Empowering Your Team to Unlock Their Full Potential

It’s no surprise that when all your team members are operating at their highest capability, they tend to have greater job satisfaction, higher motivation, and demonstrate overall well-being. It is reflected in their love for and commitment to their jobs and loyalty to the company. In the case of my luxury hospitality company, it translates into excellent products and services, exquisite care for guests, being conscientious of environmental preservation—which is so important to everything we do—and employee longevity.

These extraordinary team members—which often come to us with that inclination but are also supported and cultivated by training and encouragement— serve as the building blocks of a positive work culture. If that wasn’t enough, their presence positively translates into a company with greater productivity and innovation and allows us to collectively and confidently aim high and meet lofty goals. Do you ever wonder if you can create a workforce that feels valued, empowered, and ready to conquer any challenge? You can.

As leaders, we hold the key to unlocking potential in our employees, and the immense rewards, too. However, it requires sincere investment into your employees’ wellbeing and arming them with the power, freedom, and true ownership of their jobs, to make decisions that are in the best interest of the business and clientele.

Recognizing and supporting talented employees and doing what it takes to retain talent is crucial in the hospitality industry. By supporting and investing in employees — even during tough times—we have been able to retain valuable staff, foster growth, and build long-term loyalty and success. Here are four lessons, gleaned through experience, that you can use to transform your team from good to great. Just as we try to create very customized experiences for our guests, we try to do the same in career enhancements for our team.

Effective managers are the linchpin in creating a thriving workplace. Part of a manager’s job is to be an inspiration to the people they manage by genuinely embodying the company’s values and striving to be exemplary.

By engaging with team members regularly, managers can also build a deep understanding of their employees’ unique strengths, aspirations, and pain points. By leveraging this intimate knowledge, effective managers can tailor their leadership style and approach and provide the necessary support to help their employees thrive. This seems straightforward, but the day-to-day tactical work can get in the way of real listening and, even more so, adjusting according to employees’ strengths and their needs by managers.

The transformative power of taking small actions should not be underestimated. We had a French-speaking employee working in housekeeping at one of our hotels. It was clear that she had enthusiasm and skills that could take her far, but a language barrier stood in the way of her growth. One of our managers recognized her potential and provided her with the opportunity to take English language courses, which opened the doors for her to move up the company and become our front-of-house manager. It was the manager’s ability to see past her position as a housekeeper, identify her strengths, realize her potential, and offer to support her in moving forward that made the difference.

As leaders, we must also always be thinking forward about the careers of our employees. It’s not enough to be connected and valued—the team needs to be challenged to learn new things and to know there’s a path to moving up. If we do not talk to our staff members about advancement, our competitors will.

I learned this lesson the hard way. Recently, one of our star food & beverage managers submitted his resignation—he had been recruited by a competitor and offered a career advancement. Given his talents, we weren’t surprised. As soon as I was informed however, I scheduled a call to discuss a longer perspective. We found a cross-training opportunity that, when combined with his current experience, would lead to even greater advancement in the long term. As a result, we were able to retain a bright and talented team member. We learned from this experience that sharing the vision for the company—but also in that context, the career vision for the employee—is necessary to keeping staff content and motivated.

Mentorship and coaching are some of the most powerful tools for professional development, especially for women and minorities, who often face unique challenges in the workplace. Pairing employees with mentors who have navigated similar career paths provides invaluable guidance, strategies for success, meaningful opportunities, and a wellspring of support. This personalized approach can be the difference between a good career and a stellar one for your employees.

Taking the bets we do in the hospitality industry business, especially regarding staying on the cutting-edge of sustainability practices, is best done with diverse thinking at the table. I believe in hiring sharp, new talent with great potential and offering mentorship to them. We each bring something to the table. They bring in a fresh perspective while the more senior team brings deep experience. Mentoring them on our focus, how to calibrate decisions, and how to make the biggest impact combines the two talents. Together, with this give and take, we make greater improvements and have the courage to push barriers further than we ever imagined.

Successful companies listen to new ideas and celebrate them. Encouraging and supporting your employees’ creative ideas and passions empowers them to go beyond their day-to-day tasks and to lead the charge in something they care for. There are countless examples of how facilitating employees’ ideas can fuel significant improvements.

One of my employees was a pastry chef who wanted to exercise her leadership through a philanthropic passion project. She unleashed her entrepreneurial spirit by baking and delivering dozens of pastries a day during breast cancer awareness month to women receiving chemotherapy. Another employee was passionate about preserving our local reefs and created a way that guests could get involved. Because of this entrepreneurial passion, we launched an “Adopt a Coral” movement on St Barth. Guests can now adopt coral with a donation, give it a name, and replant it directly in our bay under the guidance of the Coral Restoration Association on the island.

By supporting employees’ entrepreneurial spirit, it has fostered a strong sense of community and mutual respect amongst our teams which creates an atmosphere of friendship, emotional support and accountability to one another.

Flexibility is no longer a perk, it’s the new standard. According to a Deloitte Workplace Flexibility survey, 94% of workers strongly believe that they positively benefit from increased work flexibility while only 44% of companies actually offer flexible work arrangements. In some work situations, this is easier than in others. It isn’t easy in hospitality—but we make it work as best we can. For example, one of our team members got divorced and was a single mom who wanted to live closer to family. Instead of leaving the company, we helped her relocate and work remotely — and she didn’t miss a beat and remains a strong member of our executive team.

Offering remote work options and flexible schedules shows your employees you care about their whole lives, not just their time at the office. By trusting your employees to deliver results, regardless of location, you cultivate a positive work culture and prevent burnout, ultimately leading to a more productive and loyal workforce.

By implementing strong management practices, providing mentorship, fostering entrepreneurial endeavors, and embracing flexibility, employers can elevate their teams, driving innovation, productivity, and employee retention. Following these suggestions can unlock your team’s potential, cultivate a thriving workforce, and lead to greater success for your company.