As the UK’s third-largest employer, supporting over 3.5 million jobs, it’s little surprise that hospitality is an industry that’s built on its people. But with recent challenges, including rising operating costs and lower consumer confidence to name but a few, there is understandably frustration for many within the industry.
But from challenge comes opportunity, and hospitality has proven time and again its ability to rise. Despite limited support from the government, hotels, venues and the wider hospitality industry continue to demonstrate their commitment to their people, investing not just in their development and wellbeing, but also showcasing why hospitality is a great place to work and helping to bring in more talent.
Here are just a few of their stories.
Addressing the talent pipeline
Recruitment is a much-discussed topic in hospitality, but there is often little focus on it in terms of getting young people into the industry. With outdated perceptions of the industry, particularly for young people needing addressing, the introduction of Hospitality Connect aims to address this issue head on.
Created by long-standing hotelier and now hospitality consultant Adrian Ellis MI back in 2021, Hospitality Connect’s partnership project model sees it provide a framework of events to promote the hospitality sector and improve awareness of careers within the industry to a young student audience.
The programme now operates in 19 regions across the UK, supporting over 190 schools. It’s having a real impact too, with numerous colleges showcasing increased uptake on post-16 hospitality pathways since joining the programme, with some seeing as much as a 167% increase in uptake since 2021.
“With a deepening recruitment crisis and demonstrable skills gaps within culinary, team leader and management roles, the time to engage younger people is now,” explains Laura Johnson, Partnership Manager at Hospitality Connect.
“Without school partnerships whereby industry professionals are going into classrooms to deliver talks or welcoming student groups into their venues, how can we possibly expect young people to look favourably upon the sector??Nurturing a talent pipeline in local communities is therefore absolutely essential to drive interest in the industry.”
This February also saw the introduction of Hospitality Connect’s newest region, The Scottish Highlands, backed by ambassadors representing several of the hotels in the region.
Once such hotel is The Lovat Loch Ness, led by Owner and Director, Caroline Gregory MI. Her work has long focused on bringing in young talent to her own hotel, and now she is looking to take that one step further through her work as an ambassador for Hospitality Connect.
“Our work at The Lovat has long focused on giving our staff long and rewarding careers in the industry,” Caroline explains.
“Our next step is to help bring in the younger generation too, building pathways for them here in The Highlands so they can have fulfilling and genuine careers in hospitality.
“Every young person we meet is someone who may have a future career in our industry, and it’s important to let these people know the opportunities and pathways available to them.”
Breaking barriers
A lack of time and financial resources are often the key barriers when it comes to training and development, which is why some in hospitality have been looking for ways to help break these barriers down.
One such way is through heavily subsidised programmes that don’t require staff to be away from the businesses for extensive periods of time, which is a key focus of the many educational initiatives that the industry body, the Master Innholders, offers.
Programmes such as the Master Innholders Aspiring Leaders Diploma, which lead to becoming an Innholder Graduate, are heavily subsidised by host venues and the Master Innholders themselves, with eight two to three-day modules spread throughout the year to ensure minimal impact on the day-to-day operations of the students’ hotels.
“Each of our programmes are designed to offer training and development for people at different stages of their career, ensuring people feel supported no matter where they currently are on their hotel journey,” explains James B. Clarke, Chair of the Master Innholders.
“This past year in particular, we’ve seen a real increase in demand for our programmes. The Innholder Scholarships, our programme designed for early career professionals looking to develop their management and leadership capabilities, saw a 25% YOY increase in applications, while applications for our GM of the Future, the Neil Bannister Scholarship, increased by 63% YOY.
“Hospitality is hungry for training and development opportunities and employees are seeking them out on their own, not just being recommended to them from upper management. It’s therefore more important than ever that programmes like ours are meeting this demand and breaking down the barriers that so often arise.”
Training and development for all
But how do you make training and development a priority for all when you aren’t just responsible for hundreds of staff, but thousands?
That was the unique challenge Clermont Hotel Group (CHG) faced, with the aim to make training and development for its staff both accessible and embedded into the day-to-day running of the business
2023 saw the launch of ‘The Academy’, CHG’s own learning and development centre designed to upskill and develop employees for long-term careers within the business. With tailored programmes, masterclasses and on-the-job training across the entire portfolio, The Academy saw over 48,000 hours of training provided to employees last year, an increase of 140% compared to the previous year.
“We operate within a people-first industry, and our people are at the heart of our business,” explains CHG’s HR Director, Heather Harris.
“The scale of engagement we’ve seen through The Academy shows what’s possible when development is treated as a business priority. The thousands of hours of learning translate into stronger teams, better service and clearer career pathways for everyone across our hotels.”
Valuing staff
Training and development are important tools when it comes to retention of staff, but sometimes it’s about stepping back and looking at the bigger picture, the why, and the overall purpose of the business and the staff that bring that vision to life.
It’s about relooking at how hospitality gives employees meaningful opportunities, both inside and outside of the workplace. At Foxhills Club & Resort in Surrey, wellbeing and work-life balance are at the heart of the employee experience. Alongside clear career progression and ongoing training, staff enjoy a wide range of lifestyle perks that help them better manage their own wellbeing and work-life balance. This includes complimentary club membership for themselves immediately and their families after two years, as well as access to leisure, wellness and sport facilities, discounted services across the resort, and recognition schemes.
Purpose is also important, with more and more employees viewing it as critical to job satisfaction and wellbeing, particularly for the younger generation, with Deloitte’s Global Purpose Survey finding that 90% of Gen Z and Millennials view purpose as critical to job satisfaction and wellbeing, with growing numbers choosing employers based on purpose and social impact rather than salary alone.
It’s something that Madison Ayache, Vice President of Clean the World Events, is seeing more of too. Through team-building events with CSR and sustainability at their core, Clean the World Events has been seeing more and more hospitality businesses reassessing their approach to team-building and putting purpose at the forefront.
“Training is undoubtedly important, yet more and more studies show the importance of giving employees purpose too.
“Our recent Team Building in the Workplace survey found that 92% of employees believe these experiences strengthen relationships with colleagues, and 85% say they boost job satisfaction.
“Training remains critical, but our research shows employees are equally motivated by experiences that create impact and connection.
“Purpose-led team building strengthens relationships, increases satisfaction and helps people feel part of something meaningful – outcomes that are becoming indispensable for organisations looking to attract and retain talent in today’s hospitality landscape.”
Despite ongoing economic pressures and operational challenges, hospitality continues to rise to the occasion, proving time and again that its greatest asset is its people. Challenges undoubtedly still remain, but one thing is certain: hospitality’s people-first approach ensures the sector will continue to adapt, innovate and thrive.
