DEI strategy for enhancing hospitality business performance

The business case for Diversity and Inclusion are not just buzzwords; they are essential to drive innovation, creativity, and profitability. Research shows companies with more diverse workforces are more likely to outperform their competitors and achieve higher levels of profitability. By encouraging collaboration and fostering a culture of diversity where everyone truly feels inclusive and where their ideas and thoughts are valued, helps out of the box thinking and brings in new perspectives and fresh ideas, necessary for growth.

Hospitality is about caring and creating joyful magical moments for guests. What differentiates good hotels from average ones, is seldom the interiors or the way the lobby is designed. It is always the way a guest is treated, remembered, and indulged. In order to provide consistently exceptional and memorable services, the key is to have a workforce that is engaged and happy. When employees from diverse cultures, experiences, demographics, gender come together in an inclusive environment, new perspectives emerge that can lead to innovative solutions and amazing service delivery. Happy Employees is equivalent to Happy Customers and this in turn leads to growth and success of the organisation. There is enough evidence to show that DEI initiatives improve employee morale and engagement, fuelling higher job satisfaction, lower turnover rates, and increased productivity, while also aligning with societal expectations and responsible business practices.

Today our guests are more diverse than ever before. 16-20 per cent of corporate India is women, and the proportion of women business travellers is only increasing. As far as leisure is concerned, women have always been involved in planning holidays with families and the trend of solo vacations or women friends’ getaways is also gaining a lot of momentum. Another significant and very high value segment is the LGBTQI community. They typically have higher disposable incomes and are known to be explorers and adventure seekers, taking frequent and high value holidays.  It is time that the workforces in the hospitality industry also mirrored this trend and reflected what the travel consumption patterns look like. 

Having diverse employees can help understand businesses better, understand the needs and preferences of different consumer groups. For example, having women in leadership positions can lead to more women friendly amenities and services as well as pro- women HR policies to attract more women talent. 

No other industry has such a high degree of customer interface and reliance of customer service than that of the hospitality and tourism industry. Whilst technology and AI can aid this in myriad ways, the real impact comes from people who are able to connect with consumers and provide anticipatory and memorable services. Therefore, investment in diversity and inclusion is even more imperative than other industries. In India one is seeing a visible shift with leading hospitality companies paving the way with increasing the diversity ratios in their workforces and leadership representations, and several inclusive policies. Hospitality chains in India are probably far ahead when it comes to hiring a diverse workforce that reflects the multicultural demographics of the country, including employees from different cultures, backgrounds, and ethnicities. One also sees a lot of focus on training and educating people about discrimination and biases. DEI is now embedded into the organisational business strategies.  Many hospitality groups in India also actively engage with local communities by hiring them, procuring products and services from local businesses, supporting the local artisans and craftspeople by involving them in guest experiences. 

In a country as pluralistic as India, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) has the potential to become a powerful tool in achieving its economic aspirations and can play a very crucial role in helping India reach its goal of being the third largest economy by 2027. There is a huge amount of untapped potential from all backgrounds and if the hospitality industry can accelerate their efforts around DEI, they will be able to further unlock innovation and sustainable development for the rapidly growing hospitality industry, thus contributing significantly to the India growth story.

In closing, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion needs to go beyond mere compliances and meeting regulatory requirements as it has a lasting impact on business profitability in the hospitality industry. From attracting a broader customer base, to increased innovation, better motivated, and engaged workforce resulting in higher productivity and lower turnover, to improved decision making and last but never least, enhanced reputation and brand strength; the benefits and business case couldn’t be more compelling. 

AUTHOR BIO: Rakhee Lalvani is Founder, RLA and Consultant with IHCL for Diversity and Inclusion