PIONEERING HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM MANAGEMENT

As the industry continues to grow, Dr. Tanios Kassis, Dean of Faculty of Tourism & Hotel Management at Sagesse University explains how he’s preparing future professionals for a rewarding but challenging career

How are the programs offered being updated to accommodate innovation?
Our mission at Sagesse University is to educate students and make them eligible to enter the hospitality and tourism industry at a supervisory level. For this reason, our programs are established in collaboration with industry representatives within the faculty strategic committee, who mapped the essential skills required for recruitment, training and retention. The committee further identified and analyzed current and future needs, trends and challenges facing the hospitality industry in Lebanon and the region to ensure synchronization. In addition, we create innovative and efficient course designs using new technology where the students are completely in to enhance their knowledge in this field. The challenges are divided into different aspects:
– Financial: almost all equipment and infrastructure should be updated and renovated, combining practical & theory courses and this will cost a lot.
– Educative: courses should be restructured from the ordinary learning system to the new ‘learntainment’ style.
– Recruiting highly professional faculty members
– Training existing faculty members to be more familiar with the new technology and changes in the hospitality world.

The Faculty of Tourism & Hotel Management is offering four areas of concentration:
– Hotel Operations & Logistics
– Food & Beverage Management
– Tourism & Travel
– International Events Management
These areas of concentration will enable the students to understand in a professional way the current and future needs, trends and challenges of the hospitality industry in Lebanon and abroad.

Attracting, developing and retaining the right talent within the hospitality industry continues to be a key challenge. How are the programs programs available addressing this problem?
It simply starts within the institutions. In fact, it is not only about programs, but it is a full package as stated below:
1st, the selection of students should be made properly by choosing the right people for this industry.
2nd, the way that these students are treated at school as future hoteliers.
3rd, delivering a variety of hospitality programs that are innovative, dynamic and up to date. Importantly, these programs should not be part of the business schools or other departments. They should be wholly focused hospitality programs in one entity or faculty.
4th, offering the right and appropriate infrastructure at the institution (new and sophisticated equipment).
5th, combining theoretical and practical courses before conducting their internships or jobs.
6th, hospitality firms should have a duty of care to the students in their internships and in their work.
If these points are accommodated, we will be in a win-win situation, where the right talent will succeed in their career.