Training and development are an arm of a wider education umbrella and a key tool for gaining hospitality expertise and professional development progress. Training involves a combination of industry content, techniques and methods connected to operations and emphasizes learning for the advancement of the hospitality industry.
There are many variables in training, including industry content knowledge and application for hospitality, guest service, cross-cultural awareness, innovation, sustainability, leadership, and technology. Furthermore, there is a need to match the skills of an individual to their jobs and position responsibilities and to tie innovation and technology to knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and values. Additionally, behavioral skills are inclusive of communication skills, problem solving, teamwork, employee attitude, and work ethic.
Training is a great tool to use to help develop hospitality employees and their talent. Review of online sources points to various topics that are connected to and or related to training. Such terms include instruction, teaching, coaching, tutoring, tutelage, schooling, education, pedagogy, andragogy, drilling, priming, preparation, grounding, guidance, orientation, and lessons, to name a few. More specifically the focus of skill development or reskilling, competency development, and the types of skills such as behavioral skills (also known as soft skills).
As a hospitality professor teaching hospitality business at a university, the coursework requires a combination of content, notably the introduction of new content, the reinforcement of content through application, plus the integration of skills, traits, and methods applicable to career pathways. In my previous career path, I was an openings and training manager for a restaurant chain in California. This segment of my career gave me a broad perspective of learning and the skills and abilities needed to be successful in our industry. I would not call myself a trainer, but a provider and facilitator of hospitality education, utilizing training methods as teaching and learning tools. The discussion of training also connects to Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning which is inclusive of:
- Knowledge, “involves the recall of specifics and universals, the recall of methods and processes, or the recall of a pattern, structure, or setting.”
- Comprehension, “refers to a type of understanding or apprehension such that the individual knows what is being communicated and can make use of the material or idea being communicated without necessarily relating it to other material or seeing its fullest implications.”
- Application, refers to the “use of abstractions in particular and concrete situations.”
- Analysis, represents the “breakdown of a communication into its constituent elements or parts such that the relative hierarchy of ideas is made clear and/or the relations between ideas expressed are made explicit.”
- Synthesis, involves the “putting together of elements and parts so as to form a whole.” And
- Evaluation, engenders “judgments about the value of material and methods for given purposes.”
It is the integration and utilization of these learning stages that support an educator or a trainer and help hone their craft as teachers and instructors. Learning should not always be considered formal training ; within large organizations, it can also be informal, as it occurs through the interactions of employees who learn through networking and peer-to-peer relationships. For this reason, as noted by Association of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and Crafts CZ & Ipsos Marketing, (2023) continuous employee training and development in reaction to changing trends on the labor market and ongoing technological progress is considered the most helpful support.
What Good Training Can Do for Your Operation?
High-quality training and training efforts, in general, should have goals and subsequent measurable objectives to make them optimally applicable. Productive training typically is inclusive of some of the following goals, enhanced customer service, improved productivity, increased job satisfaction, and reduced turnover rate.
Training tools are used to help develop hospitality employees’ skills and talents. Review of online sources notes various topics that are connected to, and or related to training. Such descriptors include instruction, teaching, coaching, tutoring, tutelage, schooling, education, pedagogy, andragogy, drilling, priming, preparation, grounding, guidance, orientation, and lessons, to name a few.
Operationally, training experts note that there are triggers for training in the hospitality industry that are crucial for developing effective programs. Common triggers include:
- Onboarding new employees: Onboarding also referred to everboarding, emphasizes the importance and constant demand for training.
- Periodic refresher training: Refresher can be useful, especially for many that perform some tasks on an annual basis.
- Addressing skill gaps: If a gap has been identified in employee skills, then training is an obvious remedy. The decision will be content, method and delivery channels.
- New processes or systems: Innovation is great but typically means that training will need to be provided to keep employees current and on the same page.
- New responsibilities or promotions: Promotions and advancement on the career path are great but will require new content, new job knowledge and areas of responsibility, all provided through training programs.
More specifically, focus areas such as skill development or reskilling, competency development, and types of skills, i.e., behavioral skills (also known as soft skills). Behavioral skills or as noted, sometimes called soft skills can be inclusive of communication, problem-solving, teamwork, attitude, ethics, and more. I have never liked the references to soft skills and would prefer them to be referred to as behavioral skills. Some of these content areas are difficult to teach or train. Problem solving is complex and the problem solvers are often looking for a “correct answer.” A consideration is that optimal answers give the variables for decision making teamwork and attitude are also complex. Think about working in teams in college for group projects. These never seem to be popular assigned tasks. Attitude needs to be mediated with empathy and tolerance.
