How to start a career in hotel management

The Australian hotel industry is growing at a promising rate and is expected to create plenty of new jobs in the next five years. If you're looking for a new start, hotel management is a rewarding career path with abundant opportunity for promotion, travel and excitement.

More than you can imagine goes in to designing five-star hotel experiences. It requires an understanding of customer needs, industry trends and business management. Success in this field is highly rewarding and can lead to establishing an internationally-recognised brand.

Anyone looking to start a promising career should look to the hotel industry for employment prospects in the coming years. With every day, the Australian hotel industry shows new signs of positive growth.

What is the current state of the Australian hotel industry?

International tourism and the accommodation industries in Australia have seen continued growth in the face of global, political and economic uncertainty.

In 2017, international visitor arrivals rose an impressive 6.5 per cent to over 8.8 million - 540,000 more than the previous year, according to Deloitte. Room rates across the country have been steadily climbing since the global financial crisis, growing 2.4 per cent last year to reach a national average of $161 per night. This has contributed to 3.3 per cent growth in revenue per available room (RevPAR).

Will Australia's hotel industry continue to grow?

The outlook for Australia's hotel industry is positive in 2018.

With luxury hotel developments projected to open in 2019 and 2020 like the $500 million Ritz Carlton Hotel (in Perth) and cutting-edge Mandarin Oriental Group tower (in Melbourne), average room rates are set to increase by 2.8 per cent annually. Revenue is predicted to benefit from these luxury establishments, increasing 3.1 per cent each year.

Yuvraj Pawar's story

After studying a Master in International Hospitality Management, Yuvraj Pawar's goal of being a Hotel General Manager is closer than ever. Since graduating from Le Cordon Bleu Adelaide in 2014, his star has continued to rise. In his current role as Rooms Division Manager at luxury Rydges Palmerston in Darwin, he has increased occupancy from 60% to 99%. Read Yuvraj's story here!

Are there jobs in the Australian hotel industry?

With new properties in the pipeline and an ageing workforce, job prospects are promising over the next five years.

Around 9,000 new hotel management jobs are likely to be created up to May 2022, according to the Department of Jobs and Small Business. Currently, five in 10 managers are over 45, with men representing 62 per cent of the workforce. This shows a need for greater diversity in the sector, with young people, especially women, needed in management roles.

The expected qualification for hotel managers is a bachelor's degree - you need to be equipped with a specific skill set for effective hotel management. If you are interested in bringing creative leadership to this growing industry, you must apply for our Bachelor of Business (International Hotel Management). Over the three-year programme, you'll develop your communication skills and business acumen in both scheduled classes and industry placement (Work Integrated Learning).