Experiences in communication in english with non native guests at hoang anh gia lai hotel

The Final Internship Report

TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................... ii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................1
1.1.

Rationale ..........................................................................................................1

1.2.

Aim of study ....................................................................................................1

1.3. Scope ...................................................................................................................2
1.4. Methodology .......................................................................................................2
1.5. Theoretical background ......................................................................................2
1.5.1. Receptionist ..................................................................................................2
1.5.1.1. Definition: .............................................................................................. 2
1.5.1.2. Understanding: .......................................................................................2
1.5.2. Communication ............................................................................................3
1.5.2.1 Definition: ............................................................................................... 3
1.5.2.2 Non-native pronunciations of English and communication with the
non-native speakers English. ..............................................................................3
CHAPTER II: FINDING AND DISCUSSION ........................................................6
2.1 General introduction ............................................................................................6
2.1.1 General introduction about Hoang Anh Gia Lai Plaza Hotel Danang .........6
2.1.2 General introduction about the reception department at HAGL hotel .........8
2.2. My job description : ...........................................................................................9
2.2.1. The first period – the period of observation ..............................................10
2.2.2. The second period - the period of access and practice .............................. 11
2.2.3. The third period - the period of practice ....................................................12

2.3. Evaluation and results .......................................................................................13
2.3.1 Evaluation ....................................................................................................13
2.3.2. Results.........................................................................................................14
CHAPTER III: CONCLUSION ..............................................................................17
3.1 Conclusion .........................................................................................................17
3.2. Recommendations ............................................................................................. 17
3.2.1. To HAGL Plaza Hotel Danang ..................................................................17
3.2.2. To the students ............................................................................................ 18

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This report could not be completed without the help, encouragement, and
support from a number of people who all deserve my sincerest gratitude and
appreciation.
First, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to my supervisor, Ms. Tran
Thi Ngoc Hoa, who has given me much valuable advice and encouragement in
the writing of this report. Without her guidance, my research paper would still
far from finished.
Second, I would like to thank all teachers at Department Of Informatics
And Foreign Language for conveying knowledge to me during the past three
years.
Special words of thank also go to Mr. Amir, manager of HoangAnhGia

Lai Hotel, for giving me opportunity to work as a receptionist at Hoang AnhGia
Lai Hotel.
I also wish to thank to reception department of HoangAnhGia Lai hotel
(HAGL hotel) and all officials and employees create to favorable conditions for
me to complete this symposium.
Finally, I cannot fully express my gratitude to my family, my dear friends
who always stay by my side to encourage me every time.
To accomplish this report, I’m grateful to all of you.

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CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
1.1.

Rationale
Possessing many beautiful landscapes, mild climate, and friendly people,

Vietnam has a potential development for tourism. Danang recently has risen to
be one of the top visited tourist destinations in the world. In consequence,
restaurants and the hotels in DN have the boost to develop and extend.
Popularly known for the quality of service, Hoang AnhGia Lai plaza is an
international 5-star hotel, together with a convenient location, located at the
central of Danang city, 1.5 km from the Danang international airport. Therefore,

the hotel welcome domestic and foreign tourists as a daily habit. Based on that
feature, HAGL hotel will provide many opportunities for anyone who wishes to
practice and improve English skills in a professional working environment.
As a trainee of English for business major at Danang College of
Economics and Planning, I decided to spend my internship working as a trainee
receptionist at this hotel. Working as a reception staff not only gave me
experience for my future job but also helped me use English correctly. I had a
platform to contextualize what I learned after three years at school.
After my internship, I have finally come to a conclusion: the
communication with native speakers was not very frequent. Most of the visitors
were from non-English predominant countries. Thisresults in several difficulties
which motivated me to carry out the research: “the limitations in skills of
communication in English of foreign visitors at HAGL hotel”.
1.2.

Aim of study
This report aims to describe what I learnt and obtained during internship

time which is “Experiences in communication in English with non-native guests
at Hoang AnhGia Lai Hotel”. My goals were to materialize the knowledge learnt
at school into real-life situations, withdraw lessons and make use of the
internship to practice my communication skills with the non-native speakers.

