Meet 3-time alumna, Dr Josephine Tan (BBM 2004, MBA 2015 and DBA 2019). To our knowledge (and in our records) she is the only individual who has done the ‘grand slam’ at SMU, having completed her Bachelor, Master, and Doctorate programmes with us. And to cap it off, she is currently one of our adjunct teaching mentors at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, in Marketing!
A service and hospitality veteran and consultant, Josephine is also a wine sommelier, a certified bartender, speaks no less than three languages, plays the piano and the pipa, and a self-confessed fitness fanatic who must start her day with exercise! Read on to find out more about this very special alumna who has a voracious appetite for learning.
Dr Bervyn: You are an SMU alumna three times over…you did your BBM, followed by your MBA, and then the DBA. What’s the story there? What made you decide to choose SMU again, and again?
Dr Josephine Tan: To be honest, when I was shopping for my MBA, I did consider an overseas university that is more specialised in hospitality. I was also told to consider other universities for a different perspective and to learn from different professors, which is not wrong. I did not follow through on these thoughts of course, and ended up applying with SMU instead. I gravitate towards SMU because I know that the learning environment in SMU works best for me. I do not think I can adapt to anything less dynamic and interactive. I love the location of a city campus and how alive and vibrant it is. Perhaps I am biased towards my alma mater?
Dr Bervyn: How did going to the same university benefit you?
Dr Josephine Tan: I am a creature of habit and I always enjoy the comfort of familiarity, so going to the same university benefited me because I am familiar with the systems, the way of learning. There is no time wasted in getting over any culture shock, adapting to the learning methods, or navigating the system. I was told by the IT Helpdesk, though, that they had issues migrating and connecting my account thrice!
Dr Bervyn: Your DBA thesis was on the impact of camaraderie on customer satisfaction and loyalty in the hotel industry. Can you tell us a little more about what you found in your research? Are there lessons there we can glean against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic and how it has hit the hotel industry?
Dr Josephine Tan: I have always been amazed by the camaraderie among football fans. For instance, Manchester United fans are able to come together to celebrate the team’s win, as well as drown their sorrows together over drinks when they lose. It seems like regardless of a win (happiness) or a loss (disappointment, sadness) their support remains unwavering. It is also amazing to me that a room full of strangers are able to become friends when they are all cheering for their football team in a bar.
My research sought to understand if the same sort of camaraderie can be created in the hotel industry. This would definitely increase stickiness of customers to hotels which translates to customer loyalty. If football fans share joy and sorrow with their club, in the hotel industry, it means that when the hotel does well and continues to exceed expectations, guests are happy and will not hesitate to shout out to everyone. Conversely, guests will also be forgiving when there are service lapses. Customer satisfaction will increase, which leads to greater loyalty. The cycle continues.
The Covid-19 pandemic came so suddenly and unexpectedly. It has crippled the world’s economy and affected the hotel industry very badly. The lifting restrictions worldwide has seen a resumption of business in other industries such as F&B, retail, construction etc, but the tourism industry is still paused. Needless to say, with no influx of tourists, the hotel industry remains badly hit.
Against the backdrop of the pandemic, customer loyalty is even more important. You don’t want to be forgotten but yet you cannot advertise for your service as there is no use for it now. Hotels have to be more humane during this period and promote through CSR initiatives. Our local carrier, for example, is doing a great job having their crew help out at the Khoo Teck Puat hospital. It is a subtle way of promoting too. For hotels, kitchens have a lot of slack, so perhaps utilising this slack to cook and provide meals for the needy could build customer loyalty.
This is also a good time to build employee camaraderie and implement new service SOPS, so that the trickle-down effect on customers will be immediate once border restrictions are eased.
Dr Bervyn: You have been working in the hospitality industry for 8 years now and have done consulting work for hotels and organisations. If there is one thing lacking in this industry, what would you say that is, and how can universities like SMU fill that gap?
Dr Josephine Tan: Definitely service standards. Singapore Airlines and the Four Seasons Hotel provide gold standard service excellence, and many hotels aspire to have the same standard too.
Universities concentrate less on soft skills. There is more focus on the theoretical side of processes (e.g., services marketing, service excellence, operations strategy). Courses can be designed for students and managers to learn both theory and real-world processes, as well as soft skills. The knowledge and experience would prepare them better at how to implement policies and SOPs to change service culture, and perform checks that are viable and sustainable.
It is not easy to change service culture and it extends beyond a one-day workshop. There must be investment in training. I do understand that this is easier said than done, what with a labour crunch. But perhaps we need to start with the right mindset, that training is not a hasty one hour affair to only one employee? After all, SQ (Singapore Airlines) takes 3 months to train its service crew.
Dr Bervyn: Your journey with SMU has taken you back with us as an adjunct teaching mentor. What are some insights, having experienced both sides of student and faculty?
Dr Josephine Tan: It is different when you are on the other side. It took me some time to adjust my mindset, from student to faculty. Faculty like inquisitive minds, which is why SMU puts such strong emphasis on class participation. But many students misunderstand this as hogging airtime in class to have more participation points, which does more harm than good.
Dr Bervyn: As we celebrate SMU’s 21st anniversary and chart the next 21 years, what have been some of your most memorable moments; and your hopes for SMU for the future?
Dr Josephine Tan: My most memorable moments are the friendships created. Out of campus, I am always proud and happy to hear companies raving about SMU graduates and how they are different (in a very good way, of course!).
I hope SMU will continue to excel in what she is doing and to keep producing cohort after cohort of excellent graduates!
