International certification for hospitality personnel

Forty-two hotel and restaurant personnel who took part in a course called 'Trainers in Industry' as part of a 12-week training placement in Ireland were recently presented with their certificates.

The opportunity to attend this programme was offered by the Leonardo Da Vinci Vocational Training Programme through the Malta Tourism Authority's Human Resource and Support Services Directorate. The directorate has been the local tourism co-ordinator of the Leonardo Da Vinci programme for the past few years.

This initiative was undertaken by the MTA with a view to addressing the need for further development and training within the hospitality industry, particularly with regard to those already working in the industry.

By means of this programme, hotel and restaurant personnel are benefiting from exposure to the hospitality industry in Ireland.

The employees are placed in various hotels all over Ireland to obtain first-hand experience in hotel restaurants, bars, kitchens, conference and banqueting, housekeeping, concierge and front office, sales and marketing, accounts and duty management.

While in Ireland, the participants attended a 'train the trainer' modular course organised by CERT, the state training agency for the tourism industry in Ireland, aimed at training the participants to become trainers.

The first module taught the group how to train staff to carry out a technical task, such as setting a tray or serving drinks. Over three days they learned how to ensure that instructions were clearly understood and by the end of the session, staff could perform the set task with ease. The methods learnt can be applied to the teaching of any new skill.

Participants were then given a project to put their new knowledge into practice at their work placement over the next few days.

The second part of the course consisted of a two-day module which taught them how to conduct a group training session using learning aids such as flip charts and overhead projectors. This can be used for training groups of staff in various subjects, such as customer care or fire safety.

Now that the participants of the programme are, essentially, 'trained to train', it is important that they put all they have learnt into practice at their place of work. Only by doing so will the project be complete.

Having an employee trained as a trainer gives far more benefits than one can imagine, according to MTA's Human Resource and Support Services director John Muscat Drago. The motivation of these employees grows even further if they are given the opportunity to train other people, thus making good use of human capital, maximising its potential and, at the same time, getting a return on investment.

It is important that management create the 'organisational climate' in which this can take place.

The 'Trainers in Industry' certificates were presented to the participants on July 30 by Tourism Minister Michael Refalo at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, which also sponsored the event.

Also present were MTA's Human Resource and Support Services chairman Albert Muscat Inglott and director John Muscat Drago as well as national co-ordinator EUPU (European Union Programmes Unit) Joseph Sammut.

Four of the participants - junior sous-chef Louis Bonavia, housekeeping co-ordinator Odette Camilleri, sales and marketing manager Maryse Attard Montalto and concierge Jonathan Borg, also gave a short presentation about their experience during the programme.

The third and final 12-week placement for this project is scheduled to take place between September and December.

The Leonardo programme is just one in a series of initiatives organised by the MTA's Human Resource and Support Services Directorate with the aim of enhancing the training and development of people working in the tourism industry, as well as the promotion of careers within this industry.

Mr Tanti is senior executive, Human Resource and Support Services Directorate, Malta Tourism Authority