Marriott Executive Apartments Manama Hosted Hotel HR Leaders Meeting

In cooperation with the Specific Council for Training in Hospitality Sector, the Marriott Executive Apartments has recently hosted HR Leaders Meeting for 4 & 5-Star hotels in Bahrain.

More than 20 hotels’ senior Human Resources personnel and representatives of the Specific Council for Training in Hospitality Sector attended the meeting, as well as the Head of Corporate Service Bureau in the Ministry of Labour, Mr. Farooq Jaffar, the General Manager of Marriott Executive Apartments Hossein Garan, and Human Resources Manager, Loay Mamdouh.

The meeting started by a welcoming message from General Manager Hossein Garan and Human Resources Manager Loay Mamdouh, thanking the Ministry of Labour for their support during the opening of Marriott, as well as appreciating the government efforts and initiatives in the development of hotel industry.

On behalf of his Excellency the Minister of Labour, Mr. Farooq Jaffar expressed his sincere appreciation to all participants for their efforts to build two-ways communication between the government and private sector.

Discussion involved Bahrainization in hotel sector where Mr. Jaffar listened to the hoteliers’ concerns and showed his understanding to their challenges in the field of workforce. Mr. Jaffar said that the Ministry of Labour is keen to facilitate and work closely with all tourism stakeholders in order to enhance the Bahrainization program in hotel sector.

Head of Corporate Service Bureau Mr. Farooq Jaffar (centre) poses together with the General Manager of Marriott Executive Apartments Manama, Hossein Garan (left) and the Human Resource Manager, Loay Mamdouh (right) at the Apartment's lobby after the meeting.

“On behalf of the Ministry of Labour, I am glad to attend this meeting and I would like to thank the Marriott Executive Apartments, who proposed such a great initiative to host this valuable gathering that I believe would have a positive impact on the future of human resources development in tourism and hotel industry in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” said Mr. Jaffar.

Mr. Jaffar continued, he is looking forward to attending follow up meetings to generate more beneficial cooperation between the Ministry of Labour and the hotel sector.

Speaking from his office in Al Fateh, Human Resources Manager Loay Mamdouh expressed his gratitude to the Specific Council for Training in Hospitality Sector, especially the Executive Director Mr. Ali Sulaybeekh, for giving the Marriott Executive Apartments the opportunity to host the event.

“I appreciate the cooperation extended from the Ministry of Labour during our opening and we look forward to a continuous support for all the upcoming Marriott International projects in Bahrain," said Loay Mamdouh who chaired the meeting.

"I believe, this meeting was an eye opener and an opportunity for generating ideas from the HR professionals in the hotels sector, on how to create a mutual cooperation between the sector and the government with regards to the Kingdom initiative of Bahrainization. Thanks to all the Specific Council representatives and hotel HR leaders for coming and being actively participating in the meeting,” added Loay.

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Marriott Executive Apartments, the upscale serviced apartment brand of Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) will nearly double in size in the next 36 months to respond to a growing need in many emerging markets for long-term stay lodging for executive expatriates needing spacious housing and hotel amenities. Including Bahrain, Marriott operates 17 Marriott Executive Apartments in 14 countries outside the U.S., and 14 more hotels are planned in countries such as Qatar, Thailand, Egypt, China, India, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL, Inc. (NYSE:MAR) is a leading lodging company with more than 3,100 lodging properties in the United States and 66 other countries and territories. Marriott International operates and franchises hotels under the Marriott, JW Marriott, The Ritz-Carlton, Renaissance, Residence Inn, Courtyard, TownePlace Suites, Fairfield Inn, SpringHill Suites and Bulgari brand names; develops and operates vacation ownership resorts under the Marriott Vacation Club, Horizons by Marriott Vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton Club and Grand Residences by Marriott brands; operates Marriott Executive Apartments; provides furnished corporate housing through its Marriott ExecuStay division; and operates conference centers. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., and had approximately 151,000 employees at 2007 year-end. It is ranked as the lodging industry’s most admired company and one of the best companies to work for by FORTUNE®, and has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the 2007 Sustained Excellence Award and Partner of the Year since 2004. In fiscal year 2007, Marriott International reported sales from continuing operations of $13 billion. For more information or reservations, please visit our web site at www.marriott.com.

Bali to Bolster East Timor

BTB to work closely with Dili…

The Chairman of the Bali Tourism Board (BTB), Ngurah Wijaya, welcomed the development of closer tourism cooperation between Bali and East Timor’s capital, Dili, and increasing accessibility between those two destinations, a Bali Discovery report has said.

Wijaya reportedly told Indonesia’s Antara news agency that there were many synergies between the two destinations. “This is very interesting; we can exchange our tourism destinations by presenting them in joint destination packages.

Dili has long been known in Bali as a key destination and the many international workers assigned in Dili spend their holidays in Bali,” Wijaya said. Wijaya called for a phased approach to developing Bali-Dili tourism, via a sharing of skills and knowledge from Bali’s advanced tourism industry.

