HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM MANAGEMENT CAREER OPTIONS
There is more to it than meets the eye. The tourism and hospitality industry is an umbrella covering a sea of fun and engaging careers, from being a food and beverage manager on a high-end cruise line to orchestrating a top sound music festival. In an industry that is constantly growing and evolving to new trends, why not jump on board and explore the options? Hospitality and tourism career opportunities await!
Hospitality and Tourism Careers List
HOTEL OPERATIONS
1. BANQUET & CONFERENCES
A demanding, yet high energy career working in hotels, resorts and conference centers setting up rooms and servicing events. If you enjoy seeing an event executed from the initial planning stages through to its end, this may be for you. From organizing a 500-guest NGO Gala to raise awareness for humanity aid to political receptions and corporate holiday parties, your clientele is always changing, creating a unique environment that is never boring.
2. FOOD & BEVERAGE MANAGEMENT
Responsible for all things related to food and beverage from ordering products to hiring staff and balancing profit and loss sheets. The career requires exceptional social and analytical skills. The ideal candidate is organized, calm under pressure, service oriented and business minded.
3. FRONT OFFICE RECEPTION
From the very first moment of a guest’s arrival, the front office serves as the face of the company and its standards of service. Knowledgeable not only about the products they offer, these individuals are friendly, customer service oriented and can give insights on the surround area.
4. RESORT MANAGEMENT
Oversee all operations departments from the front desk and security to housekeeping and food and beverage. Responsible for the overall success of the facility, this is a very diverse position that manages a wide variety of people. A strong leader, that is both service oriented and business savvy, will exceed in this management role.
5. RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT
A dynamic position leading a team of employees servicing food and beverage. A day in the life of a restaurant manager can go from tasting wines with different distributors to bussing tables on a busy night. Also responsible for the overall function of the operation, inventory, ordering and budgeting often top the list of a manager’s to-do list.
6. SPA AND WELLNESS MANAGEMENT
Responsible for the day-to-day operations of a health or beauty spa. Based on the size of the operation the position can be customer service focused or more business based, handling all the marketing, schedules, and training.
EVENT MANAGEMENT
7. CONCERTS, FESTIVALS & EXHIBITIONS
Event planning and project management dealing with large scale events. This role involves studying the brand, identifying the target audience, devising the event concept and coordinating all the technical aspects before launching or hosting an event.
8. WEDDING COORDINATION
It all comes down to the details and building relationships. Brides want to have confidence in their wedding coordinator and in doing so, this individual needs to be extremely organized and love executing special events with many moving components, balancing a need for both structure and creativity in the workplace. A rewarding career for the right individual, making lasting memories.
OTHER AREAS
9. AIRLINES
Jump on board and travel the world as a flight attendant. Manage the inflight services taking care of food and beverage, duty free and other customer service requests. Upon landing you are in a new location, traversing the globe on a regular basis.
10. AMUSEMENT PARKS
Make every child’s eyes light up. Manage the overall operations as a member of the leadership team or be ready to welcome amusement park goers behind the desk selling tickets, supervising a food and beverage outlet or controlling the rides themselves.
11. CASINOS
The gaming service industry is huge and jobs are typically found in casinos or at the racetrack. Someone interested in this career may work as a dealer, slot machine attendant, pit boss or an overall operations manager dealing with the activities, in addition to any lounges or food and beverage outlets offered to the players.
12. CATERING
A mash up of sales, project management and food and beverage, this is a fun and vigorous career. Whether you’re a chef creating the menu or coordinator organizing the vendors, this position is constantly on-the-go fielding queries and giving instructions. A great position incorporating sales with event planning.
13. CRUISES
Head out to sea. Very similar to a hotel, but you are floating from port to port. Work in sales, food and beverage, housekeeping, maintenance or security. Maybe you strive to be the big boss, in which case there are a lot of moving parts to oversee 24 hours a day.
14. CONSULTING
Work for a firm or start your own business, this career requires a base of experience in order to advise your clients. Whether in hotels, restaurants or travel, becoming an expert in your trade will allow you to give the soundest guidance.
Work experience
It’s essential you get relevant industry experience if you want to work in the hospitality sector. Many hospitality degree courses offer an industrial placement, enabling you to put your academic learning into practice. This experience provides employers with evidence of your skills and motivation, and helps you develop contacts within the sector. You also get a feel for which area of the sector you’re particularly interested in.
If you already have a specialist area in mind, try to find experience in the closest matching environment you can find. For example, if you ultimately hope to work in a luxury hotel, apply to local hotels of a similar standard.
The hospitality sector offers good prospects for early responsibility, so if you show a willingness and ability to learn, you can gain experience of supervising and training new staff early on in your career.
Typical employers
Typical employers include:
There are also relevant roles throughout the public sector in:
Some of the large chain hotels or restaurants offer graduate-management programmes, providing a fast-track to management positions and experience in a range of operations.
Skills for your CV
A hospitality management degree provides you with an in-depth understanding of the structure and operation of the hospitality sector and related industries.
You develop skills and knowledge in people management, service delivery, leadership, finance and marketing, as well as identifying, understanding and responding to the needs of clients. You can also choose modules that further your career interests in, for example, conferences and events.
You also develop a range of other skills that are valued by employers. These include:
