Memoirs of Lai Shan Shan at DISTED
The Life and Experiences of a Hospitality Student

I only needed to complete the last 4 subjects: Convention Management and Service, and Marketing in Hospitality Industry taught by Mr. Ravichandran, Purchasing for Hospitality Operations by Dr Sydney De Silva, and Accounting for Hospitality Managers by Ms Asilah Gafoor.

After my industrial training in the hotel convention center, I easily got a clear picture when Mr  Ravichandran explained convention management and service. He gave us some assignments and a few case studies which required us to work in groups and individually.

The subject taught us about attendees of conventions, types of meetings, types of group customers, trends in the meeting industry, developing a marketing plan, how to sell to the associate market and the corporate market, differences between sales and marketing, personal sales call and negotiation between sales person and client.

We had to grasp with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, geographic, demographic and psychographic segmentation, point of encounter between guests and staff, zero-based marketing, promotions and the 10-steps customer service process.
 

Shan Shan (left) celebrating camaraderie with her course mates at the hospitality fraternity night held at G Hotel.

Dr Sydney explained to us product examples in the hospitality industry. He emphasised the importance of product knowledge. We have to know a product well, only then we can sell it to the guest.

He gave us an overview of purchasing and distribution system, supplier selection, buyer-supplier relations, quality and quantity concerns, audit trail and evaluation of purchasing systems.

We also learnt about yield and pricing of meat products, fish, shellfish, poultry, eggs and dairy products.

In Accounting for Hospitality Managers, Ms Asilah gave us a lot exercises to do to hone our skills.

She taught us hotel revenue and expenses accounting, property and equipment accounting, payroll accounting, income statement, balance sheet, cash flow, budgeting, sales forecasting, and financial decision making.

I can’t wait to graduate but I will definitely miss my student life in DISTED!

My 4-month training placement was at Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa, which is an excellent hospitality establishment to learn about the working world including handling difficult guests.

On December 8 and 9, I completed my Shangri-La Care 1. The training took place in a function room and I went through an orientation and also, participated in many role plays.

In the process of the training, I gained understanding from dealing with guests upon their arrival to the operations of the hotel's F&B outlets.

I got a clearer perspective about the vision, mission, philosophy and guiding principles of the hotel.

The industrial training gave me wide exposure: At the F&B department (Spice Market Café, Ferringhi Grill & Rasa Lounge) as a food and beverage service associate, at the front office department as a front desk service associate, and at the sales and marketing department as a sales coordinator for events and conventions. It was fun to learn new things not found in the textbooks.

F&B is more into the practical of serving food to guests which needs skills, experience and hygiene.

For the front desk person, the first impression is important to make   guests feel welcome that they have indeed chosen the right hotel. Be efficient and speedy to let the guests be seated, serve them welcome drinks, with welcome orchid for the ladies, will create a positive impression.

After checking them in, escort the guests to their rooms, and explain about the hotel and room facilities to widen their knowledge about the hotel. Also, greeting them to have a memorable stay will make them feel good as guests.

I also learnt how to update guest database to keep track of their profile and patronage.

In sales and marketing department, I did a lot of paperwork and brain-storming. The event office concentrates on wedding, birthday celebration, graduation, competition etc while the convention office handles annual meeting, corporate function etc. Both are also related to room selling because the clients might want to stay in the hotel as well. The sales coordinator needs to bring the client for site inspection of the hotel and its facilities.

Training in the hotel has made me understand more about how a hotel works and coordinates its departments to give the best service to guests.

I realise that challenges will always come to me but then, I will learn and understand more about the job.
 

It was a busy semester where we had to do a lot of study and practice in all the subjects.

Dr Sydney imparted to us knowledge in many aspects such as how to apply the learning outcomes during our industrial training the following semester. He explained to us about hospitality careers, how to make training and development as an investment for our future and how to measure and evaluate training.

We learnt about orientation and socialisation as the first step to working in the hospitality industry, employee training, mentoring, supervisory and management development and the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing.

In the Commercial Law of Malaysia subject, we learnt about the local legal system and its applications to the workplace and daily life. For example, there is company policy in the hotel and travel sector that binds employees and guests.

Ms Kogi also taught us the sources of Malaysia law, the classification of written and unwritten law, the judicial system, Law of Contract, elements of contract (offer, acceptance, intention to create legal relations, consideration, certainty, and free capacity).

