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Study Guidein THC8 Multi Cultural Diversity in Workplace for the Tourism Professional

STUDY GUIDE FOR MODULE NO. 7

Benefits of a Diverse Workforce

MODULE OVERVIEW

How different is it handling multicultural diversities of customers or guests and peers versus
handling multicultural diversities if it was of your superior at work? The fast and quick
answer is that there is no difference at all. All the rules of the previous two chapters apply
here just the same.

MODULE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of this module, you should be able to:

1. Enumerate the five ways to becoming a diversity champion
2. Explain the ways of becoming a diversity champion in tourism
3. Create a symbol of multicultural champion

LEARNING CONTENTS

Chapter 7
FIVE WAYS TO BECOME A DIVERSITY CHAMPION

In the previous chapters, you were given a total of 25 rules: 10 for your customers or
guests, 10 for your peers, and 5 for your superiors. In this chapter, it will be summarized
into the Five Ways to Becoming a Diversity Champion with site real-life examples for each
of these ways.

Five Ways to Becoming a Diversity Champion

1. Start with a global mindset. The world has been made smaller in the past couple of
decades because of the advances in technology. What will the world be like 20, 30, or 50
years from today? As tourism professionals, having a global mindset is a must. Tourism is
all about every place we can reach on earth. Tourism is all about every nationality we can
meet along the way. Tourism has no boundaries. Tourism does not discriminate. Tourism
does not hate; it does not judge.

As tourism professionals, we should lead the way to include everyone. No one should be
left out. When I was a cabin crew member with PAL, and only 22 years old, one of our
important subject matters was all about the world -Europe, Africa, the Middle
East, Asia Pacific, North and South America, and Antarctica. At that time, our longest flight
assignment was for 30 days and this was one of my favorite flight assignments. This long-
haul flight would take us first to Bangkok for a technical stopover after flying for about three
hours from Manila. Then, we take off again this time to fly to our first stopover, Karachi City,
Pakistan. We would stay over in this exotic and laid-back city for 3 days and await the
arrival of the PAL flight from Manila that will now take us fly to our final destination,
Amsterdam City in the Netherlands. It is in Amsterdam where we would be based for the
next 27 days and fly every 3rd day to Karachi, stay another 3 days, and fly back to
Amsterdam. We would repeat this cycle for a month until we finally return to Manila. With so

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Study Guidein THC8 Multi Cultural Diversity in Workplace for the Tourism Professional

much in Amsterdam and Karachi, we took advantage of this time to discover as much of
these cities and countries as we could. Many cabin crew members would go further and
take trips to neighboring countries for a day or two. Among the neighboring countries, I
personally traveled to during my days off in Amsterdam are France, Belgium, Austria,
Germany, England, Switzerland, and Italy. On the other hand, during our off days in
Karachi, one of my favorite things to do while in the city was to go "crabbing" and feast on
these crabs for lunch right middle of the Indian Ocean. Karachi was also a favorite in the
place for oriental lamps, cheesecloth, Persian shopping carpets, and stones at bargain
prices. These extra travels onyx were among the best experiences I could ever have. I did
not only enjoy the sights,
cultures, traditions, and the local vibe of each of these places, but I also met people who
remain my friends until today. When I travel back to these countries, I try my very best to
catch up with them and enjoy a tête-à-tête. It is indeed a cliché, that traveling the world is
the best knowledge ever, but it is so true. My travels have helped me grow faster and enjoy
the tourism and hospitality industry even more.

2. Become a "national hero." It is awesome to learn and experience all about other peoples
and cultures in the world. But it is even a more awesome when you become master of your
very own. Be a proud Filipino. Be proud of your past. Be proud of your present. More
importantly, always be hopeful about your future. There is so much to be proud of our past-
the collective cultures from Spain and America; our Catholic faith; our multilingual abilities
of Tagalog, English, and a local dialect. In our contemporary times, there are the numerous
beauty queens with international titles, our sports champions in basketball, boxing, and
fencing, and the very first bloodless People Power Revolution that toppled a dictator in
1986. Unfortunately, there are those among us who, instead of proudly talking about being
Filipino with our foreign guests, are the very first ones who start talking negatively about the
Philippines and the Filipino people. Do not get me wrong. We are not perfect, and no other
nationality on earth can claim they are perfect. However, when dealing with our foreign
guests, we should
talk about what is good about us as a nation and what binds and bonds us together. We
should talk and share about our exceptional values like bayanihan1∞0, among others. We
should be proud of our more than 7,100 islands and the beauty of the Philippines, from
Batanes to Jolo.

