The Great Resignation: stopping the 'bleed'

As hospitality businesses open up ‘post-pandemic’, the unavailability of qualified staff has become one of the biggest obstacles to businesses’ ability to take maximum advantage of the pent-up desire and need for travel. A study published by McKinsey in September 2021 under the headline “Great attrition or great attraction? The choice is yours”1 verbalised and quantified for the first time something that the hospitality industry around the globe is experiencing as businesses start their return to the ‘next normal’. The article explained in detail a mindset that has become commonplace both for employers and employees, and that will be troubling the industry for a while if not properly addressed. When Covid first brought the world to a standstill, the hospitality industry was one of the first and worst hit. Business came to a halt; many hotels and restaurants closed or decreased staffing levels as much as possible in order to cut expenses. In the developed world, this was done with the help of government programmes so that employees could access some kind of safety net. In developing countries, these safety nets often did not/do not exist. Many employers were ruthless, simply telling staff that they were no longer needed. ‘Thanks’ to many governments calling Covid-19 a “force majeure”, employers got around paying legally required compensation for terminating employees at short notice. Many of our colleagues, expatriate and local, found themselves literally ‘on the street’ within weeks of the pandemic ravaging the industry. Employers’ social responsibility to the communities in which they do business was one of the first victims of the pandemic. The understanding that “our staff is our most valuable asset” turned into pure semantics. Today, as these businesses celebrate that they are opening again, there is a surprising level of surprise among the most callous of employers that now they can’t find staff. The industry will have to come up with new ways of working if they want to attract colleagues back – the loss of trust and goodwill will have serious repercussions. To ‘make good’ on their actions, employers need to first understand how much they broke – initial observations show that they have not even started to understand what they did. What about people still employed? Shouldn’t they be lucky to still have a job? In the McKinsey study, 40% of participants who were still employed answered that they were at least somewhat likely to leave their job in the next 3–6 months; 64% of these claimed that they are planning to leave without a new job lined up. At the core of this is, I believe (and the study suggests), is a general disconnect between what employees are looking for and what employers think that employees are looking for. The pandemic has sent many of us into a survival mode, forcing actions that were purely transactional. Yet the hospitality industry, at its core, depends on people who care for others. Employers need to ask employees questions that show they care and rebuild the trust that has been lost due to their actions when the pandemic hit. As a member of a Vietnamese investment group that did exactly the opposite, that held on to employees at substantial cost to the enterprise and with employees at all levels ‘chipping in’ through unpaid leave to help keep everyone employed, I know first-hand that this has built a substantial amount of trust and our levels of attrition are substantially below the market average as other businesses reopen. Asking the right questions, listening to the answers and consistently responding with empathy and tangible action, not words, will be key to our success. Corresponding author Oliver Horn can be contacted at: [email protected] Note McKinsey & Company, September 8, 2021, study conducted with 4,294 participants in the US, UK, Australia, Singapore and Canada. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/great-attrition-or-great-attraction-the-choice-is-yours

Waiter, there’s a fly in my coffee!

