Ms. Olga Velceva, a receptionist at the Dubai’s iconic Burj Al Arab hotel, has won the prestigious David Campbell Trophy at the an International Presidium of the Amicale Internationale des Chefs de Reception et Sous Directeurs des Grand Hotels (AICR) held in the Czech Republic capital, Prague, from January 18 to 22.
She was chosen from the list of 14 finalists who represented countries like the UK, Switzerland, New Zealand, Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore and Spain. The winners for the second and third positions were from Singapore and Indonesia, respectively.
Ms. Olga was selected in the two phased competition which included a 30-minute interview with a panel of judges from the global hospitality industry including AICR International President dealing with professionalism and other technical issues related to Hotel Front Office management. A number of factors like professional qualifications, work aptitude, personal appearance and confidence are taken into consideration in the selection process.
Started in 1995, the Receptionist of the Year competition trophy was named in memory of David Campbell who served as the Chef de Reception at The Ritz Hotel in Paris in recognition of his dedication and passion to the profession and hotel industry.
Ms. Olga had won the AICR Receptionist of the Year Contest for the year 2010 organised jointly by the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) and AICR Dubai Chapter and was sponsored by the DTCM to represent Dubai-UAE in the international competition.
She received the award at the gala ceremony in Prague which was attended among others by the DTCM Executive Director for Corporate Support, Mr. Ibrahim Yaqoot. The annual rotating event in Prague was attended by 160 members of AICR chapters from different parts of the world.
In October 2011, Ms. Olga was chosen as the Receptionist of the Year by the DTCM and AICR Dubai Chapter from a total of 13 candidates from Dubai’s four and five-star hotels and received a cash prize of AED 10000 and a trophy sponsored by the DTCM.
The AICR, founded on the Cote d’Azur in France in 1964, has over the past four decades has developed into an international organization with chapters in 18 countries and 800 members worldwide. The aims of the AICR are to facilitate and strengthen the professional relationships between members, and to promote and publicise the importance of their profession, developing the profile of the industry through training and development.
Dubai opened the AICR chapter under the aegis of DTCM in 2005 to nurture the entrepreneurial skills of front office and rooms’ managers of hotels in the emirate which is now globally recognized as the Middle East’s hospitality hub boasting over 570 hotel establishments with over 70,000 rooms and flats. The AICR Dubai Chapter aims to groom young talent and create a pool of young receptionists who will raise the standard of custom services at Dubai’s rapidly-increasing top-end properties. Since then, it has been participating in the AICR Congress for the David Campbell Trophy, according to
Mr. Steven Mueller, President AICR Dubai Chapter.
Mr. Ibrahim congratulated the winner and expressed the hope that the latest recognition for Dubai’s hospitality industry would encourage the hotels employees to spare no efforts in providing visitors and tourists in Dubai with the best hospitality services. He said the AICR competition has been growing in significance year after year, as evidenced by the increase in the number of contestants every year and the interest it has been generating among the top-end hotels.
He said that this also underlines the importance of the role of a hotel receptionist as they are often the first point of contact for the guests and can play a major role in creating a favorable impression about Dubai among visitors. The competition encourages employees to develop their skills, performance and professionalism when dealing with tourists, which will enhance the overall service levels and quality of hospitality industry in the emirate, he added.
Dubai had selected by the AICR to host the International Presidium in 2008, outbidding strong contenders like France and New Zealand. More than 350 hotel professionals attended the annual gathering.
Mr. Ibrahim Yaqoot said the department has taken several initiatives to upgrade and hone the professional skills of the hotel industry employees in various domains in order to raise the quality and service standards of Dubai’s hospitality industry.
Through the Training Solutions division of DTCM, the tourism industry professionals like the Tour Guides, Concierge and Receptionists are trained annually through different programmes.
The department has tied up with several prestigious international institutions for the programmes, including the Cambridge University for international tourism diplomas.
DTCM conducts annual competitions to select the best Concierge and Receptionist and it plans to add more initiatives to cover other areas of hotel operations.
