Leadership
Development
Plan
HTM 301
Section 1: Vision & Goals
About Me
Chloe Swierczek
-
Fall 2020 Section 1
-
Meetings & Events Emphasis
-
Current Job: Urban Outfitters Employee
-
Expected Graduation: May 2022
-
My PRINT: 6-7
The Ideal Hospitality Leader
The ideal hospitality leader is comprised of many strong qualities that are not very common amongst different industries. Our industry is centered around serving others and creating an unforgettable experience in the world of hospitality. As a future leader in hospitality, I envision myself thoroughly enjoying my career, and I believe that is the most important aspect of becoming the ideal hospitality leader. You must possess this spirit of optimism and passion for hospitality, especially in the time of a global pandemic because of how vulnerable our industry is compared to others. Having to shift from large in-person events to virtual events will take patience and optimism in order to excel anywhere else as a leader in the future. Being able to overlook the negatives of an industry experiencing a pandemic will allow time for an ideal leader in hospitality to network, time manage, and express their creativity in order to create the best experiences possible in a time like this.
Career Goals
My career goal, as a whole, is to be working at a company (or at my own) that I am proud to be apart of and go to every day. I want to be able to sustain a life where I can travel, support a family and pets, live in San Diego, and be able to spend my money towards things that make me happy. My ideal job would be a place where I can express my creative personality in a way where it can create happiness and beautiful experiences for others. Before college I didn't think it was possible to work a job for the rest of your life that you are happy with, but as I have gone through college, I have realized that I am very capable of starting my own company in order to promote my creativity exactly how I want, while generating a generous profit. In a perfect world, and as a person who loves attending events as much as planning them, the ideal company would allow me to simultaneously live the best of both worlds. Although it doesn't exist, the premise would be planning events, but also being able to attend them under the official title: "Party Animal". Being able to part take in the fun and get paid for it? Would who want anything else?
Long
Term
Career: A-List Celebrity Party Planner
As a twenty year old college student, I am always staying up to date on the latest trends and with social media being a large part of my life, I see what these celebrities are longing for on my phone everyday. I could impress these celebrities by taking these ideas, and building upon them using my creativity, superior expressive service, and networking in order to deliver the VIP experience to the most elite in the world.
5 Years
Post Grad
Career: Assistant Wedding Planner
Five years post graduation, I would be more than happy to join a well established wedding planning company in order to truly learn the ins and outs of the event planning industry. With the wedding industry being notorious for one of the most stressful environments to work in, my plan is to experience a career as crazy as this one and use it to my advantage. Being able to to transfer my learned skills from an extremely stressful environment and apply them to a lower scale, self-owned event planning company will help me to be prepared for what to expect.
Short
Term
Position: Event Planning Internship
By May 2022, I would be most interested in landing an internship where I can gain valuable event planning experience. Although internships are a bit more difficult to earn right now with coronavirus, I still believe that doing an internship in college is the most ideal since it is the only time in my life where gaining experience is more essential than a paycheck.
3
College
Goals
1. I will join a industry association committee.
2. I will travel the world to gain experience.
3. I will apply all the information I have learned about netoworking.
Section 2: Reflections
Simulation
The digital experience simulation was a great opportunity for my team members and me to collaborate and work on our leadership competencies together. We came together and hosted a Holiday Hot Cocoa Night, where we demonstrated how to make homemade hot cocoa. I believe a strength of mine during the simulation was my adaptability. Before the simulation, a team member I was supposed to present with tested positive for Covid-19. I showed strength through my willingness to assume additional responsibility by volunteering to do the demonstration alone in order to help everyone on the team. During the simulation, my audio cut out and I was unable to hear anything and nobody could hear me either. After about a minute, I realized the issue; but at that point, I no longer had the ability to fix the issue. At first, I began to panic and show weakness when I let my nerves get the best of me. This led me to come across as unprofessional and unprepared to the attendees. My group was able to come together to find the quickest, easiest solution: I demonstrated visually and my teammates handled narrating and answering any questions from the crowd. I am also proud that I was able to put on a brave face and continue leading the rest of the event, despite being in a state of panic.
If I were to take part in a second simulation I would try to improve my confidence. Even though the industry observer didn't take note of this, I could feel my voice and hands shaking while presenting, which caused me to shift my focus periodically. If I were to go into my event with a higher level of confidence and preparation, I believe I could have overall created a better experience for everyone involved.
My Perception and the Perception of Others
My fall 2020 semester was much different from any other semester I have experienced at San Diego State. Trying to earn a degree in order to enter the events industry in the time of a global pandemic can be extremely discouraging. I have had to accept that this might be the world we are still living in when I'm in the begining of my career.
Over the last few months, I have been continually improving myself in order to do so. Compared to previous semesters, I assumed a lot more responsibility and leadership roles. As a team member, I was able to not only take but also allocate responsibility to my fellow teammates. This really got the project started, and my teammates were grateful that I was willing to make that first step. As somebody who usually waits until I am instructed to do something in group projects, this opportunity allowed me venture out into a position that entails additional responsibility. It experienced a new, exhilirating rush of emotions post-event that I had never experienced before. I believe knowing I was a lot of the reason why our event was a success led to me being even more content when I was able to reflect on it and be proud of the work that had been done.
I long to continue this journey of improvement as I go into my last three semesters with the Payne School. Throughout this semester, I learned a few helpful tips and tricks on success from my mentor, Mackenzie. Whenever I was in a time of doubt, I was able to rely on my mentor for any clarification or advice. I was able to plan out my remianing three semesters better based on what route she had followed. Being able to see somebody so similar to me find success and happiness with the same degree I am currently working for was extremely motivating.
Section 3: Competency Assessment
Business Savvy Competencies
People Savvy Competencies
Self Savvy Competencies
Section 4: Development Activity Ideas
Summary of Competency Assessment
Develop Activity Ideas
Kaleidoscope Development Activity
Title: Join an industry association’s committee at San Diego State.
Background:
I believe this activity will be extremely helpful for achieving my desired career. By joining an industry association’s committee, I will be networking and forming strong connections with those involved in the hospitality industry. These organizations provide extensive opportunities to become further involved at school. This is also a great opportunity to build my resume and show to my future employers that I am involved with. The hospitality industry is a competition, and this would give me the means to compete.
Description:
The first phase of my leadership activity will be to research all available industry organizations for me to join. I want to ensure I am joining an organization that fits my interests and promotes productivity and self-development. I want to feel well acquainted with the organization I chose, so in this phase, I want to network with the fellow members. The second phase is to become an active member of the organization by running for a board position. If I win my position, in phase three, I will use my position of leadership to organize events (social mixers or fundraisers) in an effort to gain first-hand experience. In phase four I want to host a more sophisticated event with a guest of some sort.
Success Indicators:
At the end of the project, I will gauge the level of success I have by evaluating the outcomes of my efforts. If I am able to proudly say I am an active member of an organization that promotes my success in the hospitality industry, I would consider that a success.
Timeline:
