Soft Skills for Sustainable Development in Tourism: The Bulgarian Experience

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to discuss the soft skills acquisition in the tourism industry as a means of education for sustainable development. A quantitative research approach has been applied in order to investigate the soft skills needed for tourism. The analysis is based on interviews carried out with representatives of the Bulgarian regional Chamber of Commerce and representatives of the Bulgarian hotel and restaurant industry. Additionally, a case study involving three groups of respondents, i.e. Learners, Educators and Representatives of business and Employers in the tourism and hospitality industry in Bulgaria was conducted based on a combined list of soft skills. Whereas some hard skills are traditionally taught at the educational institutions, soft skills, here identified as Core soft skills, Specific soft skills and Managerial soft skills, often remain beyond the educators’ aims. Thus, the study provides some useful insights into the contemporary practice of tourism and hospitality education, on the one hand, and into the paradigm of education for sustainable development, on the other. Keywords: Soft Skills, Tourism, Business, Hospitality, Education, Sustainability, Bulgaria

One-Day Cultural Tours in Bulgaria

“…In a more general perspective, soft skills are considered a part of the professional expertise in tourism, and among these, eff ective communication, hospitality, customer focus and commitment are highly rated (Kiryakova-Dineva et al, 2019).…”

The Imperative to Address Sustainability Skills Gaps in Tourism in Wales

“…Baum, Kralj, Robinson and Solnet [54] state that in order to achieve this, all destination stakeholders need to understand their market and work together to meet the needs of that market, thus placing significant emphasis on personal, communication and diversity skills. Kiryakova-Dineva, Kyurova and Chankova [55] underline effective communication and personal skills at operational and managerial levels to provide excellent customer service for specific customer needs according to cultural preferences, diet and allergies and accessible services for all ages and needs. This characteristic of hospitality and tourism employees leads Strietska-Ilinanand Tessaring [56] to note that such employees are in demand by other sectors because of their transversal and soft skills, leading to a drain of talented employees from the hospitality sector.…”

“…One of the key issues is how to define and measure soft skills, particularly in order to identify apparent skills gaps. Cinque [58] and Kiryakova-Dineva, Kyurova and Chankova [55] noted that there are various methods of naming soft skills, also known as social or transversal skills, emotional intelligence, and basic and/or life skills.…”

“Attitudes do matter”: generic competences in the selection of Business graduates

“…Some studies have already pointed out the importance of training in aspects such as effective leadership skills and emotional competences in a particular sector, as is the case of the public sector (Matjie 2018). Others have done so in specific professional fields, such as the training of soft skills in the hotel and restaurant sector (Kiryakova-Dineva et al,2019. The next section reviews the relevant literature on competences and raises the research propositions. In the third section, we explain the qualitative and quantitative data-gathering and its analysis.…”

“…Some studies have already pointed out the importance of training in aspects such as effective leadership skills and emotional competences in a particular sector, as is the case of the public sector (Matjie, 2018). Others have done so in specific professional fields, such as the training of soft skills in the hotel and restaurant sector (Kiryakova-Dineva et al , 2019).…”