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INDUSTRY CONNECTION: FOUR RPTA STUDENTS CHOSEN TO SHADOW PFK CONSULTING VP BRUCE BALTIN

By Kalli Sandberg (RPTA '13), Staff Writer

Through the CSU Hospitality Management Education Initiative's "Adopt-A-Campus" program, Bruce Baltin, the Vice President of PFK Consulting in Los Angeles, has visited Cal Poly two times in the last two years. He was so impressed that he decided to give back and offered to treat students to a job "shadow" experience at PFK. During his last visit to Cal Poly, he coordinated with officers of Rho Phi Lambda, RPTA's honor society, to hold interviews for their members to go through a professional interview selection process.

Four RPTA honors students were chosen: junior Amy Lepp, seniors Lara Choma and Nika Jalali, and graduate student Tyson Stockton. At the start of Winter Quarter, these four students traveled to Los Angeles to shadow Baltin for a day.

Upon arrival in Los Angeles, the four RPTA students received exceptional hospitality, staying in a room on the executive floor of the Grand Wilshire Hotel, and enjoying a beautiful afternoon in LA. The next morning they had the opportunity to visit PFK Consulting. Lepp said, “We got to ask a lot of questions and got a very good overview of what a consultant does in the tourism industry. I didn't know anything about it before so it was interesting to learn about. We learned a lot about different projects he was working on and what he had to look at with each different situation. It was amazing that they could predict trends and figure out future revenue and how one hotel or building could have an impact on the whole community.”

The job shadow was a great real world experience for these students who are all approaching graduation from Cal Poly within the next year and a half. Lepp also commented upon seeing tourism from a different perspective, “I liked listening to his conversations with his clients because hearing how they talked and seeing firsthand what consultants do made me aware of a whole other side to working with tourism that I had never considered.”

Choma had a great time in LA and loved being able to see the tourism world up close and personal. She also enjoyed the meal that she and the other students were served by one of the winning chefs from the FOOD Network's “Hell’s Kitchen’s.” Choma also commented upon the experience shadowing Baltin, “He explained a lot of what he does and opened up the floor for any questions we had. It was amazing the connections he had!” These four students are very greatful for the opportunity they had to meet and work with Bruce Baltin and all hope to apply what they learned into their life and careers after Cal Poly.

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