Insight - Comparative study of the socio-economic models of Hospitality Schools in Cambodia

A good practice guide that started in Cambodia and is now spread all over the world.

Together with the Fondation Apprentis d'Auteuil and in collaboration with the Association ASSET-H&C, b. Consulting has been working for ten months on elaborating a guide of good practices meant for social businesses wishing to improve and support the professional integration of vulnerable youth.

• This study was conducted in the framework of the FIPESA project, built by Apprentis d' Auteuil and the French non-profit organization Institut Européen de Coopération et de Développement (IECD), to encourage and develop social entrepreneurship in Southeast Asia specifically for the hospitality training schools.

A partnership between b. Consulting and one of the most prominent French NGOs, which supports 36,000 vulnerable young people and families every year in 100 schools.

Pauline Preuss & Martin Thiebaut - Apprentis d'Auteuil Foundation, Renaud Fichet Dean of Sala Bai School, Florian Bohême b. Consulting founder.

The Foundation Apprentis d'Auteuil is a social organization dedicated for more than 150 years to welcoming, training, and helping young people with social difficulties in their integration. It has been working closely for years with the IECD that launched in 2016 the Association of Southeast Asian Social Enterprises for Training in Hospitality & Catering (ASSET-H&C), a unique network of innovative vocational training centers that support the social and economic inclusion of vulnerable people in Southeast Asia, through training and professional integration in hospitality & catering.

In this context and as part of the FIPESA project, b. Consulting carried out a comparative study of the socio-economic models of different Social Enterprises specialized in Training and Professional Integration in collaboration with three schools from the ASSET-H&C network :

• Sala Baï,

• Bayon Pastry School,

• PSE (Pour un Sourire d' Enfant).

The main objective of this study was to deliver an action plan for enhancing those schools' models and the production of a guide presenting a series of best practices and recommendations emerging from the work carried out with these schools.

Thus, b. Consulting delivered tools, recommendations, and key figures meant to be adaptable and applicable to as many local contexts and countries as possible.

Among those tools was achieved a salary grid, the result of the collection of more than 1500 data, presenting the levels of remunerations by job category in Cambodia. In Cambodia's context of a meager unemployment rate, this salary grid was meant to reflect the socio-economic inequalities and the impact that graduation might have on career opportunities and salary levels for Cambodian students.

Furthermore, consultants recommended the elaboration of orientation factsheets that would give students a clearer vision of the required qualifications and potential opportunities for various jobs in the hospitality and catering industry. Twenty-three orientation factsheets were produced and delivered in the final study report to illustrate this tool and give incentives for its use.

Presentation to the ASSET - H&C network

b. Consulting was grateful to conclude this year-long work with a presentation of the report in front of an assembly of ASEAN hospitality school directors in Siem Reap, alongside its collaborators who participated in the project. We took this opportunity to highlight an issue we observed during our study: the need for more professional training among professionals of the sector and companies themselves.

As this mainly refers to one of our expertise, we presented the Team Training and Training of Trainers programs developed and organized by b. Consulting. Those programs are tailor-made and aim to provide teams and tourism and hospitality professionals with tools, know-how, and recommendations to succeed in this competitive industry.

Key figures of the report

• A hundred pages of the report with recommendations

• Six different structures, including 4 Hospitality training models, audited

• A toolbox for social business project leaders

• A salary grid dedicated to the hotel, restaurant, and beverage industry.

• Twenty-four orientation sheets to reinforce the attractiveness of the hospitality and food & beverage professions.

Orientation sheets example

A study that complements our field actions.

b. Consulting is a team of consultants who are experts in their field: Hospitality, Food & Beverage, Tourism, FMCG. We adapt to the needs of our clients and their projects.

It is always a pleasure for us to conduct more academic studies, which also allows us to refocus on our daily work.

This study for Apprentis d'Auteuils and Asset H&C has allowed us to see that the need for hotel training is paramount for the Food & Beverage industry but that it is not enough.

As we have started to do, b. Consulting will continue and expand its professional training offer directly for the food & beverage companies present in Cambodia.

Hotel schools plus in-company training will be one of the keys to success for our industry.

---

• Contact b. Consulting Hospitality Food & Beverage - click-here

• More information about Apprentis d’Auteuil - click-here

• More information about the IECD and Asset H&C network - click-here

Testimony of the week - Bopha Than - a successful career transition from hospitality to literature

Working in the hospitality industry can open many doors. Today, we are pleased to publish the testimony of Bopha Than who first worked for ACCOR group before changing career and joining the SIPAR association.

