“Why don’t we tell our story far better?” There is a natural conflict within hospitality companies which creates a barrier to innovation and communication.

The above question was posed last weekend by a highly recognised, award winning, senior player who made the simple argument that the industry needs to understand that it will not solve its problems until it recognises that it can engage so far better and effectively than it has done in the past. The argument was simple; the industry has long such an important role in our society, in our culture, and communities. The industry has been built by some extraordinary talents over the years, so why don’t we tell the story of these great figures and how the story of the industry?

Their argument went one step further to note that every restaurant and hotel has so much in their own individual stories that they could all produce their own book.

It is a fair argument. Food and the profile of leading chefs has never been higher. Researchers and trends are illustrating just how many travel into city centres as much for hospitality as for culture & the arts.

This is a topic of discussion being raised by quite a number. So why has it been so difficult to create any consistent, engaging narrative?

The answer probably lies in the same reason as to why many companies have not innovated as much as many would have expected during the pandemic. Businesses are led by operators who have proven themselves beyond resourceful, resilient and able to adapt to the day to day issues. They understand how their models operate and stay true to what does work plus have a passion for the operational side of Hospitality. They have a natural psychology for service and operating but history has long shown that the industry has struggled to tell its own story, to push itself forward. However, it does have an exceptional story to tell and one which is worth telling.

Innovators, communicators and those who are keen on operational detail don't always see eye to eye but are both essential for a successful business. In this new landscape, innovation and communication are of equal importance to operational skills.

It is a well-known area of conflict. An operational excellence mind-set is well suited for cost-cutting and improving efficiencies, focusing on numbers and details, eliminating risk and ambiguity, as well as analysis and evidence. Innovators and communicators possess a mind-set where there is a preference for visual language and the big picture, being comfortable with risk and ambiguity, as well as trusting intuition and visions.

Both skillsets are necessary for an organisation's long term survival, so somehow a solution needs to be found.