The tourism industry is exploring ways to boost retention of experienced employees.
If tourists become disenchanted with the scenery and hotels arranged by their travel provider, Wang Chih-hung (王志宏), an assistant professor in the Graduate Institute of Sustainable Tourism and Recreation Management at National Taichung University of Education (NTUE) in Taichung City, central Taiwan, believes an engaging and friendly tour guide may be able to save the day. “If the guide delivers great service, it’s likely that the customers will overlook [the less satisfying parts of their trip],” he says. Wang speaks from experience, as he worked as a tour guide for more than 10 years before he began teaching at NTUE.
The problem is that it is not always easy to find great tour guides, as Taiwan’s tourism sector faces a shortage of experienced workers, according to Fumei Liu (劉富美), human resources director at FIH (Formosa International Hotels) Regent Group, the largest listed hotel company in Taiwan. “We’re not cultivating and training [professionals] as fast as the industry is growing,” she says. Tourism Bureau statistics back Liu’s assessment of the sector’s growth, showing that total tourist arrivals in Taiwan climbed from 3.5 million in 2006 to more than 6 million in 2011.
Total employment in Taiwan’s tourism industry reached more than 113,200 in August 2012, and the sector’s growth means that more jobs are constantly being added. In response, schools of all types are offering programs for students interested in working for airlines, amusement parks, hotels, restaurants, scenic areas and travel agencies, among other segments of the industry. “In 2009, there were more than 200 tourism-related programs offered at the higher education level in Taiwan,” Wang says.
The courses are popular, as the Tourism Bureau estimates that around 25,000 students graduate with tourism majors each year. The problem, Wang says, is that most of those degree earners do not go on to work in the sector, or if they do, they do not stay for long. Liu agrees, saying that only about 40 percent of the graduates choose a career in tourism-related fields.
Wang attributes tourism’s lack of popularity as a long-term career to two primary factors. “The salary in this trade is not particularly high, and the job often requires long and irregular working hours,” he explains. According to Liu, the salary for entry-level hotel workers is on par with the average in Taiwan’s service sector, or roughly between NT$25,000 (US$833) and NT$30,000 (US$1,000) per month. Statistics from the Council of Labor Affairs show that new travel agency employees earn around NT$23,000 (US$767) per month in their first three to five years, while average monthly pay for tour guides is around NT$34,800 (US$1,160), including commissions.
“The working and free hours for those in the industry are exactly the opposite of those of other people,” Wang says of the other factor that keeps many tourism graduates from entering the field. The Lunar New Year holiday—the most important celebration of the year in Taiwan—is a good example, he says. Bringing family members together for a reunion dinner on New Year’s Eve is a fundamental part of the holiday, but more and more families are choosing to have dinner at restaurants, including those at hotels, instead of at home, he says. That has made Lunar New Year’s Eve one of the busiest times for restaurant and hotel workers.
Although currently many tourism program graduates do not go on to take jobs in the sector, Liu notes that the situation is improving. As schools and businesses work together to provide more internship opportunities, more graduates majoring in tourism-related fields are entering the industry, according to Liu.
Finding candidates to fill junior positions is not a major problem for the tourism sector, as relatively few technical skills are required. “It’s fairly easy to find [entry-level] substitutes when a shortage occurs in the industry … Therefore, you’ll notice that while many people leave this business, a lot of novice workers join at the same time,” Wang says.
In Australia, the owner of a local winery, right in blue shirt, shares his experiences with a group of Taiwanese tourism managers and teachers participating in a 2010 overseas training program organized by the Tourism Bureau. (Courtesy of Tourism Bureau)
While low pay and unusual hours undoubtedly increase turnover in the industry, Liu also points to the pressure tourism employees face. As employees of an international hotel chain such as the Regent Group, for example, staffers have to serve well-heeled customers from diverse cultural backgrounds. “They’re probably the types of people [these staff members] never had a chance to meet before,” she says. “Having to talk and interact with these customers alone can create huge pressure for some of the employees.” That is especially difficult for inexperienced workers, Liu adds.
Withstanding Pressure
To give junior-level employees the confidence they need to withstand the pressures of the tourism industry, in 2010 the Regent Group became the first hotel operator to open a City & Guilds training center in Taiwan. City & Guilds, one of the world’s top vocational education organizations, is based in the United Kingdom and offers a wide range of certification programs. According to Liu, as of October 2012, more than 150 of the 1,100 employees at the Regent Taipei had earned at least one City & Guilds certificate in the categories of barista service, conflict management, hospitality service and sales. Liu says that the Regent Group offers the program to help workers build practical skills, gain confidence and advance their careers by earning an internationally recognized certificate. “We want to boost our staff’s self-confidence and give them the recognition they deserve,” she says.
