Winter 2006 - Faculty of Business and Law - Victoria University
Winter 2006 - Faculty of Business and Law - Victoria University
Winter 2006 - Faculty of Business and Law - Victoria University
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DEGREES<br />
WINTER EDITION <strong>2006</strong><br />
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
INSIDE<br />
SUCCESS ON WHEELS...p 4<br />
THE PASSIONATE ENTREPRENEUR...p 9<br />
XSIGHTMENT AHEAD FOR VU...p 10<br />
COVER STORY: RISKY BUSINESS...p 11
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
A FLYING START<br />
Ryan Stapely (BBus Hosp &<br />
Tourism Mgmt, <strong>2006</strong>) turned<br />
his volunteer time at the recent<br />
Melbourne Commonwealth Games<br />
into a terrific job. Here’s his story.<br />
‘I volunteered for the Commonwealth Games<br />
<strong>and</strong> was made a Print Distribution Assistant,<br />
really just a glorified photocopier, a rather<br />
disappointing role. But just before the start<br />
<strong>of</strong> the Games an email went out to all<br />
‘vollies’ (volunteers at the Games) asking<br />
if they would be available for extra shifts:<br />
the marathons, the Games Village <strong>and</strong> the<br />
airport were all available. I’ve always been<br />
a big fan <strong>of</strong> commercial aircraft (working in<br />
the aviation industry has been my lifelong<br />
ambition) so I put my h<strong>and</strong> up for airport<br />
shifts, where I was made Arrivals/Departures<br />
Assistant for the Melbourne Airport night<br />
shift, 10.30 pm to 7.00 am. Mind you, I was<br />
also working full time in my retail job during<br />
the day so it was quite a stretch for me to<br />
manage it all!<br />
‘I did five night shifts before the start <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Games, which ranged from helping arrivals<br />
into cars through to greeting athletes as they<br />
arrived, <strong>and</strong> then I moved into the role <strong>of</strong><br />
Air Data Co-ordinator <strong>and</strong> VIP Liaison, a<br />
job usually held by a paid employee during<br />
the day <strong>and</strong> afternoon shift, so it was a<br />
pretty significant job. It proved to be terrific<br />
<strong>and</strong> I was delighted to get a role with such<br />
responsibility. I was really proud <strong>of</strong> the day I<br />
had three Nigerian <strong>of</strong>ficials turn up at 4.30<br />
am saying that the Nigerian President was<br />
on a flight arriving at 5.30 that morning, <strong>and</strong><br />
they needed a limousine for him to the city.<br />
So at 4.40 in the morning I made a few<br />
phone calls <strong>and</strong> arranged a limo that turned<br />
up just as he came out <strong>of</strong> the VIP rooms!’<br />
Would you like a job<br />
‘The Monday after the Closing Ceremony<br />
I mentioned that if they were short-staffed<br />
at the airport I would be pleased to come<br />
back <strong>and</strong> help. And at 1 o’clock that<br />
afternoon they called me at work to find<br />
out when I could get out to the airport! I<br />
ran the international departures level floor,<br />
which was heaps <strong>of</strong> fun. At one point we<br />
had over 1,000 athletes on five flights from<br />
12 countries... I sure did a lot <strong>of</strong> running! I<br />
wound up spending most <strong>of</strong> my time with the<br />
staff at Emirates since they had the majority<br />
<strong>of</strong> the athletes. The Passenger Services<br />
Manager at Emirates gave me his business<br />
card, asked me to come back the next<br />
night to help out <strong>and</strong> to give him a call in a<br />
couple <strong>of</strong> days, which is what I did.<br />
‘When I came back on the next day, I was<br />
asked to run the floor again. The night went<br />
well, except when the bus carrying the 15<br />
disabled Nigerian athletes broke down... I<br />
really wanted them to be first through. But<br />
we got all flights out on time, <strong>and</strong> I was told<br />
to email my resume to Menzies Aviation with<br />
whom I’d been working.<br />
‘By now I had emailed my resume to both<br />
Emirates AND Menzies. Emirates was the<br />
first to reply with a position in their <strong>Business</strong><br />
<strong>and</strong> First Class Lounge, but it wasn’t to start<br />
until October because the lounge wasn’t<br />
built yet!’<br />
Or would you prefer this job<br />
‘On 25th April I received a phone call from<br />
Menzies <strong>and</strong> on Monday 16th May I started<br />
my new job as a Customer Service Officer!<br />
Menzies operates in 23 countries <strong>and</strong> 90<br />
airports around the world. They are a ground<br />
h<strong>and</strong>ling agent, so initially I’m being trained<br />
as a Check In Agent, but there’s so much<br />
opportunity here. At Melbourne they do<br />
the ground h<strong>and</strong>ling for Austrian Airlines,<br />
Emirates, Thai Airways <strong>and</strong> Singapore<br />
Airlines, as well as the ramp, cargo <strong>and</strong><br />
mish<strong>and</strong>led luggage for Cathay Pacific.<br />
‘I’m on the Singapore Airlines account,<br />
<strong>and</strong> the training we’ve received so far is<br />
fantastic. I have had the opportunity to sit in<br />
the tug (the vehicle that pulls out planes) as<br />
the ramp guys pushed back a 777, toured<br />
the tarmac, cargo sheds <strong>and</strong> baggage sort<br />
room, walked through a Singapore aircraft<br />
<strong>and</strong> even been up into the cargo hold <strong>of</strong> a<br />
Cathay Pacific plane. How cool is that’<br />
How great is this job<br />
‘I’m just in my element. We start system<br />
training for Singapore Airlines in a week <strong>and</strong><br />
I check in my first passenger on Friday <strong>of</strong> the<br />
following week.<br />
‘With everything I’d learned at VU, <strong>and</strong> all<br />
the support I got from the staff, I had the right<br />
knowledge <strong>and</strong> the right attitude. And I also<br />
knew that being a ‘vollie’ at the Games was<br />
going to give me great experience. I was<br />
exhausted <strong>and</strong> excited for a few days while I<br />
did the volunteering, but the benefit <strong>of</strong> being<br />
seen, knowing what to do <strong>and</strong> having the<br />
right attitude has sure paid <strong>of</strong>f!’<br />
To contact Ryan Stapely email him<br />
at ryan_s_stapely@hotmail.com<br />
Degrees is produced by LongDog &<br />
Associates on behalf <strong>of</strong> the Publisher:<br />
School <strong>of</strong> Hospitality, Tourism &<br />
Marketing, Footscray Park Campus,<br />
<strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong>, PO Box 14428,<br />
Melbourne, <strong>Victoria</strong> 8001, Australia<br />
Editors:<br />
Jane Odgers, ph: (03) 9919 4413<br />
email: jane.odgers@vu.edu.au<br />
Austin Norman, ph: (03) 9919 4472<br />
email: austin.norman@vu.edu.au<br />
Fax: (03) 9919 4931<br />
Copy, Design <strong>and</strong> Production:<br />
LongDog & Associates,<br />
ph: (03) 9524 3141<br />
Email: tracey@longdog.com.au<br />
Got some news<br />
If you’d like to share information on<br />
a graduate, a student, or the fields<br />
<strong>of</strong> hospitality, tourism, events or<br />
marketing, please contact the editors.<br />
Don’t want to receive this<br />
newsletter<br />
Just advise us <strong>of</strong> your details <strong>and</strong><br />
we’ll take you <strong>of</strong>f the mailing list. Fax<br />
back the cover sheet, with a note on<br />
it asking us to remove you, or email:<br />
jane.odgers@vu.edu.au with your<br />
details.<br />
2 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
DEVELOPING PROTÉGÉES<br />
The prestigious, <strong>and</strong> chilly, Stanford<br />
<strong>University</strong> (below) in California<br />
USA was home to PhD student<br />
Brooke Abrahams (BBus (Hons)<br />
Info Systems, 2002) for a week<br />
in January 2005. Brooke was<br />
attending the Protégé Ontology<br />
Engineering four day short course,<br />
which gives an in-depth introduction<br />
to the field <strong>of</strong> ontology engineering<br />
using the world’s leading ontology<br />
development environment.<br />
‘Ontology is basically an intelligent data<br />
model for representing key concepts in<br />
a particular domain,’ explained Brooke.<br />
‘My research involves the development <strong>of</strong><br />
ontology that provides a consensual, shared<br />
<strong>and</strong> formal description <strong>of</strong> key concepts in<br />
the accommodation services domain <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Australian tourism industry.’<br />
Many attending the course were experts<br />
in the area <strong>of</strong> artificial intelligence <strong>and</strong><br />
semantic web technologies <strong>and</strong> included<br />
web developers, programmers, <strong>and</strong><br />
computer scientists, providing Brooke with<br />
an exceptional opportunity to network with<br />
people involved in similar research.<br />
Based on what he learned from the course,<br />
