Challenges in English Communication for Hospitality Receptionists at Sheraton Hotel

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the English communication challenges faced by hospitality receptionists at Sheraton Hotel Lombok and the strategies they used to overcome them. This study employed a descriptive qualitative research design, which was chosen to gain an in-depth understanding of the participants' real experiences and perspectives regarding English communication difficulties in their daily workplace interactions. The participants were eight receptionists working at the front desk of Sheraton Hotel Lombok, selected using purposive sampling to represent variations in age, gender, educational background, and years of work experience. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, each lasting approximately 30–45 minutes, and analyzed using thematic analysis following the six-phase framework developed by Braun and Clarke (2021). The findings revealed that the main challenges encountered were limited vocabulary, pronunciation and accent difficulties, and lack of confidence and fluency in speaking English. To address these challenges, the receptionists employed various communication strategies, including using simple English, employing body language and gestures, listening carefully to guests, politely asking guests to repeat information, practicing English regularly, and utilizing translation applications such as Google Translate. The findings have practical implications for English language training in the hospitality industry, suggesting that training programs should be designed to focus on situation-based communication, accent comprehension, and confidence-building activities rather than general English instruction alone. This study concludes that continuous English training and communication practice are essential for improving receptionists' communication skills and providing better service to international guests.