The General Manager and 12 Senior Executives from W Macau – Studio City visited IFTM on 10 February, 2023 and were warmly welcomed by the President, the Vice Presidents, the Registrar, two School Directors and Academic Coordinators of related programmes. Mr. Adrian Chan, the General Manager and Mr. Dennif Lai, the Director of Human Resources gave a talk to introduce W Hotels and to share their career experiences and working culture of W Hotels with IFTM fourth-year students.
W Macau – Studio City is the first W Hotel located in Macao, via the strategic partnership between Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited and Marriott International, and is looking forward to elevating hospitality offerings to a new level and further strengthening Macao’s proposition as a world-class leisure destination.
During the talk, the guest speakers mentioned, talents working at W Hotels can enjoy extensive training, and opportunities to learn from leaders in the industry. Students were encouraged to gain more direct experiences from the hotel industry and keep seeking inspiration, creating trends and bolding innovation along their career path in the future. The Marriott culture of always taking care of the associates, leads to better services offered by their associates to the guests. Not only the positive organizational culture of the group, but all the training platforms, cutting-edge operating systems, and quality infrastructure behind that work together in building up the powerful brand. This explains why Marriott International is absolutely the employer of choice,’ Mr. Adrian Chan said.
Besides, Mr. Dennif Lai expressed that students at IFTM are of advantage as the Institute has various internship programmes for students to equip themselves to understand the local market as well as the hospitality industry, which the industry sees as distinct strengths in students’ future career path. Hence, it is essential to get a balance between academic and vocational experiences. He believes that students can better understand and apply their learning and theories through internships. Both speakers agreed that the keys to success are to be passionate and to look for motivation and satisfaction from work. ‘Don’t be afraid to explore more different sides of the industry and be proactive when an opportunity arises,’ Mr. Chan added.
During the interactive session, Senior Executives from various departments had face-to-face communication with participating students. Students felt grateful for the Institute in inviting industry leaders to share and talk to them which stimulated their enthusiasm to work in the hotel industry.
Mr. Crucis He, one of the IFTM alumni, who currently works as the Assistant Manager of Talent Acquisition of Human Resources of W Macau, expressed that the hands-on experiences gained in IFTM allow him to put academic knowledge into practice and to understand the scope of different posts in different divisions in a hotel. ‘It is a valuable time for both IFTM students and leaders working in the hotel industry to sit together and to share thoughts and experiences. The networking activities help to form bonding between students and corporations, allowing students to understand the real hotel industry beforehand,’ Mr. He claimed.
One of the first batch graduates of the Tourism and Event Management Degree, Ms. Ann Leong, the Director of Marketing Communications of W Macau, appreciated the thorough design of the IFTM’s course programmes. During the first year of study, she was able to have a quick overview of hotel operations by taking practicum courses and the open-to-public event management experience gained in the second-year shaped students’ confidence in stepping out into the real business environment. ‘The internship programme connected students with industry leaders. For me, it even opened up for my first full-time job opportunity!’ she exclaimed in delight.
Another IFTM alumni, Mr. Silvester Chao, Manager of Talent Acquisition of Human Resources of W Macau, commented that students should cherish every opportunity arises along the way and learn the most of it. Also, he sees there are lots of potentials within the local workforce, especially the young talents in town. ‘It is good to be open-minded and to try different positions and roles. It is also one of the processes in pathing for your career, and in bringing out the best in you!’ he concluded.
