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In today’s extremely competitive job market, we need all the help we can get to land a job anywhere, and that includes the beloved city of Seattle.
Seattle has got a name on the map for the home of Starbucks, the Seahawks and being a destination of constant rain… but that’s not all! Whether it’s the tourist destination hot spots or locally owned, specialty restaurants… there’s a place for hospitality hires to enjoy life and expand their career in this hub of the Northwest.
Throughout every neighborhood you’ll find a vast variety of restaurants and bars. “Out with the old and in with the new” has been the recent mantra with a steady stream of business development specifically in the hospitality industry – new specialty bars, wineries, casual and high end restaurants with more popping up all over this Northwestern city.
Here at PCH we recruit only the top talent. As the fall season arrives, we have several outstanding positions open to fulfill for America’s top companies before the holiday rush takes over. Sound like you could be the qualified candidate for one of our openings?
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Blog
HIRING: PACIFIC NORTHWEST
The Pacific Northwest… the only place in America where you can blaze the trail to natural hot springs in the morning, Instagram a pic of the mountains during lunch and hit one of the world’s coolest cities by afternoon to sample a few local brewed beers and dine at the finest of establishments into dawn.
The Pacific Northwest is a region of offbeat charm and character. Its quirky sense of style and belonging make it a place that’s hard to say goodbye to.
Portland and Seattle are just two of the Northwest cities we’re most fond of and currently hiring talented candidates for open hospitality positions:
Call it what you want – PDX, P-Town, Puddletown, Stumptown, City of Roses, Bridge City, River City or Beervana – Portland doesn’t disappoint. And Seattle, it might have got a name as the home of Starbucks and it certainly shares in the bad rap for rain and grey skies along with Portland… but there’s more! Much more to both these Northwest cities when you become a local.
The locals don’t let the rain get them down, umbrellas are for the visitors – locals don’t mind the weather and never let it get in the way of having a good time. With Pike Place Market home to more than 200 vendors, farmers, and specialty shops, it’ Seattle’s No. 1 tourist destination.
Portland continually keeps things a little more green with a strong reputation for being a republic of tree huggers, and understandably so. One of the best and most convenient places to enjoy them is the aptly named Forest Park, a bosky Eden where natives like to take their morning run, bike, dog walk or enjoy the day.
When you’re headed to a local game in the Northwest, you can’t be a fair weather fan. And may we not forget the grub – with everything from specified menus created by world renowned chefs to longstanding home style establishments, your pallet won’t go dull.
Whether looking for a career advancement or uproot from your current location, maybe the Northwest lifestyle is right for you? Apply today.
Three Things to Know Before Moving to Seattle
Seattle. It’s got a name for the home of Starbucks and a whole lot of rain… but there’s more! Much more! And with Pacific Coast Hospitality you may decide it’s time to make the move!
Umbrellas are for visitors.
Seattle’s got a bad rap for rain and grey skies, but annual precipitation is actually less than in other American cities like New York or Boston.
The locals of Seattle don’t let the rain get them down, umbrellas are for the visitors – locals don’t mind the weather and never let it get in the way of having a good time. With Pike Place Market home to more than 200 vendors, farmers, and specialty shops, it’ Seattle’s No. 1 tourist destination. As a resident you learn to navigate the crowds, because it’s the place for produce and inexpensive bouquets of farm fresh flowers.
Or head to the game, because in Seattle, you can’t be a fair weather fan, quite literally; you ride out the ups and downs with the Mariners, Sounders, and the Seahawks and enjoy the open air, state-of-the-art stadiums.
The good news on food.
This city lacks no good bites, it’s a foodie’s dream come true. With talented Chefs creating unique cuisine that showcases the Northwest’s seafood (being surrounded by water, there’s no lack in world class Pacific oysters, salmon, geoduck, clams, and mussels), locally-sourced produce, wines and beer brewing traditions – it’s no question why restaurant Mangers and Chefs alike are making the move to Seattle!
And there’s no shortage of great local food blogs-Salty Seattle, Eater Seattle, Gastrolust, and it’s home to some of the best northwest restaurants like The Pink Door, Lark, Ballard Annex Oyster House, Revel, Tavern Hall, and Sitka & Spruce. You’re going to eat well here, except…
Maybe it’s the grey, wet weather, but this city knows its drinks. Craft beers, juicy wines and locally distilled spirits, when working in hospitality your guest will enjoy a surplus of specialties to complement each plate.
Summertime is a day dream.
While Los Angeles takes its ample sunshine for granted, Seattle makes the most of each sunny day.
