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University Microfilms International 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 USA S t John’s Road, Tyler's Green High Wycombe, Bucks, England HP10 8HR 7815107 C M M 8 T H - M 1 1 U ROBERT TO UR I S M E D U C A T I O N ITS D E V E L O P M E N T a n o C U RR E N T STATUS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO S E ltCTED S E GMENTS OP T O U R I 8 M - R6 L A T EO I NOUSTRIES IN MICHIGAN, MI CH I G A N STATE UNIVERSITY# P H , D , f 1076 University. Microfilms international 300 n z e e b r o a d , a n n a r b o r , mi 4 8 io 6 0 1978 ROBERT CHRIST I E-MILL ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TOURISM EDUCATION: ITS DEVELOPMENT AND CURRENT STATUS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SELECTED SEGMENTS OF TOURISM-RELATED INDUSTRIES IN MICHIGAN By Robert Christie-Mill A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Administration and Higher Education 1978 ABSTRACT TOURISM EDUCATION: ITS DEVELOPMENT AND CURRENT STATUS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SELECTED SEGMENTS OF TOURISM-RELATED INDUSTRIES IN MICHIGAN By Robert Christie-Mill This study was prompted by the lack of information on travel careers. In order to provide more information on potential careers to prospective employees and to incor­ porate an industry viewpoint into the programs of edu­ cational institutions, the study had two dimensions. First the development of tourism education, with particular empha sis on the extent to which educational establishments were providing the type of employee sought by tourism-related industries, was determined by a complete review of the status of tourism education in the United States and Europe Secondly, industry input was sought on job specifications to provide information for individuals interested in cer­ tain tourism-related careers. For the second part of the study, data were ob­ tained from mailed questionnaires sent to all of the con­ vention and visitor bureaus, tour operators, tour Robert Christie-Mill wholesalers, airline sales offices, foreign, state and regional tourist offices and a sample of retail travel agents in the state of Michigan. A total of 110 responses were received from fortyeight different companies and organizations. Information was received on (1) the classification of job titles, (2) the incidence and nature of problems in finding qual­ ified employees, gory, (3) educational preferences by job cate­ (4) job experience by job category, (5) desired employee skills or attributes by job category and (6) job opportunities and salary by job category. The major findings of the study were as follows: 1. Little agreement exists concerning the meaning of "tourism education." 2. Graduates from formal tourism programs often have difficulty in finding suitable employment. 3. The tourism programs in both the United States and Europe seemed uncoordinated and in many cases were not meeting the needs of tourism-related industries. 4. There were differences in the proportion of male to female employees by type of business. 5. There was general agreement that the major problems in finding qualified employees were the Robert Christie-Mill lack of experience and lack of knowledge. How­ ever, the incidence of problems varied by type of business. 6. Most respondents indicated a four-year degree as an educational preference for both managers and employees. 7. All respondents considered personal selling an important academic subject for managers and employees. 8. While virtually all respondents preferred their personnel to have had prior job experience, air­ line respondents were the only group to require this of all managers. 9. Two to five years' prior job experience was pre­ ferred by respondents. 10. There was a difference by type of business in terms of promoting from inside compared to hiring from outside the company. 11. Employees came from a variety of jobs which were connected with their present business. 12. There was no common agreement concerning the skills and attributes considered important for personnel. Robert Christie-Mill 13. The availability of job openings varied by type of business. 14. Average salaries varied by type of business. This dissertation is dedicated to my family on both sides of the Atlantic who helped make this dream a reality. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The writer is grateful to those many people who helped see this project through to fruition. Thanks should go to the committee without whose work this study would have been seriously delayed. My chairman, Dr. T. Harry McKinney, asked probing questions in the formative stages of the study correctly forcing the author to re-think ideas until they were properly formed and justifiable. Dr. Walter Johnson brought his vast experience to bear to skillfully guide the research safely to completion. Dr. Francis Domoy and Professor Harold Lane gave considerable assistance, encouragement and immediate feedback while refusing to allow these tasks to ruin existing friendships. Mr. Bert Hamilton of Spartan Travel gave great assistance in the pre-testing of the written questionnaire. Thanks should go to Mr. Jim Miller, C.T.C., president of the American Society of Travel Agents, for the use of his name in the cover letter sent out with the questionnaire. The researcher is thankful to Dr. Robert Blomstrom, chairman of the Department of Hotel, Restaurant and iii Institutional Management, for the opportunity to support himself by teaching within the department while completing this degree. The writer is grateful to those friends and rela­ tives whose thoughts and encouragement made this study possible. The writer's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Mill, supplied the foundation and encouragement for advancement and unselfishly provided for their son's future at the cost of his moving to the other side of the Atlantic. Thanks are due the writer's in-laws, Dr. and Mrs. Harold Herbst, whose support throughout has been deeply appre­ ciated. Editor and typist Marty North endured a surplus of commas and snow in the preparation of this study. Her magnificent work and patience were a source of comfort. Special thanks should go to wife, Caryl, and children, David and Kimberley, who endured a seemingly endless number of lonely evenings. worthwhile. They make it all TABLE OP CONTENTS Page LIST OF T A B L E S ...................................... x LIST OF FIGURES...................................... XV Chapter I. II. THE PROBLEM................................... 1 Introduction............................... Statement of Objectives ................... General Background Information............. Limitations of the Study................... Definition of T e r m s ...................... Organization of the S t u d y ................ 1 3 3 12 13 15 TOURISM EDUCATION: DEVELOPMENT AND CURRENT STATUS...................................... 19 Introduction................................ Tourism Education ......................... 19 20 Education and Training in Tourism in Western Europe......................... 28 University courses in tourism. . . . Business study courses ................ Technician courses in tourism. . . . 29 30 31 Present Scope of Tourism Education and Training in the United States. . . . Home study c o u r s e s ................... Methods for Determining Job Competencies . Government Information . . . . . . . Job S p e c i f i c a t i o n s ...................... Summary................................... v 33 35 35 40 41 43 Chapter Page Tourism Training in New York State . . . Travel Agent ............................. 43 45 D e f i n i t i o n ............................. Job R e q u i r e m e n t s ...................... Louis Harris and Associates............. The State Education Department of New Y o r k ............................. 47 57 59 Source of employment . . . . . . Educational requirements ............. Occupational program availability . . Previous experience. . Attributes or skills ................ Tour Wholesaler/Operator 67 67 67 68 68 ................ 71 Introduction............................. D e f i n i t i o n ............................. Tour Wholesaler Industry Study. . . . Job R e q u i r e m e n t s ...................... 71 71 73 75 Area and Regional Tourism Organizations . State Travel Offices...................... Convention and Visitors Bureau . . . . 76 77 78 Introduction............................. Functions. ....................... 78 79 Michigan Career Opportunity Guide . . . Michigan Occupational Information System . III. 65 81 83 Nature of the J o b ...................... Working Conditions...................... Worker Requirements ................... Earnings and Advancement................ Job O u t l o o k ............................. Educational Training Dial ............. Related Education and Training. . . . 86 87 87 88 89 89 90 S u m m a r y ................................... 90 M E T H O D O L O G Y ................................ 102 Introduction ............................. Review of the Literature on Tourism Education................................ Survey Population and Sample ............. 102 vi 102 103 Chapter IV. Page Survey Instrument .......................... Construction of the Questionnaire. . . . 104 105 Cover S h e e t ............................. Questionnaire............................. Cover L e t t e r ............................. 106 107 109 P r e - T e s t .................................... Mailing Procedures.......................... 110 110 AN ANALYSIS OF THE SURVEY D A T A ............. 113 Introduction................................. Responses to the Questionnaire............. Representativeness of the Respondents . . Travel Agent Responses .................... Travel Agent Responses— Managerial . . . 113 113 114 117 117 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ................ Job E x p e r i e n c e .......................... Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ....................... S a l a r y .................................... Summary.................................... 119 121 123 125 130 130 135 Travel Agency Responses— Nonmanagerial . . 137 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ................ Job E x p e r i e n c e .......................... Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ....................... S a l a r y .................................... Summary.................................... 137 140 142 145 152 152 152 Airline Responses .......................... Airline Responses— Managerial ............. 156 157 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ................ Job E x p e r i e n c e .......................... Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ....................... S a l a r y .................................... Summary.................................... vii 157 157 159 161 161 15 3 153 Chapter Page Airline Responses— Nonmanagerial . . . . 164 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ............... Job E x p e r i e n c e ......................... Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ...................... S a l a r y .................................. Summary.................................. Tour Operator Responses .................. Tour Operator Responses— Managerial . . . 174 174 Incidence and Nature of Responses . . . Educational Preferences ............... Job E x p e r i e n c e ......................... Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ...................... S a l a r y .................................. Summary.................................. Tour Operator Responses— Nonmanagerial . . . 175 175 176 177 177 178 178 178 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ............... Job E x p e r i e n c e ......................... Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ...................... S a l a r y .................................. Summary.................................. Tour Operator Responses— Clerical 165 165 166 170 170 173 173 . 179 179 182 183 184 184 185 186 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ............... Job E x p e r i e n c e ......................... Employee Skills and Attributes . . . . Job O p p o r t u n i t i e s ...................... S a l a r y .................................. Summary.................................. 186 186 187 189 189 190 190 Marketing Organizations ................ Marketing Organizations' Responses— Managerial............................... 191 Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ............... Job E x p e r i e n c e ......................... viii 191 192 192 193 Chapter Page Employee Skills or Attributes . . . . Job Opportunities...................... Salary.................................. S u m m a r y ............................... Marketing Organizations— Nonmanagerial. 196 197 197 197 . Incidence and Nature of Problems . . . Educational Preferences ............... Job E x p e r i e n c e ......................... Skills and Attributes................... Job Opportunities ............ Salary.................................. Summary ............ V. FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 198 199 199 200 200 201 201 201 . 203 Introduction ............................ Findings.................................. Conclusions............................... Recommendations for Further Research . . 203 204 210 213 APPENDICES APPENDIX A. B. LIST OF FUNCTIONS PERFORMED BY INDEPENDENT TOUR WHOLESALERS......................... LISTING OF JOBS CLASSIFIED AS R.I.C. . . 215 . 219 C. FINAL QUESTIONNAIRE......................... 220 D. COVER LETTER FOR FIRST MAILING AND FOLLOW-UP L E T T E R ......................... 225 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................ 227 LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Page Number of tourism-related programs by area of concentration ............................. 34 Departments in which a tourism graduate would be u s e d ...................................... 46 Physical demands, working conditions and training time forcertain positions. . . . 53 Definition of levels 3 and 4 of general edu­ cational development......................... 55 Reasons why vacation/pleasure travel clients relied more heavily on agents for advice on destinations (Base: The 36 percent of agents who reported heavier reliance by vacation/pleasure travel clients in 19757 6 ) ......................................... 63 Reasons why business traveler clients relied more heavily on agents for guidance in choosing carriers and hotels (Base: The 16 percent of agents who reported heavier reliance by business travelers in 1975-76) 66 . Average number of independent tour whole­ saler e m p l o y e e s ............................ 3.1 Study sample population 4.1 Profile of the number of businesses or organizations returning questionnaires by type of business or organization................ 115 4.2 Comparison of the annual sales volume of the population of retail travel agents and retail travel agent respondents ............. 4.3 ...................... 75 104 116 Comparison of membership in the American Society of Travel Agents of the population of retail travel agents and retail travel agent r e s p o n d e n t s .............................118 x Table 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 Page Comparison of the incidence of airline appointments of the population of retail travel agents and retail travel agent respondents .............................. 