Top 8 Career Paths to Pursue in Hospitality Services

Hospitality services have become a modern norm, a set of services many of us have taken for granted up until 2019. Hotels, restaurants, resorts, inns, and cafés are only some of the many hospitality businesses that have come under fire in the wake of the global pandemic. Occupancy rates in hotels have plummeted and foods and beverages businesses have been relegated to delivery and takeout services.

According to published data, 10% of the total worldwide workforce was employed in tourism in 2019, with 173 million people working in the hotel industry pre-pandemic. 56% of travelers and guests have stated that they’ll travel for leisure and work purposes despite COVID-19 to maintain a sense of normalcy in their everyday lives.

Additional findings back this point up, as the average global hotel occupancy during 2021 was 50-80%, with the UK enjoying 76% occupancy during the pandemic. With 2022 underway, however, many hospitality services are getting back on their proverbial feet and starting to hire new employees. This is the perfect time for you to explore potential hospitality career paths to pursue with Jobs OneGlobe at your side.

1. Tourism Professional

The tourism niche within the hospitality industry is focused on services related to travel facilitation. Travel agencies and tour guides worldwide are working hard on ensuring that their clients have great experiences traveling abroad.

According to the World Tourism Organization, tourism has grown by 4% in popularity in 2021 compared to 2020 due to travel restrictions and has adopted an upward trend. If you like traveling and helping other people travel more conveniently, these hospitality services are a great choice for you to specialize in.

Career paths to consider: Tour guide, travel agent, tourist agency manager, tourist center information manager

2. Accommodation Professional

Professionals working within the accommodation niche of hospitality are in charge of facilitating guest stays within their businesses. Hotels, motels, hostels, inns, and other types of lodgings fall under accommodation and are closely related to the term “hospitality”.

Various hospitality services within these businesses are available for prospective professionals looking for employment. You can work in hotels or inns whether you’re a housekeeper, a desk clerk, or a maintenance worker, making it a very good career option.

Career paths to consider: Front desk representative, concierge, night manager, reservation manager, room manager

3. Restaurant Professional

Restaurant venues rely on their guests for sustainability. They have been hit by the global pandemic far more than any other niche within hospitality services due to the nature of their business model. Restaurants feature plenty of career opportunities for hospitality professionals who are outgoing and want to serve guests or clients.

You can work in restaurants, diners, fast food chains, takeout restaurants, and various other businesses which prepare and serve food. This is an especially exciting prospect for people who have a formal background as chefs and can easily integrate into restaurant kitchens to build their careers.

Career paths to consider: Waiter, chef, sous chef cook, kitchen manager, restaurant manager, assistant restaurant manager

4. Event Planning Professional

Event planning is somewhat self-explanatory but does require you to be a great manager. Event planners need to be able to budget correctly, handle logistics organization, assign duties to staff or volunteers, and oversee events as they happen.

This is a good career path for people who like to organize things or for those with formal organizational education in business or management. Event planners can start their careers as associates or junior planners before graduating to own their event management businesses down the line. It’s a dynamic hospitality services niche that allows for easy transition between event planning jobs due to the nature of the work it requires.

Career paths to consider: Wedding planner, venue manager, catering manager, general event planner

5. Café Professional

Working in a café means that you’ll constantly be challenged to work with others, both guests and your colleagues. Whether you work as a bartender, a barista, or a manager, you’ll get to experience many of the managerial and servicing aspects of working in a café.

You’ll be in charge of preparing beverages, managing receipts, tidying up, and even organizing shifts with your colleagues. These hospitality services were under equal pressure and difficulty during the peak of the global pandemic alongside accommodation and restaurant businesses. As such, many café owners are now looking for professional staff to fill their ranks and help them kick-start their businesses.

Career paths to consider: Waiter, bartender, barista, café associate, café manager, dishwasher associate

6. Wellness Professional

The wellness industry encompasses all hospitality services centered on physical or mental wellbeing. Spas, salons, saunas, fitness centers, and gyms all fall under wellness hospitality services. As such, there are two types of work placements you can look for within wellness – managerial and specialized.

As a manager, you’d be in charge of booking appointments, running the front desk, or acting as a customer support agent. On the other hand, with the right training or education, you can work as a fitness trainer, masseur, nutritionist, or therapist. Wellness is a great niche for people who love working with others and helping them feel better about themselves.

Career paths to consider: Masseur, personal trainer, nutritionist, spa manager, health therapist, yoga trainer

7. Housekeeping Professional

Housekeeping refers to jobs that are centered on cleaning and tidying up the spaces occupied by guests or clients of said business. The most commonly referred to job in this hospitality niche is “housekeeper”, but the title doesn’t do the job justice.

Housekeeping professionals are found in accommodation businesses, cafés, food businesses, and various other businesses unrelated to hospitality. They are in charge not only of cleaning but also ensuring that the spaces they work in are aesthetically pleasing and inviting for guests and clients. As such, housekeeping is one of the more essential hospitality services niches and you’ll never lack employment opportunities if you specialize in housekeeping.

Career paths to consider: Housekeeper, cleaner, life-in housecleaner, housekeeping manager, laundry manager

8. Maintenance Professional

Hospitality services focused on maintenance services are very diverse and offer a wide range of specialization opportunities for prospective employees. Maintenance workers are in charge of maintaining or repairing essential infrastructure, technology, and appliances for clients and businesses. Whether you’re a plumber or an electrician, you’ll be tasked to work with a plethora of very different clients each with its own set of unique issues.

These professions will require you to poses a certain aptitude for manual repair work, as well as some previous education. You can either become educated in, say, carpentry or locksmithing as an apprentice or choose to apply for official courses or seminars to attain certification. These hospitality services don’t have horizontal career freedom, meaning that you won’t be able to transition into being a mechanic if you’re a carpenter easily without more education.

Career paths to consider: Plumber, locksmith, carpenter, electrician, mechanic, repairman,

Finding Jobs in Various Hospitality Services with Jobs OneGlobe

There’s never been a better moment in time for you to search for great hospitality services jobs than 2022. If you’re committed to developing a hospitality career, Jobs OneGlobe is the perfect place to be. You can create your candidate’s account and start applying for amazing hospitality jobs opportunities very quickly.

While you search for your next job, you can check out our library of resources which will help you improve your CV, apply for jobs, and build an amazing career. Our team is always on the lookout for ways to better your job search and make it simpler. All you need to do is create your CV and let prospective hospitality employers know that you’re available for hire!