The Growing Skills Gap
The hospitality industry in Africa is growing rapidly, but the talent pipeline is struggling to keep pace. Hotels and service businesses across the continent face a consistent challenge: finding well-trained professionals who can deliver excellence day after day. This skills gap doesn’t just affect guest satisfaction—it erodes brand reputation, limits profitability, and holds entire sectors back from reaching their potential.
Why Traditional Approaches Fall Short
For years, the conventional response has been to tweak curricula, organize occasional industry workshops, or invest in short-term training programs. While these initiatives help to a degree, they rarely address the deeper issue. At the heart of the problem is a lack of strong governance structures—boards and leadership teams who are fully engaged, strategic, and committed to aligning vocational education with the realities of the modern hospitality industry.
Without engaged boards and visionary leadership, vocational colleges risk drifting into irrelevance, producing graduates who may be credentialed on paper but remain unprepared for the demands of the real world.
A Different Way Forward
Institutions that succeed in bridging this gap tend to do things differently. They combine rigorous, hands-on training with governance that is proactive, resourceful, and deeply connected to industry needs. When governance becomes an active force—rather than a passive oversight function—colleges can adapt faster, build credibility with employers, and deliver better outcomes for students.
Lessons from Wavecrest College
Wavecrest College of Hospitality in Lagos is a clear example of what this looks like in practice. For over fifty years, Wavecrest has demonstrated that sustained board involvement, strong partnerships, and a clear strategic focus can transform an institution into a model others can learn from. The College has trained thousands of women who now work in hotels, restaurants, and service businesses across Nigeria and beyond. Its graduates consistently achieve high employment rates, and its alumni network continues to strengthen the industry.
A few elements set successful institutions apart:
- Governance that prioritizes curriculum relevance over inertia
- Resource mobilization to invest in modern training facilities
- Faculty development and mentorship that keep educators growing alongside their students
- Close collaboration with the hospitality industry to ensure training is never out of date
Overcoming the Barriers
Of course, building this kind of governance culture isn’t always easy. Institutions often face barriers—limited funding, competing priorities, and boards that default to compliance rather than innovation. But these obstacles can be overcome. Recruiting board members who understand both education and business, making governance meetings actionable with clear KPIs, and celebrating student success stories all help to build momentum and shared purpose.
Your First Step
For institutions wondering where to start, it can be as simple as asking a few honest questions:
- Is your board engaged beyond compliance?
- Do you have a strategy for connecting training to real industry needs?
The first steps are to convene a candid conversation between educators, employers, and board members to identify gaps, and to benchmark programs against institutions like Wavecrest that have demonstrated what is possible.
A Personal Reflection
In the early days of my career as a management consultant with Accenture, I lived in hotels within and outside Africa. Over time, I developed a deep respect for the craft of hospitality. It is not just an industry—it is an art form, a profession, and an engine of opportunity, especially for women.
Today, I am honored to join the Governing Council of Wavecrest College of Hospitality, Nigeria’s pioneer institution dedicated to excellence in this field. As a board member, I look forward to supporting the College’s mission to equip women with the skills, confidence, and values to build meaningful careers in hospitality.
When women learn, communities rise. When leaders decide, institutions thrive.
If you are interested in strengthening vocational education or building governance structures that work, I’d love to connect and exchange ideas.
#Governance #HospitalityEducation #WomenInLeadership #Africa
