Recruitment in the Tourism Industry

Can your company benefit from a re-think along tourist-related lines?

We can take advantage of MTA's Branding campaign as a reminder to brush up our act and perhaps work along new lines. Thinking outside the box can only lead to fresh ideas and improvements. If we do start to think collectively as a nation, perhaps we can keep attracting more tourists and even more importantly, have return visitors.

Why choose a career in tourism?

Once considered an industry that offered little more than low-wage, dead-end jobs, today the tourism and hospitality industries offer job-seekers part-time, full-time and career-track opportunities.

Tourism is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world. Within the industry there are a wide range of jobs, salaries and benefits, including tips, travel, meals and uniforms. There are opportunities for early promotion and a chance to work aboard, especially within multinational companies. There are openings for full-time, part-time, flexible, freelance and consultancy work as well as opportunities to gain wide-ranging experience within and across the sectors. With flexibility of working hours no week is ever the same.

What's even more important to a wide range of people, is that the industry is seeking bright, dedicated, enthusiastic employees of all ages whose marketing, management skills and business experience gained in other careers match the sincerity of their interest in pleasing the end customer, namely the tourist.

Importance in the labour force

Climbing the career ladder in the tourism or hospitality industry won't just happen overnight. But with the right training and attitude, career advancement is on the cards. There is also the option for students to train on the job directly from school for those who prefer this career route.

Tourism supports 27% of the total employment in Malta, amounting to more than 41,000 jobs. Earnings generated from tourism are re-spent in a variety of goods and services. This implies that more labour services are required, generating more employment termed as induced employment.

There was a time when a winning smile, a subservient attitude and an ability to make a bed or a decent drink qualified you for a job - although not necessarily a career - at a local hotel, restaurant or bar. Various tourism establishments themselves provide training to employees during employment, what is better known as on-the-job training. The official number of students who graduated from the Institute of Tourism Studies, from 1990 to 2002, amounts to 1,112. According to the Employment and Training Survey (2001), 78% of accommodation establishments, 69% of catering establishments, 76% of travel agencies/destination management companies provide training during employment to employees. (Data from the MTA website, http://www.visitmalta.com.)

A little knowledge is a fine thing

What is the one psychological tip that top sales people know? That everyone wants to feel important. That one fact is the basis for good customer care - and good personal relations all round. Even if you do not abide by the 'customer is always right' maxim, your staff needs to keep in mind that the client wants to feel that he is always right. 'Yes?' What could be more off-putting than a receptionist or waiter sending a cold stare somewhere vaguely in your direction and hissing that word? Yet it happens too often.

Can you train someone to be 'nice'? Probably not. Therefore when recruiting for front-line personnel, companies should look for a genuine smile and a positive personality. Everyone else can be trained to say the right things and adopt a suitably accommodating manner. Sending staff on a course may work, or you could quite cost-effectively video employees in action and let them see for themselves how welcomingly they react to customers.

The success of our tourism industry is very much reliant on the Maltese people's natural ability to put people at their ease. However, professional customer service has replaced old-world subservience, and both training and career advancement are now the name of the hospitality game.

All in the mind

We are all involved in the image and service that our country offers, whether it is our radiant smiles or the billowing clothes on the washing line. Pride tells us that we can do exactly what we like and that we shouldn't have to consider The Foreigner, but tourism is so important to our livelihoods that it would help if we could take the time to 'think tourist'.

What comes to mind when you think of Greece, Scotland, Italy? There are certain images that immediately spring up when you think of a foreign country and it is those images that entice you to go there. Perhaps it was the scenes from the first films we saw on TV as children. So thinking along these lines, what images do you think people get of Malta? And how do they get them? Taking Edward deBono's Thinking Hats as a point of departure, we could add a red-and-white hat to our meeting agendas and always stop to consider whether we could do something in a more tourist-oriented way.

Get rich slowly

The nation needs to have 'welcome' inscribed on our hearts. Ideally, your staff would feel welcomed at work too. It should be a company policy that every member should be respected, then the client will undoubtedly pick up on that vibe. Although 'merhba' is no longer a word we use amongst ourselves, it would make a wonderful greeting to any tourist - definitely an improvement on 'Yes?' As an employer it is crucial that you are a role model, too. Alongside fostering a great team spirit, instilling a policy of honesty is crucial. Ripping tourists off is short-term thinking and could be suicidal.

Eye of the beholder

People go abroad to see something different, so we need to highlight, take care of and promote everything that makes us stand out.

If we take Singapore as an example, waitresses in Asian restaurants and airline hostesses look so beautiful because their attire is feminine and flattering. In Bavaria, the traditional costume is seen everywhere in cafes and restaurants. Why do we insist that our female staff dress like men, even in five-star hotels? Some argue that the female serving staff look awkward, unattractive and a parody in trousers, waistcoat, long sleeves and tie. Maltese women are beautiful and are definitely an asset. There is no reason why we cannot adopt a more feminine uniform. It could be a take on the traditional Maltese costume including Maltese/Gozitan lace and cotton, perhaps with a filigree brooch. There has perhaps been a reluctance to allow female staff to be feminine in the hotel trade in order to discourage misconduct. Surely we are past that kind of thinking?

Our uniqueness

Employee creativity for new products and services can be fostered by awards for innovation in your company. After all, it is the employees who have the best knowledge of your product and often have excellent ideas on how it can be improved. When you refuse to listen to your staff, they lose interest in doing a good job. It is everyone's responsibility to ensure that all staff, from the bedroom to the boardroom, are reassured that they are an essential element of the sector's success.

Sun and sea

The hospitality industry has now expanded to include new opportunities at resort clubs, casinos, cruise lines, theme parks, camping sites and more. Above all, Malta's biggest attraction is the weather. Therefore beaches, outdoor dining, the sea, promenades and gardens are all priorities. We speak English well and other languages too. We are still relatively safe. We offer good nightlife and cuisine. History and culture abound. It's easy to get around and a variety of sports can be enjoyed. If you are involved in any of these areas, your business is strategically placed and has the greatest responsibility in the tourism spearhead. All of these assets are ripe to be maximised. We all stand to gain from making Malta the island where foreigners really feel at home.

And most importantly, remember that people are the face of every organisation, including your business!

Article prepared by Commercial Services Bureau (CSB) Ltd.

Since 1987, CSB Ltd. has been servicing the local and international business community with its range of employment/recruitment related services. It has helped thousands of employees improve their job conditions and careers, and employers obtain the ideal staff for their organisations.