Top 3 Trends for Hospitality Careers in 2016

The last few decades have seen fundamental changes to the hospitality industry, with new technologies and services dramatically transforming consumer behavior. To start with, online travel agencies (OTAs) changed the way we book trips, with one third of leisure and half of business travelers booking their trips online.

More recently, peer-to-peer housing platform Airbnb has emerged as a significant competitor for hotels. It now lists over 800,000 properties worldwide. In a parallel development, app-based taxi services have introduced the concept of smart mobility, revolutionizing the transportation sector.

All of these disruptions have been predominantly fueled by technological innovation: new databases and logarithms allowed providers to aggregate lodging options, while shared economy and app-based payment enabled the success of peer-to-peer services.

Technology-driven disruption is only set to continue, and this means digital skills must be integrated into the curricula of hospitality degrees, alongside practical, soft skills and business management acumen. Les Roches has a strong focus on incorporating technological innovations and tools in its curriculum, which features many tech-focused and forward-looking courses. New computer labs are used to teach courses in fields such as web design, and allow students to work on app development and innovation as part of their business and start-up projects. The tech lab collects the latest technology innovations, providing a focal point for multimedia development, while the school’s collaborative learning process acts as an incubator for entrepreneurial students.

Les Roches has also responded to the digital disruption trend by offering students a blended learning experience. A selection of courses can be accessed online, and reading material is available at any time through electronic devices and an online repository.

The latest Economist Business Intelligence conference on The Future of Travel identified the growth in consumer demand for seamless travel experiences, no longer the privilege of a select few first-class travelers. Industry stakeholders are working to eliminate obstacles and facilitate mobility through new technologies and infrastructure.

For those entering hospitality careers, this means using technology to reduce obstacles at each stage of the journey, for instance by offering opportunities to check-in online, customize rooms and eliminate queues. In addition, luxury tour operators are having offer even more complete travel offerings, to meet the demands of today’s luxury travelers.

To help prepare students for this set of challenges, Les Roches is launching a new Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing Management for Luxury Tourism at its Marbella campus in April 2016. This course focuses on understanding the impact of new technologies and trends, preparing students to lead marketing projects and strategies in global tourism, at the fore of innovation and with a competitive edge.

As a leading educator in the area of hospitality management, Les Roches accepts its responsibility to track industry developments and update our curricula to continuously benefit students. It is our mandate to ensure our graduates are skilled in all aspects of today’s hospitality to meet the hiring needs of the industry and get a head start when joining the professional world.