Skills and Qualifications to Include in a Hospitality Resume
Economic concerns around the world have left people with less disposable income to spend for hospitality services. However, the people entering the hospitality industry have continued to increase in the last decade and the catering profession has been taken more seriously. This has created new employment opportunities for people with experience, even in diverse professions, such as accounting, information technology, customer care, carpentry, painting, etc. Those with experience can become consultants in the hospitality industry. You should have excellent customer service skills. In many hospitality firms, customer service skills are given a priority while training is provided for other skills like computer technology. Those who want to progress faster in service careers should be willing to try new tasks in different departments. Higher management positions require formal training and a wealth of experience. Some of these positions are: sales manager, food service manager, and general manager. To increase your chances of getting employed, you should focus on the specific skills you possess and the responsibilities you've had instead listing the job titles you've held.

In recent days, the economic depression around the world has left people with less disposable income to spend for hospitality services. This has resulted in a decline in job openings in the hospitality industry. However, the people entering the hospitality industry have continued to increase in the last decade. The industry has evolved and new products have been formulated to cater for customers with diverse needs.

Modern hotels have sprung up in major cities in the world and the catering profession has come to be taken more seriously than before. Moreover, the catering consultancy has boomed due to the many hospitality services that have sprung up. This has created new employment opportunities for people with experience in the hospitality industry, who want to become consultants.

The hospitality industry is different from other industries mostly because of the versatility it offers to people working in the industry. You can work in a hotel then decide to diversify to catering or move altogether and specialize in it. Those with experience can become consultants. Nearly all professions can fit in the hospitality industry. Whether you have done accounting, information technology, customer care, carpentry, painting, etc, there is always a place for you in the industry, with the exception of a few disciplines.

Careers in the hospitality industry are wide and varied. However, most of the skills are required across the board in all careers. Some entry-level jobs in the hospitality industry do not require any formal training because some basic tasks can be learned very quickly. However, other careers like departmental heads and lodging managers usually require you to have had some formal training or experience.

Generally, persons wishing to enter the hospitality industry should have good communication skills. This is vital since the career involves communicating with guests as well as the catering team. You should also have excellent customer service skills. In many hospitality firms, customer service skills are given a priority while training is provided for other skills like computer technology.

Persons who are considering entering the hospitality industry usually require a high school diploma in order to qualify as service workers. Some firms may consider those with lesser qualification, provided they have the basic skills of good communication and pleasant personality. Students and other people looking for part-time and seasonal work usually fill positions in entry-level jobs. The advancement opportunities for service workers are varied. Customer care persons may make their way up to managerial positions while janitors and housekeepers will rarely find advancement opportunities. Those who want to progress faster in service careers should be willing to try new tasks in different departments. Most workers in office and administrative support positions use their positions as a base for advancement into positions like sales, management, advertising, and public relations.

For persons who are in management, financial and business operations careers, a college degree in liberal arts is usually required. Most hotels promote staff with good communication skills and a strong educational background, loyalty, tact and ability to work under pressure to positions of first-level managers. Those with university bachelor's or master's degrees usually have better employment opportunities, as employers prefer them as managers due to their understanding of technical issues and their ability to grasp new skills quickly. After some time with a company, these university degree holders can be promoted to higher management positions. There are higher management positions that require one to have had formal training and a wealth of experiences. Some of these positions are: sales manager, food service manager, and general manager. Some managers in different departments may also require special training or considerable experience.

To increase your chances of getting employed, you should focus on the specific skills you posses and the responsibilities you've had instead listing the job titles you've held. For example, a general manager may outline that he handled a budget size of a certain amount, how he oversaw the sales and marketing of the company and the success he had in training employees and implementing company strategies that enabled the company to increase its sales. He might also quote how he improved the bookkeeping standards of the company, by mentioning specific steps he took to increase the standards of book keeping. If you've worked as a marketing manager, you can mention how you tuned existing products and made collateral materials that led to increased inquiries. You should also mention any new products that you created and how the products affected the revenues of the company.

Ensure that you mention the number of years that you held a certain position and remember to indicate the company you worked for. Your experience should be descriptive in nature, instead of just writing concise points.

The hospitality industry is a competitive industry and there are many job opportunities available. If you want to enter the industry, first ensure you have the basic prerequisites like good customer service and exceptional communication skills. From there you can advance your career to any level you want, if you have the passion and skills required.