Career Opportunities in Hospitality Industry
Cruise Line

Hotel Director - The Hotel Director oversees the whole Hotel Operations including the Guest Services department, the Food and Beverage department, the Housekeeping department, and the Entertainment department.

Marketing and Revenue Manager - Oversees all the revenues onboard the ship and helps implement strategies to increase onboard sales within various departments. Candidate works closely with the Hotel Director and Cruise Director as well as the Training and Development Manager.

Guest Services Manager - Oversees the Customer Relations Manager, Financial Controller, and Shore Excursions Manager.

Customer Relations Manager - Manages the guest service team to achieve optimal passenger service. The Customer Relations Manager enforces policies and procedures for front desk cash handling.

Financial Controller – Manages the financial controls and accounting functions of the vessel. This person provides the financial reporting to the Hotel Director. The Financial Controller manages credit card and cash transactions. This position oversees and trains the Front Desk Supervisor as well as the Night Manager/Auditor.

Shore Excursion Manager - Manages the shore excursion desk; Books shore excursions for guests; Supervises the Shore Excursion Assistants; Handles and resolves guest complaints; Liaises with shoreside tour operators.

Guest Services Supervisor - The Guest Services Supervisor addresses guest complaints and provides resolution; Supervises, trains and motivates the Guest Service Associates; Oversees administration duties that are complete by Guest Service Associates.

Documentation Officer - The Documentation Officer is responsible for preparing documents for port authorities such as Customs and Immigration. This position also prepares much of the correspondence that is sent to passenger staterooms such as disembarkation information.

Shore Excursion Assistant - Sells and books tours for guests; Assists with the printing of tour tickets and distributing to passengers.

Dive Instructor - The Dive Instructor coordinates the vessel's Sea Trek program both on the ship and on the islands. This position guides tours, provides dive and snorkelling instruction, and promotes rental equipment on the RCCL private islands.

International Host/Hostess - The International Host assists passengers with translation services. This position provides translations for printed material such as shore excursion pamphlets, menus, and the onboard activities newsletter. The International Host also serves as a translator for public announcements and for communications between the Documentation Officer and customs and immigration officials.

Guest Services Associate - Guest Services Associates goal is to provide guest satisfaction. They must answer guest questions, resolve passenger complaints and provide front desk services. Front desk services include registering guest credit cards, processing account payments, and exchanging currencies.

Printer - This position is responsible for all print media such as daily ship newsletter, menus and shore excursion pamphlets.

Inventory Manager - Manages the hotel operation's inventory and storeroom to ensure the business needs of the ship.

Assistant Inventory Manager - Assists the Inventory Manager with his duties.

Bellboy - Responsible for hand delivering the internal mail around the ship.

Hotel Clerk - Provides administrative assistance to the guest services department.

Executive Housekeeper - Oversees the overall operation of the Housekeeping Department including all public area spaces.

Assistant Executive Housekeeper - Assists the Executive Housekeeper in his/her duties.

Accommodation Supervisor - The Accommodation Supervisor oversees the stateroom stewards on one or more decks of the ship; Monitors and inspects the room stewards in their duties; Assigns duties to stateroom stewards; Reports maintenance issues; Provides on the job training for room stewards.

Facilities Manager - Oversees maintenance and repair of facility's furnishings (including plants), plumbing, carpentry, lighting, and sound.

Butler - Assist with packing and unpacking; Delivers room service; Makes reservations; Book shore excursions; Set up cocktail parties; Depending on cruise line, the butler is also the stateroom steward.

Captain's Steward - Cleans the Captain's cabin; Cleans the other senior officer cabins in the same deck areas; Delivers meals as requested; Sets up Captain's conference room with food and beverage as requested.

Stateroom Steward - Cleans 10 to 15 assigned staterooms on a twice daily basis; Provides turndown service; Assists with luggage distribution on embarkation and disembarkation; Provides excellent guest service.

Accommodation Attendant - Assists the cabin steward with their duties.

Pool Deck Service Host - Sets up and cleans deck chairs are required; Stacks deck chairs at end of day and in windy weather; Keeps pool are clean and free from hazards.

Officer's Steward - Cleans 10 to 15 assigned cabins belonging to officers; Duties include sheet changes, towel changes, bathroom cleaning, and bringing laundry to laundry room; Assists with guest luggage distribution on embarkation and disembarkation.