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1.3. Scope
Due to the limit of time and scope, the research only focuses on
pronunciation skills, communication skills, and situation solving skills in
Reception department at HAGL hotel.
1.4. Methodology
To carry out this research, I spent most of the time observing real-life
situations such as observing talks and interviews, recording dialogues or
learning from other receptionists at the hotel. In addition, I also search for
relevant information to my research on the internet or from materials of the hotel
1.5. Theoretical background
1.5.1. Receptionist
1.5.1.1. Definition:
Receptionist is considered “the face” or the image of the hotel. Because the
receptionist is the first and last person who represent the hotel to welcome,
contact, exposure the guest, can cause good feelings or bad impression on the
guest as they step foot in the hotel. Receptionist plays a crucial role in
promoting introducing for the hotels, attracting and retention the guest.
1.5.1.2. Understanding:
In this important position, the hotel reception staff always has to keep
welcoming attitude, professional, polite and friendly to the guest.
Receptionists should be professional, with foreign language proficiency,
good communication skills along with the cultural understanding – social and
should have a good looking. Every gesture, action of receptionists are affecting
consumer decisions of guests.
To become a good receptionist, we must meet the following qualities. First,
a good receptionist must be confident in any situation. There are many
difference situations that a receptionist must face. And in any situation, a
receptionist need to confident to get a good deal. Second, a receptionist should

honest, truthful and trustworthy. During working process, receptionist has

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conditions exposed to money, private property of the guest, so honest qualities
of a receptionist isextremely valuable. Third, always cheerfully, beaming with
guests.Having

good

communication

style,

attitude,

and

sincere

hospitality.Respect and willing to help guests. In all cases must follow the rule
“guests is never wrong”.

1.5.2. Communication
1.5.2.1 Definition:
Communication is the sharing of thoughts, feelings information with one or
more people. In communication, we often use words to express their thoughts
and to exchange information with others. But communication is not simply talk
with someone which also involves a lot of other issues, such as how you say?
You understand communicate with his audience like? How do the two sides can
understand and exchange information? How do you communicate that to time
results as you expect?
1.5.2.2 Non-native pronunciations of English and communication with the
non-native speakers English.
a.Non-native pronunciations of English
Non-native pronunciations of English result from the common linguistic
phenomenon in which non-native users of any language tend to carry the
intonation, phonological processes and pronunciation rules from their mother
tongue into their English speech. They may also create innovative
pronunciations for English sounds not found in the speaker's first
language. />b.Communication with the non-native speakers English.
Not all non-native speakers have trouble communicating in English. Many
speak at a native level, but many do not. How to communicate with a non-native
speaker:

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Speak clearly and pronounce your words correctly. Exaggerated
pronunciations will not help your listener and may cause more confusion.
However, you may find that it helps to pronounce some words as the non-native
speaker does. This will be especially true if the proper pronunciation is very
different from the non-native pronunciation.
Recognize that people wrongly think that turning up the volume somehow
creates instant understanding. Avoid this common mistake. Yelling at the
person doesn't make them understand. (However, do not speak too quietly)
Do not cover or hide your mouth because listeners will want to watch you
as you pronounce your words. This helps them figure out what you are saying in
many cases.
Avoid running words together (Do-yawanna eat-a-pizza?). One of the
biggest challenges for listeners is knowing where one word ends and the next
one begins. Give them a small pause between words if they seem to be
struggling.
When possible, opt for simple words instead of ones that are complex.
The more basic a word is, the better the chance is that it will be
understood:"Big" is a better choice than "enormous" for example. "Make" is a
better choice than "manufacture”
Avoid verb phrases that sound very similar to non-native English speaker.
"Look out" sounds very close to "look for" Both are similar to "look out for."
Many times you can use another word in these cases. (Example: look out = be
careful, look for = search for, look out for = watch for).
As much as possible, avoid using slang and colloquialism ('um...',
'like...','Yeah, totally.'). They are likely to be unknown as well, especially if they
are not easy to find in the dictionary.
Avoid using contractions or short forms. Use long forms. “Can’t” is one
word you must use the long form with. It is difficult for a non-native speaker to

understand the difference between “can” and “can’t” in a sentence. For example,
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“I can’t take you on Friday” and “I can take you on Friday”. Use the long form,
“cannot”. “I cannot take you on Friday”.
Be explicit: Say “Yes” or “No”. Do not say: “Uh-huh” or “Uh-uh”. Those
words are not in grammar books!
Be patient and smile. The more relaxed you are, the more you are in
control of your communication. Do not give a busy lifestyle or a meeting agenda
permission to control your speech. Think as you speak and do not speak as you
think.
/>
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CHAPTER II: FINDING AND DISCUSSION
2.1 General introduction

