A Coded Interview Transcript

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Background

Nippon Student exchange package is a tour package developed by Nippon Gakusei travel agency. The company 's uniqueness is its positioning whereby it focuses on serving Japanese students from Japan travelling to Singapore for exchange programs. By offering an attractive package to Japanese students, they are more likely to engage the services of Nippon Gakusei travel agency. Attractive souvenirs made by hand are offered to them to make the exchange more memorable.

Due to the need to provide excellent service to the Japanese Students, there is a need to employ tour guide who can do the job well. Managers at Nippon Gakusei travel agency have to go through the normal HRM procedure of whether to recruit the tour guide internally through selection of tour guide among their existing staffs to recruit tour guide externally from a pool of free lancers. After a careful selection of tour guide, there is a need for the training of the tour guide selected in the operational aspect of the company. This is no easy feat as the coordination skill required by the tour guide is to manage three classes of students at any point of time.

The management at Nippon Gakusei travel agency is disappointed to learn that the number of school which subscribe to their travel packages has dropped significantly over the years. The Japanese economy cannot be attributed as a factor as the Japanese schools are given education grant for overseas exchange programme. This is bad news for the company's bottom line as less tour packages subscribed means less revenue.

1.2 Objective

Owl Sight Consultants, a well established external research company was brought into the picture to find out whether the root of the problems lies in the tour guide or the Japanese students. In essence, the researchers are to conduct interview on the tour guides on they conduct their tour and how the students respond to their method. The management of Nippon Gakusei travel agency are to obtain the findings from the external research company.

2.0 Data Analysis

2.1 Experience of the Current Tour Guides

Based on the interview conducted (Refer to Appendix A), it seems certainly that the freelance tour guides engaged by Nippon Gakusei travel agency has no shortage of experience. It can be inferred that due to their number of years in the industry, they are well equipped to be in the industry. The frequency of the tour group guided also showed that they do not lack regular practice. Hence the drop in student numbers subscribing to the tour packages of Nippon Gakusei travel agency cannot be attributed to the inexperience of the tour guides.

2.2 Guiding Method of the Current Tour Guides

Based