Sustainable Development Goal 9: Dr. William Murray

SDG Goal 9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure with hotel seating.

Recruiting and retaining employees in hospitality after COVID-19

Tourism and hospitality is one of the largest employers in Canada but is currently 880,000 people short due to COVID-19. Dr. William Murray says that we need to look at how organizations are attracting people, what is attractive to them, how are they engaged in their work and what drives their organizational commitment. “We want to reduce people’s intention to leave, we want to have enough workers for today and for the future,” says Dr. Murray.

“It’s not a transactional business, it’s a transformational business.”

Dr. Murray’s research also looks at the people and the stories, as this paints the whole picture. “It’s important that we attract people and find meaningful work for them, even those outside of the industry,” states Dr. Murray. “People often find that they resonate with this industry, that the people they meet are a driving factor.”