Estrella Maillet and Wilfried, intern at the Hotel De Crillon © TD

Since the beginning of 2021 we are pleased to have signed a partnership with the Institute of Management and Hotel Management of Abidjan (IMGH). IMGH is a private teaching centre created in 1999 in the Ivory Coast which is now recognised as a national reference in hospitality and pastry training. As such, Talent Developer is committed to training, coaching and placing students who have just graduated from the institute and from various programmes related to the hotel and restaurant industry to enable them to gain skills in France. 

At the end of last year, we received a new application from our partners in the person of Wilfried, a student in the hospitality industry at IMGH. Having just graduated from a BT specialising in housekeeping, he asked us to help him gain skills by accompanying him in his search for an internship in France. The Talent Developer teams got to know him online during a videoconference interview and had the pleasure of meeting a smiling, dynamic and very curious young man. He told us that his lifelong dream was to come and do an internship in Paris, so our teams decided to help him in this undertaking and then accompanied him in the search for the most suitable company in Paris. We also put him in contact with our partners to help him with all the necessary steps to come to France (Visa, insurance…) During the first interview, we had the pleasure of discovering Wilfried in a black dinner jacket and bow tie, his posture and stature immediately reminded us of the style of our Parisian Palaces. 

In March 2022, Wilfried started his internship at the Crillon Hotel, a mythical Parisian Palace nestled on the Place de la Concorde (Paris 1st), a few steps away from our offices. As part of our services, the Talent Developer teams also undertake to follow the students in the company by organising two on-site visits. It was during the last internship visit, as the end of his period in the company approached, that Wilfried agreed to be interviewed by our founder, Estrella.  

Here are the main points that you can also find in video format here 

Wilfried in training at the Hotel De Crillon in Paris © TD
Wilfried in training at the Hotel De Crillon in Paris © TD

Did the internship meet your expectations?  

Yes, and even perfectly! I wanted to discover the top-of-the-range French hotel industry and I am lucky enough to be doing my internship in one of the most beautiful hotels in the world, where I am learning the procedures to follow for the smooth running of the entire hotel.  I am working in the linen department, a department that I did not know at all and of which I had no idea of the importance or scale in a hotel. It’s a department that I really like more and more. All the teams welcomed me very well and integrated me as soon as I arrived. Recently, the hotel organised a cocktail party to thank all the trainees and apprentices in the hotel. Some of us were nominated by the hotel for the quality of our work and I was pleased to discover that I was one of the selected ones and to understand that my work was recognised here too. It was an internship that I will not forget and which has given me a lot both personally and professionally. I am very happy to be able to do my internship in a Parisian palace, without Talent Developer this would not have been possible. Their team believed in me and I thank them for giving me this opportunity.  

Can you tell me a little more about your job?  

I’m in charge of the linen room and more specifically of managing the linen stock. I sort and store the staff’s linen. We are responsible for the image of the hotel, as all departments that deal with guests wear the uniforms we take care of. Within the department we also have a laundry wing for guests’ clothes. We deal with very wealthy clients who want a very high quality service and who drop off exceptional fabrics and designs. In fact, we even have a corner reserved entirely for embroidery and sewing if our clients’ clothes need it. Before arriving at the Crillon I knew nothing about this sector, I discovered when I arrived that it was a very important position within the hotel which requires rigour and a lot of seriousness. 

How did you hear about Talent Developer?  

Talent Developer has been in partnership with my school in Abidjan for some time and many of my fellow students have already been accompanied to do an internship in France. Some of my former classmates have spoken very highly of it. My school selected my profile and presented it to the Talent Developer teams, who offered me an online interview.  Once my application was validated, Estrella took the time to train me and prepare me for the interviews. It wasn’t easy to find a company that would accept me because of my lack of experience.  But Talent Developer helped me in all the steps, from the beginning to my arrival in France and even since!  

How would you describe the customer experience offered by Talent Developer?  

Estrella and Philippine are very attentive and very present to help us when we arrive in Paris and throughout our placement.  When I started at the Crillon, there were certain points in the internal regulations which were not clear to me, I mentioned them to Talent Developer and Philippine welcomed me into the offices to explain the rules of the establishment to me point by point. So I was able to respect the rules and do my best every day. Since then, I’ve wanted to continue my training in France and it was Estrella who helped me to find a sandwich course and to get in touch with the partners to renew my visa.  

Any last words?  

I would like to thank Talent Developer for allowing me to do my internship at the Hotel De Crillon and for allowing me to increase my skills in the hotel industry in general but mainly in housekeeping. I would also like to recommend to all students who wish to improve and develop their skills in the hotel sector to use the services of Talent Developer… It could change their lives, as it has changed mine!  

If you too would like to be accompanied by Talent Developer and carry out an internship in Paris, don’t hesitate to get in touch here! 

Article written by Talent Developer