Hotel Steward - Cleans public guest areas such as restrooms, corridors, and elevators; Assists with handling luggage on embarkation and disembarkation.

Laundry Manager - Oversees the laundry operation for the whole ship.

Assistant Laundry Manager - Assists the Laundry Manager with day to day duties; Cleans and presses linens, towel and uniforms; Cleans and presses guests' personal laundry; Reports and follows up on all maintenance issues.

Laundry Attendant- Performs all laundry duties as directed by the Laundry Manager including the laundering of bed linens, towels, restaurant linen, staff uniforms and guest laundry.

Casino Manager - Manages the overall operations of the casino floor; Supervises dealers; Ensures the security of the casino; Meets or exceed revenue budgets.

Head Casino Cashier - Oversees the overall casino cash operations; Ensures an accurate casino vault and cash desk; Supervises casino cashiers; Supervises dealer cash drop at end of day; Manages cruise end financial reporting of the casino.

Casino Cashier - Responsible for receiving and paying out various types of monetary exchange including casino chips, cash, coins and credit. Duties also include maintaining cage security, accurate record keeping, and customer service.

Casino Dealer - Responsible for accurate exchange of cash and chips; Ensure wagers are carried out accurately including payments of bets; Ensure pace of game is appropriate.

Casino Slot Technician - Responsible for the maintenance and repairs of all casino slot machines and video arcade machines.

Casino Host - Identifies preferred players and VIPs. Responsible for building relationships with guest that in turn increases gaming revenue.

Tourism

Heritage Interpreters - help others understand and appreciate cultural or natural heritage. They work in many different settings - from parks, museums and aquariums to industrial sites, interpretive centres and botanical gardens. Interpreters do not simply lecture - they have a complete understanding of their subject matter and share their interest and knowledge with others. The different audiences make this position interesting and stimulating.

Food and beverage manager - plan, organize, direct, control and evaluate the operations of restaurants, bars, cafeterias and other businesses that operate serving food and beverage. Food and beverage managers may be employed by restaurants, bars, hotels and resorts etc. Food and beverage managers still require great customer skills but apply management skills ensuring the labour and financial goals of the organization are maintained.

Tour Operators - are involved in planning, development, promotion, administration and implementation of tourism products. They oversee all the day-to-day tasks and also supervise, motivate and train staff. They are employed by tour or transportation companies, resorts or attractions. They may travel to proposed tour sites, check them out and experience the services first hand before assessing their tourism potential.

Retail supervisors - oversee a variety of retail outlets at most resorts, from hard goods shops to grocery outlets. If you get pumped about the latest in ski and snowboard gear, if the latest on-hill fashions get you stoked, or if you work in retail but want the lifestyle that goes with a resort community, this position might be for you.

Accommodation service manager - plans, organizes, directs, controls and evaluates the operations of an accommodation establishment or of a department within an accommodation establishment. They are employed by hotels, motels, resorts, bed and breakfasts etc. Accommodation service managers ensure the smooth operation of the business and should be able to work with little direction.

Travel consultants - provide information, advice and booking services for people wishing to travel.

Travel writer and photographer - is a specialist who often travels to far-away destinations to develop stories and photos for tourism-related journalism. They may be employed by newspapers, magazines, trade publications, the government or as freelance writers and photographers.

Tourism Researchers - provide market research, analysis, planning and marketing strategies/services for tourism-related businesses. They collect, analyze and report findings back to clients and may need to conduct comparative research studies and/or develop social economic profiles. Researchers are employed by governments, by private consulting/research firms or by professional associations.

Restaurant

- Plans and oversees parties, banquets, conventions and other special events hosted or catered by the restaurant. Responsible for soliciting banquet business and ensuring customer satisfaction with all booked events. Coordinates and supervises the execution of all banquet functions to ensure the restaurant adheres to client specifications and that the function runs smoothly and efficiently. Possesses knowledge of food production and service and is able to perform all positions in banquet operations to supervise, direct and train banquet personnel.

Bartender - Responsible for setup, maintenance and operation of the bar. Takes drink orders from patrons or servers and prepares and serves alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks according to standard recipes. Mixes ingredients for cocktails and serves wine and bottled or draught beer. Rings drink orders into register, collects payment and makes change. May also wash and sterilize glassware, prepare garnishes for drinks and prepare and replenish appetizers.

Beverage manager - Oversees management and profitability of bars, lounges and other beverage-related outlets.

