Excitement appears on Bai Yun's face when she is asked about the national "outstanding young worker" award that she recently won.

"It is definitely an incentive for me to keep learning and improving," she says.

The 35-year-old Beijing resident received the honor from the Communist Youth League and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security in July. The award was given to about 800 young people from different walks of life for their "integrity, expertise and contribution in their fields".

Bai stumbled upon the hotel industry after graduating from Beijing International Studies University. She has been at the reception of the Beijing Friendship Hotel for the past 14 years. Her major responsibilities include checking guests in and out, offering consultation and guidance when needed.

"I meet new guests and challenges on the job daily, and therefore, I'm full of expectations," she says.

Many experiences have been unforgettable and rewarding for Bai. For example, in 2006, she found an elderly man in her hotel looking for a guest but at the wrong address. It later turned out that she had helped the man find his brother whom he had not met for decades.

Bai won the first prize for reception work at the service skills competition hosted by the National Government Offices Administration in 2019.

"You can't panic or be flustered. The job needs solid business skills and standard work procedure," Bai says.

Bai considers the reception area the face of a hotel. She and her co-workers often have to deal with guests checking in and out while at the same time answering the phone for miscellaneous requests from other guests. The staff members have to pay great attention to billing, writing out invoices and giving and collecting room cards or else mistakes might occur. They need to keep a clear head and make rapid response, she says. "We also take notes of requests and deal with them in order of importance or emergency."

The Beijing Friendship Hotel has hosted many events over the years, including important government gatherings.

To offer better service, the hotel put together a reception team, with Bai in charge. She has developed a detailed work protocol, sorting through bits and ends of service tips and compiling a 100-page training brochure during her maternity leave in 2017.

Many guests remember Bai's name, says Yu Li from the hotel's sales department who calls her "down-to-earth and serious about work".