2.1.1 General introduction about Hoang AnhGia Lai Plaza Hotel Danang
Name of company: The Branch of Hoang AnhGia Lai Joint-stock
Company in Danang
Name of transaction: HAGL Plaza Danang
Slogan: “Solidarity is invincible power”
Address: 01 Nguyen Van LinhStreet, Danang city
Tel: (05113).2223344
Fax: (05113).2223355
Website:
HAGL Plaza Hotel Danang is a branch of Hoang AnhGia Lai joint-stock
company which is located at Danang city. It is the newest hotel in the chain of
hotels and resorts of company. This chain includes 2 hotels and 2 resorts:
HAGL Resort QuyNhon
HAGL Resort Dalat
HAGL Hotel Pleiku
HAGL Plaza Danang
HAGL Plaza Hotel is also the famous hotel in Danang. Its address is 01
Nguyen Van Linh Street – a central street which connects some main streets of
Danang city. It is also a hotel that receives a large number of tourists of Danang
city. HAGL Plaza Hotel Danang was invested by HAGL Joint Stock Company,
directly managed and built with 5 star standards. It is located in the center heart
of dynamic and full of vitality city, HAGL Plaza Hotel Danang has 188
comfortable rooms including Superior, Deluxe, Premier Deluxe and Executive
Suite. It was built from 2005 to July and come in operation on 2/9/2007. Within
3 months in operation, the hotel served nearly 3000 visitors (hinhanh)
The hotel specializes in some services such as: hotel, restaurant, sport
activities (gymnasium, tennis ground, swimming pool…),personal care service

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(massage, beauty salon), trading belongings, jewelry, souvenir, dance hall,
karaoke… to meet the demand of both international tourists and domestic tourist
who come to Danang city and stay at the hotel.

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b.The structure of the hotel:
DIRECTOR

GENERAL
MANAGER

TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT

IT

DEPARTMENT

ENTERTAINMENT &SPA
DEPARTMENT

PROTECTION
DEPARTMENT

MARKETING
DEPARTMENT

COOKING
DEPARTMENT

HUMAN RESOURCES
DEPARTMENT

RESTAURANT
DEPARTMENT

ROOM
DEPARTMENT

RECEPTIONIST
DEPARTMENT

ACCOUNTING
DEPARTMENT

(Source: Human resources Department)

: Direct relation
: Function relation

2.1.2 General introduction about the reception department at HAGL hotel
The structure:
FRONT OFFICE
MANAGER

GUEST
RELATIONS

RECCEPTION

Student: Nguyen Khanh Van

BELL SERVICE
& CONCIERGER

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DRIVER
TEAM

SOUVERIR
SHOP &
BUSINESS
CENTER

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Reception Department consists of 22 members. Head of reception is Mr.
Tang Thien Vu, Vietnam nationality. This is the bridge part between the
customer and the service in the hotel. They are responsible for connecting to the
correct part needed to meet requirements. They get all calls to the hotel and
make all procedures from check-in to check-out and answer all questions of
guest about other services in the hotel. Souvenir shop also belongs to front
office. This place sells souvenirs for guests and sign posts of the company. In
addition, this part also directly managers the operating bus at the hotel.
2.2. My job description:
I had opportunity to work as a receptionist at HAGL hotel. I arrived to the
hotel to work in the morning on Tuesday, Thursday,Saturday, from 7:30 am to
11:30 am. My main woks were:
- Welcoming guests and greeting them cheerfully
- Taking and giving the guest’s room keys
- Copying guest’s passport and identity card

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- Taking check-in, check-out process
- Answering telephone calls, noting down specific information or recording

as voice messages, transferring calls ensuring that no calls go unanswered.
- Solving some requests and complaints of guests
- Introducing much information about different rooms and services of hotel
to guests
2.2.1. The first period – the period ofobservation: 3 weeks
TIME
Week 1
January 20th,22th, and 24th

-

Week 2
January 27th,29th, and 31th

-

Week 3
February 3rd,5th, and 7th

Student: Nguyen Khanh Van

ACTIVITIES
Meeting the manager of Human Resources
department
Be trained work habits in the professional
environment
Signing on the commitment document of
hotel regulations in internship period.
Visiting all of floor and departments of
HAGL Plaza Hotel.