Broiler cook - Responsible for grilled, broiled or roasted items prepared in the kitchen of a foodservice establishment. Portions food items prior to cooking, such as steaks or fish fillets. Other duties include carving and portioning roasts, plating and garnishing cooked items, and preparing appropriate garnishes for broiled or roasted foods. Responsible for maintaining a sanitary kitchen work station.
Bus person - Serves water, bread and butter to guests and refills glasses as needed. Removes dirty dishes between courses. Clears, cleans and resets tables after customers leave.

Catering manager - Responsible for all catered functions from origination to execution, including delegation of responsibilities. Works on a consistent basis with sales personnel to generate new business and maintains contact with clients. Responsible for handling customer complaints and rectifying problems. Responsible for planning rental of tables, video/audio equipment, game equipment and linen. May book or recommend entertainment bands, speakers or specialty acts. Responsible for decorations, flowers and photographs.

Counter server - Responsible for providing quick and efficient service to customers. Greets customers, takes their food and beverage orders, rings orders into register, and prepares and serves hot and cold drinks. Assembles food and beverage orders, checks them for completeness and accuracy, and packages orders for on-premise or takeout. Collects payments from guests and makes change. Maintains cleanliness of counters and floors.

Dining room manager - Supervises dining room operation and coordinates foodservice activities. Supervises and trains employees, confers with food preparation employees and other personnel to plan menus and related activities. Estimates food and beverage costs and requisitions/buys supplies. May review financial transactions and monitor budget to ensure efficient operation and that expenditures stay within budget limitations. Maintains payroll and bookkeeping records.

Executive chef - The department head responsible for a foodservice establishment’s kitchen/kitchens. Ensures kitchens provide nutritious, safe, eye-appealing, properly flavored food. Maintains a safe and sanitary work environment for all employees. Other duties include menu planning, budget preparation, and maintenance of payroll, food cost and other records. Specific duties involve food preparation and establishing quality standards, and training employees in cooking methods, presentation techniques, portion control and retention of nutrients.

Expediter - Functions as the communications link between and among the various food production areas in the kitchen, coordinates production and assembly so servers can deliver meal orders to dining room patrons in a timely manner.

Food and beverage manager/director - Oversees management, budget and operation of the foodservice outlet, catering services and kitchen, and maintains liaison with sales department to ensure maximum profitability.

Foodservice director (health care) - Directs the delivery of professional food services that will be a material factor in producing cost effectiveness, positive financial results, customer satisfaction and a positive public image.

Fry/sauté cook - Responsible for all fried or sautéed items prepared in the kitchen of a foodservice establishment. Portions and prepares food items prior to cooking, such as fish fillets, shrimp or veal. Other duties include preparing batter or breading, plating and garnishing cooked items, and preparing appropriate garnishes for fried or sautéed foods. Responsible for maintaining a sanitary kitchen work station.

General manager/unit manager (fullservice) - Coordinates foodservice activities of restaurant or other similar establishment. Estimates food and beverage costs and requisitions or purchases supplies, equipment, and food and beverages. Confers with food preparation and other personnel from the dining room, bar and banquet team to plan menus and related activities. Oversees cleaning and maintenance of equipment and facilities and ensures that all health and safety regulations are adhered to. Directs hiring, assignment, training, motivation and termination of personnel. Investigates and resolves food quality and service complaints. May develop marketing strategy, and implement advertising and promotional campaigns to increase business. May review financial transactions and monitor budget to ensure efficient operation and to ensure expenditures stay within budget limitations.

General manager/unit manager (quickservice) - Maintains overall management responsibilities for the foodservice unit/establishment. Directs, coordinates, and participates in preparation, cooking, wrapping or packing food serviced or prepared by establishment, collects payment from in-house or take-out customers, and assembles food orders. Coordinates workers who keep business records, collect and pay accounts, order or purchase supplies, and deliver food to retail customers. Interviews, hires and trains personnel. May contact prospective customers to promote sale of prepared foods. May establish delivery routes and schedules.

Human resources manager - Recruits and hires qualified employees, creates in-house job-training programs, and assists employees with their career needs.

