Rationale
The Hospitality and Tourism sector exhibits high levels of growth, a relevant resilience to the economic crisis and significant potential to become an important employer for many young graduates specialising in this sector.
According to a proposal for Council Recommendation on European Tourism Principles (February 2014), tourism represents the third largest socioeconomic activity in the EU in terms of contribution to Gross Domestic Product and Employment. What’s more the projections of the United Nations World Tourism Organization show that by the year 2030 International tourist arrivals worldwide are expected to reach 1.8 billion.
Hospitality and Tourism, as a service industry, heavily depends on the quality of its human resource. Therefore, there is a need to invest in the upgrade of human resource and the levels of quality offered as a means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability. In an increasingly competitive market, the significance of quality has grown for tourism businesses, which are ever more aware of the importance of quality as a source of competitive advantage (Council Recommendation on European Tourism Principles, 2014). A close relationship between educational institutions & the industry of Hospitality and Tourism that is monitored systematically will have benefits for both parties.
- As far as the educational institutions are concerned, they will improve their curricula in a way that will meet the needs of the industry in terms of quality and in terms of range of activities performed.
- As far as the industry is concerned, working closely with institutions of higher education will enable HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM enterprises to build on their quality, competitiveness & sustainability.
Main Objectives
The current project aims to:
- Design a systematic methodology for the development, installation and monitoring of a successful employer programme.
- Design and develop an electronic platform as a tool to facilitate the above mentioned methodology.
- Develop a best practices guide with best practices identified in Europe and the rest of the world as well as best practices developed through the current project.