Need of liberalization and globalization of the education sector.

Every industry is going through a phase of change in the way they operate, Today Industry is looking at hiring  qualifications and skill requirements of young graduates is seeing a change, Students today have apprehensions of  taking up an engineering or medical course as first choice in education. The young generation is aware of the change and requirement of skill development than just a degree in a certain course. Liberalization in the education sector highly depends on stiff and inflexible regulations and practices adapted by the government. Education Institutions should be given a free hand in the pattern of accessing students, written examinations with text books is passee, Today educationist are looking to access students with more practical and research based approach. A technical course as Hotel Management needs to focus on the latest developments in the Industry today, The Food and Beverage industry is witnessing new trends as:

Food available on Cell phone – Food is just a call away, Zomato, Swiggy, Fresh Menu are some preferred applications available on our cell phone, with no hassle food delivery at any location.

Breakfast – Buffet breakfast has become a popular meal and an attraction at any hotel, Hotels are providing a wide spread of breakfast buffet for their guest to start the day with, Travelers today look forward to this option which is mostly included in Room tariff ( CP Plan), Fresh food ingredients on the menu is in demand, fresh and nutritious food than processed or packed food.

Parlor Cafes – Latest trend catching up is Beauty parlors with an attached café, mini meals, healthy options in snacks, non alcoholic drinks are part of the menu. So while one is into beauty treatment which would last for an a couple of hours food and beverage is served to guest.

Latest restaurant trend today is where restaurants provide alcohol by the bottle at competitive prises as local wine shops, where guest are encouraged to buy a bottle of alcohol, if unfinished can be deposited at the restaurant bar store who will store the bottle for you until next visit.

 Single dish restaurants – popular 100 pancakes, Waffle house, House of kathi rolls, these restaurants provide one dish in several styles and flavors.

Franchising has become popular with trending and well established brands, a new entrepreneur gets to start off his business with an established name in the market, while doing so  he needs to keep up with the standards, quality, quantity – value for money. Support from parent company is offered in terms of training support and some financial support depending of company.

As it is said the currency for the 21^st century will be education and innovation, the present generation needs education and guidance on hands on operations, practicing skills till they are masters of their area of work is way forward, Industry is starving for employees who are skill trained. To bridge this gap we need the Industry to come forward and work with educational institutes to develop workforce who will take up jobs offered. At ITM IHM we have designed a Diploma course in culinary operations, where students are trained in a specific area in the kitchen, while giving them overall kitchen experience with industry exposure, this course encourages students to become skilled chefs in tandoor, south Indian, breakfast chef, continental chef, Indian speciality etc.

ITM IHM also offers Diploma in Patisserie and confectionary to hone the skills of students interested in the Bakery and confectionary department.

The Certificate course in Food and Beverage Service aims at developing restaurant service skills, bar operations and banqueting skills.

ITH IHM has its presence in Mumbai and NaviMumbai.

Maintaining standards in the Hotel Management Industry

The hospitality industry has been under continuous change due to two factors: competition and guest demands.

• Today, an average traveller or guest is aware of the facilities provided at hotels at a competitive price. Budget hotels are in spring, whereas luxury hotels maintain their quotient

• With the increase in corporate travel, travel companies are looking at budget hotels, where one gets bed and breakfast at a competitive rate

• Hotel bookings are also not carried out through travel agents, sales and marketing personnel but rather, through online travel and tourism websites. Online facilities enable a traveller to find their choice of hotel easily, as hotel pricing is compared online, and reviews make it easy for guest to select hotels

• Today, guests have easy access to review hotel services and rate each hotel as per the services provided. Thus, self serviced hotels with no frills are the need of today
• The hotel industry in India is very competitive and guest demands are changing.
• Guests today want to try local cuisine, as compared to earlier days where International cuisine was in demand. The number of foreign tourists has decreased in metro cities, and is limited to travel destinations. Thus, international cuisine is slowly losing importance, while at the same time, there is a lack of professionals in hotels specializing in local cuisine
• Indian industry is people-based instead of process-based. We are moving towards that but it will take another decade until we have self-serviced hotels. A lack of technology is seen
• The question is -- Will the Indian market accept the change from fully serviced to self serviced hotels.
• Lack of technology and standardisation in hotels are interrelated.
• Technology is used mainly to promote, review and sell at competitive pricing. Indian hotels have a long way to go to creating hotels where everything from check-in to check-out is automated
• Records maintained in smaller hotels are still non-digitized, and the lack of technology in hotels increases the required manpower but reduces perfection
• Technology elevates a guest's experience. In today's tech-driven world, technology and people can work hand in hand to provide a memorable experience for guests
• Most top hotel chains are still trying different ways to achieve standardization, especially in the food production department. Trying to serve a standard taste of a particular dish throughout the entire hotel chain, all over the country or the world, is a challenge

• Employees in the Indian hotel industry are not as well-rewarded in terms of payment and perks as offered by other industries. Thus, we see a movement of young hospitality professionals with two to three years of experience moving to other countries offering better living conditions and rewards

• Hotel management institutes need to plan short-term skill based courses to enable students to master job oriented skills and move ahead with the required qualification

• Students normally undergo industrial training in the second year or during the tenure of the course. This is when they should be empowered with more, higher skills, rather than making them do basic work which they have already mastered in college

• Indian hotels must make an effort to work along with hotel management institutes to train students, right from level 1, in order to empower them with the skill sets required by a particular company, especially when it comes to the organisation culture and USP traits

• Hotels can do a semi campus recruitment drive in the second year of academics, make a choice of candidates, and further train them towards the end of third year for specific skills