THE CON TRÂU TIMES Issue 9 - Sep 2011
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Inside This Issue
THE CON TRÂU TIMES
1. Joining the Buffalo Family 2. Staff of the Month 3. Our trip did change the people 4. Team up for World Class Service 5. Tour Guide Training in BT Laos 6. English Lessons at Mai Chau Lodge 7. Update from Thien Minh Group: Mai Chau Rock climbing 8. Tips for writing: 3 Ways to Tighten Your Writing 9. Feedback on what members of staff have been doing 10. Birthdays and Anniversaries
Joining Buffalo tours Tip of t he mont h “Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship. The act that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth.” Peter F. Drucker
Ms. Beverley Taylor – Marketing Director – BT Hanoi Ms. Le Thi Quyen – Travel Consultant – BTA Hanoi Ms. Tran Thi Thuy Nga – Travel Consultant – BTA Hanoi Ms. Le Thi Nhung – Travel Consultant – BTA Hanoi Mr. Nguyen Pham Ha Minh- Operation Executive - BT Saigon Branch Ms. Panumas Leksuk - Sales Executive – BT Thailand Welcome to the Buffalo Tours team! Please join us in congratulating our new staff members on their positions at Buffalo Tours. We look forward to working with them in the future!
Changing Position Ms. Marie-Anne Palces – Moved from Online Sales to become Product and Business Development Manager at BTA Hanoi Ms. Phung Thu Huong - Moved from BT Laos to become Online Sales Team Leader
Leaving Buffalo Tours Ms. Nong Thi Ngan - Airport Representative – BT Hanoi Ms. Ta Thi Tham - Operation Executive - BT Saigon Branch Thank you for your contributions to Buffalo Tours and we wish you success in the future!
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August 2011 STAFF OF THE MONTH – august Ms. Tran Thi Bich Thuy – Team Leader VET Team - BT Hanoi The Outstanding Customer Service Award of the Month has gone to Thuy. I am deeply impressed by Thuy’s passion for her work and her collaborative leadership style that inspires teamwork and VET team consistently exceeds budget every month and no doubt the year end budget is well on target. Thuy spared no effort and escorted new prospect client, the International Student Organisation to Sapa to showcase them what Buffalo Tours has to offer. The client was extremely satisfied so much so that they signed up partnership with us and preparation work is well under way for their upcoming groups sending our way. You are a star, Thuy Ms. Nguyen Vo Ngoc Chau – Travel Consultant – BTA Saigon Congratulate Chau, She has received the award of outstanding customer service. We often receive excellent feedback from Chau’s clients. She often receives client gifts and client pictures after finishing tours booked by her, which demonstrates their satisfaction. Moreover, Chau has put a lot of efforts in improving her time management, has developed Travel Consultant Manuals with clear and useful information to help them offer a better service. Chau is a very steady and loyal team member, and offers an attentive and dedicated service to her clients.
Ms. Tran Thanh Loan – Agent Sale Executive - BT Hanoi Congratulations on your award for Best Sales Consultant of the Month, Loan!!! She has consistently demonstrated her excellent customer service and communication skills. Our Sydney team always finds Loan a delight to work with as she is extremely efficient with turnaround time and great with suggesting suitable products and ideas for clients. I am very grateful for Loan’s big help taking over reporting and invoicing responsibilities while her team leader was away on maternity leave. Loan and her team exceeded July budget by 153% with actual revenue of $153K. Way to go, Loan!and Laik! People are our most valuable resource! Nominate someone you think deserves recognition – someone who truly shines!