118 Sex distribution, by job title, of responses for travel agency managerial positions . . 119 Rank order of the nature of the problems in finding qualified employees for travel agency managerial positions (N-24) . . . 120 Rank order of educational preferences for new travel agency managerial employees Population A •o • X •A • Membership Number Respondents Percentage Number Percentage Yes 155 41 11 38 No 222 59 18 62 TABLE 4.4.— Comparison of the incidence of airline appoint* ments of the population of retail travel agents and retail travel agent respondents Airline Appointments Population Respondents Number Percentage Number Percentage Yes 235 62 16 55 No 142 38 13 45 119 employees. The managerial job titles analyzed repre­ sented thirty-eight employees. Twenty-seven of the thirty-eight employees were female. The most prevalent job title was office manager, especially among females. Other job titles listed were office supervisor, assistant manager, general manager, president and district sales manager. TABLE 4.5.— Sex distribution, by job title, of responsesa for travel agency managerial positions Number of Employees Job Title Pull -time Male Office Manager General Manager President District Sales Manager Assistant Manager Office Supervisor Total Female Part -time Male Total Female 4 2 2 2 0 0 19 2 2 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 24 4 4 2 1 3 11 27 0 0 38 = 24 indicating the number of managerial responses by those in the agencies replying to the survey. Incidence and Nature of Problems The respondents were asked whether or not they had problems finding qualified employees for managerial positions. If so, respondents were requested to indicate the nature and importance of these problems. mation is contained in detail in Table 4.6. This infor­ 120 TABLE 4.6.— Rank order of the nature of the problems in finding qualified employees for travel agency managerial positions (N=24) Number of Times Listed -----------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 #2 #3 Nature of the Problem Lack of experience Quality of education Lack of communication skills Unable to pay high wages Unqualified personnel Lack of geographic back­ ground Lack of travel knowledge Lack of mathematical skills Lack of proper attitude 6 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 7 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 Total 0 2 0 2 1 0 0 2 4 2 0 2 3 2 1 1 1 1 Eleven of the responses indicated problems finding qualified employees for managerial positions while eleven indicated no problems. Two people did not respond to this question. When probed as to the nature of their problems in finding qualified employeesr a variety of answers was given. The major problem was a general lack of experience (seven responses). Additionally, specific mention was made of a lack of travel knowledge (three responses), geographic background (two responses ) skills , communication (two responses) and mathematical skills (one response). Two replies mentioned unqualified personnel without specifying further details. Four respondents cited their inability to pay high wages as a problem in 121 finding qualified employees while the lack of a proper attitude and the quality of education were both mentioned once. Educational Preferences Respondents were asked to rank their educational level preferences for new managerial employees together with the rank order preferences of academic subjects they felt employees should have studied. The responses are detailed in Tables 4.7 and 4.8. TABLE 4.7.— Rank order of educational preferences for new travel agency managerial employees (N=24) Number of Times Listed Total a Level of Education Less than a high school diploma High school diploma Two-year degree Vocational school Four-year degree Ranked #1 Ranked #2 0 4 4 5 11 0 2 13 2 1 Ranked #3 0 4 2 6 3 Number 0 10 19 13 15 % 0 42 79 54 62 Each choice could have been listed a maximum of twenty-four times. The total represents the actual number of times each item was listed and the percentage listing, using twenty-four as a base. Forty-six percent of the responses indicated a preference for new managerial employees to have a fouryear degree. Five people listed a vocational school qualification as their first preference, while a two-year degree or a high school diploma was each mentioned four TABLE 4.8.— Rank order of academic subjects travel agency managerial employees should have studied (N=23) Number of Times Listed Total3 Academic Subject Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 Number Percentage 12 2 5 2 1 22 96 Geography 3 2 5 2 2 14 61 Mathematics 0 6 4 3 1 14 61 Marketing 4 5 0 2 2 13 57 Accounting 2 3 3 2 3 13 57 Business Writing 0 3 1 6 0 10 43 Public Speaking 0 0 4 2 4 10 43 Foreign Languages 0 0 0 2 3 5 22 Economics 0 1 1 1 1 4 17 Computer Operations 0 0 0 1 2 3 13 Office Management 2 0 0 0 0 2 9 History 0 1 0 0 1 2 9 Sociology 0 0 0 0 2 2 9 Personal Selling ^ a c h choice could have been listed twenty-three times. The total represents the actual number of times each item was listed and the percentage listing, using twenty-three as a base. 123 times (Table 4.7). Because of the large number who listed a two-year degree as their second preference, this cate­ gory was ranked either first, seconr or third by nineteen of twenty-four people (79 percent). A four-year degree was mentioned by fifteen people (62.5 percent), a vocational school qualification by thirteen respondents (54 percent) and a high school diploma by ten (42 percent). A high school diploma was the minimum preferred level of education. No alternatives were added to the questionnaire list. Personal selling was the most important academic subject for managerial employees (Table 4.8). This choice was ranked first in importance in 50 percent of the responses and was ranked either first through fifth on twenty-two out of twenty-three questionnaires (96 percent). Over 50 percent of the responses listed mathematics (61 per­ cent) , geography (61 percent), marketing (57 percent) and accounting (57 percent) in the top five choices. Office management was the only category added to the list of items on the questionnaire. Job Experience Respondents were asked whether prior job exper­ ience was required, desired but not required or not desired. If prior experience were either required or desired, respondents were requested to indicate the number of years of prior experience preferred. All respondents were then asked to indicate a ranking of preferred 124 previous jobs for employees in managerial positions. The extent of hiring internally or externally was examined together with the incidence of jobs previously held by employees when promoted internally or hired externally. This information is contained in Tables 4.9 through 4.13. Fourteen out of twenty-three responses (61 percent) indicated a requirement for prior job experience for mana­ gerial positions. twenty-three) Thirty-five percent (eight out of indicated that prior experience was desirable but not required while one response indicated that prior experience was not desirable. Responses which indicated that job experience was either required or desired showed a preference for five years of experience (Table 4.9). This option was shown on eight out of twenty-one responses. TABLE 4.9.— Frequency listing of number of years of prior job experience required or desired of travel agency mana­ gerial employees (N=21) Number of years exper­ iences 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Frequency 2 2 4 2 8 1 0 1 0 1 10+ 0 Travel consultant was the most important previously held job for a managerial employee. Fifteen out of twenty- four responses (63 percent) showed this choice. The positions of travel agency manager, travel agency assis­ tant manager and travel in general each received two 125 responses as the most important previous job. Table 4.10 contains a complete listing of all the jobs listed. Most responses showed a preference to hire all managerial employees by promoting from within (Table 4.11). Fifty-five percent (twelve out of twenty-two) indicated this choice. Only two out of twenty-two responses showed employees to be hired entirely from outside the organi­ zation. Those managerial employees promoted from within had held a variety of positions. travel consultant. The predominant job was Table 4.12 contains a complete listing of the types of jobs previously held by present managerial employees. When managerial positions were filled from outside, the predominant position previously held was travel agency manager. Table 4.13 contains the findings from this question. Employee Skills or Attributes Respondents indicated the skills or attributes considered important for a travel agency managerial position. This information is detailed in Tables 4.14 through 4.16. There was little agreement concerning the skills or attributes most important for a travel agency managerial position. The responses were divided after collection into areas which reflected personal characteristics, general skills gained from education and experience and 126 TABLE 4.10.— Rank order of jobs a travel agency managerial employee should previously have held to be successful in that position (N»18) Number of Times Listed Total Job Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Travel consultant 7 3 0 10 Travel consultantinternational 2 2 0 4 Travel consultant-Domestic 0 0 1 1 Travel agency manager 2 0 0 2 Travel agency assistant manager 2 0 0 2 Travel representative 1 1 0 2 Travel 2 0 0 2 Travel manager 0 1 0 1 Airline reservationist 1 0 0 1 Airline marketing represen­ tative 1 0 0 1 Airline employee 0 1 0 1 Tour operations 0 1 0 1 Tour escort 0 0 1 1 Languages 0 1 0 1 Office work 0 1 0 1 Small business manager 0 1 0 1 Business marketing representative 0 1 0 1 Public contact 0 1 0 1 Sales nontravel 0 0 1 1 Managerial-office 0 0 1 1 x 127 TABLE 4.11.— Extent to which travel agency managerial employees are hired from within the company versus hired from outside the company (N*22) All hired from within Frequency 1 23 4 5 12 2 6 0 2 All hired from outside TABLE 4.12.— Rank order of jobs from which travel agency managerial employees are promoted, in order of frequency, when promoted from within the company (N=17) Number of Times Listed Tot< Job Title Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Travel consultant 6 0 0 6 International agent 1 0 0 1 Domestic agent 0 1 1 2 Reservations agent 1 0 0 1 Assistant manager 1 1 0 2 Branch manager 1 0 0 1 General manager 1 0 0 1 Manager 0 1 0 1 Sales manager 1 0 0 1 Sales 1 0 0 1 Unit supervisor 1 0 0 1 Administration 0 1 0 1 Group coordinator 1 0 0 1 Travel representative 1 0 0 1 Underwriting 1 0 2 3 Cashiers 0 1 0 1 128 skills specific to the travel industry. There were forty- eight total responses which fell into the first category, forty-three in the second and twelve in the third area. TABLE 4.13.— Rank order of jobs from which travel agency managerial employees are promoted, in order of frequency, when hired from outside the company (N=7) Number of Times Listed Total Job Ranked #1 Travel agency manager Travel agency general manager Travel agency-international manager Travel industry sales Assistant manager Manager Airline sales manager Tour operator sales manager Insurance company Sales clerk Ranked #2 Ranked #3 2 1 0 3 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 In the first category, the ability to get along with others was listed eleven times. Personality was mentioned five times while communication and appearance were each listed four times. Leadership and the ability to retain and teach information were the only other skills to be listed more than once. Both were mentioned twice. A complete listing of all skills listed is contained in Table 4.14. In the area of education and experience skills and attributes, accounting was mentioned eight times; TABLE 4.14.— Listing of personal factor skills and attributes a travel agency mana­ gerial employee should have (N=24) Number of Times Listed Skill or Attribute Total Ranked #1 Get along with others Communications Personality Leadership Get most out of employees Enthusiasm Working with people Dependable Accuracy Sense of direction Appearance Phone contact Conscientiousness Individual incentive Honesty Patience Sense of humor Retain and teach information Common sense Handle multiple tasks Respect of employees Work under stress Work without supervision 2 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #2 2 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #3 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #4 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 Ranked #5 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 11 4 1 1 1 1 1 1 4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 130 management ability, marketing and sales were each listed five times. The skills listed twice were organization, administrative, public relations, typing, geography and math. These and the other responses mentioned only once are listed in Table 4.15. The third area consisted of skills and attributes specific to the travel industry. The only two responses to receive more than one mention were travel knowledge and departmental knowledge. Both were listed twice. These and the remaining skills listed only once are shown in Table 4.16. Job Opportunities Respondents were asked to indicate the number of additional and replacement managerial employees hired each year. Of the twenty-nine businesses that responded, fourteen businesses hired, on the average, a total of twenty-seven managerial employees each year. The remain­ ing fifteen businesses did not, on the average, hire new managerial employees. Of the twenty-seven employees hired, nineteen were hired for replacement purposes while eight were for additional positions. Salary The starting salary and salary after two years were given for travel agency managerial employees. information is contained in Tables 4.17 and 4.18. This The TABLE 4.15.— Listing of education and experience skills and attributes a travel agency managerial employee should have (N=24) Skill or Attribute Management ability Decision making Organization Administration Handle problems Initiative Motivate Marketing Sales Advertising Public relations Accounting Record keeping Office skills Typing Geography History Math Number of Times Listed ---------------------------------------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 3 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 1 0 1 0 0 Total 5 1 2 2 1 1 5 6 1 2 8 1 1 2 2 1 2 TABLE 4.16.— Listing of travel industry specific skills and attributes a travel agency managerial employee should have (N=24) Number of Times Listed Skill or Attribute Total Ranked #1 Travel knowledge 3 Fare construction 1 Knowledge of manuals Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 ■ 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 Departmental knowledge 0 1 0 1 1 3 Travel 0 0 1 0 0 1 Detail work 0 0 0 1 0 1 Reporting procedures 0 0 0 0 1 1 Group promotion 0 0 0 0 1 1 / TABLE 4.17.