VSA Resorts: Value, Service, Atmosphere The Premier Independent Management Company of Virginia Beach

Fast Facts & Company History

VSA Resorts was originally founded in 1986 by The Breeden Company, a real estate development firm in Virginia Beach, VA. In 2009, three company executives – Lori Overholt, Michele Colson, and Mark Richard – purchased the company from Ray Breeden. VSA’s three Virginia Beach Resorts include Ocean Key Resort with 142 rooms, which converted to Vacation Ownership in 1990; The 90-unit Atrium Resort, converted to vacation ownership in 1991; and The Ocean Sands Resort, with 104 units, which converted to vacation ownership in 1999. Today, over 130 hospitality professionals serve more than 13,000 owners at the resorts. www.vsaresorts.com

HR job link https://vsaresorts.com/about-vsa/career-opportunities/

Working Business Owners

Lori Overholt, CPA

As a co-owner of VSA Resorts, Lori Overholt serves as President and Chief Financial Officer. She originally joined the company as its CFO in June 2005. Previously, she spent over a decade in public accounting, specializing in small business consulting and tax planning. Lori is an active member of ARDA’s Board of Directors and CFO Council. In 2015, she was selected as Virginia’s top CFO for small companies.

Michele R. Colson, PCAM, AMS, CMCA

Michele Colson is co-owner of VSA Resorts and the SVP of Associations for VSA Association Management, LLC, with a portfolio of 18 condominium, property, and community association clients. She is also President of the HOAs for the three resorts currently managed by VSA Management Corp. She began her career in the association management industry in 1996 and specializes in property management, board relations, and reserve-study areas. She earned an MBA early in her career and several highly respected professional designations.

Mark E. Richard

As Senior VP of Administration for VSA Resorts since 2006 and as co-owner since 2009, Mark Richard oversees the entire sales administration process, including contracts, credit underwriting, funding, and inventory control. His responsibilities also include mortgage collections, portfolio management, IT, and inventory recovery, including foreclosures. Mark began his career at VSA Resorts in 1994 as a Systems Administrator/Programmer, responsible for maintaining the entire computer networking system, including the sales and reservations software. Mark holds a BS degree in Computer Science and Engineering Science

Welcome to VSA Resorts

Since its formation 33 years ago, VSA Resorts has remained a highly-respected employer and corporate community citizen. After initially developing their resorts, the company continues to market and sell timeshare units as well as manage the operations of their properties. Today, they are standing proud as an independent property management company with three family vacation ownership resorts spanning across the heart of the Virginia Beach oceanfront and successfully serving 13,000 families year after year.

Adds CEO Lori Overholt, “There are many corporate characteristics that make us unique. I can’t speak for other similarly-sized management companies, but at VSA we continuously focus on our mission of providing positive, memorable experiences for our owners and guests. What’s not to love about fulfilling vacation dreams? Our entire staff has a truly positive attitude about our business and life in general. For us, it is paramount to deliver the best customer and employee experience!”

“We believe to be successful in fulfilling our mission, all employees and departments must work together toward the same common goal,” continues Lori. “Every member must contribute for the total team to be successful. We know that our resorts are literally ‘owned’ by the timeshare owners and we work for them!

The proof of their dedication to owners is evidenced by high customer service scores from exchange companies and past guests. All three resorts have received Certificates of Excellence from Trip Advisor; RCI has awarded Silver Crown status to the Ocean Key and Atrium Resort and Ocean Sands has earned RCI’s Hospitality designation.

Added Dawn Cox, Mortgage & Portfolio Manager, “I love working at VSA because we serve people who love to vacation and spend time with their families. This makes my work more enjoyable because I know our team can positively impact on a guest’s vacation when we provide them with the optimum level of service.”

Although it is surrounded by larger and sometimes nationally branded hospitality companies in a popular vacation destination, VSA has consistently maintained a strong workforce with top quality associates. About 45% of management company employees have been with the company for more than ten years and 40% of the developer company employees have been staffers for more than five years. Including seasonal operators, about 20% of the total staff has been on board for more than five years.

Benefits. Employee benefits are critical in maintaining staff. According to VSA co-owner and Sr, VP of Administration, “We are continuously adding benefits for our staff. Depending on departments, these include health/dental/life insurance, employee assistance program, 401K matching programs, vacation time and RCI exchange weeks. There are bonus plans, monetary rewards, and SPIFFS when an employee is mentioned positively in a comment card or online review.”

Training programs are conducted for all levels of associates. Shared VSA co-owner Michele Colson, Senior VP of Associations, “We hold Fred Pryor seminars and offer their library of courses. We host speakers from our Employee Assistance Program to train on communication and stress relief and provide regular customer service training plus video training for housekeeping.”

And who doesn’t love to party? At VSA Resorts, there is a celebration at every turn, keeping staffers enthused about events around each corner. Special events have included picnics, holiday parties, monthly PB&J sandwich-making for homeless, customer service week, employee-appreciation day, office Olympics, random National Day celebrations, food truck day, pot lucks, and more.

Philanthropy. VSA believes investing in its community is important. They support the area in which they live and work in by encouraging team members to serve on charitable and community boards. They host a monthly event where team members make sandwiches for the homeless and underserved populations. Staff members regularly collect for and volunteer at the Food Bank, Samaritan House and PIN (People in Need) Ministry for homeless.

Adds Lori, “Not everyone participates in corporate philanthropic endeavors but several years ago, we had the employees choose the organizations we support. I think participating is important because it allows team members who work together on a charity project to get to know each other beyond their typical workday interactions. It also highlights that we are a company about serving others, whether it be our
owners and guests or the community at large.”

Team members teach classes for the Change Makers program with PIN, which helps get homeless people back in the workforce. The company also hires new staffers from this program. They donate free stay and vacation certificates to various charities for silent auctions and participate in various walks and marathons benefiting ALS and Cancer research. Always thinking of others, they donate linens and blankets for the homeless and participate in charity golf tournaments and annual wine, women and fishing tournaments for cancer research.

VSA team members most love the family atmosphere, seeing owners return year after year and having fun in the workplace. The sense that they are in someone’s vacation memory for life and that they are making a difference is an emotional connection. From their southern beach resort with access to fishing, surfing, and quality family time, to the centrally located oceanfront property in the middle of all the action, to their “gateway to the beach” property with the largest suites for any size group, VSA provides the perfect destination for every traveler … and the perfect place to work for hospitality professionals.