Well, it’s hard to believe but we have been here now for just over a week. And what a crazy week it has been! We got of to a rocky start as when we arrived nobody seemed to know who we were or what the Saltire Foundation was - they were under the impression we were there to be waiters/waitresses all summer! But a quick phone call to Claire and she magically fixed everything. I was really impressed how quickly Saltire dealt with everything - seriously guys if you have any problems please give Saltire a call, they are ready and happy to help you out!
Now things are looking up, we have finished out week of Orientation and have a fantastic seven week programme ahead of us. For me this will mean two weeks of rotating around different departments and then spending some time in the Rooms department and Sales and Marketing. At the end we are going to help the Management staff put together the annual Business Plan to be presented to central office. We are all really happy with the new training plans and it now looks like it’s going to be an amazing internship.
I came here so I could learn as much as possible about what makes Hyatt such a successful chain. I knew the internship would be beneficial but I never anticipated just how much I would learn. Even just during the first week I have picked up on so many interesting facts about how Hyatt do things, both globally and locally. My hand will soon be sore from all the notes I’m taking!
On Tuesday there was the Grand Hyatt ‘Town Hall Meeting’. This is a really cool event that Hyatt do every six months. It is effectively a meeting where all the employees from the entire hotel are brought together in the ballroom and the General Manager fills them in on everything that has been happening within the company within the last six months including important financial details and forecasts for the next three months. I think this is brilliant as it really makes everybody feel part of a team that are working together towards one goal of the success of the Grand Hyatt. They really made an effort and laid out a beautiful buffet of snacks and fancy desserts just for the employees. I felt like a valued part of the team already and it was only my second day! I think it is fantastic as many hotels would not bother talking to employees, especially front line staff, about how the business is doing - the fact that Hyatt does this makes staff realize they are part of a bigger picture rather than ‘just a receptionist’ and how their every action can help or hinder the success of the business. It brings about a sort of team spirit - everyone wants the Hyatt to succeed as a business so everyone works that little bit harder - it’s really quite clever actually!
On Wednesday we went on a tour of the other two Hyatt properties in Dubai, the Park Hyatt Dubai and the Hyatt Regency Dubai. It is really interesting to see the contrast between the three hotels and how they each appeal to a different market. Our hotel, the Grand Hyatt is huge and luxurious with extravagant decorations and a show-stopping lobby. It is designed for people to ‘see and be seen’. The Park Hyatt is a brand which affords the guest a lot more privacy - it is beautiful in a very different way to the Grand Hyatt with more modest but still luxurious decor. It oozes serenity and makes you feel like you are the only person in the hotel, even if they are at full capacity. The Hyatt Regency has a completely different dynamic entirely - it is designed with business consumers in mind. Everything is very simplistic while also being very open and light. It does not have fancy decorations or winding corridors, but it is more practical while still being a very nice space. The Hyatt Regency also features the ‘Galleria’ which is almost like a small Mall, it has various shops, a supermarket, an ice rink and a night club. All three of the Hyatts have a range of restaurants for guests to choose from. The Grand Hyatt alone has 14 restaurants all within the hotel. They are all designed with a different theme and concept catering to every taste.
Of course we have also been doing as much as possible outside of work. Together with the Aggreko team we have been exploring Dubai including Dubai Mall, a giant Chinese market, Wild Wadi Waterpark and ice skating in the Hyatt Regency. If I talked about everything we’ve been up to this would be a very long blog. So instead here are some photos and video clips of the fun stuff we’ve been doing in week 1!