Greece's hospitality sector is grappling with a dual staffing crisis heading into peak summer.
Α publicly documented shortfall of 85,000 frontline seasonal workers and a less visible but equally pressing shortage of senior executives to manage its expanding luxury resort infrastructure — prompting two Greek universities to launch the country's only postgraduate degree dedicated exclusively to hotel management at the corporate level.
The University of West Attica and the Hellenic Mediterranean University unveiled the fourth cycle of their Executive MBA in Hotel Management this week.
Konstantinos Marinakos, associate professor of tourism management and vice president of the Hellenic Hoteliers Federation, said the program is filling a gap that frontline training cannot.
"We are not training frontline service personnel or customer service employees," Mr. Marinakos said. "Our objective is to reinforce the market with senior executives, owners, directors, and professionals aiming to scale the corporate ranks of the hotel industry."
The hybrid program is structured around the off-peak winter season to allow active managers to study without disrupting operations.
Around 100 executives have already graduated from previous cycles, many of whom have moved into senior roles at Mediterranean resort chains.
Mr. Marinakos said building deeper structural ties between Greek universities and hospitality conglomerates is essential if the country is to maintain its competitive position as its luxury tourism infrastructure continues to expand — a sector that recorded over €23 billion in investment plans in Piraeus alone this year.