Brooke created a Protégé course that will<br />
be used in conjunction with a web page<br />
annotation tool AcOntoWeb. ‘This will<br />
generate semantically marked up web pages<br />
that are interpretable by intelligent query<br />
applications; we call this the semantic web,’<br />
Brooke explained. ‘The ultimate aim is to be<br />
able to h<strong>and</strong>le user requests at semantic levels<br />
so we can overcome the limitations associated<br />
with conventional keyword-based search<br />
engines such as Google.’<br />
One particular benefit <strong>of</strong> ontology-based<br />
information retrieval is the ability to infer<br />
knowledge about concepts that are not<br />
explicitly stated`. For example, using the<br />
semantic web it would be possible to infer<br />
that certain attractions are automatically<br />
associated with a particular resort based on its<br />
geographical location.<br />
Brooke Abrahams’ PhD scholarship<br />
was awarded by the Sustainable<br />
Tourism CRC (see page 5).<br />
ONTOLOGY DEFINED<br />
An ontology is a specification <strong>of</strong> a<br />
conceptualization. In the context <strong>of</strong><br />
knowledge sharing, I use the term<br />
ontology to mean a specification<br />
<strong>of</strong> a conceptualization. That is, an<br />
ontology is a description (like a formal<br />
specification <strong>of</strong> a program) <strong>of</strong> the<br />
concepts <strong>and</strong> relationships that can<br />
exist for an agent or a community <strong>of</strong><br />
agents.<br />
Tom Gruber, Stanford <strong>University</strong>,<br />
Knowledge Systems Lab<br />
TRAVELLING ON THE SMELL OF AN OILY RAG<br />
You would have to be living under<br />
a rock not to know that the price <strong>of</strong><br />
fuel has risen amazingly in the past<br />
few years. But what sort <strong>of</strong> impact is<br />
this having on our travel<br />
In September 2005, after several months<br />
<strong>of</strong> significant fuel price rises, VU colleagues<br />
Assoc Pr<strong>of</strong> Barry O’Mahony <strong>and</strong> Paul<br />
Whitelaw, together with Dr Brent Ritchie from<br />
the <strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> Canberra, undertook a study<br />
<strong>of</strong> the impact <strong>of</strong> rising fuel prices on Australian<br />
residents’ propensity to travel. The study<br />
was funded under a research grant by the<br />
Sustainable Tourism CRC (for more information<br />
on STCRC see page 5) <strong>and</strong> sponsored by<br />
various state tourism agencies.<br />
Surprisingly, the data suggested that the impact<br />
<strong>of</strong> fuel price rises is not as dramatic as the<br />
popular media would suggest. In terms <strong>of</strong><br />
past holiday behaviour, ninety six <strong>of</strong> the 640<br />
respondents (15%) took holidays recently but<br />
modified their behaviour through their spending<br />
strategies because <strong>of</strong> the increasing price <strong>of</strong><br />
fuel. However, 70% <strong>of</strong> the respondents who<br />
had recently taken holidays (223 respondents)<br />
were not impacted in any way by changes in<br />
fuel prices on their recent holidays.<br />
The disparity between the actual behaviour<br />
(30% changed) <strong>and</strong> the forecast behaviour (1%<br />
plan to change) may be a function <strong>of</strong> either the<br />
optimism <strong>of</strong> the respondents (they don’t think<br />
rising prices will have an impact upon them) or<br />
that they have grown accustomed to the price<br />
increases <strong>and</strong> thus have altered their mind set<br />
<strong>and</strong> travel plans accordingly.<br />
Interestingly, only 1% <strong>of</strong> respondents, or 10%<br />
<strong>of</strong> those changing their plans, are doing so<br />
explicitly because <strong>of</strong> the increasing price <strong>of</strong><br />
fuel. In the subsequent stages <strong>of</strong> the research,<br />
this critical point will be further explored.<br />
The findings <strong>of</strong> the research were presented to<br />
the STCRC <strong>and</strong> the state tourism organisations<br />
in early <strong>2006</strong>.<br />
For more information contact<br />
Barry O’Mahony at<br />
barry.omahony@vu.edu.au<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY<br />
3
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
WHEELY SUCCESSFUL<br />
‘In December 2001, I was riding<br />
to work, <strong>and</strong> suddenly my life<br />
changed forever,’ Michael Dobbie<br />
said. ‘I was hit by a 4 wheel drive<br />
towing a caravan, which shattered<br />
two vertebrae <strong>and</strong> snapped my<br />
spinal cord.’<br />
Michael was told he would never walk<br />
again... very tough news, especially for a 21<br />
year old.<br />
‘My accident has changed almost every<br />
aspect <strong>of</strong> my life in some way, from little<br />
things like the people I socialise with, to<br />
obviously bigger things like now having to<br />
get out bed into a chair just using my arms.<br />
Stumbling out <strong>of</strong> bed after a big night is all <strong>of</strong><br />
a sudden a hell <strong>of</strong> a lot harder!’<br />
Today, Michael is studying for his BBus<br />
(Marketing/Event Mgmt) <strong>and</strong> hopes to finish<br />
in 2009. ‘I’m taking my time because I have<br />
so much to do – including preparing for the<br />
Paralympics in 2008.<br />
Michael is a top wheelchair tennis player.<br />
This year he was selected to represent<br />
Australia for the first time at the World Team<br />
Cup in Brazil, the ‘Davis Cup’ <strong>of</strong> wheelchair<br />
tennis. ‘Brazil was an amazing experience!’<br />
he enthused. ‘It was my first time travelling<br />
with the whole Australian team <strong>and</strong> also<br />
playing team tennis. I’m hoping that my<br />
playing will remain in top form so I can make<br />
the Australian team for the Beijing Olympics.’<br />
Michael (far right) with his team mates at the World Team Cup in<br />
Brazil earlier this year<br />
Once exams finish, Michael begins<br />
preparation for the US Open <strong>and</strong><br />
representing Australia again at Far East<br />
<strong>and</strong> South Pacific Games for the Disabled<br />
(FESPIC) in Kuala Lumpur. ‘I have found it<br />
easier to train earlier in the morning on my<br />
days <strong>of</strong>f uni <strong>and</strong> at night on the days when<br />
I have uni. This means I can keep on top <strong>of</strong><br />
things <strong>and</strong> stay motivated to achieve at the<br />
highest level at both.’<br />
Michael’s home campus is Sunbury, where<br />
he enjoys the atmosphere. ‘The lecturers have<br />
all been so supportive in helping me achieve<br />
my goals.’ Even the l<strong>and</strong>scape helps him - the<br />
‘Hill’ on the campus can be tough for him,<br />
but his coach thinks this ‘training’ is great. ‘He<br />
thinks I should do a lap <strong>of</strong> the uni before I<br />
come home every day!’<br />
Since the accident Michael has had the<br />
opportunity to meet some wonderful people,<br />
travel to schools <strong>and</strong> work places in <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
talking to the staff <strong>and</strong> students about<br />
wheelchair awareness, travel the world with<br />
tennis, <strong>and</strong> return to study to enhance his<br />
career opportunities. ‘It’s definitely been an<br />
incredible four years,’ he added.<br />
People with a disability or<br />
medical condition are welcomed<br />
at <strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong>, where<br />
Disability Services aims to ensure<br />
these people are given assistance<br />
to actively participate in all<br />
aspects <strong>of</strong> university life.<br />
For further information go to<br />
www.vu.edu.au/Services/<br />
Equity_<strong>and</strong>_Social_Justice_<br />
Branch/Disability_Services<br />
‘Apart from the mobility<br />
problems that I face, my<br />
life has probably<br />
improved’<br />
Planning for the future<br />
Michael selected event management <strong>and</strong><br />
marketing because he felt he needed a<br />
solid fallback career once his tennis career<br />
ended, <strong>and</strong> with some experience in event<br />
organisation, it seemed like a sensible career<br />
choice. ’I like the fact that I could do some<br />
marketing too, because no matter what<br />
industry you work in, you need to underst<strong>and</strong><br />
what companies may be looking for when<br />
it comes to sponsorship opportunities. This<br />
degree will give me that knowledge too.’<br />
4 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
KEEPING OLD MAN RIVER ROLLIN’ ALONG<br />
The Murray River, at 2,757 km,<br />
is the second longest river in<br />
Australia, <strong>and</strong> runs from the<br />
Australian Alps in New South<br />
Wales, borders <strong>Victoria</strong>, then<br />
empties through South Australia<br />
into the Southern (Indian) Ocean.<br />
It is a vital social <strong>and</strong> economic<br />
