Industrial training in any professional program is a key component that helps Students to understand the practice of principal being taught in the institute along with the constraints in its implementation in real life environment.
Hospitality management education in Indian context, is about 70 years old, when Institute of catering and institutional management was started in Bharti Vidya Bhavan Mumbai by all India woman Council. In hospitality management education there are several up-gradation in the 70 years from time to time.
Now there are 70+ institutes of hotel management affiliated with National Council for Hotel Management and hundreds of HM Institutes are being run or affiliated with the universities.
The concept of industrial training is an excellent effort to give first hand exposure of the industry to the students undergoing hospitality management program. Till 90s the industrial training was in summer vacations between first year / second year and second year / third year, and that was not structured at all.
NCHMCT has started the concept of 20 weeks industrial training in the second year which is now 17 weeks after the semester system has been implemented. This duration of industrial exposure for the hospitality management student is probably one of the best in the world in terms of duration, knowledge, Skill, Attitude, formation, personality development and for improvement of the communication. This exposure to the hospitality management student gives them confidence and insight of the practices being observed in the hospitality industry which is quite different but advanced then theory and concepts being told in the institute.
The duration of 17 weeks on one hand, gives enough time for a student to comfortable with the environment of the hotel, learn the basics, understand the flow of operation of the industry and choose their area of specialisation is in which they want to work grow later.
Hotel industry is also a business after all therefore we cannot expect that Hotels will allow HM students for industrial training without their own benefit. We need to understand that the purpose of 17-week industrial training is exposure for the practises adopted in the industry and particularly in that property or Group and therefore it is most needed that there should be a balance between expectation of the students, expectation of the hospitality management institute from the industry and above all expectation of the industry from the training who are going them an opportunity to work in the organisation for 17 weeks. Each stakeholder needs to understand the purpose of training and extent of information are exposure needed to be shared with the students along with keeping the moral of the student high and overall, their satisfied with the environment, mentorship, learning and exposure from this stint of industrial exposure. We all need to understand that these students are future Hospitality professionals, therefore what all they will get during the industrial training in terms of attitude, behaviour, knowledge, skill and togetherness that will reflect in their further studies and their employment.
Institutes of hotel management need to carefully draft format of training assessment, so that the purpose of training and learning expected from the student on completion of the industrial exposure can be measured and in this effort “Format of Training monitoring and evaluation “ is the strategic document so that Student is bound to go through the details pertaining to each department or outlet from above said purpose e.g. if a student is undergoing training in coffee shop of a hotel, he should understand the concept , essentials of the coffee shop along with menu, knowledge and execution of service in such a way that the purpose and motive behind the coffee shop must be understood to the students .
In my opinion Institute should draft a proper format of industrial training report, mentioning all the essentials of the area of work that bound the train to understand the concept and write in brief about all those components which are essential for the purpose for which that outlet department has been created.
I am not of the opinion that Student should submit a typed report at the end of the training, but needed a detailed format with the space to mentioned all information institute feels must for the knowledge of students and can help faculty to update their input of teaching.
This format is to be designed by the institute and consultation with the industry.
This will bring out all essentials of a particular outlet or a department in a planned way so that students can easily able to understand the concept, philosophy and standard of service is being offered to the guest in the hotel.
Industrial training without these kinds of guided boundaries will give absolutely free hand to the Hotels to use the trainee wherever they want to use them, especially in the banquets for work like arranging the table and chair, doing the clearance etc. Most of the time they have been placed in the department, thus limiting their exposure and kill their interest in Industrial training.
Industrial training is needed to be monitored time to time by physical presence of the faculty coordinator or through online discussion with the learning and development manager at least once in a month so that Institute also understand the way Training is being provided by the Hotels and this intervene as and when needed to give maximum exposure to the student in a planned and structured way.
The interaction of the faculty coordinator with the L& D department may resolve issues and problems of the student. They are facing during the industrial exposure and it is duty of the training manager to sit with the operational manager for the departments and ensured that the training is being provided to the students as per defined path designed by the institute in consultation with the industry. In other words, training manager is a link between the industry and aspirations of the students and institute should work in interest of the organisation as well as in this interest of the students, industrial training, being conducted in A defined manner and moral of the students along with the learning remain positive.
In the 17 weeks, minimum four weeks must be given to the student to work in the department or area in which he wants to excel and choose for the future placement. It is must for them to have a deep knowledge and skill about that particular department so that they remain always positive for taking a job in the hospitality industry and motivate others who are junior to them in the institute after coming back from the training by the experience of their industrial training.
It has been observed that reasonable percentage of a student lose their interest in the hospitality industry during industrial training. Therefore, it is must to handle them with care by the institute and Industry.
Training manager of the hotel have important responsibility to draft the training schedule in such a way that students are not only satisfied but happy with the learning from industrial exposure and industry also get benefited by the manpower available to them almost throughout the year in the form of industrial trainees.
Without a well drafted industrial training format in my opinion, it will not be possible to achieve right kind of exposure for the students that built as base for their future learning and interest for working in the hospitality industry.
In last I just want to say that well exposed learning during IT is a paramount for successful enthusiastic resource for the Hospitality industry for decades.