W H AT ’ S O N MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013 Embassy Greetings Information Greetings to Darweesh Mustafa Qamhiya who graduated as Business Accountant from Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST). Greetings to Mohammed Abbas Bastaki who graduated in Public Relations and Advertising from the Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST). Movenpick celebrates prestigious win nnnnnnn N atural Enjoyment’, an ambitious program implemented globally by Movenpick Hotels & Resorts, won ‘Best Initiative in People and Talent Management’ at the 2013 Worldwide Hospitality Awards. Movenpick Hotels & Resorts strolled away with top honors at last week’s Worldwide Hospitality Awards when the company’s integrated training program was awarded ‘Best Initiative in People and Talent Management’. The award follows a detailed submission by the upscale hospitality company, who competed with five other international hotel group finalists. Each candidate’s submitted Human Resources initiative was studied against criteria which included originality and measurable efficiency. ‘Natural Enjoyment’ successfully engaged all Movenpick Hotels & Resorts’ 16,000 employees worldwide. A need for consistency in service delivery, though fluid and not identical from property to property, was the inspiration for the initiative. Identified in 2011 as the new brand promise for customers and a key differentiator of Movenpick Hotels & Resorts, ‘Natural Enjoyment’ is about delivering a personalised, relaxed and uncomplicated experience that makes guests happy. It amalgamated the current needs and perceptions of guests at the company’s hotels, with the unique heritage of the brand, yet allowing for cultural diversity and adaption at the same time. Development of the new brand promise was initiated by Jean Gabriel Peres, president and chief executive officer of Movenpick Hotels & Resorts. “Providing a fantastic quality of service and creating great stories for our guests to take away with them, is what is most important for the company. ‘Natural Enjoyment’ has now embedded this ideal within our culture and it has beenwonderful to see our exceptional employees striving to make a difference and continuously increasing quality benchmarks,” said Peres. One of the objectives of ‘Natural Enjoyment’ was to train all employees of Movenpick Hotels & Resorts on practical ways to consistently deliver the company’s brand promise. Three ‘Service Ingredients’ were created and supported with practical ways in which to make each of these come to life. The interactive program was rolled out in 2012 with “Discovery” sessions and followed up with progress sessions in 2013. Results are measured through guest feedback, employee surveys and mystery guest audits. Alex Rawson, vice president learning and talent development for Movenpick Hotels & Resorts, managed the research, design and ultimate creation of the training program ‘Discovery’: “Phase one of the program zeroed in several hands-on possibilities our employees could take ownership of, while phase two made sure this new approach was also reflected in actual day-to-day behavior. We are now shaping phase three with the objective to inspire employees through storytelling and sharing hero stories,” said Rawson. The Worldwide Hospitality Awards is an international competition established in 2000 by Paris-based MKG Group. It represents an opportunity for hotels to highlight their teams’ exemplary achievements in communication, marketing, innovation, human resources, customer loyalty programs, social and environmental responsibility. Winners are chosen by an international jury composed of around 40 renowned figures of the business world, tourism industry and marketing sector. BSK hosts textile exhibition in aid of Pink Tuesday Cancer Awareness Day A s part of their assembly, Year 6 students at The British School of Kuwait (BSK) took part in an exhibition of winter fashions in aid of the BSK Pink Tuesday Cancer Awareness campaign. The week-long series of events raised more than KD4000 in aid of the Hyatt Foundation, Kuwait and was supported by staff and students throughout the school. The clothing for the event was supplied by Juniors at EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Embassy of Australia has announced that Kuwait citizens can apply for and receive visit visas in 10 working days through www.immi.gov.au. All other processing of visas and Immigration matters are handled by the Australian Visa Application Centre located in Al Banwan Building, 4B, 1st Floor, Al Qibla Area, Ali Al Salem Street, Kuwait City. Visit. www.vfs-au-gcc.com for more