CHI holds financial parley

Prague, 27/08/08 - CHI Hotels and Resort - formerly Corinthia Hotels International - recently held its annual international financial controllers conference at the five star Corinthia Hotel Prague in the Czech Republic.

Directors of finance and senior executives from the company's head office in Malta and hotels attended the three-day event that had Bridging the Difference as its theme.

The conference was addressed by CHI chairman Joe Sita and the company's chief executive officer and managing director Tony Potter, who gave details on the CHI's vision and growth plans. A number of topics of general interest and others of specific interest to finance personnel were presented by various speakers, led by CHI's chief financial officer and administration director Paul Bugeja.

Prompted by the title Bridging the Difference the conference discussed CHI's new role as a multi-brand hotel operator following its joint venture agreement with the US-based Wyndham Hotel Group and how this development impacts the financial protocol, policies and procedures of the company. Besides continuing to operate the luxury Corinthia Hotels brand worldwide, CHI is now also the exclusive operator of the Wyndham and Ramada Plaza brands in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

CHI Hotels appoint sales and marketing VP

Floriana, 27/08/08 - Glenn Carroll (left) has been appointed senior vice president for sales and marketing for CHI Hotels and Resorts. He is expected to take up his new post in October.

This appointment follows the reorganisation of the company's sales and marketing structure some 12 months ago. Carroll will report to CEO and managing director of Malta-based hotel operator CHI Hotels and Resorts Tony Potter, while all of the senior sales and marketing team will report directly to him. In addition to controlling all sales and marketing and branding activity, Carroll will be joining the senior team of CHI with the overall responsibility of developing the company's strategy as it extends its portfolio of hotels under the Corinthia, Wyndham and Ramada brands.

Glenn Carroll will be based in Hammersmith, London, in the Wyndham Hotels Group's international offices, where he will establish a CHI Hotels and Resorts presence following the joint venture agreement between the two companies.

Carroll's background includes almost 20 years experience in senior sales and marketing positions with Expotel, Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts, Millennium and Copthorne Hotels, Park Plaza Hotels and more recently as group sales and marketing director for Como Hotels and Resorts and vice president sales and marketing Europe for Oberoi Hotels and Resorts.

Carroll is a British citizen and has a masters degree in marketing and a post graduate diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing. He is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and a member of the Luxury Marketing Council in the UK.

Westin Dragonara Resort manager receives award

St Julian's, 22/08/08 - Mariola Matyszkiewicz has received the Starwood President's Award 2007 for her outstanding leadership skills and techniques in the front office department. The award was presented by the hotel manager Michael Camilleri Kamsky on behalf of Roland Vos, president of Starwood Hotels and Resorts for Europe, Africa and Middle East division.

The criteria of this award is based on a number of factors: quality of the guest experience, focus on employee satisfaction, morale and staff development and general contributions to hotel and staff activities. The candidate should also genuinely demonstrate outstanding management capabilities in order to be eligible for this award.

Matyszkiewicz joined the Westin Dragonara in May 2005. She is now training Manager at the resort. 

UK tightens entry regulations

Luqa, 12/08/08 - As from October new requirements come into force for travel to the United Kingdom.

Trusted Borders, appointed by the British Home Office to manage the e-borders programme, has requested all airlines to provide passenger and crew information of all flights entering the UK.

The data to be passed to the agency will include each passenger's name and surname, travel document type, document number, expiry date, issuing country, gender, date of birth, nationality and airline reservation details.

This information, which the airline will gather at the time of reservation, will be passed to Trusted Borders 30 minutes before the departure of every flight. All flights will have to await for permission from the UK agency for the aircraft to leave Malta.

Passengers that refuse to give this information will not be allowed to travel to the UK, an Air Malta press release states. The regulations are applicable to all passengers irrespective of nationality.

Westin appoint financial controller

St Julian's, 08/08/08 - The Westin Dragonara Resort has appointed Malcolm Jones as its financial controller.

Jones previously worked for Deloitte and Touche  and the Alpine Group.

Debattista named Suncrest GM

Qawra, 01/08/08 - Mario Debattista has been appointed general manager of the four star Suncrest Hotel, replacing Philippe Lonfat.

Debattista brings with him a wealth of experience, having worked for 30 years for Corinthia Hotels International.

During his time with the Corinthia Group, he held various executive positions and was also assigned to manage other hotels abroad. For the last five years he was general manager of the Corinthia Jerma Palace and later the Corinthia San Gorg and Marina.

'Tourism needs debate and collective action' - MTS

Mosta, 23/07/08 - At its recent annual general meeting, Malta Tourism Society president Julian Zarb highlighted developments over the past two years in strengthening the international networks which the society had been building since its formation in 2002.

The affiliation with the European Union of Tourism Officers (EUTO) has meant that a total of 15 members of the association have benefited from a EU-funded exchange study visit and conference to member states such as Iceland, Estonia and Latvia since 2005.

In 2006 the Malta Tourism Society hosted the study visit in Malta; a total of 70 delegates experienced the importance of history and heritage for any sustainable tourism policy or strategy. The objective of the study visits and conferences organised by EUTO are to encourage the promulgation of best practice in any such strategies or policies throughout the European Union.

