Hotel employee wins national young worker award

Bai won the first prize for reception work at the service skills competition hosted by the National Government Offices Administration in 2019.

"You can't panic or be flustered. The job needs solid business skills and standard work procedure," Bai says.

Bai considers the reception area the face of a hotel. She and her co-workers often have to deal with guests checking in and out while at the same time answering the phone for miscellaneous requests from other guests. The staff members have to pay great attention to billing, writing out invoices and giving and collecting room cards or else mistakes might occur. They need to keep a clear head and make rapid response, she says. "We also take notes of requests and deal with them in order of importance or emergency."

The Beijing Friendship Hotel has hosted many events over the years, including important government gatherings.

To offer better service, the hotel put together a reception team, with Bai in charge. She has developed a detailed work protocol, sorting through bits and ends of service tips and compiling a 100-page training brochure during her maternity leave in 2017.

Many guests remember Bai's name, says Yu Li from the hotel's sales department who calls her "down-to-earth and serious about work".