Attracting and managing talent, how are the top three hotel companies in India doing it?

Abstract

Purpose Global business travel spending reached a record breaking $1.2tn in 2015 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016) and the average Indian traveling is now at a phenomenal high for both business and leisure travel. In this context, the paper aims to investigate how the top hotels in India are addressing the issue of human resource shortages and training and how they are preparing for the future when the market, the customer profile and employee expectations are undergoing a major change. In essence, brand loyalty could be minimal and competition intense. Design/methodology/approach This paper adopts a case study approach and reviews how participating hotels are addressing their talent attraction and retention issues and differentiating their people management processes. Findings The processes used by top hotel companies provide an overview as to how they manage people and how they will need to innovate to assess progress of the measures and initiatives they are taking. They will also have to be more global in their approach. Originality/value The findings will be of interest to managers who are responsible for hiring and managing employees. The study also has implications for policymakers and higher education institutions in relation to managing skill shortages that exist in the hotel industry.