Holding on to great employees is essential to the success of any company, especially businesses in the hospitality industry.

Unfortunately, keeping employees in the hospitality industry is more difficult than it is in other industries. There are countless hospitality employment opportunities out there and the barriers to switching jobs is very low. As a result, the hospitality industry is particularly fraught with job hopping.

Retaining hospitality employees isn’t impossible, however. Consider the following five tips for holding onto the best members of your hospitality staff.

How Can I Retain My Hospitality Staff?

1. Keep lines of communication open

Establish an upbeat, team-focused culture with an open-door policy to make certain staff members always feel heard. As much as possible, communication ought to be constructive, and any performance reviews should be done from a ‘coaching’ mindset.

Worker surveys are another approach to keeping lines of communication open. Surveys can offer crucial feedback on staff members’ thinking around their jobs. Surveys also give teams an opportunity to suggest modifications that may be quite useful.

2. Look beyond the paycheck

Many people mistakenly think the only way to keep employees is with money, but that’s not always the best route to job satisfaction. Small details like good-looking uniforms and well-crafted job titles show respect and appreciation for employees, which they will return in kind.

3. Offer flexibility

Staff members have to be capable of taking care of their personal lives and shouldn’t hesitate to ask about time off for doctor appointments or family issues. A paid time-off policy can be a way to offer fair-minded flexibility and support worker retention. Paid time off would be part of a compensation package that staff members could use for personal needs, or they could simply use it to boost their paychecks.

4. Offer training

Staff training should be done on both a team and one-on-one basis. Individual training allows your company to more accurately meet the training needs of individual staff members. For instance, an employee might pick up a new process after one or two days, while a different employee might need a full week. In addition to supporting job satisfaction among staff members, thorough training also helps support positive guest experiences.

It is also important to offer to cross-train employees. This exposes staff members to all parts of your hospitality operation and allows for staff members from different areas to communicate closely, better understand each other and form a greater mutual respect for one another. Cross-training also supports staff development and grooming employees for leadership positions within your organization.

5. Get employees involved

Running any business requires a lot of decision making on administrative and workplace issues. Offloading some of these decisions to employees not only reduces the burden on management, but it also gives employees more control over their working conditions, which naturally leads to higher job satisfaction. For instance, you could ask for employee input on things like uniforms, seasonal décor, and community-service efforts.

Let Us Support Your Hospitality Business

At Cornerstone, we have many years of experience supporting the success of hospitality businesses. If your hospitality operation is in need of a staffing solution, please contact us today.