Hotel owners are so focused on enhancing the guest experience, that they often forget about the employee experience.
The truth is, the hotel industry has an annualized employee turnover rate of 73.8 percent. It’s even more shocking when you consider the average turnover rate across all industries is 17.8 percent. Every time someone quits, they get replaced. With 6 percent of the staff leaving on a monthly basis, turnover becomes costly and time-consuming.
Why is this happening?
There is an undersupply of qualified and motivated workers in the industry. With more job openings than available workers, HR and recruiting departments are struggling to attract the right talent. Considering that hotels are open 24 hours a day, there are many employees that deal with inconsistent and inflexible scheduling. There is often a disparity in benefits between labor workers and white-collar workers. With a wide variety of positions, certain departments have quick employment disengagement.
Although it’s important to recognize that the industry is volatile, it’s still costly. According to a study done by Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, if a hotel has 500 employees and meets the industry average turnover rate, they would be losing around $2 million a year.
Hope is not lost though, while it may be difficult to retain talent, there are a few strategies you can implement to decrease turnover.
Focus on your company culture
Especially when it comes to entry-level positions, often the only thing keeping employees from leaving is relationships. It’s important to find ways for employees to engage with each other and boost morale.
Culture defines your internal and external identity by showcasing how you conduct business. Not only does a strong company culture keep talent, but it attracts it. You are far more likely to gain positive experiences in the future if you have established a good culture.
Provide Incentives
Most employees will go above and beyond if they know they’re going to be recognized for their accomplishments. If they’re not recognized, it’s harder to provide them with an incentive to stay. Everybody is unique and carries different career goals and aspirations. Stay in-tune with what your staff’s individual goals are and find ways for them to gain value from their position. Even if the position isn’t a long-term career choice for every employee, establishing recognition programs and merit-based rewards show that you value the hard work team members put in.
Encourage and be open to feedback
Often employees feel like they are not being heard. It’s common for employees to assume that management isn’t interested in their ideas. Find ways to provide opportunities for feedback and always encourage suggestions.
With that said, make sure you are attuned to constructive feedback. Sometimes you don’t know there is a problem until it’s addressed. If these ideas are frequently going in one ear and out the other, morale will sink. Every employee wants to feel that they play a key role in the achievement of organizational goals. Consider allowing employees to make low-level decisions while avoiding micromanagement.
Are you struggling with high turnover? Can you honestly say you have the top talent in the hotel industry working for your property? If you are ready to take your operation to the next level, JDI can help. Joseph David International is regularly ranked among the top hotel recruiters because we work hard to find the ideal fit for your particular operation as well as the needs and wants of the candidate. For more information about our hospitality recruiting services, please click here.