Module 1: Introduction to the Industry
The basics of the industry.
The scope of the industry.
The basics of hotel management.
Hotel management planning.
The hospitality industry is one of the largest in the world, and being involved in the management
side entails a number of things. However, you can have a wonderful career that could potentially
take you around the world.
In this module you will learn the following:
The basics of the industry.
The scope of the industry.
The basics of hotel management.
Hotel management planning.
Hotel management policy.
1.1 The Basics of the Industry
The hotel industry covers a range of places, from small boutique
hotels to those with hundreds of rooms that can completely dominate a city.
The role of the hotel manager is very clearly defined in that you are the one who is responsible for
running the establishment on a day-to-day basis. However, it is not just about keeping guests happy,
as a large part of your job will involve running a staff correctly.
If we are looking at an actual definition of the hospitality industry, then it loosely means the art of
welcoming guests and providing accommodation and food to those individuals who are away from
home. However, this definition has now been expanded to include building a relationship between
both the host and the customer in order to provide the best experience possible.
The industry is very service-based, and there is a real emphasis on the relationship that is created
between the host and the guest.
However, it is not purely focused on the products and services that are provided, but also the way in
which they are provided to the guests.
The majority of hotels will stress that it is the way in which everything is delivered that is the key
part, although the product offered should also be of a high quality.
A problem for the hospitality industry is that their product can be replicated, which is why so much
emphasis is placed on the quality of what they offer. It is often the standard of the experience that
helps hotels to really stand out from one another, and as the hotel manager, this is one thing that
you need to be aware of from the get-go.
You must understand what makes your hotel different and what you excel at in order to provide the
best experience possible for your guests.
As the manager, there is so much responsibility resting on your shoulders due to competition being
so tough. You should always be aware that if a guest has an unpleasant stay at your hotel, then they
will go elsewhere the next time. They may also inform others of their sad experience. Is this
something you can allow to happen?
As the manager, you have to be the last port of call that can resolve issues, understand where the
industry is going, and make a positive difference to the people staying in your hotel. It is no surprise
that this position is not suitable for everybody, but we will take you through the different parts of the
process of being a manager that will make life easier.
1.2 The Scope of the Industry
When it comes to the actual scope of the industry, it is difficult to
put an exact figure on it in global terms such as its size.
However, if we look at the some of the figures available, then it at least gives us an indication as to
how massive this industry actually is.
Some industry experts estimate that there are about 15.5 million hotel rooms around the world,
although that number will have grown since the figures were released.
The branded hotel market, meaning chain hotels, accounts for just over half of the total sales, and
within that percentage more than 30% of the rooms available came from just five names: Accor,
Hilton, IHG, Marriott, and Starwood.
This is an industry that has a tendency to grow in line with the general economic growth of a
country, which is why the hotel industry is so tightly linked to the rises and falls of economic output.
However, it is constantly expanding year on year, as it is merely the amount at which it is expanding
that is different.
Part of the difficulty of understanding the sheer size is the way in which the hotel industry falls
under the banner of the hospitality trade. This also includes bars and restaurants, so getting a true
idea of the size does become trickier as a direct result.
You only have to look at the range of types of accommodation to understand the magnitude of the
industry that we are talking about. Included under the scope of hotels are small boutique hotels, 2star to 5-star, and everything else in between. The difficulty for a hotel manager is that their
responsibilities are also slightly different with each hotel, since it is generally accepted that people
are actively seeking different standards of service, which is expected, depending on where they are
staying.
So, how does the scope of the industry actually help you when it comes to the management side?
Well, it should mean that there will always be a number of opportunities available to you, even if you
do need to begin as a middle manager of a specific department before working up the career ladder.
The style of the industry is one whereby people are forever moving on, opening up new opportunities
for people to follow, and that is why it is always possible to get into the industry once you have had
the appropriate training.
If the industry itself was more of a niche, then life would certainly be harder, although as you will
discover, the industry is already tough enough in a number of ways.
FACT
The revenue of the US hotel industry was $189.5 billion in 2015.
Source: www.statista.com
1.3 The Basics of Hotel Management
The goal of the hotel manager is to make sure that the guests all
have a wonderful stay by providing them with an amazing place to sleep, delicious food,
and catering to their various needs.
To do this, the manager has to be capable of running a number of different departments along with
individual middle managers that ultimately leads to the hotel working as smoothly as possible.
There are numerous jobs and services that have to operate perfectly for a hotel of any size to
function to its full capabilities. As the manager, you are the person responsible for making sure that
the guests are happy, the hotel is clean, and the staff members are doing their jobs, as well as being
responsible for a number of issues related to the business side of running the hotel. In other words,
you need to have a good general understanding of every aspect of the hotel industry to then be able
to make decisions that will impact how individual departments are run.
This takes a lot of training and experience in similar roles to really be able to come to grips with the
task at hand.
Having inadequate training and experience will only lead to an increase in the likelihood of mistakes
being made that will not only have an impact on you, but the hotel in general.
Throughout the course, we will look at the various departments that make up the hotel and the role
you have to play when dealing with the different people. This does, of course, ultimately mean that a
good hotel manager also has to be a good people person, as you are dealing with not only different
personalities with guests, but also different employees with various ideas and preferences within the
staff.
