Corinthia

Placement organization

Name of organization: Corinthia
Town/city: Saint Julian’s
Country: Malta
Website: http://www.corinthia.com/hotels/malta/malta_stgeorgesbay/

Student

Name of student: Fraukje Peeters

Specialist area: ITMC
Placement period: 2013-2014

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Accommodation
Organization’s activities: Corinthia is a collection of 5-star luxury hotels founded by the Pisani family of Malta in 1962. The brand is a family-inspired business, whose core values (authenticity, passion, understanding precision) are the foundation of the Spirit of Corinthia.
With their ‘craftman ship of care’ the Corinthia brand focuses on giving on honest and discreet service in some of the most exciting places in the world.
The hotels offer luxurious rooms and suites for both leisure and business markets. The hotel also has a spa, gym, hair salon and a courtesy bus service which guests can make use of. With quiet a few conference rooms and several boardrooms; the hotel is the perfect place to host an event or meeting.
The Corinthia brand was created in Malta and the company still has two hotels here: Corinthia Hotel St. Georges Bay and Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa. Other Corinthia hotels are located in many vibrant cities including London (the company’s flagship), Budapest, St. Petersburg, Prague, Lisbon, Khartoum and Tripoli. The company also has 3 independent hotels: the Marina Hotel Corinthia Beas Resort in Malta, the Panorama Hotel in Prague and the Aquincum Hotel in Budapest. Corinthia Hotels are managed by Corinthia Hotels International Limited, which is the operating arm of International Hotel Investments (IHI) PLC, a publicly traded company in Malta.

The company is expanding its boundaries and is constantly pushing the limits with new development plans in Rome and New York.
The Corinthia hotel is surrounded by competitors who all offer the same product: 5-star luxury accommodation. By adding their personal touch and being extra attentive to their guests, the company manages to differentiate themselves and maintain a leading role in the hotel industry on the island. The hotel also offers special packages which include extras (like horseback riding, tickets to a concert etc.) which not many of the other hotels offer.

Target group of the organization: luxury travelers
Company culture: We have Head of Departments in Valletta but I have only been there once for a meeting.
The social media executive is my boss/ supervisor and he reports to the Director of Sales, Marketing & Revenue
Number of employees: 200
Dress code: formal
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? Social Media
Brief description of your daily activities: – Scheduling posts on the social media platforms
– Involvement in photography and photo-shoots
– Monitoring online social activities including Facebook, Instagram, TripAdvisor etc.
– Keeping the websites updated and making improvements.

Brief description of your company assignment: Create a blog specifically for Corinthia Hotel St. Georges Bay and after this a promotion plan for the blog explaining how we will expose the blog to preferable target markets. I have to figure out how to make this blog ‘big’
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: The social media executive and he is also my supervisor. He checks my assignments and gives me task. Furthermore I am in the same office with the Director of Sales, Marketing and Revenue but I’m not under his supervision.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? independent, performable, sociable
Additional company requirements for this placement? office
English: Advanced
Spanish:
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? agency
How did you go to work every day? carpooling / walking

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? no
Do you need a work permit? no
How did you arrange the necessary documents:
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents?
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance?

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? no

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 200
Accommodation (monthly): € 425
Local transport (monthly): € 30
General costs of living (monthly): € 250
Costs of visa: € 0
Costs of work permit: € 0
What did the company pay for/to you? nothing

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I didn’t prepare, I just let it happen to me and I must say it is pretty easy to adapt.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? no

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: fraukje93@hotmail.com

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: Get a monthly bus pass, go to Gozo & Blue Lagoon, live close by working place, rent a place with a balcony

Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Beaches, Shopping, Valletta & Mdina (historical seeings), Paceville (bars), Gozo

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link