Top 3 MBA in Hospitality Management: First Part (Industry Trends and Top Program)

Hospitality is a fast growing service industry, which includes lodging, restaurants, events, theme parks, transport, cruises, and tourism. The industry is the world's second largest, ranking only behind the international oil industry in terms of annual turnover.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, Travel & Tourism accounted for 9% of the world's GDP at $6 trillion. Future prospects are also good, with the industry expected to grow at 4% annually to touch $10 trillion in the next 10 years. The sector is also the world's largest employer, with 255 million people. In 2011 alone, 1.2 million new jobs were generated. After 20 years, or by 2022, the sector is expected to employ 10% of the global workforce, with 328 million jobs.

The attractiveness of this sector can be judged on the fact that $743 billion was invested in Travel & Tourism in 2011, a figure that is expected to go up to 1.3 trillion by 2022. Of the revenues generated in 2011, 76% is for leisure purposes, while 24% came about due to business related reasons. Also, 70.5% of the spending came from domestic sources, while international travelers contributed to 29.5% of the spend. With regard to the hotel industry, it grew by a strong 9% in 2011, to hit $457 billion.

According to a Euro Monitor report, the top countries in the hotel sector were USA - $7.4 billion, China - $7.2 billion, France - $2.6 billion, Italy - $2.2 billion and Spain - $1.7 billion. A country like Singapore which depends on Travel & Tourism is expecting a 25% growth in the hotel industry, from $4 trillion in 2011 to around $5 trillion in 2016.

The top 3 regions in 2016 will be Western Europe - US$156 billion, Asia Pacific - US$153 billion and North America -US$138 billion. Meanwhile, the top 5 countries by 2016 will be USA, China, Japan, Canada and Brazil.

China - The Hospitality Giant

Emerging economies are expected to be big players in hospitality, as well as by travelling internationally. But by far, China is expected to be the major player in the sector. Starwood hotels, owner of the Sheraton brand has more than 100 hotels in China. The Marriott Group has 60 hotels in China, and this is expected to double by 2014. The tourism industry is China's fastest growing market and is expected to capture 8.6% of the international share to become #1 by 2020. When it comes to luxury goods, not only do the Chinese buy a plethora of luxury goods at home, but also spend a substantial amount on luxury goods as tourists. One in four of the luxury goods purchased in the world are by the Chinese, and they are responsible for one third of all such goods purchased in Europe.

Future trends in Hospitality

Customer engagement will be a critical factor in the future, with 'experiences' being most sought-after. Green and eco-lodgings will increase in popularity and sustainability will be important, not just to attract customers, but also to increase profits. The other trend is e-commerce in the hospitality sector with a bulk of the bookings soon to be made over the internet. Besides, internet reviews and social media play a key role in travel, accommodation and spending decisions. The Marriott even has an online concierge service via Twitter.  And the InterContinental Hotels Group has a dedicated Social Media Customer Care Team to manage its online presence and reputation.

Job prospects

Hospitality graduates can expect to find a wide variety of jobs in the industry. They could include from Accounting, Food & Beverage, Consulting, Human Resources, Marketing, Distribution, Purchasing, E-commerce, Real Estate, Event Management, Finance and Sales. Graduates could end up as restaurateurs, entrepreneurs, corporate directors, managers, developers, analysts and consultants.

Here are our picks for the top 3 MBA in Hospitality Management

1) Essec - MBA in Hospitality Management (IMHI)

Essec's MBA in Hospitality Management is a 30-year old program that can be completed in 1-year or 2-years. The former is a short and intensive program aimed at industry professionals. The latter is for inexperienced candidates who wish to learn about the industry, and get added experience during the period of study. MBA graduates can expect to be employed as managers with high responsibilities in areas that include hotel & restaurant management, amusement parks, consulting, retirement homes and catering.

The first part of the curriculum covers core MBA subjects like Financial Accounting, Management Information Technology, Management Communications, Team Management and Strategic Marketing. The program then covers hospitality topics like Tourist Information Systems, Research Methods and Introductory course in two areas of concentration: Luxury Services Management, e-Commerce, Real Estate & Development, and Entrepreneurship.

Students of both the 1-year and 2-year tracks can choose from 5 areas of concentration - Luxury Services Management, e-Commerce, Real Estate and Development, Entrepreneurship and General Management Training. 1-year students complete the program with a Field Project in the Hospitality Industry. Students in the 2-year program can choose a 6-month internship, or take up an apprenticeship. Their program ends with an On-the-job Training Assignment.

The top 20 recruiters for the Essec IMHI include Hilton, Hotel Valuation Services (HVS), BNP Paribas Real Estate, Hyatt International, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Jones Lang La Salle, Disneyland Resort Paris, Expedia, Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Sodexo and Starwood Hotels & Resorts.

Click Here to Read the Second Part of the Series - Top 3 MBA in Hospitality Management