When she started her job as a ticketing host at Sentosa in 2016, Ms Pugunes Visvanathan found herself having to use Google Translate on a daily basis to communicate with tourists.
Today, the 35-year-old is fluent in seven languages, including Mandarin and Malay.
Originally from Perak, Malaysia, Ms Pugunes moved to Singapore when she was 19, and fell in love with Sentosa island during a family trip there.
However, when she started working for the Sentosa Development Corporation team, the language barrier soon posed a challenge to her when dealing with non-English-speaking tourists.
“Initially, I had to use Google Translate to help me with visitor inquiries because I found it a little challenging to understand them,” Ms Pugunes said.
Determined to improve, she learnt Hindi from Bollywood films and picked up Bahasa Indonesia and Mandarin through interactions with tourists.
Ms Pugunes now speaks Tamil, English, Malay, Hindi, Mandarin and Bahasa Indonesia. She also knows sign language.
“When I communicate with them in their language, my guests are more comfortable and trust me,” she said.
“Although technology has improved, providing a human touch is very important to make our guests feel more comfortable.”
Her work efforts and linguistic prowess recently earned her the Customer Service Excellence for Attractions award at the Singapore Tourism Awards 2024, organised by the Singapore Tourism Board.
Over the past eight years, Ms Pugunes said she has enjoyed meeting diverse people from all over the globe and aims to inspire her team to deliver excellent service.
She encourages young people to consider careers in hospitality and tourism, highlighting the enriching experience of learning new languages.
While proficient in several languages, Ms Pugunes said she holds a special place for her mother tongue, Tamil.
Looking ahead, she aims to learn Japanese to better connect with the “warm and jovial Japanese tourists who visit Sentosa”.