Choosing a career in hospitality is also giving yourself the possibility to be multi-skilled and to go towards new opportunities.

How did you get into the hospitality business?

Hospitality sector was unknow to me and I never imagine myself working in this industry. Thanks to my scholar and career orientation, I had a chance to know more about Hospitality & Tourism Industry. I discovered the hospitality business by my internship opportunity after my bachelor degree in tourism in 2014. I had the opportunity to discover several careers at Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra starting from the reception, Food and beverage service until Sales and Marketing focusing on events. This first observation is part of my career orientation in the sector.

I have been involved in Sales and Marketing department for most of my career opportunities in hotel industry.

What studies did you follow to become a hospitality professional?

I started my bachelor degree in French language with two options: teaching French language as a foreign language and tourism. The tourism careers have caught my attention and I had a few opportunities to learn more on careers in tourism industry. At the end of my bachelor degree, there is an opportunity to continue my studying in France with a private scholarship from Accor Group. Before continuing my studying in France, I did my internship at Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra to learn on careers in hotel industry. In 2017, I am graduated from my master degree in tourism - Management of Institutions and Enterprises.

Bopha during her intership in France

What do you like about your job? And what do you like less?

Working in Sales and Marketing department, especially in Sale Event, I enjoyed working with all team members who are involved to make an event a success starting from the reception, food and beverage, engineering, housekeeping, florist until accounting. These skillful people work together to give a memorable experience to the client and I am glad to work with these people who work hard every day.

Working in hotel industry required a lot of energy and time. We are in customer service which require to be proactive, reactive and flexible. Working overtime and working on the weekend can be taking into account.

What is your best experience, story in this profession?

Customer service is a core value in hotel and tourism industry and it requires some skills and competencies from all employees. I enjoyed working with the team to make the customer happy with our services. One day, a client came and said that she was grateful for the arrangement. The smile on her face made our day.

You are working now for the SIPAR, what is it? Why did you choose to move forward? Does your experience in hospitality is helpful for your new career?

Sipar is an international NGO who runs literacy and educational programs targeting underserved populations across all of Cambodia, in close partnership with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. Our mission is to foster a culture of reading and to create a literate Cambodian society - a key lever of social development.

Everyone has a professional and personal objective if life, I have chosen mine. I would like to be involved in the development of my community especially in the education field and working at Sipar let me be a part of it. Those skills that I have developed in hotels industry help me on my actuals mains tasks such as communication and partnerships.

Bopha is now in charge of communication, partnerships and digital marketing for SIPAR association.

---

• Contact b. consulting Hospitality Food & Beverage - click-here

• Join Ms Bopha Than on Linkedin - click-here

• More information about Sipar Association - click-here

Testimony of the week - Kun Rathana - Assistant hotel manager - Maison Polanka

How did you get into the hospitality business? What studies did you follow to become a hospitality professional?

I was born in Siem Reap province in 1992 and was the 4th child of a family of 5. My mother died when I was still a baby and my father took care of us until he left the family home in 1995. Then, I was then hosted with my siblings in Krousar Thmey Center, a home for orphans in the suburbs of Siem Reap, where I spent my entire childhood and teenage.

One day, Sala Baï (a hotel-restaurant school that trains nearly 150 young people every year in the hospitality world for free) decided to recruit at the Krousar Thmey Center.

I was fortunate enough to be admitted to the school and studied there for one year. There, I learnt English and received professional training in the Front Office sector.

At the end of my studies in 2012, I was hired as a waitress at Maison Polanka and I really loved it there. It felt like being part of a family and I like the teamwork and the friendly atmosphere.

KUN Rathana, Assistant to Hotel Manager at Maison Polanka, Siem Reap

Over the years, I have developed several skills and enhanced my knowledge in hospitality, feeling more and more comfortable talking and interacting with the guests.This experience has also empowered my strengths in my personal life.

In 2013, I bought a piece of land with my sister 30 minutes away from Siem Reap to build our own house. During the Covid-19 pandemics, as Maison Polanka closed for 6 months, I took the opportunity to help my sister in her small business and to pass on to her some notions of accounting and customer service that I had acquired.

In Maison Polanka, I have experienced many tasks, from Purchases and Accounting to Food & Beverage, and I am now Assistant to the hotel manager, which makes me very proud of my professional journey.

• Contact b. consulting Hospitality Food & Beverage - click-here

• Join Rathana Kun on Facebook - click-here

• More information about Maison Polanka - click-here