Women in hospitality

There’s always a lot of chatter about gender equality, women’s rights, women empowerment around International Women's Day. As a woman, I do no not quite understand the need for it. Since time immemorial and in our scriptures, women have been given a special status – not just equal to men but more - one without the other has no meaning or existence. One is Shakti and the other Shaktimaan, one is Prakriti and the other Purusha. Women are referred to as ardhanginis or half part (translates to equal) of men. Quite simply they complement each other. In the workforce too, women and men bring different attributes/qualities, mindsets, thought processes to the table, each of which is of value and contributes to the success of the organisation.

Hospitality is among the few industries where women constitute more than 50 per cent of the workforce. Hospitality calls for skills of nurturing and caring, of concern for others, eye for detail, discipline which come more naturally to women. The industry also requires rigour. The hospitality roles for women however tend to be more in the field of communication, housekeeping, public relations, human resources, sales and marketing. Women in leadership roles like heads of units, general managers, directors are fewer and constitute a percentage much lower than 50. The reasons could be several – of individual choice, of the nature of the industry, the need for a better work-life/work-home balance and of course the larger societal factors, perceptions of traditional roles.

In the Indian hospitality we have some shining examples of women in leadership positions - heading hotel groups as owners and chief executives – excellent role models for the women aspiring to get there. The number of lady general managers/directors is also on the rise. Globally, there is an increased emphasis on ESG and on creating a more inclusive workforce, society and economy. This will result in a more balanced workforce gender wise across levels and across industries over time. The Indian Government has recently taken some bold initiatives in the area of women empowerment and for larger representation of women in all fields including governance and the parliament. 

The Indian hospitality industry has made conscious efforts to showcase gender inclusivity and has gone to the extent of launching hotels completely operated by an all women team. 

As tourism and hospitality undergo a transformation towards being sensitive to the environment and more sustainable, having more women in leadership roles is also the need of the hour. 

I conclude by saying that men or women can reach wherever they want to in the hospitality industry. What is required is determination, discipline, hard work and sacrifices. 

“It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!"

For women, it will probably be more than twice as fast, for some time to come.

We look forward to the times changing soon.

Author bio: Charulata Sukhija is Deputy Secretary General, HAI