Diethelm Travel Malaysia

Placement organization

Name of organization: Diethelm Travel Malaysia
Town/city: Kuala Lumpur
Country: Maleisië
Website: https://www.diethelmtravel.com/

Name of student: Sanja Haecker

Specialist area: ITTI
Placement period: 2016-2017

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Inbound tour operator
Organization’s activities: The Diethelm Travel Group (DTG) is a first class inbound tour operator with 12 offices thought out South East Asia. They cater for FIT and GIT tours, as well as business travel and have a separate ticketing department.
Target group of the organization: mainly European market
Company culture: In the DTG some of the activities are centralized in the head office in Thailand. The Kuala Lumpur office has a rather flat organizational structure, especially compared to traditional Malaysian organizations. Employees are on a first name basis with each other and the managing director, thus it is a very family like business environment.
Number of employees: 35 in the KL office, worldwide 500+
Dress code: casual
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? There were not really any agreements beforehand. The company arranged for a work visa, and the company assignment was decided on the spot.

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? In order to fully understand how a tur operator works, I rotate monthly through various departments, namely Sales & Marketing, Reservations, Data Management, and Operations.
Brief description of your daily activities: My daily activities depend on the department I am working in. In Sales, is focuses around preparing itineraries, possible smaller quotes for sales, costing, quotation and product development. The data management department is responsible for uploading new products to the Travel Studio, and the homepage. The Operations department manages day to day guide and vehicle assignment and customer services. And in the Reservations department all the bookings are managed, like allocating meal, transportation and tour arrangement, as well as following up on payments and cut-off dates.
Brief description of your company assignment: For my company assignment, I am researching product development, and create new tour packages and day excursions.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: My company supervisor for the internship id the assistant general manger. However, for each department, I either respond to the relative head of department, who then assess my performance.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? You should be able to work both independently, and be a team player. Since it is a different culture to what are probably used to, being social and flexible enhances your placement experience.
Additional company requirements for this placement? There are no real additional requirements form the company’s side.
English: Advanced
Spanish:
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages: Everyone in the company, and in Kuala Lumpur in general, speaks English very well. However, some have quite a strong Asian accent and slang, which may make it difficult understanding them at first. Any additional language is an advantage, as some clients don’t speak English, and wish to communicate in their mother tongue.

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: By plane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? I was lucky to find a studio in the city centre through AirBnB.
How did you go to work every day? Publictransportation if it rains, otherwise I walk to work.

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? Yes, a temporary work permit for the placement, otherwise you get a 3-month tourist visa on arrival, for EU passport holders.
Do you need a work permit? Yes, the company will arrange it for you.
How did you arrange the necessary documents: Through the company,
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? 3 months minium,
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance? I didn’t have any extra vaccinations.

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, you will easily get around with English, besides Bahasa is not too difficult, and you will pick up a few words while you’re there.

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 600 would be my guess. (I didn’t fly from the NL)
Accommodation (monthly): € 350
Local transport (monthly): € 15
General costs of living (monthly): € 100
Costs of visa: € FOC
Costs of work permit: € Paid by the company
What did the company pay for/to you? The company pays the work permit, and a monthly salary of MYR 1,000, which equals around EUR 210.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I didn’t really prepare anything, as I have been to Malaysia and other South East Asian countries multiple times before hand, and would say I am quite familiar with the local customs there. I would recommend to take things as they come, keep an open mind and always simile.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? You will learn to be more patient and flexible in any way.

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: 150003@edu.nhtv.nl

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: Embrace living in a new environment and culture, and don’t be shy.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: There is so much to do around KL, and in Malaysia itself. Save some money beforehand, and then go exploring this beautiful area of the world after your placement. KLIA is a great hub to fly to almost any destination in South East Asia, and Malaysia has an advanced infrastructure, which allows you to easily and comfortably travel around.

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link