WE ❤️ HOSPITALITY - Jon Brown

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 hospitality? 

As I was about to leave school, I applied for about a dozen different management training and apprentice jobs in hotels. British Transport Hotels sent me a free ticket from Perth to London (by train) which I thought sounded like a great day out. Luckily, I got a job as well and started at The Midland Hotel in Manchester, in the kitchens, at the tender age of 18 and had the time of my life. 

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

Given I didn’t go to college, obviously my first instinct to this question is no. Having said that, it was a long time ago now and further education can only be a good thing if it is right for that individual.  If I could have done my time again, I’d have knuckled down and given everything to go to a proper hotel school, Lausanne for example, which I think do wonderful work. 

Which leader / figure inspired you and why?

I’ve worked for some great people that many will not be familiar with these days but obviously Richard Branson is a huge inspiration. I’ve also always admired Michael Herriott, Louise Dunning, Ken McCulloch, Nick Jones, Robin Hutson and Raymond Blanc. Most of these leaders are very independently minded and have always been happy to not confirm and to take risks. I love the rebellious streak in people like that and their ability to maintain quality and the right ethics without being stuffy or formal. 

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

I love the people that I work with and I’m thankful that I get to travel and see the positive impact that hospitality can have on people’s lives, as well as the opportunities it’s given some of the communities our properties are located in. I’m incredibly fortunate, just as many of us are in the sector, has meant that we are never short of stories and anecdotes about what we’ve seen, who we’ve met and how we’ve laughed and cried. 

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

We have some amazing properties in some great locations that provide great development opportunities for our teams. For example, we created a ‘task force’ for team members to apply to work in the BVI to help the property get back on its feet after Hurricane Irma but also to develop and give our people exposure to different ways of working and different cultures. We have some great examples of career development across the group. We have people who joined us many years ago in junior roles and are still with us 10 or 20 years on, having done varied roles from water sports to spa to operations in different countries and are now in GM roles or senior positions across the group.

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

Keep an open mind, have humility, respect those around you and those who haven’t got what you’ve got. When you find the area you want to specialise in, strive to be the best and don’t worry if you want to be a generalist as long as you know that you’re going to have to have expertise around you to make you successful. Be prepared to be in this for the long haul; it’s absolutely worth it in the end and don’t be distracted by the allure of a Monday to Friday, 9-5 treadmill…unless that’s your thing. 

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

I don’t have any regrets about my career path and so I wouldn’t want any piece of advice to sound like “I wish I’d done that”. However, be patient and realistic about your expectations and they will materialise a lot quicker than you think. Secondly, take time to learn in depth subjects and facets of the business that you really engage with. That knowledge will then become your life skills and set you up for the future.

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