Meliá Hotels International prepares its Hotel Teams for Reopening after Covid-19

Talent, the commitment of people and their ability to manage change in the new post-Covid-19 scenario will be the keys to success in making progress towards the new normal in travel and tourism. Meliá Hotels International (MHI) is therefore reliant on its internal teams to make all the difference and ensure that hotels are reopened with a correct implementation of all the new health and safety protocols while also delivering the differential hotel experience that customers expect in MHI hotels.

The company is using its eMeliá e-learning platform to ensure that the employees of hotels that are reopening complete a mandatory online training programme designed to ensure awareness of the new protocols and also provide tools for managing change, customer service in the new post-Covid-19 environment and the management of their own emotional well-being, something which is also a key factor at the present moment in time.

The training programme is available in 8 languages for employees all over the world and is based around the new Stay Safe with Meliá programme which the company has designed for the safe reopening of hotels, including sections on the protection of employees, their health and safety at work, new operating processes and protocols in the different areas of the hotel and customer safety and service. The programme has been certified by Bureau Veritas, and the training programme has also been further enhanced with a section focused on the emotional well-being of employees, many of whom have been greatly affected by the uncertainty and the impact of Covid-19 on tourism.

Meliá Hotels International is also going one step further towards achieving excellence by launching an extra training programme in collaboration with the Instituto de Empresa Business School for 600 employees occupying critical positions in post-Covid-19 hotel management, including the Hotel General Manager, Human Resources and other key positions in customer service. The training will also be carried out online and aims to reinforce skills in matters such as leadership in times of crisis, well-being and stress management in VUCA environments, emotional communication and the creation of a safe and caring environment that ensures a positive customer experience.

"For more than six decades, the talent and commitment of our team has been our most important asset and the thing that has made all the difference for us as a company. We are now preparing to make sure we come back even stronger than before and, once again, we are positive that it will be our team members who will ensure we have a successful journey along the path towards the new normal, "said Gabriel Cánaves, Chief Human Resources Officer at Meliá Hotels International.