Hotel training programs need to be innovative but also need to focus on key components for both personal and operational success, e.g., compliance training that could be inclusive of food safety and security. Hard skills are more technical aspects of an operation, for example, data analysis or specific skills training for a chosen position like culinary expertise. Conversely, soft skills, as previously noted, are behavioral and inclusive of communication and interpersonal relations. Ultimately, product knowledge skills for an operation are vital. The question for an operation is, what is our hospitality product? We, as an industry, have products that are produced and consumed almost simultaneously, making service and guest satisfaction challenging.
Training Trends
Learning and training are intertwined and vital for developing career pathways and professional development. As noted in the literature, a possible future for managers may include career pathing through “everboarding. ” Everboarding is a concept that embraces the continuous introduction of materials and content in a training environment over the career with an organization.
Training preparation and delivery include:
- Establishing priorities for training
- Training for managers
- Guest service enhancement
- Interpersonal skills
- Food service operations (not everyone is a food person)
- Job skills
- Ever evolving and changing technology
- Applications
- Continuous human resource training
- Workplace safety training
Managers can expect the training standards and requirements to be based on identified needs.
The decisions on what kind of training, the use of virtual training, mobile training, and its variations in addition to face-to-face training sessions will be made based on needs vital for the business. This will be standard for hospitality operations and service-oriented operations. For example, universities typically have faculty and staff learning platforms that help with onboarding and continuous training needs. I will be chair of a search committee soon and there is a requirement to update my search committee/ recruiting training every two years. Skills also need to be individual, interpersonal, organizational, and have societal aspects. Additionally, there is a need to match the skills of individuals to jobs and position responsibilities and also tie them to innovation and technology. This is also inclusive of knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and values.
In addition to these factors and decisions about training and training programs, there are many variables in training and education that impact the learning effectiveness and efficiencies. These variables include:
- Multi-Generational Engagement
- Upskilling and career development
- AI Assisted learning and feedback
- Hybrid and remote learning models
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- User Generated content and social learning
- ROI Data Analytics
I am a baby boomer, and therefore, my point of reference can differ from Gen X or Z, etc. I dislike many virtual session options though I have completed many training modules. I understand the potential efficiencies but am also concerned with the design of the training and its effectiveness. Learning and training effectiveness and, ultimately, ROI are the pursuable goals and objectives,
Planning for Training: Talent & Labor Pools and More
One of the key issues for hospitality and its training programs is to have the required and needed labor (staff and managers) to run a smooth hospitality operation. An important factor for the hospitality industry has been the employee/applicant sentiment about the hospitality industry and selecting our field as a career. Research has indicated that the perceptions of hospitality careers include, low wages, long hours, hard work, physical strain, and time needed to do a job, in addition to human interactions and guest service standards. Another perception is that there is seldom a career path and limited training opportunities. Finally, as in the last five to seven years and more have shown us, there is a real fear of losing jobs due to economic or health safety issues, i.e., lockdowns due to the next iteration of COVID and the hospitality industry is part of that concern.
The American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) has collaborated on a variety of research in this area and member organizations and allied industry can access this research. Talent and labor pools need to include demographics about the talent pool needed and that is available. Research needs to highlight what the talent pool is looking for in jobs and from employers. In an economic crisis around 2008, our program had placed eight recent graduates with a company at locations across the nation. The crisis hit, they were laid off and left stranded and unemployed. I understand it is a business, but how we handle these crisis moments, and there will be more, has an impact on labor pools and the quality of applicant and, subsequently, their training needs.
From an organizational perspective, identify the talent and labor pools hospitality businesses are interested in. What does a specific pool of applicants offer a business in terms of traits, skills, and job matches? To support your recruiting efforts, your business needs to stand out from the competition. Finally, how do you reach your target talent and labor pools? Per AHLA research, these talent and labor pools are listed below:
- Veterans
- Military Spouses
- Back to work Caregivers
- People with Disabilities
- Students
- Re-Entering Citizens
- Retirees
- Refugees
- Gig workers (On Demand)
Best Practices to Create Your Own Training Model(s)
Looking forward, emerging trends in staff training and development are set to revolutionize the industry, ensuring that employees are equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in a dynamic environment. These are inclusive of: technology in training, more specifically, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) Training. These technologies can provide immersive training experiences that allow staff to practice real-world scenarios in a controlled, risk-free environment. Examples of available technologies include:
E-Learning and Mobile Training Platforms include Adaptive Learning Technology: I think of this as technology progress tests. Adaptive learning provides personalized learning paths and customized training. These personalized programs can result in what some have described as lifelong learning. Ongoing Training: Change is forever, and therefore, so is learning. As an educator, I always encourage students to go for more and take advantage of every learning opportunity. Additionally, to use an old training term, content and topics can be “chunked” to be easier to approach and learn through microlearning modules.
