Date of Award
6-19-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)
Department
College of Business
First Advisor
David C. Hood, Ph.D.
Committee Members
Suzanne M. Buglione; Keith Wallace
Keywords
Hotel workforce; Human resource management; Labor market dynamics; Talent acquisition; Management; Organizational behavior; Hospitality leisure & tourism studies
Abstract
The U.S. hotel industry experienced severe workforce disruption following the COVID-19 pandemic, including layoffs, employee exits, persistent labor shortages, and shifting employee expectations (Baum et al., 2020; Ghani et al., 2022; Kwok, 2022; Liu-Lastres et al., 2023). Although hotels increased wages, expanded scheduling flexibility, and improved benefits, many hotels continued to experience staffing shortages that affected recruitment, retention, operational efficiency, and service delivery (AHLA, 2024b; Aksoy et al., 2022; Ghani et al., 2022). Existing research has examined employee outcomes and organizational responses; however, limited empirical attention has been given to hotel HR professionals’ experiences and perspectives on post-pandemic hiring shifts (Ghani et al., 2022; Hamouche, 2023; Liu-Lastres et al., 2023).
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore post-pandemic hiring trends in the U.S. hotel industry from the perspective of hotel HR professionals. The study focused on recruitment, retention, and workforce management in the post-pandemic hotel labor market. This study was guided by the research question: How do HR professionals describe their lived experiences in relation to shifts in hiring trends in the hotel industry following the COVID-19 pandemic?
A descriptive phenomenological research design was used to explore participants’ lived experiences (Giorgi, 2009; Moustakas, 1994). Participants included seven management-level hotel HR professionals employed in full-service hotels or hotel management companies in the United States. All participants had at least five years of HR-related experience and direct involvement in hotel staffing and hiring practices during and after COVID-19. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews using an interview protocol. Data were analyzed using Giorgi’s (2009) descriptive phenomenological approach, including repeated transcript review, identification and transformation of meaning units, and synthesis of the general structure of the experience.
Recommended Citation
Liu, Anthony, "Hiring Trends in the Hotel Industry Post-COVID-19: Human Resource Professionals’ Perspectives" (2026). JWU Dissertations & Theses. 41.
https://scholarsarchive.jwu.edu/jwu_etd/41
Included in
Business Administration, Management, and Operations Commons, Human Resources Management Commons, Tourism and Travel Commons