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THE CON TRĂ‚U TIMES
Our trip
did change people
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As an annual activity, August 2011, Buffalo Tours staff together with 12 doctors, nurses and students from Seattle Community Colleges as well as doctors from many central hospitals in Vietnam once again headed out to Mai Chau for the 5th Medical Trek (the first one was made in 2007). The Medical Trek this year (Vietnam Village Trek 2011) was no doubt another great success while the whole team did provide health check and medicine for nearly 2000 people in Mai Chau. We all did enjoy our one week in Mai Chau so much. Check out the sharing below from Nicole (IVIVU) about her experience on the medical trek. “Participating in the Buffalo tours medical trek was one of my most memorable experiences for many years, and I hope to participate in similar treks to follow. I was constantly amazed at the beauty of both the
surroundings of Mai Chau as well as the people I encountered during that week. The Buffalo tours volunteers, doctors, as well as those participants who had flown over from America were all such hardworking, generous, warm spirited people and I hope to stay in contact with many of them. The local villagers who have so little were so welcoming, full of smiles and so appreciative of the assistance we were giving them. There were so many little children who touched my heart with their sweet loving, natures and beautiful smiles. It was such a rewarding experience to feel like I have made a difference to people’s lives no matter how small it may be. Written by: Ms. Tran Thi Bich Thuy- VET Team Leader - BT Hanoi
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E C I V R E S S
THE CON TRÂU TIMES
S P A U L C G N D I L M TEA FOR WOR
T
he newest star among the galaxy of hotels of Indochina, Xiengthong Palace situated in the living heritage city of Lauang Prabang is in the making of a 5 star boutique hotel to provide ultimate in luxury amidst tranquility to the discerning traveller. Nestled between most revered Wat Xiengthong and the great Mekong River, Thien Minh group’s latest addition managed by Jetwing Indochina is gearing to provide an unparallel level of customer care. In its bid “To be world class” as the vision statement says the management and all associates got themselves engaged in a full day of ‘Team Building’ at Santi Resort in Luang Prabang. The day started with singing the national anthem of Laos followed by a session of meditation to calm the minds and introducing the organization behind Thien Minh, the new associates have recently got engaged with. The day started with some speculation as it was the first time most recruits were to experience a proper experiential training program. Commencing action with a ‘trust fall’ activities followed with numerous games that taught them importance of sharing &
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supporting, planning, importance of proper communication, strategizing a plan, speed, competitiveness, integrity, enjoying work, customer care and importantly belongingness to their workplace. The program was ably supported by Ms. Phung Thu Huong of BT Laos who led the activities that brought much fun to the associates whilst explaining learning points each game provided. Xiengthong Palace will open for business on 12th October and a promotional soft opening rate will continue till 15th November. Sales enquiries reservation.xtp@jetwingindochina.com Written by: Mr. Kumar Senaratne –CEO – Jetwing Indochina
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THE CON TRÂU TIMES
Buffalo Tours Laos Guide
Training
O
n 24-25th Sept 2011 Bt Laos provided GUIDE TRAINING at office meeting room with 12 participants including our full time and freelance guides. The training was conducted internally and we have managed to cover Buffalo Tours overviews which introduced key people in the company, BT standard guidelines and FIRST AID training Our aim is to provide and refresh our guides in term of Bt-Culture, Internal communication, customer services and HOW TO BE EXCELLENT GUDIES. During the training, we have shared lots experiences- it began from a simple step of personal attitude and behavior concern to the language and knowledge exchanged of the region. BT Laos team believed that, these two days course it has been absorbed through our guides and we trust they will try to do great Customer services in coming high season. Words from our guides: Mr. Somboun ‘’ The two days guide training course, I have gained lots of experiences, new knowledge from Management team and colleagues especially, Guiding technique and skills and it was also very good that we were able to shared different experiences and build the good relationship between colleagues ‘’. Mr. Somchanh ‘’ After 2 days training I have been aware of my weak points and what I have to improve in order to be qualified as an excellent guides. In these two days, I had such a great time and being able to learn and share the knowledge from different guides, especially I learned a lot of how to deliver a great presentation towards my clients. Written by: Mr. Touy Syhalath - Operations Manager - BT Laos
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English Lessons
at Mai Chau Lodge Over the past few months, food has not been the only item on the educational menu. Since August, Mai Chau Lodge has had its very own resident guest English teacher. Catherine Deluz, a native speaker from Canada, has been working to improve the hotel’s standard of English for the last few weeks. All new comers and tour guiding staff joined the class .They have received at least 5 lessons a week. As well she is conducting lessons for the students in the village and a kids camp at local junior secondary school. The classes that range from complete beginner to intermediate cover a wide array of topics, from basic conversation and introductions to specialised courses for each department. Catherine Deluz has provided the staff with intensive training in both pronunciation and conversational skills since she actually speaks no Vietnamese at all! Written by: Mr. Hijaaz – General Manager – Mai Chau Lodge
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THE CON TRĂ‚U TIMES
Mai Chau Rock Climbing
Existing Development and Route Descriptions
M
ai Chau Valley has the potential for hundreds of high quality rock climbing activities from beginner to expert, and if developed, could be the premier inland climbing area for Vietnam. The beautiful, massive, grey cave at the top of the hill above Mai Chau Lodge is the closest and best cliff in the area. Other than that, there are numerous orange and brown cliffs in the immediate area. Also, down the valley twenty minutes to half an hour away are a number of basic road-side cliffs covered in pockets, radical stalactites and features. Many of these areas, as is the case with much South East Asian limestone, will hold more intermediate and expert than beginner climbs.
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However, these cliffs are so visually interesting and aesthetic that any beginner climbs on these cliffs would be a very attractive option for The Mai Chau Lodge to develop. The cliff already developed will suffice for a small top-roping operation, but will soon become boring for the guides or any repeat customers. (There is currently enough for one afternoon of climbing per person). More climbs can be mined from the cliff if hundreds of square meters of cliff are cleared of trees, but the surrounding cliffs are already clear, and boast better and much more aesthetic rock climbing. These cliffs, especially the grey cave up on the hill, will be critical to developing Mai Chau Valley as a real rock climbing destination, which it definitely has the potential to be.
