Looking back at AIPT

Below is a copy of an article on AL RIVERA that was published on Philstar.com. It's long, so I just took snippets of it to give you a glimpse of the program that brought me to the St. Louis Marriott Downtown in Missouri. I'm so thankful that I got to be a part of that. I can definitely say that it was a learning experience for me...in more ways than one:) I encourage you all to check out the AIPT (Association for International Practical Training).

The article is a long read, but a good one. Yan ang Pinoy!

Al Rivera: Proud to be Filipino
People Asia Magazine 09/08/2005

Al Rivera, the director of Food and Beverage at The JW Marriott Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue, has founded a training and exchange program that has enabled Filipino hoteliers and artisans to train and work in various Marriott hotels in the US and UK. In doing so, he has not only given them jobs; he has given them recognition.
With everything that has happened and is happening in our country, a common question has been tossed to and fro: Is being Filipino still cause for pride? Some just take the national situation with as much cynicism as possible, choosing to bicker and complain. Some have chosen to remain indifferent. But there are still some out there, like international hotel executive Al Rivera, who trusts so much in the Filipino, his strengths and potentials, that he does everything to give as many of them a chance to live their dreams.

Al Rivera is the director of Food and Beverage at The JW Marriott Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington D.C. (the flagship hotel of Marriott International), which is located just two blocks away from the White House. He graduated from San Beda College with a major in Banking and Finance. He began his career as a room service manager at Loews Anatole, Dallas and was promoted to banquet manager. He joined Marriott in 1983 and has been there ever since, holding various positions like catering manager at Dallas Marriott Quorum and food and beverage manager at Marriott Miami Airport.

---

Rivera is an inspiration to Filipinos striving to reach the top of the ladder of the glamorous and high-earning senior executive level of management in any given industry.

One way he expressed pride in the Filipino was by starting and implementing an AIPT (Association for International Practical Training) program within the Marriott group. AIPT is a designated sponsor of the J-1 visa for the Exchange Visitor Program. Through this program, candidates from the Philippines are allowed to train in a Marriott Hotel in the States for several months, where they gain invaluable experience and training that serve them well when they return to the country.

Al Rivera has worked diligently with AIPT to develop training plans for its program participants and to ensure that each participant receives quality on-the-job training experience at the Marriott Hotel Properties. For the last 10 years, Al has hired Filipinos from major Philippine hotels. He usually selects college graduates of a four-year Hotel and Restaurant Management course or college students with two years of hotel experience. He has also managed to hire kitchen artists from Paete, Laguna for 18 months of training and development at different major Marriott Hotels in the US.

Ten years into the implementation of the program, Rivera was able to send 265 Filipinos to different Marriott Hotels in the US, training in all different departments. He visits the Philippines once a year and conducts interviews in the ballroom of the Century Park Hotel. The screening lasts for two and a half weeks, after which the final selections are announced. The chosen candidates are given a designated hotel, state and date of departure, which takes place 90 days from the date of selection.

Every year, there are some 500 to 550 applicants who are all eager, anxious and excited to qualify for this program. The chosen participants are provided training pay and, when needed, financial advances for the AIPT fee, plane tickets and three months advancement for apartment rental, all of which are payable on a weekly payroll deduction during 90 days of training.

His staff maintains that if you have gone through an interview with him, "you will never be the same… You will be able to interview anywhere else with a boatload of confidence."

--

Every year, when he goes to Manila to play in golf tournaments, he accepts guest speaker invitations from schools like De La Sane, St. Scholastica, FEU, St. Paul's and OB Montessori, to showcase the hotel industry and to encourage the youth to continue living their dreams. Is the Filipino still worth being proud of? Everyone has a different answer to that question. But if you ask people like Al Rivera, with all the effort they have placed on emphasizing and highlighting what we can do as a people, that question seems like a crazy one to ask.

*****

The interview process really was no joke. During my batch, the very first step was a panel interview in front of 250+ fellow applicants. It was nerve wracking to be one of the first to go up, but I think it was better than going last. Towards the end, your answers no longer seem original and it was more difficult to get a response from the crowd. The whole experience was great though. Going through three stages of interviews built character! Anxiety, too, but character nonetheless!

And of course, the 18 months in St Louis was a blast! It was hard work most of the time, but it taught me a lot about working in the real world, dealing with other people, management, and about myself (what I can do, cannot do...and SHOULD NOT do! hahahahaha). I also met some of the most interesting, most colorful people. I made friends who will always stay near and dear to my heart. I think one of the best benefits was GROWING UP.

Learning to live on my own was a challenge. But it was also after the whole STL stint that I realized I couldn't live without the certain someone whose faith in me and our relationship remained fast and strong...no matter what. Long story, but what's important was the happy ending! I love you, John!