How To Become A Guest Services Leader: What It Is and Career Path

What is a guest services leader and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Wherever there are guests, there is a guest services leader working behind the scenes to coordinate the team responding to guest needs. They could work in department stores in order to manage the needs of shoppers or in restaurants. Guest services leaders are especially in demand in hotels--the entire hospitality industry exists solely to serve guests, after all.

No matter where they work, the guest services leader has to spend their day managing guest requests and supervising the rest of the guest services team. Their day-to-day tasks may vary. Some days a guest services leader will communicate with customers, other days they will manage the payroll, and on another day, they could hire and train new employees.

Guest services leaders don't need a diploma to do the job, although about half have bachelor's degrees. Practical experience in customer service is far more important, as is flexibility. Guest services leaders can expect to work nights and weekends since whenever there are guests, they will need service.

ScoreGuest Services LeaderUS Average

Salary

2.7

Avg. Salary $34,973

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.0

Growth rate -4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.64%

Asian 5.23%

Black or African American 9.85%

Hispanic or Latino 18.69%

Unknown 4.72%

White 60.86%

Gender

female 65.74%

male 34.26%

Age - 48

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48

Stress level

8.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a guest services leader

Explore guest services leader education requirements

Most common guest services leader degrees

Bachelor's

45.4 %

High School Diploma

22.2 %

Associate

21.8 %

Start to develop specific guest services leader skills

Skills	Percentages
Greeting Guests	35.81%
Cleanliness	32.93%
Customer Complaints	4.33%
Develop Team	4.27%
Customer Service	3.81%

Complete relevant guest services leader training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New guest services leaders learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a guest services leader based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real guest services leader resumes.

Research guest services leader duties and responsibilities

Manage crew by utilizing professional leadership skills.
Train all new hires on proper phone handling, POS program, guest interactions, and hospitality.
Provide case management and document individual treatment plans using DMH documentation format, daily supervision of adolescents and provide crisis intervention.
Apply knowledge of bean varieties, roasts, and popular drinks to guide customers to selections, upselling where possible.

Get guest services leader experience

Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a guest services leader. The most common roles before becoming a guest services leader include cashier, sales associate team lead and assistant manager.

Prepare your guest services leader resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your guest services leader resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a guest services leader resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable guest services leader resume templates

Build a professional guest services leader resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your guest services leader resume.