6.1 Industry Professionalism & Standards
Vision: Visitor satisfaction of Victoria's destinations,
products, services and experiences is seamlessly exceptional.
Objectives
- Encourage industry awareness, involvement and ownership in the
development of high levels of professionalism and standards at local,
regional, and state levels.
- Provide opportunities to improve industry knowledge and expertise.
- Influence the delivery of quality tourism product to consistently
and seamlessly achieve exceptional customer service.
- Encourage environmental and social responsibility.
As a predominantly service industry, tourism must recognise that
the role of people is critical in delivering quality experiences.
Planning for the appropriate mix of competencies and skills and
generally raising industry professionalism and standards has been
identified as a key challenge and opportunity for Victoria. Excellence
in customer service can provide Victoria with a clear competitive
advantage, both nationally and internationally.
However, with very low barriers to entry and a high proportion
of small businesses, Victoria's tourism industry is characterised
by varying levels of experience, skills, qualifications, business
acumen and professionalism. The result is inconsistent product
and service delivery, which contributes to business failure rates
and marginal profitability, particularly among new entrants. In
addition, a dynamic market place, increasing competition and higher
visitor expectations of service quality, highlights the need to
embrace a whole-of-industry approach to delivering quality experiences.
This in turn requires attention to business and industry systems,
people development, product quality and appropriateness, and environmental
and cultural sustainability.
"Any tourism operator who asks their customers what they
are looking for while on holiday will undoubtedly be met by the
answer 'friendly service' - and this means not only being friendly,
but also anticipating and responding to whatever needs your customers
may have. Every satisfied visitor is an opportunity for increased
profit to your business."
Jenny Herbert, Riviera Nautic, Australian and Victorian Tourism
Hall of Fame Award Winners
Staff Recruitment and Retention
Since 1997 there has been falling demand from school leavers for
training and careers in tourism and hospitality, particularly through
TAFE. This decline is in contrast to projected growth in employment
opportunities.
First preference applications for tourism and hospitality courses
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Source: J. Barnes, William Angliss College, from Victorian Tertiary
Admissions Centre data
The tourism industry (including the hospitality sector) is also
characterised by a high staff turnover with many employees leaving
the industry altogether.
The difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff may be attributed
to factors such as:
- Relevance of the industry to the needs and interests of Generations
X (1965-1981) and Y (1982-2000) i.e. the expectation of Generations
X & Y to "have a life";
- Perceived ill-defined career paths;
- Unsocial working hours and poor pay and conditions compared to
other industries;
- Casualisation of the workforce resulting in a lack of personal
and industry investment in professional development;
- A cultural paradigm that continues to equate customer service
with servitude;
- Lack of recognition of transferable and generic skills within
the tourism industry and in relation to other industries;
- Difficulty in accessing the diversity of employment opportunities
within the tourism and hospitality industries;
- A lack of high profile leaders and role models;
- Lack of appeal of regional living for many young people, combined
with high seasonality and a shortage of affordable housing; and
- Political and economic events that exacerbate industry volatility.
While it is important to recruit sufficient numbers of people to
the industry, it is equally important to attract the right competency,
skill and attitudinal mix.
Tourism is also heavily reliant on volunteers for delivering visitor
services and participating in committees and planning processes.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to attract quality, knowledgeable
people to these positions because of competing demands on their
time and the pressures of the positions themselves.
Strategies
- Develop a promotional strategy to highlight the attractiveness,
dynamism and growth prospects of the tourism industry and the skills
and attitudes valued within the industry.
- Provide a range of programs and career structures that
help retain staff and encourage the participation and development
of volunteers.
Training and Education
Employees and potential employees in tourism and hospitality now
have many options for quality training and education through a range
of courses run by universities, TAFE or private training providers,
traineeships and workplace assessment through ACCESS.
These options are recognised within the Australian Qualifications
Framework which defines and links post-compulsory qualifications
in a quality-assured national system.
Competency standards for tourism and hospitality were implemented
in 2000 to facilitate consistency, flexibility, and greater portability
of qualifications. In Victoria this process has been facilitated
by Tourism Training Victoria, with assessment of training providers
undertaken by Australian Tourism Training Review Panel and the Australian
Hospitality Review Panel.
Further work needs to be undertaken to highlight the critical skills
and competencies required to meet future industry needs and ensure
that education and training remains relevant to the needs, interests
and aspirations of future employees and employers.
Strategies
- Continue to monitor and report on training needs, skill gaps
and standards of training, and encourage quality assurance with
particular emphasis on the next five years.
- Initiate a tripartite forum (industry, government and education
and training providers) to progress issues relevant to training,
industry development and professionalism.
Professional Development
For businesses to be economically sustainable they need quality
product, working capital, sound business management and systems
driving the business performance, investment in professional skills
development, and continuous reinvestment to regenerate product and
service.
To achieve this, businesses and potential businesses, need sound
advice and ongoing professional development opportunities.
Peak industry bodies, industry sector organisations and regional
tourism organisations have an important role in business development,
through leadership, industry training, education and networking.
