Launch of Jobs Transformation Map to identify skills and talent to grow hotel industry

Singapore, 18 May 2023

1. Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and Industry Dr Tan See Leng launched the Jobs Transformation Map (JTM)[1] for the Hotel Industry today at the Hotel Human Capital Conference 2023. The event was organised by the Singapore Hotel Association (SHA) and held at PARKROYAL on Beach Road.

2. Singapore’s hotel industry posted an encouraging year amid stronger demand for leisure and business travel. Average occupancy rate (AOR) for the first quarter of 2023 was 78%, which compares well against 2019’s pre-COVID AOR of 87%, while the average room rate and revenue per available room are higher compared to pre-pandemic levels[2]. The hotel industry remains an important pillar for the tourism sector, contributing more than 20% of our total Tourism Receipts (TR) last year and employing 44% of our tourism workforce as of December 2022.

3. To support its continued growth, the JTM for the Hotel Industry identifies how technology as well as global and local trends will impact job roles and skills over the next three years.  The JTM will guide employers and employees on the skills and talent needed to remain competitive, innovative and sustainable, for the industry to seize new opportunities with a future-ready workforce.​

4. The JTM for the Hotel Industry was jointly developed by Singapore Tourism Board and Workforce Singapore, and is supported by SkillsFuture Singapore, the Ministry of Manpower, SHA and the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union (FDAWU), in consultation with 105 hotels and eight education institutions.

Hotels must embrace job redesign to remain competitive and relevant

5. The JTM identified four megatrends that will have a profound impact on the nature of hotel jobs: changing guest expectations as lifestyles evolve, sustainability, an increasingly competitive landscape and changing workforce aspirations. It also assessed 87 current job roles, of which 40 are likely to be redesigned.

   • a)Of the 40 roles, seven are expected to require extensive redesign due to increasing automation enabled by artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and robotics. These include sales coordinator, reservations officer and housekeeping coordinator roles.

   • The other 33 roles still require human intervention but may be augmented by technology.
     These roles – such as engineers and housekeeping managers – require moderate redesign to equip job holders with new knowledge and abilities.

   • The remaining 47 job roles continue to be highly dependent on human intervention but will require some upskilling. For example, an operations manager who uses property management systems (PMS) should acquire new capabilities in consumer intelligence and sustainable procurement to develop strategic plans.

6. Hotels could also reconfigure existing jobs by “stacking” – merging job roles and equipping jobholders with new skillsets. Jobs can be combined horizontally across different functions, so that employees can focus on value-added tasks. For instance, a catering sales coordinator and assistant events executive can be stacked to become a sales and events associate. Hotels can also merge roles within the same function. For example, a reservations supervisor and reservations agent can be stacked to become a reservations specialist.

New opportunities in the Hotel of Tomorrow

7. To inspire hotels in their transformation journey, the JTM has envisioned the Hotel of Tomorrow – where hotels are destinations in themselves, creating value with and for the community through novel concepts and thoughtfully-designed spaces.  This vision is influenced by three emerging areas: sustainability, technology and placemaking. Collectively, these give the hotel industry a competitive edge, while creating new and future-ready job roles.

   • a) Sustainability: Hotels should hire talents in sustainability, who can combine their green credentials with a keen business sense and financial acumen. They can create sustainable experiences and chart the hotel’s sustainability journey. For example, The Fullerton Hotel Singapore and The Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore have created the role of a sustainability manager.

   • b)Technology: Hotels should hire and create roles for technophiles who are data-driven and innovative. These talents can develop guest-centric experiences and improve productivity. For example, Far East Hospitality, Accor and Marina Bay Sands have dedicated technology and business innovation teams to build new capabilities and implement transformation plans.

   • c) Placemaking: Hotels can offer new roles that create meaningful experiences in partnership with the community. At the upcoming Mondrian Singapore Duxton, guests can enjoy a permanent art collection by local art consultancy The Artling. The hotel has also hired a Community Curator to design precinct programming with its neighbours.   

Partnering the industry on its transformation journey

8. 135 hotels with over 18,000 local workers have committed to transform their jobs in line with the JTM. For example, Pan Pacific Hotel Group (PPHG) is piloting a three-year workforce transformation roadmap to achieve business and manpower outcomes. PPHG will also redesign roles, implement new initiatives to reimagine hotel operations and address manpower challenges.

9. STB and the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), Employment and Employability Institute (e2i), Workforce Singapore (WSG) and SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) are also helping hotels retain and attract talent through jobs transformation.

10. New initiatives include WSG’s revamped Career Conversion Programme (CCP)[3] for Tourism Professionals to support the Hotels, MICE, Attractions and Travel Agent and Tourist Guides industries. The CCP will serve all tourism professionals across myriad roles, allowing 100% on-the-job training, with optional facilitated training for existing workers and new hires. The CCP will also develop the capabilities of existing and prospective tourism workers to take on job functions with emerging skillsets in areas such as sustainability, wellness and placemaking. About 1,500 workers from 60 hotels have participated in WSG’s CCP for Hotel Professionals since January 2020.