The hospitality industry is under intense pressure. COVID-19 restrictions and limited trading opportunities have forced restaurateurs to consider their pricing structures. Reflecting those concerns, Richard Corney, MD of the Inigo Coffee Group, proposed that the retail price of a cup of coffee needed to rise to between $6.50 and $7.00 to “take into account all the other cost increases hospitality establishments have experienced in the last decade, not to mention the challenges of the pandemic in the last two years” [1]. Alongside these revenue issues, the industry also needs to move away from a tradition of low pay and low value [2], and perhaps towards the concept of a ‘hospitable wage’ [3]. However, laudable as these goals might be, upward price movement may be resisted by many customers. So how can restaurateurs and hoteliers ‘sell’ revised-price-products to their customers? Clearly, increased revenue can be achieved through both marginal price increases and up-selling to increase average customer spend. We propose that both of these goals can be achieved if employers embrace the concept of hospitality as an experience [4, 5], where the performance of staff is central [6], and where the experience is delivered with ‘hospitality personality’. Much has been written about the personality of hospitality staff. Most of that work can be traced back to the early work of Erving Goffman [7] who proposed that hospitality employees were playing roles, and acting out, by using their emotional intelligence. Goffman likened such workers to actors who literally ‘take on’ a character. The characteristics of the hospitality personality have been explored by many authors [8–10] and include, agreeableness, extroversion, openness to experience, conscientiousness, and emotional stability; although some research also reveals that neuroticism is also a hospitality characteristic in hotel receptionists. Alongside this research, other studies have identified the role of mood and personality in positive guest experiences, specifically service quality perception and customer satisfaction [11]. This supports our suggestion that the performance of staff can have a direct impact on customer experience and potentially revenue, and that Corney’s price recommendation could be a realistic option for many businesses struggling economically. But there’s a ‘fly in the ointment’: the Tall Poppy Syndrome. Tall poppy syndrome originated around 500BC in ancient Rome, when King Tarquinius Superbus demonstrated how the nation should deal with its enemies. In an active display he lopped off the heads of the tallest poppies in his garden with a stick [12]. Today, tall poppies are conspicuously successful people, who may attract envy, resentment or hostility, and the Tall Poppy Syndrome (TPS) is the habit of others to diminish those who have attained excellence in a field – to cut them down to size [13]. While TPS is commonly associated with Australia and New Zealand, it is also part of other cultures. Within Scandinavian cultures, janteloven1 promotes humility and conformity paralleling TPS [15]; in Japanese culture, ‘the nail that sticks up gets pounded down’ [16]; and within Filipino culture a crab mentality exists whereby crabs in a bucket tend to pull back any adventurous crabs trying to escape [17]. TPS is often described as being ingrained in New Zealand culture [18] and has been identified as a phenomenon in New Zealand entrepreneurship and business [19]. While TPS encourages conformist cultures, our research provides a valuable insight into how employers can spot potential employees who actively resist notions of TPS’s conformity and are more likely to perform to the highest levels. Using Instagram, we interviewed 1000 young self-identifying New Zealanders to explore their qualitative experiences of TPS. They identified as 68% female and 32% male. Their age ranges were: 58% aged 18–24; 27% aged 25–34; 7% aged 35–44; 3% aged 45–54; and 2% aged 55 or above. Three percent of the respondents were excluded from our final sample because they were aged 17 or younger. The respondents’ feelings, victimhood, self-esteem, and knowledge about TPS provided our research with the largest amount of data. Of our 1000 participants, 50% knew what TPS was, while 50% did not. Similarly, 45% of our respondents claimed to be victims of TPS. Contrastingly, 55% had no experiences of TPS. Within those considerations, the data revealed clearly that TPS was perceived by participants as ‘something done to them’ and not as ‘something they do to other people’. Yet, and despite that difference, the pervasive nature of TPS within Kiwi socio-culture was noted by participants. Several participants recounted the cost of TPS; for example, “Definitely held me back. It can knock your confidence so much” and “Made me want to hide/play down my talents/my life.” Other participants perceived TPS “put-downs” (belittling or humiliating remarks) as a challenge or motivating force. They commented, “Uncomfortable but it pushed me harder to be even more successful” and “It motivated me. I realized people saw something in me and strived to continue improving.” For the 45% of our participants directly experiencing TPS, those experiences were grounded within two base reactions. Reflecting that, more than half of our participants adopted conformist behaviours, succumbing to the bullying pressures of others. However, 45% recognised TPS and its bullying as a motivator to create further behaviours and actions of excellence. The role of social media in TPS was significant. Participants directly linked TPS to social media with 89% of respondents recognising the role of social media in TPS. Key to their views was the realisation that social media not only provided distance between people but also that people used social media to manipulate the image they projected to others. In those ways, social media was a mediating factor. As participants observed, “Easier to be mean and cut someone down through a comment than to their face” and “Social media has made it easier to abuse and put down those that stand out.” Given the attributes of the hospitality personality, and Richard Corney’s proposed pricing restructures in hospitality, the key is for employers to consider the resilience of their staff to TPS and conformity. They should consider whether they can recruit and retain the 45% of staff that use TPS as inspiration to succeed – the staff who will rise the challenge of delivering exceptional customer experiences through their own performance of the ‘hospitality personality’. It is within the unique characteristics of these staff that hospitality businesses can generate that extra point of difference and experience that customers will be happy to pay a little more to enjoy; and perhaps hospitality businesses might go a step further by also considering the concept of the ‘hospitable wage’. Corresponding author Lindsay Neill can be contacted at: [email protected] Note “Janteloven (the law of Jante) at its simplest describes the way that all Norwegians (and in fact, other Scandinavians too) behave: putting society ahead of the individual, not boasting about individual accomplishments, and not being jealous of others” [14]. References (1) Wilkes, M. We Need to Pay $7 for a Flat White if Cafes are Going to Survive, Says Coffee Boss, 2021. https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/food-drink/drinks/127196374/we-need-to-pay-7-for-a-flat-white-if-cafes-are-going-to-survive-says-coffee-boss (accessed Dec 12, 2021). (2) Te Ora, N. Does Hospitality Have a Low Wages Problem? Workers Say Yes. Some Restaurant Owners Say No, 2021. https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/125301113/does-hospitality-have-a-low-wages-problem-workers-say-yes-some-restaurant-owners-say-no (accessed Dec 10, 2021). (3) Douglas, J.; Williamson, D.; Harris, C. Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap: Creating “Hospitable Wages” through the Living Wage Movement. Hospitality & Society 2020, 10 (1), 3–22. (4) Hemmington, N. From Service to Experience: Understanding and Defining the Hospitality Business. The Service Industries Journal 2007, 27 (6), 747–755. (5) Lugosi, P. Hospitality Spaces, Hospitable Moments: Consumer Encounters and Affective Experiences in Commercial Settings. Journal of Foodservice 2008, 19 (2), 139–149. (6) Morgan, M.; Watson, P.; Hemmington, N. Drama in the Dining Room: Theatrical Perspectives on the Foodservice Encounter. Journal of Foodservice 2008, 19 (2), 111–118. (7) Goffman, E. The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life; Doubleday: Garden City, New York, 1959. (8) Köşker, H.; Unur, K.; Gursoy, D. The Effect of Basic Personality Traits on Service Orientation and Tendency to Work in the Hospitality and Tourism Industry. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism 2019, 19 (2), 140–162. (9) Grobelna, A. Extraversion and its Importance in the Hospitality Workplace. Scientific Journal, No. 876, Economic Problems of Tourism 2015, 3 (31), 89–96. (10) Gonzalez-Gonzalez, T.; García-Almeida, D. J. Frontline Employee-Driven Change in Hospitality Firms: An Analysis of Receptionists’ Personality on Implemented Suggestions. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 2021, 33 (12), 4439–4459. (11) Kocabulut, Ö.; Albayrak, T. The Effects of Mood and Personality Type on Service Quality Perception and Customer Satisfaction. International Journal of Culture, Tourism, and Hospitality Research 2019, 13 (1), 98–112. (12) Felton, D. Advice to Tyrants: The Motif of “Enigmatic Counsel” in Greek and Roman Texts. Phoenix 1998, 52 (1–2), 42–54. (13) Feather, N. T. Attitudes towards the High Achiever: The Fall of the Tall Poppy. Australian Journal of Psychology 1989, 41 (3), 239–267. (14) Nikel, D. What Exactly Is Janteloven? Life in Norway, 2015. https://www.lifeinnorway.net/what-exactly-is-janteloven/ (accessed Dec 10, 2021). (15) Ahlness A. Janteloven and Social Conformity in Thorbørn Egner’s Literature, 2014. http://ncurproceedings.org/ojs/index.php/NCUR2014/article/view/738 (accessed Oct 8, 2019). (16) Matsumoto, D. Culture and Self: An Empirical Assessment of Markus and Kitayama’s Theory of Independent and Interdependent Self-Construals. Asian Journal of Social Psychology 1999, 2, 289–310. (17) Licuanan, P. A Moral Recovery Program: Building a People – Building a Nation. In: Dy, M. B. (ed) Values in Philippine Culture and Education: Philippine Philosophical Studies, 1; The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy: Washington, DC, 1994, pp. 35–54. (18) Ockhuysen, S. It's Time to Do Better and Cut Tall Poppy Syndrome out of Our Culture. Stuff, Feb 20, 2020. https://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/119627156/its-time-to-do-better-and-cut-tall-poppy-syndrome-out-of-our-culture (accessed Dec 11, 2021) (19) Kirkwood, J. Tall Poppy Syndrome: Implications for Entrepreneurship in New Zealand. Journal of Management & Organization 2007, 13 (4), 366–382.

