We need more of that ‘Yes sir, no trouble’ attitude

Last month, research by accountancy firm PKF showed occupancy rates and revenue have both risen at hotels in Scotland over the past 12 months.

Scottish Enterprise has projected the tourism industry to grow at 3 per cent a year for the next ten years and 95 per cent of Scottish respondent to a recent survey believed hospitality and tourism, alongside technology, will lead the growth out of the recession.

With reports of a record festival season in Edinburgh, growing whisky, nature and golf tourism products and a positive trend in domestic tourism, the long-term picture for the hospitality and tourism sector appears rosy.

But this success hides the roots of a growing problem for industry, one that could limit its long-term growth.

A number of Scottish hoteliers have been talking about a change in the buying behaviour of visitors. Domestic holiday makers are booking more “snackations” – high-quality breaks of a shorter duration that are consumed more often – rather than big-ticket foreign holidays. The falling pound also makes Scotland a more-attractive option for overseas visitors. Both of these growth patterns are driven by the economic downturn.

We all hope for economic recovery sooner rather than later. But, once it is under way and money starts to matter less, Scotland will face greater competition. Price will always matter but the strength and quality of our product will become increasingly important.

The question is, does Scotland’s hospitality offering measure up against emerging markets and countries with a greater customer service ethos? Yes there have been huge improvement over the past decade – Scottish hospitality and service is nothing to be ashamed of – but does it wow the customer?

There are pockets of excellence in Scotland but the answer is “not yet”. Recruitment in the industry is returning but many companies have reduced staff hours, rather than force redundancies. A quarter of all hospitality businesses admit to having some under-qualified for their position.

Quite simply, in the current climate, people are doing more with less; they are asking more of their staff and they are doing a great job but where is the time for development?

In the hospitality industry, the strength of the product more often than not comes down to the quality of the people behind it. We need to do more to encourage a “Yes sir, no trouble at all” culture in order to compete against emerging tourism markets in Europe, Asia and established markets such as America.

A change in culture requires investment in people and this needs time. The recession has robbed many businesses of this resource and the industry will feel this when growth arrives.

In addition, in competing nations, hospitality is seen as an attractive option for graduates; the skills to develop a superior level of service and product are nurtured and leadership is encouraged throughout a career. This is something the industry has been working hard at for a number of years and we are slowly getting there.

Today, HIT Scotland begins its annual search for emerging talent scholarships. This year, we hope to provide more than 70 opportunities and develop a number of potential leaders right across the industry.

In Scotland, the hospitality, tourism, leisure and travel industries represent 20,000 businesses supporting nearly 204,000 jobs directly and indirectly. This is a huge number of people to convince we should be doing better. We need to start by finding agents of change that already exist within the industry, who can inspire other around them, as well as nurture the next round of graduates entering profession.

l David Cochrane is chief executive of the Hospitality Industry Trust (HIT) Scotland and of the International Leadership School of Scotland.