Drumossie Hotel celebrates being shortlisted for awards
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A MAJOR Highland employer is celebrating after being shortlisted for a duo of awards that sum up its ethos of great customer service and its fostering and support of its talented team.
The Drumossie Hotel in Inverness is one of the three finalists in the running for Tourism and Hospitality Employer of the Year in the annual Highlands & Islands Thistle Awards.
This honour comes hard on the heels of another award shortlisting celebrating its staff's hard work and dedication –Employer of the Year in the Highland Business Awards.And the Drumossie Hotel's general manager, Kenny McMillan, believes these successes are very much the result of the great team they've built at the popular business – and the many ways in which the company works to encourage its staff to develop their careers, boost their work-life balance, and reward them for their dedication and hard work.
"Our success at Drumossie is thanks to an excellent guest experience with exceptional food and a great customer journey for every guest – and this is all driven by good people in our team," he said. "We wrap our arms round them and provide them with lots of support – we strive to give our staff a platform to excel.
"We hold weekly workshops for our staff who want to upskill and these are well attended. We are always working to help motivate them and to grow their confidence."
He adds that the hotel sees their work as a collaboration, and ideas from the team are actively encouraged – from whisky classes to cookery demos and other creative ideas, "it's all about listening to people's ideas".
This team ethos and support is certainly something that Drumossie is very proud of, with its website prominently stating that "it's the people that make Drumossie special – never less than excellent".
And Kenny says the hotel is always eager to welcome more people onto its team, adding that the company actively embraces apprenticeship initiatives – bringing on the next generation of talent – and is always eager to encourage people not to simply think of the hospitality trade as a stepping stone to something else, but as a career path in its own right.
"Our parent company MacDonald is probably seen as one of the biggest hospitality employers in the Highlands and Islands," he explained, adding that it offers the myriad of different career options that one might expect in a company this large.
"Hospitality is often seen as a stepping stone, but we're trying to engage with people and make them realise there are a lot of career paths here – it's not only the jobs traditionally associated with hospitality, people could be working in our PR or marketing, in accounts or all manner of other roles."
Kenny added that a lot of staff who come to MacDonald Hotels often wind up making a career there, and that the company's incentives are another reason why people choose to develop and grow their skills at the Drumossie Hotel. Initiatives include bonus schemes, generous staff discount, loyalty payments and a focus on making sure that a good work-life balance is achieved.
And he added that these initiatives contribute to some employees who might initially join for the festive season or summer holidays choosing to stick around and build a lasting career. And not only stick around but encourage their family and friends to join the team as well.
Kenny is convinced that it is this commitment to the people in the business which has driven the hotel's success.
Interested in becoming one of the people who help make the Drumossie so special? Visit www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/careers.