info. The Embassy of Australia does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visas and immigration matters is conducted by the Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: [email protected] ( VIS), [email protected] ( Visa Office), Tel: +971 4 205 5900 ( VFS), Fax: + 971 4 355 0708 ( Visa Office). Notary and passport services are available by appointment. Appointments can be made by calling the Embassy on 22322422. Centrepoint, which included fashion brands Posh, Lee Cooper for boys and Lee Cooper for Girls. Although the theme was ëpinkí other colours were worn. However, the main focus of the exhibition was to highlight the Pink Tuesday campaign. The event took place in the BSK Shakespeare Theatre where a catwalk was set up for models and audience to enjoy this spectacular display of clothes. All of the models chose their outfits with the guidance of the ëLandmarkí team which was led by Anup Nazareth, the Assistant Marketing Manager, supported by a team of skilled staff. As part of their corporate social responsibility, Landmark made a donation to the BSK Cancer Research Fundraiser. Thanks to Landmark, a mundane Thursday was transformed into an afternoon of fun and glamour for a very good cause. EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada in Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visa and immigration matters including enquiries is conducted by the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Individuals who are interested in working, studying, visiting or immigrating to Canada should contact the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, website: www.UAE.gc.ca or www.goingtocanada.gc.ca, E-mail: [email protected]. The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakei St, Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is open from 07:30 to 12:30. Consular services for Canadian citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00, Sunday through Wednesday. nnnnnnn EMBASSY OF GREECE The Embassy of Greece in Kuwait has the pleasure to announce that visa applications must be submitted to Schengen Visa Application Centre (VFS office) located at 12th floor, Al-Naser Tower, Fahad Al-Salem Street, Al-Qibla area, Kuwait City, (Parking at Souk Watia). For information please call 22281046 from 08:30 to 17:00 (Sunday to Thursday). Working hours: Submission from 08:30 to 15:30. Passport collection from 16:00 to 17:00. For visa applications please visit the following website www.mfa.gr/kuwait. nnnnnnn EMBASSY OF US The US Embassy in Kuwait has new procedures for obtaining appointments and picking up passports after visa issuance. Beginning August 9, 2013, we now provide an online visa appointment system, live call center, and in-person pick-up facilities in Kuwait. Please monitor our website and social media for additional information. This new system offers more flexibility for travelers to the US and to meet the increase in demand for visa appointments. The general application steps on the new visa appointment system are: 1. Go to www.ustraveldocs.com/kw (if this is the first time on ustraveldocs.com, you will need to create a profile to login). 2. Please complete your DS-160 Online Visa Application which is available at ceac.state.gov/genNIV. 3. Please print and take your deposit slip to any Burgan Bank location to pay your visa application fee. 4. Schedule an appointment for your visa interview online at www.ustraveldocs.com/kw or by phone through the Call Center (at +965-2227-1673). 5. If you need to change or cancel your appointment, please do so 24 hours beforehand, as a courtesy to other applicants. For more information, please visit the US Embassy website - kuwait.usembassy.gov - as it is the best source of information regarding these changes. nnnnnnn The PGA, Everton Senior Squad, sponsored by Porsche Centre Kuwait, Behbehani Motors Company, received their new playing strips and matchballs from Sports Direct and have now commenced their weekly match schedule. Games have recently been played against Arsenal and AC Milan Academies and the players are looking forward to competing in tournaments both in Kuwait and overseas international events. Players in the senior squad are aged from 15 to 18 years and attend training sessions at bayan three times a week. For further information see http://www.pga-kuwait.com.kw/ EMBASSY OF VATICAN The Apostolic Nunciature Embassy of the Holy See, Vatican in Kuwait has moved to a new location in Kuwait City. Please find below the new address: Yarmouk, Block 1, Street 2, Villa No: 1. P.O.Box 29724, Safat 13158, Kuwait. Tel: 965 25337767, Fax: 965 25342066. Email: [email protected].