Kitchen manager - Supervises and coordinates activities concerning all back-of-the-house operations and personnel, including food preparation, kitchen and storeroom areas. Hires, discharges, trains, and evaluates back-of-house personnel. Purchases or requisitions food items, supplies and equipment. Plans or participates in menu planning and food production and apportions meat, vegetables and desserts, as well as food surpluses, to control costs. Supervises food preparation personnel to ensure food adheres to standards of quality to maintain cleanliness or kitchen and equipment. May meet with clients to plan special menus.

Maître d'hotel - Manages the dining room; trains, schedules and supervises servers, hosts and bus people.

Pantry cook - Responsible for cold food items prepared in the kitchen of a foodservice establishment. Portions and prepares cold food items such as salads, cold appetizers, desserts, sandwiches, salad dressings and cold banquet platters. Responsible for maintaining a sanitary kitchen work station.

Pastry chef - Responsible for the pastry shop in a foodservice establishment. Ensures that the products produced in the pastry shop meet the quality standards in conjunction with the executive chef. In a large establishment, the pastry chef usually is responsible only for pastries and candy. In a smaller establishment, the pastry chef is responsible for bakery items. The pastry chef also can be responsible for decorative centerpieces such as ice carvings, salt-dough sculptures, marzipan figures, pastillage and blown or pulled sugar. Develops recipes and prepares desserts, including cakes, pies, cookies, sauces, glazes and custards.

President/CEO - Manages the entire restaurant operation; responsible for running a profitable and successful business.

Public relations manager - Helps the restaurant create and maintain a positive image; publicizes fundraisers, parties, special discounts and other newsworthy events.

Server - Describes menu and daily specials, takes orders, serves food and makes sure customers have everything they need to enjoy their meals. Responsible for coordinating entire station and communicating front- and back-of-house personnel to provide a dining experience that meets or exceed guest expectations. Processes guest orders to ensure all items are prepared properly and on a timely basis. May carve meats, bone fish and fowl, prepare flaming dishes and desserts at tableside and present, open and pour wine when serving guests. Observes diners to ensure they are satisfied with food and service, responds to additional requests, and determines when the meal has been completed. Rings up bills and accepts payment or refers guests to cashier. May assist bus person in stocking, removing and resetting dishes and silverware between courses, and cleaning and resetting vacated tables.

Soup and sauce cook - Responsible for all soups and sauces prepared in the kitchen of a foodservice establishment. Prepares stock, thickening agents, soup garnishes, soups and sauces. Responsible for maintaining a sanitary kitchen work station.

Sous chef - The sous chef acts second-in-command in the kitchen, directing and managing cooks and other kitchen workers, and taking over when the executive chef is absent. In a large establishment, the sous chef may be in charge of food production for one kitchen. In a smaller operation, the sous chef ensures that all food production workers are performing their duties as prescribed by the quality standards established by the executive chef. The sous chef assumes all the duties of the executive chef in the chef's absence.

Wine steward - Selects and orders the wine for the restaurant; teaches staff how to describe, recommend and serve wine to customers.

Hotel

Front Desk Clerks - As the name implies, these employees man the reception area, which is the first place guests go when they arrive at a hotel. As a front desk clerk you'll need to verify a guest's reservation. If the guest doesn't have a reservation, you'll need to check room availability.
The check in process for guests usually includes getting credit card information, giving the guest the pass card to enter the room, and answering any questions the guest has. Front desk employees also often take phone calls and make reservations. At some hotels this is an entry level job. At other hotels, you must have a degree or years of experience before you are eligible for this position. Porters - These employees also used to be called bellhops, and in some hotels they still are. They usually dress in uniform, so that guests recognize that they are employees of the hotel. As soon as a guest checks in at the front desk, the porter helps the guest take his or her luggage to the room and makes sure the room is acceptable to the guest. Often the porter is asked questions about other services at the hotel, so he or she should be knowledgeable of all the hotel has to offer. Porters are usually hired at full service hotels, not motels. Concierges - At full service and high end or luxury hotels, concierges are available to act as liaisons with guests. If a guest needs a specific service, such as a babysitter, the guest can contact the concierge, who will coordinate the execution of this service. Other services the concierges assist with include making arrangements for dry cleaning and laundry, purchasing show tickets, and making reservations at local restaurants. At some hotels this is an entry level job. At other hotels, you must have a degree or years of experience before you are eligible for this position. Housekeeping - Nothing reflects worse on a hotel than dirty rooms or an unclean lobby area. Hotels rely on repeat business, and guests usually won't return to a hotel they think is dirty. Having a quality housekeeping staff on the premises ensures that the hotel is clean, rooms are clean, and guests will return. As a member of housekeeping you may have to clean guest rooms, wash bedding and towels, replace toiletries that have been used, and clean other areas of the hotel. Room Service - If the hotel is equipped with a kitchen, it often offers room service. Guests who want to eat but don't want to leave the hotel or go to the hotel restaurant (if there is one) can order from a menu in their room. As a room service employee you may be taking room service orders, and then delivering them. Waiter/Waitress - If the hotel has a restaurant, it also needs waiters and waitresses. In a hotel, the most requested meal is usually breakfast, so be prepared to work early hours. The next most frequently served meal is dinner. You will need to take guests' orders, and serve the meals, making sure they have everything they need. Some hotels allow guests to bill to their rooms, while others take payment. You will need to make sure the bill for the meal gets to the right place so it can be paid. Kitchen Staff - As the name implies, as a kitchen staff member you may be cooking, washing dishes, preparing salads, ordering supplies, planning menus, or similar duties, depending on your job. As an entry level kitchen staff member, you are most likely preparing foods for senior cooks or chefs to cook for the guests.

