One of our pressing needs in hospitality: good service

A change in attitude behind the bars, taxi-cab windows and restaurant doors across Bermuda could be as fundamental to reforming tourism as any new development or strategic plan.

The Bermuda Hospitality Institute (BHI) has been charged with instilling a new sense of pride and a new mentality towards ‘service’ among those who represent Bermuda in the industry.

Karla Lacey, CEO of the year-old organization, said the industry could be a major growth area for Bermudian jobs.

With 5,000 people employed in hospitality jobs — 58 per cent of them Bermudians — there are plenty of opportunities.

But she said the biggest challenge was educating people in the mindset required to succeed in a service-based industry.

Skills

 “Across the industry the biggest complaint is that it is hard to find great staff who have a sense of what it means to provide service.

 “We are working with the industry to ensure those who are looking for a career in hospitality have the necessary skills.

“Anyone can teach someone how to operate a telephone system, how to check someone into a hotel, how to pull over by the side of the road and pick up a passenger in a taxi – what employers are wanting is to have those people come to them with the mindset and understanding of what service means.

“It sounds simple but it isn’t. It is a fundamental understanding that’s lacking somewhat. People talk about how Bermuda used to have a service mindset and how we need to get that back – we also need to teach people what service means in the modern environment.”

Tourism experts have told the Bermuda Sun that top-notch service is a key selling point to big spending visitors – they are prepared to pay the high prices associated with the island, but they want value for money.

Ms Lacey said the BHI aimed to serve as a link between the community and the industry, ensuring that job applicants arrived for interviews aware of the concept of service and proud to be part of it.

 “The key is to change the mindset  from ‘this is beneath me’ or ‘I might be looked down upon’ to educating people that every job contributes to the success of the whole.”

The BHI has already had some success. A week-long crash course in the basics of the industry culminated in a job fair where prospective employees had six minutes to impress a series of employers.

More than half of the 21 candidates that completed the programme found jobs in the industry.

And Ms Lacey believes there could be many more opportunities for out of work Bermudians to find a new career in hospitality — if they are prepared to adopt the right mindset.

She wants to extend that philosophy to all islanders with a campaign during hospitality week in May encouraging people to adopt the philosophy – “Bermuda is my home and every visitor is my guest.”

Ms Lacey said it was a myth that Bermudians weren’t involved in the hospitality industry. But she said stats showed that many worked behind the scenes, while overseas workers dominate the ‘front of house’ positions.

She acknowledged that wages weren’t as high in those positions as other professions but said the hospitality industry still provided opportunities for those who climbed the ladder to build successful careers.

Special report: Tourism

• Last chance to save tourism
• High-class hotels needed to hook wealthy travellers
• 'Success lies with well-heeled visitors'
• Promise of cruise business a cause for optimism
• Watersports firms feel the tourism squeeze
• Liveries slash number of bikes to rent
• Eateries cautiously optimistic for 2011
• Cruise ships are 'wiping out' mid-size hotels but there's reason for hope
• Ten ideas that might boost the industry
• One of our pressing needs in hospitality: good service
• Viewpoint: Has Bermuda lived up to expectations?
• Bermuda has to re-price itself into a niche market