Businesses in the hospitality industry
are designed to serve people whether it is food, drink, accommodation or a
combination of these. Therefore the importance of high quality employee
training and development should never be underestimated. Employees in every
area of hospitality from kitchen staff to senior managers have an impact on
customer experience and without the correct training, customer service can
suffer which ultimately impacts organisational success. Although training can
be expensive, the benefits often far outweigh the costs.
Training that brings the best results
will be carefully targeted to focus on the most important business areas.
Hotels should be constantly striving to improve, whether it is greater
efficiency in housekeeping or improved service delivery in the hotel
restaurant. If for example you have noticed a rise in complaints from guests
about the quality of service in a restaurant or guests have commented that they
have to wait too long for their orders to be processed, training efforts should
focus on these areas. HR should be actively involved in training and be willing
to conduct a needs assessment to determine which areas need improvement. With
training one size doesn’t fit all. It will need to be tailored to the
requirements of staff and the demands of the business. Once you have rolled out
a training strategy, you will know when it is working because complaints will
begin to decrease and positive reviews and comments increase.
New Starters
Once a new employee joins a hotel,
training should begin as soon as possible after their start date and ideally,
cover much more detail than simply standard operating procedures and hotel
policy. Training should look at the specifics of their role. For example
housekeeping staff should be educated on company policy in relation to how the
standards of each room, while baristas should receive tailored training on
serving coffee, food hygiene and customer service.
Adequate training from the outset will
set employees on the right path, teaching them good practice rather than
employees starting work with their own ideas of how things should be done and
even bringing with them bad habits because of incorrect working practices.
Furthermore, well trained employees are more motivated towards their work and
they are eager to exceed expectations. When it comes to new staff, they learn
from existing employees, so standards will be established early on. Training
and development is an ongoing process and shouldn’t stop once the induction
period is over.
Customer Satisfaction
In the hotel industry, guests are
everything. If you don’t have guests then your business cannot thrive and
employees are integral to customer satisfaction. Developing your staff is
essential to maintain consistently high standards. Once you have established
your reputation for delivering an exceptional guest experience, managers should
work with HR departments to identify top performers and encourage them to undertake
advanced training so they can continue to develop their skills. Investing in
training for existing staff can bring about greater consistency within the
hotel and also enhance the skills of the future workforce.
Competition
Delivering ongoing training to staff
will allow hotels to remain competitive. Hospitality is an industry that is
fast paced and constantly evolving so hotels need to constantly adapt to
changing customer demands. The best way to maintain a competitive advantage is
through your employees ability to perform day to day tasks to a very high
standard. Everything should be exemplary from ensuring that front of house
staff respond to guests promptly through to maintaining high standards within
the housekeeping department. Frequently revising the basics is important
particularly in relation to customer service such as how to deal with customers
in positive and challenging situations and ensure that guests enjoy their stay
and leave with the intention of returning.
Although the hospitality sector is seen
as an industry that favours on the job experience and this is true to a certain
extent, employees will always benefit from formal training tailored to their
specific role. Staff performance is one of the main contributing factors to customer
experience.
Advantages of Staff Training
Training in the hotel industry is
important for a number of reasons:
●
Improved customer service and fewer
complaints
●
Businesses will have well trained staff
who can competently carry out their work and respond to a variety of situations
●
Teams will work more cohesively and
everyone will have a clearly defined role
●
Employees who are provided with training
opportunities will be more motivated and committed to the business
●
Hotels can maintain their competitive
advantage
Organisations within the hospitality
industry often have a high level of staff turnover which means that HR
departments are always busy looking for new staff. The process of recruitment
can incur considerable costs due to advertising, resources which need to be
invested into the interview process not to mention the costs associated
with new staff training. All of these can take their toll on any business.
There are many reasons why staff turnover is high in hospitality and employees
decide to leave. Sometimes it is because of low job satisfaction while at other
times it may be because of poor training opportunities. Employers have to work
hard to maintain high levels of job satisfaction. This is achieved by providing
staff with a supportive and positive working environment while equipping them
with the skills they need to succeed in their work. Motivated staff are more
likely to stay with a business for longer and deliver higher standards of
service.
Approach to Training
HR departments and managers should take
a proactive approach to staff training. It is an important part of the business
and one that is worth the investment. Organise meetings between staff and
management to develop in house training packages and work with staff to
identify underperforming departments or procedures so training can be developed
around these areas. HR departments could also consider establishing a
partnership with third party training providers who can offer a range of
courses to introduce a range of new skills into the business. Work with
managers can also identify exceptional staff and create training that will
bring all staff up to this level. Investing in training is important and
effective training requires a collaborative approach between the HR department
and managers to ensure that staff are motivated and they are consistently
meeting and exceeding customer expectations.
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