Supervisor of Guest Services - As the supervisor of guest services, you may be responsible for hiring staff members that provide housekeeping services, front desk personnel, reservations coordinators, or concierges. All of these duties depend on what kind of hotel you are working for and the structure it has in place. Some large hotels have separate guest services departments that primarily answer the phone and make sure guests have what they need. At this kind of hotel you would be supervising that department, making sure it was staffed and running smoothly. Front Desk Supervisor - The front desk supervisor manages the front desk workers. You may need to hire, fire, or discipline these workers. You will need to ensure that customers are greeted warmly and checked in efficiently. You may have to provide training, and you may also need to schedule workers so that the front desk is always manned with the right number of workers at each shift. Housekeeping Supervisor - If you've worked for several years as a housekeeper, you may be able to be promoted to supervisor. In this position you may be in charge of hiring housekeepers and training them. You may also need to schedule workers so that there is always the right number of workers at each shift. Kitchen Manager - There are usually many kitchen workers, and the manager needs to be in charge to make sure that kitchen operations are going smoothly. You may be responsible for hiring new kitchen employees, as well as making sure they get the training they need. Scheduling may also fall under your area of responsibility, which means you need to make sure there are enough people scheduled to cover each shift. Restaurant Manager - While the kitchen manager takes care of kitchen operations, the restaurant manager focuses on the guest services in the restaurant. He or she makes sure that guests are greeted promptly, seated as quickly as possible, and receive the best possible service and food. The manager may be responsible for hiring servers, hosts, and training them. He or she will also handle guest complaints. Executive Chef - The executive chef plans the menus for all meals, according to hotel policies and guidelines. He or she is in charge of supervising all other line cooks, sous chefs, and similar kitchen employees. He or she may also be in charge of ordering all of the food and maintaining a budget.
Marketing and Advertising - The marketing and advertising coordinator is in charge of promoting the hotel to the community through various advertising channels, depending on the marketing and advertising budget. Some hotels do a lot of advertising, while others do very little. Most hotels that hire a full time advertising person or staff do a lot of advertising and marketing. Accounting - Accounting staff members are in charge of making sure that the hotel is properly recording all of its income and expenses, paying its bills, taxes, and employees. Purchasing - Purchasing employees look at the usage of items used for running the hotel and make sure there are plenty of those items in stock to meet guests' needs. They key to successful purchasing is to have enough stock that you won't run out, but not so much that it is costly to the organization. Event Planner - Many hotels have conference rooms, ballrooms, dining halls, or other spaces that they rent out to businesses and individuals for events such as weddings, seminars, and similar occasions. The planner works with a representative from the company or the individual to make sure that everything is in place for the event. Some hotels charge extra for the use of the event planner. Assistant Hotel Manager - The assistant manager performs administrative work for the manager, overseeing a lot of the operations and also compiling and preparing a lot of the reports and budgets the hotel uses. This gives the assistant manager a solid foundation so that he or she can become a manager. Hotel Manager - The hotel manager is usually where the "buck stops." He or she is ultimately in charge of all aspects of the running of the hotel. If the hotel is getting fewer guest visits, the manager will need to explain what caused this drop and have a plan in place to recover the income. He or she will also have other supervisors or managers reporting to him or her and should be very familiar with the hotel's operations.