resource as well as a major<br />
national icon <strong>and</strong> is the focus<br />
<strong>of</strong> a research project currently<br />
underway involving Paul<br />
Whitelaw, Senior Lecturer at the<br />
School <strong>of</strong> Hospitality, Tourism &<br />
Marketing.<br />
‘This research will explore the relationship<br />
between the communities which use the river<br />
(residents, tourists <strong>and</strong> businesses) <strong>and</strong> how<br />
their attitudes <strong>and</strong> values can be managed<br />
<strong>and</strong> aligned to enhance the long term<br />
management <strong>of</strong> the river.’<br />
The research seeks to link the attitudes <strong>of</strong><br />
residents <strong>and</strong> visitors to the Murray River<br />
region with key locations along the river <strong>and</strong><br />
through the Murray River basin. In particular,<br />
the project will survey residents, tourist <strong>and</strong><br />
tourism business as well as other business<br />
operators to underst<strong>and</strong> its impact on their life<br />
<strong>and</strong> lifestyles.<br />
Using advanced statistical analysis <strong>and</strong><br />
geospacial s<strong>of</strong>tware, the research project<br />
will produce, amongst other things, a series<br />
<strong>of</strong> maps <strong>of</strong> the river showing areas <strong>of</strong> key<br />
social, environmental <strong>and</strong> commercial value<br />
as viewed by these different groups.<br />
By identifying areas <strong>of</strong> common interest,<br />
<strong>and</strong> thus potential conflict or mutual benefit,<br />
management agencies such as Parks <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
will be able to better manage these resources<br />
for everyone.<br />
‘The project will enable the various agencies,<br />
including local, state <strong>and</strong> commonwealth<br />
governments, to underst<strong>and</strong> how this great<br />
resource is viewed <strong>and</strong> valued by its various<br />
communities,’ Paul explained.<br />
The research is funded by the STCRC as<br />
part <strong>of</strong> its Sustainable Destination research<br />
program. Data is being gathered during<br />
<strong>2006</strong> <strong>and</strong> the final report will be produced<br />
in early 2007.<br />
For more information contact Paul<br />
Whitelaw at paul.whitelaw@vu.edu.au<br />
The Sustainable Tourism CRC<br />
(STCRC) was established under<br />
the Australian Government’s<br />
Co-operative Research Centres<br />
Program. Its mission is the<br />
development <strong>and</strong> management<br />
<strong>of</strong> intellectual property to deliver<br />
innovation to business, community<br />
<strong>and</strong> government, enhancing the<br />
environmental, economic <strong>and</strong><br />
social sustainability <strong>of</strong> tourism.<br />
<strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong> is a partner<br />
with the STCRC, <strong>and</strong> supports the<br />
Centre through staff secondments.<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY<br />
5
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
‘Lecturer Martin Fluker, my Course<br />
Co-ordinator at <strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong>,<br />
used to tell me over <strong>and</strong> over<br />
that to find a job in tourism you<br />
need to use your connections,’<br />
laughed Carla Sheridan, who is<br />
on a break from studying for her<br />
BBus Tourism Mgmt. ‘I owe it to<br />
him, because that’s exactly how I<br />
started working with Topdeck here<br />
in London!’<br />
Top: Carla <strong>and</strong> friends at the well-known Moulin Rouge in Paris<br />
Below: With the famous donkeys on Santorini Isl<strong>and</strong> in Greece<br />
Carla had just returned from a weekend’s<br />
break in Paris to her London base. She got<br />
her start through a chat with a fellow Aussie<br />
one evening. ‘He told me he was a driver for<br />
Topdeck <strong>and</strong> invited me on his next UK tour.<br />
On the tour the tour guide mentioned that the<br />
company needed staff. The next morning I<br />
called his boss <strong>and</strong> a week later I took my<br />
first tour!’<br />
When Carla finished her first season, she<br />
was invited to return for the next year. ‘I<br />
had planned on returning home <strong>and</strong> going<br />
back to uni, but with another year left on<br />
my visa Andrew Kelleher, Festival & Events<br />
Manager, suggested I might like to stay on as<br />
Operations Assistant, so here I am.’<br />
Carla <strong>and</strong> her family travelled every school<br />
holidays together, which fuelled her love<br />
<strong>of</strong> travel. As she grew up she realised her<br />
parents wouldn’t be funding her travel<br />
forever, so a degree <strong>and</strong> a career in tourism<br />
was an easy choice.<br />
‘VU <strong>of</strong>fered a degree in tourism which<br />
included the compulsory Co-operative<br />
Education Year (through Work Integrated<br />
Learning) which no other uni <strong>of</strong>fered,’ she<br />
explained. ‘That makes the degree especially<br />
useful, so you’re experienced when you finish.<br />
I wanted a career, not just a job.’<br />
Topdeck began when a keen Australian<br />
traveller in London saw a paddock full <strong>of</strong><br />
old double-decker buses, <strong>and</strong> bought one<br />
thinking riding in it would be a great way to<br />
see the world. He convinced his friends <strong>and</strong><br />
other keen travellers to join him on a bus trip<br />
to Morocco... <strong>and</strong> Topdeck was born.<br />
Today the company has ab<strong>and</strong>oned<br />
the double deckers, instead travelling in<br />
luxury coaches around Europe <strong>and</strong> Egypt,<br />
appealing to younger solo travellers.<br />
‘The work is non-stop, <strong>and</strong> all the staff put in<br />
hours <strong>and</strong> hours <strong>of</strong> overtime, but I have never<br />
worked for a better company! The owners<br />
<strong>and</strong> managers look after their staff so we<br />
look after them.’ Carla’s role as Operations<br />
Assistant involves making bookings <strong>and</strong><br />
liaising with the company’s accommodation,<br />
transport <strong>and</strong> activities suppliers, <strong>and</strong><br />
preparing all the documentation that the tour<br />
leaders need when they are on the road.<br />
‘With over thirty trips at any one time in the<br />
high season, you can imagine that the <strong>of</strong>fice<br />
gets fairly crazy,’ laughed Carla.<br />
‘I can’t believe how much<br />
I’ve learned about the<br />
travel industry, European<br />
destinations <strong>and</strong> also<br />
myself. This has definitely<br />
been the experience <strong>of</strong><br />
a lifetime.’<br />
Carla will be back in Melbourne at the end<br />
<strong>of</strong> the year, <strong>and</strong> plans to finish her degree in<br />
2007. She hopes to return to work with APT,<br />
the parent company <strong>of</strong> Topdeck, when she<br />
finishes.<br />
For people thinking about working in<br />
the industry Carla’s advice is ‘...don’t be<br />
frightened <strong>of</strong> pushing your boundaries <strong>and</strong><br />
moving out <strong>of</strong> your comfort zone because<br />
your adventures will never end!’<br />
Carla turned 21 in London this year, loves her<br />
job <strong>and</strong> the travel. Surprisingly for someone<br />
working <strong>and</strong> living in London, she says she<br />
loves surf lifesaving, surfing <strong>and</strong> everything<br />
to do with the beach! And although she’s<br />
missing her family, the experiences she’s<br />
having will be ones she remembers forever.<br />
To contact Carla Sheridan email her<br />
at carla.sheridan@students.vu.edu.au<br />
6 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS<br />
‘As a growing global industry, I<br />
believe tourism can help countries<br />
like India tremendously,’ explained<br />
Deon Brown. As recipient <strong>of</strong><br />
the inaugural THE-ICE/<strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong> scholarship Deon now<br />
has the opportunity to complete an<br />
MBus in Hotel Management at VU<br />
in Melbourne.<br />
‘It was always in my mind to finish my<br />
Masters. If I can get education <strong>and</strong><br />
international experience I can bring that back<br />
to India. I want to make my family <strong>and</strong> my<br />
country proud, to give back as much as I can<br />
for what I’ve been given in my 23 years.’<br />
Deon is from Calcutta, India. He completed<br />
a BA in Tourism & Hotel Admin in 2003<br />
at Schiller-Stamford International <strong>University</strong>,<br />
Thail<strong>and</strong>. ‘I’m very interested in the<br />
international aspects <strong>of</strong> hospitality. I think<br />
there is a lot <strong>of</strong> opportunity in the hotel<br />
industry in India.<br />
‘When I first arrived here it was difficult for<br />
me to adjust to the Australian accent. How<br />
