It was on the afternoon of the 1st April, that our international guest speaker, Monica Or, shared her expertise on stage as our Colombian Hoteliers receive their Key to Success. This was Monica’s first trip to Colombia and she spoke to our delegates about “How to Run a Productive and Competitive Hotel Business”. She did this by delivering a workshop based around her book “Star Quality Hospitality – The Key to a Successful Hospitality Business” which is an Amazon best seller to more than 350 delegates at the COTELCO [The Colombian Hotel and Tourism Association] National Assembly.

Monica Or presenting at the COTELCO National Assembly in Colombia

Why did we need a hospitality expert to present at our Assembly? COTELCO was founded on 14th June 1954 by a group of hoteliers in the city of Barranquilla. At that time the association was founded with the presence of 19 hotels in the country, now we have about 1,000 allied companies. COTELCO has a presence in 23 departments nationwide.

In short, COTELCO National is the only major company that brings together all the guild of hotels in Colombia, it must therefore be at the forefront of issues and one of them is delivering excellent service to tourists and hotel guests.

As expected, good customer service goes hand in hand with impeccable hospitality and the highest standards. We want our tourists and hotel guests to experience this level of hospitality, so they become loyal and above all, spokesmen for these services.

When it comes to this issue, the delegates who attended the Assembly, learnt first hand how to reach such high levels of quality and excellence. As Monica spoke in English, through simultaneous translation, our delegates listened in Spanish as she imparted her knowledge and gave the best information, advice and tips of how to do this.

Monica led the participants of the event on a magnificent journey through the pages of her best selling book. The audience was hooked. At first they were a little shy to answer questions, but through Monica’s gentle persuasion, hands were raised, questions answered and doubts cleared.

Throughout her presentation, exercises were carried out which addressed key areas of importance. Our delegates entered the world of hospitality excellence, a keyword that should always be present and must be successfully applied by those who are passionate about hotels and all things hospitality.

Our deep appreciation goes out to Monica for being at our Annual Meeting of Affiliates for COTELCO National, Colombia. For letting us share in her in depth knowledge of quality hospitality and for leaving us with the gift of her book which I for one will treasure.

Monica signing her book for delegates after her workshop

Article written by Carolina Tafur, Business Executive, COTELCO. The Annual Meeting of Affiliates of COTELCO National was held in Villavicencio, Meta Department of Colombia on the 31st March and 1st April 2016.