6 min read

Year in Review – 2023

Here at Caterer.com we take great pride in the strong and fruitful relationships we have with industry partners and clients and in 2023 we couldn't be more proud of the hospitality industry, who have continued to showcase remarkable resilience and unity.

A selection of pictures of the Carerer.com team and clients at events in 2023

Let’s look back at some of our highlights from 2023.

Here are just a few of our highlights:

Apprenticeships Roundtable

The year got off to a strong start with our campaign centred around embracing apprenticeships to boost hiring success and retention. We teamed up with apprenticeship experts, Umbrella Training, to create a downloadable report and also to host a roundtable discussion – both of which were jam-packed with employer testimonials and top tips on how to make the most of apprenticeship programmes to both attract candidates and upskill existing employees.

OAPA Cook ‘N’ Dine

This September, our incredible charity partner Only A Pavement Away hosted their spectacular ‘Cook & Dine event – a brilliant occasion that highlights the opportunities within the hospitality sector for those that have fallen on hard times. This year’s dinner raised £42,000 – that’s £7,000 more than last year’s £35,000 figure!

Walk for Wellbeing

In the month of October our Caterer.com team, along with the rest of our hospitality community, put one foot in front of the other in the name of the Walk for Wellbeing. Hosted by Mum, Walk for Wellbeing raises critical funds for Hospitality Action, who provide vital financial and emotional support to our hospitality family. Together as an industry we collectively raised £100,000, which will be used to support hospitality people facing challenging times and Hospitality Action to take crucial steps towards promoting wellbeing across the hospitality industry. .

Age Diversity in Hospitality Campaign

Also in October, we launched our Hospitality Hiring Insider with a focus on Age Diversity in Hospitality. With the latest economic and hospitality hiring trends, tips from top employers on creating an age-diverse workforce, case studies, and much more! We also held another lively roundtable discussion, with contributions from our partners – the Centre for Ageing Better.

One of the best things about what we do is being part of an incredible family. We had an amazing night with our clients and industry partners at Florattica by Canopy by Hilton. It fills us with pride to be part of such a vibrant and unified community – it’s all of you that make hospitality such a great sector to be in and we can’t wait to partner with you all througout 2024.

See more photos on our LinkedIn page

Our tips for hospitality recruitment in 2024

1. Build your company culture

One of the key ways in which you can enhance retention and productivity is through creating a company culture that nurtures and empowers your team. If they feel truly valued, they’re more likely to give their best!

2. Utilise apprenticeships to attract & upskill

Apprenticeships can be a great way to offer additional training to your existing members of staff and creating new attractive pathways for future candidates.

3. Become an age-friendly employer

Tapping into the skills and experience of older workers by becoming an age-friendly employer could help your brand fill talent gaps and address a sector-wide labour shortage. Onboarding an age-diverse team comes with a catalogue of benefits including natural mentorship within your team.

4. Consider offering flexible hours and shift patterns

Now more than ever, candidates are seeking better work life balance – and one of the ways in which you can easily meet this need is by offering more flexible work patterns with your roles.

5. Create incentives for excellence

If you’re taking good care of your team they’ll already be putting their best foot forward, but why not show them what rewards they can earn by shooting for the stars? Offering different incentives for success to your team can help to give them that little bit of extra motivation.

6. Get the rest of your team involved in onboarding

New hires aren’t just joining you, they’re joining the rest of your team too! Getting the whole crew involved in onboarding will help allow for a smoother transition and better integration.

7. Reach out for support

It can feel intimidating when it comes to exploring new avenues to level up your hiring practices. Thankfully, there are plenty of helpful organisations and external partners your brand can reach out to for direction such as Umbrella Training, Only A Pavement Away, Springboard, the Centre for Ageing Better, and many more.

8. Become an ambassador

There’s no one better suited to champion the hospitality sector like someone who knows it inside out. If you’re passionate about this industry, then why not join the Springboard Ambassador programme and help promote the vast opportunities in hospitality?

9. Prioritise mental health in the workplace

Don’t make the mistake of putting employee wellbeing on the back bench. Offering tools to enable employee wellbeing such as an Employee Assistance Programme can make a world of difference for your team. Hospitality Action are just a click away to tell you everything you need to know about implementing an EAP into your business.

10. Embrace our hiring tools to make your job easier.

Utilising the power of technology to streamline your candidate search can make your hiring process more efficient from start to finish. We have a variety of products to help, including our CV Database, Applicant Manager, Video Screening, and more! Take a look through our product hub, which tells you everything you need to know about getting the most out of our recruitment tools.

Best bits from 2023

To look back at our adventures over the last year, you can check out our social media channels (@Catererdotcom on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter), our blog, and even tune in to our Recruiting in Hospitality podcast.