retail sales, inventory, servicing/building bikes, tour equipment, cleaning and organizing. You will also be involved with daily tour operations, guiding and driving as needed. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. An excellent work ethic, customer service skills, honesty, flexibility, and motivation to work as the sole mechanic in a small town bike shop is required. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the Office Manager and President. You must be available to work from April 1 - September 30th. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. Compensation is $13/hr. with a 30-day training and evaluation period. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a bonus.

Operations Manager - You need to be twenty-three years or older. You need to have previous management, data entry, hiring, computer experience and excellent public relations skills. Experience running a bike shop is preferred. You need to be competent with marketing, sales and other retail business related tasks. Duties include: hiring, scheduling, managing employees, settling accounts, sales and marketing, inventory control, POS oversight, ordering, tour equipment maintenance and correspondence , driving and guiding. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You will work in tandem with the Tour Manager and oversee all Skagway operations. You are the representative and public liaison for the company. An excellent work ethic, organizational skills, attention to detail, honesty, flexibility, and ability to facilitate a stress free teamwork environment are required. The position is based in Skagway full time from from April - Mid October and part time in the off season.  This is a two year contract. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the President.  Compensation is salaried, DOE, with a 30-day training and evaluation period and hourly pay for off season work. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a yearly bonus.

Tour Manager - You need to be twenty-three years or older. You need to have previous management, data entry, computer experience and excellent public relations skills. You need to be competent with marketing, sales and other retail business related tasks. You will work in tandem with the Operations Manager and oversee all tours and guide staff. Duties include: hiring, scheduling, invoicing, managing employees, settling accounts, sales and marketing, correspondence, filing, cleaning, driving and guiding. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. You are the representative, shore agent and public liaison for the company. An excellent work ethic, organizational skills, attention to detail, honesty, flexibility, and ability to facilitate a stress free teamwork environment are required. The position is based in Skagway full time from from Mid April - September and part time in the off season. This is a two year contract. You must be committed to fulfilling the term of your contract. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the President. Compensation is salaried, DOE, with a 30-day training and evaluation period and hourly pay for off season work. Based on evaluations and successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a yearly bonus.

Office Administrator (Haines) - You need to be twenty-three years or older. You need to have previous computer data entry and accounting experience with excellent organizational skills. You should be familiar with marketing, sales and other business related tasks. Duties include: AP/AR, billing, reservations, filing, payroll, hiring, retail sales, advertising, inventory, ordering supplies, etc. You will drive the tour vans and must be able to pass DOT and insurance requirements. An excellent work ethic, honesty, flexibility, and ability to contribute to a stress free teamwork environment is required. The position is based in Haines. You are responsible for following all company policies and procedures and report to the President. This is a part time year round position averaging 15 - 25 hours/wk in the off season and 30 - 40 during the season.  This is a two year minimum contract. Pay is DOE $12 - $15/hr. Upon successful completion of your contract you will be eligible for a yearly performance bonus.

Accommodations

We have company housing in Skagway available for our employees at $300/Mo. for a single room and $200/Mo. for a shared room. The rooms are located in the same building as the business. There is a communal kitchen, living area and laundry for staff use only. There is a lease and a list of House Rules that you sign agreement to. There are extremely limited options for rooms to rent in Skagway or Haines. They can sometimes be found before the season starts.

Camping in a tent or the back of your truck is an option in both communities either at a campground or free range.  If you camp you will be required to sign an agreement, place a deposit and pay a monthly fee to use the company facilities. Because of the long hours left unattended and busy days we request that you do not bring any pets with you. Pets are not allowed to roam or be tied up on company property.

Training

There are two five day training sessions for guides and mechanics the first week of May and June. Training is paid at $8/hr. and involves a thorough review of all tour, shop and company procedures. It is mandatory that you attend one of these sessions. Guides will receive a training manual to study before you arrive. Managers go through a thirty-day training period that covers all aspects of the business and job description.

Synopsis

The majority of the seasonal positions are based in Skagway and involve our daily tour operations with the cruise ships. The tours are three to four hours long with groups of twelve and two guides. A typical day during the season from mid June to mid August involves guiding two trips and driving one.  This is a customer service job and you must enjoy talking to and assisting people all day long.

The service and retail work consists of maintaining our one hundred plus bike fleet, renting bikes, building/selling bikes, repairing customers bikes, selling apparel/accessories/components and maintaining our tour equipment.  The managers/president participate hands on and oversee all aspects of the business.  It's a fun place to work in a beautiful and unique part of the world!

Based on your qualifications and when we receive your application, we will conduct phone/skype interviews, check references and hire as needed. Thanks for your interest in working for us!

Sincerely,

Thom Ely

President