Interested in travelling the world and spending your days in luxurious hotels? If so then the new Leadership Development Programme at the Fairmont is for you.

The programme is designed to put four high-calibre university graduates on a training track to become executive-level managers within five years and hotel general managers within 10 years. Unlike other hospitality management programmes this is not for training people to remain in Bermuda. Once the successful applicants have completed the programme they will be sent abroad to work in one of the Fairmont locations.

"Our greatest focus right now is the development of our future leaders," said Nelda Simons, regional director of human resources with Fairmont Bermuda. "The 12- to 18-month programme rotates leadership trainees through various disciplines within our hotels, pairs them with a mentor, and allows them to take on various projects. A candidate's willingness to be mobile is a key factor in moving toward an executive position."

The programme has been created and instituted world-wide to help Fairmont Hotels & Resorts meet its growth requirements. The next four years are expected to be an unparalleled period of expansion for Fairmont internationally with 20 new properties expected to come under its management before the end of 2011. Some of these projects include a hotel in Mecca, the Islamic holy city in Saudi Arabia, and one on the man-made Palm Island in Dubai.

Ms Simons believes the programme will help propel Bermudians to the top of the hospitality industry. "Historically Bermudians were not seen in the management positions at hotels and the perception is that they are still not in management positions," she said. "But that is incorrect. Here at the Fairmont Southampton approximately 50 percent of our management positions are filled by Bermudians. People continue to ask: when will there be a Bermudian general manager? It's these types of programmes that will give Bermudians the skills and the experience to become a general manager not just here in Bermuda but around the world."

With four positions available Ms Simons said they were very interested in looking for external candidates as well as internal candidates.

Candidates who are considered for the programme must be a university or college graduate and preferably have previous hospitality experience. Ms Simons said an ideal candidate would be mobile, confident, mature and have the passion, ability and aspiration to climb the career ladder.

• Interested candidates should send their resume by e-mail, with the subject line 'Leadership Development Programme', to Nelda Simons at Nelda.Simons@Fairmont.com or to Kelli-Ann Smith at Kelli-Ann.Smith@Fairmont.com.