If you’re in the recruiting field, you’ll have heard that the hotel and lodging industry is suffering from an unprecedented and ongoing worker shortage. In an industry where recruiters were challenged to fill jobs even before the pandemic, the return to travel has only made the situation more severe. On the worker side, employees who began looking for more flexibility and balance at the onset of the pandemic are choosing not to return to the industry they left.
In a recent survey by the American Hotel and Lodging Association, 87% of respondents said they are experiencing a staffing shortage and “36% severely so.” There simply aren’t enough willing workers to fill the open roles.
So how is the industry combatting this shortage?
For one, they’re trying to attract employees back by increasing wages. The industry is seeing its largest wage growth in the last 20 years (see graph from Business Insider below).
But raising wages doesn’t always work. These workers are not only looking for higher wages but more flexibility. They don’t want to be tied to a desk or a location. They want freedom in how and where their work is being done.
To reduce the effects of the massive labor deficit, leaders in the industry are looking into automation and cross-training to fill the gaps.
Many hotels now use virtual or even biometric check-in and check-outs, and restaurants have invested in mobile ordering. All that can be automated is being automated.
While these may seem like good fixes for the growing issues, they present another industry-wide concern. Now, recruiters will need to attract top tech talent to help them to create and automate these processes. Unfortunately, tech talent is also hard to find as these professionals are in high demand.
Hilton has another approach. Hilton hopes its continuing education program will help demonstrate to current and potential employees that Hilton cares about them and their futures. Through the Guild Education program, employees can access programs like “English language learning, digital literacy, high school completion, professional certifications in areas like culinary skills and data analytics, and college degrees.”
Their approach is good for attracting and retaining talent, but it won’t necessarily help recruiters find the right candidates or ensure a good fit for potential employees.
So what is the solution?
The consulting firm, McKinsey, proposes a method they say will help recruiters “ACE” recruiting. They suggest that first recruiters must:
A: “Analyze talent suitability with digital tools” to ensure potential candidates will be a good fit at the company. McKinsey highlights the importance of this, as a majority of turnover is due to wrong-fit hires. With data-backed decisions, recruiters can avoid this source of turnover and find talent that will be a good fit for the company. Additionally, greater transparency about what job roles entail helps job seekers self-select for jobs where there is a natural fit.
C: Clearly Define and Communicate Job Requirements and Career Paths: Employees must clearly understand expectations in order to rise to them. If expectations are unclear, the employer/employee relationship will break down. Feedback structures, benefits, company culture, etc., should be communicated before the employee walks through the door. WorkReels empowers companies to attract new candidates through the voice of their workforce. Potential candidates get to hear firsthand from current employees how they are treated, their career path, and how they hope to grow within the company. Potential applicants are much more likely to trust a current employee's word than a recruiter's voice over the phone or even text in a job post. For example, if an applicant is allowed to hear from a current employee how the company shows they care about them, they may learn about more fringe perks and benefits that recruiters may not always think to mention.
E: Empower your HR department: HR Teams are responsible for building and maintaining the talent pool that works at your company. They are indirectly responsible for creating or maintaining the culture of your company by finding the right candidates, ones who will uphold and support that culture. Often, these groups responsible for shaping an organization are understaffed, unequipped, and underfunded. It is so important to provide these teams with all the tools necessary to build and maintain a pool of talent. WorkReels gives recruiters the tools to speak to job seekers through videos without having to to engage the marketing team or bring in a video production firm. Through WorkReels, recruiters can create powerful video stories quickly and easily for sharing on social media, a jobs page, or wherever they reach out to potential candidates. WorkReels allows recruiters to produce video content that answers questions they are asked repeatedly by candidates: “What’s it like to work here?” “What is the company culture like?” “What are my coworkers like?”.
McKinsey has highlighted these elements as crucial pieces of the puzzle and WorkReels helps recruiters solve the puzzle.
WorkReels is essential to increasing hospitality hires. To learn more about how WorkReels can help you, contact us at info@workreels.com.