“Hotel industry at risk without major recruitment reputation overhaul” – Tim Rumney CEO of BWH Hotels GB sounds the alarm.

As featured in July’s Caterer article The Caterer - InDepth - How hospitality’s business leaders are tackling recruitment in 2024

The hotel industry thrives on the backbone of its people. As we move through 2024 at pace, the industry faces a unique set of challenges in recruitment, development, and training that are shaping its future. As a brand that represents over 200 independent hoteliers, we hear every day, the challenges that our hoteliers face on this topic. 

Recruiting the right talent is paramount in the hotel industry, where guest experience is directly tied to employee performance. In 2024, the challenge is twofold: attracting skilled professionals and retaining them in a competitive market. 

Over half of our hoteliers, when asked about this topic, said, whilst challenges remain in recruitment, their main concern and focus is around retaining staff in an ever-competitive environment. Personally, my view is that as an industry, we need to take collective responsibility to create an excitement and buzz around hospitality, that has lacked in the post Covid and Brexit narrative. We allow the media to present a picture of long unsociable hours and low pay which in many cases is far from the truth. Alongside this, brands and industry leaders must step up and talk more about the opportunities and career progressions that exist. 

In response to recruitment challenges, BWH Hotels GB, like much of the wider industry, is placing a greater emphasis on employee development. A positive workplace culture has emerged as the most common employee benefit in the recent Hireology study in the Future of Hospitality Hiring 2024, this focus on culture is not just about retaining staff but also about developing a strong brand that attracts top talent. 

For example I heard from hotels in the BWH Hotels GB portfolio who are introducing large incentives for length of service, free gym memberships, flexible working patterns, and investing much more in team building and wellbeing events. And here at BWH Hotels Central Office we are celebrating improving our internal NPS score once more to +52, a direct correlation to the fantastic wellbeing, values and engagement improvements we have been making to our workplace culture. 

For me, hospitality is still seen as the ‘Cinderella Industry’ which young people do before they ‘get a proper job’ or whilst in higher education. Schools need to be more responsive to the opportunities that exist in hospitality and Government needs to get serious about creating a properly funded and fit for purpose apprenticeship system. This sentiment was echoed by a number of our hoteliers, who engage actively with local educators to promote our industry. As a brand we’re partnering with Future First, a fantastic social mobility charity to help promote hospitality as a first-choice career for young people and we offer weekly training courses to our network of hotels to upskill their staff as we know training provisions are often an overlooked investment for hotels, or difficult to access without significant upfront costs and commitment. 

The future of hospitality hinges on our collective ability to attract and retain talented professionals. By fostering a positive workplace culture, emphasizing career development, and actively promoting the huge variety of opportunities within our sector, we can reshape the narrative around hospitality. It’s time for industry leaders, educators, and policymakers to unite in elevating the reputation of hospitality, making it a desirable and respected career choice. The success of our industry relies not just on addressing the challenges of today, but on engaging the workforce of tomorrow. 

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About BWH Group

BWH Group GB is a brilliantly different collection of over 270 independent hotels proudly giving a personal welcome to guests for over 70 years. With 18 hotel brands in our group portfolio including Best Western Hotels GB, our properties span economy, midscale and luxury across its distinctive hotels in Great Britain alone, there is more to explore with our brand family.  

Every time you book with us you get the feel good glow of knowing you’re supporting proudly independent hotels. So you’re not just booking, you’re Booking Good.

BWH Group is a membership organisation that helps hotels maintain their independence. Committed to representing the views of its independently owned member hotels, we tackle key industry issues on their behalf, including the effects of Government policies and legislation, industry changes and environmental impact on the heartbeat of the Great British hospitality industry. Never has it been more important for this voice than throughout this time of uncertainty and unprecedented hardship for independent hoteliers. 

To find out more visit Best Western GB's Media Centre: www.bestwestern.co.uk/company/best-western-media-centre