When we were opening the EDSA Shangri-La Manila in 1992, our first general manager,
Nigel Grocock, a British national, accepted a our suggestion to name all the hotel function
rooms after some of the islands in the country like Palawan, Batanes, Bohol, Dapitan, Sulu,
Lubang, and Basilan. We should be proud of the many places there are to see all over the
country. We should be proud of our food such as adobo and balut. We should be proud of
being the only people in the world that respects our elders using pagmamano. There is so
much to be proud about. And yes, all of us can become national heroes.

Bayanihan is a Filipino custom of communal unity, work, and cooperation to achieve :

particular goal.

Jolo is the capital of Sulu Province, Philippines

Palawan is the largest province in the Philippines and has received many recognitions for its
environmental programs.

Batanes is the smallest province and situated in the northern most part of the Philippines.

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Bohol is the 10th largest province island located in the Central Visayas region of the
Philippines.

Dapitan or the City of Dapitan is a third-class municipality located in Zamboanga del Norte
and known for being the place of exile of the Philippines' national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal,
during the Spanish era.

Sulu is a Philippine province located in the Sulu archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro
Autonomous Region.

Lubang is the largest island of seven in the Lubang Group of Islands situated in the
northwest of Mindoro province.

Basilan is the largest island in the northern most part of the Sulu Archipelago and a part of the
Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.

Balut is developing duck embryo, boiled and eaten from the shell.

Pagmamano is used as a sign of respect for elders by bowing toward the right hand of the
elder and putting this on your forehead while asking for the elder's blessing.

3. Initiate and participate in diversity programs. Most companies in the tourism and
hospitality industry are active in programs with diversity themes. This is because as we
already said earlier, our industry is among the most diversely populated industry in the
world. These programs can include anything from learning another language, about a
specific race, the complexities of religions in the world, or about celebrations and festivals
of different countries. Whatever the diversity program offered in your company, show
interest and participate in these. Additional knowledge about the world through these
programs equals additional merits for you as a tourism professional.

4. Adopt one diversity. Having a general knowledge of all diversities is a must. Adopting
one diversity as your own is another matter. What do I mean by this? We all have
something we appreciate more than others. For instance, how would you answer if I asked
you, "Among the 200 plus countries in the world, what would you consider your top five?" or
"Among the so many festivals celebrated yearly all around the world, which one is in your
bucket list to experience?,' Or if gave you the opportunity to learn another language, what
would it be? As you begin your journey as a tourism professional, what could your answer
to any of the three questions be? If, for instance, among the over 200 countries in the
world, you say you would like to be a specialist of or know more about Spain, then you will
have to include in your personal vision and mission as a tourism professional a road map
of you learning and experiencing more about Spain as a country. You might ask, "But how
will this help me in my profession?" The answer is simple-in so very many ways! Among the
ways could be being sent to Spain as a scholar to precisely learn more about the country.
Learning the Spanish language to make your scholarship work out is another benefit. Then,
specializing in the Spanish market when you return to the Philippines can make you a
popular and sought-after professional in our industry. There are many companies in the
Philippines with ties to and engagements in Spain. These companies will be very happy to
deal with a tourism professional with specialized knowledge of their country. Do you see the

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Study Guidein THC8 Multi Cultural Diversity in Workplace for the Tourism Professional

benefits of this diversity adoption and how it can improve your status in the industry? Go for
it.

5. Be a diversity champion. By actively engaging in the first four ways of becoming a

diversity champion, you become a diversity champion. Being a global thinker, becoming a
national hero, enhancing your diversity capabilities with new knowledge, and choosing to
become familiar with at least one diversity transforms you from a tourism professional to
becoming a diversity champion.

Activities
1. Create a symbol (6 × 6 inches) of a Multicultural Champion in a letter size paper.
2. Explain the elements of your symbol.
3. Write an essay on the topic, "Be Local, Global, and Glocal!"

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