SEASONS GREETINGS

             WISHING YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS. MAY IT BE FILLED WITH JOY AND LIGHT!

                                                                    HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019

HOSPITALITY EDUCATION & INDUSTRY :BRIDGING THE GAP: GENUINE 'CRIES' -3

Reading Between the Lines-Cindy's Call

The ability to “read between the lines” can be extraordinarily valuable in business. I became aware of this on the job, as a hotel receptionist(position then titled, front office clerk). I began learning to practice interpreting body language; facial expressions, word emphasis and other nonverbal cues. They place different meanings on words and acquiring the skill to interpret them is useful in general communication.

I applaud Cindy, not her real name; the student who stood up before 400 plus  people in an auditorium to make a suggestion when no questions seemed to be forthcoming during question time.  I recall at that stage of my life I was too shy to get up to ask a question, much more, offer a suggestion which could be controversial, like Cindy did.

I believed she was representing a number of other students when she raised the suggestion about the possibility of their institutions placing students for internship instead of they(students), going out to look for placement for themselves. Could it be that behind the suggestion, is the real concern about security and safety particularly for female students?

Talking with a few female students, I realize they think its a brilliant/ great suggestion; that they be placed by their institutions. However, they expressed further concerns with that too, should posting be done by their respective institutions. It is likely there would be challenges of location of placement since it would be out of their control. There might be undue financial hardship, since interns are not usually paid, on students posted to locations a distance away from their homes.

I did 'put it to' a first year hospitality student who was not at the conference when we were discussing the issue;  "is it because there are fears of being sexually abused ?"

'Oh!' she replied, perhaps quite surprised at asking the question that bluntly, 'for that', she continued, 'I don't think that is the main challenge. For you to be sexually harassed, it depends on how you carry yourself. If you don't create attention you will not be harassed. Also, sexual harassment is everywhere so whether we are placed or not it's the same people out there', she concluded.

The discussions I have had on the ground so far,  run contrary to my view, so for now, I guess I will let sleeping dogs lie.

HOSPITALITY EDUCATION & INDUSTRY :BRIDGING THE GAP: GENUINE 'CRIES' -2

Whistle key bangle

Tackling the Stigma-Comfort's Cry
Just to make sure we are all 'on the same page', that is, that we have a common understanding of what 'stigma' is, I picked up the following explanations:
a strong feeling of disapproval that most people in a society have about something, especially when this is unfair

Retrieved from: https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-ab&q=stigma+meaning 
Also:
a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person.

Retrieved from: https://www.google.c/search?client=firefox-b-abq=stigma+meaning.

A stigma is therefore a negative attitude; it is held by a society and it discredits a person or a group linked to an attribute or a situation or conditions. 

Generally, society labels different professions with unique tags and some are negative(stigma). Think about the Police or the Army, or other professions; what negative practices are they associated with? This usually forms the basis of the stigma. Note therefore that the hospitality/hotel industry is not the only sector which is stigmatized. Naturally, for those of us in the industry, we can feel the pinch but we must learn how to manage it.

A successful entrepreneur who did carpentry is quoted to have said,“A lot of people were wondering why I wanted to do it, because I was getting really good marks in school, and everybody thought I should be a doctor or an engineer. That just didn’t align with my passion.”

It has generally been observed that students from low income families are incorrectly steered toward technical careers, while wealthier children get a push toward four-year degrees.Some students from wealthier communities who could have very fulfilling careers aligned to their interests will just not pursue those options because their parents fear the stigma of 'blue collar jobs'. Indeed, it is disturbing to see many young people wasting their talents because of the stigma attached to vocational and technical courses.

There seems to be a built-in bias against applied careers.The stigma attached to technical careers therefore remains, even where Polytechnics have been renamed 'Technical Universities'.
Competency based training expected to be introduced in our technical institutions is yet to be effectively carried through. Skilled jobs are unfilled because no one is trained or willing to do them. Meanwhile unemployment among university graduates is very high, and the majority of those graduates with jobs are not even working in their fields of study.

This post intends to address 'Comfort's cry of stigmatization' in the hotel industry, so permit me to get back to it; however, it is critical that we realize that stigmatization is not limited to the hotel
/hospitality industry.

