EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Internship is a period where students are given the chance to acquire working experience and also blend theories learned with practical work. This report was based on a two months individual training carried out at Eta Palace Hotel (EPH) from the 1st July. 2021 to the 27th August, 2021. During this period the activities carried out at Eta Palace Hotel (EPH) were Customer Service, Hospitality Management, Hotel Marketing, and Customer Experience.

In this report, these activities have helped the intern to bring out the comparison between theory and practical. In conclusion, the intern came up with some strength and weaknesses the organization and have given some recommendations from the experiences encountered while working.

CHAPTER ONE

BACKGROUND TO INTERNSHIP

1.1 Introduction

Internship was a wonderful experience for me, as it was exciting to make the connection between what I had been taught in class and what EPH was applying. It was also fascinating as I got to learn first-hand some important aspects in customer satisfaction that could not have been taught in class and had great customer insights.

Eta Palace Hotel is among the leading hotels in Buea with a good image and a very high occupancy rate of its rooms. Its main customer groups are tourists, business people and others for seek leisure and weekend accommodation. The main competitors of EPH are Chariot Hotel, Parliamentary Flats, St Claire Hotel and the renovated Mountain Hotel along with many other second level hotels and accommodation houses. Given the high growth rate of the sector in Buea, competition is stiff and centres on customer acquisition, customer retention, room occupancy, and high quality customer service and customer satisfaction.

The reason why the intern chose EPH for my internship was to be able to gain valuable experience in the hospitality industry, improve my skills and abilities in delivering exceptional customer service to customers. The hotel industry has high pressure on satisfying customers and this adds on to the learning and working experience for interns like me.

1.2 Aim and Objectives of the Internship

The main aim of the internship was to experience working in a professional environment and experience in working which adds my practical skills and allows me to write this report which is a partial requirement needed to have a B. TECH Degree in Marketing from the University of Bamenda

The specific objectives of the internship were:

To know and understand customers and their needs in the hotel sector

• To improve customer service skills
• To examine how hotels get their competitive advantage
• To blend theory and practice
• To improve on my experience and enhance my employment chances after graduation.

1.3 Definitions and Abbreviation of Terms

Concierge: The manager who oversees the management of customers to ensure that the hotel meets their needs.

Back quarters: Area of the hotel that is off limits to non-workers and where hotel operations and preparations take place.

Room service: Individuals rendered customers based on their specific requirements in their rooms.

Check in: The process by which customers register their arrivals at the hotel and receive their room keys.

Check out: The process by which customers settle their bills and hand back their room keys before leaving the hotel.

Day guests: Customers that arrive and depart the same day

Pre-booked customers: Customers that book their stay in the hotel before coming.

Walk-in: Customers that come to the hotel and book their stay without any pre-order.

Customer service: A series of activities provided to customers to facilitate and enhance the exchange process between organisations and customers.

Service quality: The level of service provided by an organisations that meets the needs and expectations of customers to offer them satisfaction.

Relationship marketing: The creation, building and maintaining of long lasting mutually beneficial relationships between organisations and their stakeholders.

Hospitality: The act of providing care, concern and comfort to customers to make their stay comfortable and enjoyable.

Marketing strategies: The methods and tools used by organisations to meet their marketing objectives.

Occupancy rate: The percentage of rooms that are occupied by customers over a particular period of time.

CHAPTER TWO

PRESENTATION OF ORGANISATION

2.1 Organisational background: ETA PALACE HOTEL BUEA

Eta Palace Hotel (EPH) is a quality hotel that is found in Molyko, Buea in the South West Region of Cameroon. It is a growing and leading hotel brand name in Buea with high awareness esteem and reputation in terms of its facilities, quality and service.

EPH is a family owned business that was created in 2007 by a Cameroonian entrepreneur and since been able to grow in terms of revenues, profitability and customer base. The hotel has more than 40 rooms and suites with high quality provided by EPH compared with Buea and South West based standards. The hotel currently employs over 20 workers that occupy different positions and carry out different activities.

EPH has certain core values that make the business continues to grow and succeed. These values are; professionalism, ethics, customer service and satisfaction, integrity and responsibility. These values are seen as essential to help EPH to always attain their philosophy and culture which always seeks to provide superior customer experience and satisfaction through the various services offered to customers.

The overall management of EPH is headed by the CEO who is also the owner. He has experience in business management with other businesses and constantly travels abroad and sleeps in other hotels ad has been able to experience how other hotels operate. The vision of the owner for EPH is to be able to provide the high quality service and accommodation that he has seen staying in classy hotels abroad during his business trips.

The management is flat and encourages employees to contribute ideas and take decisions in their working areas in order to continuously provide instant customer satisfaction. EPH has established collaborative partnerships with other organisations outside the hotel in terms of suppliers and B2B customers to contribute in delivering value throughout the value supply chain.

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