11. WSG has also extended its volunteer Career Advisors (vCA)[4] initiative to the hotel industry. The initiative builds a pool of volunteers comprising industry professionals to provide peer support and career guidance to help individuals make more informed decisions as they navigate professional pathways to advance their careers, or transition to other jobs. To date, over 360 volunteers across nine sectors, including growth sectors such as electronics, healthcare, logistics, ICT and sustainability, have been trained and appointed.

12. These new initiatives add to existing programmes by tripartite partners that support transformation and upskilling. These include:

    • a) STB’s Business Improvement Fund[5] and WSG’s Support for Job Redesign under Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG-JR).

    • b) Grant schemes to support training and development such as STB’s Training Industry Professionals in Tourism (TIP-iT)[6], WSG’s Industry Catalyst Programme (ICP) as well as SkillsFuture Singapore-supported programmes.

    • c) The Tourism Careers Hub (TCH)[7] by STB, NTUC, e2i and WSG will also provide employment and employability support for the tourism sector.

13. Mr Keith Tan, Chief Executive, Singapore Tourism Board, said: “The hotel industry is the biggest employer in Singapore’s tourism sector, providing quality and diverse jobs for locals.  As travel continues to recover, it is timely for hotels to reimagine their business models. We hope the Jobs Transformation Map for the Hotel Industry will help them envision what their hotel of tomorrow could look like, and we look forward to supporting them on this exciting journey.”

14. Mr Tan Choon Shian, Chief Executive, Workforce Singapore, said: “With the launch of the Jobs Transformation Map (JTM) for the Hotel Industry, we have taken a significant step towards a future-ready workforce that is equipped with the necessary skills to keep the hotel industry competitive and innovative.  With the support of our broad-based CCP for Tourism Professionals, we encourage hotels to continuously develop capabilities of their workers to take on jobs with the emerging skillsets aligned to the JTM for the Hotel Industry. In addition, our volunteer Career Advisors who are experts in their fields can help to identify possible skills gaps required to switch to and advance in the industry, and also recommend relevant initiatives and programmes that can help them reskill and plug these gaps. With these two initiatives, I believe the hotel industry will transform towards the vision of Hotel of Tomorrow.”  

15. Ms Kwee Wei-Lin, President of the Singapore Hotel Association (SHA) said: “In an evolving hospitality landscape, shaped by factors such as AI and the green economy, there are many opportunities for inspiring careers. The timely launch of the Jobs Transformation Map for the hotel industry provides impetus for hotels to reinvent their workforce strategies with a focus on job redesign. Being the programme partner for Workforce Singapore (WSG)’s Career Conversion Programme, over 60 member hotels have embarked on this progressive journey with many more in the pipeline. The SHA is committed to working with STB, WSG and the Union to develop a future-ready workforce that will strengthen Singapore’s acclaim as a world-class travel destination.”

16. Mr Tan Hock Soon, General Secretary, Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union (FDAWU), said: “FDAWU is committed to empowering our union members to embrace a lifelong learning mindset critical for staying relevant in a constantly evolving business environment. We are also engaging our partner companies to form Company Training Committees to drive business transformation and workforce upskilling to enhance workers’ employability and ultimately achieve greater career success.”

For full report of the JTM for Hotel Industry: Jobs Transformation Maps (JTMs) | Industry Transformation Map (wsg.gov.sg)

1. Jobs Transformation Map (JTMs) provide detailed insights on the impact of technology and automation on the industry and workforce. The JTMs identify key technologies that are driving change, their impact on individual job roles, as well as pathways for employers to transform jobs and for workers to acquire requisite skills as existing job roles evolve and new ones emerge. To date, 11 JTMs have been completed for various industries (inclusive of the JTM for the Hotel Industry). Seven JTMs are in progress.

2. The industry’s average room rate was $260 in the last three quarters of 2022 after travel restrictions were lifted and revenue per available room was $206 for the same period, sitting higher than pre-COVID levels of $221 and $192 respectively in 2019.

3. WSG Career Conversion Programmes (CCP) for Individuals Singapore

4. Volunteer Career Advisors | WSG

5. Business Improvement Fund (BIF) | STB

6. Training Industry Professionals in Tourism (TIP-iT) | STB

7. Tourism Careers Hub - Employment and Employability Institute (e2i.com.sg)

-END-

About the Singapore Tourism Board

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore. It champions the development of Singapore's tourism sector, one of the country's key service sectors and economic pillars, and undertakes the marketing and promotion of Singapore as a tourism destination.

About Workforce Singapore (WSG)

Workforce Singapore promotes the development, competitiveness, inclusiveness, and employability of all levels of the workforce. Its key mission is to enable Singaporeans to meet their career aspirations, take on quality jobs at different stages of life, and help enterprises be competitive and manpower lean. Workforce Singapore’s focus is on strengthening the Singaporean core and ensuring that Singaporeans are able to have better jobs and careers. Workforce Singapore, in partnership with key stakeholders, also provides support to business owners and companies to enable them to transform and grow, while building a future-ready workforce. Visit www.wsg.gov.sg for more information.