Fueling Your Team’s Growth with a Career Advancement Engine

Does your company have a career path or career ladder? One that is discussed with candidates in a job interview, or shown to new employees during their orientation, and lists the progressively advanced positions they could work in your hotel of restaurant as they gain more experience?

If yes, then congratulations…you’ve done the bare minimum. Don’t get me wrong – I think these tools are essential for any hospitality business, but they’re only the beginning.

It’s not enough to just list the potential future opportunities available for team members and cross your fingers that some of them might be willing to put in the necessary work to transform their aspirations into achievements. You should also be actively helping your employees to move along that path or up that ladder with a robust career advancement engine. What is that, you ask? Well, just like an engine propels a vehicle forward, your company’s career advancement engine drives workers toward their professional goals. It ignites their potential, fuels their ambition, and ensures they reach their destinations equipped and ready for those new challenges.

And the reward isn’t just for the employees; yes, they will be working higher level positions and be earning greater pay, but your company will benefit as well. By investing in a career advancement engine, you cultivate a highly skilled, motivated workforce that stays with you for a longer period of time, and this extended tenure leads to greatly decreased turnover costs (estimated by different studies to be between $2,000 and $5,000 every time a staff member leaves). Preventing turnover also means that all the accumulated institutional knowledge about your hotel or restaurant doesn’t go walking out the door, contributing to a workplace that will be more productive and safer, as well as one with better satisfied guests and higher team morale. Moreover, a career advancement engine can enhance your company's reputation as an employer of choice, attracting top-tier talent who are eager to grow within an organization that truly invests in their future.

Engine components

To harness the power of a career advancement engine, it's crucial to integrate key elements that actively support and propel employees towards their career goals. Beyond simply having a career path or ladder, these essential components ensure continuous growth and development for both your employees and your organization.

1. Clearly defined advancement criteria – If you don’t have a career path or ladder yet, the first step is to work with your operations team to create one (and possibly with your marketing team to design it). If you do have one already, it may be time to dust if off for an update – think about if you have any newly created jobs you could insert, or perhaps add new directions out of operations and into disciplines such training marketing, purchasing, HR, accounting, or maintenance. After you list the upwardly accessible steps and wage ranges, you will also want to spell out the exact skills, milestones, and certifications required to take on the higher-level positions; these details may not fit on a laminated document that you show off to job interview candidates, of course, but you could put them on your company intranet page, or in a training journal, or wherever this type of information is kept in your organization. The key here is that by providing detailed descriptions of these requirements, you will help employees understand what they need to achieve and give them specific targets to work towards.
   
   
2. Early goal identification – From the very beginning of employment, managers should engage in conversations with employees about their career aspirations. Understanding an employee’s goals allows managers to tailor development opportunities and create personalized career plans. At Ivar’s, for example, this question is the very first one listed in employee training journals, and it’s available for any training manager, unit manager, area manager, or director to read so they can discuss it with that staff member. Your goal here is to foster a workplace where employees don’t just feel safe, but are actively encouraged, to express their ambitions and seek career guidance from potential mentors from the moment they are hired.
   
   
3. Training and development programs – Invest in comprehensive training programs (including on-the-job training, workshops, and access to educational resources) that help your team members acquire the necessary skills for advancement, as continuous learning opportunities will keep them engaged and prepared for new challenges. If you’re not sure where to start in this area, I would highly recommend checking out the resources available on the Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers website, attending an upcoming CHART conference, or looking through the offerings provided by CHART vendor partners. If you want the best possible training programs for your company, the absolute best thing you can do is to get involved with CHART.
   
   
4. Constructive feedback and regular check-ins – Your staff shouldn’t have to wait for their yearly evaluations to know how they’re doing. To use a sports analogy, if a baseball coach watched one of their players strike out over and over in game after game, do you think that that coach would wait until the end of the season to address the issue? Of course not! If you really want to foster a culture of continuous improvement, you should be providing regular, constructive feedback to employees about their performance and progress towards their career objectives, with frequent check-ins to help a) identify potential issues early, b) offer guidance to keep everyone on track, and c) discuss their achievements, obstacles, and potential next steps in their career development.
   
