16 hotels in Singapore collaborate to pilot lean manpower solutions

Announcing the Lean Hotel Initiative (LHI) at a CEO Breakfast Talk, Singapore's Minister of State for Manpower, Teo Ser Luck, said 16 hotels will be working together to identify and pilot lean manpower solutions. In the long-term, he hopes these are "translated into larger scale, long-term and holistic transformations."

Amara Hotels and Resorts and Crowne Plaza Changi Airport are among those included in the pilot.

At the dialogue, hosted by Workforce Singapore (WSG) and McKinsey & Company, Minister Teo noted 33,000 people are currently employed by the hotel sector in Singapore - yet the sector faces the task of having to keep up with rapidly evolving consumer needs while facing a challenging manpower situation.

On its part, the Ministry has previously launched the Lean Enterprise Development Scheme (LEDS), for which 2,100 firms are on board. Support provided includes the provision of transitional manpower over a period of time to firms that need it.

Last year, the Skills Framework for the Hotel and Accommodation Sector was launched, an integral component of the Hotel Industry Manpower Plan (IMP). The Hotel IMP serves as a guide for individuals, employers and training providers, to identify key skills and competencies in new areas such as digital marketing, data analytics, revenue management and business process re-design.

Additionally, the Lean Enterprise Development Scheme, (LEDS) was launched in October 2015, to help companies develop manpower lean solutions and build a strong Singapore core. As at end January 2017, the LEDS had been “the bridge” for 2,100 companies, helping them to take steps to cross the technology gate in particular.

Minister Teo said: "We will continue our efforts to help more companies transform. We are going to strengthen LEDS as a bridge of innovation, to make innovation more pervasive in our business community. We will nurture more industry cluster-based projects to create a viral effect in adopting these solutions."

He added these companies will come together to identify gaps, share best practices, brainstorm and benchmark against the best-in-class. They will then use this information to design and develop blueprints before moving on to test-proof concepts through pilot projects.

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