Fi Morrison-Arnthal, Founder, Ambitions Travel Recruitment
The travel industry is facing a new recruitment bottleneck as "radar candidates"—high-performing professionals who remain visible to recruiters but refuse to move—are increasingly rejecting lateral career moves. In response, leading travel firms are aggressively hiking holiday entitlements and "lifestyle perks" to break the stalemate.
Recent data from Ambitions Travel Recruitment reveals that over 90% of current placements in the luxury sector now require more than just a salary increase to close. Candidates are no longer willing to "side-step" into similar roles for a 10–15% pay bump; instead, they are demanding enhanced "total reward" packages that prioritize time off and mental well-being.
Recruiters that offer great leadership, realistic targets, proper training and human-paced KPIs will be able to attract talent in the leisure travel business. Skilled Employees that are up to scale in terms of being able to handle longer booking journeys, complex itineraries, and provide high-touch service will shine ahead.
TDM interviews Fi Morrison-Arnthal, Founder, Ambitions Travel Recruitment, to learn more about HR trends in the luxury travel market.
Travel Daily Media (TDM): What are the key trends that you foresee in travel recruitment, human resources growth, training and attrition for 2026?
Fi Morrison-Arnthal (FMA): Competition for proven talent is intense keeping pressure on employers to differentiate. Total reward becomes non-negotiable, candidates will not side step for the same salary and if they do, they will remain actively job hunting - salary still matters most, but holiday entitlement is increasingly bundled into the “is it worth moving?” decision (especially in leisure travel roles).
A shift from “active vs passive” to “Active / Passive / Radar”: more professionals want to be visible and on recruiters’ radar without committing to a move until the right role appears (strong package + strong leadership + progression).
Training becomes a retention strategy, not a ‘nice-to-have’: structured onboarding, sales/service coaching, leadership development and clear progression pathways reduce churn in high-pressure customer-facing environments.
TDM: What are the trends that you are witnessing in leisure travel recruitment in 2026?
FMA: “Radar candidates” are rising: registrations and social engagement increase because candidates want options, market visibility, and to be contacted when something exceptional lands—rather than applying widely.
Packages need to show progression: benchmark salaries rarely move experienced people now; employers need to show a genuine step forward (salary + holidays, plus role scope).
Stronger emphasis on consultative selling and conversion (not just product knowledge): clients want people who can handle longer booking journeys, complex itineraries, and high-touch service.
Employer reputation is a hiring lever: teams with great leadership, realistic targets, proper training and human-paced KPIs win.
TDM: ‘You may be born with talent, but skills are developed through perseverance’ Your comment on the same with regard to the travel and hospitality industry.
FMA: In travel and hospitality, talent might open the door, but long-term success comes from resilience and tenacity —handling pressure, mastering service recovery, improving consultative selling, and continuously learning around soft skills, destinations, product, systems and supplier relationships. The industry rewards people who keep showing up, take feedback well, and turn experience into craft—especially those who can stay calm, consistent and commercially minded during peak periods and operational challenges.
TDM: What has the growth been like for your company in 2025? What are your targets for 2026? How much of your business do you get from relationships and referrals?
FMA: 2025 was our strongest year ever for placements, and over 90% of our work continues to come through repeat and referral business—which we see as the clearest indicator of trust and delivery. The other major growth driver has been strong inbound candidate registrations and social growth, which has expanded our “Radar” talent pool and strengthened our ability to proactively match and convert candidates at the right moment.
Targets for 2026: build on 2025 by scaling repeat/referral partnerships, continuing to grow our talent community (particularly Radar candidates), and supporting clients with attraction/retention messaging and market insight—so hiring outcomes improve even in a highly competitive market.
TDM: Looking at the growing opportunities that this industry is experiencing what remain the key challenges related to manpower? What advice would you offer to the industry to tackle it at a micro level?
FMA: The key Challenges for the industry include labour shortages. Skills gaps persist, alongside high churn in customer-facing roles. Compensation expectations are higher, and candidates are more selective about culture, leadership and workload.
Micro-level advice (what every employer can do)
Employers need to be crystal clear on progression: salary uplift, holiday entitlement, and realistic performance expectations. They need to invest in structured onboarding + training (first 30/60/90 days), plus coaching—not just product training.
They should aim to reduce early attrition with better hiring accuracy: assess for resilience, service mindset, consultative selling and coachability—not just “years in travel.” They need to treat employer brand like a sales funnel: candidates are watching long before they apply (Radar).
They also need to listen and act on feedback: conduct meaningful exit interviews, identify patterns rather than exceptions, and be willing to change policies, leadership behaviours or workloads where needed.
They need to support and develop line managers: many attrition issues stem from management capability. Investing in leadership training has a direct and measurable impact on retention.
TDM: At the moment what is the average employee turnover the travel and hospitality industry in Asia is reeling with? How would you compare the scene with other service industry markets?
FMA: Compared with other service markets, hospitality/travel tends to experience higher churn because roles are operationally intense, customer-facing, and often have variable hours—so pay, workload, leadership quality and training have an outsized impact on retention.
TDM: In your opinion which inherent qualities would help candidates excel in the field of travel and hospitality?
FMA: These include the following:
- Service mindset (genuine enjoyment of helping people)
- Resilience and calm under pressure (especially during disruption)
- Commercial awareness (margin, conversion, upsell, yield thinking)
- Curiosity and continuous learning (destinations, product, suppliers, systems)
- Strong communication (written and verbal—clear, warm, accurate)
- Ownership and accountability (fix it, don’t pass it)
- Relationship-building (clients, suppliers, internal stakeholders)
- Coachability (takes feedback, improves fast)
- Detail orientation (travel is operational—mistakes cost money and trust)
- Ethical judgement (doing the right thing when it’s hard)