To allow the stigma to influence you, results in an internalized stigma.These are 'the Comforts' in the industry, one of whom I met recently. I empathize with them. 

My first ever night shift was in a big hotel here in Ghana. I got the shock of my life when I saw females in attires I could never have imagined any 'decent lady' wearing (those days). What I learnt about them later made me feel truly ashamed. Existing stigma in the hotel industry include:

• ladies who work in the hotel industry have low morals
• the hospitality industry is for 'drop outs'
• cleaning hotel rooms does not requiring training

If a stigma is not corrected or managed well by an individual, it will destroy the one's dignity; diminish the chances of the stigmatized person achieving her full potential and it will seriously hamper job satisfaction if the individual should continue in the job.


The hotel industry employs many people in myriad disciplines. General requirements include:

• administration and customer service skills.
• IT skills to work with computerized booking and payment systems.
• excellent written and spoken communication skills.
• a friendly and professional telephone manner.
• patience and tact.
• the ability to stay calm under pressure and look after several things at once.

 Here in Ghana, one may not be able to pick and choose a preferred hotel to work with, but its important to know that there are different categories of hotels ranging from budget to 5 star, independently managed hotels and chain hotels, small hotels with a minimum of 10 rooms and large (by Ghanaian standards) of close to 300 rooms. Each attracts different 'markets'/guests. 
One can get a job in different departments; Front Office, Housekeeping, Food and Beverage Service and Food Production according to ones skill, knowledge and interest. There are also the support areas such as Finance and Administration, Marketing and Sales, Human Resource and Security.

It takes hard work and self motivation to develop yourself in the hotel industry in general. Since it demands a lot from its personnel, it is easy to loose track of time and 'march time' (be in the same position for too long). 

It is good to think in the line of management, motivate oneself  and pursue higher responsibilities. I find this enhances the individual's own maturity. This is the 'chorus I sing' for those in the industry. 
I started as a front desk clerk(receptionist) and I ceased opportunities to work in housekeeping, food and beverage service and the kitchen respectively at different hospitality establishments. I later became a trainer designing training programs. This opened doors to carry out assessment on personnel and design tailor made programs for specific hotels. Many other doors opened (that is for another time).

There is a need to inform and enlighten  the public to see the promising careers the hotel industry offers. 

When it comes to a career choice hospitality(accommodation/hotel and food and beverage service) is often overlooked. It is up to us who have contributed our lot, along with career advisers, parents, teachers and others, to showcase the industry's strengths and inspire the youth to see their potentials in it.

When the public and families get better informed, these and other stigmas will hopefully disappear as time passes.

HOSPITALITY EDUCATION & INDUSTRY :BRIDGING THE GAP: GENUINE 'CRIES' - PART 1

Whistle Key Bangle

The image on this page is temporarily displacing the bridge image I have been using since my discussion on 'bridging the gap between hospitality education and hospitality industry'.

As you can see it is a whistle key bangle. Its story unfolds.

I had completed my schooling in a college town and found a job in a much bigger city, St Louis. I am not too sure how I met the three young ladies, but I stayed with them only a few days before moving into my own apartment. I cannot remember now the specific countries they were from. However, I do remember they were South Americans. They gave me a whistle with a large ring, just like the image you are seeing. I was to wear it as a bangle.

I was taken through a whole drill on how to use the whistle key bangle, should I be at risk on my return from work. I was then working the night shift at a hotel and where we lived was considered a 'bad environment', that is, it was not safe. Walking from the bus stop to the apartment was a stretch.

For one who has generally been protected by family in particular, and one not sensitive to security issues then, I felt very fearful. I prayed that the opportunity to use the whistle would never come. It did not. I got my own apartment just a stone throw away from the hotel I was working at, just within a few days!

Now, that was long ago! So I was surprised when this image popped up in my mind after the just ended congress (of hospitality professionals in Ghana in Ho), upon hearing what I describe as the 'cries' of two ladies on two separate platforms.