Hospitality education in New Zealand prisons

New Zealand has one of the highest imprisonment rates per capita when compared to the rest of the developed world. People who offend in New Zealand have a 43% chance of reoffending within the first 24 months of their release [1]. It is estimated that approximately 60% of people who offend have literacy and numeracy skills lower than the NCEA Level 1 competency, and 66% of adults have no formal qualifications [2, 3]. A focus on literacy and numeracy, support through baseline education, and specific trades like hospitality, can start to refine the options of a person who offends, further enabling them to start developing goals that will support their futures [4]. Since 2014, the Department of Corrections/Ara Poutama Aotearoa has been upgrading the prison-based educational programmes available to people who offend to achieve this. Goals have been set to integrate the in-prison education with the nationally recognised level of education along with practical elements such as kitchen work, housekeeping and other service-based vocations such as hairdressing and customer service. The courses are relatively short, ranging from six to 12 weeks, and provide key skills and the foundations for further study. Evidence from overseas has found that hospitality and, specifically, catering programmes are a tool that positively impacts the way people who offend engage with their rehabilitation; creating an experience through the sharing and giving of food is seen as a way to reintegrate and regain a sense of achievement and being of service through meaningful social connections and employment. Our study carried out a systematic literature review of the effectiveness of hospitality training and education in correctional facilities. Evidence was found of the effectiveness of educational programmes within prisons and their positive impact on recidivism. It was also found that hospitality training initiatives, such as those provided in prison training restaurants open to the public for dining, could offer a unique opportunity that allows people who offend to change the negative public perceptions held about them. In New Zealand, we have unique tikanga-based initiatives that support people who offend to reintegrate back into the public environment and their families, with reduced reoffending [5]. The literature showed, convincingly, that education leads to opportunities for post-release employment and the ability to manage work-life balance, reintegration into society, and gain skills that support long-term prosperity [3]. Czerniawski [6] sees education as a key step in making a positive change in the lives of people who offend, especially if followed by a period of post-release support. Our study also revealed the challenges of providing hospitality education in prisons. Prison security risks, risk of lockdowns, student mental health, lack of educational resources and support services, and lack of set-up and sustainable funding for educational programmes were seen as hindrances to the success of prison education programmes. Lack of post-release support and the negative stigma of people who offend perceived by the public and employers were further noted issues of concern. Likewise, prison culture, staff retention, general misconduct and mistrust were also cited as aspects of concern [7]. Giousmpasoglou and colleagues [8] suggested that people who offend would prefer education programmes that were carried out by external facilitators over in-prison programmes. The importance of networks between educators, support workers and employers are important in this regard. With the hospitality industry facing a skills shortage and with its low barriers to entry, there is potential to build upon the success of existing hospitality education programmes to build skills, pride and a second chance for those who are engaging in rehabilitation. There is also an opportunity to consider tertiary pathways for these hospitality graduates and entrepreneurs. Furthermore, the Department of Corrections/Ara Poutama Aotearoa could consider the success of initiatives such as The Clink Charity training restaurants in the UK in supporting rehabilitation through hospitality training and work. Corresponding author Madz Crouth can be contacted at: [email protected] References (1) Boomen, M. Where New Zealand Stands Internationally: A Comparison of Offence Profiles and Recidivism Rates. Practice: The New Zealand Corrections Journal 2018, 6 (1), 87–96. https://www.corrections.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/33449/Practice_Journal_Vol6_Iss1_July_2018_WEB.pdf (accessed Dec 1, 2021). (2) Corrections. Prison Facts and statistics – December 2020, 2020. https://www.corrections.govt.nz/resources/statistics/quarterly_prison_statistics/prison_stats_december_2020 (accessed Dec 1, 2021). (3) Corrections. Prison Facts and Statistics – March 2020, 2020. https://www.corrections.govt.nz/resources/statistics/quarterly_prison_statistics/prison_stats_march_2020 (accessed Dec 1, 2021). (4) Harkison, T.; McIntosh, A. Hospitality Training for Prisoners. Hospitality Insights 2019, 3 (1), 5–6. https://doi.org/10.24135/hi.v3i1.52 (5) Hamer, P.; Paul, J.; Hunia, M. Hōkai Rangi: Context and Background to the Development of Ara Poutama Aotearoa Strategy 2019–2024. Practice: The New Zealand Corrections Journal 2021, 8 (1), 18–22. https://www.corrections.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/43208/Practice_Journal_2021_Final_Web_Version.pdf (accessed Dec 1, 2021). (6) Czerniawski, G. A. Race to the Bottom – Prison Education and the English and Welsh Policy Context. Journal of Education Policy 2016, 31 (2), 198–212. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2015.1062146 (7) Chui, W. H.; Cheng, K. K.-Y. The Mark of an Ex-Prisoner: Perceived Discrimination and Self-Stigma of Young Men after Prison in Hong Kong. Deviant Behavior 2013, 34 (8), 671–684. https://doi.org/10.1080/01639625.2013.766532 (8) Giousmpasoglou, C.; Brown, L.; Marinakou, E. Training Prisoners as Hospitality Workers: The Case of the CLINK Charity; Paper presented at the Travel & Tourism Research Association (TTRA) 2019: European Chapter Conference, 2019. http://eprints.bournemouth.ac.uk/31827/1/Giousmpasoglou-Brown-Marinakou_TTRA19_conference_Final.pdf (accessed Dec 1, 2021).

