At the 2016 Diversity & Inclusion Conference in Philadelphia in April, a panel of industry experts gathered to discuss the minority leadership gap in hospitality. Because hospitality is an extremely diverse marketplace, a lack of minorities in upper-management and C-level positions has troubling ramifications, including a loss of business for hoteliers.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 8.8 percent of all African Americans over the age of 16 are employed in the leisure and hospitality industry—more than 1.5 million people. Yet, African Americans are underrepresented in high-level positions. Ana Aponte-Curtis, chair of the National Coalition of Black Meeting Planners, keeps these statistics in mind when she’s planning events. “I expect to see some people who look like me when I’m negotiating contracts for the organizations that we represent,” she said during the panel. “And as meeting planners, we can hold our dollars back if we find there isn’t an opportunity for us.”
But how can the lodging industry make better efforts to increase minority representation? According to Sarah Smart, senior director of executive recruitment at Hilton Worldwide, the first step is becoming aware of any unconscious bias in hiring practices. “Bias can show up anywhere,” she explained. “Recruiters may not be presenting certain people because they’re working under the assumption that hiring managers won’t think they’re qualified for a role.”
There is also the necessity of seeking out talented people of all backgrounds and exposing them to new things. Darryll Adams, an African American who is GM of the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia, said that without people who encouraged him to try new things, he would not be where he is today. “It was people coming to me and saying, ‘I think you have the talent for this. Take a chance, and I’ll be right there with you.’”
Helping others succeed is something that all of the panelists agreed was extremely important to closing the minority hiring gap in the lodging industry. Julie Coker Graham, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau and a former GM for Hyatt Hotels, explained, “I have an obligation to reach out to women and African-American women who are looking to move up in our industry and help them get that seat at the table, as someone did for me. We don’t always do that as well and as often as we should.”
