UPUHH founded the Human Resources Section: hoteliers strengthen their focus on people, education and work standards
The Association of Employers in Croatian Hospitality, UPUHH, has expanded its activities by founding the Human Resources Section, a new professional body that brings together representatives of the HR sector from leading hotel companies and tourism companies. According to information from UPUHH, the aim of the section is to further strengthen the role of human resources in the hotel industry, encourage the exchange of knowledge and experience among experts and more systematically connect the needs of employers, the education system and competent institutions. Tina Turk Lupieri, Director of Human Resources at Maistra Hospitality Group, was elected president of the Section.
The establishment of the section comes at a time when the tourism sector is increasingly relying on high-quality employee management, competence development and longer-term workforce planning. According to data from the Ministry of Tourism and Sport, Croatia recorded 21.8 million tourist arrivals and 110.1 million overnight stays during 2025, exceeding the level of 110 million overnight stays in one year for the first time. The same ministry, citing data from the Croatian National Bank, stated that revenues from foreign tourists in the first nine months of 2025 amounted to 13 billion and 411 million euros, which shows the economic importance of the sector, but also the pressure on its organisational and staffing sustainability.
A new platform for HR experts in the hotel industry
The Human Resources Section is conceived as a professional platform for experts who, within hotel systems, manage recruitment, employee development, training, organisational culture, labour relations and business compliance with regulations. According to UPUHH’s announcement, the main objectives of the section include promoting modern HR practices, exchanging the best experiences from hotel companies, organising training sessions and workshops, and monitoring the legislative framework that affects employers and workers in tourism. The association also announces the possibility of submitting professional initiatives to competent authorities, especially in matters that directly affect the availability of labour, work quality and the long-term competitiveness of the hotel industry.
Special emphasis has been placed on cooperation between the economy and educational institutions. Such an approach is important because hotel companies, in addition to seasonal employment, are increasingly looking for workers who can follow changes in technology, sales, revenue management, sustainability, service standards and guest expectations. In practice, this means that HR departments are not only dealing with the administration of labour relations, but are increasingly participating in shaping business strategies, planning training, developing career paths and retaining employees.
On the occasion of the establishment, Tina Turk Lupieri said that the focus of the Section’s work would be empowering experts in the field of human resources. According to her, continuous learning, knowledge exchange and competence development are the foundation of personal and organisational development. She added that the work of the Section aims to connect HR experts, encourage cooperation and create space for learning, sharing experiences and exchanging best practices.
Management and staffing challenges are becoming a strategic issue
In the hotel industry, the issue of human resources can increasingly no longer be viewed separately from broader business strategy. Service quality, employer reputation, the level of guest satisfaction and the ability of companies to respond to peak seasonal workloads largely depend on the availability and training of workers. According to announcements by the Croatian Employment Service on seasonal jobs, the tourism sector still requires intensive mediation, counselling and informing of candidates, including support in choosing occupations, writing CVs and developing the basic skills needed for work in service activities.
The labour force issue is additionally linked to the employment of third-country nationals. When presenting amendments to the Foreigners Act, the Ministry of the Interior stated that the legal changes were being introduced because of labour market needs and the significant increase in the number of permits. According to data from the Ministry of the Interior, in 2024, 206,529 residence and work permits were issued, which is 210 percent more than in 2020, when there were 66,655. Narodne novine published amendments to the Foreigners Act regulating a number of issues important for employers, including permit issuance procedures, the possibility of changing employer and occupation, and special rules for seasonal workers.
For hotel companies, this means that HR departments must monitor not only market trends, but also the rules of migration, labour and tax policy, as well as standards of accommodation, integration and worker protection. In this context, UPUHH’s Section can serve as a place for harmonising professional positions, exchanging concrete solutions and preparing proposals for institutions. This is especially important in a sector that must simultaneously respond to high guest expectations, business seasonality, rising costs and increasingly pronounced international competition for workers.
The Executive Board brings together representatives of leading tourism companies
The strategic importance of the new Section is also confirmed by the composition of its Executive Board. According to information from UPUHH, representatives of hotel companies, tourism enterprises and professional organisations have been appointed to the board: Tina Turk Lupieri from Maistra Hospitality Group, Matej Lufčić from Jadranka turizam, Ana Gazić from Turisthotel, Natali Komen Bujas from the Croatian Employers’ Association, Jana Baksa from Aminess, Sara Posavec from Terme Sveti Martin, Ivana Halembek from Plava Laguna, Petra Maja Jakopec from Valamar, Isabella Frančula from Arena Hospitality Group, Branka Medić from Sunce hoteli, Aurelija Radeljić from Hilton Hotels Zagreb, Matej Rukavina from Solaris grupa, Nataša Kovačić from Hilton Rijeka, Martina Rajaković from ALH, Barbara Olenik Staničić from Jadran Crikvenica, Marina Radović from Hotel Krk, Sanjin Franković from Maslinica Rabac and Tihana Radojković from Milenij Hoteli.
