Tourism isn’t what it used to be. Stakeholders in the industry are quick to point out that the sector has evolved, and so have those who work within it.
It has long moved on from days of old when foreigners, typically not black, were served by genuflecting, tip-driven locals. Now guests are a mix of locals and foreigners, employees are far better trained — which makes them more confident — and they want a lot more than the traditional jobs. Interesting and unusual jobs are out there… for those who choose to look.
“Tourism is about medical professionals, it’s about accountants, it’s about HR persons. It’s about marketing professionals, it is about culinary team members — the development of menu, the management of restaurants, the purchasing of millions of dollars’ worth of goods. That’s what tourism is about. And we are going to have to stop thinking of it simply as serving rums and Pepsi,” says director of the Jamaican Centre for Tourism Innovation Department Carol Rose Brown.
President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) Clifton Reader completely agrees. In an interview with the Jamaica Observer’s LetsTravelCaribbean.com he rattled off a long list of jobs that are typically not associated with the sector. He spreads the word about these opportunities when interns do stints at Moon Palace Jamaica, where he is general manager.
“They get to go throughout the hotel and see what different departments do, as opposed to the traditional departments that they’re used to — serving drinks, making beds, and stuff like that. It’s good exposure for them,” says Reader.
The evolution of roles within the sector — changes in the types of guests coupled with the transformation among staff — has created an interesting dynamic as stakeholders try to find the sweet spot between service and servitude, empowering employees who then provide excellent service without compromising their dignity.
It is a topic that fascinates psychologist Rochelle Amour, one of the principals of Mastering Excellent Service which provides training programmes for restaurants, resorts, hotels and villas.
“We are still very much shaped by where tourism was born out of the colonial regime. And there are so many dynamics, especially in the Caribbean, that impact the confidence of team members, that impact their ability to communicate effectively with their clients, that impact the biases that may be among team members when we have domestic visitors and guests as opposed to European and North American guests,” Amour explains.
That is why the topic of professionalism is one of the elements always touched on in the training sessions she and her team members provide.
“You are a professional, and we really drill that into our trainees. Everything about you, in terms of how you present yourself, is with dignity and pride. You have to start seeing yourself differently and thinking about yourself differently. And so it can become a very deep dive into certain issues,” she says.
Reader agrees that it all centres on professionalism.
“When you start to deliver service to get tipped, then it’s servitude. When you start to deliver service and you get tipped, that’s a profession. So you can come in with the attitude that you’re bowing and scraping just to get the tip; and that’s a mindset. We try not to get people like those in our hotels as best as we can,” he says.
In this issue of LetsTravelCaribbean.com, we share the stories of some of the people pursuing careers in the tourism sector — within traditional and non-traditional roles — who are providing excellent service while retaining their dignity.
* Housekeeper/cook in charge of running Round Hill Hotel & Villas, Cottage 20, Laura Mae “Miss Carmen” Grant-Gordon
* Supervisor and autism advocate at Beaches Ocho Rios Kids’ Camp, Lavene Duncan
* Award-winning bartender turned personal butler at The Cliff Hotel in Negril, Adrian Johnson
* Former hydrotherapy valet turned product controller at Moon Palace Jamaica’s Awe Spa, Chantal Williams and
* Dive master and underwater photographer at Sandals Ocho Rios, Cruise Callen.
But first we take a look at the art of service in a tourism sector that has been undeniably altered by the pandemic and what it means to be a modern-day personal butler.
