Applied Learning in Practice in the Hospitality Industry Report Paper Example

Introduction

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I am from Moscow, Russia. I have worked in the hospitality industry for 1 and a half years now. Also, I have been an intern at a Russian restaurant and in Hilton in Dubai UAE and worked as a waitress and a bartender. I have also had four internships in various countries. During my time in the Food and Beverage industry, I have been responsible for managing 2 or 3 new waiters using my acquired experience.

As an intern, I have acquired many different skills which have helped me in the industry. I have been able to learn how to manage performance by being in charge of some of the waiters. I have also significantly developed my flexibility and adaptability skills. The practice has also helped me learn that different restaurants operate differently, and therefore, I should adapt quickly and embrace this fact. I have also developed result-orientation skills and deliver the expected results. For example, I know how to talk to my guests and how to satisfy them. I can even convince some customers to take some wine or some new cocktails although they had not planned. I am also excellent at building the relationship with the organization I work in.

Reflection on Competencies Development

I have been able to grow and further develop my competencies through the various internship opportunities that I have received. It has assisted me to build my character and efficiency in the work field. Some of the competencies that I have mastered include; collaboration, communication, and professionalism.

Collaboration

Currently, collaboration is a vital facet for long-term business competitiveness and success (Desai, Tippins & Arbaugh, 2014). All businesses depend on the ability for individual members to work within teams and do so effectively (Shi & Liao, 2013). During my time as an intern, I have learned how to build collaborative relationships with the organizations that I have worked in and gained sufficient knowledge on how to collaborate with my colleagues, thereby earning their trust.

The internship program enabled me to learn that it truly takes a partnership to get work done. Managing the new waiters was only possible because they were very co-operative and willing to listen to what I had to say. When I started as an intern, I was very collaborative and asked many questions to ensure that I fully understood what was expected of me. In class, we were taught that co-operation and collaboration are critical. However, I had never grasped the full meaning of this until I became an intern.

Through team with other colleagues, I managed to achieve my full potential and become motivated to work more. I worked well with them and had a fruitful time at all the organizations, this greatly boosted my collaboration competency.

Communication

According to Roth, (2014), communication is the process of relaying particular information, emotions or ideas to someone else. Applied learning in GIHE has helped me a lot. I improved my soft skills during the CBL in HDA and Bellevue. Now, I know how to communicate with my customers effectively. I also know how to contact people through writing. Specific books have helped me in the past, and I can build my ideas and communicate well in letters, emails and how to respond to them as well.

As an intern, I was always scared of telling my supervisor about my mistakes, but I eventually acquired courage and began communicate freely with him. This form of communication helped me to hold myself responsible for my mistakes and to also improve on my performance, so that I do not commit similar mistakes severally. Sometimes, communicating may be difficult especially when some individuals do not like being corrected (Shwom & Snyder, 2015). It may lead to tension between co-workers which makes the work environment very uncomfortable.

I have therefore learned how to correct politely. For example, some team members would not follow the standards and would not care about their guests. Teapots or coffee pots would not be washed after the single use, setting up tables would not be done correctly. Team members would put a small fork with a big knife and opposite when they are in a rush. I have tried to correct my colleagues in a positive way thereby expressing what I thought was wrong. In this way, I have learned how to contact my fellow members in the right way.

I strongly believe that good communication is an essential skill that should be adopted if anyone wants to achieve productivity and maintain strong working relationship at all organization levels. Employers who invest sufficient energy and time in delivering clear communication lines often build trust among employees resulting in increased output and morale. This is what motivated me to focus more on nurturing my communication competence throughout my internship.

Professionalism

It refers to the qualities and skills an individual with a professional career must subscribe to. I have acquired many different skills as an intern such as networking. Clark, Amer, & Ng, (2014) define networking as the act of making and utilizing contacts. Networking is a critical skill that I value. Through my experience as an intern, after my studies at GIHE, I have been able to meet so many various people of different cultures and backgrounds. In fact, I got three internship offers within my country without the help of my parents because of my network.

As an intern, I have learned interpersonal awareness and can, therefore, talk to many people and see how they act in various situations. It has enabled me to have deeper understand of my colleagues' character and learn how to interact with each one.

I have learned and developed my customer orientation skills, and I can provide a service that a client needs and appreciates. I have learned how to take the initiative and do what is required of me even without being asked to do it.