Such a composition shows that UPUHH seeks to bring together different segments of the hotel industry, from large systems to regional and specialised tourism companies. For a sector in which working conditions, seasonality and skill needs can differ significantly among destinations and types of facilities, the exchange of experiences between companies can be particularly useful. It can help shape common education standards, harmonise practices for introducing workers into jobs, improve planning of seasonal needs and strengthen communication between employers and educational institutions.
UPUHH Director Bernard Zenzerović assessed that the establishment of the Human Resources Section represents a strategic step forward in the further professionalisation of the sector. According to him, people are the key advantage of Croatian tourism, and the new working body should ensure systematic support for HR experts. Zenzerović emphasised that long-term competitiveness and high service quality in the hotel industry can be ensured only through the continuous development of competencies and the exchange of best practices in all business segments.
The role of UPUHH in sectoral networking
On its official website, UPUHH presents itself as a professional association of hoteliers, and also states that it is a member of HOTREC, the umbrella European association of hotels, restaurants, bars and cafés, which connects 45 national associations from 33 countries. Such membership enables UPUHH to monitor European discussions and examples of good practice in the hotel industry, including issues of labour, competitiveness, sustainability, digitalisation and regulatory changes. The association also states that it brings together more than 400 hotels, which gives it relevant sectoral breadth for launching specialised working bodies.
The establishment of the HR section fits into a broader trend of professionalising hotel management. At the business level, revenue management, digital tools, quality standards, sustainability and human resources are increasingly interconnected. In such an environment, HR departments are becoming important participants in investment planning, the development of new products and work organisation, rather than merely an implementation service that reacts to current recruitment needs. For this reason, sectoral cooperation can help hoteliers identify recurring problems more quickly and try to solve them more systematically.
Data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics further confirm that tourism is entering 2026 with continued growth in tourist traffic. The CBS announced that in March 2026 there were 17 percent more tourist arrivals compared with March 2025, noting that tourists from Slovenia recorded the highest number of overnight stays among foreign tourists. Although one month does not define the whole season, such indicators point to a continued need for stable operational capacities and well-prepared employees during periods of increased demand.
Education, worker retention and service quality
One of the more important tasks of the new Section will be strengthening the link between education and the real needs of employers. The hotel industry requires various profiles, from operational occupations in accommodation, kitchen, restaurant and housekeeping to experts in sales, marketing, finance, revenue management, digital systems and sustainability. If educational programmes do not follow the development of the industry, employers must invest considerably more in additional training, and the entry of young workers into the sector becomes slower and more demanding.
Cooperation with educational institutions can include the development of practical training, guest lectures, mentoring, specialised workshops and better communication about what competencies are expected from future employees. For pupils and students, this can mean a clearer insight into career opportunities in the hotel industry, and for employers, better preparation of candidates before entering the labour market. Such an approach is particularly important if the aim is to reduce the perception that jobs in tourism are exclusively short-term and seasonal, and to open space for the development of long-term careers.
Along with attracting new workers, retaining existing employees remains one of the key issues. Hotel companies increasingly have to invest in internal training, leadership quality, shift organisation, communication with workers and advancement opportunities. HR experts thereby have the role of mediators between business goals and employee needs, especially during periods of the greatest workload. UPUHH’s Human Resources Section could therefore become a place where recommendations and models are developed that can be applied in different hotel systems.
The competitiveness of tourism increasingly depends on people
According to the Ministry of Tourism and Sport, Croatian tourism achieved record results in overnight stays in 2025, and the Government, based on data from the Croatian National Tourist Board and the eVisitor system, announced that the number of overnight stays exceeded 110 million for the first time. Such results confirm the strength of tourism demand, but at the same time raise the question of how to ensure that growth is not based solely on the number of arrivals and overnight stays, but also on service quality, business sustainability and labour force stability. It is precisely here that human resources emerge as one of the most important areas of sectoral policy and business management.
The new Human Resources Section at UPUHH is focused on an area that directly affects the everyday guest experience, the efficiency of hotel systems and the long-term attractiveness of tourism as an employer. If the announced objectives are translated into regular exchange of practices, professional training and quality dialogue with institutions, the section could play an important role in the professionalisation of human resources management in the hotel industry. In a sector that increasingly competes through quality, knowledge and the ability to adapt, working with people is becoming one of the key prerequisites for future development.
Sources:
- UPUHH – official information about the association, membership in HOTREC and the UPUHH team (link)
- Ministry of Tourism and Sport – data on Croatia’s tourism results in 2025 (link)
- Ministry of Tourism and Sport – announcement on revenues from foreign tourists according to data from the Croatian National Bank (link)
- Ministry of the Interior – information on amendments to the Foreigners Act and data on residence and work permits (link)
- Narodne novine – Act on Amendments to the Foreigners Act, NN 40/2025 (link)
- Croatian Bureau of Statistics – announcement on tourist arrivals in March 2026 (link)
RECOMMENDED ACCOMMODATION