Hiring in the Hospitality Industry

April 28th 2025

Tired of the endless cycle of hiring and training hospitality staff? You're not alone. High employee turnover and a competitive talent pool can leave even the most seasoned hospitality managers feeling overwhelmed. But what if you could build a team of dedicated professionals who not only elevate your guest experience but also boost your bottom line by sticking around?

Drawing on over two decades of hands-on experience managing and consulting for various hotels and restaurants, Prospera Hospitality understands the critical nuances of successful hospitality hiring. We've witnessed firsthand what works (and what doesn't) and share our proven strategies in this hospitality recruitment guide.

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Key Factors for Hiring the Right People

In a service-facing industry, your people are the main point of contact for your guests. So make sure you hire people who are friendly, great problem-solvers, and who are excited to represent your hotel or restaurant.

A successful recruitment strategy for hotels and restaurants requires hiring managers to:

Write a Compelling Job Post

The same way a hiring manager judges a candidate based on their resume, potential applicants will judge your job description as well. Here are some tips and tricks to optimize your job posting to attract the right people and filter out unqualified candidates:

Show off the company culture: Don’t just say you’ve got a great team, show it! Demonstrate it through the words you use to describe your company and the position. Understand your target audience's desires and what they want from their job, and speak to it in the job description.
Personalize your job post: Let people know who they’ll be talking to when they apply. Don’t just refer to the hiring manager as "the hiring manager"; name them and provide some background information on who they are to make them more relatable for an applicant. Some platforms, like LinkedIn, even let you upload a photo of your hiring manager so applicants know who they are talking to.

Share the right information: People want to know what they will earn at your company, even if it’s just an estimate. Another determining factor in whether someone chooses to apply for a job is benefits. If you offer these, make sure you list them! And if you don’t, you may want to reconsider. The hospitality hiring market is extremely competitive, and without the right benefits to attract and retain great employees, they could go elsewhere.

Be clear about expectations: Let people know up front what experience and qualifications are needed for the job. This can save a lot of time because people can filter themselves out rather than you having to do it. Some platforms can automatically reject applicants for you if they don’t meet the minimum requirements needed for the job.

Make Your Benefits Package Compelling

Attract quality applicants who will stick around long-term by offering competitive benefits. A desirable benefits package can be a great way to ensure your staff’s well-being, satisfaction, and productivity.

In the hotel industry, common benefits offered are:

Health insurance, including vision and dental insurance, to help your employees feel secure and supported
Paid time off (PTO), including paid holidays and sick leave, to reduce stress
401k, or other great retirement plans, so your staff can plan for their future
Bonuses or commissions (if relevant) to keep your team motivated
Employee discounts and perks to give back to your employees

Offering benefits that are competitive in your industry will help you acquire the right talent, ensure a positive work environment, and retain skilled employees for the long term.

Post Your Job on the Right Platforms

You’ve written a great job post and selected the right benefits for the job. Now where do you post it? The exact platform to use depends on your company and the position you’re hiring. Here are some options that could be handy for posting your job:

Online Job boards: Indeed, ZipRecruiter, Hcareers, LinkedIn Jobs, Hospitality Online, and more.
Social media: LinkedIn is a great platform to post your job description. Instagram and Facebook are good platforms to post regularly and show your work and company culture. This can help potential candidates get connected and familiar with your hotel or restaurant.
Job fairs: Hospitality conferences and events can be a great place to connect with a diverse talent pool and showcase your company.

There may also be some local or regional job platforms you want to use to hire talent in your area. Other places to consider are job boards at local high schools, colleges, and universities, depending on the job position.

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Look Beyond the Resume

If you’re lucky, you’ll have a great talent pool to choose from, but at times, hiring can be tough. Because hospitality is a service industry, it may be good to look beyond the hard skills mentioned in someone’s resume. Consider hiring someone with soft skills that are relevant to your hotel or restaurant and, ultimately, to the job they will be performing for you.

