Is Brand Perception Impeding Your Hospitality Hiring Strategy?

Article Summary:

Creating an attractive brand image is critical to your hospitality hiring strategy, particularly in winning the hearts and minds of the digitally-savvy Gen-Z talent. This article details what brand perception really means, why it’s important, and 5 practical ways to strengthen your hotel’s brand impression, attract top talent, and reduce churn.

Employee churn has been a persistent problem in the tourism sector, with hotels in multiple markets struggling not only to attract top talent but also to retain existing talent. But the problem might get a lot harder for hospitality hiring managers with the impending swarming of workplaces by Gen-Z workers. This generation represents 30% of today’s workforce and is digitally-savvy especially in AI technology, making them an important audience for brands seeking to build authentic relationships and engagement. This means you’ll have to adapt your hospitality hiring strategy by taking note of the shifting demographics and changing workforce priorities. According to a McKinsey study, Gen Zers place greater importance on factors such as work-life balance, career progression, and meaningful work. Compensation, the study finds, is the least of their worries, so throwing money at them might not do the trick. So here is the conundrum: what strategies can your hotel, resort and cruise business apply when hiring Gen Z for hospitality jobs while reducing churn? The answer lies in fixing your brand image problems.

Read on to discover what branding entails, why your hotel’s brand perception is important, and how to improve your hotel’s brand image. Also, find examples of brand perception curation from some hotel chains to inspire your journey.

What Is Brand Perception, and Why Is It Critical for Your Hospitality Hiring Strategy?

Brand perception is simply how people perceive a business. It revolves around impressions, thoughts, and feelings about what a particular brand represents. Perception is shaped by various touchpoints, including:

Direct interactions with people, products, or services
Indirect interactions such as media coverage, social media, and customer reviews

In the digital era, creating a positive brand perception is even more urgent because one mistake can spiral out of control and cause irreparable brand damage.

Brand perception is important because it can either be a stairway to success or a highway to failure. A positive brand perception is likely to attract market traction in terms of customer numbers, revenues and can easily become a talent magnet. A negative brand perception, on the other hand, spawns toxic reviews, fewer customers through the door, low revenues, and high employee churn. For a sector predicted to face a workforce shortfall of more than 43 million people by 2035, according to WTTC, curating a positive brand image is less of a choice and more of a strategic business priority.

😁→ Looking to attract promising Gen Z candidates in your hospitality recruitment? Here’s a 10-step early-career recruitment plan designed specifically with this group in mind.

How Can You Improve Your Hotel’s Brand Perception?

To fix your hotel’s brand perception in the eyes of prospective employees, here’s a 5-pronged strategy to get you started:

Align your hotels’ values and culture
Streamline your hiring process
Be intentional about employee retention from early on
Showcase your team culture
Keep your finger on the pulse

Align Your Values and Culture

Holding on to a “what used to work” approach may not be an effective hospitality hiring strategy for attracting and retaining Gen Zers. While past generations emphasized monetary benefits, Gen Zers are driven by a different set of motivators. In the UK and France, for instance, sustainability, clear career pathways and ethical operations hold traction among Gen Zers. In Spain and Italy, work-life balance, contract clarity, and seasonal hiring models can help you attract European Gen Z candidates. If you are hiring in these markets, offering such perks is an essential precondition for acceptance of a job offer. Furthermore, a report by Hilton Hotels [1] reports that 74% of employees say having mentorship opportunities is important, with 77% indicating mentorship impacts their happiness at work. Aligning your hotel/restaurant culture and values makes prospective candidates curious about your brand, helping you create an enviable talent pipeline.

Streamline Your Hiring Process

Gen Z is the first generation to be born and raised in the digital technology era. This generation hardly understands what traditional recruitment looks like. Their idea of a hiring process revolves around simplicity, speed, and convenience. When hiring Gen Z for hospitality roles, candidate experience is just as important as the job itself. Here’s what you can do to make the hiring process smooth:

Simplify your application process with just a few clicks
Make do with fewer interview rounds
Provide timely feedback to all applicants
Maintain transparency in your hospitality hiring strategy
Abide by ethical practices to create a strong employer brand

🥴 → Is your hiring time putting off potential candidates? Learn how Hosco’s member directory and advanced filters can get you top talent faster.

Plan Retention From Day One

Hiring hospitality employees is already a pressing challenge. Don’t wait until you are hit with resignation letters to think about retention. Make talent retention a top priority from the moment new hires start. The first three months are particularly critical. Here’s what you can do within the first 90 days:

Ensure a smooth onboarding process
Implement role-shadowing or assign mentors to keep new hires engaged
Integrate early recognition initiatives to spot unique talents

Career progression is a key consideration for Gen Zers, which means placing them in a job with no clear progression pathways will have them thinking about their next move. Provide training and learning opportunities to prepare them for higher roles. A 2026 study by Deloitte finds 84% of Gen Zs in the UK are interested in leadership roles. Provide opportunities such as cross-departmental shifts and mobility schemes to make them visualise a long-term career in hospitality.

In 2023 e.g., Marriott International [2] announced its new people brand, "Be," focusing on attracting and retaining top talent to traditional and non-traditional roles in the travel and leisure industry. Marriott also runs a digital learning platform, providing employees with access to a range of foundational learning programs.

Hiring Gen Z for Hospitality? Showcase Your Team Culture

Leverage your hotel's social media channels and website to showcase your workplace environment. Here are a few ideas for showcasing your hotel’s workplace culture:

Create video features of what it is like to work at the hotel
Share testimonials about teamwork, recognition, learning, and career growth
Share virtual tours of the hotel’s facilities
Share photos of team-building activities and curated guest experiences
Highlight how the hotel’s culture translates into practices such as inclusivity, employee wellbeing, sustainability etc

Showcasing your workplace to potential hires can give your hotel/restaurant a head start in the job market. For example, in 2024, Accor [3] launched its new Employee Value Proposition (EVP), “Hospitality is a Work of Heart,” to showcase the blend of heartfelt hospitality experiences and demonstrate what it means to work in the hotel industry.

Keep Your Finger on the Pulse to Reduce Churn

Improving your brand image is an iterative process. Keep your finger on the pulse to understand what people are saying about your hotel/restaurant. Ignoring sentiments and nuances from your customers, candidates, and employees will keep eating away at your brand. Capture every negative sentiment before it becomes a chorus and amplify positive sentiments. There are different ways you can listen in. For example, you can conduct surveys, hold focus-group discussions, or monitor your hotel’s social pages. Online chatter is a rich trove of unfiltered information about how people perceive your brand, particularly with the digitally savvy Gen Zs.

😎 Looking to leverage your employee value proposition to attract and retain top talent? Learn how top hotels and resorts are optimising their EVPs to win the hospitality talent war.