Comfort, not her real name, is a hotel receptionist. I engaged her in a conversation about her career.  The other, Cindy(also not her real name), is a student, who I believe was representing a number of other students when she raised a suggestion during question time about the possibility of their institutions placing them for internship instead of they(students), going out to look for places themselves.

For most of us in Ghana, the whistle is associated with a referee, a coach or a police, not a distress call by someone at risk.

I also recalled a number of issues which are hardly discussed. I guess they have become 'fixtures' on my 'imaginary list' of outstanding issues in hospitality operations and hospitality education. They include the fear of abuse and the stigma attached to female workers in hotels in particular and the hospitality industry at large as well as the security and safety concerns of female students looking for their own places for internship.

The Silent Cry of Comfort
There is a fear among young ladies working in hotels of being stigmatized as having low morals. I heard it in the voice of Comfort. She was very concerned. She informed me she has been working in the industry for five years as a front office personnel. She however studied secretaryship. She has since been looking for an opportunity to get a job as secretary. I have personally come across a few  'Comforts'. Why wouldn't they build on their rich experiences, sharpen their skills and develop their careers in the industry? I have always wondered.

Where does one start from... to change the social perceptions which have successfully scared females away from pursuing careers in the hotel industry as a result of the stigmatization the industry carries?

The Loud Call By Cindy
Could it be that behind the suggestion made by Cindy(representing a group of students), that they should be posted rather than be allowed to look for their own places of internship, is a real concern about security and safety?

These are genuine cries/calls to engage the discussion and these will be developed in subsequent articles.



 

HOSPITALITY EDUCATION & INDUSTRY :BRIDGING THE GAP

The long-awaited-for annual delegates’ conference of the Institute of Hospitality (IH) came off at Ho Technical University, Volta Region, from 15^th to 17^th November. 

I am glad I participated and I am yet to give myself a treat for making the effort to be there!

By attending the conference, I got the opportunity to gauge the ‘temperature’ of where we are at on the educational front and I was able to pick up some concerns of students. 

I tuned my senses to get a 'feel' of the impact we are making as professionals in the industry and the possible trend of hospitality and tourism education in Ghana.  I was also able to identify the current issues (and they are as old as I have been in the industry)!  I listened to the views of Presenters on bridging the gap between the hospitality industry and hospitality education. I also ceased the opportunity to talk with a few personnel (housekeeping, front office and food and beverage) in the hotel I stayed. 

The unavailability of ‘news’ about the hospitality industry (operations and education in particular) speaks volumes to some of us. 

I was quite pleased with myself for gathering much information; considering that earlier attempts to ‘fish out’ current issues fell flat. I had dedicated the last quarter (September to December) of the year to write on ‘Hospitality Education’. You will observe I hardly posted any article.

However, now, I have lots of relevant issues to confidently write about, probably into the first half of 2019!

IH is a professional body for managers and aspiring managers working and studying in the hospitality, leisure and tourism industry, worldwide.  In Ghana, it comprises of hospitality academicians/educators (retired and current), entrepreneurs and professionals in the industry as well as students in all the Technical Universities across the country offering hospitality and tourism programs. From its parent, U.K. platform, its primary purpose is described as follows:

to promote professionalism through lifelong learning. This is achieved through engagement with hospitality educators around the world, through our knowledge library resources and through a program of professional development events. We aim to support all our members at every stage of their career and help them reach their full potential. Every part of our broad industry is supported; Managers, students, educators and suppliers Retrieved from https://www.instituteofhospitality.org  19/11/2018 

In an earlier article I posted on education and training in the hospitality industry in Ghana, I made a summary of efforts made towards capacity building/development in the sector over a period of several years. I indicated that 'I felt disheartened' simply because we seem to be doing a merry-go-round and some of us are beginning to feel sick, because its taking us too long to 'break out'.

Yet after the just ended conference I felt relevant! Frankly speaking, nothing has changed. So I ask myself : Is this the case of seeing the glass half empty or half full?

