Theory and practice: Essential balance in the education of staff in the hotel industry

Abstract

The development of tourism as the most promising sector in Montenegro requires a higher proportion of high-quality, highly educated staff this is particularly true if we bear in mind that tourism, and predominantly the hos­pitality industry, is a generator of new jobs. For the sustainable development of human resources in the hotel industry, it is necessary to harmonize the higher education system with the needs of the hotel sector. For the purpose of this paper, interviews were conducted and the obtained results analyzed using statistical and descriptive methods. We analyzed the attitudes of two key groups: managers in the hotel industry, as those considered responsible for the implementation of the services and students as future employees. The objective was to examine whether the provision of quality service in hospitality requires the introduction of practical knowledge and skills as a compulsory part of education in tourism and hotel industry studies. The results obtained may serve as a basis for the establishment of modern study programmes in higher education in the field of tourism and hospitality.

Keywords

• practical training
• cooperation between faculties and hoteliers
• improvement of curriculum
• higher education staff