CHE class picture - Leysin (Switzerland)

Khemraj Lakai tells us about his recent visit to Leysin, Switzerland to attend a CHE workshop, and his hopes and dreams of a career and network in hospitality.

May 2001 - a fairly long but mild winter in Switzerland was already on its way out and the bare trees were coming alive with budding leaves and colourful flowers, all adding to the tranquility and homely ambience of the small town of Chur. The smell of freshly cut grass and the sound of cowbells already proliferated the hills and people were venturing out again (Leute beim Wandern, as the locals called it). Graduation was fast approaching and classmates were still working on the yearbook, as part of their school project. Despite the approaching finals, the year-book team was running and approaching students with a question “What would you like to become in the future?” Simple as it sounded in the beginning, the question hit home harder for me, as I clearly knew that the dreams, career predictions and paths are never easy as they first seem to students. A dream that I had prior to landing in Switzerland was no longer valid to be considered as dream. However, I felt a few things in common with most graduates…uncertainty, but positive energy and lots of hope. A few days later, one of my classmates, Lydia, handed me a copy of yearbook. I eagerly scanned through the pages until I found columns where graduates had expressed their opinion as to what would they like to become. Sure enough, the entries ranged from “wish to become a owner of chain hotels”, owing a nightclub in Shanghai, get married and have family, owning a restaurant, becoming a GM of a reputed 5 star hotel and so on. Some even desired to ‘become housewife in Beverly Hills’ and ‘become a taxi driver in Mumbai’ (which I thought were only jokes).

Now I fast forward to August, 2006. Almost four years have passed and I’m still in touch with a reasonable number of friends. Most of them have already achieved remarkable success in the industry and few others shifted the career path but all have succeeded. Now, I am only amazed to see the positive results of how Swiss education helped them achieve their dream careers, such as becoming a project manager of a famous chain of resorts, e-commerce manager in a leading hotel group and rewarded for the same, opening a boutique hotel in Beijing, a Training Manager in a leading international hotel, opening own hotels and resorts and having job in the UBS bank of Switzerland, just to name a few.

I too found myself in my dream career / role in the field of hospitality education, becoming a teacher as well as a counselor for Human Resource Development and placement (hotel careers). I work as one of the management members in the International School of Tourism & Hotel Management – Nepal. I have already started my hospitality job placement office in Bahrain and I am extremely glad that I am doing exactly what I wanted to do.

Recently I attended a CHE workshop (Certified Hospitality Educator) organized jointly in association with the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) and the Swiss Education Group (SGE), operator of one of the largest private group of hotel schools in Switzerland, probably even Europe. I had a truly educative and memorable experience with the other Swiss hospitality educators who attended the workshop. I must say that the facilitator, Dr. Marc Clark from the AH&LA was one of the most charismatic motivators I have ever had the chance to meet. I returned home with a big smile…not to mention yet another extended network of friends, which includes 28 talented hospitality educators from various parts of Europe.

I highly recommend the CHE workshop to anyone who seeks a career as a hospitality trainer or educator; because the tools and techniques you learn can greatly enhance your efficiency and effectiveness in the classroom and help you nurture a culture of understanding and growth. You will also realize that teaching and training can be a real bliss!

By Khemraj Lakai


Academic Dean of SHMS Caux - Emanuel Donhauser and Dr. Marc Clark with Khemraj Lakai


Roger Eyer - Program Leader, HIM Montreaux and Dr. Marc Clark with Khemraj Lakai

Photos provided by Khemraj Lakai. Article edited by JJ. If you would like to get in touch with Khemraj, join the Talent Jungle Alumni network for the private messaging feature.

tags: career, hospitality, AH&LA, CHE, workshop, leysin, switzerland, khemraj-lakai, Marc-Clark