The lyrics of our ‘song’ have been and continue to be:

• lack of qualified and/or experienced personnel at the managerial level
• lack of dedicated training institutions (for the industry)
• lack of coordination between public and private sectors in the area of training
• unwillingness of some private operators to invest in training their personnel but would rather poach trained persons from other hotels
• the industry is choked with unqualified personnel

I share in the opinion that it is the mandate of our educational institutions to ensure that our graduates are skilled in all aspects of today's hospitality to meet the recruitment needs of the industry and to get a head start when they join the professional world.

Our Technical Universities should accept their responsibility to track industry developments (beyond Ghana) and update hospitality curricula to continuously benefit our students. Suggestions and comments about ensuring relevance in research works by engaging industry to play a participatory role in shaping research topics during the just ended conference were most welcoming. However, since the industry is 'quite slow' here in Ghana, research works could in addition, also look a little beyond our borders. It would be useful. Our educational institutions have to prepare students to be ready to enter the hospitality work market in an efficient way.

Meanwhile, I am encouraged to maintain this platform as a learning platform, an avenue to promote professionalism through lifelong learning as I share critical issues in the hospitality industry(particularly hotel operations) as well as hospitality education in Ghana.

 

HOSPITALITY EDUCATION-BRIDGING THE GAP-HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY

I imagine Ghana working with a complete set of National Competency Standards for Hospitality; with General Units to support the attainment of competencies in at least three functional areas; food and beverage service, hotel front office and housekeeping operations.
Not yet; it's a dream!


So where should one start from?

To clean its own house, the Ghana Hoteliers Association (GHA) came up with a guideline of service standards to equip its members towards 'maintaining quality control and quality assurance processes and to facilitate and simplify training of staff'. The manual, titled: "Operational and Service Standards for Tourists Accommodation Enterprises in Ghana" has not yet been adopted on a national level; it has been four years since it was first published. A lot went into the development of this manual. Just wondering…was this work done in futility? 

By the way, between these two 'bodies'; the GTA(Ghana Tourist Authority) and the GSA(Ghana Standards Authority), who has the mandate to set standards for hotels(tourist accommodation enterprises)?Are roles changing or are we seeing duplication of functions?

A huge problem facing us is the lack of connection between the skills needed in the workplace/industry and the skills imparted through education and training. In countries where this industry is taken more seriously than we have and still do, there is a deliberate call to action to close the skills gap between what employers need and the workforce they have/intend to have.
By identifying the levels needed to successfully perform a given job, standards of performance arise which can be tailored to the industry. This would then form a basis for skills/competencies to be imparted through education and training. Who should be leading this?

Industry may need to take the lead and/or be heavily involved in  setting competency standards. In today’s workplaces, the only constant is change. Jobs that once were relatively simple now require high-performance work processes and enhanced skills.

There is much going on in the hotel industry globally and the gap between us here and the rest of the hotel world is widening every day. Here in Ghana, the expectations that many employers in hotels hold of their employees are not necessarily high, yet it is observed that too many personnel falter on the job and subsequently receive the brunt of their customers. In many hotels it is not uncommon to see the wrong tools or equipment used for a variety of jobs. The job gets done, but not as quickly, not as clean/neat and not as much; productivity is low. This has a 'snow ball' effect, resulting in frustrating all parties; the customer, the service personnel and the employer.

Could a Professional body take the lead in bridging the gap?

An upcoming conference being organized by the Institute of Hospitality(IH), Ghana Chapter in November(2018) has as its theme 'Creativity and Transformation in Hospitality & Tourism Education: Collaboration with Stakeholders'. I find the sub-topics quite exciting and 'revolutionary' and wandering if this could be yet another opportunity for the industry to reorient itself and get back on its feet (we seem to have missed too many opportunities over the years)!

National recognition of skill standards in career fields provides a common basis for certifying achievement against those standards, thereby allowing for the portability of skills across geographic areas, companies and careers. There is so much to do on both fronts; education and industry.

How can you help?

EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY

This begins my first post on education and training in the hospitality industry in Ghana. I find it necessary to set a tone for readers and to encourage interested readers to consider, in whichever small way they can, to help lift up this industry. Even if you are not heard about, like me, you could also know in your heart, "I did what I could." 

To write this article I went down memory lane, reflecting over various efforts made over the years towards capacity building/development in the tourism sector in this country. I felt disheartened. 

