The Contemporary Hotel Industry

This book provides a detailed account of the global hotel industry with a focus on managerial work and people management. A comprehensive understanding of the managers' work from a people management perspective is essential to the success of hotel operations; however, this is an area that has been under-researched.

Based on existing literature and extensive research carried out by the authors over fifteen years, the book explores the different aspects of managerial work in global hotel industry settings and covers topics such as general management, leadership, education and training, skills and competencies, crisis management, and managing diversity. The book’s findings suggest that hotel managers should adopt a people-centric management and leadership style while at the same time maintaining operational efficiency.

A unique book in terms of scale and depth, it offers useful insights into both theoretical and practical perspectives.

Charalampos (Babis) Giousmpasoglou is a principal academic at Bournemouth University (ranked in the Top 20 Universities globally for Hospitality and Tourism). Babis has worked both in academia and the industry; as a practitioner, he spent 20 years as a hotel manager in Greek luxury hospitality establishments. As an academic, he worked in Greece, Bahrain, and the UK in undergraduate and postgraduate hospitality and business administration-related programmes. His research interests focus on Managerial work, Hospitality Management, and Human Resources Management. On these research themes, he has published three books, book chapters, journal articles and presented papers to several international conferences. Babis is a Senior Fellow member of the Higher Education Academy (UK), Academic Fellow in CIPD, and an Institute of Hospitality Member (MIH). He is also a member of the Global Hospitality Research Alliance (GHRA), among other professional groups. Babis is a reviewer and editorial board member in reputable academic journals such as the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management and the International Journal of Human Resources Management. 

Evangelia (Lia) Marinakou is a Principal Academic at Bournemouth University. Before completing her PhD at Strathclyde Business School on Gender and Leadership, she had a career in the Greek hospitality industry. In her academic career journey, Lia has served as Head of Department at academic institutions in Greece, Switzerland, Bahrain, and the UK. Her experience in Academic Quality Assurance is extensive and she contributes to program revalidations and accreditations as an expert panel member at an international level. Her research interests include Gender and Diversity Management, Leadership, Talent Management, and Human Resource Management in the Hospitality industry context. In these research areas, she has published books, book chapters, journal articles, and facilitated presentations in international conferences. She is also a founding member of Future Talent Council and a member of the Global Hospitality Research Alliance (GHRA), among other professional groups. Additionally, she has led European-funded projects with a focus on hospitality and tourism training. Lia is a visiting lecturer at universities in the UK, France, and Greece. She has also trained several industry professionals in Lifelong Learning programs on Emotional Intelligence, Employee Motivation, and Talent Retention.