"What we need today in developing a greater awareness of the tourism industry in Malta and Gozo", said Zarb during the AGM, "is a better sense of debate and effective collective action". The Malta Tourism Society will be organising a series of monthly activities on various topics aimed at the general public and "focussing on the interactive element of debate and collective action to get things done".

Meantime, the elected members of the committee for 2008 and 2009 are: Julian Zarb, Emanuel Falzon, Janet Grech, Juliana Lungaro Mifsud, John Vella and Tonio Ellul. Luke Sammut was elected to the Malta Tourism Society committee as the representative of the Tourism Students' Association.

EC executives taught team building

St Julian's, 23/07/08 - Executives from English language school EC recently participated at a workshop on building winning teams. The two-day event was held in New York and led by "teamwork guru" Patrick Lencioni.

The event gave chief executive Andrew Mangion, COO Michael Xuereb, CFO David Bonnet, director of sales and marketing Catrin Diamantino and Joe Dimech, head of personnel, "a unique opportunity to partake in in-depth interactive workshops, geared towards long term business success through better teamwork, camaraderie and organisation".

EC, a Maltese owned group of language schools, operates centres in the UK, the US, South Africa and locally.

Air Malta supports the hospice movement

Luqa, 23/07/08 - Air Malta recently donated €6,300 to the Malta Hospice Movement. This money, collected from the airline's customers aboard its flights, will continue to assist the movement in offering free palliative care services. The donation forms part of the airline's activities and initiatives to commemorate its 35th anniversary and was presented by Joe Fava, Air Malta's section head flight services to Antoinette Shah, Malta Hospice Movement's general manager.

Speaking during a short presentation Fava said, "Air Malta and its employees have always been at the forefront of humanitarian and philanthropic assistance. On this occasion we particularly thank our passengers who year after year continue to show their support towards organisations such as the Malta Hospice Movement that directly help people in need. Special thanks go to our cabin crew who have collected the money during flights and to Airest Malta, Air Malta's catering provider. We are proud of our assistance to this non-profit, voluntary organisation. Through our 'committed to the community' initiative the airline has over the years donated thousands of euros to organisations that assist various sectors of the Maltese society."

Commenting during the presentation Shah said, "donations give us hope and encourage us to continue in our mission to assist those needing a helping hand. The Malta Hospice Movement continuously strives to raise awareness of the needs of the organisation, as it could not operate without the help of the public. Today we are caring for more than 650 patients who come from all walks of life. We are delighted that Air Malta and Airest Malta assisted us in this campaign. This donation by Air Malta customers will give us a good boost to help us in our constant efforts to improve the lives of our patients and their families".

Westin Dragonara Resort celebrates 11th anniversary

St Julian's, 19/07/08 - The Westin Dragonara Resort has just celebrated its 11th anniversary since it opened on 21 June 1997.

The Dragonara was the first Westin-branded property in Europe.

KM pens promo deal with Portsmouth

Portsmouth, 12/07/08 - Air Malta and the 2008 English FA Cup winners Portsmouth FC have concluded a two-year commercial agreement. The deal sees Air Malta becoming the official airline partner of Portsmouth, and both organisations working together on various joint marketing projects.

The two organisations have agreed to drive together a variety of co-marketing and advertising opportunities both during the Barclays Premier League matches of Portsmouth and also during the club's games in the FA, UEFA and league cups. The activities include LED perimeter advertising at the club's Fratton Park stadium, advertising on backdrops during Portsmouth interviews, advertising in the match day programme, websites links and promotions, brand marketing and on a host of other marketing communications systems.

Air Malta’s general manager marketing and product, Brian Bartolo, and Bruce Vandenberg, COO of Portsmouth FC, signed the agreement.

Commenting on this agreement Air Malta CEO Joe Cappello said: "We are enthusiastic to have concluded this commercial agreement with Portsmouth which is a first for a Maltese organisation. The excellent results achieved on our UK routes during these last months have given us the drive to strengthen the airline's presence in the UK. Through this agreement Air Malta will be getting global TV coverage through the extensive exposure that the UK's Barclays Premier League has around the world. This agreement shows the initiative that Air Malta is willing to take to promote Malta abroad and to increase tourism arrivals to Malta. It is also a clear commitment to Malta and the islands' promotion overseas as the agreement's main objectives is to advertise Malta and Air Malta throughout the UK".

Peter Storrie, chief executive of Portsmouth FC said: "We are delighted to welcome Air Malta as our new official flight partner. They are one of the most highly respected airlines in the world and, like Portsmouth, have a rich history, something of which we are both extremely proud. The relationship will enable us to tap into marketing opportunities and grow our brand globally through the routes that Air Malta serves, while also allowing them to gain exposure through our continued success in both European and domestic competitions".

Students make their CHOICE

Valletta, 11/07/08 - The CHOICE programme - organised by the Malta Tourism Authority's industry human resources development unit in collaboration with the Institute of Tourism Studies and the Tourism Studies Association - this year involved more than 6,000 secondary school students. The programme targets students in all secondary schools, and aims to raise awareness of the travel industry and tourism related career opportunities.