Aussies talk <strong>and</strong> behave was quite surprising<br />
at first! But it soon became second nature<br />
to me since I love talking to people <strong>and</strong><br />
I’m very outgoing. I find it easy to interact<br />
with people from different backgrounds <strong>and</strong><br />
races.’<br />
Pr<strong>of</strong> Brian King, Head, School <strong>of</strong> Hospitality,<br />
Tourism & Marketing, explained, ’A Master <strong>of</strong><br />
<strong>Business</strong> is a highly adaptable qualification<br />
that develops both administrative <strong>and</strong><br />
practical skills.’ He agrees with Deon in his<br />
assessment <strong>of</strong> the opportunities in India. ‘The<br />
country has very real prospects in the middle<br />
hotel market.’<br />
Eventually Deon hopes to open a business in<br />
Calcutta to educate people in the hospitality<br />
industry. He believes Australia has done very<br />
well in tourism, <strong>and</strong> would like to see India<br />
come up to the same level.<br />
At some point in the future, Deon also hopes<br />
to set up a foundation to fund an education<br />
institution in West Bengal to train restaurant<br />
<strong>and</strong> catering staff for the workforce there.<br />
For Emily Wilson, currently<br />
studying for her BBus in Tourism &<br />
Event Mgmt, winning the inaugural<br />
2005 Compass Group Scholarship<br />
for Overseas Study was almost<br />
inevitable. It wasn’t the 11 high<br />
distinctions she achieved in her<br />
first two years’ study, or the<br />
wide range <strong>of</strong> volunteer <strong>and</strong> paid<br />
employment she’s undertaken to<br />
exp<strong>and</strong> her events management<br />
knowledge, or even her completion<br />
<strong>of</strong> a semester as a VU exchange<br />
student in Mexico... it was the<br />
combination <strong>of</strong> all <strong>of</strong> these which<br />
demonstrated her drive <strong>and</strong><br />
initiative.<br />
Emily finished semester two 2005 in Mexico,<br />
as a VU Exchange Student, where she<br />
studied Spanish as well as the core subjects<br />
for her degree. Her scholarship allows her<br />
to travel to Barcelona in Spain <strong>and</strong> Athens<br />
in Greece, to compare the European event<br />
management industry with that <strong>of</strong> the Asia-<br />
Pacific region.<br />
Emily’s research includes examining the<br />
long-term impacts <strong>of</strong> mega events, such<br />
as the recently held Commonwealth<br />
Games. She has a particular interest in<br />
exploring how these events can promote an<br />
appreciation <strong>and</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> cultural<br />
diversity. Longer term she hopes to organise<br />
community-based art events that highlight this<br />
diversity.<br />
Compass Group Scholarships<br />
Compass Group is the world’s<br />
leading foodservice <strong>and</strong> hospitality<br />
company. It employs over 400,000<br />
staff in over 90 countries, with an<br />
annual revenue <strong>of</strong> around £11 billion.<br />
Over the next five years, Compass<br />
Group is <strong>of</strong>fering $50,000 worth<br />
<strong>of</strong> scholarships to both TAFE <strong>and</strong><br />
higher education students at <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong> to encourage students to<br />
build a career in hospitality.<br />
If you or your company would like<br />
to discuss establishing a scholarship,<br />
award or prize at VU, please contact<br />
Julie Tester on (03) 9919 1207 or<br />
email julie.tester@vu.edu.au. For more<br />
information on VU scholarships visit<br />
www.vu.edu.au/Services/Student_<br />
Services/Scholarships.<br />
THE-ICE/VU Scholarship<br />
The International Centre <strong>of</strong> Excellence<br />
in Tourism <strong>and</strong> Hospitality Education<br />
(THE-ICE) is a federally funded,<br />
Australian government initiative to<br />
develop excellence in tourism <strong>and</strong><br />
hospitality education. Last year<br />
THE-ICE partnered with <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong> to <strong>of</strong>fer a Masters<br />
scholarship for international students<br />
to study tourism <strong>and</strong> hospitality in<br />
Australia. The program takes one<br />
<strong>and</strong> a half years to complete, <strong>and</strong><br />
the scholarship covers full tuition<br />
fees plus a grant towards living costs<br />
(total value <strong>of</strong> approx $50,000).<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY<br />
7
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
PAC PROFILE ROGER JAMES<br />
The Programs Advisory Committee<br />
(PAC) is responsible for reviewing<br />
all <strong>of</strong> the School <strong>of</strong> Hospitality,<br />
Tourism & Marketing’s courses.<br />
Members come from a wide range<br />
<strong>of</strong> industries <strong>and</strong> from <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong>. Its purpose is to<br />
provide advice from an industry<br />
perspective about the courses <strong>and</strong><br />
opportunities at <strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong><br />
<strong>and</strong> the School <strong>of</strong> HTM, providing<br />
a reality check <strong>and</strong> acting as a<br />
sounding board for the staff, as<br />
well as assisting with networking<br />
where possible. This ensures that<br />
the School stays at the cutting<br />
edge, so that students graduate<br />
with up-to-the-minute skills <strong>and</strong><br />
are immediately employable.<br />
Career progression: Roger James has<br />
a varied pr<strong>of</strong>essional background: he left<br />
school to study law, dropped out, worked<br />
for five or six years mainly as Gallery<br />
Manager <strong>of</strong> the-then Museum <strong>of</strong> Modern<br />
Art <strong>and</strong> Design <strong>of</strong> Australia, <strong>and</strong> later as a<br />
motorcycle salesman, before returning to<br />
tertiary studies.<br />
He gained degrees in Arts <strong>and</strong> Science<br />
in English, philosophy, psychology <strong>and</strong><br />
physiology, then taught psychology for two<br />
years at Monash <strong>University</strong>, before moving<br />
into the road safety business, where his<br />
interest in marketing germinated.<br />
After road safety, he was headhunted twice,<br />
first to run a Policy, Planning, Research <strong>and</strong><br />
Evaluation Division for the <strong>Victoria</strong>n Ministry<br />
<strong>of</strong> Housing, then as Marketing Manager for<br />
Mazda Motors in Australia.<br />
Current role: In the eighties Roger set up<br />
his own firm, which undertakes research,<br />
communications, marketing strategy <strong>and</strong><br />
business development assignments. He<br />
says he runs his firm in his spare time, when<br />
not working as the President <strong>of</strong> the AMI (a<br />
voluntary position).<br />
PAC involvement: Roger’s involvement<br />
with VU goes back a long way, since he has<br />
known <strong>and</strong> worked with Senior Lecturer Paul<br />
Whitelaw for many years. A PAC member<br />
since 1999, he says it’s a valuable interface<br />
between industry <strong>and</strong> academia. ‘I have<br />
no doubt that there are benefits on both<br />
sides, where both practitioners <strong>and</strong> teachers<br />
can share relevant experiences. Further, the<br />
Course Review process <strong>of</strong>fers the opportunity<br />
to align the needs <strong>of</strong> employers with the best<br />
educational outcomes.’<br />
‘When you’re at uni, you think you are<br />
learning everything you need to equip you<br />
for the real world. Of course, that’s not true<br />
because the real learning starts when you<br />
get out <strong>and</strong> work in your pr<strong>of</strong>ession. My<br />
studies were not vocational, although they<br />
were very useful, but they were so different<br />
from the VU model today, where courses are<br />
designed <strong>and</strong> delivered with employment<br />
outcomes in mind, like the Core Graduate<br />
Attributes model.’<br />
Roger James is National President <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Australian Marketing Institute.<br />
The Australian Marketing<br />
Institute<br />
The AMI is the pr<strong>of</strong>essional<br />
association for marketers. It<br />
<strong>of</strong>fers:<br />
• A respected <strong>and</strong> authoritative<br />
voice for the pr<strong>of</strong>ession.<br />
• Strong advocacy <strong>of</strong> the<br />
highest st<strong>and</strong>ards in<br />
marketing.<br />
• The opportunity to achieve<br />
career advancement <strong>and</strong><br />
enhanced credibility in<br />
the pr<strong>of</strong>ession through<br />
pr<strong>of</strong>essional development<br />
programs, access to the latest<br />
information on marketing<br />
practice <strong>and</strong> networking with<br />
fellow practitioners.<br />
Members <strong>of</strong> AMI benefit from<br />
the programs available, the<br />