— Frequency distribution of starting salaries for full-time travel agency managerial employees (N=22) Average weekly pay (S) 100 110 1 125 150 2 3 160 175 2 1 180 1 200 1 220 1 225 1 245 1 1 4 Cumulative relative frequency 1 _ 2 _ 4 _ 7 _ 9 1 0 U 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 ^ 1 9 17 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 1 17 1 375 700 1 2 0 2 1 2 2 22 22 22 133 Frequency 310 345 TABLE 4.18.— Frequency distribution of salaries after two years for full-time travel agency managerial employees (N=22) Average weekly pay ($) 135 150 2 160 1 175 1 180 190 1 Frequency 1 1 Cumulative relative frequency 1 3 4 5 6 77 72 22 27 22 JL 22 200 210 225 250 275 300 1 2 5 1 1 iZ 18 1 _! _i 22 22 ii 22 22 22 77 375 1 i£ 22 400 500 1 1 20 21 77 22 775 1 22 77 135 mean starting salary for full-time managerial personnel was $191 per week. The mode was $225 per week with a range from $100 per week to $700 per week. A complete listing is contained in Table 4.17. After two years in a full-time managerial position, the mean salary was $211 per week. The mode was $250 per week with a range from $135 per week to $775 per week. Table 4.18 contains the complete responses. Summary The favored job title for travel agency managerial personnel was office manager. There are approximately 2 1/2 times as many female managers than male managers. As many responses indicated problems finding qualified employees as indicated no problems. By far, the most prevalent problem in finding qualified employees was a lack of experience. More responses noted a preference for a two-year degree than any other educational qualification in their first three educational choices. However, over twice as many first preferences were given to a four-year degree compared with any other educational level. A vocational school education was preferred over a high school diploma, which was the minimum qualification listed by respondents. Personal selling was considered the most important academic subject studied by personnel. 136 Over 60 percent of the responses showed a require­ ment of prior job experience, while all but one either required or desired it. Most responses favored five years of prior job experience. By far, most responses indicated that to be suc­ cessful a manager's previous job should have been as a travel consultant. This was also the job most managers were hired from when hired from within the agency. When hired from outside the company, there was a preference for hiring from the position of travel agency manager. But, the vast majority of businesses hired from within the company. A great variety of responses was given to the question concerning the skills or attributes of a manager. Perhaps the major finding was that there was little agree­ ment in determining the important factors. Most responses concerned the ability to get along with others; this was mentioned more than twice as often as any other factor. Accounting was the second factor most often mentioned. There was a wide distribution of starting salaries from $100 to $700 per week. The salaries after two years were equally diverse, ranging from $135 to a high of $775 per week. Almost three-fourths of the responses indicated that new managers are hired each year, and over two-thirds of those are for replacement purposes. 137 Travel Agency Responses— Nonmanagerlal * The thirty-five responses 164 nonmanagerlal employees. Indicated a total of Elghty-elght percent of these employees were female while 90 percent of the total was classified as full-time employees. The most popular job title was travel consultant, but an employee may be called domestic travel or travel agent. A breakdown of job titles by sex and full- or part-time status is shown in Table 4.19. Incidence and Nature of Problems The respondents were asked whether or not they had problems finding qualified employees. If so, respon­ dents were requested to indicate the nature and importance of these problems. This information is contained in Table 4.20. Twenty-six of the responses (76 percent) indicated problems in finding qualified employees for nonmanagerlal positions. Lack of experience was the major problem and was mentioned fourteen times (Table 4.20). listed seven times. The pay scale was Seven responses indicated that salary expectations were high compared to what could be paid. Four responses indicated that a lack of geography was a problem. *Every question was not answered by every person responding to the questionnaire. TABLE 4.19.— Sex distribution, by job title, of responses* for travel agency non managerial employees (N=35) Number of Employees Job Title Full-•time Male Part- time Female Male Total Female Sales counselor 1 1 0 1 3 Domestic travel 1 23 1 4 29 Travel agent 1 16 0 0 17 Travel representative 1 5 0 0 6 10 60 0 3 73 Reservations agent 0 5 0 3 8 Ticket agent 0 2 0 0 2 Sales 1 2 2 1 6 Travel clerk 0 1 0 0 1 Reservations advisor 0 7 0 0 7 Outside sales 2 1 0 1 4 International sales agent 0 7 0 0 7 17 130 3 13 163 Travel consultant Total y *N = 35 indicating the number of nonmanagerial responses by those in the agencies replying to the survey. 139 TABLE 4.20.— Rank order of the nature of the problems in finding qualified employees for travel agency nonmanagerial positions (N=25) Nature of the Problem Number of Times Listed -----------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 #2 #3 Total 12 2 0 14 Lack of ticketing exper­ ience 1 0 1 2 High salary expectations 4 1 2 7 Desire to work 1 0 0 1 Knowledge of travel busi­ ness 1 2 0 3 Unable to complete appli­ cation 1 0 0 1 Lack of interest 1 2 0 3 How to find information 1 0 0 1 Spelling 1 2 0 3 Reading 1 0 0 3 Geography 1 2 1 4 Common sense 0 1 1 2 Sales ability 0 3 0 3 Typing 0 1 0 1 Patience with clients 0 1 0 1 Math 0 1 1 2 Maturity 0 0 1 1 Initiative 0 0 1 1 Basic office skills 0 0 1 1 Ability to work with stress 0 0 2 2 Downtown location 0 0 1 1 Appearance 0 0 1 1 Lack of experience 140 Educational Preferences Respondents were asked to rank their educational level preferences for new nonmanagerlal employees together with the rank order preferences of academic subjects they felt employees should have studied. The responses are detailed in Tables 4.21 and 4.22. TABLE 4.21.— Rank order of educational preferences for new travel agency nonmanagerial employees (1^34) Number of Times Listed Total a Level of Education Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Number % 0 6 10 6 12 0 5 18 4 4 2 14 2 9 4 2 25 30 19 20 6 71 86 54 57 Less than a high school diploma High school diploma Two-year degree Vocational school Four-year degree Each choice could have been listed a maximum of thirty-five times. The total represents the actual number of times each item was listed and the percentage listing, using thirty-five as a base. Eighty-six percent of all responses listed a twoyear degree as either the first, second or third edu­ cational level preference (Table 4.21). Seventy-one per­ cent mentioned high school diploma while 57 percent indi­ cated a four-year degree was the choice. Two responses indicated a choice of less than a high school diploma in the top three preferences. More responses showed a four-year degree as their primary choice. Twelve TABLE 4.22.— Rank order of academic subjects travel agency nonmanagerial employees should have studied (N=34) Number of Times Listed Total* Academic Subject Ranked Ranked Ranked Ranked Ranked Number Peroentage Personal selling 2 1 4 1 2 33 97 Geography 3 15 5 5 1 29 85 Hath 3 7 13 1 27 79 Public speaking 1 4 1 3 4 5 15 44 Marketing 1 2 2 5 3 13 38 Business writing 0 3 4 3 3 13 38 Accounting 0 1 3 3 6 Sociology 0 0 0 2 5 13 7 38 21 Computer operations 1 0 1 3 1 6 18 History 0 0 1 3 0 4 12 Foreign languages 0 1 0 0 3 4 12 Economics 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 ^ a c h choice could have been listed thirty-four times. The total represents the actual number of times each item was listed and the percentage listing, using thirty-four as a base. 142 responses indicated this item as the first preference compared to ten listings of two-year degree as a first preference. Personal selling was the most important academic subject for counseling employees (Table 4.22). This item was ranked first in importance by twenty-five out of thirty-four of the respondents and was listed in the top five preferences by thirty-three out of thirty-five people who replied. Geography was mentioned twenty-nine times, mathematics was listed twenty-seven times, public speaking fifteen times while marketing, business writing and accounting were each entered thirteen times. Job Experience Respondents were asked to indicate whether prior job experience was required, desired but not required or not desired. If prior experience was either required or desired, respondents indicated the number of years of prior experience preferred. Sixty-six percent of the thirty-five responses indicated a preference for but not a requirement of prior experience while 31 percent indicated prior job experience was required of counseling employees. One reply indicated that prior job experience was not desirable. Of the respondents who either required or desired prior job experience, most preferred two years of exper­ ience (Table 4.23). This choice was indicated by seventeen 143 out of thirty-four respondents. A further 9 percent preferred one year of experience. TABLE 4.23.— Frequency listing of number of years of prior experience required or desired of travel agency nonmanagerial employees (N=34) Number of years exper­ ience 1 Frequency 9 2 17 3 3 4 2 5 1 6 0 7 0 8 1 9 10 10+ 0 1 Respondents were asked to indicate a ranking of preferred previous jobs for, in this case, employees in nonmanagerial positions. Seventeen of the respondents felt that to be suc­ cessful a travel consultant was the most important job that a counseling employee should previously have held (Table 4.24). Selling was listed as most important by eleven of the respondents. No other job was listed more than four times when including the total of their top three rankings. The extent of hiring internally or externally was examined, and the incidence of jobs from which present employees had been either promoted from inter­ nally or hired from externally was determined. Forty-five percent of the responses indicated that nonmanagerial employees were hired solely from out­ side the company while 29 percent were hired entirely 0 144 TABLE 4.24.— Rank order of jobs a travel agency nonmanagerial employee should previously have held to be succesful in that position (N=»33) Number of Times Listed Job Total Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 0 17 0 1 1 1 11 1 0 1 2 Inside selling 1 0 0 1 Public contact 1 2 0 3 Business company 2 0 0 2 Office skills 1 0 0 1 Airline 2 1 1 4 Airline ticketing 0 1 2 3 Airline receptionist 0 2 0 3 Receptionist 0 0 2 2 Reservationist 0 3 0 3 Personal travel 0 1 0 1 Telephone work 0 1 0 1 Greeting service 0 1 0 1 Accountant 0 1 1 Clerical 0 1 0 1 Math oriented 0 1 0 1 Secretarial 0 2 2 Hotel 0 0 1 1 Car rental 0 0 1 1 Tour operator employee 0 0 1 1 Computer operator 0 0 1 1 16 1 Travel consultant trainee 0 1 Selling 9 Outside selling Travel consultant • 145 from within (Table 4.25). The remainder of the responses was rather equally spread between these extremes. TABLE 4.25.— Extent to which travel agency nonmanagerial employees are hired from within the company versus hired from outside the company (N=>33) All hired from within Frequency 1 2 10 3 3 4 5 3 2 15 All hired from outside When promoted from within the company, most coun­ seling employees were domestic agents (Table 4.26). This was mentioned eight times, and secretarial positions were listed three times. The other positions mentioned are listed in Table 4.26. Travel consultant was the job from which most counseling employees were promoted when hired from out­ side the company (Table 4.27). teen times. This job was listed four­ Next in frequency was the job of airline reservationist which was listed six times. Employee Skills or Attributes Respondents were asked to indicate the skills or attributes important for a person in a travel agency non­ managerial position. The responses are detailed in Tables 4.28 through 4.30. The important employee skills and attributes were divided into categories reflecting personal characteristics (eighty-two responses), general skills gained from 146 TABLE 4.26.— Listing of jobs from which travel agency non­ manager ial employees are promoted, in order of frequency, when promoted from within the company (N—17 > Number of Times Listed Total Job Title Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Domestic agent 8 0 0 8 Part-time agent 1 0 0 1 Travel clerk 1 0 0 1 File clerk 2 0 0 2 Trainee 1 0 0 1 General manager 1 1 0 2 Manager 1 0 0 1 Secretarial 1 1 1 3 Switchboard 1 0 1 2 General office 0 1 0 1 Assistant international reservations 0 1 0 1 Underwr iting 0 1 0 1 Delivery person 0 1 0 1 147 TABLE 4.27.— Listing of jobs from which travel agency nonmanagerial employees are promoted, in order of frequency, when hired from outside the company (N«17) Number of Times Listed Total Job Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 12 2 0 14 Airline reservationist 2 4 0 6 Reservationist 0 1 0 1 Reservationist— hotel 0 1 0 1 Reservationist— train 0 0 1 1 Secretary 2 0 0 Butcher 1 0 0 1 Retail sales 0 1 0 1 Inside sales 0 1 0 1 Outside sales 0 0 1 1 Travel agency manager 0 1 0 1 Bus charter agent 0 1 0 1 Mortgage 0 1 0 1 Travel consultant 148 education and experience (fifty-five responses) and skills specific to the Industry (fifteen responses). Among personal factors, while the ability to com­ municate was mentioned nine times, it was ranked first in importance only once (Table 4.28). The ability to work cheerfully with the public was listed seven times but was ranked first six of those seven times. Six responses indicated that employees should have a pleasant person­ ality and should show attention to detail. Five others indicated that the ability to work under stress was important while another four listed the importance of public contact. Respondents felt that the most important education and experience skills and attributes were geography, mathematics and salesmanship (Table 4.29). While sales­ manship was listed thirteen times, one less than the other two, it was ranked first in importance nine times compared to once each for geography and mathematics. Typing was listed four times and spelling twice. In the area of travel industry specific skills and attributes, the importance of technical knowledge was mentioned nine times (Table 4.30). All other factors were listed only once. It should be stressed that respondents listed the skills and attributes they considered important. list was then broken into the above categories. This TABLE 4.28.— Rank order of personal factor skills and attributes a travel agency nonmanagerial employee should have (N=35) Number of Times Listed Skill or Attribute Total Ranked #1 Work cheerfully with public Pleasant personality Public contact Accuracy under stress Good handwriting Communicate Attention to detail Appearance Patience Leadership Retain information Enthusiasm Empathy Well organized Telephone skills Courtesy Common sense Aggressive Accept change Work under stress Continue learning Self-starter Conscientious Work alone Handle multiple tasks Dependable with money Listen carefully Organized 6 4 4 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #2 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 2 1 2 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #3 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 5 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #4 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 Ranked #5 0 2 0 0 1 1 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 7 6 4 2 2 9 6 7 3 2 1 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 5 1 3 1 2 1 1 1 2 TABLE 4.29.