7 minute read
INCENTIVISING STAFF
RETENTION AND MOTIVATION ARE TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN AND ONLY PARTLY SOLVABLE BY SALARY. WE REVEAL THE CULTURES AND STEPS SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES ARE TAKING TO BUILD – AND KEEP – TEAMS.
Among a wider-ranging number of concerns hoteliers regularly cite about their businesses, close to the top of the list is always staff retention. It’s part and parcel of the hospitality industry, where margins are tight and staff costs need close control. While it’s possible to slow the revolving door through improved wage packets alone, most in the industry – and outside of it – argue that only through a combination of staff training, flexible working, cultural practices and the right benefits packages can the revolving door be halted and managed.
This is particularly true of the millennial generation, those under 35, who recent studies have repeatedly shown prioritise differently to previous generations, and who make up the vast proportion of hotel staff. Given these individuals increasingly value experiences over possessions, authenticity over deception, and crave a good work-life balance, it’s not surprising that motivating them through money alone is unlikely to yield the best results.
Of course, if salary and training aren’t sufficient, what other drivers are at work?
“Overwhelmingly we have found the key motivations for our staff across departments, age brackets, experience and full-time or part-time positions is feeling a sense of being involved in something larger than their role itself,” says Andy Mullins, director at hotel group Sand Hill Road.
“So we spend a lot of time within the company, explaining to both small groups and large groups, exactly where we’re going, our road map for getting there and the role that they can play in holding the compass or doing the driving,” says Mullins.
For many staff, visibility of career progression is absolutely crucial.
“The most important thing is demonstrating career advancement opportunities,” says Aaron Lee, Executive Manager – Marketing at Intrust Super, echoing the approach taken at Sand Hill Road. “People will drive to achieve something if they can see the possibility is there. If they don’t see opportunities or the pathway, you can be as generous financially or in rostering, it doesn’t matter what you throw at them, they’re not going to be influenced by it.”
Staff socialising in your venue is a good sign
While workplace culture, a team ethos and visible career progression unify a number of demographics, a number of distinctions also exist between demographics and locations.
“It differs from establishment to establishment, individual to individual,” says Lee. “Each one has different motivations that drive them to turn up and to do a good job every day. But when you run a business you need to have a programme you can roll out to all your staff. For instance, in heavy tourism areas like the Gold Coast, you get a lot of travellers working there. They will be incentivised by something different to the type of people who would work in a pub in the outer suburbs of Brisbane where you might get someone a little older, more stable.”
These differences in life stages and need should be adequately reflected in the incentives programme and working environment.
RESEARCH IDENTIFIES THREE KEY STAFF DEMOGRAPHICS
“Among the younger, traveller crowd, they tend to be more incentivised by working in a venue that has that social aspect about it, that enables them to get to know their colleagues, develop a social life with their colleagues… That type of incentivisation doesn’t necessarily cost that much, it comes down to a hiring policy and generally encouraging people to be social with each other,” says Lee.
“We found that of the 18-24 year old demographic, over 50 per cent of hospitality staff are studying, and of those, 80 per cent are studying something they plan to use outside of their current industry. When you think about what sort of incentives to give those people, it’s less about career advancement and more about ensuring their work can fit around their study rosters and again their social life. It’s efficient for those people to have a social life with those they work with and to have staff drinks after work if their venue can offer that.”
“We have found that up to one-third of the over-25s who are studying, they’re studying hospitality,” says Lee.
Perkbox is innovating how benefits deploy to staff
“That’s a fairly high percentage. Their needs are similar to the younger demographic, with the difference that they’re into career advancement.”
Mullins’ own career progression entirely reflects these evolving needs of his own staff.
“Of course, there are other more practical motivations for each staff member as well, and these will all differ based on their experience, employment status and age. For me, tending bars in my early 20s was only motivated by need for money… to spend in other bars! Now, with three children, my motivations of course are very different,” says Mullins.