   
5. Internal candidate prioritization – Before posting available higher-level positions on external job boards, ensure these jobs are well-publicized within the organization. The goal here is to demonstrate to your employees that you value their growth and potential more than that of external candidates, and it can be achieved by making the first announcements about openings via an internal website, flyers on the staff bulletin board, company newsletters, emails/texts from your recruiting department, and/or direct communication from managers. Of course, if you interview an internal candidate and determine they aren’t quite ready for the promotion, you can still revisit bullet points #3 and #4 above and provide them with a clear development plan and constructive feedback to help them prepare for future opportunities. After reviewing all the already-hired folks who raise their hands, then, and only then, should you start advertising for applicants from outside your hotel or restaurant.
   
   
6. Published success stories – Sharing stories of employees who have successfully advanced within the company will serve as motivation for others and demonstrates the company’s commitment to internal growth and development. Use various platforms to showcase these success stories, such as company newsletters, social media, internal meetings, and your website. For example, you could feature a "Career Path of the Month" spotlight where an employee shares their journey, the challenges they overcame, and the support they received along the way. This approach not only celebrates their achievements but also provides concrete examples of how the career advancement engine works in practice, inspiring others to follow in their footsteps and take advantage of the opportunities available within the organization.

Igniting your company’s engine

While the concept of a career advancement engine may seem complex, getting started is easier than you might think. You can begin with a few small, manageable steps that lay the foundation for a more comprehensive system that will be developed down the line.

1. Start where you are – If you don't already have a career path or ladder in place, that's your first task. Work with operations to map out the progression of roles within your organization, and remember, it doesn't need to be flawless from the outset. It's a living document that you can refine over time.

2. Assemble your team – Once you have a basic framework, bring together key stakeholders from different departments: HR, operations, training, and even a few high-performing employees who have shown interest in advancement. Host a brainstorming session to discuss the engine components and what they might look like in your organization. You could also follow this step up with some short surveys to gather feedback from all team members about their career aspirations and the kinds of support they need to grow within the company.

3. Pick low-hanging fruit – Identify one or two components that you can implement quickly and easily. For instance, you might start by creating a simple process for managers to discuss career goals with new hires during their orientation, or you could begin showcasing employee success stories in your company newsletter.

4. Create a resource library – Start developing a collection of resources, such as articles, videos, and books, that workers can access to learn new skills and gain industry knowledge. This library can be housed on your company intranet, learning management system, or in a common area, making it easy for employees to find and use.

5. Set realistic timelines – Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will your career advancement engine, so create a realistic phased implementation plan that spans several months or even a year. You will want to give yourself enough time to make steady progress without overwhelming your people or disrupting daily operations.

6. Celebrate small wins – As you begin to implement elements of your career advancement engine, make sure to acknowledge and celebrate the small victories. Did an employee express interest in moving up after a career goal discussion? That's worth recognizing. Has a team member acquired a new skill through your training program? Shout it from the rooftops!

Important considerations

While implementing a robust career advancement engine is crucial, it's equally important to recognize that not all employees will aspire to climb the corporate ladder. Some team members may find fulfillment and contentment in their current roles, such as a cashier who excels during the lunch rush and has no desire for additional responsibilities. This preference should be respected and valued, and you need to create an environment where these employees feel just as appreciated as those seeking advancement, that their contributions are recognized, and that their job satisfaction remains high.

Furthermore, it's critical for you and your HR team to regularly assess the demographics of your promotions to ensure equity and fairness across your organization. Your career advancement engine should support all employees equally, regardless of their background, gender, or ethnicity, and that nobody interested in being promoted is accidentally left behind. This approach fosters a richer, more innovative work environment and ensures that all talented individuals have the opportunity to grow and succeed within your organization, ultimately benefiting both your team members and your business as a whole.

Conclusion

Remember, the goal is progress, not perfection. By taking the initial steps outlined, you will be demonstrating your commitment to your employees' growth and development. As you continue to build and refine your career advancement engine, you'll create a workplace where ambition thrives, skills flourish, and both your team members and your business reap the rewards of internal growth.

So, what are you waiting for? It's time to fire up your career advancement engine and propel your organization towards a future of shared success and achievement!