Managing Talent in the Tourism and Hospitality Sector: A Conceptual View Point

This paper provides a conceptual analysis of managing talent in the tourism and hospitality sector. The sector, which encompasses the leisure and business travel industry, is a vital sector to many African national economies. Furthermore, due to the highly service orientation nature of this industry lately, strategic importance has been placed on ensuring that employees with the appropriate skills and knowledge are effectively recruited and retained. Resultantly, actions such as the modernization of tourism training systems, more versatile working methods, flexible working hours and the leverage of existing employees’ skills and competencies are key to this industry’s success. It is against this construct that this paper attempts to evaluate the extent to which talent management strategies adopted in the industry contribute to organizational effectiveness. A critical analysis of avalailable print and online materials was undertaken. The findings indicate two main themes emerge from the research; firstly, a positive correlation exists between talent management strategies adopted and the creation of global competitiveness; secondly, institutional culture has an impact on the adoption of strategic planning which in turn, has an impact on talent management. The implication of this study is that it will enable policy makers and the relevant stakeholders to come up with various ideologies, perspectives and interventions that enhance talent management. Finally, this paper concludes by offering new insights to the discourse of talent management in the tourism and hospitality industry.