As recruitment and retention continue to cause problems for the regional F&B industry, Caterer investigates how to ‘hire right’
Recruiting and retaining: both have been a gradually increasing grumble among chefs in the region as they struggle to recruit the right people for the roles they have, and worse, those they do recruit don’t last long enough.
So where exactly does the problem lie? One chef was reported as saying head chefs have very little input when it comes to recruiting the staff that work in their kitchens. But this varies depending on the outlet.
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At the Hilton Dubai Jumeirah Hotel and Resort, while HR naturally has a significant part to play in the recruitment of all kitchen staff, the department head or manager is also involved.
In fact it is the department head or manager that “has the final decision based on HR advice,” says Frank Noack, executive chef.
RMAL Hospitality’s director of restaurant operations, Simon Penhaligan, who is of a chef background himself, ensures he is involved in every aspect of recruitment as well as the relevant restaurant’s manager.
“Sometimes this varies – for example if we are hiring chefs then the outlet chefs will assist with hiring,” says Penhaligan.
Either way, “The chef should have 100% involvement, because in the end it is their team and they have to work and develop the skills of each member,” he adds.
Who Decides?
There are of course some that prefer the expertise of external professional recruitment agencies.
“If you can’t get high quality CVs through advertising the vacancy externally or though your business network then sometimes a recruiter is necessary. The costs can be high, especially if you are looking for a specific type of candidate but hiring the wrong candidate can be much more costly,” says Noack.
Dubai Marriott Harbour Hotel and Suites’ director of HR, Cheryl Buynak agrees, adding that “professional recruitment firms/consulting agencies are a great business partner,” for them.
“They do have the knowledge within the industry to assist us with identifying the right applicants for the roles as well as the platforms for us to leverage i.e. virtual job fairs, targeted e-mail selection,” says Buynak.
But Daniel During, principal and managing director, Thomas Klein International, argues that recruitment should be kept in-house, particularly where independent outlets are concerned.
“As an owner and operator no one knows your company ethos better than yourself. No one knows your differentiation factors, your company culture, the tone of voice and attitude you are looking for in your staff better than you.
If we were all going to outsource recruiting we would end up with an almost identical portfolio of personalities and attitudes.”
It is clear that F&B operators are willing to do whatever it takes to get the right people.
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