opportunities for continuing<br />
education <strong>and</strong> development,<br />
advocacy <strong>of</strong> the Institute, <strong>and</strong><br />
sharing ideas <strong>and</strong> knowledge<br />
with fellow pr<strong>of</strong>essionals.<br />
For more information go to<br />
www.ami.org.au<br />
ADVANCING ETHICS RECOGNISED<br />
Penn State College <strong>of</strong><br />
Communications in Pennsylvania<br />
in the United States <strong>of</strong> America has<br />
named Pr<strong>of</strong> Michael Polonsky <strong>of</strong><br />
VU a Page Legacy Scholar.<br />
The awards were made to researchers who<br />
were considered to have made important<br />
contributions to the underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>and</strong><br />
advancement <strong>of</strong> ethics <strong>and</strong> responsibility in<br />
public communications.<br />
The grants total US$12,000 <strong>and</strong> Michael<br />
is the only Australian to have received a<br />
grant. His paper, prepared in conjunction<br />
with Stacey L<strong>and</strong>reth-Grau who is based at<br />
Texas Christian <strong>University</strong> in the School <strong>of</strong><br />
Communications, was entitled ‘Measuring<br />
<strong>and</strong> Communicating the Social Impact <strong>of</strong><br />
Nonpr<strong>of</strong>it Organisations’. The research<br />
involves measuring the social value <strong>of</strong><br />
charities so that comparisons between their<br />
activities can be made.<br />
8 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
THE PASSIONATE ENTREPRENEUR<br />
Leon Burman, BBus Hosp & Mktg,<br />
1993, had worked with two<br />
entrepreneurs before deciding<br />
he was ready to set up his own<br />
business. ‘My experience together<br />
with my education were the right<br />
combination to start the business,’<br />
he explained.<br />
Leon selected a degree in hospitality <strong>and</strong><br />
marketing because the combination <strong>of</strong> the<br />
two matched his passion for hospitality <strong>and</strong><br />
events. This choice meant he could work in<br />
both areas equally well, which is exactly<br />
what happened.<br />
‘After completing my business degree,<br />
I worked in Front Desk <strong>and</strong> Marketing<br />
departments <strong>of</strong> Sheraton Towers Melbourne<br />
for four years, which was an incredible<br />
experience. Then I worked in the marketing<br />
department at the ANZ Bank before moving<br />
to CTS Travel where I ran conferences <strong>and</strong><br />
incentive groups for Australia’s leading<br />
companies.’<br />
When CTS Travel merged it was consumed<br />
by Flight Centre which changed the culture.<br />
So Leon became the Marketing Manager <strong>of</strong><br />
an entertainment company.<br />
‘Then in 2001, I met Jan Upton <strong>and</strong> David<br />
Hummerston. We’d worked together at<br />
CTS. They were also ready to start their own<br />
company which is how we ended up starting<br />
the ETM Group <strong>of</strong> Companies.’<br />
Recently ETM was named as Australia’s sixth<br />
fastest growing startup company by <strong>Business</strong><br />
Review Weekly magazine. ‘We were also<br />
finalists in Ernst & Young Entrepreneur <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Year.’<br />
The ETM Group <strong>of</strong> Companies is a travel<br />
<strong>and</strong> event management company with just<br />
under 50 staff. ‘We operate in four areas:<br />
corporate travel, conferences, incentives<br />
<strong>and</strong> events; we have a graphic design<br />
studio with two designers <strong>and</strong> a production<br />
department so we can produce corporate<br />
<strong>and</strong> conference videos; we do conference<br />
theming; <strong>and</strong> we also provide strategic<br />
consulting services to some large financial<br />
institutions.’<br />
On a day to day basis, Leon’s role involves<br />
both the growth <strong>and</strong> general management<br />
<strong>of</strong> the company, as well as the development<br />
<strong>and</strong> conceptual stage <strong>of</strong> every conference,<br />
incentive program <strong>and</strong> event that ETM<br />
runs. ‘I am also very involved in business<br />
development for the company.’<br />
Married for six years to Alissa, <strong>and</strong> with<br />
two children Mia, 5 <strong>and</strong> Romi 3, he loves<br />
his family <strong>and</strong> the Carlton footy team. ‘My<br />
advice to students is that if you want to be<br />
successful both in your studies <strong>and</strong> your<br />
work, you must be passionate. Complete<br />
what’s expected <strong>of</strong> you, <strong>and</strong> then exceed it<br />
wildly with proactive initiative!’<br />
To contact Leon Burman email<br />
him at leonb@etmgroup.com.au,<br />
ph: (03) 9521 5355<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY 9
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
XSIGHTING TIMES AHEAD FOR VU<br />
In 2004 Michael Edwardson,<br />
Marketing Lecturer at <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong> School <strong>of</strong> Hospitality,<br />
Tourism & Marketing, attended<br />
the launch <strong>of</strong> a new s<strong>of</strong>tware<br />
program called XSight. He knew<br />
straight away that this would<br />
be immensely beneficial for his<br />
marketing research students,<br />
who previously relied on manual<br />
or basic computer methods for<br />
qualitative data analysis.<br />
In 2005, Michael introduced XSight<br />
terminology <strong>and</strong> processes into the course<br />
lectures. ‘The lectures were very successful,<br />
so the s<strong>of</strong>tware has been introduced into the<br />
computer lab tutorials as part <strong>of</strong> the <strong>2006</strong><br />
curriculum for Advanced Marketing Research<br />
students.’<br />
Michael believes students needed a much<br />
more rounded perspective <strong>and</strong> a greater<br />
‘h<strong>and</strong>s on’ appreciation <strong>of</strong> the world <strong>of</strong><br />
qualitative research <strong>and</strong> analysis. He was<br />
keen to provide students with a broader<br />
underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> this area <strong>of</strong> marketing<br />
research. ‘Although students may not do<br />
their own research, they may commission it<br />
<strong>and</strong> it is important for them to underst<strong>and</strong><br />
the processes <strong>and</strong> what is now possible,<br />
Michael said.<br />
XSight s<strong>of</strong>tware enables users to<br />
explore unstructured or text-based<br />
data more easily, so interpreting<br />
<strong>and</strong> clarifying becomes easier.<br />
With XSight, researchers can<br />
compile, compare <strong>and</strong> make<br />
logical connections.<br />
What particularly appealed to Michael was<br />
that the s<strong>of</strong>tware followed the processes that<br />
market researchers go through. ‘It seemed<br />
to have formalised the processes that were<br />
really useful.’<br />
Michael believes that teaching XSight<br />
will provide students with an advantage<br />
over students studying similar courses at<br />
other universities. Research undertaken by<br />
both Michael <strong>and</strong> the developer <strong>of</strong> XSight<br />
indicates that VU is ahead <strong>of</strong> all other<br />
universities in terms <strong>of</strong> both its qualitative <strong>and</strong><br />
quantitative marketing research class. ‘It really<br />
does put VU students ahead <strong>of</strong> the rest in<br />
terms <strong>of</strong> the marketing research subject,’ said<br />
Michael.<br />
Getting an edge<br />
‘Students will develop a range <strong>of</strong> skills that<br />
will make them employable <strong>and</strong> give them an<br />
edge over their competitors,’ said Michael.<br />
‘Easily the biggest benefit that students will<br />
gain from using the s<strong>of</strong>tware is they will be<br />
given a framework by which to analyse their<br />
qualitative research,’ he went on.<br />
‘Normally you would do this with a piece <strong>of</strong><br />
paper <strong>and</strong> some highlighters <strong>and</strong> then add<br />
in your verbatims, your articulations <strong>and</strong> so<br />
forth. XSight mirrors this manual process so<br />
that the students follow the ‘normal’ processes<br />
you go through as a researcher. The last<br />
thing you want is to have s<strong>of</strong>tware that makes<br />
patterns in the data itself; it takes away the<br />
real skill.’<br />
Michael sees this as a good method <strong>of</strong><br />
making students aware <strong>of</strong> the process, as<br />
well as enabling them to have a record <strong>of</strong><br />
results – which is not normally what happens<br />
<strong>and</strong> is something clients <strong>of</strong> research in the UK<br />
are dem<strong>and</strong>ing.<br />
‘Students picked it up very quickly. They<br />
were guided through the key components<br />
