Congratulations! You’ve landed your first manager position in the hotel industry, and along with a raise and a power move to put on your resume also comes a lot more responsibility. It’s an exciting time in your career, but it’s also important to keep it in perspective; this is just one step in your career path, and your next position will depend on how successful you are in this managerial role.
So here are 10 simple ways to get off to a great start in your new manager job:
1. Start with clarification. Sit down with your new boss to find out what exactly is expected of you, the targets that you’re expected to achieve, and their timeframes. Make sure you are clear on everything discussed.
2. Value your staff. You should definitely be proud of yourself for moving up the ladder. However, you’ll not only need to keep your behavior professional with all other staff, but you’ll also need to remember that the employees who report to you are also integral to your success and to that of your team. They are your most valuable resources. Treat them with respect.
3. Remember that communication is key. As a manager, you’ll need to be clear in the directives that you give your staff. You’ll also need to make sure you continue to listen attentively to all hotel employees, your superiors, and, of course, guests. Also, know that your staff will need to feel that the lines of communication with you are open and safe.
4. Be sure to delegate work. If you’re going to manage your own time well, you’ll also need to be confident in the skills of the people reporting to you. If you’re not delegating, you could be micromanaging and that’s the start of a bad relationship with staff.
5. Keep current on industry news and trends. As you advance your career in the hotel business, you’ll also need to stay on top of the current events impacting the industry. So make sure you subscribe to a variety of trade publications and set aside 20 to 30 minutes daily to read them.
6. There’s always room for improvement. You’ll no doubt do a great job in your new role and both meet and exceed expectations. But you’ll never want to get too comfortable with the quality of your deliverables. Instead, constantly strive for better business metrics as well as staff and guest satisfaction.
7. Take notes. If you’re responsible for giving periodic performance reviews, you’ll want to consider it an ongoing activity during which you plan for the actual review date. So throughout the course of the year, keep notes on your staff’s achievements so you can praise them as well as areas where they can improve.
8. Find a mentor or a role model. To keep the learning curve from getting too steep, find someone – ideally who works at the hotel – who has more experience than you and who has already gone through some of the situations that you are about to experience so that he or she can suggest some best practices.
9. Lead by example. A good boss is always open to continuous education. So if you have access to additional learning opportunities – whether it’s management training, an advanced learning course in your area of expertise, or a volunteer position with the hotel or hotel company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) program, definitely get involved – once you firmly have the reigns of your new job in hand.
10. Manage up. You’ll want to keep your boss in the loop with some frequency. So be sure to check in with email updates or phone calls at the least or ideally, regular meetings and provide him or her with status updates on goal progress because your team’s targets should be directly aligned to that of your superior.