5 Steps to hiring exceptional hotel staff

Every great hospitality experience relies on great people. By hiring the right staff, you can grow a team of people that represent your business in the best light, maintaining smooth-running processes while broadening their expertise through training.

These five steps will help you to hire the most suitable, competent staff for your hotel team, creating an experience that keeps guests coming back.

1. Know your requirements

Before beginning the recruitment process, you should identify which roles are available and the tasks that each candidate will be expected to complete. Ensure you understand the average length of time it takes to complete set tasks in this role, as well as the best ways these can fit into the hotel’s processes, to optimise efficiency and guest satisfaction.

2. Create a detailed job description

Your job description should give a detailed insight into the role you are hiring for. Generic job descriptions will only result in interviewing unsuitable candidates or having to explain in more detail further down the line. An in-depth job description will help you to capture the attention of more skilled candidates while making it stand out.

3. Hire on personality as well as experience

It is rare to interview somebody with every attribute and type of experience that you are looking for. Consider using the WETCO approach, placing importance on warmth, empathy, teamwork, conscientiousness and optimism. These traits enable most team members to learn on the job, as well as being most of the positive attributes needed to deliver an outstanding experience for guests.

4. Advertise in the right places

You could have the best role and job description on the planet, but without it reaching your target candidates, it won’t help you fill the position. As well as popular platforms such as Indeed and LinkedIn, you can target more qualified professionals on hospitality-specific sites, or even reach out to colleges and universities to see if they have any graduates looking for work.

5. Be honest with candidates

Honesty is an integral part of the hiring process, as it gives candidates realistic expectations of what it is like to work with you. Even for unsuccessful candidates, it can be helpful to offer constructive criticism to grow their skill sets, leaving a positive impression and allowing you to keep their CV on file for any future job opportunities.

Looking for more hiring advice? Read our blog post, 10 steps to hiring exceptional hotel staff.

Holly brings a wealth of experience in both print and digital publishing and is very passionate about the hospitality industry.
modernhospitality.co.uk