Star, a human capability development company headquartered in Riyadh, has announced a strategic partnership with global hospitality group Hilton, that combines their expertise in human capability development and global hospitality excellence to nurture the next generation of Saudi hospitality professionals.

The collaboration combines Star's expertise in human capability development with Hilton's globally recognized hospitality standards to create comprehensive learning and development opportunities for Saudi professionals. 

Its offerings are designed for professionals at every stage of their career - from those entering the sector through to supervisors, managers, executives, and senior leaders - ensuring that development is continuous and available at every level of the organisation, said the Saudi group in a statement.

As part of the agreement, the duo will jointly develop and deliver a range of training, certification, and professional development initiatives. 

The partnership agreement was signed at The Hotel Galleria Jeddah, Curio Collection by Hilton, by Salman S. Gasim, Chief Executive Officer of Star, and Marwan Fadel, Regional Human Resources Director for Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Bahrain at Hilton.

Among the first programmes to be launched is the Certified Hospitality Department Trainer (CHDT) certification from the American Hotel and Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI), which will provide Saudi hospitality professionals with the skills to design, deliver and evaluate departmental training programmes. 

By strengthening internal training capabilities, the certification is expected to elevate service standards and foster a culture of continuous learning across hospitality teams.

Further initiatives, reaching from operational roles to leadership and executive development, will be introduced over the course of the partnership.

On the key initiative, Gasim said: "Star has spent over a decade building the people behind this sector. That experience has taught us that real capability is built deliberately, at every level, and over time. In Hilton we have found a partner whose standards match our own ambition for Saudi hospitality.”

“Together we are equipping a generation of national talent, from the frontline to the boardroom, to lead the sector's future,” he added.

By developing Saudi cadres across all levels, the partnership directly supports the national talent development and localisation goals set out in Saudi Vision 2030, and reinforces the Kingdom's ambition to build a world class tourism and hospitality sector powered by its own people.

The signing ceremony brought together senior leadership from both organisations to mark the beginning of a long term collaboration focused on building Saudi capability at scale.-TradeArabia News Service