WE ❤️ HOSPITALITY - Jennifer Sexton

The last year has been terrible for the hospitality sector. Most businesses have seen extreme financial challenges and its reputation as an employer has been severely affected. We are now hearing from many, many of our clients about their fears for the future from staff shortages to skills gaps and top mid-senior talent moving to other sectors.

Krishnan Doyle is sharing his conversations with service industry leaders and operators on all that is good about hospitality & catering with the purpose to improve the sector's reputation as one of the largest employer worldwide but also as a great place to develop your career. 

How did you get into hotels & resorts? 

I’ve never known life without hospitality in it, my parents are both in the Industry, my dad is an ex hotelier and my mum is a publican and we still have our family bar & restaurant today so you could say it’s in the blood!

Do you think it is important to have studied a related topic to be a success in the sector? 

Absolutely not, while it’s a nice to have if you can get it, nothing will ever beat industry experience, when I am recruiting, I look at experience and skills rather than education. 

Which leader / figure inspired you and why?

My first work experience was in a 5 star hotel in Killarney, Co Kerry, the Restaurant Manager at the time was my trainer and she was a huge influence, nothing every phased her and she explained the why behind everything we did, why we had to fold napkins a certain way or serve wine a particular way, I understood then that it was all about creating experiences for our guests and you could see the positive reaction we got because of it.

What keeps you in the sector and why do you enjoy working in it?

No two days are the same, one day you could be recruiting a future Manager for one of our Hostels and the next we are having a discussion on how we can improve the employee experience. The Industry is also constantly changing, and we need to change with it or get left behind so the range of new skills you get to learn will stand to you for many years. But most importantly you get to meet so many people from all walks of life either as guests or colleagues and the best part, you get to make friends for life.

Tell us about the development / training that you give to your teams and management?

We encourage our team members to drive their own development, we provide the resources either through on the job skills training, online learning, in person leadership workshops, webinars, educational supports etc. but ultimately everyone needs to want to drive their own development. 

What advice would you give to those starting out in the sector?

Don’t give up, the good days far outweigh the bad. This industry will open so many doors to you and give you a lot of opportunities if you are willing to work hard and take them. Hospitality is one of those industries that you can take you on an amazing journey around the world. I got to work all over the country as well as Australia and America and met some great people along the way, not many industries will give you the flexibility to do that.

If you could go back and tell yourself one piece of advice as you started your career, what would it be? 

Travel first, get as much experience as you can in all areas of the industry and then start developing your career, you don’t have to be a GM at 24!

If you would like to take part as a leader in this thriving sector, get in touch with Krishnan (krishnan@corecruitment.com)