Employment expert Katrina Fox gives tips on how to get and retain staff

Staff in a pub are the face of your business and represent the front line for customer contact. They deal with any issues first, and keep the operation running smoothly. When it comes to recruiting staff, Katrina Fox, director at Peters-Fox says: “You have to consider all the different types of people you employ in the industry. For people that work as team members on a bar, the likelihood is that they are going to move on quicker than those in head office.”

However, you still need to recruit well, and ideally aim to retain the best people behind your bar. So where do you start?

Job advertising

With technology moving forwards and everyone job hunting digitally, an online presence is a must when advertising for staff. From specialist job sites such as The Morning Advertiser Jobs to social media, getting your advert out there is crucial and how you word your vacancy is just as important. Fox says: “When you’re advertising for jobs, a job description is not a job advert. A job description is a really boring list of competencies and capabilities and that doesn’t sell the culture and the personality of where you work so make sure you invest a bit of time in writing them properly. Read them back to yourself, make there aren’t any spelling mistakes, ensure you’re being really clear and obvious about what you want and what you are looking for, but rather than it just being a list of what you want, say what’s in it for the person applying.”

The power of social media

When connecting with potential employees, engaging in a conversation with them can really give a kick-start to communication and target the specific areas from where you want to employ people. “Use the power of hashtags to get your message out there. If you’ve got careers in Manchester, make sure you put #Manchester after the opportunity because that enables people to be able to find what you are talking about and it gives you a consistent platform for people to contact you on,” says Fox.

She explains the importance of ensuring businesses have the resources to manage social media accounts. “Because there’s nothing worse than having what looks like an amazing social media presence, but [which turns out to be] a load of messages to a Twitter account that no one has replied to.”

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Testimonials

Fox says: “Show examples of where people have started in a part-time career and have worked through the company. I recommend businesses show their own employees in the materials that they show and testimonials from people who work there or have worked there. The employer brand is an insight into your business and you have to be authentic and genuine, so why not have someone who has worked in the industry for 20 years talking through joining as a part-time bar person, then moved up through the company. It is about showing people that longevity of career will make them think differently. The best advocates for your business are the people who work there.”

Hanging on to staff

“Retaining employees saves money and time,” says Fox, “it drives consistency within the business and keeping people for longer means they have got that breadth and that knowledge of working with that company. Of course you want to keep people, creating loyalty means that people go away and go to work somewhere else or they finish their degree and go and work somewhere else, but they might come back at some point. People want different things from their career at different stages of their life. It is not just about what you want, it is about what people need too.”

Fox says the best way to retain staff is simple – appreciate them. “After a busy shift, a ‘thanks for all your hard work today, you were brilliant’ is effective enough to make a team member feel valued. I’ll never forget getting a small gift after working a Christmas Day shift at a pub. The landlady delivered it with a big hug. It made me feel like we were one big family.” She also explains that pointing to the future can help keep your employees. “Make it clear there are many exciting career paths and use examples, maybe even yourself.”

Culture

The New World Trading Company, winner of this year’s Publican Awards Best Pub Employer (2-50 sites), is very specific when it comes to recruitment. MD Chris Hill says: “I think the key to our entire success is the way that we train and once you are in that circle, you become known as a great company that trains and invests in its people. Once you train and pay people properly, you can then spend your time making sure the job is fun. We look for people who fit into our company and culture, so make sure you believe they can be part of that culture.”