My thoughts on this updated book for a capstone course for seniors about to complete a University program in Hospitality
Review of Hospitality Management, A Capstone Course, 2nd Edition - 2020, Matt A. Casado, Professor Emeritus, School of Hotel & Restaurant Management, Northern Arizona University
I am pleased to share my thoughts on this book that was recently updated as a text for a capstone course for seniors about to complete a University program in Hotel, Hospitality and Restaurant administration.
This book should be a keeper for any graduating senior And Part 2 has many solid messages for today’s professionals as well!
In my adult career, I have taught more than 6000 classes. Roughly a third of them have been as an adjunct professor at three different colleges and universities in Tennessee and Massachusetts. The remaining 70% has been in professional settings for major hotel brands, for management companies and major hospitality associations, including AAHOA, AH&LA, the Canadian Hotel Association and many state and provincial hotel associations throughout North America.
I have used a range of materials in those programs, including texts that are available for universities which is why I am pleased to discuss this book from Matt Casado.
While he and I have never met in person, our paths have crossed in certain professional venues and I know that he has authored the number of hospitality books in both English and Spanish for different purposes
Hospitality Management– A Capstone Course is 15 chapters in 2 major parts.
Part One focuses on the present. It targets the recent graduate who is about to enter the hospitality industry on a full-time basis and likely not going into a family business.
Chapter 1 covers Obtaining a Management Position. It Includes strategies for planning a career, contacting prospective employers on campus as well as directly, and includes a certain number of online addresses for some major companies.
It provides an overview of what should be in a good resume, identifying appropriate references and how to write a strong cover letter. It discusses the interview process and understanding what companies are looking for. There are 10 review questions and the assignments are very good for people in the situation
Chapters 2 through 9 cover operations in a variety of segments.
I have felt in my career with many hospitality programs at universities that too often “the heart of the hotel” departments are not covered in much detail or they're completely ignored. This is a huge mistake since housekeeping is the single largest source of Associates in any hotel and Energy is one of the highest variable costs and one that will continue to rise. Chapters 4 and 7 deal with housekeeping, engineering and energy which are essential parts to every successful hotel, regardless of size, brand, or location.
Chapter 8 does a very respectable job of providing several very good situations that are real world enough to merit energetic discussion and analysis. This chapter discusses the controllable activities of a hotel business, which includes the income statement, variable analysis, inventory control, budgets and revised forecasts.
Chapter 9 discusses Hotel Accounting. This includes everything from the balance sheet, cash flow, cost of sales, financial ratios, and depreciation. All of these are real world topics that are not covered in enough detail in many academic programs. There are a good half-dozen situational discussions at the end of this chapter that make this extremely valuable for the long term understanding of success. Too many students and actual practicing managers do not understand that hotel ownership and operations are both very capital-intensive and labor-intensive and that understanding the numbers in accounting is substantially more than raising room rates or cutting payroll.
Chapters 2, 3, 5 and 6 provide an overview and reasonable discussions on food operations, beverage service, Front office management , as well as sales and marketing.
PART 2
This half of the book includes some very solid information that I seldom see in many academic texts, and they are too often minimized in many professional programs. It includes a few topics that I have often incorporated in my professional advanced level training.
I am pleased to see the author offer them for discussion and with that in mind, I believe the second part of the book has some real value for professionals already in the industry as well as graduating seniors.
Chapter 10 provides a good overview of Strategic Planning and Management. This chapter defines what strategic planning is and how it differs from everyday activities. It explains what strategy really means in operations and it offers an overview of the ongoing value of strategic planning. It offers insights on how hotels compete in its marketplace profitably and long-term.
It has a very good section on the SWOT analysis, which has always been a major discussion point with almost all my professional classes. I have found in my many classes that countless people often do not understand the significance of being able to identify on their own internal strengths and weaknesses, as well as their external opportunities and threats. Again, the review of key concepts and terms, the review questions and case studies are all very good.
Chapter 11 covers another topic that is seldom covered in depth, although it becomes increasingly more important as the world market changes. It covers Ethics in Hospitality Management. It discusses how to develop a company code of ethics and benchmarking it, providing accountability, integrity, and fairness to all participants in the business.
Chapter 12 discusses Hospitality Communication. I find the title a bit misleading because it really discusses more of the communication approach and attributes of the individual more than of the organization. It covers formal presentations, extemporaneous speaking (which is arguably the number one human fear in the world), written communication, email, memos, Face to face Communication and the all-important body language. I wish this option and discussion has been around when I was an undergraduate.
Chapter 13 continues with Hospitality Management. In simple terms, it means understanding the way hospitality companies are structured and organized, how group behavior is constantly evolving as the organization grows or shrinks, and how the concept of productivity must be understood and continually developed in the changing markets.
Chapter 14 it's titled Hospitality Leadership. Leadership is a very challenging concept in life as well as business, and this text does a good job of discussing skill sets, characteristics and personal traits that leaders may have. It reviews leadership styles power and behavior. As this was updated in 2020, it also includes the topic of being politically correct and the challenges that a company and leaders face today.
Chapter 15 is Hospitality Law
This was one of my favorite undergraduate classes and I cannot believe how much it is changed in my lifetime. We have become an extremely litigious society and there are many lawyers who have targeted the hospitality industry as one that may not always be as well-prepared as it might be. There are certain things that every hotel and hospitality business should be aware of and pay attention to and the 13 pages in this chapter provide a good introduction.
But anyone reading this chapter, or this book must be aware that this is only an introduction
There is a reasonable glossary near the end of the text.
This book should be a keeper for any graduating senior. Highly recommended and I believe the second part of the book has some real value for professionals already in the industry as well.
John J Hogan, CHA CMHS CHE CHO
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