Having a choice in careers is exciting. In this day and age of economic certainty, the hospitality business flourishes as people seek relief from stress and worry. In the hospitality industry many of the same rules and practices apply across the board which means skills can be easily transferred. For example, when you get a certificate in cooking, you are qualified to work in a hotel restaurant as a dining room manager or on a cruise line as a food manager. A patisserie chef can develop the sweetest desserts for a restaurant or put those same skills to work on a cruise ship where food offerings are expected to be innovative, and inspiring and tempting.

Hotel managers have the same opportunities as cooks and chefs. Finding qualified managers who wish to develop a career in hotel management is often one of the biggest challenges hotel and motels face. There are plenty of people who hope to get jobs by unreasonably expecting on-the-job training which means your certificates and diploma set you apart from the crowd. Your training in all aspects of hotel management qualifies you for a number of positions which means you can make a significant contribution to the hotel’s success.

In hotel management you can be a room, dining or general manager to name just a few employment opportunities. Hotel operations are normally divided into several components so you can specialize as you choose or pursue a career in general management. The same is true for both hotels and cruise lines.

Cruising to Hospitality Success

As cruise lines become more and more popular as vacation alternatives, there are a number of management positions which have become available. As a manager in the hotel department you will oversee operations such as the room management during the cruise. You will work closely with other cruise staff to insure the comfort and safety of the passengers. This job may require management of housekeeping and/or concierge services depending upon the organizational structure.

When you are looking for a versatile certificate or diploma which can lead you to a number of job opportunities then cooking, patisserie or hotel management should be your first choices. There are hundreds of career possibilities which require organizational skills, specialized training and the ability to work with others as a team player. Through career training you position yourself for long term employment in one of the most exciting industries in the world – hospitality! Upon graduation you will get assistance with job placement so you can start your career quickly. That’s good news, because with diploma in hand you’ll be ready to start putting your new skills to work.

Economy hotels: they are good hotels if they can remain in the financial crisis.

As the financial crisis continues to expand, the guests have reduced and the rates of hotel occupancy are lower, the economy hotels have also started to feel “cold”. Recently, seven days chain hotel, Rujia, Jinjiang star and other hotels have also launched a variety of disguised price cuts promotional strategies, and it is said to be the sharpest discount over the years.

However, the vice president of China Tourism Research Institute Dai Bin said that, at present the economy hotels account for 10% to 20% in the total hotels proportion, which is far below the United States and European countries, an average of 60% to 70%. For the long run, the business volume of economy affect smaller than star hotels in China, due to the price advantages, and instead China economy hotels will face a new round of development opportunities. The economy hotels should seek a breakthrough in innovative service and open market segments.

China Market Research Group expects that the revenues of China’s economy hotels will increase by 12% to 15%.

In 2009, the competition between economy hotels is still the competition of brand, service, operate capacity and cost control. The hotels remained are good hotels in economy hotels.

Tourism hotels: the outlook is still broad

From the view of the entire economy, tourism has a bright future, and it is predicted that in 2010 China will replace Spain to the second place, surpass France and move up to the first place in 2020. The United Nations World Tourism Organization predicts that by 2015 China will become the No.1 tourist receiving country, and the fourth largest tourist source country in the world. The domestic travelers will reach 2.8 billion people, outbound tourism will reach
100 million people, and the total tourism market will reach 30 million people. The tourism industry associated with 109 industries and 39 sectors of our national economy, the development of related industries will promote tourism industry in different degrees. The tourism industry is an important part of stimulating domestic demands.

What’s the most important is that the development of China tourism is bound to drive the development of China’s hotels.

China property hotels.

More than 500 property hotels in China will establish a “Asia-Pacific co-management association”, to resist the impact caused by global economic recession.

The property hotels are a special kind of hotel operation model, that is make the hotel room as a unit, the developer will divide the separate rooms into a individual property and then sell to the investors, investors then entrust a hotel management company to rent all the rooms to people, in this way the investors can obtain annual profit. In recent years, this kind of hotels have developed rapidly in China, at present, the total of this hotels in China reach more than 700 hotels.

To run a hotel successfully it is important that the hotel management should be good and world class. Before making any change in the trends one should take a look to every aspect as any changes in the trend also have a wide impact on the diverse industries.

