SPEECH BY MR TEO SER LUCK, MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY AT THE 29TH FDAWU/SHA SEMINAR CUM “EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR” AWARDS PRESENTATION CEREMONY HELD AT FURAMA RIVERFRONT SINGAPORE, 25 JULY 2011 AT 2PM

Mdm Kay Kuok, President, Singapore Hotel Association,

Ms Margaret Heng, Executive Director, Singapore Hotel Association,

Mr Abdul Subhan, President, FDAWU,

Mr Tan Hock Soon, General Secretary, FDAWU,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good afternoon.

Thank you for inviting me to join in the 29th FDAWU - SHA Productivity Seminar and Employee of the Year Awards Presentation Ceremony.

All of us have been hearing the word “Productivity” quite often these days. It is simply a ratio of outputs and inputs. Every hotel has limited resources, so if you are able to maximise the output you generate from the resources you have, you are being productive.

Boosting our productivity is essential for the progress of our nation and the welfare of our people. Not only will productivity drive our economic growth, it will also enable us to translate this growth to better standards of living for Singaporeans.

For hotels, productivity is vital for continued competitiveness as you seek out new ways to meet customer needs in a tight labour market. For workers, as you embrace productivity and innovation, you can also expect your employers to recognise your contributions through awards and celebrations such as this one. And more importantly, higher pay and a better working environment as a result of your contributions.

To work towards this end, hotels need to consider a three-pronged strategy,namely to:

• Increase operational efficiency;
• Invest in Human Capital; and
• Improve Service Excellence.

There can be huge gains in productivity through simple investments in technology, or through a simple review of operational processes. Technology is a great enabler. For example, hotels can use technology to help your staff check in your guests faster, or to turn over rooms in a more efficient manner. Reviewing the way you currently carry out tasks is another way to improve productivity. The Singapore Tourism Board will be rolling out a productivity tool kit that you can use to assess your operational efficiency. Do make use of that tool kit to gain that extra edge over competition.

Investing in your people is also an important aspect in achieving productivity gains. Being in the service sector, your people are your best assets. By investing in staff improvement, creating a fair rewards system and constantly engaging them, we will have highly skilled, motivated and passionate employees.

People investments are not limited to the individual worker. It is also important to be able to manage your manpower requirements to cope with the cyclical nature of the industry. The Singapore Hotel Association (SHA) has worked with the Employment and Employability Institute to develop an online Registry of Casual Workers.The Registry offers a link-up for those who are seeking casual work with ad-hoc job orders from hotels. This will, therefore, provide a ready pool of casual labour to augment permanent staff. Having such a registry online provides easy access to everyone - from students to matured workers, to be part of the hospitality industry. We will be launching this online registry later today. I encourage all of you to tap on this registry to meet your short term manpower needs.

Last but not least, Service Excellence. Passion is what drives employees to enhance customer experience beyond what is necessary. It requires employees to be alert and conscious of the needs of customers, it requires “the heart to serve”. All hotels should actively seek to bring out the best in your employees so that hotel guests, pleased with the top notch service experience, will be inclined to stay with the hotel again.

The 50 service champions gathered here today have exhibited passion, initiative and attentiveness in the course of their work. They have excelled in what they do and made an impact to all whom they encounter.They are the models for us to emulate.

Ms. Koh Kit Chew, a Room Attendant at Amara Singapore has made life easier for housekeeping staff with simple productive ideas. She suggested propping up the bed to make vacuuming under the bed less backbreaking and proposed that the safe be positioned in a place which makes it a lot easier for inspection. These ideas have made a difference.

Mr. Azman Bin Musa, a Bell Captain at Swissotel the Stamford Singapore, is always contributing innovative ideas to improve his work process. His idea of improving luggage retrieval system has helped to minimise the waiting time for guests has enhanced productivity and efficiency.

I congratulate Ms. Koh Kit Chew, Mr. Azman Bin Musa and all the other model workers for being “Employees of the Year”. Being frontline service staff in the hospitality industry you are also the model Ambassadors of Singapore.

Let us continue to innovate, raise productivity and strive for service excellence to build a better future for all in this sector.

Thank you.