The Planning and Control for Food and Beverage module is one of the subjects that needs a lot of calculations and understanding in applying formulae..
 

Ms Asilah Gafoor helped us to understand the challenges in operating food and beverage including control functions, standards, budgeting, cost-volume-profit analysis and menu planning. Other F&B issues highlighted were purchasing, stock control, revenue control, theft prevention and labour cost control.

We learnt basic Japanese language from Mr Te to serve Japanese- speaking customers especially those who can't communicate in English. We had fun picking up Japanese for greeting people, for use in conversation and in the workplace.

I took six subjects this semester - Practical Training, Hospitality and Restaurant Accounting, Introduction to Business, Foundation in Microcomputing, Introduction to Microeconomics and an MQA subject.

Practical Training, taught by Ms Susie Khoo and Mr Sydney, exposed us to different beverages like liquor, wine, beer, coffee and tea.

The most challenging was the mocktail presentation. My group, The Necklace, planned our own concoction and figured out the best garnish for the drink. Besides that, we had to think of a theme for the mocktail and match it with a costume.

We also did case studies and learnt about flower arrangement, workplace safety,  project and time management.

Team work, fighting spirit, good communication and thinking skills as well as tolerance helped us to go through the subject successfully.

In Hospitality and Restaurant Accounting taught by Ms Asilah Gafoor, I had to keep practising accounting exercises to better grasp the subject. With proper accounting, we can know whether a business is making a profit or a loss.

Introduction to Business is interesting because it surveys and explores the business world, the way people organise a company, different types of organization, varieties of leadership, styles of communication etc.

Foundation in Microcomputing by Ms Ong Guek Siang taught us the basic components and functions of the desktop, laptop, supercomputer, mainframes, handheld computer etc.

I gained deeper knowledge about the processing and storage components in connection to the input and output functions of a computer. By knowing the fundamentals of computer, maybe I can solve simple computer-related problems in the future.

Ms Gwee Sai Ling taught us Introduction to Microeconomics. It dealt with a lot of graphs and market structures which made the subject fun and interesting.

The subject is a study of how households, firms and governments make decisions to allocate limited resources. I learnt how peoples’ decisions and behaviors could affect the supply and demand for goods and services.

Once again, thanks to all the lecturers who had given me a good experience in all the subjects.
 

In this semester, I learnt more about food and beverage (F&B) management from lecturer Ms Susie Khoo, who is also the head of school.

The subject covers the food service industry, the organization of food and beverage operation, marketing for food and beverage, menu planning, purchasing, costing and control, kitchen design and financial management for food and beverage.

"Delegation comes with authority and responsibility but responsibility cannot be delegated," said Ms Susie.

Food service industry is a 'people business'; it is not easy to serve and satisfy guests' needs. I realized that 'people business' is always difficult to deal with but as long as we know about the importance of customer care, and have the knowledge to treat them sincerely, we might achieve our aim of quality service.

It is important to know F&B marketing so that we can advertise, sell and deliver the products to customers. Before running a F&B operation, we must  first know about pricing strategies and financial management.
 

There are 4 segments in the lodging industry - Economy service hotels, mid-market hotels, first-class or executive hotels, and luxury hotels. Different lodging places have different guests with some searching for pleasure and leisure, and others for business purpose etc.

We also learnt about how the reservations system functions, registration process, communication with guests, and the security systems that are put in place to provide a safer environment for both guests and employees.

Lastly, I learnt  about housekeeping management from Mr Ravichandran. I found out that housekeeping and front office departments have to interact closely and communicate well so that room discrepancy is avoided.

Housekeeping staff are like scientists. They have to know how the chemicals such chlorine, detergent and water work.

One of the functions of housekeeping is to uphold the cleanliness of the whole hotel. Guests will always go back to a certain hotel if its hygiene level is well taken care of.

Well, I would like to have a stint at the housekeeping department one day soon!
 

I have learnt a lot of new things and gained different experiences at the same time.

I enjoyed the food production and food and beverage service training at the alfresco DISTED Cafe.

The service training was conducted by the School of Hospitality Management head Ms Susie Khoo. She always gave us a thorough briefing before the start of each day's operations. As she wanted us to continuously  improve and become better, she would give us advice and guidance at the end of every operation. Also, when we made mistakes, she would correct us on the spot.

As service personnel, we must always maintain good hygiene in and out of the restaurant and take proper care of our grooming. I have also learnt about dining etiquette in this class.

