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Spa Management Workforce & Education: Addressing Market Gaps
Spa managers/directors in different regions may require different kinds of support
networks and training to fill culturally-rooted skills gaps. First, due to varying cultural
traits, the innate acumen of spa managers/directors for the specific skills and responsibilities
in their job may vary across different countries and regions. Some industry leaders have
suggested, for example, that Asian spa managers/directors may innately have stronger soft
skills or people skills (but less focus on hard skills and technical business management skills);
American and European spa managers/directors may be better grounded in technical
business skills (but have less acumen for the softer people skills). While these variations do
somewhat reflect cultural stereotypes and will clearly not apply to everyone, what they
indicate is that spa industry executives who are leading spa companies in different regions
of the world do need to be attuned to the cultural differences in management practices
across different countries, and may need to provide different kinds of support networks or
training for their spa managers/directors in areas where innate skill sets may be weaker.
Spa managers/directors that are globally mobile require strong cultural sensitivity and
language skills on top of their other key job skills/responsibilities. Second, because spa is a
global industry (and because much of the industry’s growth is occurring internationally), spa
managers/directors who take jobs in regions outside of their “home turf” need to have a
high-level of cultural sensitivity and adaptability (as well as foreign language skills), in
addition to the other essential skills required to do their job well. Different approaches may
be needed to manage workers (and deal with clients) with different cultural backgrounds –
and this can be particularly true in a spa, where cultural/historical practices can be such an
essential part of a spa’s atmosphere and services.
4. Variations in spa management skills and responsibilities across different types
of spas
The skills and responsibilities required of spa managers/directors do differ considerably
between hotel/resort (and chain-based) spas and day (independent) spas.
In a day spa, the spa manager/director typically functions like an independent
entrepreneur, responsible for all aspects of the business (and may, in fact, also be the
owner). Because a day spa is typically a standalone operation, the demands placed on the
spa manager/director are huge. The spa manager/director is often also the owner of the spa
and essentially must run all aspects of the business on his/her own – from the facilities and
operations, to staffing, to financial management, to marketing, and so on. Since a day spa
must generate its own business, the manager/director/owner must play an active role in
sales/marketing and is closer to the customer than in other types of spas, constantly
working to bring clients into the spa. At the end of the day, if the manager/director/owner
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