Some soft skills to look for include:

First impressions: How does the candidate present themselves? Having in-person interviews with applicants is a great way to see if candidates impress you. If they don’t, they probably won’t impress your guests either.
Customer service: Diplomas and certificates can be impressive, but for hotel recruitment, service is key. Look for candidates who have strong communication skills and can handle difficult situations with a smile.
Flexibility: The hospitality industry is fast-paced and demanding. Look for flexible candidates who can adapt to changing schedules and tasks.

It can also be helpful to discuss growth desires and opportunities with your applicants to learn about their passions and plans.

Ace the Interview

As we know, while we are assessing candidates to see if they are a good fit for our company, they are also assessing us and our company to determine if they want to work here.

The job interview is a great time to show candidates your company's culture and anything that is important to fulfill their job if they get hired. Other than providing background information and talking about the job itself, it’s also important to ask the right questions to learn if this candidate will be a great addition to your team.

Here are some tips and best practices for providing a positive interview experience:

Follow up with candidates you want to talk to in a timely manner. No one wants to wait weeks (or sometimes months) to hear back about a job they applied for. Try to get back with applicants within a week of their initial application, even if it’s just a standardized “Thank you for your application. Someone will be in touch with you within the next two weeks.”
Kindly reject people who don’t fit the job role. Even if you aren’t hiring someone this time around, it’s still wise to treat them with respect. Send them a rejection email, thanking them for their time to apply. This way, you won’t leave a bad impression, and they may consider your company again, or recommend it to a friend, in the future. It’s never a bad idea to be kind.
Be hospitable. Make sure you’re on time for the interview and offer your applicant a beverage. The first impression they have of you and your company is just as important as the impression they leave on you.
Ask the right questions. There are many different types of questions that you could ask your applicants to learn about their skills, goals, personality, etc. Some types of questions we like asking include:

Understanding: “What does hospitality mean to you?”
This type of question helps you learn about their experience, knowledge and thoughts regarding the industry.
Future: “What do you want from this job role?”
Questions like this help you learn about their expectations for the job, but also about their passion and loyalty. Do they see themselves growing within the role or the company, or are they only there until they find something else? This is a great question to ask to extract the serious applicants from the rest.

Expectations: “What are your expectations from us as an employer?”
It’s important to align your expectations as an employer with those of your (potential) employees to get the most out of this relationship and create great stepping stones for the future.
Passion: “What is it that draws you to the hotel or restaurant industry?”
Not only does this question provide insight into their passion and personality, but it also gives you an idea of their long-term career plan. In other words, are they here to stay?

Get a Second Opinion

As mentioned before, hotels and restaurants are people-serving industries. Therefore, your new hire must impress you and your guests while fitting into your existing team. When appropriate, bringing other team members into the hiring process can be helpful to make sure the candidate is a good fit overall.

Discuss Your Hiring Needs

Retain Your Employees Once You Have Them

Hopefully, you’ve hired the right candidate after this process. The next step is extremely important: retain them! A competitive salary and benefits can be a great way to keep people at their job, but other strategies to increase employee retention can be implemented without spending lots of money.

Some suggestions on keeping staff motivated and engaged with the organization include:

On-the-job training
Certifications and licenses
Personal skill development
Bonuses and promotions
Team building activities

Offer career development opportunities to keep staff motivated and let them grow within your organization. Learn about their wishes and needs through regular conversations and annual reviews. Have staff create personal goals to develop skills and grow within the company. Allot time for them to work on these aspirations and support them in achieving their goals. Make sure you praise employees who perform well, either in person, in public, or perhaps via social media. Make them feel appreciated!

Investing in your employees fosters loyalty and engagement within the organization.

Let Prospera Hospitality Support Your Hiring Efforts

Hiring the right staff for your business is crucial for its success. If you find it to be a challenging experience for your restaurant or hotel, you are not alone.

Prospera Hospitality offers human resources management and employee recruitment services as part of our hotel and restaurant management services. When working with us as your hospitality management partner we can help you build a strong and dedicated team that will help your hotel or restaurant thrive.

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