Food production was taught by Chef Yew who has varied culinary skills and very resourceful in garnishing and presenting food.

In his class, I learnt about the beauty of food and a variety of sauces and ingredients used for cooking. We produced a myriad of set meals comprising appetizer, main course and dessert with different international cuisines including French, Italian, Mexican and Filipino.

At the same time, we learnt about the dry-heat cooking and moist-heat cooking methods. We realized that working in the kitchen was not an easy task and we must keep on practising to improve our skills.

Our work ran smoothly although sometimes we faced some problems. We learnt how to solve the problems which became a valuable learning experience for us.

From Mr Sydney de Silva, our lecturer for Supervision in the Hospitality Industry, I have learnt about supervisory skills and the qualifications required in the service industry.

I also learnt how to develop working relationships between supervisors and management trainees.

He shared with us about his working experiences and the problems he encountered when he was working in the hospitality industry.

He said: "It's not easy to be a leader. You can’t command your staff to respect you. You've to gain it by proving to them you're a good leader."

"A leader should have a certain level of qualifications so that you're recognized by people," he advised.

He also taught us how to resolve conflicts and find the best solutions.

Working at G-Hotel in Penang.

Ms Sheila John taught me Business Communications. She is a nice and patient lecturer who taught me to write different kinds of business letters.

During my semester break, I worked at G Hotel which has been voted top in Penang for its creative design, concept and green credentials. "G” is for grand design and it won Malaysia's Best Hotel Development Property Award 2008.

I attended The Star Education Fund scholarships presentation ceremony at Eastin Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on 27 August 2008 where I received my scholarship certificate. Thank you very much,  The Star and DISTED College, for filling my life with colours through the financial aid.

These experiences at DISTED are etched in my memory forever; they have moulded me into a better person.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my lecturers Ms Susie Khoo, Mr Sydney de Silva, Chef Yew and Ms Sheila John for a job well done.
 

I thought I would never make it to college as my parents cannot afford the expenses.

That would be the sad reality if not for the DISTED-Star Education Fund scholarship!

I still remember going to the scholarship interview at DISTED. There were 3 interviewers including the then college administration manager Mr Teh Kwan Liek. Nervous as I was, I tried to do my best at the session as I was determined to be successful for the financial aid.

When the good news came that I was chosen for the scholarship, I leaped for joy. Finally, I got a clear direction for my life, the direction that I want - to study the Diploma in Hospitality Business Management at the college rather than Form 6.

On 15 May 2008, I started the hospitality course with the subject Study Skills which had some 60 students and taught by Ms Sumitha Renganathan.

The class was interesting. It raised my awareness about the individual's strengths and weaknesses in learning and how personal and situational factors can affect academic performance.

In addition, I acquired personal and inter-personal skills and gained knowledge about strategies and techniques for effective learning and communication as well as developing diagnostic and remedial strategies to overcome my weaknesses.

My group, TJLW, presented a project entitled “Profile of a Business Leader: Lillian Too", who is a feng-shui consultant. We did a great job in the presentation but it was through hard work including staying back in college for discussion and information gathering. Congratulations to all TJLW members!
 

The Lodging and Food Service Industry unit conducted by Mr Ravichandran was enjoyable. He shared his real-life working experiences in the hotels with us.

Taking up his advice to discover the challenges of working in a hotel and to gain knowledge beyond the textbooks through work exposure, I'm now working as a banquet casual worker at G Hotel over my semester break.

True to what Mr Ravi said, working life is tough. In the hotel, I have to serve and deal with guests from different races and nationalities with different attitudes and characters. The long working hours in banquet have taught me to conserve my energy and be independent in my job.

Yes, classroom learning is not sufficient; we need to learn more through practical exposure.

Ms Sheila John taught us Communication English. It had 14 topics, including reservations, travel requirements, giving directions, tourist information, hotel facilities, telephone enquiries, checking in and handling complaints, which taught me how to communicate better with customers and handle guests, and meet their needs.

I really enjoyed the short semester of 7 weeks - my first semester in the hospitality programme - and looking eagerly forward to the next one.

To Ms Susie Khoo, the School of Hospitality Management head, thank you for your guidance, care and encouragement.

To DISTED and the Star Publications, thank you for brightening my life with the scholarship and the opportunity of a college education.

The course is 2 years and 4 months, and I'm determined to grab all the exciting opportunities that come!