To date, this programme has reached more than 16,000 students. Even though this programme is not compulsory, this year 40 out of 60 schools chose to hold the CHOICE programme at their premises, while 48 chose to participate in the programme at the Institute of Tourism Studies. This year's edition of the programme closed with the awarding of prizes and certificates to those students who participated in the project competition.

A Form 4 student from the Sir Temi Zammit School in Mtarfa, Steven Vella, won the first prize of an educational trip to the Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal in Budapest sponsored by Corinthia Hotels and Air Malta. His project, called Live Mgarr - feast your senses! - was chosen as the best. Vella envisaged a full-day festival in his hometown, with different events like bread making and honey tasting, classic car rallies and entertainment and meticulously worked through all the details, including posters for each event. He mapped out a treasure hunt - complete with engraved prize - and designed DVD covers and CDs as mementos. The young man, worked with his teacher Ritienne Buhagiar, preparing a three-language brochure, formal invitations for five star hotels, and even printed ballpoint pens and hand painted glassware to give out or sell as souvenirs. Vella also got a DJ friend to prepare a short radio advert.

"We were most impressed by the initiative shown by this teenager. He used every type of medium available. He also roped in people in the village; borrowing flags from the council offices and preparing a lavish stand covered in local produce. Although the idea of a festival is not in itself new, his approach towards the interactivity of the day was very fresh", the judges said.

The second prize, a weekend break at the Corinthia San Gorg Hotel, also sponsored by Corinthia Hotels, was awarded to Mattea Galea, Lydia Grixti and Sephora Santucci from the Convent of the Sacred Heart for the project titled the Maltese archipelago - as sweet as honey. Whilst the third prize, consisting of a set of books on Malta, was awarded to Francesca Cachia Zammit, Theresa Fenech and Jessica Millo from St Dorothy's Convent School for the project named Stepping stones through Malta's history.

The CHOICE programme is organised in collaboration with various hotels, restaurants and travel agencies in Malta and Gozo, and will be organised once again during the next scholastic year.

For more information, contact the Malta Tourism Authority's industry human resources development unit on telephone number 22915122/4 or email choice@visitmalta.com.

Enhanced services at MIA for PRMs

Luqa, 01/07/08 - Malta International Airport has introduced an enhanced service for disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility (PRMs) that ensures a seamless passage through the terminal to the aircraft and similarly on return.

The airport operator has introduced a number of call points for assistance to PRMs at the car park level, at the check-in area, as well as at the arrivals halls in the Schengen and non-Schengen areas. Priority seating is also available in the check-in area and at all departure gates. The call points are connected directly to MIA's customer service centre.

The new service includes meeting the PRMs at any of the designated call points and assisting them along from the check-in area up to the departure gates and thereafter to the aircraft as well as vice versa on arrival. The respective passenger handling service provider will now be responsible for such assistance throughout. To this end MIA has also invested heavily on special training and first aid certification for the ground handling service providers' staff of Air Malta and GlobeGround that were selected following an EU-wide call for tenders.

MIA is charging all departing passengers €0.46 to offset the additional costs associated with the provision of these services to PRMs. This spreads the expense, thus reducing costs for the airlines that previously incurred the entire charge, claims MIA.

MIA joins the Red Cross

Luqa, 01/07/08 - Malta International Airport has joined the Red Cross Society of Malta as corporate members. MIA CEO Julian Jaeger presented a sponsorship cheque to Prof Frederick Fenech, president of the Red Cross Society, that should assist towards the voluntary services that are increasingly in demand.

Jaeger said that this support is in line with MIA's commitment to assist and contribute towards voluntary organisations that play an important role in the day to day life of Maltese society, particularly the less fortunate. "We are proud to support the Red Cross Society in Malta because we believe in its essential role amongst the Maltese in general and we trust that our contribution will help to instil more determination and commitment amongst its volunteers".

Restructuring at MIA

Luqa, 01/07/08 - Malta International Airport plc has restructured its departments to cater for the expansion of its core business and daily operations. The restructuring "is called for in order to meet the exigencies that will come about with imminent growth".

The retail areas have been modified to further increase business activity in the non-aviation sector. This salient sector has warranted the creation of the non-aviation services department. Mario Psaila-Savona has been appointed head of this department with the responsibility to oversee and develop all business activity in this field. He has been employed with MIA since 1999 as manager in the business development department.

To ensure the projected growth in passenger and airline activity, Alan Borg has been appointed head of airline marketing with the additional responsibility of further developing the VIP services at MIA. Borg graduated in hotel operations from the Institute of Tourism Studies and joined MIA after serving with the Island Hotels Group where he was sales manager for the Radisson SAS Bay Point Resort and the Golden Sands Resort and Spa. At MIA he was first employed as manager in the airline marketing department and was involved in securing new airline operations from the Scandinavian, Spanish as well as other European destinations.

Furthermore, Austin Calleja's contract has been renewed. He remains chief finance officer and executive director and now has the added responsibility for the meteorological services department, the networks department, purchasing and Sky Parks Ltd, the recently established subsidiary company of MIA which has taken over the operations of the car parks at the airport.