Now Hiring: Building Tourism’s Employment Brand

With competition for labour intensifying, tourism employers are positioning themselves as desirable places to work and, relatedly, boosting the image of tourism employment as a whole.

Marketing campaigns that seek to build an employer’s brand have been highlighting innovative HR practices and unique benefits, which help pique the interest of those who may never have considered a job or career with them—or in tourism at all.

McDonalds, for example, has a series of recruitment ads in which employees detail the advantages of working with them: skills that will last a lifetime, such as leadership, communication, teamwork, problem solving; a supportive environment; training; advancement opportunities.

Club Med has published videos on social media to let potential job seekers see not only how the company operates but also learn about the people behind the company. The company promotes the Club Med Spirit with the slogan “Find the real you”, highlighting that employment at the company helps develop existing skills, learn new skills, and tap into unknown talents.

The Radisson Blu Hotel also uses videos and social media to highlight why potential job seekers would want to work there and to provide a realistic depiction of what a typical day is like for employees in specific occupations.

However, not all employers have the resources to build such campaigns. Recognizing that many tourism businesses are small and medium-sized, other tourism stakeholders have initiated strategies to improve the employment image from broader perspective.

Tourisme Bas-Saint-Laurent and its regional partners produced a television promotion showcasing why people should work in the industry and the type of training required, along with various testimonials. It also highlighted the importance of tourism to the region.

Restaurants Canada produced a brochure detailing the importance of Canada’s food and beverage industry as an employer. In addition to providing high-level statistics, the brochure highlights its important role in providing many Canadians with their first employment experience. It also profiles various restaurant owners from diverse backgrounds and regions in Canada who explain their motivations and their connections with their communities.

With the labour gap broadening, Tourism HR Canada will continue to share a variety of strategies to increase the attractiveness of working in tourism. We detail a number of current initiatives in Bottom Line: Bridging the Labour Gap. A summary of the report is available free of charge, or the full downloadable report can be purchased here.

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