THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY...read on ...

UPS


• Hard work gets noticed.

• Handsome Salaries if talented.

• Hospitality Industry is booming.

• Get to interact with a lot of people.

• Everyday is a new experience.

DOWNS

• Long working Hours.

• Shifts.

• Stand-alone restaurants may not give lot of employee benefits.

• Difficult to rise up if not talented/skilled.

• Weekly offs normally don’t fall on weekends.


CAREER OPTIONS FOR HOTEL MANAGEMENT GRADUATES

• Management Trainees in Hotels & Related industries.

• Kitchen Management Trainees.

• Operational Trainees.

• Cabin Crew in Airlines.

• Sales & Marketing Executives.

• Managers/supervisors In Tourism

• Catering officers in cruiseliners/ships.

• Entrepreneurship opportunities.

The Hospitality Industry seems to be the fastest growing industry in the world creating more employment opportunities than most other industries. Most of the Hotel Management Institutes aim to prepare graduates for employment in hotel, tourism and services management. The courses focus on hotel operational skills, management practices in the tourism and hospitality industry and the skills needed for continued learning in a changing global business environment. Small classes, hands-on learning experience, state-of-the-art teaching facilities form a part of the course. The Degree Course (The Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) programme in Hospitality and Hotel Administration is offered by the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology, Pusa, New Delhi and Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi. The Three-year programme equips trainees with all the required skills, knowledge and attitude to efficiently discharge supervisory responsibilities in the Hospitality Sector.

The Bachelor of Science programme comprises in-depth laboratory work for students to acquire the required knowledge and skill standards in the operational areas of Food Production, Food and Beverage Service, Front Office Operation and House keeping. It also imparts substantial managerial inputs in areas such as Sales and Marketing, Financial Management, Human Resource Management, Hotel and Catering Law, Property Management, Entrepreneurship Development, etc. There are many other Hotel Management Institutes as well and all over the country and apart from the degree courses a few short-term courses are available too.

Has anyone ever wondered what must be the life of the people from the hospitality industry? It’s as tough a life as being in the army or even tougher. “Christmas Eve changed for me when I started working in the hospitality industry, everyone else parties these days and I look after them.” Says a restaurant employee. “I don’t remember the last time I spent Diwali with my family” Says a steward with moist eyes.

It’s not just festival time, even other regular days; most of the staff works in shifts. There definitely is a solution to this, the owners should try and work out systems for the betterment of the staff, and restaurants should close down on festivals like Holi, Diwali (like they do abroad on Christmas). Tell me honestly, does anyone go out to eat on Holi or Diwali? No one, restaurants are lying empty, and everyone in India is meeting and greeting their own families, except of course the restaurant staff, whohave no choice. But fortunately it’s not that bad, things are changing now, “ We shut down our restaurant on Diwali, Only do a Pooja in the restaurant that day”, shares a restaurant owner. “I have given my most of my staff straight shifts and break shifts are given in rotation as the staff is happier and more productive then”, says another restaurant owner.

It’s great though in the organizations where employees get all benefits, offs, compensatory offs, there’s job security, better salaries etc. However in some stand-alone restaurants the Service side do get some benefits , but the kitchen guys get nothing at all. Thankfully! Some restaurants realize the value of a good Chef; good staff and pay them well. Some restaurant owners take good care of their staff too. "happy staff= happy customers" is their motto. Infact the Kitchen and Housekeeping department in the hotels have to work the hardest because major revenue in a Hotel is from food and rooms. Food and rooms have to be made with perfection and as soon as possible, which is indeed a big responsibility. The service has to go hand in hand with good food, imagine your “Dosa” lying ready on the kitchen counter for 10 minutes but you get it late (read dead) due to delay in service.

For successful operations the whole team has to work symbiotically and trust me working in the Hotel Industry can be a whole lot of fun inspite of the long working hours and especially if you’re good at your work and you get recognized for it. Probably this is the only industry where growth (position & salary wise) depends on talent and not age.

Such talented Examples are Ashish Shukla, who heads Cinepolis in India. Rahul Pandit who’s Chief Operating Officer of The Lemon Tree Hotels, Chef Bakshish Dean Corporate Chef LiteBite foods, New Delhi, Chef Neeta Nagraj who’s now Corporate Chef with Jaypee Hotels was Executive Chef Taj Palace New Delhi at a very young age, Chef Sanjeev Kapoor who’s a well known figure. Budding Master Chef Judge Chef Kunal kapur, Chef Gaggan Anand who owns Gaggans in Bangkok (serving Indian food with molecular gastronomy) and is doing India proud, Chef Manu Chandra who heads Olive Bangalore and Mumbai, Vijay Dewan at The Park Hotels, Sharad Puri, General Manager at The Trident Chennai, Chef Saby -Oilve and ai,  Deepak Ohri -CEO Lebua Hotels, Tejpal Uberoi at the Suryaa- New Delhi, Robyn Bickford & Manav Garewal at The Aman (won best General Managers in the world award)......

My list can go on as there are many more such talented people. I would simply end by writing, working in the Hospitality Industry is a great career and those who are smart, efficient and talented get recognized and move on. As a matter of fact some even become really well known and later have enough options to do on their own.

Cheers!