Disability-inclusive workplaces provide greater value for the hospitality industry

Scholars believe that people with disabilities are a largely untapped and under-utilised hospitality-industry employment pool. In 2020, it was estimated that only 22.5% of people with disabilities were in full-time employment, in comparison to 69.3% of people without disabilities [1]. With approximately one in four New Zealanders identifying as living with disability, there is an opportunity for New Zealand’s hospitality industry to realise great value from having disability-inclusive workplaces. Our study aimed to identify the benefits of, and barriers to, employing people with disabilities in the hospitality industry. The research was carried out by undertaking a systematic literature review, which can identify, evaluate and integrate an existing body of relevant scholarly literature [2]. In order to search for literature as widely as possible, keywords relevant to the study were entered into two internet browsers: Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome. Keywords were then entered into Google Scholar and the Scopus database in order to filter for specific tourism and hospitality journals. In total, our search found 173 journal articles relevant to the topic. The retrieved literature revealed a number of benefits related to the inclusive employment of people with disabilities in the hospitality industry. People with disabilities were found to be loyal employees; it has been shown that they are committed to their employing organisation, minimising their likelihood of leaving, and thus reducing the rate of staff turnover. People with disabilities were also found to be engaged employees; it has been shown that employing people with disabilities increases the level of productivity, efficiency and creativity within the workplace. Lower rates of absenteeism were recorded in comparison to employees without disabilities, as well as higher levels of customer satisfaction and a greater sense of corporate social responsibility. Inclusive employment can highlight an organisation’s dedication to social inclusion and be a key differentiation strategy that is highly regarded by internal and external stakeholders, thus promoting a positive organisational image and reputation. These benefits are achievable given there are few entry barriers to hospitality industry roles that do not require much previous work experience – for example, kitchenhand or housekeeping. Additionally, the nature of the tasks within the hospitality industry are considered more routine and repetitive. A number of challenges and barriers to the employment of people with disabilities were found, mostly related to prejudice and discrimination by human resource managers, general management and existing employees. Documented concerns were related to the perceived skills and abilities of the potential employee with a disability, and whether they had the required knowledge for the role or the industry. Additionally, others in the organisation often (mis)perceived that people with disabilities are costly to accommodate. In fact, the opposite has been found to be true. The literature also revealed limited, or lack of, access to further training or education for human resource managers around how they could better support employees with disabilities. To conclude, our research has revealed a broad and increasing body of scholarship on the employment of people with disabilities, identifying recommendations for the hospitality industry. Of particular note is the social value for hospitality employers of employing people with disabilities; there is a need to look beyond the disability at hand, and to instead view the individual’s abilities and skills, and the positive characteristics that they could bring as a potential employee. The social value of employing people with disabilities includes an increased sense of acceptance, belonging and diversity within the workplace. It was also highlighted that any initial accrued costs from accommodations needed to support the ongoing performance of employees with disabilities would also likely benefit customers with disabilities and future employees with disabilities in the longer term. Moreover, relevant national and international legislation, such as the United Nations Convention of the Rights of People with Disabilities (2006), Human Rights Act (1993), and the Bill of Rights (1990), provides a comprehensive framework that outlines the standard of accessibility and inclusivity that hospitality organisations should aim for, both now and in the future. This research project was funded by an AUT Summer Research Award, 2020. Corresponding author Laura Upson can be contacted at: [email protected] References (1) Statistics New Zealand. Key Provisional Estimates, 2019. https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/tourism-satellite-account-2019 (accessed Nov 1, 2021) (2) Okoli, C.; Schabram, K. A Guide to Conducting a Systematic Literature Review of Information Systems Research. Sprouts: Working Papers on Information Systems 2010, 10 (26), 1–51.

Hospitable psychotherapy

One of the things I notice when my wife and I go out for a meal in a restaurant is how the staff make contact, welcome us and see us to our table. For me, the quality of the contact (by eye contact, a smile, and an open manner), the welcome (‘Kia ora’), and accompaniment to the table (which conveys a sense of being expected) are all crucial elements to setting the scene of what is to come. Similarly, in psychotherapy, practitioners meet, greet and seat their clients, and, as do restauranteurs, have different perspectives on how to do that. During the last decade, some psychotherapists have been thinking about their practice in terms of what Donna Orange, clinician and a professor at New York University, refers to as ‘clinical hospitality’ [1] . In promoting this concept as a way of thinking about psychotherapeutic practice, she draws on the work of three French philosophers: Emanuel Lévinas (1906–1995), Jacques Derrida (1930–2004) and Paul Ricœur (1915–2005), all of whom devoted themselves to the discourse of hospitality. From Lévinas [2], who drew on the story of Abraham’s hospitality towards three Bedouin (Genesis, chapter 18), we derive the ethical view that the ‘other’ as a guest has a claim on my protection as a host. This view is reflected in the duty of care towards their clients practiced by psychotherapists and those in the helping professions. Much of Derrida’s work examines the ambiguities of hospitality: that it is both unconditional in that, as hosts, we submit ourselves to the other; yet, at the same time, there are ‘laws’ of hospitality that subject both hosting and being a guest to certain social and cultural conventions [3]. Finally, from Ricœur, a philosopher who distinguished between a hermeneutics (or way in which something is interpreted or understood) of faith or trust and a hermeneutics of doubt or suspicion, we get the concept of ‘linguistic hospitality’ [4]: the recognition of genuine otherness, which cannot be translated so much as interpreted. In other words, at best, there is an understanding of our guest or client, with and in all our differences. In this sense, we may think of hospitality as orientated towards being contractual, open, accepting, non-judgmental, and empathic and, insofar as it enhances a person’s mana, it is therapeutic. This is akin to the concept of manaakitanga “where[by] hospitality extends beyond commercial transactions and focusses on reciprocity and care” [5], the implication of which is mana-enhancing psychotherapy [6]. It is in this context that Orange, who is a psychoanalyst and a philosopher, describes her work in terms that she ‘cares’ for her patients [7, 8]. From this perspective, psychotherapy is all about being hospitable: there is – or should be – an openness, welcome, care, and attention that makes our client/guest feel good and that sets the scene for the ensuing therapeutic relationship through which the client resolves their problems and, ultimately, feels better. Just as psychotherapy is learning from hospitality, it may be that insights from psychotherapy may be useful to people in hospitality, not only in being able to analyse transactions and interpersonal communication, but also in understanding personal history and dynamics, especially when the host is feeling less than open, welcoming or gracious. Shabad [9] emphasises the importance for the therapist to be open, precisely so that the client (or patient) has the opportunity for what he refers to as the ‘dignity’ to give of themselves: “When an individual has attained a sense of belonging because of being received himself/herself by significant persons, he/she is better able to mobilize the graciousness of welcoming the gifts of others” (p. 359). In other words, one cannot be a host and offer hospitality (social, cultural, linguistic, clinical or nurturant) without first having experienced, taken in and integrated, both developmentally and psychologically, appropriate and generous hospitality. Corresponding author Keith Tudor can be contacted at: [email protected] References (1) Orange, D. M. The Suffering Stranger: Hermeneutics for Everyday Clinical Practice; Routledge: New York, NY, 2011. (2) Levinas, E. Nine Talmudic Readings; Indiana University Press: Bloomington, IN, 1990. (3) Derrida, J. Adieu to Emmanuel Levinas, Trans. P.-A. Brault, M. Naas; Stanford University Press: Stanford, CA, 1999. (4) Ricœur, P. On Translation, Trans. E. Brennan; Routledge: Hove, England, 2006. (5) Wikitera, K.-A. Under the Stars of Matariki. Hospitality Insights 2021, 5 (1), 1–2. (6) Reidy, J. Ko wai au? Who am I? What are the Meanings of the Mātauranga Māori Concept of Mana and What Might this Concept Contribute to the Understanding and Practice of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy?; Master’s Thesis, Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand, 2014. https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/handle/10292/7863 (accessed Dec 22, 2021). (7) Orange, D. Clinical Hospitality: Welcoming the Face of the Devastated Other. Ata: Journal of Psychotherapy Aotearoa New Zealand 2012, 16 (2), 165–178. https://doi.org/10.9791/ajpanz.2012.17 (8) Orange, D. M. Emotional Availability and Clinical Hospitality; Presentation at Association for Psychoanalytic Self Psychology, New York City, March 2014. (9) Shabad, P. The Vulnerability of Giving: Ethics and the Generosity of Receiving. Psychoanalytic Inquiry 2017, 37 (6), 359–374. https://doi.org/10.1080/07351690.2017.1334443

