HELSINKI CONGRESS PAASITORNI - TIO PERIOD FIRST WEEK
- Sonja Blom
- Apr 8, 2018
- 3 min read
Updated: May 4, 2023
After the Easter holiday, our Tourism Industry Orientation - period started. My classmate Sara Näkki and I got a chance to do it at Helsinki Congress Paasitorni. Our class already works with them as brand ambassadors. Come and read how my first week went!
HELSINKI CONGRESS PAASITORNI
Paasitorni is a meeting and congress centre in Hakaniemi Helsinki. The original building is from 1908, but over the years it has been renovated. New parts have been built while maintaining the history of the building. Paasitorni offers nearly 30 meetings, parties, and event spaces for 8-800 persons. The complex includes five restaurants and a hotel with 170 rooms.
TOURISM INDUSTRY ORIENTATION
The aim of the Tourism industry orientation (TIO) month is to introduce students of the Tourism Bachelor program to the tourism industry and its operational environment through practical work.
FIRST WEEK IN PAASITORNI
FIRST DAY
The first week of TIO started on Tuesday after the Easter holiday. Our journey from Porvoo to Helsinki began early in the morning. After arriving in Paasitorni, we met with the CEO Osku Pajamäki. We have many interesting opportunities during the month, for example, we go to the Kongressi fair to learn more about event management and see the latest news in the industry. We also get to help with show and dine "Lihakauppias Jussi Tuominen - Helsingin punainen kaupunginjohtaja 1918" - which is held in Graniittilinna. We also have an opportunity to learn more about marketing, sales, customer feedback, cloakroom service, and meeting services in Paasitorni. We also do several assignments for Paasitorni while we are here. So it is going to be a very exciting month!
After lunch, we started to walk around the complex and get to know the meeting rooms they offer. Paasitorni has various rooms in different sizes for many occasions. Some of them are more historical, and some are more modern. We also heard many stories about the house and its history. After walking around Paasitorni we went to the Scandic Paasi Hotel to see their new and improved interior. The theme of the hotels is based on the circus that used to be on the spot in the 1900th century.
SECOND DAY
On our second day, we met all of the sales employees. We learned about sales, collecting customer feedback, how to make sure that customer is happy, and the basics of marketing. In the afternoon, we had time to plan our assignments and write our blogs.
THIRD DAY
On our third day, we got a lecture from Kati Kosonen the Marketing and Quality Manager in Paasitorni. She told us how Paasitorni, restaurants, hotels, and other services are marketed. She also told us how they market on social media, with newsletters, at fairs, and at public events. We learned about their competitors, their partners, and who is responsible for different aspects of marketing. We also learned about the history of marketing in Paasitorni and what kind of plans they have. Paasitorni has joined ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) which offers many new possibilities in the international markets. After lunch, we went through our assignments at the Kongressi fair and which panels and lectures we are going to go to listen to. Then we had an opportunity to attend a staff meeting. The next day we will see how meeting services work.
FOURTH DAY
On our fourth day, our day started with orientation to meeting services. Their job is to welcome guests, maintain the cloakroom, guide customers to meeting rooms, make sure the technology is working, keep up with the general appearance of the complex, and make sure that the rooms are ready for customers. All of them have a different range of responsibilities, such as property maintenance. In the afternoon we started to organize customer information. It has been a very exciting first week here in Paasitorni and I can not wait to see what the rest of the time will offer!
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