GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Ministry of Social Protection –

Guyanese receptionists need “intensive training” according to Phillipa Morrish President of Etiquette Training International.

Morrish reasoned that since receptionists are the “faces of businesses” they should be versed in the conventions of etiquette and protocol as Guyana prepares for a boom in the tourism sector.

“No one gets a second chance to make a first impression” Morrish said to strengthen her call for a sustained training programme for Guyanese receptionists.

The recent one-day seminar was a collaborative effort between the Social Protection Ministry and the Sonia Noel Foundation under the theme ‘Grooming Tomorrow’s Leaders’ which was conceived to help locals in the hospitality sector to “project confidence in every area of their lives”

Morrish reasoned that being au fait with the rules of etiquette and protocol will elevate their image internationally. “I want Guyanese to be at a level where they are looked up to rather than (looked) down on,” Morrish said.

She argued that “unless we know what tourists need at every level we (as a nation) wouldn’t make it,” as the only English-speaking territory in South America.

Part of the curriculum for the one-day etiquette programme included: how to enter a room; ensuring there is closure with one’s entrance and exit; the sociology of handshaking; the rules of introduction in social and business contexts; correct posture of males and females for standing; how ladies should enter and exit a vehicle and ascending and descending a flight of stairs.