If you keep this in mind, then often a hotel manager will feel that they are performing a balancing
act, whereby they are trying to cope with a number of different issues linked to the running of the
hotel. However, this course will be able to help with these different areas allowing you to feel more
confident in your ability to make the correct decisions that will ultimately be beneficial towards the
future of the hotel.
In other words, the basics of hotel management include the following.
Making sure that the hotel is being run correctly.
Being in charge of staff.
Being in charge of each department of the hotel.
Making sure that procedures are followed in every department.
Being a good people person.
Making sure that guests are satisfied with their experience.
There is a lot more to it, but we will cover every aspect to provide you with more than enough
training to pursue a career in the hotel management industry.
1.4 Hotel Management Planning and Policy Making
We just provided a brief explanation as to the different roles of the
hotel manager, but it is important that we also focus on two areas in particular, the ability
to create plans to ensure the smooth operation of the hotel and also creating and then
implementing hotel policies.
As the manager, you will be held accountable by the senior management who oversee your actions.
However, being given this position requires a certain degree of trust in your ability to do the job,
there is a tendency for a hotel manager to be given more leeway as they prove that they are able to
push forward plans for the benefit of the hotel.
These plans are essential for being able to create goals and targets for the hotel, which is why you
must have a good understanding of the tourism industry in your area.
Who are the main customers that you should be targeting? Are there any specific groups that come
to the area? What kind of services do people now look for in a hotel, and do you offer them?
Looking at the industry as a whole allows you, as the manager, to create a plan to deal directly with
those issues. By doing this, you will then be creating a model that will allow the hotel to grow and
increase its turnover, which is another key component of being the general manager.
However, as the manager you must be able to identify areas that can be improved and create a plan
that can be put into action.
Generally speaking, we are talking about it following a set path. Initially, there is the vision followed
by a statement as to what your aims are for the plan. After this, there is the need to view the plan in
both the long-term and short-term, as well as to calculate the budget that is required in order to
achieve the results that you are aiming for. This is tied in with the need for a marketing plan and
finally the outcome has to be presented to the staff to allow them to make the relevant changes in
their department.
As the manager, it is not merely a case of you making sure that individual areas are working well,
but it is also your responsibility to determine how they can be improved and to do so within certain
monetary limits.
In order to do this, you must be able to communicate with department managers as well as
supervisors in order to collect the correct feedback from them that you can then use to your
advantage.
The extent to which you can plan ahead will be dependent on the relationship that has been formed
between yourself and senior management. This is where your direct experience and training plays a
key role as it will allow them to determine how much confidence they have in you. However, what we
will show throughout the course is the way in which making small changes, and implementing
smaller plans, can benefit your career and help you to make a name for yourself.
So, the points to stress regarding hotel management planning include the following.
You must have the ability to identify areas giving cause for concern.
You must be able to identify the issue correctly to then take appropriate steps.
You must form both a long-term and short-term plan.
You must understand the concept of the budget.
You must understand the concept of marketing.
You must have the ability to deliver the correct information to staff.
Creating a sensible plan for the benefit of the hotel is something that has to be learnt and the only
way of doing that is by improving your understanding of the various aspects of running a hotel.
1.5 Policy Making
Policy making also plays an important role in helping a hotel to run
more smoothly.
Planning and policy making generally go hand-in-hand with one another and in this instance what we
mean by policies is when certain rules and procedures are brought into play that either improve
products and services, or completely change how things are done for the benefit of the hotel.
The first step that a manager has to take regarding policy making is to clearly identify areas where
there is some cause for concern or where improvements can be made. This can be done by either
examining each department or decision independently or via communication with department heads
where their opinion is both trusted and valued.
After an area that is giving cause for concern has been identified, then it is the hotel manager that
must look at the potential solutions that can improve the situation. A policy to tackle the situation
should then be discussed with the appropriate individuals in the hotel in order to make sure that
everybody that will be affected by the changes are now in agreement with the new policy. It is easier
to implement the changes with limited levels of resistance.
It is important to mention that this aspect of being a hotel manager can be quite stressful, but once
again it goes back to your training and experience. There must be conviction in your policy making
and a large part of that conviction will come from your own understanding of how the hospitality
industry works and what is expected of it from the guests.
Making decisions when in a position of power is never easy and the key components of
policy making in connection with a hotel are as follows.
An ability to discuss issues with middle management.
The belief in yourself to create a solution that resolves a problem.
The ability to put across that solution to other staff members.
The confidence to not only implement the changes, but to stick to them.
We will look into policy making at various times throughout the course, but it is important to stress
the point that having the ability to do this is an essential part of being a hotel manager.
Module Summary
This module is intended to provide you with a brief insight into the industry as well as the kind of
things that would be expected of you as the hotel manager. As you can see, there is a lot to learn in
order to then be able to do the best job possible when in a position of power, but by learning the
ropes it will be easier to formulate plans and implement policies that can drive the hotel forward.
Being a hotel manager is a stressful job, but at the same time it is very rewarding.
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