Christmas Co-ordinator Review

It was not what I had been promised or what I expected.

I was totally ignored by management and the department where my office was situated. Everyone was of the mind set that they had their own job to do and that I was not theirs to manage or take care of/look after.

I was told to expect the worst over Christmas as the hotel gets 'hellish' and the guests are rude and nasty. That was about it. I worked the rest out for myself because I had to. I would have thought that as an organisation they would provide more staff training especially when i had a customer orientated role and I did a lot of cash handling, room set ups, food service and staff management...

I was rushed off my feet. People were not allowed to make appointments with the hotel as part of their policy, so I had queues of people waiting for me all day to ask questions and pay for their places. I then had to process all of this money with the cash office, fill in payment envelopes, drop the cash in the safe with a witness to sign the witness sheet, post this money on the computer system to the correct department, place it in another system to confirm the booking, print three receipts which all went to different departments to confirm that money was taken and then confirm the booking via post to the guest. It was the least efficient way of doing paperwork I have ever witnessed, but it was company policy....

I was given the illusion of responsibility. I was told that it was my own department to manage and to look after and run by myself. Which sounded both daunting and a really healthy challenge (provided i got the sufficient amount of support). Not only was i not supported but every independent decision I made had to go through several different departments first all of whom were very stuck in their ways so I was unable to do anything for myself as everyone else wanted it done like every year before. I was just another cog in a very old, run down machine.

I learnt how to deal with customers who thought that the restaurant staff were rude, that their bedrooms were a disgrace, and that they felt unsafe in a hotel this run down... I think I am a much stronger person now as a result but I would not recommend the experience to anyone. I learnt two software programs which are now both irrelevant as they were unsafe systems for storing personal details of the guests... I was totally used, i was never paid for the hours i worked and I have never felt so low and miserable in my entire life.

It was hostile. Two other women who fought like cat and mouse over who had won what contract to put on their sales forecasts rather than working as a department to hit sales targets. There was also a lot of backstabbing and gossiping that made the conversation, when their was any, unbearable.

I am not entirely sure that they understood why i was their despite my university making it quite clear what was expected of them as a placement provider. I think i was just cheap available labor to them.

Not at all. Whenever their was a networking opportunity or a training scheme available they would never send me. Instead the management saw it as a great chance to go out and get drunk together and isolate their staff a bit more.

I would NOT go back even if they offered my 10 times as much money and the chance to run the entire building!!!

Most of my colleagues went on placements in America but I stayed in the UK because I had financial and family commitments here. There were only two other placement students at the hotel who both worked in another department and usually worked night shifts.

I stayed in the same city as i studied in the same housing. So it was just as easy if not easier paying for things whilst i was employed.

It was the town centre so there is always something to do

No.