— Rank order of education and experience skills and attributes a travel agency nonmanagerial employee should have (N=35) Number of Times Listed Skill or Attribute Total Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 Salesmanship 9 3 0 0 1 13 Typing 2 0 0 4 2 8 Geography 1 2 5 4 2 14 Math 1 2 3 6 2 14 Adding machine 0 1 0 0 0 1 Office skills 0 0 0 1 0 1 Accounting 0 0 0 1 0 1 Spelling 0 0 0 1 1 2 Foreign languages 0 0 0 0 1 1 TABLE 4.30.— Rank order of travel industry specific skills and attributes a travel agency nonmanagerial employee should have (N=35) ~ . 1.. ■ ------ - II ■ Number of Times Listed Skill or Attribute Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 Technical knowledge 5 0 2 0 2 9 Knowledge of travel agency business 0 1 0 0 0 1 Read airline schedules and tariffs 0 1 0 0 0 1 Airline experience 0 0 1 0 0 1 Travel experience 0 0 1 0 0 1 Map reading 0 0 1 0 0 1 Ticketing 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 ~ 152 Job Opportunities Respondents were asked to Indicate the number of additional and replacement nonmanagerial employees hired each year. Only six out of twenty-nine agencies which responded did not, on the average, hire replacement or additional employees. The remaining twenty-three busi­ nesses hired, on the average, 45 1/4 employees per year, an average of almost two employees per business. Approxi­ mately 29 percent of these new employees were for addi­ tional positions; the remainder were for replacing employees who had left or had been fired. Salary The starting salary and salary after two years were requested for travel agency nonmanagerial employees. This information is detailed in Tables 4.31 and 4.32. After two years as a full-time counselor, the mean salary was $113 per week. The mode was $165 per week with a range from $125 per week to $310 per week. Table 4.32 contains the complete responses. Summary Almost 90 percent of travel agency nonmanagerial employees were full-time females. title was travel consultant. The most favored job There were an average of almost six employees per agency. TABLE 4.31.— Frequency distribution of starting salaries for full-time travel agency nonmanagerial employees (N=26) Average weekly pay ($) Frequency Cumulative relative frequency 100 120 125 130 135 150 160 175 215 1 4 3 9 1 1 2 1 3 1 1 26 5 26 8 26 17 26 18 26 19 26 21 26 22 26 25 26 26 26T 95 TABLE 4.32.— Frequency distribution of salaries after two years for full-time travel agency nonmanagerial employees (N=27) Average weekly pay ($) Frequency Cumulative relative frequency 125 130 135 140 150 160 165 170 175 185 200 225 255 310 1 2 2 1 2 5 2 2 3 2 1 2 1 1 1 27 3 27 5 27 6 27 8 27 /ll 15 27 17 27 20 27 22 27 23 27 25 27 26 17 27 27 27 155 Over three-fourths of the responses indicated trouble finding qualified employees. As before, the lack of experience was the most common problem followed by the high salary expectation of employees. While a four-year degree was ranked first in importance more often than any other educational qualifi­ cation# a two-year degree was mentioned most often when the first, second and third preferences were totalled. A high school diploma was ranked second. Two responses indicated for their third choice that employees should have less than a high school diploma. By far, personal selling was regarded as the most important academic subject for employees. This was fol­ lowed in order of importance by geography, mathematics and public speaking. Two-thirds of the responses indicated a preference for prior job experience while a further 31 percent indi­ cated a requirement for such experience. Most responses listed a preference for two years of prior experience. Most felt that to be successful employees should pre­ viously have been a travel consultant. indicated a selling background. Secondly, they A variety of other jobs was also listed. Most responses indicated that employees were hired either exclusively from outside the company or 156 promoted exclusively from within. Slightly more responses fell into the former category. When employees were promoted from within, they were mainly promoted from the position of domestic agent. When hired from outside the company, they came from the position of travel consultant. This latter was mentioned more than twice as often as the second choice of airline reservationist. The skills or attributes considered most impor­ tant, in order of importance, were geography, mathematics, salesmanship, technical knowledge, ability to communicate, appearance and ability to work cheerfully with the public. Over three-fourths of the businesses which responded hired, on the average, approximately two employees each year. More than two-thirds of these employees were hired for replacement positions. The remainder were for additional positions. On the average, full-time nonmanagerial employees were paid $132.50 per week to start and $173 per week after two years in that position. Airline Responses Responses were received from ten airlines with sales offices in Michigan. response rate. received. This represented a 32 percent Eighteen individual questionnaires were Job titles were divided into managerial 157 positions or nonmanagerial positions. There were eight managerial responses and ten nonmanagerial responses. Airline Responses— Managerial Of the ten managerial personnel listed in the eight responses, nine were men and one was a woman. were full-time employees. All The managers were either called district sales manager (seven), sales manager (two) or regional sales manager (one). Incidence and Nature of Problems Respondents were asked whether or not they had problems finding qualified employees. If so, they were requested to indicate the nature and importance of these problems. Only one out of eight respondents indicated a problem in finding qualified managers. This problem was attributed to a lack of industry experience followed by a lack of in-depth marketing procedures and a general lack of knowledge. Educational Preferences Respondents were asked to rank their educational level preferences for new employees together with the rank order preferences of academic subjects they felt employees should have studied. The responses are detailed in Tables 4.33 and 4.34. A four-year degree was the most favored edu­ cational qualification for new airline sales managers. 158 TABLE 4.33.— Rank order of educational preferences for new airline managerial personnel (N=7) Number of Times Listed ------------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 -• #2 #3 Level of Education Less than a high school diploma 0 High school diploma 1 Two-year degree 1 Vocational school 0 Four-year degree 5 0 1 0 4 5 Total 0 6 0 6 0 1 1 0 1 6 TABLE 4.34.— Rank order of academic subjects airline mana­ gerial personnel should have studied (N=7) Academic Subject Number of Responses Total Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 Personal selling 5 1 1 0 0 7 Marketing 2 5 0 0 0 7 Public speaking 0 1 5 1 0 7 Business writing 0 0 0 3 1 4 Economics 0 0 1 1 2 4 Geography 0 0 0 1 2 3 Accounting 0 0 0 1 1 2 159 This category was ranked most important by five respon­ dents (Table 4.33). Five respondents also felt that a two-year degree was the second most desired educational qualification. Four respondents listed a high school diploma as the third most desired educational qualifi­ cation. Personal selling, marketing and public speaking were each mentioned seven times when respondents indicated their top five academic subjects for managerial personnel (Table 4.34). Business writing and economics were each mentioned four times; geography was listed three times while accounting was listed twice. The academic subjects listed on the questionnaire but not mentioned by the respondents were mathematics, computer operations, foreign languages, history and sociology. Job Experience Respondents were asked to indicate whether prior job experience was required, desired but not required or not desired. If prior experience were either required or desired, respondents indicated the number of years of prior experience preferred. Six out of seven responses indicated a requirement of prior job experience. The remaining response showed a desire for prior job experience but did not require it. 160 Three responses indicated a preference for five years of experience, two for three years while one each preferred two years and four years of prior experience. Respondents indicated a ranking of preferred previous jobs for employees in managerial positions. Six responses noted that the most important prior job for airline managers was sales representative. One response each listed airline selling and a home office staff job as being most important. When asked their opinion con­ cerning the second most important job, seven different responses were given. They were reservations, ticketing, travel industry selling, marketing, resident representstive, cargo sales representative and outside sales. One response was given for the third most important job— general selling. The extent of internal or external hiring was examined, and the incidence of jobs from which present employees had been promoted from internally or hired from externally was examined. Six out of seven responses indicated a preference for hiring all managers from within the company. The remaining response showed an equal tendency to hire from within or from outside the company. When hired from within the company, the most prevalent previous position was sales representative. One response each indicated the most prevalent position 161 was supervisor and resident representative. The second most prevalent position was city manager (two responses), sales representative (one response) and any position if the individual had the proper attitude (one response). Third most prevalent position was staff representative and home office staff (one response each). When hired from outside the company, a sales position was preferred from a variety of other industries including clothes, book publishing and travel agency. Employee Skills or Attributes Respondents were asked to indicate the skills or attributes considered important for a person in a mana­ gerial position. The results are detailed in Table 4.35. In order of mention, those which received more than one response were sales (four), product knowledge (three), personality (two), marketing (two), communication skills (two), dependability (two), reasonable (two) and public speaking (two). Job Opportunities Respondents were asked to indicate the number of additional and replacement managerial employees hired each year. Only one business responding to the question­ naire hired additional employees. An average of two a year were hired— one for replacement purposes and one for an additional position. TABLE 4.35.— Rank order of skills and attributes airline managerial personnel should have (N=7) Number of Times Listed Tot; Skill or Attribute Ranked #1 Product knowledge Personality Marketing Communication skills Dependable Sales Management Persuasive Industry background Ticketing Public speaking Math Geography Flexible Company knowledge Accounting Creativeness Responsible Tariffs Office management Extra effort Future economic outlook 2 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #2 0 0 0 1 1 3 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #3 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 Ranked #4 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 4 2 2 2 4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 163 Salary The starting salary and salary after two years were requested for managerial employees. The mean start­ ing salary for managerial personnel was $327 per week with a range from $275 per week to $400 per week. After two years in the job, the average salary was $395 per week with a range from $325 per week to $535 per week. Summary Almost all managerial personnel were full-time males. Most were called district sales manager. Only one out of eight responses indicated problems finding qualified employees. Lack of experience and knowledge were cited as the problems involved. Most responses showed a four-year degree as an educational preference, with a two-year degree ranked second and a high school diploma preferred as a third choice. Personal selling followed by marketing and public speaking were the three most important academic subjects for managerial personnel. All but one response indicated a prior job exper­ ience requirement. The most important previous job was sales representative. Almost all responses indicated a preference for hiring managers exclusively from within the company from the position of sales representative. 164 There was no agreement concerning the important skills and attributes required of managers. Sales, product knowledge, personality, marketing, communication skills, dependability, reasonableness and public speaking were factors each mentioned more than once. Very few job openings occurred per year. Only one respondent hired employees. The average salary for starting employees was $327 per week and $395 per week two years later. Airline Responses— Nonmanagerial Of the forty-four sales employees listed in the ten responses, 64 percent were male and 36 percent were female (Table 4.36). All were full-time employees. The job titles ranged from sales representative (eighteen), passenger sales representative (seventeen) and passenger sales agent (four) to ticket agent (two), reservation sales agent (two) and sales secretary/assistant (one). TABLE 4.36.— Sex distribution, by job title, of respondents for airline nonmanagerial positions (N=10) Full -time Part -time Total Job Title Sales representative Passenger sales repre­ sentative Passenger sales agent Ticket agent Reservation sales agent Sales secretary/ assistant Female Male Female 14 4 0 0 18 13 0 0 1 4 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 4 2 2 0 1 0 0 1 Male 165 Incidence and Nature of Problems Respondents were asked whether or not they had problems finding qualified employees for nonmanagerial positions. If so, respondents were requested to indicate the nature and importance of these problems. Seven out of ten responses indicated no problems finding qualified employees. Of the three responses indicating problems, the major problem was lack of knowledge (one response), lack of airline experience (one response) and honesty (one response). The second most pressing problem was the lack of a self-starter (one response), the lack of job flexibility (one response) and the individual's work record (one response). A problem of tertiary importance was the individual's inability to accept responsibility (one response). Educational Preferences Respondents ranked their educational level preferences for new nonmanagerial employees together with the rank order preferences of academic subjects studied by employees. The responses are detailed in Tables 4.37 and 4.38. Sixty percent of the responses indicated a fouryear degree as the first preference for an educational qualification for a sales position. The same number of responses (six) was listed for a two-year degree as the second preferred qualification while five responses 166 indicated a tertiary preference for a high school diploma. When aggregating the responses, high school diploma was listed eight times, a two-year degree seven times, a four-year degree six times and a vocational school qualification two times. TABLE 4.37.