Front‐Office Jobs in the Age of Soft Skills

The interpersonal skills and personalities of the front‐office employees have become key resources in maximizing service quality in hospitality business. This chapter discusses how new human resource practices, resulting from the strategic imperatives of the competitive environment of hotel companies, are changing the perception of front‐office jobs. The question of professionalization is now a central issue in the emergence of soft skills in front‐office jobs. Based on Piot's work, the chapter considers the front‐office jobs as an integral part of the professions of relationship with others whose activities require the subject's support and which aim to transform him, like other professions of human interaction. The hotel service experience that the customer retains comes from the direct interaction between the customer and the front‐line employees. The chapter discusses consequences of professionalization on the work experience of the employees concerned, as well as the recruitment and appraisal practices.