Look at inspirational stories among us, motivate us to give our best, share our concerns, and get mentoring but above all each woman empowering the other!  That’s the focus of this group. Would like to get every success story reach the others through blogs and you never know when that can give shape to a book. That’s the vision, to have a collection of success stories from the fraternity.

I believe we have amazing women among us who have beaten every stereotype to reach where they are in their careers and life. There are super women who have been there and done that let their stories guide the others who are just embarking on this journey. It’s easy for women to work for a couple of years in the industry and then switch track, not finding it their cup of tea. We see high turnover among women employees in hospitality. Whereas the truth is that hospitality comes naturally to women, so making a career in the industry can be utilising their strengths to the core. They also make great managers just like men. In my own experience I have felt the privilege of being a woman at my work place. There is respect, caring and the challenge of walking shoulder to shoulder with the men. Gender equity is the mantra to follow and not become a victim of gender bias!

I often hear from my ex students, colleagues as well as women I met across the country during my training programs, writing to me seeking guidance. I end up counseling them, sharing whatever best I can but I feel I am not equipped to handle all on my own. This platform will thus create a bigger bandwidth, a support group where one can seek help from the others.

A local newspaper approached me to write a column in their supplement. Now this was an offer that I couldn’t resist simply for the love of sharing my thoughts with people. The thoughts of hospitality as a career, as I still feel people in India, need to know it better.

The Hospitality and Tourism industry offers careers that are dynamic, challenging, thrilling and vibrant in nature. The industry offers many opportunities to the people with the right skills set. A recent study by the World Travel & Tourism Council shows that the hospitality industry is the largest employer worldwide hiring 1 in 12 workers, and this number is set to grow with the continued expansion and growth of the sector. The industry is not really understood well by the masses. Most of them associate it with glamour but there’s a lot of hard work, discipline and the love to serve others that goes hand in hand. Hospitality is all about doing things that come from the heart, manage events and create memorable experiences for the guests.

Being in the industry for more than two decades and counselling parents and students as well as employees over the years, I have felt that it is extremely important for the students or new employees to know how the hotels operate and what career paths will be available to them.

Anything first is always very special. The article will remain special to me.

I thought of sharing a very important concern that comes up during my counselling sessions- gender stereotypes! Not that I am a feminist who shouts from the rooftop, but when it comes to dealing with concerned parents of youngsters who are thinking of venturing into a career in the hospitality industry I get asked often how the industry was for girls.

I am a girl, of course a lady now! Have been in the industry, for almost 21 years. Studied in a hospitality college where the boys to girls ratio was 7:1 (most professional courses show this kind of ratio), a hosteller while there, done my intern ship of 6 months in the second year of college. I have worked in the hotel operations for the first 4 years of my career before getting into academics and after 6 years of that, I am back having one foot in the operations and the other in teaching, learning and development. I haven’t really experienced any bias anywhere, but I was a fighter just like many other women of my generation! Can say that; the industry is very safe to work in. In fact hotels take great care of their women team members. Within the hotel, which is a 24 hours operation it’s absolutely as safe as one’s own home. Women also need to work in shifts but shifts are followed in such a manner that they change at convenient hours so that one can travel back home safely. If a shift gets over after 10 pm then the ladies are given a home drop in the hotel car.

In today’s’ day and time most professions work round the clock so employees need to adapt to the  shifts concept, be it a hospital, a hyper mall or a petrol pump. These places are also safe for women to work.

The opportunities that the hotel industry offers are one of the best. Initially they may not be the best paying but in the due course they are also equally challenging and rewarding. In fact the merits are many such as working anywhere in the world, experiencing the product and holiday plans with family being some of them.

So when the industry holds so much potential why don’t the women who work there make great careers? We need more role models and more take charge women. Indian women in hospitality will bring such women together and create and share success stories.