Student Profile - Jonathan Hallmark

BA (Hons) Hospitality Business Management

Whilst at UCB, Jonathan enjoyed the diversity of the Hospitality Business Management Degree.   “I learnt a lot of core transferable skills which, now that I am working, are very much clicking into place. It is easier to see things from a strategic point of view to help the business move forward”.

Jonathan spent his industrial placement year at The Greenwich Country Club in Connecticut, USA, taking in a range of roles including being a waiter in the bowling alley and the poolside café, jobs in the kitchens and finally a banquet supervisor. “It was the best way to learn all aspects of the business and get a better handle on the quality of the customer experience” says Jonathan.

Then the next stop was Abu Dhabi when he heard the news that he had gained a place on the Starwood Hotels Graduate Management Training programme.

Jonathan was one of 11 chosen from 1,200 applicants to join the scheme in September 2009 and was delighted to discover that he was going to the United Arab Emirates to start his new career.

He is described as a Vita Futura Trainee, which literally means ‘Design your own destiny’, and his first placement is at the company’s stunning ‘Aloft’ Abu Dhabi hotel. As part of an 18 month training programme he will spend six months working in all departments, followed by six months in two selected departments and finally six months in one department, which will probably be marketing as he has a particular interest in that area.

“I have already worked for one month in the online marketing department and loved it” says Jonathan “a big part of Aloft Abu Dhabi is about social media. A large amount of my time in Online Marketing was spent building up our Facebook fan base. Constant interaction with our fans increased our hotel’s Facebook page from 450 to over 6000 fans in just a month! Rapid growth aside, that’s the biggest fan base of any hotel world-wide - and we’ve only been open 6 months.”  

So what’s next?  “Starwood is opening four hotels in Abu Dhabi alone. Aloft Abu Dhabi is in a complex agreement with ‘Elements’ Hotel which is planned to open late 2010. The super-cool ‘Elements’ is Starwood’s answer to a leaner, greener, eco-friendly hotel. Hopefully the launch will coincide with my programme and I will be involved with the pre-opening. It is a very exciting time to be in Abu Dhabi and I can’t wait to face all the new challenges ahead.”