Responses to Covid-19 from Kiwi hospitallers

The global impact of COVID-19 has been dramatic and research into that impact is beginning to emerge within the tourism and hospitality literature. The research reflects both theoretical and geo-graphical/regional perspectives. Some examples are as follows: an exploration of the impact of COVID-19 on the hotel industry in China considering disaster management [1]; research into the nexus of COVID-19 and hospitality resilience [2]; the impact of COVID-19 on the Indian tourism and hospitality industry [3]; an analysis of how COVID-19 has impacted restaurant firms’ stock market returns in the United States of America [4]. In Aotearoa New Zealand, during September 2020, we conducted research with 11 providers of hospitality who were responsible for a total of 105 food and beverage outlets. Those outlets comprised of 22 cafés, 4 restaurants and 79 takeaways. The longevity of our 105 participant businesses averaged 11 years and three months. Their locations ranged from Auckland, the Central Plateau, Christchurch, Dunedin, and Invercargill. Our participant businesses are detailed in Table 1. Table 1: Details of the 11 participants and their businesses Market segment Participant’s role Number of outlets Years in business Company annual income ($) Cafés Owner 1 7.5 900k – 1m Director 20 24 250k – 2m CEO/owner 1 13 No response Restaurants Owner 1 6 2.8–3m Owner 1 2 2.8–3m Owner 1 11 1.5–1.8m Owner 1 3 700–750k Takeaways CEO 1 22 No response Owner 1 3 270–300k Owner 1 13 2m Brand manager 76 17 4–4.5m We located several themes that were important to our participants; four of them are discussed below. Theme 1: The economic impact of COVID-19 Turnover was down, and businesses had experienced reduced spending per head. However, countering that was the realisation within some businesses that COVID-19 also represented opportunities for innovation. Those opportunities were driven by factors that included the increased business use of social media, and human contact (albeit at a distance). Because customers were socially distanced, ordering from home and consequent home deliveries represented opportunities for business growth and renewal. Additionally, COVID-19 changed the labour market from an employee-driven model to one benefitting employers. Key to that was the Government’s wage subsidy scheme. Theme 2: Government policy and COVID-19 There was not universal participant support for the Government’s COVID-19 policies. For many respondents, working through policy proved stressful. Participant dissatisfaction was fuelled by comparisons to the Australian Government’s hospitality initiatives. Yet, despite that, our participants also realised that New Zealand’s ‘severe’ COVID-19 response placed the nation in a positive position for a quick business recovery. Theme 3: Government COVID-19 recovery/assistance packages Our participants anticipated that normal business would return with 18–36 months. However, they also noted that more government interventions were needed. Participants cited the helpful measures undertaken in the Christchurch earthquakes, and again cited the Australian Government’s initiatives as being particularly helpful. Additionally, our participants were hopeful that a trans-Tasman ‘bubble’ was key in stimulating business growth. Labour-based initiatives were also mentioned, particularly the easing of visa restrictions for workers in the hospitality industry. Similarly, a directory matching potential employees and employers and giving new workers ‘a go’ within a 90-day trial period were popular options. Theme 4: Business initiatives and recovery from COVID-19 COVID-19 highlighted the importance of hospitality’s basic ethos: caring for others within acts of hospitality. Our participants recognised that consumer patterns were changing. Within those changes our participants re-evaluated and embraced menu change, fostered a sense of community with customers either in real or virtual time, and spent time in self-reflection. Those actions, particularly reflection, generated for our participants a new sense of ‘self’ within their business. That renewed sense of self included the disconnection of hospitality from international tourism. Simply put, the international tourist market was extinct: local Kiwis were ‘the market’. That realisation enhanced our participants’ sense of community and inspired them to create more local and long-term connections. For many participants, COVID-19 realised a pragmatic renewed appreciation and understanding of something obvious: the local market. Consequently, our exploration of COVID-19’s impact on our participant groups not only provides a unique insight into their business considerations of COVID-19, but also reflects positive attributes of our nation’s wider socio-culture and psyche. Corresponding author Lindsay Neill can be contacted at: [email protected] References (1) Hao F.; Xiao, Q.; Chon, K. COVID-19 and China’s Hotel Industry: Impacts, a Disaster Management Frame-work, and Post-Pandemic Agenda. International Journal of Hospitality Management 2020, 90, 102636. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2020.102636 (2) Alonso A.; Kok S.; Bressan, A. COVID-19, Aftermath, Impacts, and Hospitality Firms: An International Perspective. International Journal of Hospitality Management 2020, 91, 102654. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2020.102654 (3) Kaushal, V.; Srivastava, S. Hospitality and Tourism Industry amid COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspectives on Challenges and Learnings from India. International Journal of Hospitality Management 2021, 92, 102707. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2020.102707 (4) Song H.; Yeon, J.; Lee, S. (2021). Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from the U.S. Restaurant Industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management 2021, 92, 102702. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2020.102702

