5 Tips for Hiring Quality Hotel Staff
With more than 1,300,000 people employed in the hotel industry, many lodging properties are looking for ways to hire the best staff and keep them for the long-term.
In today’s job market that can be a challenging task. To help you hire effectively and provide the best in customer service, we look at five tips for hiring quality hotel staff.
Remember that great employees provide excellent customer service. So, the better you hire, the better your customers will feel about your hotel. (tweet this)
Let’s look at some hotel hiring tips that show how you can hire the best team that’s the best fit for your hotel culture.
#1: Take Care with Job Descriptions
The first thing you want to do to hire the best team possible is to specifically define the roles you’re looking for.
Your job descriptions should include all the job responsibilities and the requirements. You might even include some of the challenges they’ll face in the hospitality industry.
Having a thorough job description weeds out candidates so the most qualified people are more likely to apply.
In addition, make a list of all the jobs at your hotel property. Then, you can start filling in the job descriptions for each one. Ultimately this helps you see if there is crossover. If so, you can fine tune your positions to help each team member work to their full potential.
Another suggestion is to create an ideal candidate profile before crafting your job descriptions.
The candidate profile is your blueprint for the job. It maps out the attributes and personality traits you’re looking for. For example, you might want your front desk manager to be friendly, independent, confident, and excellent at customer service.
It also includes more information on what this person likes to do and where they like to hang out as well as skill sets you’re looking for. Essentially, it’s just like a buyer persona you’d use to market your hotel. In this case, it’s the “persona” you’re looking for to staff your hotel.
Once you complete the profile, you can move ahead to the job description. Feel free to be creative with it and show your personality. Always be incredibly detailed. Try to be inclusive in your descriptions so you don’t leave people out.
#2: Promote Your Job Openings in the Right Places
Advertising your open jobs on job sites is fine. You will most likely receive a lot of applications and resumes.
Yet, since you’re creating the ideal candidate profile and detailed job descriptions, it’s time to think outside the box.
For example, if your profiles describe someone who is likely in college, this is a great place to post your job application as most colleges have great job boards.
In addition, you can harness the power of social media to reach out to people with the background and experience you’re looking for. You might consider using paid ads on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn to target the right audience.
#3: Screen Candidates Before the Interview
Another hotel hiring tip to help when it comes to hiring quality hotel staff is to thoroughly vet your candidates before deciding to interview them.
Make sure your application includes a place for candidates to include references. In addition, go ahead and call previous employers even if they aren’t listed as references. This will help you get a clear idea of the candidate’s qualifications, work ethic, and experiences.
You want to know how applicants performed in their previous roles, and calling reference is the best way to gauge this. Ask the previous employer if they would recommend the candidate.
Also, part of the screening process includes asking extremely specific questions on your hiring applications. Go a step further than the traditional questions and really get applicants to show you their talent and experience in the hospitality industry.
By checking references, you can also get some idea of whether or not the person would be a good fit in your current company culture.
#4: Hire with an Eye to Success
Once you’ve conducted your interviews and checked references, and you have several people on your final list, it’s time to look a little further.
At this time, you can take a look at your final candidates’ social media profiles. This will really tell you whether or not they’ll be successful at your company.
First, check LinkedIn to make sure their resume matches their profile. Then, check out other platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and SnapChat.
Not only do you want to look at experience and qualifications but look at each candidate’s potential for success. Their social media platforms can tell you a lot about their personal attributes and again whether they’ll fit in your company culture.
#5: Create an Onboarding Strategy
One study shows that businesses with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by more than 70%.
You can see how a terrific onboarding and training strategy can help you hire and keep quality hotel staff.
The hiring process doesn’t end when you decide who to hire. It continues through the training period. You have to train your new team members. Hotels that invest in onboarding hire better staff and keep them longer.
Finally, when it comes to training, this isn’t just something you do in the first 90 days. It should be ongoing for all your team members. This shows them you are invested in them and their happiness. The overall success of your hotel depends on this.
Final Thoughts on Hotel Hiring Tips
According to a study by Entelo, on average, talent acquisition professionals spend about 13 hours sourcing candidates for a single role, and some groups spend even more.
So, you can see how important it is to be overly prepared when hiring quality hotel staff.
When it comes to hotel hiring tips, the best thing you can do is have a strategy, be thorough and patient, and look for new employees that will care about your guests and the overall experience at your hotel.
Continue to value and appreciate your new hires throughout their career at your hotel, and you’ll find that soon word will get around your hotel is a great place to work. Then, quality hotel staff is right around the corner.
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Images: Random Institute and visualsofdana on Unsplash
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