My decisive skills have also improved. I can now accept my mistakes and take responsibility for my actions. It has enabled me to get to be thorough in my work and manage my stress in a professional manner.

Conclusion

The best accomplishment that I have made as an intern is agreeing to be an intern in a different country even though I was a little uneasy about it at first. In so doing, I have built many friendships and have gotten to know so many people from different countries. This has enabled me to be more accepting of the various types of individuals, their culture, and backgrounds. I have also gotten the opportunity to travel to many different countries for free and build an extensive network worldwide.

The experience would not be as prominent as it was had I not taken the risk. I have knowledge on how to work in different restaurants in the various countries. As I have had four internships in the various countries, I have learned that all the companies have various ways of doing things and this is how my flexibility and adaptability skills were developed.

The top 2 lessons that I have learned as an intern are honesty and networking. I have gained the knowledge that no matter how difficult a situation may be, the best way to get through it is be being honest about it. Honesty plays an important role of promoting an individuals career by promoting an employer as well as colleagues trust. I have a belief that networking is key to success in any field (Min, Kwak & Lee, 2015). Through networking, I have learned a lot and have been able to do a lot. It has offered me opportunities that I would have never thought that I would get.

I have progressed significantly in my career. In less than three weeks of my internship, I acquired the waitress position. Soon after I was moved to the bartenders position. I had a lot and made an excellent impression on my colleagues and supervisors, and that is why I was trusted with such a job. If both parties are transparent about their expectations from the start, they will manage to deliver the required results for long term success (Gawthorpe and Murphy, 2013).

I am still not sure about my second internship. In my action plan, I mentioned that I wanted to work as an assistant manager, but I recently had a change of heart. If I had the opportunity to challenge myself in my first internship, I would probably find something related to events organization. Personally, I believe that it is integral that anyone should have some experience or knowledge in events planning. Moreover, it can help me to increase revenue by organizing for events or parties in the restaurants.

However, I need to improve on some competencies, for example, building collaborative relationships. As mentioned above, I am excellent at building a relationship with the organization I work with. However, I have not been able to build a new relationship with the outside company. Secondly, fostering innovation needs my improvement as well. It is critical to have the knowledge on how to develop sponsor or support the introduction of a new and improved method.

In Module 1 I learned quite some relevant facts. First I found out about an overview of the hotel industry. I now have a better comprehension of it as I have worked in the sector itself and gotten to know it from the inside. This has enabled me to have more than just an idea but an experience of what the hotel industry is truly about.

I also learned essential knowledge for hotel personnel. I have been able to understand all the different personnel that a hotel has. Park & Levy, (2014) posit that there are two main types of hotel personnel which includes guest services staff and administrative and support staff. Guest services personnel include; porters, kitchen staff, concierges, housekeeping, and room service, and waiters/waitress. Administrative staff includes; purchasing, marketing, event planner, advertising, accounting, hotel manager and assistant hotel manager.

It has enabled me to identify the different roles performed by each by seeing them work. It has helped me progress in my job for I have better knowledge of what I am supposed to do. As a waitress, I have gained the ability to be accountable for myself and my employees performance. I have set expectations and goals. Moreover, I ascertain that I track the progress of these goals ensuring that there is feedback and addressing the performance problems and issues promptly.

I have also learned how to give quality service to the customers, ensuring that they are treated respectfully at all times. I made eye to eye contact with everyone I talked to and wore the kindest smile. This attracts many customers and makes them feel warm thereby I can serve them better because trust has already been achieved.

Providing quality customer service has been my number one priority. Therefore, when my colleagues do not ensure that their clients are getting only the best, I tend to correct them in a polite manner because this is the central concept of the hotel industry. Effectively following the standards is required. I have worked to ensure that the service I give to my customer is first class prompting them to return another day or tell others about the excellent service provided by the hotel.

I am glad that I have had the opportunity to study and work in the field that I love most. Through my school GIHE, I was able to get an internship and build my skills and professionalism. I have never been more ready for what is to come next.

References

Clark, T. S., Amer, T. S., & Ng, P. T. (2014). Developing Professionalism in Business School Undergraduates. Journal of Education for Business, 89(1), 35-41.

Desai, A., Tippins, M., & Arbaugh, J. B. (2014). Learning through collaboration and competition: Incorporating problem-based learning and competition-based learning in a Capstone course. Organization Management Journal, 11(4), 258-...