Family influences on the career journeys of women executive chefs in New Zealand

Working in professional kitchens, women chefs face multiple challenges including gender segregation and stereotyping, unfair human-resource policies and procedures, exclusion from professional networks, lack of work–life balance and lack of support [1]. Under these circumstances, it is not surprising that few women chefs progress to prime positions in professional kitchens. Although many leave the industry, some women chefs have persevered and succeeded in attaining executive roles. These women’s success stories, and how they have been achieved, are worth examining in order to benefit the growth of the chef sector. The aim of the research reported in this article [2] was to explore the life histories of women executive chefs in order to understand how it has influenced their careers. Previous studies have described the working environments of chefs but have not captured women’s perspectives [3, 4]. This study therefore aimed to understand how women chefs progress in the profession, what their experiences have been, and what influences their professional trajectories. The study adopted a life-history research approach to allow participants’ lives and experiences to be made visible [5]. The interview participants were 23 women executive chefs who were, or had been, managing commercial kitchens in New Zealand, with professional responsibilities including financial control, menu design, food production, and leading a team of kitchen staff. The participants had been in the industry between seven and more than 40 years. Most were executive chefs at their own establishments; six were employees of chained establishments or fine-dining restaurants; and three had since moved on to other paths in the industry, such as education or owning a food-related business. When examining the women’s trajectories into an executive chef position, a notable finding was that family was found to have strong influence on their career journeys, including changes in career direction and career length. Out of the 23 participants, 21 (91%) mentioned the influence of their family of origin on their career choices. It was clear that parents’ opinions about the chef profession and families’ expectations and needs had been a strong influence on the women’s interest in becoming a chef and their resulting professional pathways. Further, participants particularly valued the support from their family throughout their professional careers. Being a chef is demanding, and the participants considered support from family had helped sustain their professional advancement. Changes in family circumstances, such as getting married or becoming partnered, also influenced the women’s career progression. In this research, having children was identified as the main obstacle to women chefs’ career advancement and the main cause of women leaving the chef profession. Furthermore, many participants expressed concerns about conflict between work and family responsibilities because, on top of the long hours and demands of their work environments, they were also the primary caregivers in their families and performed most of the household tasks. Different strategies were applied by the participants to resolve work–family conflicts. Some sought childcare help from family or professional services; in search of more flexible work schedules, some had left their jobs to work in other establishments in the hospitality industry or opened their own establishments; and some took a break from the kitchen to focus on childcare and domestic responsibilities. This finding explains the predominance in the participant profiles, mentioned above, of women executive chefs either owning their own establishments or having left their executive roles. By revealing women executive chefs’ stories, this research has contributed new insights into the challenges they encounter during their careers. The importance of parental support in the development and growth of women chefs in the professional kitchen is emphasised. At the same time, the study urges food and beverage establishments to provide a family-friendly environment and to develop policies and procedures that allow work–life balance for women within the industry. The full research project can be accessed here: http://hdl.handle.net/10292/14323 Corresponding author Beverly (Shih-Yun) Chen can be contacted at [email protected] References (1) Harris, D. A.; Giuffre, P. Taking the Heat: Women Chefs and Gender Inequality in the Professional Kitchen; Rutgers University Press, 2015. (2) Chen, S. Y. (B.) Experiences of Women Executive Chefs: A Life History Approach; Doctoral thesis, Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/10292/14323 (3) Cameron, D. S. Organizational and Occupational Commitment: Exploring Chefs from a Cultural Perspective; Doctoral thesis, University of Surrey, England, 2004. http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/851494/ (4) Robinson, R. N. S.; Solnet, D. J.; Breakey, N. A. Phenomenological Approach to Hospitality Management Research: Chefs’ Occupational Commitment. International Journal of Hospitality Management 2014, 43, 65–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2014.08.004 (5) Sosulski, M.; Buchanan, N.; Donnell, C. Life History and Narrative Analysis: Feminist Methodologies Contextualizing Black Women’s Experiences with Severe Mental Illness. The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare 2010, 37 (3), 29–57. http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw/vol37/iss3/4

