RESEARCH
Work it out S
KATHERINE JOHNSTON » SENIOR ECONOMIST » SRI INTERNATIONAL
pa businesses are fac- ing a fundamental challenge in their man- agement workforce
– they’re simply not able to fi nd enough people with the right skills to fi ll management-level positions. In a online survey conducted by SRI earlier this year, 95 per cent of spa indus- try leaders said they face problems in hiring spa managers/directors with the right com- bination of qualifi cations and experience, while 52 per cent believed these problems will stay the same or worsen over the next decade. These challenges are critical for the future of the industry, because spas are fundamentally about the experiences they provide. To be innovative and competitive, a spa’s employees are its number one asset. The Global Spa & Wellness Summit
(GSWS) commissioned SRI International to examine the many challenges in hiring strong, well-qualifi ed spa management per- sonnel, as well as the root causes of these challenges. Presented at the 2012 GSWS con-
ference in June (see sb12/3 p54), Spa Management Workforce & Education: Addressing Market Gaps, presents recommendations in how to address gaps in the sup- ply and demand for skilled spa managers and directors. It’s important to recognise
that these challenges are not unique to the spa industry. Over the last 25 years, as the economy in many parts of the world has shifted from manufacturing to services and knowledge-based industries, econo- mists have documented that: a workforce is increasingly the most important factor for success in an increasingly competitive global economy; and also that skilled and talented workers are increasingly diffi cult to recruit and retain, especially at the managerial level. The leading global management firm McKinsey & Company has dubbed this chal- lenge the ‘war for talent’. At the same time, as a relatively young and
fast-growing industry, the global spa sector also faces a number of particular obstacles.
Table 1: Training Gaps and Future Training Priorities Identifi ed by both Industry Leaders and Spa Managers/Directors Are Remarkably Similar
Spa Managers/Directors Priorities for Future Training
1) Strategic planning skills 2) IT skills
3) Public relations/promotional skills 4) Revenue management skills 5) Legal/regulatory compliance
6) Financial management/accounting skills 7) Sales/marketing/retail skills
Industry Leaders/Executives Key Spa Management Training Gaps
1) Strategic planning skills 2) IT skills
3) Revenue management skills 4) Legal/regulatory compliance
5) Public relations/promotional skills 6) Financial management/accounting skills
7) Practical/on-the-job experience; 7) Leadership; Problem-solving (tie)
Source: SRI International online survey of 188 global spa industry leaders/executives and 469 spa managers/directors, conducted during January-March 2012
56 Read Spa Business online
spabusiness.com / digital
SPA-SPECIFIC CHALLENGES Part of the problem is that spa management is a very challenging career that requires a huge mix of hard and soſt skills, combined with a deep passion and understanding of spa. Most people require both signifi cant formal education/training and practical, on- the-job experience in order to build this skill set. However, since there’s no well-defi ned educational or career pathway for entering spa management, most spa managers and directors are defi cient in at least one of these key skills areas. Spa managers and directors who are promoted upwards from lower-level spa positions (oſt en therapists) have typi- cally received little to no training in hard skills such as business, management and fi nance. Spa managers and directors who are hired from outside the spa – or outside the industry – may have management expe- rience/skills, but may lack the requisite soſt skills and understanding of spa. Addition- ally, spa management is a highly demanding career which often involves long hours/ weeks and requires signifi cant travel. T is can lead to employee burn out and makes it diffi cult to or be diffi cult to sell the role as a lifestyle career. Generally, hard skills in busi- ness/management are considered to be the number one defi ciency among today’s spa managers and directors (see Table 1) Other challenges are focused on educa-
tion and training providers. T ere are few education and training programmes spe- cifically preparing people for careers in spa management. SRI has identifi ed 64 spa management-related degree programmes available in universities, colleges, and schools around the world. T ese include degrees specifi cally focusing on spa manage- ment; hotel/hospitality/tourism management degrees with a spa management component; and spa therapy programmes with a man- agement component. T e graduates of these existing degrees
meet only a tiny fraction of the industry’s growing needs for well-trained spa manage-
SPA BUSINESS 4 2012 ©Cybertrek 2012
What can the industry do to tackle the serious lack of skilled spa managers and directors? SRI International’s Katherine Johnston reveals the fi ndings and suggestions from its innovative new study
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