Gender Equity in Hospitality

This rigorous study on India’s hospitality industry from a gendered lens is a notable contribution to the literature on gender and leadership in the global south. Congratulations are in order to the author Payal Kumar for this invaluable monograph.

-- Melissa Fisher, Author of Wall Street Women and Cultural Anthropologist, NYU Institute for Public Knowledge & School of Professional Studies, USA

In this much-needed study of the hospitality industry in India, Dr. Payal Kumar provides an in-depth analysis of the challenges, as well as solutions, to women’s advancement to leadership. Based on thought-provoking data from interviews with senior and mid-level leaders in this sector, as well as data on gendered leadership representation, this book adds to literature by contextualizing gender diversity and equity issues in India, while providing far-reaching HR solutions needed to catapult the hospitality industry forward.

-- Diana Bilimoria, Professor and Chair of Organizational Behavior and KeyBank Professor, Case Western Reserve University, USA

Women continue to lag behind men in most measures of employment and income, but the inequities women face in hospitality are even more significant, given greater occupational segregation, unusual work hours, gender bias, work-family conflict, and barriers to leadership roles. The COVID-19 pandemic further contributed to widening the gaps between women and men. Dr Payal Kumar has conducted extensive research and captured the inequities women face in the hospitality industry in India. Her book offers us an insightful account of how a strong paternalistic culture persists in hindering the advancement of women in the Indian hospitality industry.

-- Eddy Ng, Smith Professor of Equity and Inclusion in Business, Queen’s University, Canada

Professor Payal Kumar’s book, Gender Equity in Hospitality: The Case of India, makes very timely and important contributions. It is a thoughtful book that must be read by every hospitality manager. I was particularly impressed by its coverage of both the pre- and post-COVID-19 pandemic landscape. Practitioners and policy makers will find the in-depth analysis of the barriers to woman leadership in hospitality very helpful. Understanding these roadblocks is critical in helping organizations overcome these challenges. Meaningful change demands a simultaneous focus on both individuals and systems. Professor Kumar’s powerful change models are a highlight of the book.

-- Sukhbir Sandhu, Associate Professor & Executive Director, Centre for Workplace Excellence, UniSA Business, University of South Australia, Australia

The Indian hospitality industry has had a poor track record in regards to gender equality and Dr Payal Kumar’s book Gender Equity in Hospitality: The Case of India is a must-read for leaders who want to make a difference. With detailed verbatim comments, it is an insightful read that can help any hospitality company put together a clear roadmap towards achieving its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals. I am hopeful that together we can all recalibrate the playing field and see many more women in hospitality board rooms.

-- Kanika Hasrat, Area Director UP, MP and Uttarakhand and General Manager at Taj Lakefront Bhopal at The Indian Hotel Company Limited, and President of Women Indian Chamber for Commerce and Industry (WICCI) for Hospitality and Tourism, India

Given the importance and pace of growth of the hospitality and tourism sector for the Indian economy, this is a timely study as it addresses the twin cultural issues of a lack of gender diversity and inequitable promotion practices in hospitality and tourism in India. The current undeniable domination of studies focused on Western contexts makes this a valuable contribution to the field.

-- Dr Ruth Puhr, Head of Quality Assurance and Academic Development, Les Roches Global Hospitality Education, Switzerland

In Gender Equity in Hospitality: The Case of India, Prof Payal Kumar draws attention to how cultural nuances and other factors shape and impact careers in the hospitality industry in India. Drawn from extensive research and her own observations, the book contains practical recommendations for policy makers and industry leaders that would enable more women to be included, engaged and have successful stints in the hospitality industry. In a world where purpose and ways of working are being redefined, this is a highly relevant read.

-- Aarti Kelshikar, Founder, 3A Consulting, and Author of How Women Work: Fitting in and Standing Out in Asia

This much-needed book offers valuable insights into the barriers to woman leadership in the Indian hospitality sector, both on the individual and systemic level. It deals incisively with the gendered and gendering problems of the sector constructed at the level of individual identities and cultural expectations embedded into interaction, institutional opportunities, and constraints. This book will be valuable for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers who want to understand barriers to woman leadership in a patriarchal and high-power distance society and who strive for a systemic change in the sector. It will also enrich the lives of hospitality students who want to understand gender discrimination and make a difference in their lives and in the field.

-- Regine Bendl,Associate Professor, Institute for Gender and Diversity in Organizations, Vienna University of Economics and Business, Aus