Hospitality graduates career pathways: an analysis of LinkedIn profiles

This article shares the results of research that explored the demographics and career pathways of hospitality graduates from Auckland University of Technology (AUT). The study [1] investigated graduates’ employment during and after their studies; promotions; job mobility; tenure of employment; and other aspects of their career pathways. A small selection of the key findings are presented here. The study analysed graduate profiles on LinkedIn, which is the world’s largest professional, online social network. LinkedIn is an employment-oriented network service that provides a website and mobile app allowing both employers and job seekers to make profiles and build connections with each other. In 2019, there were more than two million New Zealand LinkedIn users. In this study, the researcher selected a sample of 130 profiles of New Zealand LinkedIn users who had completed a Bachelor of International Hospitality Management degree at AUT in 2008–2018. A selection of the key findings Of the study participants, 72% were women and 28% were men. This gender distribution broadly matches the results of previous studies worldwide [2, 3], showing that, internationally, most people studying hospitality management in universities are female. 62% of the LinkedIn participants were domestic enrolments and 38% were from overseas. A key finding was that 80% of New Zealand’s hospitality graduates were employed throughout their studies, and that 66% were employed in the hospitality sector while still studying. This finding informs the ongoing discussion between education providers and employers about how ‘work ready’ graduates are and the effectiveness of tertiary education in providing relevant skills [4, 5]. The finding shows that a clear majority of graduates had been working in the industry for several years before they graduated and therefore had experiences of ‘real world’ hospitality work in addition to theory. After graduating, 74% of hospitality graduates decided to work in the hospitality sector (Figure 1), which is 8% more than the 66% of graduates who worked in the hospitality sector during their studies. This 8% worked outside of the hospitality industry as undergraduates but took hospitality work after graduating. Internationally, 74% of graduates finding work in hospitality is a high percentage compared to findings from other countries, e.g. Oman [6], where in 2017 this figure was only 41%; in contrast, research in Poland [7] found a figure of 59%, which is nearer to the result in New Zealand. Figure 1: Sector in which New Zealand hospitality students were employed immediately after their graduation (2008–2018) A quarter (26%) of New Zealand hospitality students decided not to work in the hospitality sector after graduation and opted instead for work in other industries; three quarters of these graduates were male (76%). Of the 74% of graduates who entered the hospitality workforce, the results show that about two-thirds were female and one-third were male. While this is a pleasing result for tertiary educators, showing a good result for industry-specific employment outcomes for hospitality graduates, the gender imbalance raises some intriguing questions that would benefit from further research. Further results show details of graduates’ length of stay at their first workplace. While a quarter (24%) of the participants chose not to enter the hospitality industry after graduating, 34% of graduates left their first place of employment within one year and 22% decided to leave their employer within two years. With a total of 56% percent of graduates leaving their employer within two years, this finding raises serious questions regarding the effect of early employment conditions on hospitality graduates. A possible contributing factor to this high turnover is the result that shows only 20% of graduates employed in the hospitality sector had any career advancement within their first place of employment. The data show that only 7% of graduates had job advancement in their first year, and 8% had a job advancement in their second year. Three percent had job advancement in their third and fourth years, combining to a rather lean 23% of graduates who were promoted within the first four years of their hospitality careers. The data from this study provides a useful and original insight into New Zealand hospitality graduate work choices and raises some interesting questions about the quality of career pathways in the sector. Further findings and discussion can be found in the original dissertation here: https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/handle/10292/14117 Corresponding author Mario Basnayake can be contacted at: [email protected] References (1) Basnayake, M. An Exploratory Study of the Progress of Hospitality Graduates’ Career Pathways in New Zealand; Master’s Thesis, Auckland University of Technology, 2021. https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/handle/10292/14117 (accessed Jul 7, 2021). (2) Chuang, N. K.; Dellmann-Jenkins, M. Career Decision Making and Intention: A Study of Hospitality Undergraduate Students. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research 2010, 34(4), 512–530. https://doi.org/10.1177/1096348010370867 (3) Richardson, S. Generation Y’s Perceptions and Attitudes towards a Career in Tourism and Hospitality. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism 2010, 9(2), 179–199. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332840903383855 (4) Major, B.; Evans, N. Reassessing Employer Expectations of Graduates in UK Travel Services. International Journal of Tourism Research 2008, 10(5), 409–422. https://doi.org/10.1002/jtr.670 (5) Richardson, S.; Thomas, N. J. Utilising Generation Y: United States Hospitality and Tourism Students’ Perceptions of Careers in the Industry. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management 2012, 19(1), 102–114. https://doi.org/10.1017/jht.2012.12 (6) Atef, T.; Al Balushi, M. Omani Tourism and Hospitality Students’ Employment Intentions and Job Preferences: Ramifications on Omanization Plans. Quality Assurance in Education 2017, 25(4), 440-461. https://doi.org./10.1108/QAE-04-2016-0022 (7) Grobelna, A.; Marciszewska, B. Work Motivation of Tourism and Hospitality Students: Implications for Human Resource Management. In Proceedings of the 8th European Conference on Intellectual Capital; Bagnoli, C., Mio, C., Garlatti, A., Massaro, M., Eds.; Academic Conferences and Publishing International: Reading, England, 2016, pp 95–103.

A2 milk: a new way to offer a flat white?

This research sought feedback from professional baristas on their views and experiences of A2 milk use in café coffee production. Their views are important because Aotearoa New Zealand prides itself on its unique café and coffee culture. Reflecting that, in the 1940s, it was observed that for American tourists visiting Auckland, the coffee offered at the White Lady pie cart was an almost compulsory experience [1]. Key to that experience was the White Lady’s coffee-making Goldie Convection Tripolator. Coffee making technologies and ingredients have changed since those times, including the diversity of milks used in espresso milk-based coffees. Today, four milks dominate café and coffee culture in Aotearoa New Zealand (Table 1). Table 1. The four most popular milks used in coffee making in Aotearoa [2] Type of milk Benefit/description Full cream milk Full-cream cow’s milk that it comparatively high in fat and calorie content. Skim milk Fat-free cow’s milk. Popular with consumers who are trying to manage their weight and/or avoid fat in their diets. Soy milk Made from soybeans. Soy milk is a popular alternative to animal milk. Almond milk Made from almonds. Popular with consumers who wish to avoid the fat found in cow’s milk. Those top four milks are complemented by a further wide range of non-dairy milks (Table 2). However, Tables 1 and 2 fail to list one milk that is popular in Aotearoa New Zealand: A2 milk. Our interest in A2 milk aligns it with another Kiwi icon, the flat white. We ask, why are baristas not offering A2 milk in our cafés as another signifier of Kiwi innovation, uniqueness, and identity? Within that notion our inquiry is an important consideration for café operators and others serving coffee, to create a unique ‘Kiwi’ point of difference in what can be otherwise described as a homogenised coffee marketplace. In ‘discovering’ A2 milk, Dr Corran McLachlan observed that ordinary cow’s milk contained two major casein (or protein) types – A1 and A2 – but that some cows do not produce A1. He then developed a method to identify milk that only contained the A2 protein. From that development, in 2018 the a2 Milk Company partnered with Fonterra, New Zealand's largest dairy co-operative [4]. Today, A2 milk products have a 11.2% share of the New Zealand milk market [4]. Table 2. Non-dairy milks available in New Zealand [3] Type of milk Description Coconut milk Made by blending coconut flesh. Full-fat coconut milk is high in calories. Almond milk A mixture of finely ground almonds and water. Soy milk Made by grinding soybeans. A source of protein and essential fatty acids. Oat milk A cereal grain derived milk made by grinding oats. Rice milk Milled white or brown rice and water. Cashew milk A mixture of cashew nuts or cashew butter and water. Macadamia milk A combination of water and about 3% macadamia nuts. Hemp milk Ground seeds of the hemp plant, Cannabis sativa, and water. Quinoa milk Made from water and quinoa. Seven-grain milk A combination of oats, rice, wheat, barley, triticale, spelt, millet and water. To explore the use of A2 milk, we asked five baristas, with an average career span of 25 years, their views on using A2 milk for making coffee. We were surprised by the results. Firstly, our participant baristas looked overseas for their inspiration. Exemplifying that was their interest in latte art and nitrogen infused coffees. Interestingly, our participants held a cautious ‘wait and see’ attitude toward using A2 milk, despite their embrace of many of the milk types outlined in Tables 1 and 2. While our participants mentioned that they would provide A2 milk should consumers begin asking for it, none of them realised that by offering A2 milk they could self-create a temporary point of difference in an otherwise homogeneous coffee marketplace. Additionally, our participant baristas were waiting for the a2 Milk Company to take the lead and promote the use of A2 milk in Aotearoa New Zealand’s café/coffee culture. Consequently, and while our sample size was small, we wonder if cafés are missing an important opportunity for distinction by not offering A2 milk within their milk menu offerings. We suggest that, by using and showcasing A2 milk, Kiwi cafés can enhance the distinctive reputation they already enjoy and in doing so promote the Kiwi cultural attribute of innovation. Corresponding author Lindsay Neill can be contacted at: [email protected] References (1) Neill, L.; Bell, C.; Bryant, T. The Great New Zealand Pie Cart; Hodder Moa: Auckland, 2008. (2) Hurwood, J. A Guide for the Different Types of Milk, 2016. Canstar Blue New Zealand. https://www.canstarblue.co.nz/food-drink/a-guide-to-different-types-of-milk/ (accessed 8 Jul, 2021). (3) Kundu, P.; Dhankhar, J.; Sharma, A. Development of Non-Dairy Milk: Alternative Using Soymilk and Almond Milk. Current Research in Nutrition and Food Science 2018, 6(1), 203–210. https://doi.org/10.12944/CRNFSJ.6.1.23 (4) a2 Milk Company Home Page. https://a2milk.nz/ (accessed Jul 7, 2021)

