Sometimes during an interview, you get either, very predictable, or occasionally weird questions, so do you ever wonder, why do they ask me that? The interview process can be stressful and unnerving, but if you are well prepared your chances of a successful interview and positive outcome can be substantially increased. In most interviews, the questions will generally be divided into several categories: – Warm up questions – designed to get you talking and put you at ease. Competency questions – which assess your technical suitability; can you do the job? Scenario questions – hypothetical ques ..read more

Hotels inspire stories and tend to often feature in popular music, whether this is about specific hotels, fictitious hotels, working in hotels or just experiencing the ups and downs of life whilst staying in hotels. Some songs come to mind immediately, whilst others are more obscure and take a little finding. Just for fun to start 2023, here are a few of our favourite songs involving hotels. If you have a favourite, let us know via the comments section. Hotel California – The Eagles Blue Hotel – Chris Issak Heartbreak Hotel – Elvis Presley Hotel Room – Richard Hawley Hot Rod Hotel – Billy ..read more

While I generally avoid travelling during the holiday season, there are times when I just can’t avoid being part of the herd, that winds its way through airport terminals, shopping malls or cafés with staff looking tired and worn out from the onslaught over the Christmas period. My recent experience has me questioning the responsibility of parents while travelling. I observed a situation which clearly has to do with parenting at its worse. A little girl, somewhere around the age of three years old, sitting in the window seat of a flying kangaroo flight, terrorizing the passengers in front and ..read more

We are currently going through an important evolution in society where women are making the final push to be equals when it comes to education, health and workforce participation. The gender gap is still prevalent in many countries and societies (including the western world) and whilst industry leaders have given lip service to the idea of gender equality, it seems things may actually be progressing – progress that should have been reality in past decades. The changing situation in Saudi Arabia comes to mind as an example of progress, albeit one step at a time. Women are finally able to drive ..read more

I think we all need to find ways to smile, so here are a few of our favourite comedy clips for the festive season – unlike us, these never get old!!! From all of us at ‘The Elite Hotelier’ and ‘Elite Search’ we hope you get to spend time with your families and loved ones and wish you the very best for the holidays and hope for a healthy, happy and prosperous 2023… Michael McIntyre – Christmas Dinner Blackadder at Christmas Crimewatch UK – Drink Shopping Elf the movie: Santa Announcement David Mitchell – Christmas Explained Jack Dee hates Christmas Shopping Outnumbered – New Years Resolut ..read more

Discussions about the “world’s best” this or that are by nature very divisive so when I start an article about where to find the world’s best cup of coffee, I know I am asking for trouble… Of course, many factors need to come together to create great coffee. You cannot have great coffee without great coffee beans and some varieties are better than others. Growing conditions influence flavour, the roast of the bean changes everything. Let’s also not forget the freshness of the bean, the grind size, the water, the milk, the process or machine used to make the coffee. There are so many different ..read more

The recent FX series “The Bear” has shone a bright light on the true-life aspects of restaurant and hospitality, rather than the fantasy of the glamourous industry that we often see portrayed in fiction or on shows like MasterChef. This got us thinking about who are the most famous, or perhaps infamous, chefs from TV, books and movies, so here are a few to get started. Carmen Berzatto – The Bear Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) is the star of this gritty drama about a former Michelin restaurant chef returning to run the family diner in Chicago. The show is a tense drama, but many consider the geni ..read more

Is there a positive from the years of Covid-19 that have ravaged the hotel industry – maybe not… Post Covid, there seems to be an acute staff shortage in hospitality reflected by the fact that that some restaurants are still unable to re-open, and many hotels have cut back on the services offered and standards delivered. So what does that really tell us? The once, seemingly glamourous, hospitality business is out of favour with many sectors of the workforce, and those that were in hospitality have discovered that the grass really is greener on the other side, opting to stay in jobs and other ..read more

I always like to look ahead and wonder what the industry I grew up in will be like in the future. So much has changed in the past 30 years and will continue to change over the next few decades because of the changing environment, employment, social, economic, and political developments that have so much influence on the hospitality industry. Who would have believed the impact of the Covid pandemic around the world and how many of these changes will most likely stay with us forever! Here is a summary of what the recent look at my crystal ball has foretold… Fast Forward 30 years to the year 205 ..read more

I recently came across some articles from 1987 which discussed the shrinking pool of people working, or willing to work, in the hospitality industry and why we did not tap into the pool of older workers who seemed willing to work but were frequently ignored. Fast forward 35 years and it seems nothing has changed. For the past couple of years, the world has endured a pandemic which was beyond belief, and far more impactful than we ever imagined. Hospitality in particular, suffered an unthinkable downturn resulting in the lay-off of vast numbers of staff as businesses fought for survival. Now ..read more