Tài liệu HOTEL/RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT CAREER STARTER pot

HOTEL/RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT

CAREER STARTER

HOTEL/RESTAURANT

MANAGEMENT

career starter

Lauren Starkey

New York

Copyright © 2002 LearningExpress, LLC.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions.

Published in the United States by LearningExpress, LLC, New York.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Starkey, Lauren B., 1962–

Hotel/restaurant management career starter / Lauren B. Starkey.—1st ed.

p. cm.

ISBN 1-57685-411-6

1. Hotel management. 2. Restaurant management. I. Title.

TX911.3.M27 S6985 2002

647.94'068—dc21

2002001383

Printed in the United States of America

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

First Edition

ISBN 1-57685-411-6

For more information or to place an order, contact LearningExpress at:

900 Broadway

Suite 604

New York, NY 10003

Or visit us at:

www.learnatest.com

About the Author

Lauren Starkey is a writer and editor, specializing in educational and ref￾erence works, with over ten years of experience. For eight years, she worked

on the Oxford English Dictionary. She lives in Essex, Vermont, with her

husband, Gorden, and children, Emma, Graham, and Cameron.

vii

Introduction Why Become a Hotel or Restaurant Manager? ix

Chapter One Choosing a Career as a Hotel 1

or Restaurant Manager

What is a Hotel or Restaurant Manager 2

What Do Hotel or Restaurant Managers Do? 3

What Makes a Great Hotel or Restaurant Manager? 5

Hiring Trends and Salaries 6

The Importance of Training 9

Where Do Hotel or Restaurant Managers Work? 11

Opportunities for Advancement 19

Certification 20

Skills Inventory 22

Chapter Two Getting the Education You Need 26

Why You Need Training 27

Types of Training Programs 28

Choosing a Training Program 39

Admission Requirements 47

Making the Most of Your Training Program 49

Chapter Three Financial Aid—Discovering the Possibilities 57

Some Myths about Financial Aid 58

Types of Financial Aid 60

Applying for Financial Aid 73

General Guidelines for Loans 79

The Most Frequently Asked Questions 83

about Financial Aid

Financial Aid Checklist 85

Contents

Financial Aid Acronyms Key 85

Financial Aid Terms—Clearly Defined 86

Financial Aid Resources 87

Chapter Four Finding Your First Job 94

What Kind of Job Do You Really Want? 95

Taking a Deadline-Oriented Approach 96

to Your Job Search Efforts

Researching the Field 97

Finding the Jobs Available 104

Networking 112

Chapter Five Job Search Skills 119

Writing Your Resume 120

Writing Cover Letters 146

Interviewing Successfully 150

Evaluating a Job Offer 158

Chapter Six Succeeding on the Job 163

Fitting Into the Workplace Culture 164

Managing Work Relationships 166

Stress on the Job 173

Managing Your Time 177

Mentors 180

Promoting Yourself 182

Moving On 187

Final Thoughts 189

Appendix A Professional Associations 193

Appendix B Additional Resources 195

Appendix C Directory of Accredited Schools, 203

National Accrediting Associations,

and Financial Aid by State

Appendix D Sample Free Application for Federal 219

Student Aid (FAFSA)

viii

Contents

ix

Why Become a Hotel or

Restaurant Manager?

HOTEL AND restaurant managers work in the hospitality industry,

providing services to millions of people around the world every day. Most

people are familiar with the setting in which these managers work, having

enjoyed meals in restaurants and stayed in hotels. But how many know what

goes on behind the scenes? Depending on the size of the establishment,

there may be hundreds of people involved in the process of providing a hotel

room or restaurant meal.

Managers oversee the work of these people, coordinating a variety of

services including housekeeping, kitchen staff, marketing, inventory con￾trol, bookkeeping, and human resources. But they’re not just behind-the￾scenes people. Hotel and restaurant managers are generally “people

people.” They love contact with their guests, and enjoy providing the kind

of customer service that brings people back to their establishments over and

over again. This book introduces you to these exciting careers, in which you

might find yourself working for a huge city hotel, an ocean-side resort, a

contract food service company, an ethnic restaurant, or one of hundreds of

other employers.

Chapter 1 serves as a general exploration of the field. In it, you will learn

what hotel and restaurant managers do, where they work, and what makes

them successful. Also included are hiring trends and current salary informa￾tion, sample job descriptions, and advice from current hotel and restaurant

managers.

Chapter 2 explains the importance of training, and how to decide what

kind of post-secondary education is right for you. It explains the different

Introduction

types of programs and how to succeed once you have entered one. Sample

courses and tuition costs from schools across the country are also in this

chapter.

In Chapter 3, you will learn the possibilities for financing your education,

including loans, scholarships, and grants. The differences between each

option are explored, explaining eligibility, the application process, and how

awards are given. You will also find out about the forms you need, where to

get them, how to fill them out, and where to send them, and get some tips

for simplifying and surviving the process.

Chapter 4 covers the job search process, beginning with a discussion

about determining the type of job you really want. There is plenty of infor￾mation on where the best jobs are, and the best ways to find them, from clas￾sified ads to networking and Internet resources.

Then, in Chapter 5, you will learn how to hone your job search skills.

The crafting of winning resumes and cover letters that really get noticed is

explained, along with advice on how to handle interviews with more polish

and less anxiety. Finally, you will learn how to evaluate the job offers you are

sure to receive.

