Strathmore School of Tourism and Hospitality

In a strong collaboration with Limmat Foundation- Switzerland, the Centre for Tourism and Hospitality (CTH) hosted the 2nd International Hospitality Seminar (IHS) from 8th-12th February, 2016; bringing together key players in hospitality institutions from Africa and Asia for a unique networking opportunity and sharing of ideas and best practices, in the hospitality industry.

 

Under the theme Service, Safety and Leadership – Strengthening Technical and Managerial Competencies, the 5 day seminar’s objective involved; Enriching the participants’ knowledge of food safety as applied in the industry; Enhancing management skills and leadership qualities; Promoting social enterprise interest; Building service quality leadership culture in hospitality operations; Providing a platform for sharing of experiences in hospitality education and industry practice; Providing a forum for networking with hospitality educators and trade professionals.

 

While giving the keynote address, Mrs. Samantha Muna – Managing Director and Senior Hospitality Consultant, Trianum, explained her passion for this field, stemming from her interactions with hoteliers from a young age. Mrs. Muna also elaborated statistics in this field, which included the fact that Africa only gets 5% tourists from the 1.8 billion tourists that travel. Out of the 5%, only 3% income is received from these visits. Mrs. Muna encouraged the attendees to create diversity in the field explaining that it could be the number one reason Africa’s visits are less compared to the rest of the world.

 

The major topics that were analyzed during the seminar were; Service and Leadership; Social Enterprise and Strategic Planning; Food Safety; Management Techniques and Style; Employees Developmental Levels; Employee Management; Team Development; Team Management; Motivation and; Service Quality Leadership.

Mr. Juan Alarcon – Project Director Limmat Foundation, took the team through topics Service and Leadership, and Social Enterprise and Strategic Planning, where he highlighted leadership qualities that improve services and encourage employee participation. Mr. Juan also addressed invention in these field, emphasizing that invention does not have to stem from a totally new idea, rather by improving what is already there.

 

Taking the team through Management Techniques and Styles and the topics thereafter was Ms. Ebba Weidenmuller- BeCome GmbH, Switzerland, a professional trainer with vast knowledge in effective management techniques. Ms. Ebba discussed the different styles of leaderships, giving the team practical case studies that would analyze these topics further. She encouraged employee management, team development, team management and the importance of motivation.

 

The attendees were treated to an excursion to Crescent Island Game Sanctuary Naivasha on Wednesday, a break well needed before resuming for the rest of the sessions. On Thursday evening, to mark the end of the beautiful and knowledgeable seminar, the attendees celebrated this wonderful week with a Gala dinner.