Be introduced about types of service, rooms,
and some necessary information.
Making acquaintance with staffs at front
office department.
Reading document of hotel
Standing and observing how to wok of
receptionists
Observing and taking note conversations

- Observing the process of the check-in,
check-out.
- Observing and taking note conversations
- Learning by heart some sentences used to
welcome guest
- Learning how to make coupon of breakfast
for guests
- Doing some tiny work.

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2.2.2. The second period - the period of access and practice: 4 weeks
TIME

ACTIVITIES
- Meeting the leader of front office department

Week 1
March 10th,12th, and 14th

and receiving the role in the new period.
- Learning how to classify different types of
room in HAGL Hotel
- Trying to remember the price of different
rooms

Week 2
March 17th,19th, and 21th

- Learning how to arrange correct room key to
the correct package
- Making coupon of breakfast for guests
- Learning the way receptionist chatting to
guest.

Week 3
March 24th,26th, and 28th

- Listening how to the receptionists answer
telephone calls.
- Observing

the

way

receptionists

fill

information on computer.
- Studying how to use some software used in
front office.
- Welcoming guest
Week 4
March 31th
April 2nd, and 4th

- Learning the way receptionist chatting to
guest.
- Typing the list of guest check-in and checkout.
- Observing the process of check-in and checkout
- Taking and giving the guest’s room key
- Copying guest’s passport and identity card.

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2.2.3. The third period - the period of practice: 3 weeks
TIME

ACTIVITIES
- Welcoming guest.
- Making check-in and check-out.

Week 1

- Answering telephone call.

April 7th, 9th, and 11th

- Taking and giving the room key
- Solving some request and complaint of guest
- Introducing much information about different
rooms and service of hotel
- Welcoming guest.
- Making check-in and check-out.

Week 2

- Answering telephone call.

April 14th,16th,and 18th

- Taking and giving the room key
- Solving some request and complaint of guest
- Introducing much information about different
rooms and service of hotel
- Helping the cashier to separate all types of
payment

- Welcoming guest.
- Making check-in and check-out.

Week3

- Answering telephone call.

April21th, 23th, and 25th

- Helping the cashier to exchange currency for
guests
- Making some procedure to finish internship.
- Meeting

staff,

leader

of

front

office

department and managers of HAGL Plaza
Hotel to give them a big thank you for
enthusiastic helping in my internship time.

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2.3. Evaluation and results
2.3.1 Evaluation
a. Advantages:
The staff here is very friendly and helpful. They are heartedly to tell me
what to do and give me the useful work experiences. They always help when I
get stuck in work. In addition, the hotel where I practice regularly receive a large
number of foreign guests so I can have a lot of chances to practice English.
Although the guests are not always friendly, but sometimes I also get very useful
information when I meet an enthusiastically guests. Theinformation is very good
for my internship report.
b. Disadvantages
Besides the advantages mentioned above, I also meet many difficulties
when I was working at HAGL hotel. The first difficulty is that I have to
speaking and listening English with non-native speakers. International guests at
hotels often are those that come from many different countries and not all of
them are good at English such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean or French but when
I was in school, I only listened to English in CDs spoken by voice of the native
people. Therefore, sometimes I cannot understand what the non-native guests
pronounce English.
The second difficulty is that I was not confident when I talked with
foreigners. Speaking another language which is not your mother tongue will
make you very confused and embarrassed, since then,you will not be able to
maximize your language skills.

c. The solution to overcome disadvantages
In order to improve the above disadvantage, I realize that I need try to
learn by heart all the new words to translate, listen and speak fluently, speak to
myself at home, practice speaking skill with my friends, or attend courses on the
internet. Apart from this, I will try to practice listening skill through many
English programs on TV, CDs, internet, etc… Furthermore, it seems to be useful

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for me if I communicate bravely, volunteer to introduce to guests the
information about the Hotel because this is the best way to practice speaking and
listening with non-native speakers.
2.3.2. Results
Communicating with foreigners helped me improve my English skills and
gain experience in talking and listening in English. Most of what I used to
communicate with guests is not too complicated, but I had a good chance to put
the speaking and listening theory into practice and to learn more new words
from guests.
In addition, Hoang AnhGia Lai plaza, an international 5-star hoteland
known for the quality of services,welcomes foreign tourists whose mother
tongue is not English like Germany, Spain, French, Chinese, Japanese, and
Korean. Therefore, I learned a lot of experience in talking and listening to nonnative speakers. Not all non-native speakers have trouble communicating in
English. Many speak at a native level, many speak at a mid-level, but many at a

