Hotel managers' careers and their impact on hotels in Britain

Abstract The career succession of senior and middle managers clearly affects the culture of the organizations in which they work. But m relatively ‘closed’ industries where industry and occupational norms are a major determinant of career paths, what influence do organizations have on their managers' attitudes? The hotel industry is such a ‘closed’ industry, hotel managers tend to be trained and developed apart from managers in other industries. It is also an industry which has rarely been studied by social scientists, in particular hotel managers have been ignored. This paper examines the career paths of unit managers in British hotels. It reveals the extent to which traditional, occupationally orientated attitudes still affect managers' careers in this industry and speculates on the impact these attitudes have on hotel culture and hotel companies.