Interns make their mark at Macdonald Hotels
Macdonald Hotels Ltd is launching a new group-intern partnership programme,in conjunction with the Swiss Education Group (SEG), to help to relieve general managers of the cost and time implications of recruiting.
Set up by Dr Craig Thompson, who was previously academic director of SEG, the intern programme lasts for a minimum of 16 weeks and is designed to provide more experienced, committed and capable recruits. Hotels will benefit from a rolling supply of interns, meaning the difficulties surrounding seasonal staff will be reduced.
The first Macdonald interns, Gina Lokke from Norway and Carina Favero from Germany, started their placements at the Macdonald Aviemore Highland Resort. Sean Sullivan, managing director, commented: “Within a week of arriving,the interns completely understood our booking system, the resort layout and many of our internal processes, which they had learned during their course work. We were staggered by how quickly they learned and how well they bonded with the team. They are a real asset and we are already talking with Craig Thompson about taking on more interns to help us to fill other roles during the year.”
The internship programme is a key element of a two-and-a-half-year course at SEG, undertaken by 1,600 students a year. All tuition is undertaken in English,ensuring that students have a strong command of the language.
