This paper examines the application of strategic human resource management within the spa industry, with particular attention to employee retention, compensation, and loyalty in a competitive global market. Drawing on data from the Asia Pacific region and the United States, the paper identifies high staff turnover and a global shortage of skilled therapists as the industry's most pressing challenges. It then evaluates key retention strategies, including structured career development, talent management, varied remuneration frameworks, and non-monetary incentive programs. The paper argues that sustainable profitability depends on a virtuous cycle linking employee satisfaction, service quality, and customer loyalty.
This paper focuses on the use of strategic human resource management within the spa industry to improve overall employee retention, benefits, and loyalty in a highly competitive environment. The paper begins with a description of the spa industry, followed by the primary issues and concerns that affect the industry in the modern era. It then discusses approaches that can help overcome these issues — including remuneration, incentives, job opportunities, intangible motivations, and awards — that can help secure the loyalty of employees.
Intelligent Spas (2011) published their annual regional report citing significant growth and development in the industry. Their findings are summarized as follows: there are over 3,500 spas currently operating in the Asia Pacific region, collectively generating approximately US$2 billion in revenue per annum. The Asia Pacific spa industry employs over 50,000 people, and over 60% of countries in the region are considered emerging or potential spa markets, suggesting ample development and business opportunities across the region (Intelligent Spas, 2011).
The spa industry is heavily reliant on its employees, in the sense that people are its primary asset. The main contributing factor to a spa's success lies in the efficient deployment of its personnel, where all phases of development are taken into consideration — from recruiting to the development of qualified staff. Integrity is the key factor in such an environment. A loyal staff member has the capability to produce loyal customers, and a faithful employee is ultimately worth more than a loyal customer. In light of this working philosophy, this paper presents a multi-dimensional theory in which employee productivity and retention are based on employee satisfaction. When this model functions well, an employee inspires and stimulates service value, and this cycle continues until it reaches increased profitability and progression. The underlying maxim of this business philosophy is that when an owner is a genuinely thoughtful leader who takes care of managers, those managers will in return take care of their staff — ultimately creating an environment of mutual satisfaction among employees, employers, and customers (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
When loyal staff members become valuable assets, the majority of qualified personnel are absorbed into a rapidly growing industry. This rapid expansion, however, gives rise to a shortage of skilled workers globally and intensifies competition between spas to recruit, develop, and retain the best available staff. Due to globalization, there has been a tremendous increase in the movement of spa professionals across regions as a result of heightened professional competition. For instance, large numbers of spa professionals from Asian countries, the Far East, and parts of Central Asia tend to relocate to the Middle East to meet the professional demands of the spa industry there. Trained therapists are naturally attracted by higher salary structures. Due to this globalization effect, around 300 five-star hotels in the Middle East are in the planning and construction phase to develop top-tier spa facilities, each expected to provide jobs to nearly 30 professional therapists — generating massive employment that will help fill the gap in local demand (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
The global staff shortage has widened the gap in job placement, forcing spas to compromise their standards or pay significant sums to retain experienced staff, especially those with versatile management experience. This has created turbulence in filling vacant positions in pre-opening projects. Even where incumbents are inexperienced or underqualified, the immediate need requires intensifying the search for appropriate candidates and recruiting qualified trainers as vacancies emerge across departments (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
Beyond the staff shortage problem, the rapid growth of the industry has empowered employees to move upward quickly. However, staff turnover means employees often change job locations and employers in pursuit of higher salaries. Additionally, in certain circumstances, spa professionals with approximately five years of experience choose to open their own small spa businesses in countries such as South Africa, India, or Tunisia. Therapists also start freelance businesses by converting rooms in their homes for small treatments while simultaneously offering clients home visits. Such activities have aggravated the employee shortage and contributed to an increasingly chaotic staffing situation (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
According to analysis covering the period from 2001 to 2006, annual staff turnover was approximately 39.6% across the entire US industrial sector (US Department of Labor, 2007a). In the leisure and hospitality sector specifically, the rate averaged 74.6% (US Department of Labor, 2007b). This figure partly reflects the large number of part-time workers in the sector. With regard to a study conducted by Resort Suite (2004), it was recommended that the turnover rate for spas should not exceed 40%, given that no precise data on employee turnover in the spa industry had been formally reported at the time (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
The biggest threat to the profitability of the spa industry is the high turnover rate among skilled and trained staff members, which damages both the financial and human resource interests of the industry. Retained staff members do not perform optimally in the absence of a strong team culture. New staff require considerable time and investment in training, which does not pay off in the long run when those staff members quickly leave. As a result, providing consistent quality of service to customers has also become a significant challenge (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
Frequent job changes also pose disadvantages for employees themselves. They must go through training sessions to familiarize themselves with new concepts, products, and requirements. They earn less income during probationary periods and earn nothing during transitions. Re-establishing a customer base is also a challenge. Frequent job changes reduce an individual's credibility in the eyes of prospective future employers (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
Multiple factors play a role in attracting and retaining the best talent. A few of the most integral include corporate culture, career development, a supportive work environment, a competitive salary package, and fringe benefits. Employers who address these factors enjoy preferred-employer status and succeed in attracting and retaining skilled talent. As a result, they benefit from improved performance and increased profitability (Cohen and Bodeker, 2008).
"Career paths and talent management strategies"
"Pay structures, non-monetary benefits, and ROI of training"
Resort Suite. (2004). Spa Compensation Strategies. ResortSuite Spa Management Software: An Enablez White Paper. Retrieved from
US Department of Labor. (2007a). Bureau of Labor Statistics, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, Total non-farm separations (not seasonally adjusted), Series ID JTU00000000TSR. Retrieved from http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/surveymost?jt
US Department of Labor. (2007b). Bureau of Labor Statistics, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, Leisure and Hospitality (not seasonally adjusted), Series ID JTU70000000TSR. Retrieved from http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/surveymost?jt
You’re 49% through this paper. Sign up to read the remaining 2 sections.
Sign Up Now — Instant Access Already a member? Log inAlways verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.