How Hotel Executives Can Address the Talent Gap

By Bob Adams and Joe Ruzicka | June 28, 2023

According to an industry estimate, nearly 90% of hotels continued to experience staffing shortages of some kind in the second half of 2022, notwithstanding a relative rebound in lodging demand. “Hotel guests are back,” the Wall Street Journal shared. “But the workers aren’t.”

Although the labor market continues to be tight, there are plenty of challenges unique to hotels – including a need for highly specialized skills and a reputation for high-stress environments. But there is good news on the horizon: Additional growth is already materializing, as researchers at CBRE estimated that the industry will make a full recovery this year.

One effect of growth is giving lodging professionals the fiscal and strategic breathing room to reimagine how they hire and train.

Reconsider what you’re looking for in staff.

Many establishments require at least some prior experience working in hotels or a similar environment. In some ways, this makes sense, because no two customer service roles are the same, and hospitality can present team members with very specific, unique challenges they might not encounter elsewhere. But there’s plenty of room for thinking outside the box. Some skills are transferable, and others can be learned through training – even without much stress – depending on what a prospective hire brings to the table.

You’ll also want to take a deeper look at your hiring policies and update them if needed. Having a second set of eyes on your recruitment procedures can be beneficial to ensure your company remains compliant with state and federal regulations. As one example, the evolving landscape of drug screening requirements vary by state.

Bring the training experience forward.

Training is as much a psychological experience as a technical one. From your perspective, you want it to be short and cost-effective, with the goal of getting a new hire on the frontlines and ready to work at least semi-independently in a matter of days. It’s worth revitalizing your training processes if you have not done so in a while.

Show people where they can go.

This is generally a good tip across the board, regardless of industry. In tight labor markets especially, this reinforces the sense that this career path is purpose driven. More job seekers than you think will be asking themselves if a job posting has room for growth. Is it clear to people what paths for advancement are available? If it looks like a dead end, effectively, they’ll probably see it as a job rather than a career with passion or purpose. This isn’t what you want.

Embrace technology as a complement, not a substitute.

Digitizing human resource management, payroll, recruiting, and other processes to some degree has resulted in significant cost savings for hospitality businesses looking to reorient their operations. But this process tends to be most successful when those organizations take a complementary, and not substituting, approach to technology.

Adams Keegan, for example, relies not just on software, but on the right people focused on your specific needs. By combining a personal focus with intelligent workplace solutions, seamless collaboration is possible. Plus, we ensure you stay compliant and efficient, while taking on transactional tasks and relieving administrative burdens.

It can save your business a lot of time and money to consider what can be automated, reducing stress, and freeing up the staff you do have to focus on creating unforgettable person-to-person experiences. This is the “human element” of hospitality that organizations are yearning for amid talent gaps and staffing crunches. With the right changes, hotel executives can even better prepare their existing staff and recruit new team members who bring a fresh perspective to the industry.