An executive chef’s insights into hospitality in New Zealand: Brent Martin

2020 was one of the most challenging years to date for the New Zealand hospitality industry. As part of a wider study, a series of interviews were conducted to gain insights into what New Zealand professionals faced through this challenging time with some of their philosophical and career overviews. In this second interview, conducted in November 2020, Tracy Harkison interviewed Brent Martin, executive chef at Park Hyatt Auckland. Questions asked ranged from his passion for hospitality and dealing with COVID-19 to his hopes for the future of hospitality in New Zealand. Tracy Harkison What do you love about working in hospitality? Brent Martin The biggest thing for me is the opportunity – the opportunities that hospitality has given me. I don’t think there is another career that could have given me these opportunities to travel, to live in different cultures, meet different people, and just experience the world. You adapt a lot more and you learn a lot more about your own personality and your own way to deal with things in different cultures. I think hospitality work is a way to broaden people’s lives. Tracy Are there unique aspects to the New Zealand hospitality industry? Brent We are an international brand and hopefully this brings a wealth of knowledge back to New Zealand, which we’re starting to see – not just in hotels but restaurants who have had several really well-known chefs coming back. So the uniqueness of New Zealand is that we have a clean slate and a blank canvas on which we can create these experiences. Tracy Why start a career in hospitality? Brent There are a couple of components to this, it’s the camaraderie and it’s the family values that people have. I’ve been in the industry 30 plus years and the friends that I’ve gained along the way are my friends for life. The time that you spend working in hospitality is sometimes time spent with your best friend. People that come into hospitality really learn about that. Once those borders open, we’re going to be inundated with hundreds of thousands of people coming to New Zealand, and this is going to be very much an ongoing process in New Zealand. New Zealand is struggling for hospitality people and it’s going to open up a lot of doors for people who may have different views of what hospitality is. Tracy When starting in the industry, what advice would you give? Brent You’ve got to come into the industry with an open mind. You need to have passion and you’ve got to understand the unsociable hours. But the rewards at the end of what can happen here are amazing. The reward of seeing people eating in your restaurant, eating your food, it is amazing. When somebody comes up to you and says, “That’s the best meal I’ve ever had”, it’s instant gratification, whereas a lot of people won’t be able to get that kind of gratification from a job. Tracy What has been your greatest leadership challenge? Brent The biggest challenge for me was opening a mega-resort in the Bahamas where I had to find 400 plus cooks/staff from a population of about 200,000. So, the biggest challenge for me was to find cooks who could actually cook. To open up this mega-resort with 26 different restaurants with different cuisines and different styles, there were days I thought I’d never get there, but I ended up with over 420 staff members by the time I left the property. Tracy The COVID 19 situation – what was your decision-making process? Brent The biggest thing for us was that we never wanted to lose an employee, and that was our commitment from day one: how do we keep every employee employed in this hotel throughout this pandemic? The team really focused on watching out for each other, helping each other and knowing what the end goal was. But we had to set a standard of what this hotel was going to be; the expectations of the owner, ourselves and obviously the public was the biggest hurdle that we had to really push. We have proper practices throughout the hotel – all the staff wear face masks; that is a corporate directive from our Hyatt Corporation. Tracy How would you change the New Zealand hospitality industry? Brent I wish that we had a lot more energy to be willing to service a guest right. We talk about hospitality in New Zealand and we’re very open – you’re a family house to guests, which is amazing. It’s a refinement of what hospitality could be in New Zealand that is needed. It’s the boundaries of how my service is… how involved am I with that person at a table; at the front desk, am I too over-powering, or am I attentive enough. So it’s just refining that level of service to really understand who that customer is, and the ability to read the situation that you’re in and have three or four talking points. The most important thing is, how do we start a conversation and how do we stop a conversation with a customer; it’s the hardest thing to do, but it’s important. Corresponding author Tracy Harkison can be contacted at: [email protected]