This text is part of the special Business Tourism booklet
At the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec, we have seen the problem of labor shortages coming for a long time. And no one was surprised when a recent survey by the Hotel Association of Greater Montreal of its members revealed that 30% of rooms had been withdrawn from supply due to lack of staff.
“Companies have relatively little control over the macroeconomic response to labor shortages, such as demographics or immigration. Where they can act, however, is in retaining staff,” says Josée Lelièvre, professor at the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec (ITHQ) and vice-president of the hotel division of the Luger Group. .
“Currently, employers are riding on two wheels in the gravel,” says Robert Laporte, professor at the ITHQ. In the fall of 2021, he led a group of 35 students with Josée Lelièvre, with managers from the tourism and hotel sector, on the problems of labor shortages. “You can no longer run a business the way you used to. You have to experiment. »
A major management challenge
According to Robert Laporte, employees leave the ship because they do not tolerate the way in which they are treated and directed. “The old model of the conductor leading his big orchestra is over. We are more into jazz, with a dynamic ensemble of four instruments that creates as it goes. »
He explains that the ITHQ, for example, seeks to get its students and future managers out of traditional frameworks. In this spirit, the establishment has established partnerships with the Museum of Fine Arts, the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde and even the homeless aid organization Mission Old Brewery. “We wanted to expose our students to different ways of seeing and doing. »
You can’t run a business the way you used to. You have to experiment.
Josée Lelièvre, also general manager of the La Tour Belvédère and Ruby Foo’s hotels, greatly appreciates the contact with the students in a context of freedom. “The workplace should recreate that, if only to better hear employees and have real discussions for something other than dealing with emergencies. »
Because pride and a sense of belonging are important retention factors, managers must make the effort to effectively communicate the company’s achievements in person, including in its more social activities. When Ruby Foo’s offered its old furniture to the Maison du Père, Josée Lelièvre was surprised at the level of interest from the staff. “A few employees made me suggestions for other organizations. But I never would have known if I had just posted the information on LinkedIn. »
According to her, sustainable development is another theme that is very dear to staff and to which employers respond rather badly. “It comes out of all the studies and conversations. If your sustainability policy is to tell customers that you’ll only wash towels that are on the floor, you’ve been out of business for 15 years. »
A change of power
According to Josée Lelièvre, what employers are experiencing is akin to a change of power. “Thirty years ago, you had to fight to get a job, which you were then afraid of losing. These days, employees are no longer afraid of losing their jobs and that’s not what’s holding them back. The old trick doesn’t work anymore. Something else is needed. »
Robert Laporte encourages employers to be creative and get out of traditional management frameworks, which also means getting unions to work together.
The professor wants the problem of low wages and unstimulating working conditions to be tackled, but it will take more to retain employees for the long term. “There was a fashion for funeveryone wanted pool tables or baby foot for its employees. But the fun, it did not work. Billiard tables and baby foot no longer serve, because employees don’t want to be entertained: they want to be engaged, learn and contribute,” he says.
Josée Lelièvre believes that, to respond to this, employers must focus more on the versatility of personnel rather than their productivity. “Training a receptionist to register 60 customers per hour instead of 30 is of limited interest. It would perhaps be more useful if he knew how to direct the client to other services, restaurants, tourist sites. Versatility is more useful for the employer and more rewarding for the employee. »