— Rank order of educational preferences for airline nonmanagerial employees (N=*9) Number of Times Listed Total Level of Education Ranked #1 Less than a high school diploma High school diploma Two-year degree Vocational school Four-year degree 0 2 1 0 6 Ranked #2 0 1 6 0 0 Ranked #3 0 5 0 0 8 7 2 2 0 6 Business writing was mentioned as a desirable academic subject for sales employees in seven of the responses (Table 4.38). Marketing was listed by six. Personal selling and public speaking were listed five times each while geography and accounting were listed four times. History and foreign languages were the only topics listed on the questionnaire not to be chosen in the top five choices. Job Experience Respondents were asked whether prior job exper­ ience was required, desired but not required or not TABLE 4.38.— Rank order of academic subjects airline nonmanagerial employees should have studied (N-8) Academic Subject Number of Times Listed --------------------------------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked Ranked Ranked #3 #4 #5 #1 #2 1 1 Total Business writing 2 2 1 Marketing 2 2 2 Personal selling 3 1 1 Public speaking 0 0 2 2 1 Geography 1 1 0 2 0 4 Accounting 0 0 0 2 2 4 Math 1 2 0 0 0 3 Computer operations 0 0 1 Sociology 0 0 0 Economics 0 0 1 0 1 0 6 0 0 5 1 0 0 7 5 2 2 2 0 1 168 desired. If prior experience were required or desired, respondents indicated the number of years of prior experience preferred. Five out of ten responses indicated a prior job experience requirement while the remainder showed a desire for such experience but did not require it. Six responses indicated a preference for two years of experience, one each for three years and four years and two for five years of experience. All respondents were then asked to indicate a ranking of preferred previous jobs for employees in non­ managerial positions. The most favored prior job was airline reservationist. tance in three responses. This was ranked first in impor­ Totalling the first three preferences, the position of sales agent was chosen four times, airline reservations three times while airline sales and sales representative were each mentioned twice. The other jobs mentioned are listed in Table 4.39. The extent of promoting internally or hiring externally was examined together with the incidence of previous jobs employees had held before promotion. Four responses indicated that all of the non­ managerial employees were promoted from within the company. Another showed a tendency to hire from within while two indicated that employees were hired equally from inside and from outside the company. 169 TABLE 4.39.— Rank order of jobs an airline nonmanagerial employee should previously have held to be successful in that position (N=10) Number of Times Listed Total Job Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Airline reservations 3 0 0 3 Airline ticketing 1 0 0 1 Airline sales 2 0 0 2 Sales representative 2 0 0 2 Sales agent 1 2 1 4 Passenger service manager 1 0 0 Airline rating and routing 0 1 0 Travel agency 0 1 0 Passenger agency 0 1 0 Cargo agency 0 1 0 Public contact 0 1 0 Sales assistant 0 1 0 Travel-related position 0 0 1 170 When nonmanagerial employees were hired from within, they tended to be promoted from reservations (five responses). The other jobs mentioned are listed in Table 4.40. When sales personnel were hired from outside the company, they tended to come from other airlines. Three responses noted the position of airline ticket agent while there were two responses each for the positions of airline sales agent, airlines in general and travel agent. Employee Skills or Attributes Respondents indicated the skills or attributes considered important for a nonmanagerial position. The most important skill or attribute for nonmanagerial employees was knowledge of the product. tioned four times. This was men­ Sales ability and personality were listed three times. The remaining factors mentioned are listed in Table 4.41. Job Opportunities Respondents indicated the number of additional employees hired each year. The ten businesses that responded hired a total of two replacement employees in an average year. were hired. No employees for additional positions 171 TABLE 4.40.— Listing of jobs from which airline nonmana­ gerial employees are promoted, in order of frequency, when promoted from within the company (N=8) Job Number of Times Listed ----------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 #2 #3 Total Reservations 3 0 2 5 Passenger service manager 1 0 0 1 Passenger service agent 1 1 0 2 Inside sales representative 1 0 0 Telephone sales 1 0 0 Sales assistant 1 0 0 Group desk 0 1 0 Tour desk 0 0 1 Junior clerical 0 1 0 Airport traffic personnel 0 1 0 Reservations supervisor 0 0 1 TABLE 4.41.— Rank order of skills and attributes an airline nonmanagerial employee should have (N=10) Number of Times Listed Skill or Attribute Total Ranked #1 Product knowledge Get along with people Airline tariffs Communication Sales ability Marketing Assertiveness Persuasivene ss Business common sense Pleasant voice Appearance Tourism aptitude Math Creativeness Personality Typing Geography Character Attention to detail 3 2 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #2 1 0 0 1 2 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #3 / 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 1 1 0 0 Ranked #4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ranked #5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 4 2 2 2 3 1 2 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 3 2 2 1 1 173 Salary The starting salary and salary after two years was given for nonmanagerial employees. The average starting salary for full-time nonmanagerial employees was $275 per week. The range of salaries was from $175 per week to $350 per week. After two years in a full­ time sales position, the mean salary was $330 per week. The range was from $225 per week to $400 per week. Summary Almost two-thirds of nonmanagerial employees were male. All were full-time employees. Most were called sales representative or passenger sales representative. Only one-third of the responses noted problems in finding qualified nonmanagerial employees. Lack of knowledge and experience were the problems considered important. Most responses ranked a four-year degree as the first educational preference, a two-year degree as the second preference and a high school diploma as the third preference. The academic subjects considered most impor­ tant were, in order, business writing, marketing, personal selling and public speaking. No other subject was men­ tioned in more than half of the responses. Half of the responses indicated a prior job exper­ ience requirement while the other half desired it. Responses showed a preference for two to five years of 174 previous experience. It was felt that a job in airline sales or ticketing was the best prior experience. Indeed, most employees promoted from within or hired from outside the company came from reservations. Almost all non­ managerial employees were promoted exclusively from within the company. The skills and attributes considered most important were product knowledge, sales ability, a knowledge of air­ line tariffs and the ability to get along with people. Few nonmanagerial employees were hired. No additional staff was taken on. The average starting salary was $275 per week. After two years the average salary was $330 per week. Tour Operator Responses Responses were received from six Michigan tour operators. This represented a 32 percent response rate. Fourteen individual responses were received. Job titles were characterized as either managerial (two responses), nonmanagerial responses (eight responses) or clerical (four responses). Tour Operator Responses— Managerial The six businesses which responded indicated four managerial employees. full-time employees. All were titled manager and were Three of the positions were held by women; one was held by a man. 175 Incidence and Nature of Responses Respondents were asked whether or not they had problems finding qualified employees. If so, respondents were requested to indicate the nature and importance of these problems. Of the two managerial responses, one indicated problems finding qualified employees while one indicated no problems. The one respondent who had problems indi­ cated that they were attributable to a lack of sales motivation followed by a lack of experience. Educational Preferences Respondents were asked to rank their educational level preferences for new managerial employees together with the rank order preferences of academic subjects studied by employees. One response indicated that mana­ gerial employees should have a four-year degree. A two- year degree was the second choice while a high school diploma was the third choice. The other response indi­ cated that practical experience was preferable. Marketing was ranked first in importance as an academic subject for managerial personnel. The other response ranked marketing as the fifth choice. Personal selling was listed twice; it was ranked most important once and third in importance one time. Mathematics was listed once as being third in importance while economics and geography were each listed once as a second preference. 176 Accounting was listed once as a fourth preference. Busi­ ness writing was mentioned twice, once as a fourth choice and once as a fifth choice. The subjects listed on the questionnaire but not mentioned by the respondents were computer operations, public speaking, foreign languages, history and sociology. Job Experience The one response which indicated a prior job experience requirement preferred over ten years of experience. The other response indicated a desire, but not a requirement, for two years of prior job experience. The most important prior job experience for a manager was either travel counselor or any responsible travel-related position (one response). One response noted that a travel agency manager was a position of secondary importance for tour operator management positions. Both responses indicated a tendency to hire equally from within and from outside the company. When promoted from within, managers were promoted from the position of vacation counselor or from manager of a small office (one response each). Secondly, they were promoted from the position of travel counselor or com­ mercial counselor (one response each). When hired from outside the company, managers were hired from a travel agency either from any position 177 within an agency (one response) or from the position of manager (one response). Secondly, managers were hired from airlines either as a sales representative (one response) or from any position (one response). Thirdly, managers were hired from a sales representative of another tour operator (one response) or a sales repre­ sentative of a cruise line (one response). Employee Skills or Attributes Both responses indicated that the primary skill for a managerial position should be sales experience. Both felt that managerial experience was second in importance. One response indicated that motivation was the third most important factor while the other listed the ability to manage money. The fourth most important factor was geographic knowledge (one response) or selfconfidence (one response). One response noted the importance of air tariff and ticketing knowledge as the fifth most important factor while the other listed patience. Job Opportunities One of the two responses indicated that, on the average, one additional managerial employee was hired each year. 178 Salary The starting salary for a full-time manager work­ ing for a tour operator was $250 per week. years the salary was $300 per week. After two Only one response was given to the question of salary. Summary Three-fourths of the managers were full-time women. In general, marketing, personal selling, mathe­ matics, economics and geography were mentioned as being important subjects for managers. Responses indicated aft equal tendency to hire from within and from outside the company. A travel counselor or manager was preferred by respondents as the most important previous job of managers. Sales experience, managerial experience, moti­ vation and the ability to manage money were considered important skills and attributes for a manager. Few openings occurred for a managerial position. The average starting salary was $250 per week. After two years, the average was $300 per week. Tour Operator Responses— Nonmanagerial The six businesses that responded indicated seventy-three counseling employees. Twenty-one percent were full-time male employees; there was one part-time 179 female employee. The remaining fifty-seven employees (78 percent) were full-time female employees. Trip coordinator was the title given eighteen female employees. There were ten full-time male and twenty-eight full-time female reservationists. The remaining employees were called travel counselors or consultants. This was made up of four full-time employees, eleven full-time female employees and one part-time female employee. Incidence and Nature of Problems Of the eight nonmanagerial questionnaires received, four indicated a problem while four indicated no problem in finding qualified employees for counseling positions. Two responses indicated that the primary problem was a lack of experience. A lack of tariff-ticketing experience or the general unavailability of personnel were each noted on one response. Of secondary importance was the lack of customer following, the lack of interest in the job or the lack of geography (one response each). The third problem was a lack of product knowledge or the very high salary expectations of potential employees (one response each). Educational Preferences A two-year degree was listed five times within the top three preferences of educational levels. However, 180 it was ranked first in importance only once. A high school diploma was ranked first in importance three times and second in importance once. The remaining rankings are listed in Table 4.42. TABLE 4.42.— Rank order of educational preferences for new tour operator nonmanagerial employees (N-6) Level of Education Less than a high school diploma High school diploma Two-year degree Vocational school Four-year degree Number of Times Listed --------------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 #2 #3 0 3 1 0 2 0 1 0 0 4 0 3 1 1 0 Total 5 2 2 3 4 Six responses indicated that geography was one of the five most important academic subjects for counsel­ ing employees. Personal selling, mathematics and account­ ing were each listed four times. Personal selling was the only subject ranked first in importance more than once— it was listed three times while geography and mathematics were each ranked first only once. The subjects listed on the questionnaire but not mentioned by respondents were economics and history. The reader is referred to Table 4.43 for the complete responses to this question. TABLE 4.43.