I gather other professionals in other sectors of the economy; health, legal and judicial, education, etc feel the same about their respective areas of specialization. My focus, however, is the hotel/hospitality industry.

What follows are just excerpts of selected efforts observed and/participated in, culled from my diary.

September 18-20, 1995

It was the 2nd National Tourism Conference. Of the five workshops under the theme "Quality Assurance of the Hospitality Industry", I participated in Human Resource Development and Professional Training- its impact on quality assurance.

The need to develop and train manpower in the various segments of the industry in all categories(from skilled personnel to managerial) glared at us.

We brainstormed and identified the main problems (summarized below):

• lack of qualified and/or experienced personnel at the managerial level
• lack of dedicated training institutions (for the industry)
• lack of coordination between public and private sectors in the area of training
• unwillingness of some private operators to invest in training their personnel but would rather poach trained persons from other hotels

We also came up with proposals to resolve the identified problems. Among these was the urgency to establish training institutions in the tertiary level to arrest the problems of quality personnel in the management level category and to assess and strengthen existing training institutions(named).
Short term measures were spelt out.
This was 23 years ago.

Excerpt of a speech delivered by a hospitality professional during the conference

After vehemently making a case for professional training for all levels, (late)Mr K.D. Annan said:

"One can say with certainty that the future of tourism is being jeopardized by increasing lack of qualified personnel. Even those with some threshold level of training in basic skills do not seem to have a career path because of lack of appropriate courses/curriculum to develop them for the industry".
The above took place 23 years ago.

Tulip News, Edition No. 3 2003


Golden Tulip Accra, 1st Teaching Hotel in Ghana
 This was a front page headline of 'The House Journal of Golden Tulip, Accra'. 15 years ago

Excerpts on a news article, TCDI, 19 May 2003

Jake Launches Tourism Capacity Initiative
A $4.8 m project, Tourism Capacity Development Initiative was launched in Accra. Its aim was to strengthen the capacity of stakeholders in the tourism sector as a means to attract tourists to Ghana. 

The Minister of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City, (late)Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, who launched the project, said although the 15-year National Tourism Development Plan has chalked up a number of successes, there is the need for a redirection in the tourism sector to enable the sector to meet new trends in the global tourism sector.
 He announced that the government had set new targets for the tourism sector to make it the leading economic sector by the year 2007.

(Late)Obetsebi-Lamptey, therefore, cautioned the management of TCDI against re-inventing the wheel and to avoid over-ambitious tasks that will not make the project sustainable.

The Mission Director of the USAID, Ms Sharon Cromer, said 'the objective of the project is to provide technical assistance and training to improve the capacity, quality and performance of the tourism industry.'
She said the TCDI project, was scheduled to last for 16 months.

Reference from https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Jake-Launches-Tourism-Capacity-Initiative-36625
This was 15 years ago.

Implementation of the Technical Cooperation for Tourism Development Project Through Strengthening of Public-Private Partnership(PPP) -August 2008

There had been several meetings by 5 different work groups, sub-task forces and open PPP forums  organized by a secretariat, I think every quarter, where all were present and group chairpersons made presentations.

In reference to the above meeting in August 2008:

• Hotels were selected for experiential learning
• A legislative instrument was thought to be required for proposed training manuals to be made operational.
• A work group was in discussion with National Accreditation Board on the issue of development of standards for tourism and hospitality training institutions
• A task force was working on tourism training certifications

 The work group on human resource development outlined the objectives of the group as follows:
Completion of training modules for core competencies; front office, housekeeping, food and beverage service, food production and tour guiding; June 2008
Conducting a trainer of trainers program by September 2008 and evaluating the test before rolling out the main program early 2009
The Trainer of trainers program will be tested with the support of selected institutions and hotels using the reviewed curriculum at different certificate levels
A special task force was constituted to undertake specific projects in preparation of the test run.

This was 10 years ago.

Note: Highlights and italics my emphasis.

Where are we today? Has anything gone wrong? What went wrong? How can we rise above good intentions and bring about sustainable and progressive growth in this industry?