Transferrable Skills by Employees from the Hotel Industry

The Travel Industry has been one of the most affected industries by the COVID pandemic. There are thousands of applicants from the hotel industry applying for jobs in other sectors as a career change, following a long-loved passion, or providing for their families. There are several skills that someone who has worked in the travel/hospitality industry can bring to any industry and impact their targeted clients.

I always believed that technical skills could be learned, but skills that have developed throughout the years of experience create one’s character.

1. Customer Service

Customer service is about being positive and proactive. We all know when someone is yelling at you; the immediate response from a human being is an increased heart rate and to scream back immediately. However, someone who has handled several upset customers they have gained a significant skill to stay polite and remain professional. We all heard that saying “the customer is always right”; unfortunately, the reality says otherwise. It’s very stressful to handle those customers whom you can’t please no matter what you do. However, an excellent skilled hotel professional will find a way to handle those situations with a win-win outcome.

The second part of the customer service is “Going the extra mile.” The competition is getting bigger and bigger out there. Hotels are no longer competing against just the big names, but there are more and more new, independent hotels are on the rise. There are lot of choices for a guest. A hotel professional knows that going above and beyond to secure a new client for a meeting or welcome a repeat guest will separate them from the competition and create loyal followers.

2. Cultural Awareness

In the current environment navigating around the increased tension and the continued battle of racial equality, there is no other place to experience culture from all walks of life than the hotel industry. A large percentage of hotel guests and employees are from different cultural backgrounds. Hotel employees have learned to adapt to attitudes and norms that are most likely different from their own, so all guests and employees feel welcome and avoid discrimination.

3. Work Ethic

I have always found it challenging to recruit for the hotel industry. And one of the main reasons is; it is not a 9-5, Monday to Friday job. This industry has been somewhat undesirable for the new generation, especially with the increased desire for work-life balance. Once anyone has decided to still chose this industry, they are well aware of the expectations of working shifts, weekends, and holidays. They are the true hard working people.

They also have learned to work hard. West majority of the positions in the hotels are standing, working long hours while someone has called off from the next shift, and they have to do all that while maintaining a smile and friendly attitude to continue to provide positive customer service.

4. Teamwork

With the high turnover rate in the hospitality industry, no matter what position the employee holds in the hotel, they have to adapt to work as a team with other departments to handle busy periods. In some cases, they have to assume roles that are not even their job descriptions. For example, during a snowstorm, when associates can’t get to the hotel to take over from the previous shift, everyone jumps in to help the other department making sure the entire operation can continue running seamlessly.

5. Time Management

No matter what department the employee works in, time management is critical. Guests can’t check-in if the rooms are not cleaned before standard arrival time. To serve hot food hot and cold food cold, it must be delivered to the table promptly. Speedily responding to a new client will determine which hotel will win the next group contract. Delivering a service requested from the guest will determine if the hotel passes their Quality Assurance Audit based on the minimum requirement outlined in the brand standard.