Taking hospitality to new heights

Tuesday, 16 December 2014 00:09 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Institute of Hospitality unveils their latest plan to align tourism professionals with industry goals By Senuri De Silva The Sri Lankan chapter of the Institute of Hospitality has plans to develop the human resources required to meet the needs of the tourism industry, which is showing rapid growth. This announcement, which also listed events that are scheduled to be held next year, was made at an occasion held in Colombo last Friday. The Institute of Hospitality is an internationally recognised institute with a 75-year history and while bring rooted in the UK, it can now claim activity in over 100 countries around the world. While welcoming members from all sectors of the hospitality industry, the institute opens up many opportunities for networking and knowledge sharing among stakeholders in the industry. Membership covers students, associates, full members and fellow members. The development of manpower in the hospitality sector needs to go hand-in-hand with the development of tourism and increase of foreign investments as more international hotel chains open branches in Sri Lanka.

Institute Chairman Sidath Kodikara pointed this out, saying: “The Government of Sri Lanka has identified tourism as a lucrative source of foreign exchange and accordingly it has become a necessity that we concentrate on increasing the accommodation capacity to serve tourists with better knowledge and awareness that is on par with international standards. The Institute of Hospitality, together with the Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka, has identified the need to focus on aligning tourism professionals in the industry with these macro goals.” Institute of Hospitality Treasurer Eraj Abeywardena added: “By attracting foreign investors, especially with large hotel chains opening their properties in Sri Lanka, we can accelerate the development process. The state initiative to introduce leisure management as a prime subject in schools and universities is another encouraging move towards addressing the shortage of trained and professional staff in the industry.” The institute has also been active in developing the wealth of human resource, taking their workshops, seminars and training programs to stakeholders in various parts of the country. Workshops and seminars have been held in Colombo, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Bentota and Negombo, with plans to include workshops in Jaffna to next year’s rotation as well. They covered subjects such as supervisory training, the enhancement of culinary skills among food and beverage professionals and continuous professional development for bartenders. Participants at these events benefit from training conducted by specialists from around the world and receive a valuable certificate attesting to this fact. The focal point of each event calendar is the Chairman’s Black Tie Dinner, a glamorous six-course dinner which was held in October 2014. The 2015 dinner will be held around September and provide valuable opportunities for networking and fellowship among industry collaborators. In addition to this, another highlight of 2015 will be the much-anticipated annual international conference, with the participation of renowned local and foreign industry experts. Furthermore, the institute has held workshops on awareness of modern tourism for A/L students, with the hope of generating interest in the industry among schoolchildren by informing them of its potential career opportunities.

Pix by Lasantha Kumara