SITTTVL003 - Provide advice on Australian destinations

Unit code:SITTTVL003Study level:TAFE

Nominal hours

Location

Footscray Nicholson

Prerequisites

(Or equivalent to be determined by unit coordinator)
Co-requisites
(Corequisite units must be studied concurrently with this unit)

Overview

This unit describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to source and provide customer information and advice relating to Australian destinations and their features. It requires the ability to identify appropriate information sources and research destinations in order to develop and update a general destination knowledge base.
Domestic destinations and their features can include any sold by a travel organisation. Travel operators in Australia, such as travel agents, tour wholesalers and inbound tour operators, would cover multiple Australian destinations. Visitor information centres and some tour operators would specialise in one region.
The breadth and depth of destination knowledge required will vary according to the industry sector, workplace and job role. This unit is not about having an in-depth knowledge of every destination but focuses on the ability to collect and interpret destination information.The unit applies to frontline sales and operations personnel who operate with some level of independence and under limited supervision. This includes visitor information officers, travel consultants, tour operations coordinators, inbound tour coordinators and reservations sales agents.

Assessment

For Melbourne campuses

Assessment tasks will be designed to reinforce & extend knowledge and skill competence within set & controlled parameters in accordance with each units learning outcomes & performance criteria requirements, including the setting of work based practical application tasks designed to provide evidence of competence outcomes, within periodic and scheduled timelines.

Students will be expected to demonstrate the following required skills:

provide tailored information to meet the requests of at least three different customers of different customer types or demographics
for each of the above customers, provide current, relevant and accurate information on at least five different features of two different Australian tourism destinations
obtain above information by accessing at least three different information sources from the following list:

computerised reservations systems (CRS)
destination and product libraries
global distribution systems (GDS)
internet
organisation-designed information systems
principal or supplier information
regional tourism office information systems
state and federal government tourism authority information systems

complete above activities within commercial time constraints and deadlines determined by the customer or organisation.

Students will also be expected to demonstrate the following knowledge:

formal and informal research methods:

accessing and reading promotional information
accessing the internet
attending professional development activities
contact with other organisations
formal study
informal discussions with colleagues and customers
media

sources of information on regions and destinations and types of product offered
sources of information on current health and safety issues for the destination:

health advisory notices issued by the federal and state or territory government health departments
safety advisory information issued by federal and local police authorities and emergency service authorities

breadth and depth of Australian destinations including coverage of all Australian States and Territories, and the major regions and destinations therein
features of Australian destinations:

areas of environmental, social or cultural significance or sensitivity
cultural elements
facilities for customers with special needs
local facilities
major gateways for and transport networks within the region and destination:
airports
cruise ports
accommodation facilities
tourist attractions

formats and inclusions used to present information to customers, and styles that cater for those with special needs
different procedures for storing destination information.

Required reading

The qualified trainer and assessor will provide teaching and learning materials as required in the form of workbooks produced by Victoria University and/or via the Victoria University e-learning system.