Chang Shi-chung (張錫聰), deputy director-general of the Tourism Bureau, points out that most of the large travel agencies and hotel chains in Taiwan offer on-the-job training to their staff members, but small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in the trade often lack the resources to do so. To help tourism employees at SMEs develop their skills and knowledge, Chang says that the Tourism Bureau organizes a wide range of courses for them every year. According to the bureau, these programs attract an average of roughly 10,000 employees annually.
Although frequent turnover in entry-level positions hampers the industry, the talent drain of managers to places like Hong Kong, mainland China and Singapore may be even more alarming, Wang says. Liu points out that Taiwanese managers are known for their positive attitude, reasonable salary demands and Chinese-language ability, all of which make them popular with headhunters seeking to fill positions in neighboring countries.
International Elite
In response, Liu says the Regent Group is hoping to retain management professionals by organizing in-house training initiatives such as the International Elite Program, which is set to kick off in March this year. The initiative will offer 10 participants the opportunity to gain experience at the group’s overseas branches. Those who successfully complete the training will be rewarded with a management-level position at the chain’s hotels, she says.
In 2010, the Tourism Bureau began an overseas training program for tourism managers and teachers. Each year, the bureau sponsors the visits of about 100 qualified applicants to some of the world’s most prominent amusement parks, hotels and scenic areas. “We hope the participants can learn from the operations of these great companies during their trip, then apply what they’ve learned to their teaching or managing their own businesses, especially in areas like upgrading services and creating innovative products,” Chang says.
As for formal education, Wang points to an institutional issue that hinders the ability of vocational colleges to hire instructors who have work experience in the tourism industry. “We’ve noticed that more and more vocational schools are converging with [academically oriented] higher education institutes, with many of the vocational schools now requiring faculty members to have Ph.D. degrees and placing a lot of emphasis on publishing research papers,” he says. Requiring such academic qualifications means that there are fewer and fewer faculty members in the vocational education system that have extensive experience in the tourism industry. “There’s a growing concern that this trend will gradually cause vocational education to lose its value, since passing down practical experience is critical in tourism education,” he explains.
Four interns from Taipei College of Maritime Technology bid passengers to board a bus belonging to Kuo-kuang Motor Transportation Co. Ltd., Taiwan’s largest intercity bus operator. Collaboration between schools and the industry is encouraging more tourism graduates to take jobs in the sector. (Central News Agency)
Better pay would undoubtedly help tourism employees view their work as a serious career and encourage them to continue developing their skills. As hotel and other tourism operators see things, however, the tepid economy, both local and worldwide, makes increasing wages very difficult. In view of such concerns, Wang urges service providers to look at other financial incentives. “In addition to money, enterprises should consider alternative forms of compensation, such as bonuses and stock options,” he says.
Although pay is likely to remain a thorny issue, companies can take other measures to make staying in the industry more attractive. Wang says it is crucial for tourism employers to give employees a sense of pride in their jobs, which would increase their enthusiasm about developing a long-term career in the field. “Elevating the general status for those working in the sector is essential,” he says, adding that this could be achieved by creating more local role models in the trade. The professor points to the examples of Master Chi, the moniker of well-known chef Cheng Yen-chi (鄭衍基), and Wu Pao-chun (吳寶春), the baker who took first place at the 2010 Bakery Masters in Paris, both of whom have improved perceptions of food industry workers.
Looking to the future, Liu says that changes in the industry require employees to reassess the services they are capable of providing. “More and more independent tourists are coming to Taiwan in order to explore the country in greater depth,” she says. “These tourists want to increase their understanding by interacting with local people, which makes the interaction between service providers and customers more important than ever.” In other words, employees in the tourism trade are being asked to take on the responsibilities of the knowledgeable guide. By drawing on their understanding of local life and culture, such guides can help enrich customers’ travel experience, kindle their interest in Taiwan and encourage them to visit again, Liu says.
Harrison Lee (李新猷), a tour guide for more than 30 years and a lecturer at the Tourist Guide Association, Republic of China, opines that tour companies should endeavor to make employees aware that working in the business is “the best way of interacting and connecting with people.” Mingling with tourists from different backgrounds helps guides broaden their horizons, he says, while the need to provide answers to curious visitors means that guides are always learning new things.
Lee says that the mark of a successful tour guide is the ability to maintain a positive and optimistic attitude regardless of the situation. Wang agrees, saying, “Since it usually takes a long time to reverse a bad first impression, we have to ensure Taiwan continues to have a large pool of friendly and quality tourism workers. It’s only in this way that we can really show the kindness of local people, which is Taiwan’s biggest asset and greatest tourism attraction.”
Write to Audrey Wang at ycwang06@mofa.gov.tw