HOTEL MANAGERS AND ASSISTANTS

Nature of the Work

For vacationing families and persons whose jobs take them out of town, a comfortable room, good food, and a helpful hotel staff can make being away from home an enjoyable experience.  Hotel managers and assistant managers work to insure that guests' visits are pleasant. 

Within guidelines established by the owners of the hotel or executives of the hotel chain, the general manager sets room rates, allocates funds to departments, approves expenditures, and establishes standards for service to guests, decor, housekeeping, food quality, and banquet operations. Assistant managers must insure that the day-to-day operations of their departments meet the general manager's standards.

Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement

Postsecondary training in hotel or restaurant management is preferred for most hotel management positions, although a college liberal arts degree may be sufficient when coupled with related hotel experience.  In the past, most managers were promoted from the ranks of front desk clerks, housekeepers, waiters and chefs, and hotel sales workers.  Although some persons still advance to hotel management positions without the benefit of education or training beyond high school, postsecondary education is increasingly preferred. A bachelor's degree in hotel and restaurant administration provides particularly strong preparation for a career in hotel management.

Job Outlook

   Employment of salaried hotel managers is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through the year 2005 as more hotels and motels are built.  Business travel will continue to grow, and increased domestic and foreign tourism will also create demand for additional hotels and motels.  However, manager jobs are expected to grow more slowly than the hotel industry because a growing share of the industry will be comprised of economy properties, which generally have fewer managers than full-service hotels. 

Earnings

Salaries of hotel managers varied greatly according to their responsibilities and the size of the hotel in which they worked.  In 1993, annual salaries of assistant hotel managers averaged an estimated $32,500, based on a survey conducted for the American Hotel and Motel Association. In 1993, salaries of general managers averaged more than $59,100, ranging from an average of about $44,900 in hotels and motels with no more than 150 rooms to an average of about $86,700 in large hotels with over 350 rooms. 

Additional information can be obtained by contacting the following organizations:

The American Hotel and Motel Association (AH&MA), Information Center, 1201 New York Ave.  NW., Washington, DC 20005-3931.

The Educational Institute of AH&MA, P.O.  Box 1240, East Lansing, MI 48826.

National Executive Housekeepers Association, Inc., 1001 Eastwind Dr., Suite 301, Westerville, OH 43081.

Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education, 1200 17th St.  NW., Washington, DC 20036-3097.