— Rank order of academic subjects tour operator nonmanagerial employees should have studied (N=5) Number of Times Listed Total Academic Subject Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 Geography 1 4 0 1 0 6 Personal selling 3 1 0 0 0 4 Math 1 1 1 1 0 4 Accounting 0 0 0 0 4 4 Computer operations 0 0 2 1 0 3 Marketing 0 0 1 1 1 3 Business writing 0 0 1 1 0 2 Public speaking 0 0 1 0 0 1 Sociology 0 0 0 1 0 1 Foreign languages 0 0 0 0 1 1 182 Job Experience Three responses indicated a prior job experience requirement, four showed a desire but not a requirement for experience while one respondent did not desire prior job experience. Of six responses to this question, four indicated a preference for one year's experience, one for two years and one for three year's experience. Four out of seven responses to this question indicated that travel agency experience was the primary job employees should have had. There was one response each which listed sales, service unit agent and airline reservations as the primary choice. Two responses listed travel assistant as the second choice. One response each listed business exper­ ience, public telephone sales, reservationist or public relations as a second choice. One response listed travel sales as a third choice. Three responses indicated that all counseling employees were promoted from within while one showed a tendency to promote from within. Three indicated that employees were hired equally from within and from outside the company while one tended to hire from outside. There were eight responses to this question. When promoted from within, employees came from the job of secretary, travel counselor, consultant, 183 travel assistant, clerk, mail clerk or service unit agent (one response each). The second most frequent positions were trainee agent, commercial counselor, messenger or reservationist (one response each). The third choice was secretary (one response). When hired from outside, employees were hired first from a travel agency (four responses) or from the position of airline reservation agent (one response) or office clerk (one response). The second most prevalent position when hiring from outside was hotel reservations staff (one response), and the third category was airline reservations agent (one response). Employee Skills or Attributes Two responses each indicated that a sales orien­ tation, a good personality or product knowledge was the most important skill or attribute for nonmanagerial employees. One response showed that patience or a fine speaking voice was the most important factor. The second most important factor was the ability to make no mistakes (two responses). One response noted that the second most important factor was product knowl­ edge, mathematics, patience, ticketing knowledge, will­ ingness to learn or geography. 184 The third most important skill or attribute was personality, ability to learn, mathematics, geography, good memory, telephone sales, communication with sup­ pliers or interest in people (one response each). The fourth most important factor was ambition, fares and destination knowledge, the ability to work under pressure, the ability to work under routine super­ vision or mathematics (one response each). The fifth most important skill or attribute was geography, personality, typing, computer reservation experience, a liking for people or clerical duties (one response each). Job Opportunities The six tour operators who responded hired, on the average, twenty nonmanagerial employees each year, an average of 3 1/3 employees per business. Of this number, thirteen were replacement employees while seven were hired for new positions. Salary The average starting salary for a full-time non­ managerial employee was $148 per week. from $120 per week to $185 per week. The range was After two years, the average salary was $186 per week with a range from $160 per week to $210 per week. 185 Summary Just over one-fifth of nonmanagerial employees were male. All but one were full-time employees. Most employees were either called trip coordinators or reservationists. Half of the responses indicated problems in find­ ing qualified employees. A lack of experience and lack of knowledge were considered the most important problems by those who responded. There was no clear educational preference. The academic subjects considered important were geography, personal selling, mathematics and accounting. Less than half the responses noted a prior job experience requirement while all but one showed a preference for it. Most showed a preference for one year's experience. Most indicated that travel agency experience was the most beneficial type of experience for counseling employees. The same number of responses indicated that employees were hired entirely from within and hired equally from within and from outside the company. When promoted from within, employees came from a wide variety of jobs. When hired from outside, employees tended to come from travel agencies. A wide variety of skills and attributes was deemed important for the job. 186 The average business hired over three new employees each year, twice as many for replacement pur­ poses as for new positions. The average starting salary for a full-time employee was $148 per week, and after two years the average salary was $186 per week. Tour Operator Responses— Clerical The four clerical responses indicated eighteen clerical positions. males. Three positions were occupied by All but two positions were full-time in nature. Employees were called clerk (one), accounts receivable clerk (nine), administrative clerk (three), operations clerk (six) or cashier (one). Incidence and Nature of Problems Only one out of four responses reported a problem in finding qualified employees. The problem was listed as an unavailability of personnel. Educational Preferences One response listed a first, second and third edu­ cational preference as high school diploma, two-year degree and four-year degree, respectively. Two responses indicated that the level of education was unimportant. Four responses indicated that employees should have knowledge of mathematics. Three each noted account­ ing, computer operations and business writing. Two 187 added English to the given list. The remaining academic subjects mentioned are listed in Table 4.44. The subjects listed on the questionnaire, but not mentioned by respondents, were personal selling, market­ ing, public speaking, history and sociology. Job Experience One response noted a prior job experience require­ ment while three showed a desire but not a requirement for such experience. One response noted a preference for two years of prior job experience while one indicated five years of experience. The most important previous job for an employee was computer operator, travel counselor, bookkeeper or another office job (one response each). One response indicated the job of data input clerk as the second most important previous job, and one indicated travel agent as the third choice. Two responses noted a tendency to promote from within to these positions while one indicated a tendency to hire equally from within and from outside the company. One response indicated that employees were hired solely from outside the company. When promoted from within, employees came first from the jobs of travel consultant (two responses) or bookkeeping (one response). The second most prevalent jobs were administrative clerk or manifest audit (one TABLE 4.44.— Rank order of academic subjects tour operator clerical employees should have studied (N=4) Number of Times Listed Academic Subject Total Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Ranked #5 1 1 0 2 0 4 Accounting 1 1 1 0 0 3 Computer operations 1 0 1 1 0 3 Business writing 1 0 1 1 0 3 Geography 0 0 2 0 1 3 English 0 1 0 0 1 2 Economics 0 0 0 0 1 1 Foreign languages 0 0 0 0 1 1 NOTE: The following academic subjects were included on the questionnaire but not listed by respondents: personal selling, marketing, public speaking, history and sociology. 188 Math 189 response each), and the third most prevalent job was a service unit employee. When hired from outside the company, employees primarily came from the positions of travel counselor in a travel agency, clerk/typist in an office or clerk in a bank {one response each). Secondly, they came from the position of travel agency clerk (one response). Employee Skills and Attributes One response indicated that the most important skill or attribute for clerical employees was geography, mathematics or accounting (one response each). The second most important was mathematics, accuracy or clerical (one response each). The third most important was product knowledge, patience or the ability to work under pressure (one response each). One response mentioned neatness and one mentioned typing as the fourth most desired skill or attribute while the ability to meet deadlines and analyti­ cal skills were each listed on one response as the fifth most important skill or attribute. Job Opportunities From the four clerical responses, eight clerical employees were hired on the average each year to replace employees who had left or had been fired. 190 Salary The average starting salary for a full-time clerical employee was $133 per week. $110 per week to $155 per week. mean salary was $148 per week. The range was from After two years, the The range was from $125 per week to $175 per week. Summary Almost all clerical positions were held by females. Almost all were full time in nature. There were few problems in finding qualified employees for clerical positions. The educational levelof clerical employees was mainly considered unimportant. Where a preference existed, it went from high school diploma to two-year degree to four-year degree. The academic subjects con­ sidered most important were mathematics, computer oper­ ations, business writing and English. Most responses indicated a desire, but not a requirement, for prior job experience. of experience were preferred. Two to five years A variety of preferred jobs was listed. There was no pattern to hiring from outside the company versus promoting from within, or to the jobs from which clerical employees were promoted. A wide divergency of preferred skills and attri­ butes was listed on the responses. 191 An average of two replacement employees was hired each year per business. The average weekly salary for a full-time clerical employee was $133. After two years, the average was $148 per week. Marketing Organizations Because of the similarity in function of a con­ vention and visitors bureau, state and regional travel offices and a national tourist office, these responses were combined for the purpose of analysis under the heading Marketing Organizations. responded. Seven organizations This represented a 50 percent response rate. Twelve individual responses were received. Job titles were characterized as either managerial or nonmanagerial. Marketing Organizations' Responses— Managerial The seven organizations which responded indicated twenty-five managerial personnel. Twenty-four were full­ time employees and twenty-two of the personnel were male. Job titles varied by organization. Those mentioned were president (two listings), executive vice president (one), vice president— marketing (one), executive director (one), associate manager— promotion (four), membership director (one), operations manager (one), services manager (one), public relations associate (two), director of civic 192 affairs (one), executive director (one), office manager (two) and regional sales manager (two). Incidence and Nature of Problems Of seven responses, five indicated no problem in finding qualified managerial personnel. The two that noted problems listed the lack of availability of formal education and the lack of knowledge as the primary problem (one response each). The secondary problem was the lack of experience and the fact that they must "steal" employees from other industries (one response each) . Their tertiary problem was the lack of schooling and the low pay scale (one response each). Educational Preferences A two-year degree was ranked either first, second or third preference on seven responses. A four-year degree was ranked most important on two responses. degree was added once as a second choice. A masters A high school diploma was the minimum educational qualification pre­ ferred. The remaining responses are detailed in Table 4.45. Both business writing and public speaking were each listed seven times in terms of the five most important academic subjects for managerial employees. Personal selling was mentioned five times while marketing was listed four times. Business administration was added to the questionnaire list and mentioned twice. Also added and 193 mentioned once were hotel operations, office management, office equipment operation and creative writing. The remainder of the responses are detailed in Table 4.46. TABLE 4.45.— Rank order of educational preferences for new managerial marketing organization personnel (N=7) Level of Education Less than a high school diploma High school diploma Two-year degree Vocational school Four-year degree Masters degree Number of Times Listed ---------------------------Ranked Ranked Ranked #1 #2 #3 0 0 4 0 3 0 0 1 2 1 0 1 Total 0 0 3 2 1 1 7 2 0 0 3 1 Mathematics, computer operations, foreign lan­ guages, history and geography were listed on the question­ naire but were not chosen by any respondents in their top five choices. Job Experience Four responses indicated a prior job experience requirement while three showed a desire for but not a requirement of such experience. Two years of prior experience was listed as a preference on three responses, three years and five years on two each and four years on one response. TABLE 4.46.