At Your Service
Jenny Ang is at the helm of the Singapore campus of École hôtelière de Lausanne and she talks to us about the concept of hospitality today
École hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) in Switzerland has the distinction of being regarded as the best hospitality school in the world, training students for an illustrious career in the hotel and hospitality industries.
Bringing a slice of that excellence and global recognition to our side of the world is the EHL Campus (Singapore), which aims to be the Asia Pacific reference for world-class hospitality education. At the helm of the Singapore campus is Managing Director Jenny Ang, whose responsibilities include handling the strategic initiative, development, and growth of EHL in Singapore and Asia. “Ultimately, my role is to develop and operate a world-class
Singapore campus of the world’s leading hospitality management school, ensuring quality of experience of every student,” she adds.
With your background in music and the performing arts, what made you decide to work with EHL, which primarily deals with hospitality?
Music and the performing arts have been a very significant part of my life and career, and it remains a passion for me. For the past ten years at the Yong Siew Toh (YST) Conservatory of Music at NUS, we developed an ongoing exchange partnership with both the Universities of Music of Lausanne and Geneva. Through these partnerships and frequent travels there, I got to know Lausanne as a city very well, and over time, also of the great reputation of EHL.
I have always admired the way in which EHL operates, their pioneering roles in developing hospitality education, and the highquality principles they follow. When I saw the announcement of a new campus in Singapore and their search for Managing Director, I just had to apply. I am most excited about being a part of another landmark institution here in Singapore and Asia, just as how the Conservatory of Music was first set up in Singapore 18 years ago.
I’m very much looking forward to meeting the new students and being part of their journey into hospitality — I can’t wait to see how far they go and how the sector will continue to flourish!
As time becomes a more precious commodity, and businesses become more competitive, service levels become a critical differentiator.
How does your background as an artist and musician complement your role at EHL?
As musicians and artists, we have an unwavering quest for excellence, perfection, and beauty. This value of presenting a perfect yet transient product to be experienced by others is very much at the core of the hospitality business.
Performing artists also require a high degree of flexibility and collaboration. In my former role as Deputy Director at YST Conservatory, I was responsible for a variety of roles, from concert productions presenting world-class artists to audience and community partnerships, to building a global network with higher music educations. One of the main character traits that I have brought to my career in education from my time as a musician is also attention to detail and listening.
How do you think Swiss-quality education fits in with the Singapore/Asia Pacific landscape?
By providing a distinguished, multifaceted education, EHL equips students with a mixture of soft and hard skills, an international network, and the confidence needed to thrive in a career — whether in hospitality or elsewhere. Asian parents and students are increasingly seeking the most prestigious education that is internationally recognized to sufficiently prepare for a successful career. EHL Campus (Singapore) meets this demand through its high-quality Swiss curriculum and location. Our students will be well-placed to launch their careers.
What is your concept of hospitality?
I believe that the concept of hospitality is universal — delivering service that leads to a memorable and treasured experience. As a travel hub and one of the most desired places to live in, our Garden City boasts some of the world’s best restaurants, beautiful hotels, and impeccable leaders within the industry and so I feel that there is very good symmetry between EHL and the Singapore community.
As time becomes a more precious commodity, and businesses become more competitive, service levels become a critical differentiator. An EHL education equips our future hospitality leaders not only with key quantitative skills — the science of managing business operations and ensuring sustainability, but also qualitative elements, such as communication and leadership skills through language & culture learning to deliver the true art of hospitality.
Can you tell us about the benefits of an all-rounded education with soft skills and why it’s so important today?
Soft skills are a necessary asset for everyone. It can be viewed as character traits or interpersonal aptitudes that affect one’s ability to work and interact with others. Tourism and hospitality are, first and foremost, a ‘people’ business, both from the internal business point of view and from the external customer perspective. To be successful in the field, it is essential to be able to function as the member of a team – either as a leader or as a participant.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, soft skills have been integral to the success of a company or an individual. Traits like resilience, empathy, communication, and adaptability have become increasingly important. At EHL, we give students a well-rounded, immersive education and soft skills are an important part of the curriculum. These are taught through a mixture of experiential and pedagogical techniques and include skills like relationship management, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness. All of these characteristics are needed in both a business and a social environment, and they are transferable from situation to situation, industry to industry.