The success of a hotel can depend on the effectiveness of its project manager. This professional oversees the planning and execution of a variety of hotel projects, including marketing services, automation of processes, re-branding and staff training. You generally need to have a bachelor’s degree in project management or business administration to secure this job in small hotels. However, multinational enterprises prefer individuals with a master’s degree and vast management expertise.

Coordinating Re-branding

In a competitive hotel industry, re-branding a business becomes necessary due to shifting market conditions or change of ownership. Re-branding helps to create a distinctive identity to stand out from competitors. When a hotel is re-branding, perhaps changing names, the project manager ensures the transition is as smooth as possible. This might involve collaborating with specialists to redesign the company’s logo, settle on new colors and formulate a new tagline. The project manager also might collaborate with senior managers to organize a successful company re-launch.

Overseeing Automation

An efficient project manager analyzes a hotel's technological needs and initiates automation of various services. For example, if the facility wants to develop a web portal where guests can make booking reservations, order meals or register complaints, the project manager supervises a team of information technology experts to ensure execution of the job in accordance with the hotel’s preferences. Automation in the hotel industry also helps to improve workforce productivity, minimize labor costs and reduce administrative work.

Implementing Training

Training hotel staff helps them provide great service to guests. To ensure training programs have maximum impact on employees, the project manager must develop appropriate training schedules. For example, if the hotel has 100 employees, a smart project manager can divide them into groups of 10 to ensure trainers have ample time to attend to the needs of each worker. Alternatively, he can facilitate training of department leaders, who can in turn coach their teams.

Designing Strategies

A hotel project manager can work with marketing specialists to design marketing strategies for promoting the hotel’s services. He can use his problem-solving skills to help develop an effective strategy based on available funds, target audience and consumer preferences. For example, if the hotel wants to advertise a new service for children, the project manager might create a strategy that focuses on television ads, rather than Internet ads to expand reach to the target audience.