— Rank order of academic subjects marketing organization managerial per­ sonnel should have studied Number of Times Listed Academic Subject Ranked #1 Ranked #2 Ranked #3 Ranked #4 Business writing 2 0 2 1 Public speaking 0 0 3 2 Personal selling 3 1 0 Ranked #5 2 2 1 0 Marketing 1 2 0 0 1 Accounting 1 0 0 0 0 Business administration 0 1 1 0 Hotel operations 0 1 0 0 0 Office management 0 1 0 0 0 Office equipment operations 0 0 Economics 0 0 0 1 1 Creative writing 0 0 0 1 0 Sociology 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 Total 195 Three responses preferred two years of experience, two preferred three years, one preferred four years and two preferred five years of previous job experience. Of the previous jobs held by personnel, two responses gave first preference to middle management positions or hotei sales while one each gave first preference to services, marketing and secretarial positions. One response each gave second preference to sales, bookkeeping, public relations, public contact or hotel management. And one response each gave third preference to public contact, stenography, sales, adver­ tising or convention bureau sales. One response indicated that employees were pro­ moted entirely from within the organization to managerial positions while one showed them to be hired entirely from outside the organization. One showed a tendency to hire from within, one hired equally from within and from out­ side the organization and one indicated a tendency to hire from outside. When hired from within, th£ most prevalent pre­ vious position held was district sales manager, secretary, director of sales, account representative, publicity director or public relations director (one response each). The second most prevalent choice was sales representative, manager or membership director. The third most favored choice was associate manager or public relations associate 196 (one response each). When hired from outside the organi­ zation, a managerial employee was most likely to come from hotel sales (two responses), organization management, a hotel services department, a meeting or catering facility, a services manager or an assistant chief executive officer (one response each). The next previous position was in membership or a convention bureau as an account representative (one response each), and the last was in operations (one response). Employee Skills or Attributes One response each indicated that the primary skill or attribute a manager should have was follow-through, creativity, organization, ambition, communication, the ability to listen, decision-making ability or use of the language. The second most important skill or attribute, indicated on two responses each, was follow-through or personal contact. One response each noted as the second factor attention to detail, record keeping, self-starter and promotional ability. The third most important factor was that the individual should be easy to work with (two responses), have the art of travel, association manage­ ment, good news judgment, be a self-starter, sales oriented or efficient (one response each). A calm atti­ tude, the ability to think quickly, creativity, the ability to handle budgets, reading, writing, accounting and travel market research were each indicated on one 197 response as the fourth most important factor. Integrity, creativity, a good presence, salesmanship, organization and the ability to absorb and sort marketing information were listed once each as the fifth most important skill or attribute. Job Opportunities The seven organizations which responded hired, among them, 1 1/2 replacement managers each year. Salary The average starting salary for full-time mana­ gerial personnel in a marketing organization was $213 per week. week. The range was from $175 per week to $250 per The average salary after two years was $303. The range was from $200 per week to $500 per week. Summary Over 80 percent of the managerial respondents were male. All but one were full-time employees. A variety of job titles was given respondents. Most indicated no problems in finding qualified personnel. A two-year degree was the most preferred edu­ cational level for new managerial employees, followed by a four-year degree and a high school diploma. The most favored academic subjects were business writing, public speaking, personal selling and marketing. 198 Slightly more respondents required prior job experience than preferred, but did not require, it. Respondents indicated a preference for two to five years of prior experience. A wide variety of jobs was listed as prerequisite for success in a management position. Respondents showed no preference for hiring from outside the company or promoting from within. There was, similarly, no pattern to the previous jobs, internally or externally, of employees. There was a lack of agreement concerning the skills or attributes considered important for managerial personnel. The average starting salary for full-time mana­ gerial personnel was $213. After two years the average salary was $303 per week. Marketing Organizations— Nonmanagerial The seven organizations which responded indicated eleven nonmanagerial positions. positions. Nine were full-time Six positions were held by males. The job of magazine editor was not analyzed because of the highly specialized nature of this one position. The four responses analyzed were for the positions of sales representative (three) and information specialist. 199 Incidence and Nature of Problems Three responses indicated no problems in finding qualified employees while one response noted problems due to, first, the low salary and, second, the absence of an incentive system. Educational Preferences Three responses indicated a first preference of a four-year degree for sales employees. One response each gave first and third preference to a high school diploma while three responses gave second preference to a two-year degree. One respondent gave third preference to a vocational school qualification. Three responses gave first preference to personal selling as the academic subject studied by sales employees. Two responses gave second preference and one gave third to public speaking. One response each gave second, third and fourth preference to marketing; and economics was listed on two responses as fifth preference. Geography was chosen third on one response while business writing was chosen fourth on one response and third on another. Sociology was listed once as a third preference. Mathe­ matics, computer operations, accounting, foreign languages and history were listed on the questionnaire but were not chosen by any respondents. 200 Job Experience All four responses noted a preference but not a requirement for previous job experience. Three responses listed two years of prior experience while the other listed five years of experience. The most important previous job for an employee was one involving contact with business, hotel/motel sales or a related industry sales job (one response each). The second most important job was in hotel and restaurant operations or hotel management (one response each). The third most important experience was as an outside agency representative or convention bureau sales (one response each). All responses indicated that employees were hired exclusively from outside the organization. Employees came first from sales, hotels or tourism as a sales rep­ resentative (one response each). Secondly, they came from retailing or the hotel and restaurant industry or a con­ vention bureau in a sales position (one response each). Thirdly, they came from the general sales or the travel industry as a tour coordinator (one response each). Skills and Attributes One response each noted that the most important skill or attribute was personality, ability to listen, communication or appearance. The second most important was having an interest in helping people, salesmanship, 201 sales perseverance or follow-up (one response each). Mobility, appearance, record keeping and typing were each listed once as the third most important quality. The ability to get along with others, bookkeeping and business ethics were each listed once as the fourth most important skill or attribute of sales employees. Job Opportunities The six businesses which responded hired, in total, 1 3/4 replacement employees each year. Salary One response noted a starting salary of $187.50 per week for full-time sales employees. The same response reported that the salary for full-time sales employees after two years was $212.50 per week. Summary Half of the sales positions were held by males; 80 percent were full-time positions. Only one out of four responses noted problems finding qualified employees. Problems were due to the low salary and the lack of an incentive system. There was no clear educational preference for sales employees. The academic subjects considered most important were personal selling, public speaking and marketing. 202 All responses noted a preference for prior job experience ranging from two to five years. It was felt that an employee should have had a business or industryrelated position. Employees were hired exclusively from outside the organization and came mainly from a sales representa­ tive position. The personal traits of personality, communications and appearance were the most important required skills or attributes listed. Less than two employees were hired each year by all respondents for replacement purposes. The average full-time weekly salary was $187.50. After two years the average salary was $212.50 per week. CHAPTER V FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Introduction This study had two objectives. The first objec­ tive was to determine the extent to which educational establishments are providing the type of employee sought by tourism-related industries. The second objective was to obtain, from certain tourism-related industries, the job specifications for positions within those industries. The literature was thoroughly reviewed and assessed. Questionnaires were sent to all of the national, state and regional tourism offices; airline sales offices; convention and visitors bureaus and tour operators and a random sample of retail travel agents in the state of Michigan. The response rate, after a follow-up mailing, was 28 percent. The respondents supplied information on the number and type of employees in their organization, the incidence and nature of problems in finding qualified employees and their educational, job experience and 203 204 employee skill and attribute preferences. Data were also obtained on the number of new employees hired each year and their starting salaries and pay after two years. Responses were stratified by type of organization. Because of the lack of responses, the information collected was largely descriptive. Some frequency distribution was used. Findings This section reflects findings from the literature search as well as from the questionnaire survey. 1. Little agreement exists concerning the meaning of "tourism education." 2. Graduates from formal tourism programs often have difficulty in finding suitable employment. 3. The tourism programs in both the United States and Europe seemed uncoordinated and in many cases were not meeting the needs of tourism-related industries. 4. There were differences in the proportion of male to female employees, by type of business. (a) The majority of travel agency and tour operator managers and employees were female. (b) Half of the marketing organization non­ managerial employees were female. 205 (c) Most of the marketing organization managers and airline nonmanagerial employees were male. (d) Almost all of the airline managers were male. 5. There was general agreement that the major problems in finding qualified employees were the lack of experience and the lack of knowledge. However, the incidence of problems varied by type of business. (a) Half of the travel agency respondents had problems finding qualified managers while two-thirds had problems finding qualified nonmanagerial employees. (b) Half of the tour operator respondents had problems finding qualified managerial and nonmanageriar personnel. (c) Airline and marketing organization respondents had no problems in finding qualified managers while one-third had problems finding qualified nonmanagerial employees. 6. Most respondents indicated a four-year degree as a first preference as an educational require­ ment for both managerial and nonmanagerial employees. (a) While a two-year degree was mentioned most often when travel agency respondents indicated their first three educational preferences, 206 a four-year degree was ranked most important more often than any other educational level for both managerial and nonmanagerial employees. (b) Airline respondents indicated a preference for a four-year degree for both managerial and nonmanagerial employees. (c) Marketing organization respondents preferred that their managers have a two-year degree. (d) No conclusions could be reached for other job categories because of the diversity of the responses. 7. All respondents considered personal selling an important academic subject for managerial and nonmanagerial employees. (a) Travel agency respondents considered personal selling, geography, mathematics and accounting to be important for managers and nonmanagerial personnel. (b) Airline respondents indicated the importance of personal selling and marketing for all personnel, public speaking additionally for managers and business writing additionally for nonmanagerial employees. (c) Tour operator respondents showed a preference for all personnel to have knowledge of i 207 geography, personal selling and mathematics. Additionally, managers should have knowledge of economics and marketing while accounting was added to the list for nonmanagerial per­ sonnel. 8. While virtually all respondents preferred their personnel to have had prior job experience, air­ line respondents were the only group to require this of all managers. (a) About half of the respondents required prior job experience of airline and tour operator nonmanagerial employees and marketing organi­ zation managers. (b) No marketing organization nonmanagerial employees were required to have prior job experience. (c) Approximately 60 percent of travel agency managers were required to have prior job experience while this applied to about 30 percent of travel agency nonmanagerial employees. 9. Two to five years of prior job experience was preferred by respondents. 10. There was a difference by type of business in terms of promoting from inside compared to hiring from outside the company. 208 (a) Airlines almost exclusively promoted entirely from within. (b) Most travel agencies tended to promote from within, especially for managerial than non­ managerial employees. (c) Tour operators -personnel and marketing organization managers were both promoted from within and hired from outside the company. (d) Marketing organization nonmanagerial employees were hired from outside the organization. 11. Employees came from a variety of jobs which were connected with their present business. (a) Travel agency managers came from travel con­ sultants when promoted from within and travel agency managers when hired from outside. (b) Airline managers were promoted from sales representatives while nonmanagerial employees were promoted from sales or ticketing positions. (c) Tour operator personnel came from travel agencies when hired from outside the company and a variety of jobs when promoted from within. (d) There was no common pattern of hiring for marketing organization managers. Marketing 209 organization nonmanagerial employees tended to come from the position of sales represen­ tative . 12. There was no common agreement concerning the skills and attributes considered important for personnel. 