Examining the Gap between Students and Recruiters on Employees’ Competencies: Focusing on USA Students and Mangers

The quality of the personnel has been a key component in determining the success of any business in the hospitality industry. Thus, hospitality organizations are always in search for individuals with desired qualities from different recruitment pools. It is also critical that job seekers, who are interested in entering the hospitality industry,also have a clear understanding of what is needed for them to be successful in the industry. Therefore, several issues emerged. Do recruiters have a clear set of criteria for them to select individuals that match their needs? Do job seekers recognize important competencies that are necessary for them to climb up the career ladder in the hospitality industry? Additionally, is there a gap between recruiters and job seekers in terms of their perceived importance of KSAO (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Other characteristics) for a career in the hospitality industry? Both groups perceived that communication skills are the most important competency that one should possesses for career success. Yet, the ranking of other important KSAO is different between managers and students. In addition, the research findings are different from previous studies. The results suggest that academic advisors can be an effective medium in bridging the gap between managers and students. The value of this study is enhancing current understanding on selection issue in the hospitality by comparing different stakeholders’ perspectives at the same time.