We all know that starting a job in the industry can lead to a fulfilling career. Whether that is managing a restaurant, becoming a chef, owning a catering company or booking conventions at a hotel that promise to offer exceptional local experiences, careers in hospitality are more than just entry-level positions.
We’ve all heard it a million times before, no matter how false the statement is: working in the hospitality industry is a dead-end job. But if you can communicate with your team and future team members where the industry can take them, you may be able to attract and retain more employees.
Over the last two years the industry has taken a hit, not only in shutdowns, but the loss of employees across the board. During the month of January, 51% of all restaurants were forced to reduce the hours of operations, 34% closed on days they were supposed to be open and 26% reduced their seating capacity, according to a survey by the National Restaurant Association. While the restaurant industry was able to add 108,200 jobs, it still fell short of making a dent in the 1.5 million job openings.
One way to attract new people to the industry is by communicating how one might rise through the ranks of your business and enjoy a meaningful career.
According to an article from the Balance Careers, a website that offers career advice, a career ladder is, “a formal process within an organization that allows employees to advance their careers to higher levels of salary, responsibility or authority.”
The article goes on to say that career ladders help you retain employees you have, since they offer employees something to look forward to.
SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, said that according to a 2021 Verizon survey, 62% of 2,001 female workers, “said they will look for a position in a field that offers more opportunity for skills development and advancement.” And although most employers believed that encouraging employee development was important, almost half of employees say that their company does not do this.
“Most organizations could benefit by increasing efforts to establish clear strategies for how talent will be grown from within,” the article said.
Checktser.com, another career advice website, said you should plan your company’s career ladder by defining each position’s needs and requirements. Every employee must know what skills they must develop to move to the next rung of the ladder.
After that, you should identify the training needs of each position. “The potential for advancement is largely based on what training protocols your company has in place, and whether those will prepare your employees for future advancement.”
Your company’s career ladder should be a part of your onboarding program, so new employees know what they can aspire to. After all, someday your next busser may be a future restaurateur, or the newest cleaning person can someday be a hotel manager hotel.