Chapter 6 takes you out of the job search and into the job market, show￾ing proven ways to succeed in your new position. You will learn how to man￾age relationships with your superiors and your employees, as well as how to

handle the stress that often accompanies work as a hotel or restaurant man￾ager. Other topics covered include fitting into the particular culture of your

new workplace, how to find a mentor, and how to promote yourself to get

ahead.

In addition, throughout the book, you will find insight and advice from

current hotel and restaurant managers. The appendices at the end of the

book offer helpful resources too: A list of professional associations, accred￾iting agencies, and state financial aid offices, as well as a directory of train￾ing programs. Also included are books and periodicals you can refer to for

additional information.

So, turn the page and begin. This book will give you a great start toward

a rewarding and challenging career as a hotel or restaurant manager.

x

Introduction

HOTEL/RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT

CAREER STARTER

1

THE CAREERS of both hotel and restaurant managers are part of

the hospitality industry. This means that they revolve around making peo￾ple feel comfortable and welcome, and meeting their needs—whether for a

great meal at a reasonable price, or for a clean, comfortable room for the

night. Hotel and restaurant managers, and indeed all who work in the hos￾pitality industry, thrive on making their guests happy and enjoy contact with

many different people. They also juggle a variety of responsibilities. While

they have staffs that work for them, ultimately it is the manager who takes

the praise or blame for the way a hotel or restaurant is run.

IN THIS CHAPTER, you will learn about hotel and

restaurant managers, including what they do, where

they work, and what makes them successful. Jobs

with large hotels and restaurants, resorts, healthcare

facilities, and contract food service companies are

examined, along with sample job advertisements from

many of these employers. You will also hear advice

from a number of those already working in the field.

Finally, the specific strengths and skills necessary to

succeed as a hotel or restaurant manager will be

explored in an interactive format.

CHOOSING A CAREER AS A HOTEL OR

RESTAURANT MANAGER

CHAPTER one

WHAT IS A HOTEL OR RESTAURANT MANAGER?

Hotel managers are executives who work at various types of lodging estab￾lishments, such as large chain hotels, smaller independent hotels, inns,

resorts, and even on cruise ships. Most have received training in the form of

an undergraduate degree in hospitality management, and have then worked

their way up through the ranks to the position of manager. They run their

establishments by coordinating a number of different services, including the

front desk, reservations, housekeeping, maintenance, and marketing.

Depending on the employer, a hotel manager may have assistant managers

to help with these services, or may be solely responsible for them. Since a

hotel is typically open every day of the year, and services are provided 24

hours a day, a manager rarely works a 40-hour week. Alternative titles for

hotel managers include:

General Manager

Hotelier

Convention Facility Manager

Tourist Hotel Manager

Manager (Hotel)

Operations Manager (Hotel)

Restaurant or food service managers also work at various types of estab￾lishments, from large chain restaurants, to healthcare facilities and contract

food service companies. While many restaurant managers hold undergrad￾uate degrees in hospitality management, it is possible to advance to this

position through a combination of job experience and employer training

programs. The manager is in charge of the smooth operation of the dining

establishment—coordinating all of the services involved in the business,

including bookkeeping, human resources, marketing, menu choices and

pricing, maintenance, ordering of supplies, and kitchen management. In

large restaurants, the manager may oversee the work of a number of assis￾tant managers, who deal with much of the hands-on operation; however, in

smaller restaurants, the manager may be personally involved in every aspect

of the enterprise. In addition, most dining facilities are open seven days a

2

HOTEL/RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT career starter

week, meaning that a manager can expect to work long hours and on

weekends.

WHAT DO HOTEL AND RESTAURANT MANAGERS DO?

Hotel managers plan, organize, and control the operation of a hotel or other

lodging facility. The size and type of the hotel at which the manager is

employed helps determine the scope of the manager’s duties. Large hotels

are headed by general managers, whose jobs are primarily administrative.

If the hotel is part of a chain, the general manager works for the corporate

officers, and may have many activities, such as purchasing or marketing,

performed by the corporation.

General managers typically delegate many responsibilities to their

managers, and coordinate the various departments within the hotel. For

instance, the convention department, headed by the convention manager,

organizes and coordinates services for meetings to be held in the hotel; the

marketing and sales department, staffed with salespeople, promotes the

hotel and its services to achieve a high rate of use; the food service depart￾ment coordinates menu planning, purchasing and the preparation of food;

the human resources department makes hiring and firing decisions; the

front office handles room reservations and greets guests; and the house￾keeping department is comprised of a cleaning staff and is in charge of the

maintenance of the rooms and lobby areas. Many large hotels also have

recreational managers who provide, or otherwise make available to, guests a

variety of activities.

Managers who work in small or medium-sized hotels have a more hands￾on, rather than administrative, position. Instead of heading up a number of

departments which are led by employees who report to them, these man￾agers take a direct role in activities such as hiring and firing, menu planning

and food preparation, and marketing of the hotel. Managers of smaller lodg￾ing facilities may also fill in when there are gaps in the staff or services; they

might greet guests at the front desk, inspect rooms, or set up function rooms

for meetings. Many of them are also owners or part-owners of the estab￾lishments in which they work.

3

Choosing a Career as a Hotel or Restaurant Manager