One of the biggest problems a human resource manager faced in managing is employee retention. As hotel industry gives a large number of job opportunities to part time workers which after gaining the relevant and desired experience always leave the jobs. Hotel Industry offers low wages which is also one of the major reasons for the low retention rate in this industry.

Hotel management should be done in terms of the guest interest as well because of the growing concern over environment friendly services; most of the people want a green and eco-friendly environment. So the hotel management should be interested in making their hotels more eco-friendly and green because people are ready to pay extra if the are getting an environmental friendly lodgings.

For a successful business Hotel operations also play a lead role. Some hoteliers try to be focused by improving specific departments operations where as some other try to improvise by a hotel-wide approach, some form of quality assurance service is also been implemented by some hotel and companies. But the two important areas that receive the attention by the officials were maintenance and the front-desk, study shows that by improvising in the operations hotels have experienced the increase in guests and also in employee satisfaction along with the improvement of profit as well.

Revenue management is also play a lead role in the success of any hotel. Aggressive Revenue is always a good practice and it has to be balanced with how the hotels normally manage their guests. Working with loyalty is always better to get a higher growth then charging some higher rates from certain group of customers or trying to overbook the rooms just to ensure less then full occupancy. These practices always hamper the loyalty of the customers and disgrace the hotel’s reputation as well.

Hotel sales can always be increased by a good reputation building with the customers and always being ready to help them with their issues. A good sales manager should never over estimate the requirements. He/She should always be ready to face the negatives that come up along the way. Hotel sale staff should always know how to close the sales call as it is the most important part of the entire conversation.

Apart from the responsibilities and duties that a hotel manager has to perform, he is also allowed to enjoy few benefits as well, such as discount rates in travelling and lodging facilities. Once you have achieved a higher designation, you are open to earn a lot of money as perks, other than your regular salary. These managerial positions in a hotel include various categories from housekeeper to a front manager, a convention service manager, and a food & beverage manager.

There are many colleges and institutes in India that offer dynamic courses in hotel management giving bright opportunities to the candidate to earn and learn in the most efficient and comfortable way.

The Caribbean has been a popular place for vacations, especially the tiny island of Barbados. Every Barbados small hotel and other accommodations are more often than not well received by guests and critics alike. However, the hotel sector expressed some concern over the danger threatening the coral reefs because aside from the environmental implications, it may contribute to negative effects on business as well.

According to Loma Inniss, the deputy director of the Unit of Management of Coastal Regions, the continuously rising temperature of the surface waters and the scarcity of rainfall are the culprits for the dire situation the coral reefs of the island are in. She explained that these two factors led to the whitening of the marine structures which would in turn lead to their eventual death and most likely their inevitable extinction.

This phenomenon of whitening structures is actually a de-pigmentation, or the loss of color, of the coral colonies that surround the nation. In addition to this, it will cause a massive, unnatural release of algae that compose them.

Inniss emphasized that this widespread death of the reefs implies that there has been a loss of protection against the natural occurrences and events such as hurricanes, tsunamis and winter swells that are expected in the western side of the coast of the Caribbean island, Barbados.
The deputy director added that the death of the reefs implies a loss of protection against natural events such as hurricanes, tsunamis and winter swells expected in the western coast of the Caribbean island.

Furthermore, she gravely pointed out and directed attention to the entry of salt water in the aquiferous area of the coastal waters. Apparently, this was caused by the intensive exploitation of underground reserves of this important element during the ongoing drought that has been plaguing the region for a long time now.

In response to this threat, the government has recently announced the introduction of measures to limit the consumption of water resources for domestic and agricultural activities, even by the industry of Barbados small hotel, in case the drought continues. Also the legislation will stipulate fines of more than $300 USD and even prison sentences if the new laws are broken.

Retention of employees is another large problem in the hotel service business. Since so many of the employees do not have hotel work as their ending career goals, many of them only work in a hotel for a short amount of time. Other employees may have to be let go because of poor work ethics or other issues. However, there are ways that a hotel human resources manager can curb some of the desire and likelihood that employees will move to other jobs quickly. The importance of human resources management for hotels is very large in this area. Managers can provide good training and incentive programs that will cause employees to stay longer at the hotel. Having a clear progression plan to advance to higher levels of service will also cause employees to stick around much longer.

