|
S Rajamohan, principal and secretary,
Institute of Hotel Management Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition,
Chennai speaks of the changing face of hospitality education today. By
Neeti Mehra
S Rajamohan
Principal and Secretary, Institute of Hotel Management Catering
Technology and Applied Nutrition, Chennai |
What opportunities are available to hospitality
students today?
The hospitality industry is undergoing rapid expansion.
Globalisation, industrialisation and the number of rooms coming up, plus
the rapid growth in segments such as medical tourism and eco-tourism are
bolstering the opportunities available to students, both in the hospitality
industry as well as in its allied industries. Earlier BPOs and the cruise
sector provided lucrative offers to students with starting salaries in
the range of Rs 15-18,000 which enabled them to pay off loans taken quickly,
but promised little job satisfaction. Today hospitality as a career choice
is on an upswing again. Students need to realise that short term pain
promises long term gain, and vice versa. The hotel industry needs to ensure
they pay higher salaries as compared to other sectors, so as to attract
dedicated employees.
Over the years how has the syllabus kept up with
the change in hospitality trends?
Changes have been made to the syllabi to keep in sync
with the current trends. Today apart from a thrust on hospitality operations,
we provide management orientation as well, such as facility management
and financial management. We plan to stress more on this and are proposing
to give students an eight-week exposure to management modules. With the
spa industry picking up, in the near future further changes will be made.
However, there have been swift advancements in technology in the sector
that need to be addressed immediately.
As an educator, what challenges are you facing?
We are finding very little awareness of openings in the
industry for students in class 11- 12 which is when they make a choice
for further studies. Recently, only 112 students appeared in the state
hospitality institute entrance exams. Today even the IT sector is targeting
fresh recruits. We are collaborating with other private institutes to
come up with a solution and we also hope to address nearly 1,50,000 students
with different faculty members making presentations and tapping nearly
250 different centres starting October to December. Through this strategy,
we can highlight opportunities available and build awareness.
What impact do you think hotel chains foraying
into hospitality education will make?
I believe that if hotels start short term courses then
it will help in retaining entry level staff as the highest turnover is
in that segment. An attached hotel to the premises adds to their advantage
as training can be conducted on the job.
How can fly-by-night operators and unjustifiable
fee structures be weeded out in the education segment?
There needs to be a universal law that governs this and
also what is needed is a defined syllabus structure and revised fee structures.
Strict monitoring also needs to be done by the accreditation agencies
to ensure that the fee structure is transparent and that the institute
offers facilities and amenities that are befitting to an institute of
calibre and not just 2-3 rooms of it. Students also need to be diligent
in selection. Today, the internet proves to be a valuable resource for
choosing an institute.
What is on the anvil for the institute?
We have set a budget of approximately Rs 14 crore and
have sent a proposal to the government of India for sanctioning this amount.
We will be investing in a kitchen and a research lab and also will invest
in research on cuisine in Tamil Nadu. This exercise should be completed
within the next two years.
What message do you have for students and for
your peers?
I tell my students to keep three job offers in hand always
- one in the retail side, one in the QSR segment and one in the hotel
segment. My message to them is to possess knowledge - which goes beyond
theory and includes practical knowledge, skill - as it is a skill-based
industry and attitude - which cannot exist without the former two. On
the other hand, the industry needs to take care of its human resources
and needs to develop and invest in it as a strong resource.
|