However for many of these bodies, identifying operator and industry
training needs has not been a high priority. Similarly, while some
have initiated education and training initiatives, the planning,
delivery and participation has been inconsistent.
Training providers have also responded to professional development
needs by shifting from a structured approach, to delivering tailored,
flexible and cost effective programs which are convenient and accessible
to industry. Opportunities exist to build on this by encouraging
further participation in tourism accreditation programs, upgrading
skills and knowledge through training and education, and promoting
a stronger lead role from local and regional tourism organisations.
Employers and independent operators need to be encouraged to view
professional development and training as an investment not an expense.
"For anyone in the tourism and hospitality business, time
is precious, and particularly for those in regional areas, distance
from major centres can be isolating and restrictive. These factors
often impact on an operator's professional development and learning
opportunities. Greater accessibility to training and education programs
will mean a more professional business and a sustainable State tourism
industry. Training providers must continue to develop flexible training
programs to give all operators every chance of successfully building
their businesses."
David Weston, William Angliss Institute
Strategies
- Review and consolidate advisory services to tourism businesses
to improve their viability and sustainability.
- Systematically identify and action professional development
needs.
Standards and Accreditation
Accreditation is about ensuring the delivery of an experience in
a sustained and reliable manner consistent with promoted expectations.
It is not about exclusivity and standardisation and should not be
confused with star rating systems that define the level of facilities
and services.
Numerous accreditation schemes, codes of conduct and continuous
improvement programs have been developed in an attempt to raise
operating standards. In Victoria, tourism accreditation programs
are coordinated by the Tourism Accreditation Board of Victoria
(TABV). The most significant program in Victoria is the Better
Business Tourism Accreditation Program, which is based on national
accreditation guidelines and business development principles and
establishes minimum industry standards for accommodation, attractions,
cellar door (wineries), tour operators and visitor information
centres. The program allows operators to measure and improve business
performance over time. As well as gaining a marketing edge, operators
are rewarded by priority access to a range of subsidised marketing
programs and discounted services.
Other accreditation programs of note include Green Globe 21, a
global certification program for sustainable travel and tourism,
and the Nature Ecotourism Accreditation Program, which applies to
nature tourism and ecotourism products.
Despite the importance of accreditation, less than 10% of Victoria's
tourism operators are currently tourism accredited. In addition,
there is low consumer awareness of what accreditation means.
A key strategy for developing accreditation and its perceived
value among operators is the Tourism Victoria policy for involvement
in promotions funded by Tourism Victoria. From 1 March 2003, tourism
businesses that wish to take advantage of Tourism Victoria funded
marketing programs must meet two criteria:
- Current membership of recognised regional tourism organisations;
and
- Current business accreditation or evidence of an application to
become accredited as recognised by the Tourism Accreditation Board
of Victoria.
Further incentives for TABV accredited operators have been progressively
introduced such as discounts for advertising and trade show participation
and priority involvement in programs such as Victorian Tourism
Online.
Further re-engineering of the mechanism for accreditation is also
a priority for 2002-2006 to make the program more effective and
efficient for businesses.
Strategies
- Undertake a marketing campaign to maximise operator participation
in accreditation programs and raise consumer awareness.
- Investigate mechanisms to streamline the accreditation
processes to make it more effective and efficient for businesses.
This will also serve to better integrate and refine sustainability
principles and provide linkages with other programs such as tourism
awards and tourism product audits.
- Work with the Australian Tourism Accreditation Association
to encourage the adoption of national criteria and consumer branding
for accreditation schemes to increase recognition and value.
- Investigate the integration of a star rating system similar
to that used for accommodation providers for other sectors of tourism
e.g. attractions, museums, wineries.
Recognition and Reward
Awards are an integral part of the process of encouraging and rewarding
excellence in professionalism and standards. Awards codify traditional
principles of quality improvement providing a useful business planning
tool as well as a potential marketing advantage. They can increase
industry recognition, increase publicity and promote the image of
a quality and prestigious operator.
Each year the cream of Victoria's tourism industry is applauded
for its success through the Victorian Tourism Awards and
subsequently the Australian Tourism Awards. These awards
are in the process of being reshaped to address a number of issues
in relation to submission, judging and feedback processes, award
categories and criteria and industry understanding and appreciation.
Strategies
- Reshape awards processes to make them more transparent,
consistent and accessible.
- Expand the tangible benefits for award recipients through
integration with accreditation, public relations and promotion opportunities
and provide quality feedback to applicants to encourage ongoing
business development.
- Investigate options for including sustainability principles
into general awards criteria.
"The Tourism Awards process is seeing your business through
someone else's eyes. It's a chance to sit back and assess your strong
points and potential improvements - something that you may not ordinarily
make time to do. We found the whole journey rewarding - from compiling
the submission to the awards evening. Putting ourselves up to the
scrutiny of a panel and winning a Victorian Tourism Award has been
one of the best things that has happened to our business."
Greg Parker, Managing Director, Ballarat Wildlife
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