THE CON TRÂU TIMES
The cliff is a beautiful ten minute motorbike ride from the Mai Chau Lodge to Lan Bo Nhum through the rice fields and over the valley river. A couple minutes off the main road on an unimproved dirt road brings you to the cliff. An easy fifty meter approach brings you right to the bottom of the cliff, in a small farm. The cliff sports six unique climbs from low-intermediate (5.7) to moderately difficult (5.10b). Don’t forget to take a look around when you’re at the top! In June 2011 Matt Raue and Jo Bulmer arrived at Mai Chau Lodge (The Lodge) to assess the cliff and vet the possible local rock climbing staff. During that trip they bolted and cleaned one route. The potential rock climbing staff at The Lodge also got to climb the route, learned how to belay each other and properly tie in to the climbing rope. Jo and Matt returned in mid August 2011 to continue developing the cliff for the purposes of guided rock climbing out of The Lodge. On their second trip five more rock climbs went up, which constitutes the remaining available easier climbs on that section of open cliff. More potential routes exist above the climbs already developed on the flatter, grey rock, which will be expert-level. Also, the large, over-grown area of cliff to the left of the developed routes may have climbs under the trees, but would have to be cleared and bolted. The approach and cliff base would also need to be cleared to further develop the area. These new climbs could range from beginner to expert, but this cannot be determined until the cliff is cleaned. Written by: Mr. Hijaaz Latheef – GM Operation –Mai Chau
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THE CON TRÂU TIMES
3 Ways to Tighten Your Writing Writing today—a report, memo, or email—must be short if you want people to read it. But succinctly expressing yourself can be tough. Here are three ways to trim your writing and say what you want in fewer words: • Refine it. Take a hard look at the structure of your writing. Only include sections that are necessary to support your points. • Consider an informal tone. Just because you’re writing a report doesn’t mean you need to be formal. Writing like a bureaucrat makes you use longer words and a complicated sentence structure. Adopting a more informal tone often helps you be direct and concise. • Cut and then cut more. Look over your document sentence by sentence. If a sentence doesn’t serve an important purpose, get rid of it. Sources: Harvard Business Review
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FEEDBACK ON
WHAT OUR STAFF MEMBERS HAVE BEEN DOING
THE CON TRÂU TIMES
Dear all, Here there are the feelings of my friends and myself about our tour through Vietnam with Buffalotours. I visited Vietnam with a group of 8 people from the 31st to the 16th of August.Vietnam is an amazing country and I recommend everybody to visit it! Ms Trinh Hao organized our tour. We communicated by email very easily as she replied to the email very quickly (I can’t say the same thing about myself...). She perfectly organized our tour, meeting our needs with attention to the costs. The organization was indeed perfect and we didn’t run into any problems. Moreover, she promptly changed the itinerary because of the bad weather, thus allowing us to visit all the places we decided to see. The tour guides were very skilled. We especially had had a very good time with Mr Nguyen Hai who spent with us the first week in Sapa and Halong bay. He was very professional but we also appreciated the human factor. In the last day, we really enjoyed also the city tour with Cuong. Overall, we are very satisfied about our trip. Hotels, meals and transportation exceeded our expectations and the price was very good value. Therefore we would recommend Buffalo for travelling in Vietnam. Thanks and ... hope to see you again. Best Regards Cecilia”
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&Anniversaries
B ir th d a y s THE CON TRÂU TIMES
Birthdays: Pham Thi Dien Nguyen Minh Thang Rosalie Berghuis Laila Saengsuwan Ha Thi Thao Ta Thi Tuyet Huong Tu Tuyet Mai Kong Sokthin Nguyen Thi Thanh Truc Nguyen Manh Hung Pham Thi Thuy Ha Thi Hong Nhung Nguyen Thi Phuong Thuy Kritmanee Ratanaphaisal Sarah Griffin Tran Xuan Dan Nguyen Thi Thanh Hai Nguyen Vo Ngoc Chau
Oct 1st Oct 1st Oct 1st Oct 5th Oct 6th Oct 13th Oct 14th Oct 15th Oct 16th Oct 16th Oct 16th Oct 17th Oct 22th Oct 24th Oct 27th Oct 30th Oct 30th Oct 31th
VET Team – BT Hanoi Tour Guide – BT Hanoi Pattya Branch Manager – BT Thailand Operations Executive – BT Thailand GR Executive Cashier – Cho Lon Tours Guide - Cholon Tours Operations Executives – BT Combodia Assistant Branch Manager cum HR Executive -SG Office IT Technician GR Executive Chief Accountant – BT Hanoi Marketing Assistant Sales Team Leader – BT Thailand Regional Director - BT Australia Tour Guide – BT Hanoi Legal Officer Travel Consultant- BTA Sai Gon
Anniversaries: Luu Thao Ly – Operation Executive - Completing 1 year of service Cao Thi Minh Ngoc - GR Executive - Completing 4 years of service Do Thanh Phuoc -Tour Guide - Completing 4 years of service Huynh Thi Thu Men – Travel Consultant - Completing 3 years of service Yuwadee Laovechprasit - Purchasing Executive BT Thailand - Completing 1 year of service Atithlady Latsavath– Accountant BT Laos - Completing 3 years of service Chipseng Thor – Volunteer Project Coordinator - Completing 2 years of service
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