Dili is currently served from Bali by Merpati Nusantara, which operates daily flights. Dili is also connected by international flights from Darwin, which recently saw Indonesia’s national carrier, Garuda, cease direct flights to Bali.

The above article is taken from Travel Daily Asia.

Marriott-Ritz Jakarta re-Open

The JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta reopened yesterday, less than two weeks after the suicide bomb attacks that left nine people dead and injured more than 50 others.

"We have resumed our normal business operations today. We hope to be able to reach an average hotel occupancy of 60-70% like before, in spite of the bombings," said Marriott spokesperson, Ina Ilmiaviatta.

"We have certainly increased our security measures, with some new approaches which I cannot tell you about as they're confidential." Added Inna.

The two main areas damaged by the bombs - a lounge meeting room in the Marriott and a restaurant in the Ritz-Carlton remained closed. The report added that dozens of police were standing guard inside and outside the hotels, along with private security guards with sniffer dogs.

For more similar stories, please visit the link below:
- Jakarta bomb blast hotels to re-open Wednesday (The Washington Post)
- Ritz, Marriott Open in Jakarta 12 Days After Attacks (Bloomberg.com)
- Jakarta Hotels Reopen After Suicide Attacks (voanews.com)

4 Steps to Train

I was supposed to post this article last week, but since I had a problem with my internet access at home and I can't manage my "personal time" at the office mingling with my fb and yahoo stuffs, so I just have time to write now.

I participated in an in-house training recently; it was "Training the Trainer". It was all about how you as manager or supervisor train your associates or staffs. It was a quite long training, it took 2 days to accomplish complete with the tasks and a home work.

Basically, we were trained to prepare ourselves how to conduct a training including a presentation in front of our staff. What should we prepare, what are the methods, what are the steps, the tips and tricks, how to deliver the presentation and to control the situation in the class, including how to deal with a difficult participant. Generally it was A to Z things about how to perform a perfect or ideal training process.

To me it was not only an ideal training process, but more to how to get the best result which is how to transfer our knowledge and skills to our associates. Since in a training process, there are three important things we should teach which are "Skills, Knowledge and New Behaviors," it is not an easy task.

Some guys understand about skills only, others know limited knowledge and the rest trying accommodate new behavior.

One thing made me surprised was, when the facilitator mentioned there were 4 steps in a training or coaching process, which are; Review, Demonstrate, Practice and Check, he brought me to the memory of 8 years ago where I was a waiter at YWCA Fort Canning Lodge, Singapore.

I clearly remember when my previous Restaurant Manager, Thomas Chang told me, "Made (they called me Made), if you want to transfer your skills and knowledge to somebody else, there are 5 things you have to follow. If you follow them, I guarantee your he won't get lost. He will be as an expert as you, or even better," Thomas convinced me.

He explained the five things, which are exactly similar with one I got from the training:
1. Give him/her a proper explanation or description;
2. Show him/her how to operate or how to perform the task;
3. Let him try to practice it him/herself;
4. Conduct evaluation on what they he/she practiced;
5. Practice and practice again.

Now let's compare with the four steps I got from the training:
1. Review
2. Demonstrate
3. Practice
4. Check

Principally, they are the same! So, if you want to teach your son about something, apply these steps and I guarantee he will be as expert as you; like father like son!

Indonesia tourism holds up in wake

Bali flights largely unaffected - Garuda...

Indonesia has seen a mixed response from foreign tourists following the recent bomb blasts that killed nine people and injured more than 50 at hotels in Jakarta.

According to a Jakarta Post report, South Jakarta has seen a 20% drop in foreign tourist visits since the attacks. Occupancy at five-star hotels in the city has fallen to 60%, although the pre-bombing occupancy level was not reported.

Meanwhile, national carrier Garuda Indonesia has reported that the bombings have had a minimal effect on passenger traffic from Australia to Bali, according to a Bisnis.com report. Bagus Y Siregar, General Manager of Garuda’s Bali operations, was reported saying that the number of passengers being transported to Bali remained stable at around 1,800 people per day.

This represents an average load factor of 82.2% across the 14 domestic and overseas destinations connected to Bali by Garuda. Several countries, including the key source market of Australia, heightened their travel warnings for Indonesia.

The above article is taken from Travel Daily Asia.

A Spirit of Determination in Jakarta

While it's been a very difficult week since the tragic incidents in our hotels in Jakarta, Indonesia, we are so heartened by the outpouring of support from around the world and the resilience of our guests and associates at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton. Continue reading, please visit Bill Marriott's blog here.

CARING FOR VICTIMS OF JAKARTA BOMBINGS

“We remain committed to providing a place of hospitality, for public diplomacy, business and enjoyment for our guests, and providing opportunity for our wonderful associates who work in Jakarta and around the world,” blogs Bill Marriott in response to July 17 explosions at JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels. More story, please visit Bill Marriott's blog.