What It Takes to Be a Hospitality Administrator

A hospitality administration degree provides the training to succeed in the hospitality industry, but the people who are most successful in this field possess certain characteristics and skills that set them apart.

While the degree provides the knowledge and technical skills to complete the administrative jobs involved in running hotels, restaurants, travel agencies and other customer-oriented businesses, some other innate and learned skills are also important to the job.

Here are five skills that complement a hospitality administration degree and lead to success:

1. Strong people skills

Friendliness, a genuine interest in other people's lives and the ability to place people at ease are all important to success in the hospitality field. Every task of a hospitality manager or administrator involves people, whether they are important clients, essential work crews or vendors who provide vital products and services.

2. Good listening skills

Much of dealing with stubborn, disappointed and angry people is being a good listener. The best listeners convey a sense that they are taking note of every word while also picking up important clues to what is causing the other person's emotions and how any problems can be resolved. Good listeners grab onto the most important words they hear and quickly formulate solutions.

3. Excellent communication skills

Being friendly and listening to the employees, customers and suppliers around them only goes so far. Those with exceptional communication skills say the right things at the right time to get the best possible results. That means speaking in a tone of voice and a level of detail appropriate for every kind of listener.

4. Attention to detail

Hospitality is about going beyond expectations to create a work environment and a client experience that exceeds expectations. Small details like napkins in the right place, the best quality guest chairs and amenities beyond what is promised can smooth over rough edges in other areas to create the feeling of a premium-quality experience.

5. Stress management abilities

Hospitality administrators take on the stresses of others from every direction, and they must find ways to release these stresses both during and after work hours. If employees detect that a manager is stressed, they often become stressed as well. When customers or vendors see stress, they see incompetence or an inability to cope.

Along with a hospitality administration degree, these five skills can make succeeding in the competitive, rewarding hospitality field both possible and likely.