OUTSOURCING BENEFITS PROGRAMMES
To help business owners such as Andy provide those incentives, increasingly there are new companies disrupting traditional benefits programmes, and they’re providing their services to small and medium sized enterprises. In the same way Uber harnessed technology to connect drivers with passengers, companies such as Perkbox are linking hospitality staff with benefits providers, innovating through platforms to make it more cost-effective. The UK-based platform, which counts Nando’s, OpenTable and Deliveroo among its clients, is currently amid an extensive international expansion.
“Perkbox is an HR technology platform focused on employee engagement,” says Chieu Cao, their co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer.
“Our aim is to help businesses improve the relationship between management and staff through effective solutions such as a reward and recognition tool and a perks and benefits platform. We’re also in the process of launching a series of other exciting products such as ‘Insights’ which makes gathering and acting on regular employee feedback easier and faster. We cater for the full spectrum of employee wellbeing – financial, physical and emotional. We help employees feel rewarded, motivated and lead a healthy and productive lifestyle.”
The reason for all this effort to motivate and incentivise staff isn’t simply to retain staff, though it’s a key driver.
“The most important thing about incentivising staff is customer service. Obviously there’s retention as well, but it’s all about customer service,” says Lee.
“You can train someone to do their job very well, to smile at certain times, or to collect glasses. But what you can’t train is enthusiasm. The difference between a very good venue and an exceptional venue is that the staff have a true, honest and authentic enthusiasm, motivation and drive to exceed expectations. I don’t believe in an exceptional venue that that experience is created by training alone.”
Sand Hill Road staff
Photo credit: Simon Shiff
Mullins is equally effusive about the importance of well-incentivised staff:
“We are a fast growing, dynamic, ambitious bunch of people. Our plans to continue that growth however are entirely underpinned by the core function that our group lives to pride – great food and drink service. So if we don’t find ways to incentivise our people, we can probably only ever accept their tacit but not passionate commitment to what we’re all about.”
Chieu Cao, Perkbox co-founder
THE SANDYS AWARDS PROGRAM
At Sand Hill Road that program is manifested in ‘The Sandys’, a rolling internal rewards approach where the awards winners are peernominated.
“These awards are our way of recognising and celebrating legends who have gone above and beyond and demonstrated our values,” says Jaclyn Barnes, Group Marketing Manager at Sand Hill Road.
“Anyone can be nominated from any venue, any team, at any time, for living any value. Each nominee receives a virtual high-five by way of a Sandy card and every second month at our end of month meeting, four stand-out legends are awarded prizes of their choice. Some examples thus far are spa packages, sky diving, dinner vouchers, brew kits, horse riding, tattoos, flights, shark diving, tickets to concerts and sporting events… the options are endless. I actually won the award for the Live value at our recent end of month meeting. I can say from personal experience that it’s truly amazing and rewarding to receive recognition from your peers.”
Rostering around study-time is helpful to relevant staff
AVOIDING COMMON MISTAKES
Critical to success is identifying the motivations of your staff, adapting to their needs and building that team culture. The good news? It needn’t cost your business much. It’s also critical to avoid some of the more common mistakes businesses make.
“We’re not really about suggesting how other operators manage their businesses,” says Mullins. “[But] for these programs to be effective, they have to be real. And to be real, they have to reflect the values of the people who make up those businesses. What we’d certainly say is, have a crack at doing something different. It’s only by trial and error that we landed on The Sandys.”
Lee argues that one of the biggest shortcomings of some enterprise programs is starting by looking in the wrong place.
“A lot of organisations start by questioning how they can manage staff retention,” he says. “Our research suggests that turnover is a little more than 50 per cent. But when you see it as transactional and start throwing money at the problem, rather than seeing it as part of customer service by the whole team, and asking yourself how to deliver the best experience, that’s when you’re more likely to throw more money at it. You need to understand your own staff and what drives them. If you fail to build a family out of your team, then any incentives programme is going to fail.”
