Interview by Yash

Pinnacle Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology

Mrs. Y. Sridevi is the Founder & Director of Pinnacle Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology. She has many laurels in the education field, she is an M.Sc (Hotel Management), a double M.A., (psychology and education), an M.Ed. M.Phil and has over 10 years of teaching experience in reputed hotel management colleges. Apart from these, she is trained in handling students with learning disabilities. While teaching in various hotel management colleges, she has realized that the industry needs “True Hospitality Professionals” rather than people with mere paper qualifications.

Mrs. Sridevi is a panel guest to reputed TV channels like ETV- 2, ZEE, NTV, TV- 5, Vanitha, Doordarshan (sapathigri), etc. She has completed over 100 episodes on dining etiquette and still continuing the programs on etiquette in ETV- 2. She is a leading corporate trainer for Ordinance Factory, Bharath Dynamics Limited, where many managers are imparted training in etiquette.

Mrs. Sri Devi on the reasons which prompted her to start a college

I am a trained teacher, an educational psychologist, a hospitality expert, and a food analyst. Having in-depth knowledge in this field has prompted me to start a college. My motto is to empower students and this particular course ensures scope for employment as well as self-employment. 

Challenges tackled as the Founder & Director of Pinnacle Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology

Our institution is 18 years old. In the initial stages, the course had a lot of stigmas attached to it. From the past decade, increased awareness & increased employment of the course changed the scenario completely. I used to host a show called ”Smart Living“ on ETV intending to glorify the hospitality sector which played a vital role.

An internationalized curriculum

We at Pinnacle, have modified our curriculum offered by the university into an international curriculum with a stress on experiential learning programs, audio-visual learning programs & advanced self-learning techniques. The instructional methodology followed is a unique psychologically designed model called UNLOCK THE HERO IN YOU, which is a 5-stage model concentrating on occupational skills, communication skills, social skills, personal skills & emotional skills. Our education system focuses on the overall development of the student with special emphasis on life skills.

Goals in mind for Pinnacle Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology

Our vision and mission statements clearly state that Pinnacle aims to produce true hospitality professionals, not people with mere paper qualifications and our vision is that pinnacle should grow into a hospitality university.

Read about Pinnacle Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology Placement

Ensuring quality education at Pinnacle

Pinnacle is known for its expertise in handling students & helping them fulfill their dreams. It’s the only college which caters to a large variety of student’s needs. OORJA is our fully equipped gymnasium helping students remain physically fit. SUSRUSHA is our health club which maintains anthropometric records of all our students & provides free guidance for better health of our students. 

PRERNA is our student’s psychological counseling center armed with more than 17 senior psychologists, therapists & counselors providing guidance & support to all the students. The college has a well-organized learning & development center which equips our students with the latest updates which are why pinnacle students have won many awards at state and national level.

Building a positive school culture

Pinnacle believes in an inclusive setup. Students are involved in governance to inculcate responsibility, dependability, and accountability. All students are divided into 5 groups, each group has a Captain, Vice Captain, and a team enhancer. The college also has a head boy and a head girl who actively participate in organizing a large number of curricular and co-curricular activities. 

Establishing a relationship with the students

Pinnacle is known for an excellent relationship with students, which is why we find Pinnacleites referring to pinnacle as Pinnacle family. Apart from the psychological assistance, the management organizes a large number of motivational training programs to keep the students motivated. PRERNA plays a vital role in helping students handle themselves efficiently. Our democratic methods of accepting feedback and suggestions help us maintain a very healthy relationship with students.

Breaking placement records every year

Pinnacle Institute of Hotel management takes pride in breaking their own placement records year by year. It’s the only college that has institutional linkages with more than 200-star hotels of India and Abroad. Also has unique tie-ups & linkages with other elite industries like the quick-service sector, retail sector, cruise liners, aviation, airliners, software sector, facilities, private hospital sector, etc. It is also known for its international internship programs, pinnacle provides internship in different countries namely USA, Canada, New Zealand, France, Germany, Spain, Dubai, Qatar, Mauritius, Seashells, etc.

Leadership philosophy of Dr. Sri Devi

Leadership is an integral part of a person’s personality. At Pinnacle, we strongly believe & promote democratic leadership which helps us inculcate fairness, competence, creativity, courage, intelligence & honesty. This is possible because we are under the guidance of learned management who with their charismatic & visionary leadership help us in developing leaders.

Suggestions for the youth

The student should be prudent in selecting the right course from the right college. Develop trust in yourselves, in the course, you would like to pursue & on the college you have opted. Every student should dream big, aim high and put in focused efforts to achieve the same.