13. The availability of job openings varied by type of business. (a) There were more travel agencies than any other type of business. Approximately three- fourths of all agencies responding hire new employees each year, an average of over 1 1/2 managerial personnel per business and two non managerial employees per business which responded. (b) There were virtually no new personnel hired by the airlines. (c) While few new tour operator managers were hired, each business hires an average of three new nonmanagerial and two new clerical employees each year. (d) Marketing organizations which responded hired an average of two new employees each year. 210 14. Average salaries varied by type of business. Airline managers were paid the most followed, in order, by airline nonmanagerial employees, tour operator managers, marketing organization man­ agers, tour operator nonmanagerial employees, tour operator nonmanagerial employees, travel agency nonmanagerial employees and tour operator clerical employees. Conclusions This study was prompted by the lack of job availa­ bility and job specification information for tourismrelated industries. The intent was to provide insight into this problem to aid both potential entrants to tourism-related industries and educational institutions seeking to provide the educational background for those potential entrants. Several conclusions are suggested by the research. The review of the status of tourism education suggests that more coordination is necessary between edu­ cational establishments offering "tourism programs." If those institutions are unable to clearly define what edu­ cation is necessary for entry into the tourism field, industries can scarcely be faulted for a reluctance to hire. From the viewpoint of the individual seeking entry into the field, the outlook, in terms of jobs 211 available, is better for females than for males. Only airlines and marketing organization management positions offer more opportunities for males than females. This may correlate with the higher salaries paid by the air­ lines. Travel agencies offer the best entry into the field. Not only are there more retail travel agencies than other types of business in the field, but more agencies have problems finding qualified employees than any other type of business studied. Additionally, entry into the higher paid travel jobs can come from a retail travel agency when that business hires from outside the company. Potential employees would do well to realize that an educational requirement is not sufficient to ensure even an entry level position. The individual would be well advised to get as much relevant practical experience to ensure his/her chances of employment. Educational preferences would appear to be greater than previously expressed in a prior study of * New York State travel agents. Those businesses which mentioned a four-year degree preference listed this most often as their first choice though a two-year degree was mentioned most often when the first three choices were considered. Travel Agency Survey, New York State Education Department, Bureau of Occupational Education Research (Albany, February 1974), 26 pp. 212 While there was no common pattern concerning the desired skills or attributes for the jobs analyzed, many responses indicated the importance of personal factors such as the ability to get along with people, personality and communication. Because these are service industry jobs which involve a great deal of public contact, potential employees should consider their effectiveness in and enjoyment of dealing with people. From the educational institution's viewpoint, several observations can be made. Tourism-related businesses surveyed thought it appropriate for their employees to graduate from a twoor four-year degree program. Certain academic subjects should be included in a curriculum aimed at producing personnel for the businesses surveyed. Personal selling, mathematics, marketing, accounting, public speaking, geography, economics and business writing were specifi­ cally regarded as important. Because of the desire for practical experience, educational programs should extend the greatest possible effort to graduate an individual with both an academic and a practical experience back­ ground. Consideration should be given to having a work experience requirement. Such a requirement would add a great deal of credibility to both the program and the students. Attempts should also be made to encourage 213 industry-education ties to ease the acquisition of prac­ tical experience during the formal education process. Educational institutions must also be aware of their responsibilities in advising students of opportuni­ ties in tourism-related industries. Travel has a glamor about it which is reflected in the desire of people to enter the field as a career. While travel is indeed exciting, students must be advised about the lack of openings in certain sectors, the tendency to hire inter­ nally in some businesses and the low pay in others. Recommendations for Further Research Based on the findings of this study, a number of areas for further research and investigation are suggested. 1. Because of the specialized types of jobs in tourism-related industries, this study could be replicated with a national population of members of one industry. 2. The present study could be replicated with a sta­ tistically representative sample of large and small businesses and a comparison made to deter­ mine whether or not differences exist. 3. The present study was primarily concerned with the position and the specifications for that position. Further studies could round out the 214 picture by concentrating on the people within those positions, looking at their job-related backgrounds. 4. Consideration of the supply of trained personnel together with the demand for such people could be developed to provide a picture of where a need exists and the extent of that need. 5. Future studies should consider an in-depth personal interview approach rather than rely upon replies to survey questionnaires. The response rate would be better and the responses would offer greater insight into industry requirements. APPENDICES APPENDIX A LIST OF FUNCTIONS PERFORMED BY INDEPENDENT TOUR WHOLESALERS APPENDIX A LIST OF FUNCTIONS PERFORMED BY INDEPENDENT TOUR WHOLESALERS TOUR PREPARATION Planning Market Research Provide Surveys Data Collection Questionnaire Assistance Financial Data on Past Performance Negotiating Data (Past Volume, etc.) Detailed Booking information Category Tour Airline Volume Statistics Traveler Demographics Packaging Development New Destination Surveys Arrangement of Local Government Support Information on Changing Market Conditions Information on Changing Cost Trends Travel Passes Use of Controlled Ground Service Facilities Inspection Familiarization Tours Assistance in Evaluating New Ground Service Operations Negotiation Assistance in Obtaining Difficult to Get Space Assistance in Rate Negotiation 215 216 TOUR MARKETING Trade Promotion Training Programs Brochure Production Personal Contacts Coupon Fulfillment Direct Mailings Presentations Promotional Aids Sales Educational Print Media Advertising Full Program Co-op Program Trade Parties Familiarization Tours Newsletters Fact Sheets Consumer Promotion Coupon Fulfillment Brochure Production Photography Transparencies Artwork Copy Direct Mailings Presentations Sales Educational Speakers Bureau Novelty Items Passport Wallets Travel Bags Baggage Tags Advertising Radio & TV Printing Outdoor Creative & Artwork Media-Selection & Purchase Distribution & Payment Assistance Selling Brochure Distribution Sales Calls to Retail Agents Sales Progress Information Sales Training Sales Leads 217 Handling of Employee Incentive Programs Direct Sale of Tours Free Tie-Line Communication System Convention Participation Association Membership & Subscriptions Non-Profit Organization Contributions Point of Sale Material Display Racks Window Displays Acceptance of Consumer Credit Plan Public Relations Assistance Press Releases Speech Writing Article Placements Site Restoration Contributions Educational Material Films Articles Press Corps Familiarization Trips TOUR ADMINISTRATION Reservations & Recordkeeping Groups Desk Agent Desk Individuals Detailed Booking Information Number of Travelers by Tour Dollar Volume Wait List Capabilities General Travel Information Load Factor Information Air Fare Construction Information Visa Assistance Accounting Record Keeping Billing Accounts Receivable Control Cash Flow Documentation Ticket Issuance Tour Profitability Reporting Settlement Assistance/Payment Ground Service Air Settlement 218 Foreign Exchange Assistance & Advice Absorption of Price Differentials Refund Processing Quality Control & Contract Enforcement Review TOUR OPERATION Alteration of Schedules Tour Conductor Passes Guest Passes for Association Leaders Detailed Tourist Lists for Airlines Hotels Other Ground Services Arrival/Departure Assistance Local Tour Servicing Message Assistance SOURCE: Touche Ross & Co., Tour Wholesaler Industry Study (1975). APPENDIX B LISTING OF JOBS CLASSIFIED AS R.I.C. APPENDIX B LISTING OF JOBS CLASSIFIED AS R.I.C. 1 . Aircraft pilot 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. Animal husbandry Building/construction trades technician Business machine service technician Comptometer operator Crime laboratory technician Drycleaner Agricultural, mechanical and automotive engineer Engineering technician Fluid power technician Furniture repairer Glassblower Instrument repairman Landscape/nursery technician Lithographer Machine technician Maintenance mechanic Materials science technician Painter/decorator Pharmaceutical laboratory technician Piano tuner Pressman/printer Public works technician Quality control technician Radio and television service technician Shoe repairer Surveyor Urban planner Watch repairer Welder SOURCE: Institute for Community Development and Services, Direction: Michigan Career Opportunity Guide (East Lansing: Continuing Education Service, Michigan State University, 1976). 219 APPENDIX C FINAL QUESTIONNAIRE APPENDIX C FINAL QUESTIONNAIRE MICHIGAN TOURISM INDUSTRY QUESTIONNAIRE Please fill out this cover sheet, listing each type of position (including yours) in your office and the cor­ responding number of employees. (Exclude positions which are strictly secretarial or janitorial.) Number of Employees full-time Job title N O W; male female part-time male female PLEASE FILL OUT A SEPARATE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR EACH POSITION OR JOB TITLE IN YOUR OFFICE. Would you like a summary of the results of this study? Yes No If you have any questions or if you require more forms, please write or call collect to: Mr. Robert Christie-Mill, School of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824; Telephone: 517-353-9211 220 A 221 MICHIGAN TOURISM INDUSTRY QUESTIONNAIRE JOB TITLE______________________________________________ ■* - NOTE: 1. All questions pertain to the above job title Do you have problems finding qualified employees? YES ___________ 2. NO______ If YES, list, in order of importance, the nature of your problems. a. _________________________________________________ b. _________________________________________________ c . _________________________________________________ 3. Number your first, second and third most preferred level of education for new employees. 4. a. less than a high school diploma ____ b. high school diploma ____ c. two-year degree (community college) ____ d. vocational school training ____ e. four-year degree ____ f. other (please specify) ________________________ Number, in order of importance, five academic sub­ jects employees should have knowledge of: a. mathematics ___ c. accounting b. computer operations ___ d. economics ___ 222 e. personal selling ___ g. public speaking i. history ___ f. marketing ___ h. foreign languages j. geography ___ k. business writing ___ 1. sociology ___ m. other (please specify)____________________ 5. For new employees, is prior experience: Required ___ Desired, but not required ___ Not desired ___ 6. If prior experience is required or desired, preferred number of years experience (circle one). 1 7. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 10+ To be successful in this position which jobs should an employee previously have held? (List the most important first.) a. ____________________________________________________ b. ____________________________________________________ c. ____________________________________________________ 8. List, in order of importance, the five most important skills or attributes an employee should have to work in this position. a. ____________________________________________________ b. c. 223 d. ________________________________________________________________ e. 9. On the average, how many new employees do you hire each year? 10. Of this number (in Question 9): How many are replacements for employees who have left? How many are additional positions? 11. To what extent are employees in this position promoted from within the organization or hired from outside the organization? All hired from within 12. . (circle one) - - . _ All hired from outside If employees are promoted from within, list, in order of frequency, the job titles they are promoted from: 13. a. ____________________________________________________ b. ____________________________________________________ c. ____________________________________________________ If employees are hired from outside, list, in order of frequency, the industries and job titles they are hired from: INDUSTRY JOB TITLE a. _______________________________________________________ b. c. 224 14. What is the average starting salary for full-time employees in this position? per week 15. (answer one) _ per month After two years in this position, what is the average salary for full-time employees? per week _ per month (answer one) APPENDIX D COVER LETTER FOR FIRST MAILING AND FOLLOW-UP LETTER APPENDIX D COVER LETTER FOR FIRST MAILING AND FOLLOW-UP LETTER M I C H I G A N STATE UNIVERSITY E A ST LAN SIN G * M IC H IG A N • 48824 COLLEGE O F BUSINESS SCHOOL O F H O TE L, R EST A U R A N T It IN ST IT U T IO N A L M A N A G EM ENT EPPLEY CEN TER October 10, 1977 I am conducting a survey, the results of which will be of interest to any business which has ever experienced difficulty in finding qualified employees. I am a member of the faculty of the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management and am seeking to complete the requirements for the Ph.D. degree by analyzing the job specifications for certain tourismrelated businesses. I am asking a selected sample of members of the industry to complete the enclosed questionnaire. The results will provide insight as to the background employees should have to work in the industry. Prospective employees should then be better able to prepare themselves for jobs within tourism-related businesses. Jim Miller, President of the American Society of Travel Agents, has endorsed this project. It would be appreciated if you complete the enclosed questionnaire by October 31, and return it in the stamped addressed envelope. I will be pleased to send you a summary of the results of the study if you so indicate. Thanking you in anticipation, Sincerely, Robert Christie-Mill Instructor RC-M:lkt Enclosure 225 226 M I C H I G A N STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEG E O F BUSINESS EA ST LAN SIN G ■ M ICHIGAN • 48824 SCHOOL O F H O T E L , R EST A U R A N T & IN ST IT U T IO N A L M AN A G EM EN T EPPLEY CEN TER November 1, 1977 Dear Sir: Several weeks ago I sent a questionnaire to a selected sample of tourism related businesses in Michigan. Your business was chosen as part of that sample. You may have misplaced my letter. I have taken the liberty of sending additional questionnaires. The validity of my results depends upon getting as many responses as possible. The results of this study will assist businesses in finding qualified employees. Please take ten minutes of your busy time to complete the enclosed questionnaire. I shall be pleased to send you a copy of the results. Your assistance is greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Robert Christie-Mill Instructor SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY The ABC's of Travel. Ziff-Davis Publishers, 1977. Annis, William H . , and Floyd, Richard G. "An Interstate Investigation of Employment Opportunities and Educational Requirements for Jobs in Outdoor Recreation and Conversation Enterprizes, Phase 1, Final Report." University of New Hampshire, Durham, September 1968. Bannon, Joseph J. "A Creative Dimension in Recreation Training; An Outreach Approach in Delivery of Leisure Services." 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