Manager capability in hospitality: The most overlooked advantage

When it comes to hospitality training the focus is so often just on frontline staff, how to train them, motivate them, and retain them. Yet, this approach often overlooks the most critical piece of the puzzle: the venue manager. 

A manager's capability to lead, mentor, and inspire isn't just an operational necessity, it's the single most powerful driver of engagement and retention for the entire team, making it the most overlooked competitive advantage you could have.

The impact of this oversight is quantifiable. The Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) and other industry bodies consistently report that hospitality and food services suffer from a turnover rate significantly higher than the national average. It's a revolving door that costs businesses thousands per departing employee in recruitment and training costs alone. This constant churn drains resources, erodes team morale, and directly impacts the guest experience. 

But simply trying to reduce turnover isn't enough. The key lies in building a culture where employees feel seen, supported, and have a clear reason to stay. This is the domain of your venue manager.

Managers: an under-utilised asset

The modern manager is at a crossroads. While they are expected to be the frontline leader, a motivator, a problem-solver, and a guest experience champion, a new and crucial role has emerged: that of a career development coach. 

"The best managers can also claim the title of career development champion. They steer their people to skill-building opportunities, experiences, and connections that allow them to succeed and lead anywhere.Great managers share their employees’ accomplishments with others and connect them to people who can help advance their careers." 
_{LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report 2025}

However, this critical function is under threat. The same report reveals a troubling trend: "employees have seen significantly less support from their managers year over year. Only 15% say their manager helped them build a career plan in the past six months — a decline of 5 percentage points from 2024." This dramatic drop in support points to a widespread issue that managers are overworked, under-resourced, and "losing steam" when it comes to delivering crucial employee support.

In hospitality, the problem is compounded. Managers are often promoted from within based on their exceptional performance as frontline staff. This means that the best server becomes a manager, the most efficient cook becomes a sous chef. But while their technical skills are impeccable, their leadership abilities are often uncoached. 

They are thrust into a new role without the training or tools needed to manage, mentor, and coach. This lack of preparation creates a vicious cycle of stress and burnout, making it impossible for them to be the "critical career builders" the industry so desperately needs.

“Previous research has assessed employees do not really depart from an organisation but rather decide to leave their line manager. This implies employees' perceptions of their managers is very determinant in their turnover intentions; subsequently, it can be conceived that employees having good relationships with their managers are less likely to quit than employees who would refer to their supervisors as “bad managers.” 
_{International Hospitality Review (2022)}

How to empower your managers 

Provide effective training

A study in the International Hospitality Review (2022) found that the key managerial characteristics desired in a manager were "interpersonal skills, communication skills, supervisory skills, leadership skills, and positive personality and professionalism." The report highlighted how employees value managers who show respect and appreciation, provide clear and constructive feedback, and offer genuine support.

Effective management training should, therefore, coach these interpersonal and leadership skills, helping them develop those key personality traits. 

Support their development by providing clear path on how to develop and cover areas like:

• Leadership development learning: Teaching managers how to inspire and motivate a diverse team.
• Lead communication: Providing managers with cross-cultural communication strategies.
• Conflict resolution: Equipping them with the tools to handle difficult situations gracefully and professionally.
• Emotional intelligence: Helping them understand and respond to the emotional needs of their team, preventing burnout and fostering a supportive culture.
• Coaching and mentorship: Pairing new managers with experienced leaders creates a vital support system, helping them navigate challenges and grow their own leadership style. This builds a robust talent pipeline, ensuring that the next generation of managers is better prepared and more confident.

Investing in these core skill areas not only makes managers more effective but also shows them that they, too, have a clear career path. It transforms their role from simply overseeing tasks to strategically developing people.

Once managers have a good foundational training, the next step is to empower them to become mentors who build career pathways for their teams. 

Empower managers to empower others

Managers need to be empowered to help build the skills of others. 

"Organisations must provide systems of empowerment to help managers regain their momentum and impact, such as dedicated training and easy-to-use resources." 
_{LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report 2025}

This is where a digital-first approach to training becomes a key resource. Managers can use easy-to-access platforms to recommend specific micro-learning modules, certifications, or even hands-on experiences that directly align with an employee's career goals. This makes the manager's role as a career coach practical and scalable.

Recognise their achievements 

Organisations must also shine a spotlight on managers who support their teams mobility and career progression. Celebrating managers who successfully promote their team members or guide them to new roles sends a clear message that this is not a chore, but a core part of the job.

Give managers time to coach

By strategically carving out dedicated time for managers to coach, you can unlock a powerful, often-untapped resource. Instead of viewing managers' time as a barrier, savvy operators recognise it as an opportunity to enrich the training process. When given the space to move beyond daily operations, managers can mentor staff and apply their real-world experience, sharing practical scenarios and firsthand insights that bring online training to life. This hands-on application not only reinforces the skills learned in digital modules but also fosters a culture of continuous learning and strengthens the manager-employee relationship, ultimately driving long-term staff retention.

A well-trained, well-supported manager can dramatically reduce turnover costs by fostering loyalty and commitment amongst their teams. 

When a team member feels a manager genuinely cares about their future, they stop seeing their job as a temporary stop and start viewing it as a long-term commitment. By investing in the person your frontline staff look up to every day will pay dividends in team morale, retention and customer service. This shifts the culture from one of high-volume turnover to one of sustainable growth.

Your manager's capability is not just an operational detail, it is the most powerful and often most overlooked competitive advantage a hospitality business can have.