Q1. What are some of the conventional sources through which talents are hired? What are the new age platforms now available; and how do they benefit?
Digitization is revolutionizing the recruitment process to overcome all the bottlenecks in traditional methods of recruitment. While the traditional recruitment methods like local newspaper advertisements, employment exchange postings etc may have served well in meeting the recruitment needs in the past, they are almost redundant now. This age of social media is inexpensive and allows access to a vast pool of potential candidates in a very short period. We are also engaging with networking platforms such as conducting job fairs, open houses, which have helped, attract interns, and hotel school graduates.
The pool of candidates we receive through our career website has always been encouraging. We have also always believed in maintaining relationships with our former employees with an intention to rehire in the future.
Conventionally, as hoteliers we are driven by wanting to hire someone with industry experience. However, we have recently hired people from outside the industry, and this has resulted in a fresh shift of perspective and renewed energy.
These days every hotels have referral programmes. Spreading the net wider and pitching it outside of the industry only means that we are not restricted. We place a lot of weightage on referral programs, as they not only bring in the right candidate but also help in strengthening the culture, which is the cornerstone of Four Seasons.
Q2. What is the biggest single challenge you face as an HR professional in the hospitality industry face?
Post pandemic the biggest challenge for any hospitality HR professional is to resurrect the lost trust in the industry. There has been a mass exodus towards industries such as IT, hospitals, retail etc as there has been a loss of confidence in the hospitality business during adverse times. Due to the great resignation, there is dearth of talent, which in turn puts tremendous amount of pressure to cope with the operational needs thus requiring staff to work extra hours. We need to rekindle the sense of pride in the hospitality industry.
Q3. What are the best ways to ensure work-life balance amongst your employees?
In this phase of business recovery where everyone is trying to do more with fewer resources, talking about work life balance is like treading on eggshells.
I’m from a school of thought where I believe work and life is a circle than a balance – where one needs to manage both in tandem. The globalization, mobility and technology has made it possible to achieve this balance without having to differentiate between each other. Hospitality may not provide one a 9-6 job but there is that unmistakable fun and connectivity in the workplace which serve to instil a lot of joy in the simpler things like bonding with other colleagues and even guests.
Moreover, Four Seasons has a program called Discovery Nights which enables employees to avail dream holidays at other Four Seasons properties, just leveraging the truly aspect of the company.
Q4. Hotel industry witnesses one of the highest attrition rates. How do you ensure hiring the right candidate and what are some of the key retention measures deployed to curtail the accelerating rate?
The hotel industry is one of the largest job creators. And therefore, there is also the downside of facing high levels of attrition. These are two facets of the same coin.
On that note, we have also noted a shift in the goals of millennial job seekers, where many are driven by rapid success and commercial gains. This has come to the forefront even more post the pandemic and many companies are making do with mediocrity and shallow morals.
At Four Seasons, we consider longevity and usually decline those with jumpy CVs and chequered track records. Our screening process which includes a 4-tier discussion, is usually a good (even if not fool proof) way to filter out unfit candidates. We try to keep the process as transparent as can be, so that both parties can find value in it. At times, we even have told the candidates to finish their year in current organization and re-apply with us in future, when we felt their tenure in current position or role is inadequate.
Although we are only two hotels in India, our track-record in providing international opportunities to our employees has been a key retention measure. Amidst the raging pandemic, we have proudly placed about 30 of our employees internationally in the past year, which was something to view as a success story.
Where possible, we promote from within, thus providing opportunities for internal candidates to grow in the company. We also sent some of our employees on taskforce assignments abroad to help them experience a different operation scenario, working with diverse cultures. The company is also investing in overall employee wellbeing, and our Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging programs have been a march in that direction.
Q5. Are youngsters emerging from hotel schools job-ready? If not, how do you address this challenge and prepare them for the job?
The curriculum in the hospitality schools in India provide more of an industrial exposure than an in-depth knowledge to the students in their area of interest. Within a span of 4 months the students are expected to gain work experience in major operational departments and this does not make the students job ready when they graduate, as it is hardly comprehensive.
Owing to the global pandemic, the past two years have not even allowed students to get any sort of practical experience let alone an industrial exposure.
This has put a lot of pressure on operational leaders to focus their energies towards on-the-job training. This is achieved through buddying up with an experienced person or designated trainers mentoring a new incumbent until they build enough confidence in their day-to-day job. It takes about three months to make employees stand on their own feet. As they say, it indeed is a steep climb in the hospitality industry; but one that has its own rewards.
