Book chapter Gold Open Access 2025

Career development and turnover in the hospitality industry: Portraying job moves and career trajectories

Building Human Capital in Tourism and Hospitality: Perspectives from theory and practice
Journal · pp. 78-114
Abstract

Retaining valuable and qualified employees has become increasingly challenging in light of labour shortages, workforce demographic shifts and modern career concepts based on increased mobility and short-term transactional relationships between the employer and the employee. The concept of career is central in human resources management. However, it is a poorly studied phenomenon in tourism and hospitality, as there is still little information on how jobs develop into careers. This chapter provides insights into career development and turnover in the dynamic tourism and hospitality industry and explores this industry's career trajectories and job changes. Career trajectories are analysed in the light of contemporary career perspectives, such as protean and boundaryless careers, and factors contributing to voluntary turnover are examined, highlighting the locus of initiative and motives for job and career moves. Challenges of turnover management and the need for structured career opportunities in the tourism and hospitality industry are addressed. © CAB International 2025. All rights reserved.

Keywords

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Index Keywords

Employment Professional aspects Human resource management Human resources management Tourism Tourism and hospitality industries Leisure industry Labor shortages Career development Career opportunities Concept-based Demographic shifts Hospitality industry Shift-and
Author Affiliations
Competitiveness and Public Policy - GOVCOPP, Portucalense University, Porto, Porto, Portugal
Industrial Engineering and Tourism, GOVCOPP – Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies, Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
GOVCOPP – Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies, Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Funding & Acknowledgements
No funding information
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