A Bridging The Competency Gap Between Hospitality Education And Industry: Evidence From A Corporate Focus Group At Ashley Hotel Indonesia

Abstract

The rapid transformation of the hospitality industry, driven by digitalization, artificial intelligence (AI), automation, and changing guest expectations, requires higher education institutions to continuously align graduate competencies with industry needs. Nevertheless, competency mismatches between hospitality graduates and employer expectations remain a persistent issue, particularly in vocational education. This study aims to identify competency gaps among hospitality graduates, explore priority soft skills required by employers, formulate curriculum improvement recommendations, and examine preferred models of polytechnic–industry collaboration. A qualitative descriptive approach was employed using a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) involving nine corporate managers representing Human Resources, Hotel Operations, Housekeeping, Revenue Management, Information Technology, and Marketing Communication at Ashley Hotel Indonesia. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Four major themes emerged. First, technical competency gaps were identified in operational hotel systems, Property Management Systems (PMS), revenue management, AI utilization, digital marketing, business knowledge, housekeeping procedures, and analytical software. Second, communication, adaptability, critical thinking, problem solving, decision making, observation, and professional attitude were recognized as essential employability skills. Third, curriculum reform should emphasize experiential learning through industry projects, role play, mentoring, AI integration, and competency-based assessment. Finally, respondents highlighted the importance of sustainable polytechnic–industry collaboration through guest lectures, curriculum co-development, internship supervision, practitioner mentoring, and continuous curriculum evaluation. The study proposes an Industry-Based Hospitality Competency Framework integrating technical competencies, employability skills, digital capability, and industry partnership. The findings provide practical implications for curriculum redesign within hospitality higher education to improve graduate employability and workforce readiness.