October 2017—Work4Stars, an executive search and recruitment company focused on the hospitality, tourism, and events sectors, has partnered with the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI) to offer hospitality training and professional certification to current hospitality professionals and those seeking a career in hospitality and tourism. Work4Stars is AHLEI’s first global partner in Morocco and north Africa.
Tourism is the second-largest job creator in the kingdom of Morocco, which has set a goal of becoming one of the world’s top 20 tourist destinations by 2020. The program, known as Vision 2020, has already created an increase in the number of hotel rooms and generated a need for hospitality training for 130,000 people.
“It is one of our goals to be closely involved in the professional preparation of the future generation and provide them with new opportunities to be work-ready and to assist them during their career path,” said Rita Levy, founder and managing director of Work4Stars. “In this respect, we want to actively collaborate with the development of Vision 2020.”
About 11 million tourists are expected to visit Morocco, a number which should rise to 20 million by 2020. All of this has as an immediate consequence that training and formation of hospitality professionals is to be considered a high level priority by the government and their institutional entities.
Taking into account the quality requirements of Vision 2020, Levy noted that certain actions should be carried out by those involved in training and professional development. These include:
- Reinforcing service dimensions, social skills, and know-how
- Reinforcing language skills
- Developing middle-management training
- Adapting the training to the evolution of the sector and to the diversity of the touristic offer: events management (sportive, cultural and entertaining events), new niches (golf, well-being), and new trades (e-tourism).
“Work4Stars intends to respond to the requirements of this growing international demand by offering several of AHLEI’s training modules in Morocco,” said Levy.
These trainings include Guest Service Gold® and the Certified Guest Service Professional (CGSP®) certification; Supervisory Skill Builders and the Certified Hospitality Supervisor (CHS®) certification; and professional certifications for mid-level and upper-level hospitality managers and executives.
The AHLEI programs include detailed training, followed by a comprehensive exam. After passing the exam, successful participants will receive a professional hospitality certification, which is unique in Morocco and which will carry a special designation in their CV. It can be obtained for all levels, from line-level through hospitality management.
“AHLEI is truly excited to partner with Work4Stars to bring our professional development and training programs to the hotel industry in Morocco,” said Ed Kastli, MBS, CMHS, CGSP, vice president, international sales for AHLEI. “As one of the top destinations in MENA, Morocco is realizing that the quality of their tourism infrastructure and product offerings need to go hand-in-hand with efficient customer service that meets and exceeds the expectations and aspirations of its visitors. We are keen to contribute our resources to assist Morocco in expanding its hospitality and tourism standards.”