<strong>and</strong> seemed to grasp the concepts easily,’<br />
he said. ‘They see immediately why it’s<br />
important, <strong>and</strong> once they underst<strong>and</strong> the<br />
basics they can see how rigorous qualitative<br />
analysis is. XSight certainly makes the whole<br />
process a great deal easier.’<br />
XSight was developed by QSR International,<br />
which develops qualitative research s<strong>of</strong>tware<br />
for academic, commercial <strong>and</strong> government<br />
customers worldwide including Australasia,<br />
the UK, Europe <strong>and</strong> the US. The s<strong>of</strong>tware<br />
is used by many large companies around<br />
the world to give them a competitive edge.<br />
Student exposure to this type <strong>of</strong> s<strong>of</strong>tware will<br />
help create a point <strong>of</strong> difference when they<br />
graduate <strong>and</strong> start looking for work.<br />
For more information contact<br />
Michael Edwardson at michael.<br />
edwardson@vu.edu.au<br />
10 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
RISKY BUSINESS<br />
Jumping out <strong>of</strong> planes, scaling<br />
cliff faces, rushing down fast<br />
flowing rivers – it’s not necessarily<br />
everyone’s idea <strong>of</strong> fun. But the<br />
idea <strong>of</strong> ‘adventure tourism’<br />
presents an interesting set <strong>of</strong><br />
circumstances – there are tourists<br />
who actually seek, or at the very<br />
least accept, the risk <strong>of</strong> sustaining<br />
physical injury during the<br />
adventure tourism experience.<br />
For Dr Martin Fluker, Tourism Lecturer at<br />
<strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong>’s School <strong>of</strong> Hospitality<br />
Tourism & Marketing, this phenomenon was<br />
so intriguing that it was the subject <strong>of</strong> his<br />
doctoral thesis.<br />
‘Adventure tourism is unique in comparison<br />
to other types <strong>of</strong> tourism,’ said Martin. His<br />
thesis, entitled ‘Perceived Risk in Adventure<br />
Travel’, sought to determine the importance<br />
<strong>of</strong> experiencing risk when tourists chose to<br />
participate in different adventure tourism<br />
activities, <strong>and</strong> to underst<strong>and</strong> the motivations,<br />
levels <strong>of</strong> satisfaction, <strong>and</strong> post-activity<br />
intentions <strong>of</strong> adventure tourists.<br />
The end objective was to develop specific<br />
marketing strategies for this type <strong>of</strong> tourist.<br />
612 people were surveyed both before <strong>and</strong><br />
after taking part in three different adventure<br />
tourism activities: white water rafting, bungee<br />
jumping, <strong>and</strong> sailing. The results <strong>of</strong> the study<br />
led Martin to suggest marketing strategies<br />
for each <strong>of</strong> the activities, based on a variety<br />
<strong>of</strong> motivations.<br />
One <strong>of</strong> these strategies is investigating what<br />
Martin calls the ‘repetition ceiling’: how many<br />
times will people undertake a commercial<br />
adventure tourism activity before never doing<br />
it again or perhaps doing self-guided trips.<br />
‘Marketers <strong>of</strong> commercial adventure tourism<br />
products need to think how to make the<br />
experience more challenging as the client<br />
gains more experience,’ explained Martin.<br />
For more information contact<br />
Martin Fluker at martin.fluker@vu.<br />
edu.au<br />
VU WINS AGAIN<br />
For the third time, <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong> has won the Australian<br />
Tourism Award for training <strong>and</strong><br />
education. The award is open to all<br />
TAFE colleges, universities, private<br />
providers <strong>and</strong> tourism operators<br />
which train in-house; VU won the<br />
award previously in 2000 <strong>and</strong><br />
1988.<br />
Pr<strong>of</strong> Brian King, Head, School <strong>of</strong> HTM,<br />
said VU was Australia’s longest established<br />
provider <strong>of</strong> tourism <strong>and</strong> hospitality degrees<br />
<strong>and</strong> diplomas. ‘We continue to meet the<br />
needs <strong>of</strong> our students by forging partnerships<br />
with the community <strong>and</strong> industry, <strong>and</strong><br />
through innovative programs such as event<br />
management,’ he said. ‘VU is recognised<br />
internationally as a leading provider <strong>of</strong><br />
applied tourism <strong>and</strong> hospitality research.’<br />
The national award follows the <strong>University</strong>’s<br />
success at the <strong>Victoria</strong>n Tourism Awards. It<br />
has now won the state award for tourism<br />
education <strong>and</strong> training six times, in 2005,<br />
2001, 2000, 1999, 1993 <strong>and</strong> 1988.<br />
In 2001 VU was inducted into the <strong>Victoria</strong>n<br />
Tourism Awards Hall <strong>of</strong> Fame, the only<br />
university to win such recognition.<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY 11
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
CAUTHE CATCHES THE SPIRIT<br />
S<strong>of</strong>itel Melbourne was the scene<br />
for the Council for Australian<br />
<strong>University</strong> Tourism <strong>and</strong> Hospitality<br />
Education (CAUTHE) annual<br />
conference in February <strong>2006</strong>. This<br />
was the 16th CAUTHE Conference,<br />
only the second hosted by <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
<strong>University</strong>, <strong>and</strong> has been widely<br />
proclaimed as the biggest <strong>and</strong> best<br />
ever.<br />
1<br />
Over four days VU hosted more than 380<br />
delegates <strong>and</strong> visitors including 52 pr<strong>of</strong>essors<br />
<strong>and</strong> 96 PhD scholars from 77 universities<br />
across 17 countries. The conference proved<br />
an overwhelming success for Melbourne<br />
<strong>and</strong> for the university. In fact, many <strong>of</strong> the<br />
top pr<strong>of</strong>essors in the tourism <strong>and</strong> hospitality<br />
discipline who attended, said that this was<br />
not only the best CAUTHE or academic<br />
conference they have attended, but the best<br />
conference they have ever attended. Coming<br />
from these senior academics who travel the<br />
world, attending as many as ten conferences<br />
a year, this is high praise indeed!<br />
2<br />
1: Left to right: Dr<br />
Janne Liburd, Pr<strong>of</strong><br />
Larry Dwyer <strong>and</strong><br />
Pr<strong>of</strong> Peter Jones<br />
demonstrate that<br />
the conference<br />
wasn’t all hard<br />
work<br />
2: Winners <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Best Ideas Factory<br />
presentation Dr<br />
Sue Beeton <strong>and</strong><br />
Dr Gayle Jennings<br />
with Pr<strong>of</strong> David<br />
Airey <strong>and</strong> CAUTHE<br />
President Jenny<br />
Davies<br />
3: Pr<strong>of</strong> Brian King<br />
(Conference Chair),<br />
left, <strong>and</strong> keynote<br />
speaker Rob<br />
McGauran present<br />
the MGS Architects<br />
Award for the<br />
best PhD paper to<br />
Meredith <strong>Law</strong>rence<br />
4: Pr<strong>of</strong> Steven<br />
Wanhill gets into<br />
character during<br />
his presentation on<br />
theme parks<br />
3 4<br />
12 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
SAILING INTO SUCCESS<br />
‘To be honest, the main reason I<br />
chose hospitality is because my<br />
parents thought that it would suit<br />
me! And they weren’t wrong,’<br />
laughs Elizabeth McCormack nee<br />
Curlewis (BBus Hosp & Tourism<br />
Mgmt, 2000). When she was 16 Liz<br />
did work experience at the Regent<br />
(now the S<strong>of</strong>itel) in Melbourne<br />
where she gained experience in all<br />
areas <strong>of</strong> the hotel. She enjoyed it<br />
enormously <strong>and</strong> ‘...from then on,<br />
hospitality was all I wanted to do.’<br />
Initially Liz undertook an Advanced<br />
Diploma in Hospitality Management at<br />
William Angliss College, but when she<br />
undertook her degree at VU she added the<br />
tourism component to broaden her career<br />
opportunities.<br />
Today she runs the restaurants, bars <strong>and</strong><br />
function centres at S<strong>and</strong>ringham Yacht<br />
Club (SYC, pictured above <strong>and</strong> at right).<br />
‘I always wanted to run my own business<br />
<strong>and</strong> at the end <strong>of</strong> 2000 one <strong>of</strong> my old<br />
bosses contacted me with a great business<br />
opportunity - I owned <strong>and</strong> operated the<br />
catering tender at the SYC from 2001 until<br />
2004. Then we came to arrangement where<br />
they took back the running <strong>of</strong> the catering.’<br />
Since then, Liz has worked for the SYC in a<br />
variety <strong>of</strong> roles including Food Operations<br />
Manager, Events <strong>and</strong> Marketing Manger.<br />
Now as House Manager she is in charge <strong>of</strong><br />