Also, Communication and Emotional Intelligence are essential for guest service. (Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand and manage your emotions, as well as recognize and influence the emotions of those around you. As organizations strive to enhance the performance of their managers and leaders, emotional intelligence is more valued than ever).
Leadership and Management Training: (Leadership and management are not the same thing. Managers are vital to set parameters and standards and then control for operation within those standards often targeting preset ROI goals. Leadership definitions vary but are perhaps inclusive of descriptors like visionaries, innovators, entrepreneurs and more. They see the same problem but think differently about solutions and alternatives. Training and education in this area focus on problem-solving and decision-making. Seeing what everyone sees but selecting a unique response to a situation). Sustainability and Ethical Training (Sustainability has become a serious topic in hospitality.
The accomplishment is to get people to understand what sustainability really means, and that it is not just recycling or trash pickup. Sustainability looks at what is good for the environment, what is good for a community and, in our case (hospitality) what is good for a business. What we need to do is think about sustainability more broadly. Sustainability has touched construction and design through LEED. (reference) and obviously to the environment, but there is also sustainability for employees, staff and managers tied to good for a business is job satisfaction and low turnover, hiring local, creating jobs, and more making sustainability is action but also a mindset.)
Going Forward
To stay competitive, hospitality organizations must offer training programs to meet the changing demands of the industry. The future of hospitality training lies in embracing innovation and focusing on personalized, inclusive, and sustainable practices.
Our effort is to change thought processes to the ROI that training can bring us. Hospitality operations will need to continue to make advances in embracing technology and E-earning, highlighting virtual reality (VR) options and Augmented Reality (AR). These technologies provide immersive training experiences, allowing staff to practice skills in realistic environments without the risks of real-life scenarios. “VR and AR are game changers in hospitality training, offering hands-on experience without the overhead.” — Jane Smith, Training Manager at Global Hotels
Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI-driven analytics assess employee performance and offer personalized learning recommendations, helping identify areas for improvement and accelerating skill development. Also, as previously noted, soft skills (behavioral skills) development will continue to be stressed in training and education. As guest experience becomes increasingly crucial, the demand for strong soft skills—such as communication, empathy, and problem-solving—is higher than ever.
Also, as is common in hospitality university programs, mentorship contributes to skill development and career progression for both mentors and mentees. For mentees, having a mentor means having someone who can provide guidance, support, and advice as they navigate through their career journey. It helps them develop new skills, gain valuable insights, and build a broader perspective. Mentors can also enhance their leadership skills, get recognition as subject matter experts, and even learn from their mentees’ fresh outlooks.
Future training programs must prioritize developing these skills to ensure staff can effectively connect with guests and provide exceptional service. Options and alternative strategies can include role-playing and simulations, and continuous feedback and coaching will be even more important in a more personalized training environment. Ongoing feedback supports interpersonal skill development, fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
Think ahead and utilize an optimal learning management system (LMS): Implement an LMS that tracks employee progress. Use microlearning, short and quick training programs that can provide options from internally developed modules to TikTok options. (Now that TikTok is back online, we will see more clearly what options we have). Hybrid or blended learning approaches, combining traditional in-class training with virtual and online options, will allow hospitality to be more flexible, and allow employees and trainers to collaborate, cooperate and control training offerings.
Even in a world that currently appears to dismiss diversity, prioritizing cultural awareness and focusing on multi-cultural management is just good business for the guests we serve and the employees that serve them. Also, we have previously discussed sustainability efforts, and I note that sustainability, inclusive of the environment and much more, is here to stay. Efforts for service learning and community engagement are important methods and training opportunities for employees and our students.
Per our colleagues at EHL Insights, understanding how to educate today’s hospitality students so that they are prepared and equipped to thrive as leaders in the sector tomorrow has become a pressing concern. Feedback remains a critical aspect that ensures these programs are effective and continuously improved. By actively seeking employee input, organizations can adjust training approaches to better align with employee needs and expectations. Therefore stressing, tailored content updates, engagement measurement, continuous improvement, and enhanced training effectiveness.
From a resource perspective, faculty and trainers can utilize the highlights of a training facilitator’s “Trends table of contents” in an effort to address a Design Thinking “Train the Trainer ” Innovation Facilitator Program. The list is thorough as a resource and noted diverse topics inclusive of:
From a faculty perspective, being aware and immersed in teaching and training options is critical to enhancing student learning. As is often noted, the graduates of today are the hospitality leaders of the future, and these future leaders will need to continue to be lifelong learners. As lifelong learners, they will utilize traditional teaching and training methods but be welcoming of new training and teaching options. Always keep learning!
Reprinted from the Hotel Business Review with permission from www.HotelExecutive.com.
Robert O’Halloran
Professor & Director
+1 252 737 1604
East Carolina University
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