Danielle Lu

INTRODUCTION

This report is about the entire internship experience that commenced on the 22nd of March 2018 at Huka Lodge. 

Company's Strengths & Opportunities

 In the hospitality and tourism industry, the name Huka Lodge has an imprinted "wow" factor. It is a multi-awarded luxury lodge and is consistently ranked as one of the best in the Australasian region. Th sophisticated lodge presented at utmost elegance is known to have hosted royalties when they visit New Zealand (including Queen Elizabeth II). With its high regards, there will always be opportunities to improve. Throughout the internship process, as an intern, I have been observant of every detail that I can possibly think of hence, I try to ask 2-3 intellectual questions.

Internally, I believe the human resource and training of Huka Lodge can still be improved in a way that every procedure can be standardised to be able to give a more uniform high quality service. As an exceptional service provider, I believe in having hands on training to newly hires and they should not be put on the spot on the first few days/weeks of learning as this may affect the service provided to customers who expect nothing but perfection.  

To add, improving on the marketing and utilising social media as a tool for advertising can also be improved on. I looked into the pages handled by the lodge and was hoping for quality content. It needs a lot of work - from layouting, captions, colour coordination, tie stamping, etc. This organisation weakness however, is one thing that can easily be turned around when the lodge decides to utilise skilled employees to improve their advertising or maybe, hiring a social media manager can be useful too.

Learning Objectives

The intern had listed 6 learning objectives that needs to be met in the 200 working hour time frame given. These are:

1. To develop attentiveness to details in order to provide exceptional experiences and deliver high quality service.

2. To gain relevant experience in the industry wherein classroom theories can be applied.

3. To understand and familiarise the service procedures/employee handbook  to be able to efficiently complete the duties and exceed expectations.

4. To ask 2-3 relevant questions every shift to increase the knowledge in Hotel and F&B services.

5. To develop the ability to adapt to a range of environmental pressure.

6. To be able to articulately present the dishes to the tables with utmost confidence.

Challenges & Resolutions

Working in a service that provides exceptional and high quality service, I wish I have expanded my knowledge more on the variety of wines, cheese and cuisine. I grew up in a simple household. I am used to home cooked meals. My parents did not expose me to the fine dining experience growing up and we did not fancy wine and cheese (the only cheese I knew growing up is cheddar and mozzarella). There was never a night where I wasn't put on the spot or felt dumbfounded about the information that I am hearing. So far, even though I felt like the most illiterate person in the room, I knew I was learning and I was taking it positively. It made me stay up an hour later after work to read and do more research on fine dining, proper etiquette and high end cuisines. 

Reflection

Triple bottom line review

To: Jackie Brown

From: Danielle Lu

Date:

Re: Memorandum of Agreement between Danielle Lu & Huka Lodge

This memorandum serves as an official agreement between my internship supervisor and me. We have agreed that I will be working for Huka Lodge in 271 Huka Falls Road, Taupo, 3377. My supervisor is Craig Gemmell. My internship job title is restaurant service team. The internship dates are 22nd of March 2018 until the completion of the required 200 working hours of internship.

The primary learning objectives for this internship are:

1. To develop attentiveness to details in order to provide exceptional experiences and deliver high quality service.

2. To gain relevant experience in the industry wherein classroom theories can be applied.

3. To understand and familiarise the service procedures/employee handbook  to be able to efficiently complete the duties and exceed expectations.

4. To ask 2-3 relevant questions to increase the knowledge in Hotel and F&B services 

5. To develop the ability to adapt to a range of environmental pressure.

6. To be able to articulately present the dishes to the tables with utmost confidence.

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