Trade Secrets: Addressing the Dynamics of the Asian Business Landscape

There’s a massive career opportunity hiding in plain sight, and those who know the secret can reap the rewards. Asia’s hospitality business is one of the region’s fastest growing industries. According to the global business intelligence platform Statista, annual hotel revenue in Asia is expected to reach US$ 144 billion in 2023.

CBRE’s just-published “2023 Midyear Global Hotels Outlook” confirms that hotels are one of the region’s top performing real estate assets, outperforming Asia’s broader economy as a whole and continuing to generate strong investment trends. In the major market of India, the middle class is booming, creating an unprecedented level of domestic travel. Outbound travel from China is transforming the tourist industry throughout Asia. Thailand and other countries in Southeast Asia continue to see robust investment in hotels and related hospitality enterprises.

The financial growth of Asia’s hotel industry is a relatively well-known fact, especially among investors. What is less widely known, however, is that behind the scenes of this boom, there is a massive supply-and-demand imbalance for well-trained hotel management professionals to steer the businesses’ successes.

The Demand for Local Talent in Asia’s Hospitality Industry

International hotel operators, as well as local players, currently import large numbers of foreign professionals, often from Europe, to serve as general managers of hotels, executives in the corporate office, department heads, etc. These professionals earn handsomely while enjoying what are often fantastic benefits and the perks of working in an industry that revolves around indulgence and adventure. 

Employers are hungry for local talent, though. Individuals who can combine a background in contemporary management studies, a mastery of hotel operations, and the local or regional knowledge that Western expatriate workers lack find that career opportunities are numerous and the potential for rapid advancement is high.

Why the Imbalance?

Asia has a long, rich tradition of hospitality, as evidenced by the Sanskrit saying, ‘Atithi Devo Bhava,’ or, ‘The guest is god.” The continent also now has a significant number of well-respected business schools training students in the art and science of management. That said, Asian institutes and academic programmes dedicated especially to hospitality management are, at least compared to Europe, few and far between.

The gold standard of hospitality education has historically been the Swiss hotel management school. The world’s first formal hotel school, the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne, was established in Switzerland in 1893. Many more followed. A Swiss national myself, I’ve studied and taught at several of these prestigious Swiss institutes. I know from firsthand experience how successful the Swiss hospitality education model is. A unique combination of theoretical study and practical experience, the Swiss model is famous for good reason.

You will, of course, find hardworking and motivated young adults from Asia amongst the student bodies in Swiss hotel management schools, but frankly, the high tuition fees and extremely high cost of living in Switzerland—amongst the highest in the world—are a significant barrier for most individuals and families. These obstacles can make a hotel degree from Switzerland difficult or impractical to obtain. The result: the large volume of foreign recruits brought in to lead Asia’s hotel businesses.

Where Asia’s New Hospitality Leaders Are Being Made

Many of Asia’s aspiring hotel managers are now turning to the high-quality regional schools popping up in their own backyard. Some of these—my own home institute, the Asian Institute of Hospitality Management (AIHM) in Thailand, being a prominent example—work in academic association with hotel management schools in Switzerland.

AIHM offers a curriculum developed in academic association with Les Roches, which consistently ranks amongst the world’s top five hospitality management schools. At the same time, AIHM is able to draw from Thailand’s tremendous strength in hospitality and adapt the curriculum to address the dynamics of the Asian business landscape. AIHM attracts students from across Southeast and South Asia and even students from Europe.

Thailand: Asia’s Hospitality Training Hub

Thailand is a fantastic place to study hospitality. The nation’s low cost of living, welcoming culture, and unbelievable natural beauty make it a dream location for international students. Activities and attractions are abundant. Many of the things that bring so many young travellers to Thailand also make it a wonderful place to live and experience as a student.

Because Thailand is home to some of the world’s most innovative and exceptional hotels, the learning opportunities are abundant. The Swiss model of hospitality education integrates academics with practical learning opportunities. Championing this model, AIHM puts the same high value on real-world learning. In fact, the school is located within an operating hotel in Bangkok on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, allowing students to step from the classroom directly into a real hotel environment.

Internships, likewise, are given the utmost importance. All students in AIHM’s 3.5-year Bachelor of Business Administration in Global Hospitality Management complete two different semester-long internships. The first takes place in Thailand. The second can be conducted anywhere in the world—from the Maldives to Dubai to Switzerland.

Advantages of a Career in Hospitality Management

The financial opportunities afforded by a career in hospitality management are of course a major draw. Salaries tend to be generous, and for those with an entrepreneurial spirit who seek to establish their own business or grow an existing family business, the returns can be substantial.

Job satisfaction is another major consideration. The hospitality industry is exceptionally diverse, enabling people to explore their passions—creativity, sustainability, empowering local communities, problem-solving, innovation, and more.

In addition, hospitality management can be very emotionally rewarding. You take a starring role in creating memories that will last forever. Many of life’s most important moments take place in hospitality settings—weddings, family holidays, honeymoons, and special getaways with friends and loved ones.

Careers in hospitality allow you to integrate a personal touch into your work. Students in hospitality management programmes such as AIHM’s work on developing their own management style, one that reflects their own strengths and values. Hospitality management is business management with a human touch. It’s one of the few career paths in business and commerce where warmth and kindness are central to your everyday work environment. The young people who step up to meet the demand have very bright futures ahead of them.

Dreaming of a Career in Hotel Management?

The Asian Institute of Hospitality Management offers the ideal path to make your dreams a reality. Earn a Bachelor’s degree in Global Hospitality Management that combines a Swiss management curriculum with an unparalleled immersion in the Asian hospitality industry.

For working professionals, AIHM’s certificates in hotel administration can be an excellent shorter alternative or a stepping stone along the way to earning the BBA degree.

Be inspired while learning from the journeys of Asia’s next generation of hotel executives, entrepreneurs and innovators. Follow AIHM on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram for more insights about the hospitality industry and stories about how AIHM’s students are achieving.