Career as Hotel Manager

• Front office – You will be expected to deal with booking, making reservations, receiving guests, maintaining accounts and preparing bills. You have to work as a team with receptionist, bell boy, doorman, information assistant and supervisor.
• Food and Beverage – There are several roles in this department that include Chef De
• Cuisine, Captain, restaurant host, Chef De Partie etc. The main functions of the department are preparation, presentation and service of food and beverages.
• Housekeeping – The main function is to make sure the hotel is clean. You have to work as a team with room attendants, floor supervisors and maids etc.
• General Operations – General management is the main department and has to deal with staff, customer care, quality control, finance and many more. The bigger the hotel, the more the responsibilities and more is the pressure.
• Salaries-An undergraduate can expect to draw a monthly salary of around 20,000 – 30,000 per month depending upon the size of the hotel and nature of the job. With a few years of experience, the salary could be very high for a general manager and can be around 1,00,000 or more. Housekeeping supervisors and front office supervisors can earn about 25,000 to 40,000 after two or more years of experience. Moreover, hotel managers are paid attractive bonuses and commissions too. 

Pros:

• You can travel a lot if you take a cruise or airline hospitality management.
• You can meet a lot of celebrities if you work in 5-star hotels.
• There will never be a dull moment. It is an exciting job.
• You can get bonuses, commissions and tips.
• You can work anywhere.

Cons:

• This is not a 9 to 5 job. The job may be stressful as there is no limit to working hours.
• It may be difficult to please all customers. You will need a lot of patience.
• The job is sensitive to the economy of the country. It suffers when the economy is down.
• Starting salaries may be low.
• When you start as a trainee, you have to do all the petty jobs that you may not like.

A couple of decades ago, hotel management was not very popular in India. Today, it is one of the most popular careers because of the myriads of opportunities. India is one of the most sought after tourist destinations. Every day many hotels are opened in India. So the future prospects for hotel management are high. Moreover, job opportunities are not limited to hotels alone.
To reach the top position faster, you should master your soft skills, go for training or internship in top hotels and find the niche in which you are interested.   

There are many UG courses in Hotel Management for a candidate to choose from after completing Class XII with a minimum of 50%. They are listed here:

• B.Sc in Hospitality and Hotel Administration
• B.Sc in Hotel Management and Catering
• B.H.M – Bachelor of Hotel Management
• BBA in Hotel Management
• B.A in Tourism and Hotel Management
• B.A in International Hospitality Management
• B.H.M.C.T – Bachelor of Hotel Management and Catering Technology

If a candidate fails to score 50% marks, there are many diploma courses. After completing the UG course, you can go for one of the following PG courses: 

• M.SC in Hotel Management and Catering
• M.SC in Hotel Management and Tourism
• M.SC in Hotel Management and Hospitality
• M.H.M – Master of Hotel Management
• M.B.A in Hotel Management
• M.B.A in Hotel Management and Tourism
• M.B.A in Hotel Management, Catering and Tourism
• M.T.H.M – Master in Tourism and Hotel Management

If you want to get into the top institutions, there are many national and state-level entrance exams.

• NCHM JEE to study B.SC in Hotel Management and Catering Technology (3 years) in 21 National levels, 16 State level and 15 private institutions.
• International Institute of Hotel Management Electronic Common Hospitality Admission Test (e-CHAT) to study B.SC in Hotel Management and Catering Technology (3 years) in IIHM in Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Pune, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Ahmedabad.
• Undergraduate Aptitude test conducted by All India Management Association to study in YSR NITHM in Hyderabad, Vidya Jyoti Institutions in Raipur, SRM in Chennai, Goa University and CITMS in Durgapur.
• There are also Hotel-specific entrance exams conducted by Oberoi, IHM Aurangabad and Ecole Hoteliere Lavasa.

The total cost would be about 2.5 lakh for Government Colleges, 3 lakh for Government affiliated colleges and around 6 lakhs for top private colleges. The fee is about Rs 50,000 for diploma courses. The fee varies from college to college and the facilities provided by colleges. You should make sure that the fee charged is justified before entering into an institution to avoid future regrets. 

The Outlook magazine has ranked the Hotel Management colleges in India based on academics, placement, infrastructure, selection process and personality development.

1. Hotel Front Office Management by James A. Bardi
2. Hotel and Hospitality Management by Prakash Thalwar
3. Hotel Management: Understanding The Hospitality Industry by Jason Allan Scott
4. The Heart of Hospitality by Micah Solomon
5. 100 Tips To Hoteliers by Peter Venison
6. Professional Front Office Management by Robert H. Woods

This is a good career for people who are interested in the service industry, but some may feel this does not work for them. If you are one of them, don’t worry. You have other alternatives.

• You can start your own hotel
• You can complete post-graduation and can take up a teaching job in Hotel Management Institutions
• You can take up jobs like Entertainment Managers, Travel Counselor and Event Planners, etc.