A 4 min read.

In the ever changing world of the restaurant industry, where exceptional service is paramount, extending the principles of hospitality to your hiring process can make a significant difference in attracting and retaining top talent. 

Much like your restaurant strives to offer a welcoming and unforgettable dining experience, incorporating hospitality into your application process can attract top-tier talent, nurture positive candidate relationships, and expand your customer base. 

If you are frustrated with not attracting top talent to your restaurant, connect with Willow Tree Recruiting.

In this article, we'll take a detailed journey through the step-by-step process of talent attraction – from the inception of a job opening to the point of making a hiring decision or even promoting an individual to the role of a valued guest.

Crafting an Inviting Application Process

Take a moment to review your application process through the eyes of the applicant. Ensure that your application process reflects the warmth and charm of your restaurant. Here's how:

Share Your Story: Provide insights into the restaurant's history, values, and mission. Candidates who resonate with your narrative will feel a stronger connection.

Simplify the Process: Keep the application form concise and tailored to restaurant roles. Collect essential information without making the candidates burn too many calories.

Make the Application Fun: Candidates engage in an interview with you just as much as you're interviewing them. Encourage them to be authentic during the application process—this can serve as a unique marketing advantage, setting you apart from competitors.

Create a Plan for Walk-ins: Extend the same hospitality to your applicants as you would to your guests. Discover their needs, build a connection, and either conduct a brief interview right away or schedule a follow-up. Avoid simply redirecting them to your website.

Warm and Transparent Communication

Effective, timely, and courteous communication is crucial for applicants in the hospitality industry, much like it is for our guests. Extend these values to your hiring process:

Swift Acknowledgment: Respond with a prompt automated acknowledgment or sprinkle some personal charm on it. Extend the same level of care to applicants as you would to an email from a guest. Let candidates know what to expect if they are chosen for the next step or not.

Be Transparent: Outline the hiring process stages clearly. This transparency reduces uncertainty and anxiety for candidates. Put yourself in the candidate's shoes.

Personal Touch: Address candidates by their name in your communications just as you would a guest when they check in for a reservation. Use conversational language that reflects your restaurant's friendliness.

Thoughtful Interviewing Experience

Interviews in the restaurant industry should emulate the warm hospitality you provide to your guests. Follow these best practices:

Warm Welcome: Greet candidates warmly and introduce them to your team, just as you would greet guests at your restaurant. Offer them a beverage or a small treat upon arrival. 

Tour the Restaurant or Kitchen: This showcases your restaurant's commitment to transparency and invites them to be part of the team.

Interview with Managers and Peers: When a standout candidate emerges, arrange for them to meet the team responsible for their management and training. This not only fosters early connections but also enhances your team's interviewing skills in the process.

Communicate Next Steps: Nobody enjoys being left in the dark. Ensure you communicate with candidates about when they can anticipate hearing back about the position. If necessary, don't hesitate to provide an immediate response. It's about making efficient use of both your and their time.

Closing the Journey Graciously

The end of the hiring process should leave candidates with a positive impression, regardless of the outcome:

Respond to the No’s: Here's your opportunity to transform an applicant into a future guest. Express gratitude for their interest in becoming part of your team, inform them of the decision not to proceed with their hiring, yet extend an invitation to visit your restaurant as a guest in the future.

Keep the Door Open: If you believe a candidate might be a better fit for a different role within the company, share your perspective and outline the pathway for pursuing that position. By doing so, you're setting them on a path toward success in their future endeavors.

By integrating hospitality into your restaurant's hiring journey, you create a distinct advantage in attracting talent.

Just as guests leave your establishment with delightful memories, potential employees will remember the warmth, transparency, and respect they experienced during your hiring process and they will tell others about their experience.

A remarkable application experience not only brings in skilled professionals but also contributes to building a reputable employer brand within the competitive restaurant industry.

Christin

P.S.

Whenever you are ready, here are several additional ways I provide daily support to hospitality leaders.

• On September 8th, 2023, I will be hosting a Hospitality Leadership Summit in Denver. Click here for more details HSL.

• If you are a restaurant owner looking for a strategic partner to scale your business, retain and develop your managers, let's connect. Email me at christinlmarvin@gmail.com or you can even text me at 719-494-6074.

(Rest assured, I won't attempt to sell you anything.)

• If you are a hospitality leader looking to level up and position yourself for career advancement without sacrificing work-life balance, let’s start a conversation. Email me at christinlmarvin@gmail.com

• Each week, I provide hospitality leaders with valuable tools and resources to shift from surviving to thriving by embracing mental fitness. Subscribe to my newsletter to receive these helpful tips directly in your inbox.