Employee Retention Strategies in Hospitality Industry: 5 Ways to Attract & Retain Staff

The best hospitality retention strategies focus on the first 90 days, when turnover is highest, and centre on engagement: clear communication, two-way feedback through surveys, regular check-ins, celebrating milestones, and making everyday admin easy and even enjoyable. Around 30% of hospitality employees leave within 90 days, but those who stay past that point are far more likely to remain long term.

Employee retention has long been a critical issue in hospitality, which has higher turnover rates than most other sectors. Getting employees through the first 90 days makes a measurable difference to how long they stay.

What Does High Turnover Cost?

Turnover remains high despite rising rates of pay. It's estimated that around 30% of hospitality employees leave in the first 90 days on the job, nearly double the average rate for other industries. It's an expensive game for businesses. High turnover rates cause extra costs in recruitment and training, along with a big drop in productivity.

How is the Hospitality Workforce Changing?

Employee expectations are shifting, with the gig economy driving demand for greater flexibility in working patterns. With roles in hospitality well suited to gig working, it's a trend that can't be ignored.

How Do You Reduce Hospitality Turnover?

The best way to combat high turnover rates is through clear communication and employee engagement strategies. Although 30% of employees may leave in the first three months, the figures start to improve after that period. If you can keep employees longer than 90 days, they're 50% more likely to stay put.

Engaging Employees on the Move

Employee engagement poses an extra challenge in hospitality, because your people are always on the go. While it's relatively easy to connect with desk-based employees, an on-the-move workforce is a different matter. Alkimii People provides the tools to enable your team to do their job, all within one shared platform. The mobile app means everything can be done on the move.

What Are the Five Key Employee Retention Strategies?

Five strategies keep employees engaged through the crucial first months: communication, feedback, check-ins, recognition, and making everyday tasks easy.

#1 Keep everyone in the loop 

Communication is vital. Clear, consistent communication helps keep teams connected and working together as one. If your employees have visibility of each other's schedules, tasks and priorities, they're more likely to operate as an effective team. Sharing handover notes is an essential element of every shift-based team.

That's easier said than done. Employee communication is no simple task in hospitality. The industry often operates around the clock, and shift work and scheduling can get in the way of the best communication plans. Add a fast-paced environment, a dispersed workforce, language barriers and high turnover, and you have quite a challenge.

How to make it work:

Alkimii helps you stay in touch effortlessly, while ensuring you keep on the right side of GDPR regulations. Unlike messaging apps such as WhatsApp, employees won't be able to see each other's contact details, and leavers will automatically be removed. The hospitality workforce management software makes it simple to do everything from saying good morning to sharing important, business-critical information, all delivered on employees' smartphones.

Messaging and newsfeeds with comments and reactions are built into Alkimii People, making it easy for your team to stay connected. Whether you're sharing calendar dates, delivering documents, or just saying hi, everything is in one place, wherever you are.

#2 Ask what they’re really thinking 

Communication is a two-way street. You need to listen as well as talk. An open, two-way dialogue between team leaders and employees ensures your team feels heard and appreciated. Employees will quickly become demotivated without the opportunity to speak out and be heard.

With turnover rates the way they are, an annual survey just won't cut it. You need regular contact to ensure you listen to and act on concerns before it's too late.

How to make it work:

Alkimii Surveys is a brand-new addition to the platform, and it’s a game-changer for users. The software has an in-built survey module that allows you to collect feedback and turn insights into action. You can choose to make your surveys anonymous or transparent, and there are no limits to the number of surveys you can conduct.

Armed with feedback from Alkimii Surveys, you'll be better placed to improve retention by taking action on the key issues. It will also help you improve your eNPS. Employee net promoter score (eNPS) is a metric that assesses employees' job satisfaction by measuring their readiness to recommend their company to others. In our beta test, eNPS scores climbed from 62% to 81%.

#3 Schedule regular check-ins 

You'll need to check in regularly to ensure your employees last those crucial 90 days. Your new employees will face a whole new set of challenges compared to what they've been used to, but you won't find out about them unless you ask.

It's key to schedule regular check-ins, one-to-one sessions, and formal appraisals to allow employees to voice concerns, share challenges, and seek support. When employees feel heard and supported, their well-being improves, and that leads to the holy grail of employee retention in hospitality.

How to make it work:

Scheduled appraisals and job chats will ensure your employees feel seen and appreciated. And, regular contact and clear communication have been proven to  reduce employee churn. 
But how often is ‘regular’? Every three months is the magic number. A check-in every three months will keep teams focused. 

Alkimii Check-Ins make it easy to keep on top of this vital activity. The platform allows you to schedule everything for that magic three-month mark. Automate job chats, six-monthly and annual appraisals, along with personal check-ins when needed.

#4 Celebrate the moments 

Having good friends at work leads to new levels of creativity and productivity, and as an employer, you can help that happen. Birthdays, anniversaries and special occasions mean a lot to people, so celebrate them.

Few things are as effective as a public thank you. The openness of the praise tends to lend more weight to the comment, and it encourages others to emulate whatever was great.

How to make it work:

Alkimii Moments will ensure you never miss an important moment again. It logs employee birthdays and work anniversaries, and all your key company events, making sure every important occasion is kept front of mind. It will also help you celebrate your team's successes, and show compassion when needed.

#5 Make the boring stuff fun

Fun and positive work environments lead to increased morale, enthusiasm, and job satisfaction. As hospitality settings rely heavily on teamwork, it's especially important to make work enjoyable. Engaged employees provide exceptional customer service, they go the extra mile, they care about guest needs, and they offer that elusive personal touch.

But it can't all be fun and games. There's the onboarding process to be completed, paperwork that needs to be logged, the clocking-in and clocking-out, the rosters, the scheduling.

How to make it work:

With the right software in place, the boring stuff can be fun. Hospitality people management software lets your team do all the necessary admin on their smartphones, from onboarding to checking rosters, clocking in and requesting time off.

Alkimii even makes clocking in fun. Fast and secure facial recognition allows employees to clock in with selfies using their smartphones, taking breaks and clocking out on the go.

For the full set of employee engagement strategies, see our guide to employee engagement.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best employee retention strategies in hospitality?

Keeping employees informed through clear communication, gathering two-way feedback via surveys, scheduling regular check-ins, celebrating milestones, and making everyday admin easy, all focused on the crucial first 90 days.

Why are the first 90 days important for retention?

Around 30% of hospitality employees leave within their first 90 days, but those who stay beyond that point are roughly 50% more likely to remain, making early engagement critical.

How does communication improve retention?

Clear, consistent communication keeps shift-based teams connected and working as one, while two-way feedback ensures employees feel heard and lets managers address concerns before they escalate.

How often should you hold check-ins with employees?

Every three months is an effective cadence, keeping teams focused and giving new employees a regular chance to voice concerns and seek support during their first months.

How does recognition help retain employees?

Celebrating birthdays, work anniversaries, and successes, especially with public praise, makes employees feel appreciated and builds a positive culture that encourages people to stay.

About Alkimii People

Alkimii People puts all your HR requirements in one digital place. It's a shared platform that provides all the tools your team needs to do their jobs effectively, while keeping them engaged. It makes work easier by letting people do everything on their smartphones, making interaction seamless and paperless, and reduces the time you and your managers spend on people admin, freeing you up for training, forecasting, analysis, and reducing employee turnover.

Find out more at www.alkimii.com/alkimii-people

Retention in hospitality is won in the first 90 days through engagement: communication, feedback, check-ins, recognition, and making everyday tasks easy keep staff for the long haul.