“You've got an industry that has a brand problem”
Research from Hospitality Rising revealed only 1 in 5 people would consider working in the industry.
Speaking as part of a panel at the Commercial Kitchen Show 2022, Mark McCulloch Founder of Hospitality Rising, expressed that the crisis around recruiting staff was down to a brand problem across the industry.
Discussing the issue, he said: “At the moment, parents, teachers, etc, will never say to the students or their kids, go work in hospitality. They'll say go work in a bank, go do something that's more well paid.”
The comment from Mark follows findings collected by his organisation, which suggested only one in five people would consider working in hospitality, and only two in five would recommend working in it to someone else.
“You've basically got an industry that has a brand problem, it's also got a product problem in terms of the experience that a lot of employees get when they come into it, but we can't fix everything straight away,” he explained.
Looking at ways to encourage more talent and improve the image of the industry, Chris Galvin Chef Patron of Galvin Restaurants, highlighted that professionals within the industry need to change the culture for hospitality workers.
“We're working double hard now to make a better culture of less hours, more flexibility, more pay. They want to see their careers prospects [and] a clear path to their development,” he explained.
AN INDUSTRY FULL OF OPPORTUNITY
Highlighting what makes hospitality a worthwhile career choice, Interim Chairman of Hospitality Rising David Campbell, revealed his love for the industry.
“We all understand the opportunities that it's created for us. Myself, I particularly love the people in it, and the people element is really important,” he explained.
In an effort to address the industry’s image problem, Hospitality Rising is looking to celebrate the benefits of working within hospitality, presenting the industry in much more accurate and favourable light.
Explaining what Hospitality Rising was doing to improve the industry's image, David said: “It’s an opportunity for the industry as a whole to get together and change that image. I always look at it as a badge, we're all proud of what we do and what we've done because we've been in it.”
He added: “The things you learned in the kitchen, the things you can learn in a bar, just the people skills alone cannot be matched in any other industry, we've just got to open that door and get people think about it.”
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