The hospitality industry is clearly a place to grow, offering plenty of opportunities to get promoted. According to a 2016 survey by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) along with WageWatch, Inc., there are plenty of success stories for hourly, entry level employees to quickly scale up. The report reveals that throughout the hotel industry, many general managers, senior execs and even CEO’s began their early careers as dishwashers, waiters and waitresses, housekeepers, and front desk attendants who were swiftly promoted. The lodging industry is often quick to promote employees, with 94.4% of those surveyed stating that new hires are eligible for promotions within the first year of employment.
In other words, if you’re a hard worker in the hospitality industry, it’s likely you’ll be rewarded and promoted quickly. Here are some of our tips to quickly advance in a higher position in the hospitality industry.
How to Get Promoted at your Hospitality Career
1. Work hard and be willing to move to different positions
By moving around to all the different departments in the hotel you can definitely receive a deep knowledge understatement. It’s one of the best ways to learn every job and understand how a hotel operates. That knowledge makes you a great candidate for quickly building a management career.
2. Earn some industry-specific certificates
You can search for certificates based on the hospitality industry all around the web. You can also expand your knowledge and your network as well as add important skills to your resume to help you stand out in the crowd. Along with a few years of experience, these certificates may open some doors to bigger opportunities.
3. Foresee your manager’s needs
Don’t stop at your current job description, but learn to anticipate what else needs to be done and take the initiative. Take action on your own if you notice a customer needs something or there’s a task you can perform that would save time in your manager’s day.
4. Find a Mentor
As with most things, finding someone who can show the ropes can make it easier to find your path up the ladder. Once you find your mentor, observe carefully. Watch how he/she learns from mistakes, follows through and goes the extra mile for guests and fellow staff, modeling your own behavior after theirs.
Conclusion
It’s a great time to be in the hotel business. It’s a dynamic, growing industry that means more jobs and big opportunities for advancement.
Now that you know all about what the hospitality industry is, how to build a career in it and how to get promoted, take it a step further. Look out for our open vacancies here.