The issue of employee progression and promotion is also another large issue for the hotel industry. The importance of human resources management for hotels is proven in this area. Hotels which provide ways for employees to advance in position, or that provide training for employees so that they can gain skills necessary for an advanced position are very important to the retention rate of employees. It is easy to implement services of this nature and the expense is negligible compared to the expense and time necessary to constantly find new employees to replace the ones that always leave shortly after being hired. One of the easiest things to implement is English lessons. Many hotel employees do not speak English very well, and so it is a great incentive for them to stay working at a hotel if they are offered English lessons.

The importance of human resources management for hotels is also important in the area of employee services. If the employees know they can come to the human resources manager whenever they have a problem or issue then it is easier for them to work in good conscience. Many human resources departments implement different games and activities to make the work environment more interesting and fun for employees. There are many different services that a human resources manager can think of to help employee morale. Maybe the hotel could implement a babysitting service, or have a park day every year. These little services go a long way towards making happy employees. Happy employees make happy companies and happy customers.

As you can see, the importance of human resources management for hotels is very great. There are thousands of ways that a human resources manager can make a hotel run more smoothly and more efficiently. There are many different areas that can benefit from the experience and guidance of a human resources manager. Therefore it is very important to not undermine the manager’s importance. Without the human resources manager a hotel is not the same or as pleasing to customers and employees.

The first main trend is that people seem to be leaning more towards staying in independent hotels compared to the bigger branded hotels that are, conversely, more expensive even if they have more in terms of accommodations and luxury. The main reason for this is perhaps the inherent character and unique flavor afforded by independent carriers, compared to the standard fare of their branded counterparts.

The Ypartnership/Yankelovich 2009 National Travel Monitor found that 20 percent of respondents preferred independent establishments, a figure up from 16 percent in the 2008 survey. Still, the cut is clear-80 percent of respondents still prefer the hotels that are affiliated with larger companies or associated with bigger hotel chains.

Peter C. Yesawich, the chairman and CEO of Ypartnership, attributes this trend to two main factors. “First, a growing number of consumers appear more interested in the novelty and/or special character many independent operators have scripted into their properties,” he said. “Second, the quest for better value, now defined in terms of a more attractive price, appears to be motivating many leisure travelers to evaluate independent alternatives.”

Indeed, independent hotels offer the kind of “attractive price” that potential guests nowadays are looking for. With the financial crunch, many people and even some of the most hardcore leisure travelers are considering the payoff of paying more when one could get quality accommodations for considerably less.

Additionally, respondents to the survey were more inclined to choose limited-service hotels and resorts rather than go to full-service hotels with restaurants. That shift is also indicative of the importance many people started giving to their respective travel budgets.

While the trends point to a bigger patronage of independent hotels, the fact is that bigger chain-affiliated establishments still have many things going their way. When you consider reputation, proven quality, and reliability, then it’s still natural for people to choose those. That’s why the National Travel Monitor survey shows that preference for such hotels are down a mere 4 percent.

With the deep impact of the global economic downturn, should be noted that the budget-conscious traveler is becoming more aware than ever of the need to put a high priority on the price tag when choosing the hotel he or she will end up staying in. It should be noted, though, that there’s no compromise for the kind of service bigger hotel chains can offer, which is why business is still relatively doing well for those kinds of hotels.

Still, it is perhaps safe to expect a subtle continuation of the trends above in the coming quarters, however, as people continue to put their budget first in an economic landscape that is slow to recover.

So the end solution to the equation is, a hotel guest is looking for fun. Many hotels are catching on to this and creating an environment that is not entirely filled models scattered between a number of high class bars and restaurants, but a more simple type of fun. Many hotels are starting to open up avenue’s of different kinds of fun that many hotel guests can enjoy that aren’t so taxing to your wallet. Games like Xbox, Wii, ping pong, bingo, and sometimes even relaxing Sunday games such as Chess or Scrabble. Not only this, but many hotels are scaling down the restaurants they are opening up to more affordable food that still maintains a decent quality. Keeping some of these open twenty-four-seven, hotel guests don’t have to worry about when room service closes, or going out of their way to find food outside of the hotel after certain hours.

I think this idea is genius. Many hotels feel their standard of luxury must be at its highest for guests to enjoy it. The truth of the matter is not everyone is looking for the same kind of fun, and a hybrid mix of high class bars and restaurants with simple fun would be the perfect combination for hotels. It would cover a range of demographics, as well as be less taxing on wallets, especially in this economic downtime.