food <strong>and</strong> beverage operations as a whole,<br />
together with the Club’s communications <strong>and</strong><br />
marketing.<br />
SYC has five food <strong>and</strong> beverage outlets, a<br />
fifty seat a la carte restaurant, members’ bar,<br />
which runs a bistro menu, function room with<br />
seating capacity for 300 people, a seminar<br />
room <strong>and</strong> a bottle shop.<br />
Her job now as House Manager involves<br />
managing:<br />
1. The Club’s food, beverage <strong>and</strong> events<br />
services in the Clubhouse <strong>and</strong> Ken King<br />
Centre,<br />
2. Club communications including the<br />
website, bi-monthly newsletter <strong>and</strong><br />
bi-annual magazine,<br />
3. Function <strong>and</strong> corporate sales including<br />
implementing the marketing plans for<br />
both, <strong>and</strong><br />
4. The Club’s main social events such as,<br />
opening day (the first day <strong>of</strong> the sailing<br />
season) <strong>and</strong> the Club ball.<br />
‘On a day to day basis I plan <strong>and</strong> oversee<br />
the operation <strong>of</strong> the food <strong>and</strong> beverage<br />
department ensuring a strong emphasis on<br />
food <strong>and</strong> beverage products, training, <strong>and</strong><br />
listening to client <strong>and</strong> member feedback,’<br />
Liz explained. ‘I have to ensure we have<br />
strong function <strong>and</strong> corporate sales, I have to<br />
plan <strong>and</strong> oversee club communications, <strong>and</strong><br />
ensure achievement <strong>of</strong> budgets. It’s a big job<br />
<strong>and</strong> the Club has an exciting future.’<br />
The future looks bright for Liz <strong>and</strong> husb<strong>and</strong><br />
David. ‘We’ll be looking at starting a family<br />
in the near future, that’s for sure. But for now I<br />
am just excited about my work here.’<br />
To contact Elizabeth McCormack<br />
email her at events@syc.com.au,<br />
ph: (03) 9598 7444<br />
‘One thing that I’ve learned is that<br />
the subjects you didn’t enjoy while<br />
studying, like law, accounting<br />
<strong>and</strong> economics, are the most<br />
useful when you get to senior<br />
positions. You need to know<br />
about reporting, projections <strong>and</strong><br />
underst<strong>and</strong>ing the figures because<br />
you have to do all that in your<br />
job. So learn them well! And<br />
obviously being able to jump into<br />
the kitchen <strong>and</strong> underst<strong>and</strong> the<br />
running <strong>of</strong> a restaurant or function<br />
facility helps you appreciate all<br />
facets <strong>of</strong> a business.<br />
‘From a business point <strong>of</strong> view<br />
you are only as good as those<br />
you have around you so look<br />
after your staff <strong>and</strong> ensure they<br />
have the support <strong>and</strong> training<br />
they require. Always be<br />
extraordinary... never ordinary!’<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY 13
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
CATERING TO THOUSANDS<br />
Lisa Ivey (BBus Hosp & Tourism<br />
Mgmt, 2000) <strong>and</strong> Kim Berkers<br />
(BBus Catering & Hotel Mgmt,<br />
1995) both work at Delaware<br />
North Companies Australia (DNCA),<br />
the company responsible for the<br />
catering at the Commonwealth<br />
Games Athletes’ Village,<br />
Melbourne & Olympic Parks,<br />
Telstra Dome <strong>and</strong> Melbourne Sports<br />
<strong>and</strong> Aquatic Centre.<br />
Degrees: You both work at DNCA, but<br />
what do you do there<br />
Lisa Ivey: I’m the Corporate Catering<br />
Manager.<br />
Kim Berkers: I’m Projects Manager,<br />
DNCA, at Melbourne & Olympic Parks.<br />
D: You’re both VU graduates, but why did<br />
you choose this<br />
LI: I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to<br />
do, but I thought Hospitality <strong>and</strong> Tourism<br />
Management would give me exposure to a<br />
lot <strong>of</strong> areas within those industries.<br />
KB: I always wanted to be a hotel manager,<br />
so the course at VU wasn’t even a choice – it<br />
was the only degree for me.<br />
D: What’s it like working for DNCA<br />
LI: It’s both challenging <strong>and</strong> rewarding.<br />
You’re exposed to many different facets <strong>of</strong><br />
hospitality <strong>and</strong> events. We spend the entire<br />
year working on the Australian Open Tennis<br />
Tournament, which is our flagship event for<br />
DNC internationally <strong>and</strong> one <strong>of</strong> the most<br />
widely recognised events for the Asia Pacific<br />
region. The experience we have with the<br />
Australian Open certainly assisted us in our<br />
preparation for the Commonwealth Games,<br />
as our knowledge <strong>of</strong> logistics was helpful.<br />
KB: DNCA had a number <strong>of</strong> sites involved<br />
with the Commonwealth Games: Melbourne<br />
& Olympic Parks which included gymnastics<br />
(rhythmic <strong>and</strong> artistic) at Rod Laver Arena<br />
(seen below, looking very exciting at night),<br />
cycling, basketball <strong>and</strong> netball at the<br />
multi-purpose venue (Vodafone Arena) <strong>and</strong><br />
Olympic Park. We also hosted corporate<br />
hospitality in the Melbourne Park function<br />
centre. Other sites included Telstra Dome<br />
(Rugby 7s, the walks <strong>and</strong> marathons);<br />
Melbourne Sports <strong>and</strong> Aquatic Centre<br />
(swimming, diving, table tennis, squash <strong>and</strong><br />
synchronised swimming) <strong>and</strong> the Athletes’<br />
Village in Parkville.<br />
D: During the Commonwealth Games, what<br />
did you both do<br />
LI: I was involved in overseeing the<br />
Obligatory Catering areas at Rod Laver<br />
Arena, multi-purpose venue, Olympic Park<br />
<strong>and</strong> the corporate dining facilities in the<br />
Melbourne Park Function Centre. Daily<br />
charges <strong>and</strong> reporting for all Obligatory<br />
areas were provided to the M<strong>2006</strong><br />
Catering, Cleaning & Waste Manager<br />
at each venue by 8 am each day. (The<br />
M<strong>2006</strong> was the organising committee for<br />
the Games.) The company also looked<br />
after catering for the athletes parade<br />
which involved serving food <strong>and</strong> drinks to<br />
over 6,000 athletes prior to the Opening<br />
Ceremony.<br />
KB: I was the Obligatory Catering Manager<br />
across all DNCA venues which involved a<br />
significant amount <strong>of</strong> liaising with M<strong>2006</strong>.<br />
My role involved moving between sites<br />
checking all Obligatory Catering areas were<br />
operating at the highest st<strong>and</strong>ard.<br />
D: What on earth is ‘Obligatory Catering’<br />
LI: Oh, not really quite as dramatic as it<br />
sounds! It’s the catering that M<strong>2006</strong>, is<br />
‘obliged’ to provide. It included meals for<br />
the workforce, volunteers, athletes, media,<br />
technical <strong>of</strong>ficials, Games family, VIP guests<br />
<strong>and</strong> <strong>Victoria</strong> Police.<br />
KB: Throughout the Commonwealth Games,<br />
at Melbourne & Olympic Parks alone we<br />
provided more than 29,000 Obligatory<br />
Catering meals <strong>and</strong> served over 2,400<br />
corporate clients in just four weeks.<br />
D: You’ve both got very interesting jobs.<br />
What advice would you give to students<br />
LI: I wish we’d had more than two electives<br />
when I did my degree. I think it’s so important<br />
to broaden your knowledge; the Cooperative<br />
Education Year is great, but I would<br />
tell any student not to be afraid to get out<br />
there into the industry <strong>and</strong> see what it’s all<br />
about. These days, 90% <strong>of</strong> our casual staff<br />
are uni students, so it’s the perfect opportunity<br />
to get a foot in the door <strong>and</strong> gain some<br />
fantastic experience.<br />
KB: Make the most <strong>of</strong> it!<br />
Any students interested in<br />
applying for casual work with<br />
DNCA can email recruitment on<br />
careers@delawarenorth.com.au<br />
14 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
MARVELLOUS MELBOURNE<br />
Marketing bonanza<br />
From a marketing perspective, television<br />
viewers <strong>and</strong> spectators at Games’ venues<br />
would have been hard pressed not to<br />
notice the major sponsors <strong>of</strong> the Games.<br />
Whether at home, watching a giant screen<br />
or at a venue, our viewing <strong>and</strong> supporting<br />
was interspersed with ads from banks, car<br />
companies, airlines, s<strong>of</strong>tware manufacturers<br />
<strong>and</strong> telephone companies.<br />
Leanne White, Lecturer in<br />
Marketing at <strong>Victoria</strong> <strong>University</strong>, is<br />
currently completing her doctoral<br />
thesis examining <strong>of</strong>ficial <strong>and</strong><br />
commercial nationalism at the<br />
Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. She<br />
attended the Opening <strong>and</strong> Closing<br />