weak level. Basing on the characteristics of the above communication
correspondents, I myself classify non-native guests into 3 levels below:
 Good level: English is not their mother tongue, but many non-native
speakers are advance in English and their pronunciation is easy to listen to. This
level is common in European countries such as: Germany, Spain, Czech, etc.
 Intermediate level: At this level, speakers pronounce clearly and slowly.
They always use simple words in communication. However, they are care-less
about stress and grammar in sentences. People from India, the Philippines,
Singapore, Hong Kong are in this level.
 Weak level: the characteristics of this level are that speakers often use
simple words incoherently to express their ideas. They do not have the ability to
speak a complete sentence and they are also care-less about stress and grammar.
This level is common in Asian countries such as: China, Korea, Japan, etc.

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The table below illustrates some comparisons in speaking English between
native guests and non-native guests which I observed and took note in my
internship:
Native Speaker

Non-native Speaker

“I would like to book a room in “I want to book room”
your hotel”
“What is the room rate?”

“How much - price?”

“My room number is 2315”

“Room number 2315”

“I would like to change some “Change money”
cash”
“Could you please call me a taxi?”

“Call me taxi”

“What time do I need to check “What time – check out”
out?”

To communicate with the non-native guests effectively, this requires you to
have a long period of practice. During three months, I found some methods to
communicate with the non-native guests effectively:
Maximize the use of body language in the instructions and directions
In case of unclear hearing, you should spell or notes to avoid mistakes
Use simple and familiar words (use “continue” instead of “proceed to”)
Use the simplest sentences possible to communicate with them and avoid
long and complicated sentences. You also need the comprehensible articulation,
which is slow enough so that guests can understand.
Example: visitors usually ask us of the directions to some of the
popular places in the city center. Here are the two ways of giving

directions to native and non-native guests.
Native guests: “ you are here at HAGL, go around the roundabout, and pass
the first two right turns. Turn right at the third, now you are going on
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OngIchKhiem Street. Proceed to go straight ahead. When you meet a crossroad,
look to the other side, you should see the Con Market”.
Non-native

guests:“So you are standing at HAGL hotel, find the

OngIchKhiemStreet, it is on the opposite side of our hotel. Go straight ahead,
see a crossroad, look ahead, you'll see Con Market in front of you”.
Besides the experience in communication, I also learned the work
experience in reception:
Understand clearly about the hotel
Knowing more about basic information of hotel such as numbers of room,
departments, the economic situation, etc.
Expanding relationships
Approaching directly to front office department
Collecting real knowledge, not in textbooks.
Making check-in, check-out procedures proficiently.
Solving situations quickly

Introducing much information about different rooms and service of hotel
to guest.

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CHAPTER III: CONCLUSION
3.1 Conclusion
The Internship period helped me practice knowledge which I studied at
college and consolidate other knowledge. This was a good opportunity for me to
gain experience in speaking and listening E nglish, and enrich my knowledge
about the differences between British English and American English.
Furthermore, when I communicated with foreigners, I also got more new word
and more knowledge about some culture in the world.
Working insuch professional environment like HAGL hotel also helped
me improve my social skills. It helped me get some real experience
communicating with colleagues at work as well as in other daily social
relationships, creating the friendly environment with everyone. I realized that it
was a chance for me to get used to the work of a receptionist is. I also had more
new friend and more new social relationships during the time work at HAGL
hotel
3.2. Recommendations
3.2.1. To HAGL Plaza Hotel Danang
- The hotel should create more chance for students to practice and work as

trainee student to look for new talents.
- The manager of the hotel should create favorable conditions for the staffs
so that they can visit the larger hotels or invite experienced experts from the
famous hotels and foreign specialists in tourist industry.
- Hotel should focus on the salient features and take advantage of the
location near the center to attract more visitors.
- Hotel ought to take measures marketing, promotion in low season,
discount or promotion measures for activities. In the absence customers, hotel
should upgrade, repair facilities, additional auxiliary services, train human
resource, improve service at hotel.

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3.2.2. To the students
Each student need to have working attitude seriously and positively. We
should learn the professional working style of staffs in the hotel.In the internship
process, we should take-notes which is considered necessary to serve our
studying and working in the future. Furthermore,we should practice English
skills as much as possible to improve our English. Participating actively in extra
curricular activities to improve communicative competence.

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THE HOTEL’S REMARK
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THE TEACHER’S REMARK
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