At the Caribbean Hotel Association, we recognize that the foundation to support the international competitiveness of our regional tourism industry rests largely on training and professional development opportunities for hospitality staff at all levels.   CHA's training programs specially developed for your IHR (Invaluable Human Resource).

In 1980 CHA established the former Caribbean Hospitality Training Institute to provide necessary hospitality training for the Caribbean Tourism Industry.  As the needs of the industry have changed, so has CHA's product development programs evolved.  As part of an internal reorganization with the objective of enhancing the range of training activities offered to the membership, particularly in the small hotel sector, CHTI is now a part of the CHA Membership Department.  For more information on training offerings, contact us at membership@caribbeanhotelassociation.com

CARIBCERT
The Caribbean Hotel Association’s regional certification system is increasingly gaining ground in the tourism industry, as the number of certified people continues to grow and local strategic alliances expand.  A year after its official launch in June 2003, some 1,500 employees in Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, and Trinidad & Tobago had been certified in their respective positions at line, supervisory, and management levels.

This number is likely to grow quickly in the months to come, as the Dominican Republic, St Maarten, Curaçao, and Jamaica have recently launched CaribCert at a national level, through strategic alliances between CHA and local institutions. The implementation of the program is also in negotiation in two additional Caribbean destinations.
 
CARIBCERT covers a job and task analysis of 45 hotel positions in the Caribbean, and the system to certify people in any one of the positions. The system is based on standards that describe the skills and knowledge people in an occupation need to know, in order to provide superior service, while providing recognition for the skills and knowledge that they already possess. The system also identifies the skills and knowledge required to reach the next level, by training or further education. A person can be certified when he or she has demonstrated the skills described in the standards for the position. Having a CARIBCERT certification means a person has demonstrated the knowledge and professionalism that employers need and value. 
 
CARIBCERT was developed by CHA and the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) of the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB).  It lays down standards of performance and task analysis for 45 hotel positions in the Caribbean, and offers proficient workers the possibility to obtain a certification. The standards on which the system of certification is based were established by Caribbean hospitality industry professionals, and describe the skills and knowledge a person in an occupation needs to know and put into practice, in order to provide superior service.  The system also identifies the skills and knowledge required to reach the next level, by training or further education.
 
For more information on CaribCert, visit www.caribcert.org or write to us at membership@caribbeanhotelassociation.com

Total Service - Q2

Training is not something you do once and you’re done; it’s an ongoing commitment.  Q2 brings veteran hospitality employees a new perspective that enriches their on-the-job experience and previous training.  Meanwhile, newcomers will have their first encounter with service training through a program that has been tested and proven effective.

For 20 years, the Caribbean Hotel Association and strategic partner American Express have hosted hospitality training programs. In 2006, they introduced Total Service: The Caribbean is Quality - designed to empower the hospitality workforce to achieve and uphold quality and excellence in every aspect of hospitality industry as well as in their personal lives . Total Service arrives in the Caribbean following a decade of successful implementation in Central and South America.

In 2007, the Total Service training a second-generation improvement: Quantify the Quality of Service (Q2), an award-winning hospitality program developed by Johnson & Wales University.   Q2 has been administered to thousands of hotel, restaurant, and cruise industry professionals since the program was first developed in 1989 and will now be delivered between in Aruba, Bahamas, Puerto Rico, United States Virgin Islands, Jamaica, and Bermuda. These destinations are participants in American Express’ “Official Card” program.

The Q2 program will cover topics such as building a service culture, organizational factors that impact guest service, handling complaints, communication skills, and developing measurable standards of performance.

Q2 was first used to train service staff for the New England Governors' Initiative, which was formed to attract tourism to the New England states. The training was given to taxi drivers, hotel front desk personne,l and other tourism employees. After the training was delivered, the program received the New England Governor’s Conference award for excellence.  Since the original curriculum was developed, hospitality professors from Johnson & Wales University have worked with the Office of Professional Training to deliver and refine this award-winning program.

Other workshops available

Small Hotel Operators' Workshop
To orient the Small Hotel Owners and Managers in the use of the CHA Small Hotel Operators’ Reference Manual. Allows participants to examine their operation and identify key areas of enhancement. Exposes Small Hoteliers to a variety of Small Hotel Operations and best practices that they can apply to enhance their operation.

Hurricane Preparedness Workshops I and II

Caribbean countries are exposed to the awesome power of hurricanes every year with untold damage to life and property. Damage may be mitigated through preparation! To save lives and reduce damage to your property, a hurricane response plan must be prepared, drilled and understood by all staff. In an effort to encourage hotels and other tourism business to prepare well in advance of the hurricane season, and to implement the recommendations of the CHA Hurricane Preparedness Manual, the workshop focuses on:

• Understanding hurricane hazards that threaten life and property;
• How to begin the planning process;
• Key action plan features and resources;
• Successfully activating your plan when a hurricane threatens.

Sustainable Tourism Workshops

Through its environmental subsidiary, the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism (CAST), CHA members also have access to a series of additional training offerings.  For more information, contact Deirdre Shurland, or go to www.cha-cast.com:

• Green Globe Training - For tourism businesses, consultants and assessors.
• Quality Tourism for the Caribbean (QTC) Training - Introduction to Food Safety and Sanitation; Food Safety and Sanitation Certification; Environmental Management System Workshop Series.
• Energy Conservation.