Inter-brand career mobility: a study of general manager perceptions and implications for talent management

Purpose: This study aims to examine how career mobility in the hotel industry shapes individuals’ careers toward general manager roles. Design/methodology/approach: In this exploratory qualitative research, the authors draw on 45 interviews with general managers from 16 countries. Using abductive reasoning and thematic analysis, the authors adopt a career mobility lens. Findings: Evolving openness toward career mobility and structural transformation in the industry are catalysts for inter-brand mobility. The authors identify constraints on and enablers of inter-brand mobility. Specifically, the study findings highlight low perceived permeability in upward mobility from four-star to five-star hotels. Practical implications: Organizations should adopt a talent management culture, working toward reducing constraints on inter-brand mobility. This entails changing long-held, archaic perceptions and investing in employees’ transferable skills. Originality/value: The authors conceptualize and highlight a novel form of career mobility – inter-brand mobility – which differs from traditional organizational and geographical forms of mobility. Further, the authors add to the discourse on the boundaries of career mobility, theorizing the complexities of inter-brand mobility in the hospitality context.