What hotel manager interviews assess

Hotel manager interviews (from front office manager through to general manager) assess: commercial acumen and P&L management, guest experience leadership, operational management across multiple departments, team leadership at scale, and brand standards compliance. At general manager level, expect in-depth questions on revenue management (RevPAR, ADR, occupancy), cost management (labour cost as a percentage of revenue, food cost, maintenance cost), and team leadership across all hotel departments. At department manager level, the focus is on departmental operations, guest satisfaction, and team management within that function.

Commercial and revenue questions

"How would you improve RevPAR at this property?" Strong answer: first audit current performance against the competitive set (STR data), identify whether underperformance is in rate (ADR) or in occupancy. If occupancy is the problem: distribution channel mix, direct booking vs. OTA, pricing competitiveness, promotional activity, corporate account development. If ADR is the problem: rate positioning, upselling (room upgrades, F&B packages), group and MICE business mix, reputation management (online reviews directly affect rate integrity). Show you understand revenue management as a data-driven discipline, not just "drop the price to fill the hotel." "Walk me through how you manage a hotel's annual budget." Show: revenue forecasting by segment (rooms, F&B, meetings), cost budgeting by department (labour, cost of sales, overheads), capital expenditure planning, and monthly P&L review against budget with commentary on variances.

Guest experience questions

"How do you handle a serious guest complaint?" Strong answer: listen without interrupting, apologise genuinely for the experience without over-excusing, take ownership (do not blame staff or suppliers in front of the guest), resolve the immediate issue as quickly as possible, follow up after the resolution to confirm the guest is satisfied, and complete an internal incident record to identify any systemic cause. The most expensive guest complaint is one that goes unresolved until TripAdvisor: proactive service recovery retains the guest and often turns them into a brand advocate.

Leadership and team management questions

"How do you maintain service standards across a large and diverse team?" Strong answer: clear service standards documented and trained (not just assumed), regular briefings at the start of shifts, consistent feedback (positive as well as corrective), mystery guest and guest satisfaction data reviewed and discussed with teams, recognition of excellent performance publicly, and addressing poor performance promptly and consistently. Hotels with high staff turnover suffer service inconsistency: show you understand that retention and development are commercial, not just HR, priorities.

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Frequently asked questions

What is RevPAR and how is it calculated?
RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room) is the primary performance metric in hotel revenue management. It is calculated as: ADR (Average Daily Rate) multiplied by Occupancy Rate. For example, a hotel with 80% occupancy and an ADR of £120 has a RevPAR of £96. RevPAR captures both rate and occupancy performance in a single metric. It is used to compare performance against budget and against competitive set benchmarks (using STR data) and as the primary measure in management agreements and franchise performance tests.
What is the career progression to hotel general manager?
Typical routes: starting as a management trainee or graduate in a branded hotel group (Marriott, Hilton, IHG, Accor each run structured programmes), progressing through department head roles (front office manager, food and beverage manager, revenue manager), then to deputy general manager or hotel manager, then to general manager. Alternatively: progressing through F&B or revenue management specialist tracks. The route to GM in independent hotels is often faster but offers less structured development. Most GMs have strong F&B or rooms division backgrounds rather than back-of-house functional backgrounds.