The number of women who are in charge of Forbes Travel Guide partnering hotels across the world is just 19% exposing the leaders of the hospitality sector to a sharp contrast. Despite its global presence and diverse workforce, the hospitality industry still places few women in top leadership roles.
It raises a key question: why? The question of whether it is the ambition, the opportunity or structural challenges that have been to blame in hospitality organizations is a topic of debate by industry observers.
According to a recent study of hertelier and Forbes Travel Guide, there is something deeper in the leadership systems. It explores the career promotion process within the hospitality sector and why more women do not succeed to the top.
The study interviewed 99 women executives from Forbes Travel Guide partner hotels. It examined their career paths and the challenges they faced. The analysis comes ahead of International Women’s Day on March 8, when many organizations review their gender-equality efforts and highlight ongoing challenges.
Barriers Women Face in Hospitality Leadership
A remarkable contradiction in the study was revealed. Approximately, 80% of the respondents claimed mindset and resilience as the main factors that led to their success, whereas 65% of the respondents recognized ambition and determination as the essential qualities of leadership.
The discussion changed when participants talked about barriers. Four in ten respondents said they faced gender-based leadership expectations. Meanwhile, 34% reported limited workplace flexibility, and 30% experienced bias in promotion and hiring decisions.
Such findings demonstrate that advancement in the leadership of hospitality is to a great extent individual. Women often rely on themselves to grow and develop. But the barriers are not individual, they are institutional. Organizational systems have remained as a determinant of leadership opportunities and career to most people.
The difference brings up a bigger issue that concerns leadership in the hospitality industry. If success depends mainly on individual perseverance, the industry may need to rethink its leadership system.
Rethinking Leadership Pathways in Hospitality
The leaders in the industry convened The Summit by Forbes Travel Guide in Monaco to deliberate on these findings. Silvia Nauta, Marlene Poynder, Franck Sibille, and Charlotte Weatherall, were part of the panel that discussed what these insights imply to leadership in hospitality.
Resilience has been highly valued in the hospitality industry. The industry is arduous, there are long working hours, high operational effort and constant stress to provide excellent guest experiences.
Resilience is not sufficient to the long-term leadership strategy. In case of top-level jobs that require exceptional stamina, the leadership pipeline will remain as limited as it must be.
When researchers asked survey participants about the most important leadership skills for the future, their priorities shifted. Strategic thinking ranked first, followed by emotional intelligence, authentic communication, and empathy.
These answers imply that future hospitality leaders have to find a way to work with complexity and motivate their staff. Another probable outcome of this is that success will be less dependent on endurance and more on people-centered management expertise.
Building Sustainable Leadership for the Future
One of the major themes that were emphasized by the research was the expansion of leadership paths. Silvia Nauta indicated that a general manager does not necessarily have to be out of any single discipline; she can be out of finance, sales, human resources and revenue management.
These diverse career paths can significantly expand the leadership pipeline. Allowing professionals from different backgrounds to reach executive roles can also create a more inclusive leadership culture in the industry.
Financial skills are required also. Marlene Poynder emphasized that executives should still maintain profitandloss duties, particularly with the increase of the hospitality industry towards an investor-led industry.
Sustainable leadership depends on flexibility. The policies of long parental leave and the alteration of workplace demands are transforming the way hospitality companies are sustaining its leaders.
Concisely, the leadership of hospitality is at the threshold of a new age. The industry cannot rely on resilience alone. It needs clear systems that support diverse leaders and promote sustainable career development.