Ceremonies <strong>of</strong> the Melbourne <strong>2006</strong><br />
Commonwealth Games.<br />
In the heart <strong>of</strong> a ‘buffed <strong>and</strong> polished’<br />
sports-mad city there was a buzz in the air<br />
as the final countdown to the huge event<br />
took place. After 10 years <strong>of</strong> planning,<br />
Melbourne’s biggest ever party, the XVIII<br />
Commonwealth Games, was hailed as<br />
an overwhelming success. ‘Marvellous<br />
Melbourne’ became home to 4,500 athletes<br />
taking part in 16 sports.<br />
A global television audience <strong>of</strong> 1.5 billion<br />
watched the Opening Ceremony on March<br />
15 enjoyed by an audience <strong>of</strong> 80,000.<br />
Further spectators congregated nearby<br />
around sites while a crowd <strong>of</strong> more than<br />
100,000 watched fish, flags <strong>and</strong> Australian<br />
Football League (AFL) players at the ‘River<br />
Festival’ along the banks <strong>of</strong> the Yarra River.<br />
Whether or not the event translates into a<br />
greater share <strong>of</strong> tourists coming to Melbourne<br />
<strong>and</strong> regional <strong>Victoria</strong>, time will tell, but the<br />
Commonwealth Games has reinforced<br />
Melbourne’s unique place on the world<br />
stage.<br />
In the next edition <strong>of</strong> Degrees,<br />
Leanne will exp<strong>and</strong> on the<br />
impact <strong>of</strong> this ‘mega event’ on<br />
Melbourne’s growth from a<br />
marketing perspective.<br />
TRAINING FOR THE FUTURE<br />
There is a plethora <strong>of</strong> training in<br />
the tourism industry at all levels<br />
from on-the-job through to higher<br />
education. The real issue is not<br />
the amount <strong>of</strong> training, but the<br />
outcome – how appropriate is<br />
today’s training to current <strong>and</strong><br />
future needs<br />
A project team lead by Paul Whitelaw,<br />
Senior Lecturer in the School <strong>of</strong> HTM,<br />
together with colleagues from four other<br />
universities, has been commissioned by the<br />
STCRC to undertake an audit <strong>and</strong> evaluation<br />
<strong>of</strong> the provision <strong>of</strong> training services for the<br />
Australian hospitality <strong>and</strong> tourism industry.<br />
The project is aimed at assessing whether the<br />
current training <strong>and</strong> other provisions meet the<br />
industry requirements. Part <strong>of</strong> the study will<br />
help determine whether various additional<br />
provisions <strong>of</strong> mature aged programs or<br />
holiday visa arrangements can help match<br />
the supply <strong>and</strong> dem<strong>and</strong> for trained labour<br />
in the tourism industry, <strong>and</strong> then to identify a<br />
set <strong>of</strong> training initiatives that will enhance the<br />
contribution that these groups can make.<br />
This is being examined in both a skill set<br />
context <strong>and</strong> within specific geographic<br />
areas throughout Australia – including the<br />
capital cities <strong>and</strong> regional areas. If gaps in<br />
training provisions are identified, the study<br />
will then make recommendations to assist the<br />
hospitality <strong>and</strong> tourism industry to improve<br />
the situation. The report is expected to be<br />
released in late <strong>2006</strong>.<br />
For more information contact Paul<br />
Whitelaw at paul.whitelaw@vu.edu.au<br />
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY 15
SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & MARKETING<br />
THE THIRD DEGREE JOHN THOMPSON<br />
Degrees: BA Communications<br />
1993, Grad Dip (Marketing) 1998,<br />
MBus (Marketing) 2001<br />
Current role: I work at the Transport<br />
Accident Commission (TAC), <strong>and</strong> at the<br />
moment I’m working on a new marketing<br />
strategy. The TAC’s objective is, <strong>of</strong> course,<br />
to change behaviour on the roads <strong>and</strong> so<br />
lower the road toll. Our campaigns are<br />
tracked long term, <strong>and</strong> every week we<br />
speak to 70 different <strong>Victoria</strong>ns about their<br />
attitudes <strong>and</strong> behaviour on the road. The<br />
TAC’s most recent ad campaigns highlighting<br />
the issues <strong>of</strong> speeding <strong>and</strong> drink driving have<br />
been very satisfying in terms <strong>of</strong> results.<br />
Why marketing: Originally I wanted<br />
to be a journalist, which is why I studied<br />
Communications. I gained a two year<br />
PR/Marketing graduate traineeship with<br />
the old Gas <strong>and</strong> Fuel Corporation. But 15<br />
months <strong>of</strong> that time was in marketing roles,<br />
so I moved into marketing. My first five<br />
years as marketing director <strong>of</strong> Urban L<strong>and</strong><br />
Corporation (now VicUrban) developed a<br />
first-class marketing team <strong>and</strong> strategy that<br />
had a positive impact on the bottom line.<br />
I’ve worked in marketing for 13 years <strong>and</strong> I<br />
love it.<br />
Why VU All my qualifications are from<br />
VU! When I was considering doing my<br />
MBus, I found the current theory being taught<br />
at VU was very up to date, <strong>and</strong> the people<br />
teaching at that time had a great deal <strong>of</strong><br />
expertise. Dr Ruhi Yaman, a Senior Lecturer<br />
at VU, is a great guide.<br />
What’s the future in marketing<br />
I think there will be further media<br />
fragmentation as marketing segments<br />
become harder <strong>and</strong> harder to reach through<br />
traditional channels. This will impact on<br />
two areas in particular: databases <strong>and</strong><br />
associated direct marketing communication<br />
channels, <strong>and</strong> integrated messaging in<br />
content.<br />
What’s with that car I’m currently<br />
restoring an old English Triumph Spitfire<br />
sports car. Well, ‘currently’ might not be the<br />
right word because I’ve been doing this for<br />
five years <strong>and</strong> I don’t think I’ll be finished<br />
until I hit 40... but when it’s done I’ll have the<br />
perfect mid-life-crisis toy!<br />
GRADUATES!<br />
Do we have your email contact details<br />
Do you receive the monthly VU Alumni<br />
Email News<br />
A typical issue includes imminent<br />
alumni events, conferences <strong>and</strong><br />
seminars, pr<strong>of</strong>essional development<br />
programs, short courses <strong>and</strong><br />
employment opportunities. It’s so easy<br />
to get on the mailing list, simply email<br />
us at alumni@vu.edu.au<br />
WHERE ARE THEY NOW<br />
Nicole Bakes, (BBus Hosp & Tourism Mgmt<br />
2000), Convention Services Manager, Gr<strong>and</strong><br />
Hyatt, Melbourne<br />
Kim Berkers, (BBus Catering & Hotel Mgmt<br />
1995), Projects Manager, Delaware North<br />
Companies Australia, Melbourne<br />
Leon Burman, (BBus Hosp & Mktg 1993),<br />
CEO, ETM Group <strong>of</strong> Companies, Melbourne<br />
Jacqui Charlton, (BBus Travel & Tourism<br />
Mgmt 2000), Pr<strong>of</strong>essional Development<br />
Coordinator, City <strong>of</strong> Melbourne, Melbourne<br />
Amber Cummings, (BBus Tourism Mgmt<br />
2000), Product Manager - Inbound, The AOT<br />
Group Pty Ltd, Melbourne<br />
Angela Drayton, (BBus Tourism Mgmt<br />
2003), General Manager, Australasian Spa<br />
Association, Melbourne<br />
Violeta Gorgiovska, (BBus Mktg 2003),<br />
16 VICTORIA UNIVERSITY<br />
<strong>Business</strong> Counter Manager, Pout Cosmetics,<br />
Melbourne<br />
Katrina Hassett, (BBus Hosp Mgmt 2004),<br />
Function Co-ordinator, Vue Gr<strong>and</strong> Hotel,<br />
Queenscliffe<br />
Lisa Ivey, (BBus Hosp & Tourism Mgmt 2000),<br />
Corporate Catering Manager, Delaware North<br />
Companies Australia, Melbourne<br />
Rebecca Jepson, (BBus Hosp & Tourism<br />
Mgmt 2000), Teacher, Kyabram Secondary<br />
College, <strong>Victoria</strong><br />
Zaidi Kassim, (BBus Travel & Tourism Mgmt<br />
1997), Assistant Director, Convention Division,<br />
Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board, Kuala<br />
Lumpur, Malaysia<br />
Anthony Leydin, (MBus Tourism Dvmt 1997),<br />
Director, The Melbourne Rewards Company,<br />
Melbourne<br />
Elizabeth McCormack (nee Curlewis),<br />
(BBus Hosp & Tourism Mgmt 2000), Events &<br />
Marketing Manager, S<strong>and</strong>ringham Yacht Club,<br />
Melbourne<br />
Kym O’Shannassy, (BBus Hosp & Tourism<br />
Mgmt 2000), Team Leader, Flight Centre,<br />
Sunbury<br />
Jacinta Richmond, (Grad Dip Hosp &<br />
Tourism 1992), Director, Coconut Luggage,<br />
Sunshine Coast, Queensl<strong>and</strong><br />
John Thompson, (MBus Mktg 2001),<br />
Marketing Manager, Transport Accident<br />
Commission, Melbourne<br />
Tony Trusler, (Grad Dip Hosp & Tourism<br />
1987), General Manager, Pacific International<br />
Apartments, Brisbane, Queensl<strong>and</strong><br />
William Wang, (BBus Travel & Tourism Mgmt<br />
1998), MD <strong>and</strong> CEO, World Wire Cables (Aust)<br />
Pty Ltd, Melbourne