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ers, which dwarfs other industries, so we are perceived as low-skilled and low-paid despite having huge management opportunities. But existing managers are not getting enough people coming up through the ranks.
David Armitage (DA): Yes, I see managers rising through the ranks and becoming operational. This is important, but they are not looking after the experiences of those below them.
Sean Wheeler (SW): We have talked about setting up a mentoring scheme drawn from managers in larger companies who would work with SME managers with fewer tools.
MK: We need a transparent career path across businesses. People leave the industry because of poor management. We need to develop managers who support staff development.
Why is it getting harder to attract staff and what can be done to rectify that? Peter Avis (PA): The big problem is perception. People think you have to work 20 hours a day with no breaks and, in 2016, people don’t accept that. We need to show that there is a great work- life balance in hospitality, that it is structured and you can have a great career. Managers need to get that message across. At Babylon we use our own people as case studies.
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“We need to unite behind a universal campaign and get everyone to do something significant” Anne Pierce
AP: Getting passionate people within the industry to talk about their career is one of the best ways to inspire people from outside the industry. The next is offering quality work experience. Our research looks at factors that affect careers choices and quality of work experience is crucial. Work experience stu- dents need to feel valued and then we need someone who will help them to move into paid work afterwards. Why invest in work experi- ence if you don’t see it as a recruitment tool?
Stephen Spencer (SS): What we are talking about here is marketing, but if the industry doesn’t live up to its hype, it will fail. Business productivity benefits from focusing on people. That is what the culture should be.
DA: Look after your staff and the customer experience will look after itself.
MK: The National Living Wage is already getting people to think about how to retain staff through progression. It is crazy not to look at the fact that staff costs are rising.
How are the needs of employees changing? Rachel Jones (RJ): Previously, people held two or three jobs in a career, but the trend for [millennials] is 10-12 jobs. So you need to think about the maximum time you can have them in your business.
PA: Good point. And it is about the industry sharing. Someone working in hospitality is already in our industry pool, so we need to keep them there. For example, one of our managers wanted to try working in different cultures, so I shared him with a colleague in the industry. That is so important.
DA: Yes. Let your staff go, but keep an open door when they leave so they can come back.
How much importance should be given to front of house recruitment? SS: At the end of the day, business grows through providing a great experience. I spent time with Danny Meyer at Union Square Hospitality Group in New York and he is tak- ing tipping away and paying his staff more. He
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