Here, the researchers at Lifology.com have listed a number of options for aspiring Hospitality Management professionals:
- Event and PR management: Being a Public Relations or an Event Manager, you will be responsible for managing the events and functions of your client (a person/ group or a corporate). The events can range from a VVIP wedding to a press conference. The work is best suited for hospitality professionals as they can understand the concept of kitchen, decoration, guest grooming and customer service. The job is elite enough as you can also be in the limelight, thanks to your celebrity clientele.
- Hotel Operations management: As a Hotel Operations Manager, you will be responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of a hotel/resort on time and within the defined budget. Your responsibility can be streamlined to just guest relations or restaurant management. Options are ample and you can choose the one that appeals to your style and aptitude.
- Airline and cruise personnel: Because they understand the importance of personal grooming, a hospitality graduate can join this line of business as Ground Staff/Cabin Crew. In cruise lines, people with expertise in culinary support and guest relations are the most sought-after. As a Hospitality Management graduate you will understand the significance of servicing the guests, which is of utmost importance in these industries.
- Soft-skills training for hospitality staff: If you enjoy training and interacting with people, you can pursue a career as a soft-skills trainer. Unlike many other professional courses, such as engineering, MBA, and the like, Hotel Management trains you well with soft skills like communication, body language and personal grooming. In this fast-paced world where most of the professionals are academically well-qualified, it is these soft-skills that distinguish them from others, and as a Hospitality Management graduate you will be well equipped to impart these skills to other professionals. You can also join various Air Hostess Training institutes.
- Restaurateur: Opening your own restaurant or working as consultants for building hotels or restaurants is another option you can consider. This also gives you the freedom to create your own story.
- Travel consultant: If you are one of those who have been bitten by the travel bug, you can opt to become a travel consultant. With India’s rising middle-income class travelling more and more, especially abroad, they are in need of experts who can help them plan their travel to meet their taste and budget. And, you will be able to help them with their travel itinerary with inputs on not-so-well-known destinations.
- Concierge: You can also join as a concierge in the hotel industry. This is the person responsible for getting everything done for the guests to ensure that they have a wonderful experience and continue to stay in a hotel, or even become patrons of the hotel.
- Marketing professional: You can join the sales and marketing team wherein you will be responsible for creating brand awareness and generating leads for the prospective clients — hotels, restaurants and resorts. As you are trained to be a hospitality professional and know the inner workings of the industry, you will be better placed that an MBA graduate to strategize the marketing and branding of a hotel.
- Sommelier: If you appreciate and admire the fine art of wine-making, this is the perfect job for you. A sommelier is responsible for serving or guiding patrons about wine and its qualities. They are amongst the most highly paid people in the hotel industry as their job is to ensure the quality of wines served in the bar section.
The careers discussed here seek people from the Hospitality industry because of their superior customer orientation, presentation and their communication skills.