ALKHOBAR, 5 November 2004 — Although the Supreme Commission for Tourism has been working for years to emphasize the development of the travel and tourism trade in the Kingdom, it is unusual to hear accolades about Saudi hotels or their staff from industry sources abroad. So it was with great delight that Michael Nugent, GM, Le Gulf Meridien Hotel announced that the Hotelier Middle East Award for Best Business Development Manager 2004 had been won by Prashant Sharma, assistant director of Sales and Marketing, Le Gulf Meridien.
“I think it’s a great achievement that Prashant has won this award,” said Nugent. “It was quite an involved nomination process that included a telephone interview to verify that all the details in the nomination application were correct and to test him further on his knowledge. There were a total of 40 nominations from the Gulf for the award including professionals from the UAE and other countries where there are some very switched on individuals in the hospitality industry. We were pleased that Prashant was chosen No. 1 and I think that he deserves this recognition.”
Congratulations have been coming from around the region for Sharma who is a 15-year veteran of the hospitality industry. Sharma is well-known in the Eastern Province due to his constant interaction with local businesses and his support for community organizations. Helpful and considerate, he is also one of the most popular members of Le Gulf Meridien’s staff, frequently asked for by returning guests.
“Prashant has that natural special gift, not obtainable at any hotel management school, of making people so happy that they feel lucky to be staying at Le Meridien,” said Christine Bergdhal, a regular guest of Le Meridien Hotels worldwide. “He is able to convey a genuine sincerity toward guests and is always looking after their needs and their happiness. He doesn’t have the common professional plastic smile found everywhere. He really is interested in solving any problems, big or small, in a calm, discreet and professional manner.”
Le Meridien Hotels have a slogan, “One Team One Voice,” which for Sharma is more than just words. It is the way he lives his life both at work and within his family and community.
“Receiving such an award gives me confidence and makes me want to work even harder,” Sharma said. “These awards are about staff development and encouraging people to do better. I hope to see my colleagues in the Kingdom receiving such awards in the future. It is important for people in the travel and tourism trade to constantly grow their knowledge and then use their skills to build strong relationships in the community. Local businesses and families depend on us to provide excellent support service for all their special occasions and we must always attempt to exceed their expectations.”
The best way to do that, according to Sharma, is to look at learning as a life long activity. In the last three years he has completed three hospitality distance learning courses to improve his skill set.
“The hospitality industry is really an art and it can provide much professional satisfaction, but it requires specialty training,” said Sharma. “I have gone with some of the hotel’s managers to the local schools to discuss with the 12th grade students the importance of the hospitality industry to the Kingdom’s economy and to encourage them to enroll in the schools specializing in education for the travel and tourism trade. You can’t start out as the manager of a hotel. You have to work your way through the departments and keep learning every day. That means you have to be open to learning from any source — colleagues, managers and especially guests.”
While Sharma’s award is certainly welcome, Le Gulf Meridien’s GM pointed out that it is only a start. He believes that Saudi hotels need to do more to raise the profile of the local hospitality industry in order to support domestic tourism. Nugent said this is completely feasible as Saudi hotels and their staff are competitive with hotels globally.
“It could have been said maybe five or ten years ago that the Kingdom’s hotels were perhaps a little bit behind,” he remarked. “But nowadays this is not the case. The owners of hotels in the Kingdom have recognized that customers in the Kingdom are traveling extensively in the region and seeing the rising standards of the hotels in other nearby nations. So necessarily the standard has risen at hotels here. Guests at hotels in the Kingdom are not expecting a second grade product. They are not expecting second grade service. The expectations of our Saudi customers have risen over the years as they have traveled more.”
What Nugent does feel is lacking in the Kingdom, is the entertainment and leisure activities that normally enhance the stay at hotels and resorts even in other Gulf nations.
“It’s up to hotels like ours in partnership with the Supreme Commission for Tourism to offer the services and offer a family environment to encourage people to stay here and spend their money within the Kingdom,” he said. “I think we need to be more aggressive in developing various types of festivals and entertainment. I do think that we should be allowed to put on more types of family oriented entertainment. And I stress the family element, respecting the laws in the Kingdom. At the moment we are not allowed enough freedom to do that.”
To boost the efforts of Le Gulf Meridien’s management team, Nugent has brought in two new staff members. Yahya Kotub with a background in regional marketing, joins Le Gulf Meridien as deputy general manager and Muhammed Osman, returns to the hotel as director of Sales and Marketing after spending time at Le Meridien’s property in Makkah.
Kotub has only been at the hotel for seven weeks but he and his family are finding life in Alkhobar to be quite enjoyable and they are already taking an active role in the local social scene. In his new position, Kotub is moving forward with several initiatives.
“We are aiming to enhance the quality, service and facilities on our two Royal Club floors,” he said. “We also want to upgrade our offerings for families. For next year we are planning to open a big playground outside our coffee shop plus prepare special entertainment each Friday so that families will come and enjoy their time with us. We are also working to introduce ‘little touches’ in the rooms, restaurant and reception areas that will give our guests pleasure. Our standard room floors will get a soft furnishings upgrade. There will be high speed Internet access in all rooms, plus improvement in our TV and sound systems.”
