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Ms Chong Phit Lian, CEO of Jetstar Asia
For new talent entering the travel job market, having the right attitude is more than half the battle won. The rest, you pick up along the way.
That was the advice given out by a panel of employers speaking at the recent WIT*e – Inspiration & Mentoring event held at The Fairmont Singapore, held to groom tomorrow’s tourism leaders.
Ms Chong Phit Lian, CEO of Jetstar Asia, started off the evening by reassuring the more than 100 students who attended that it was ok if you did not know what to do when you were young, “just find your path as you walk”.
Relating her own story, Ms Chong said she first wanted to be an acrobat when she went to a circus as a child. Then she wanted to be a teacher, accountant, nurse and doctor. She also toyed with the idea of being a cabin attendant but was told she was too short and not good looking enough. Her dream of being a pilot was also shattered when a friend told her she was too short as well.
And so she studied “something appropriate” and became an engineering student at Singapore Polytechnic.
Ms Chong said that at different stages of life, one would come in contact with changes. What was important is the ability to adapt and adjust.
And as she has proven, it is never too late to switch industries. At the age of 54 in March 2006, she joined Jetstar Asia, perhaps figuring that if she couldn’t be a pilot, she might as well run an airline. This was after a career of managing Singapore Precision Industries and the Singapore Mint.
She said youths today had a lot more choices and were better-informed than her generation. However there’s also a lot more competition “because everyone is a graduate”.
So the challenge is to ensure you are always a few steps ahead of the rest, she said. And that means having street smart on top of a degree – which means the ability to adapt to the environment and the ability to manage a situation.
Mr Robin Lokerman, Managing Director of MCI Asia Pacific
On Mr Ian Wilson’s part, what he looks for in recruits for The Fairmont where he is General Manager and Vice President are core skills such as “leadership, the ability to communicate, the ability to execute and get things done.
“You must also have the proven ability to learn and learn quickly. In hospitality, you have to be a sponge because you are constantly learning everyday.
“Yes, you may have insights in social networking but the lifespan of that information is extremely short. It’s hot for a year and then it’s not. So you have to be constantly learning.”
Mr Robin Lokerman, managing director of MCI Asia Pacific, also said he’d take personality and attitude over skills.
But the new skills that are required right now involve new technology and how that’s changing customer behaviour.
For example, Mr Lokerman said the skill that’s hardest to find right now in the MICE space is “community management” – the ability to translate a two-dimensional environment to a three-dimensional one. “We are looking for people who can do that.”
Mr Andrew Chan, CEO of TMS Asia Pacific
Ms Chong noted that the travel and tourism industry was changing in terms of job scope. In the past, few graduates wanted to join the industry compared to engineering which tended to attract a higher percentage of graduates.
But now a lot of back-end work in airlines, for instance, is done by highly-skilled IT professionals and the job scope had expanded.
Most of the panelists however advised the students to not just get an education in school, but get an education in life. Take part in extra-cirricular activities, for example.
Mr Andrew Chan, CEO of TMS Asia Pacific, said, “Go travel”, and said he was amazed that he’s met travel agents who’ve never travelled.
He travelled for four months after school and learnt more about the world than he ever did in school, he said. Plus, you also learn about yourself and develop the confidence that employers look for.
