ATEC mentors tourism’s stars of tomorrow

SYDNEY – The careers of many young workers and graduates employed in the Australian tourism industry will receive a boost via a guidance and development programme being run by the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC).

The 2009 Young ATEC (YATEC) National Development Programme is designed to motivate and inspire young tourism employees and provide them with a platform to develop essential business knowledge and networks.

The launch of the 2009 Young ATEC (YATEC) National Development Programme is being held tonight at Sydney’s Hilton Hotel.

The eight-week programme starting next month will include a series of educational lectures and presentations given by senior executives of tourism organisations from across Australia as well as a senior industry mentor.

ATEC managing director Matt Hingerty said that nurturing the next generation of inbound tourism leaders was one of the most important tasks the industry faced, and that the national development programme would both educate and guide participants.

“Good people are the glue which holds the tourism industry together,” Hingerty said.

“It is vital that we pass on the wisdom, knowledge and skills accumulated by the current generation of tourism leaders to those who will lead us in the decades ahead. This program does exactly that,”

Hingerty paid tribute to the team of YATEC members which has developed and grown the national mentor programme in recent years.

“The fact that this YATEC team of some of our best and brightest prospects was able to put together this programme largely by themselves speaks volumes for the quality of the people in this organisation,” Hingerty said.

Each participant is also assigned a mentor from the industry (matched by career interests) for the duration of the programme, with whom they can meet and discuss career path opportunities and export tourism related issues.

“With economic conditions being as tough as they are, it is essential that we give young tourism employees every opportunity to build a solid career foundation and get good advice from some of the best businesspeople in Australia,” Young ATEC NSW Chair Julieta Lopez said.

“It is programmes such as these which can make the difference between having a job and having a career.”

For more details on the National Development Programme, go to:
http://www.atec.net.au/434242.html