Advice for novice hospitality recruitment agencies

Starting a tourism / hospitality recruitment agency? Job Mail is here to help. Today we’re offering advice for novice hospitality recruitment agencies. First you should make sure you know what you are getting yourself into and what the difference between tourism and hospitality is.

Tourism is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business / professional purposes. Hospitality is  the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers.

Tourism has become a popular global leisure activity. It can be domestic or international, and international tourism has both incoming and outgoing implications on a country’s GDP. Tourism is a fast growing economic sector and a major source of income for South Africa and many other countries. Millions of visitors from abroad make their way to South Africa annually, no wonder it’s one of fastest growing job sectors in the country.

Hospitality is mostly associated with etiquette and entertainment. It involves showing respect for your guests, providing for their needs and treating them as equals. The extent to which one is expected to show hospitality to strangers varies from culture to culture. It depends on the sector, but tourism and hospitality can’t be separated.

If your agency specializes in tourism / hospitality you will most likely be recruiting waiters / waitresses, bartenders, kitchen staff, servers, game rangers (and other people who work at game reserves or in conservation), housekeepers, hotel / resort / restaurant managers, travel consultants, tour guides and a whole range of other professionals that fall into this category.

Here are some traits you should look for when interviewing and hiring candidates in the tourism / hospitality industry:

1. Someone with the required qualifications (Ideally someone with a tourism diploma / degree for travel consultant positions)
2. Someone who wants and enjoys to be part of a team.
3. People who have a willingness to serve others (someone with customer service experience would be ideal)
4. Polite and friendly disposition (grumpy and rude people don’t belong in the tourism / hospitality industry)
5. Neat and well-presented appearance (they will be working with people after all)
6. People with the ability to work well under pressure (this job field may sound like fun and games, but it’s still stressful)
7. Someone who is willing to be flexible in working patterns and approach to the job.

Well, there you have it, some useful advice for novice hospitality recruitment agencies. We trust that you find this information useful if you’re thinking of entering this industry.

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