There are beautiful hikes, waterfalls, and rivers all close to the city. Day trips to Snoqualmie Falls or swimming at the Green River take you away from the urban scenery and the vicinity makes getting away an awfully easy feat.
Staying in town? You won’t be missing anything! In San Diego, trained killer wales do tricks for sardines in a large pool while people cheer. In Seattle, wild orcas are frequently spotted as they roam Puget Sound in search of sea lions to nosh on.
With weather that you’ll learn to love, the city being a foodies dream and summertime quite the day dream, we’re looking for talented candidates ready to jumpstart their career and be placed in today’s hottest restaurant positions.
Visit our website for more information and details.
The Economy of Artisan Pizza
Is there such a thing as bad pizza? In today’s ever growing “artisan pizza” market, there might one day soon be a thing as bad pizza which everyone wants to avoid. Cheap and basic don’t often cut it anymore. Consumers are looking for artisan crafted and pizzerias to step it up with the product they deliver. The freshness of farm-to-table ingredients creates the perception of a healthier pie, while exotic cheeses and meats convey an aura of sophistication and provide a new experience in flavor profiles.
Along with new flavor experiences everyone is looking for quality – what that standard of quality is may vary from consumer to consumer – whether it be taste, organic ingredients used, size of each pie, etc. consumers are starting to realize the art of pizza making and the quality they are receiving on each slice.
In general, most consumers haven’t let a sluggish economy get in the way of pleasing their palates; if anything, they’re getting pickier about quality. In a 2012 survey by research firm Technomic, 34% of diners said they were willing to pay more for gourmet ingredients, compared to 26% in 2010, while 27% said they’d shell out more for natural or organic ingredients, up from 21% two years earlier. In the same study, 33% said they were “interested in trying pizza with highly innovative toppings,” a big jump from 13% in 2010.
Want proof the consumers growing favoritism for specialty pizzas? The biggest pizza chains in the US today are even making alterations to meet consumers demands for artisan, hand crafted pies. From Domino’s to Papa Murphy’s and many small pizza shops in cites all across the US, all have leapt into this new market concept, artisan pizzas.
With the economy of pizza ever growing and changing, the rise of careers available comes along too. With consumers begging for new, bold and specialty flavors, now is the time to start your artisan career in the pizza industry. More than just a hospitality position, PCH is looking to place artisans with a passion and desire to create and combine unique taste pizza consumers will rave about.
Want more information on positions we’ve got available in the pizza industry? Visit our website.
JOIN THE RESORT LIFE: JOBS IN WASHINGTON AND MONTANA
The destination is where the journey begins. Working at a resort will give you the chance to see the world, meet people from all over, live in a spectacular setting, and learn new skills.
Resort tourism is a driving force in the western United States economy. With a combination of matchless beaches, national parks and waterfront properties all hosting an exquisite selection of top restaurants and hospitality establishments within the nations top resorts, hospitality careers are a supreme. Inside this industry, vacation and relaxation lifestyles influence most all aspects of business operations, and for most positions in the resort industry experience is a must.
While most of your time will be spent working, you will have opportunities to enjoy your surroundings. Better yet, most employers allow employees free use of resort facilities while on their time off.
Hiring for resort positions can be very selective – here with Pacific Coast Hospitality, we have the inside track for jumpstarting your hospitality career. Along with all the relaxed lifestyle, secluded in exceptional resorts, you will have opportunities for career development within today’s most dominate industry leading establishments, from the point of hire throughout an extensive career.
Whether looking for a career advancement or uproot from your current location, maybe the resort life is right for you? Apply today.
Top Things Overlooked in Hospitality Hiring that Might Lead to a Discriminations Suit (Part 2)
As discrimination in the workplace becomes more prevalent in the national eye, business owners must educate themselves on what that constitutes. In part one we detailed the obscure practices one may not associate with discriminatory hiring that could land your business in hot water, and that is barely the tip of the iceberg, as we will detail in part 2.
- Pregnancy
A very touchy subject around much of the country are hiring practices when it comes to women who are pregnant. In much the same way your business can run into litigious problems by refusing to serve alcohol to pregnant women due to it being considered discriminatory, you will run into similar problems if you don’t hire women on the basis of pregnancy or imminent childbirth.
You have to treat women who are pregnant in the same way and employer treats other applicants or employees with temporary injuries or conditions that might affect their job performance. This means that you must modify their tasks or have them do other assignments around the workplace, or if it gets really bad, let them take disability leave until they are able to work again
- Age
This is a major factor in hiring and employment that most business owners wouldn’t even consider. If older prospective employees apply or contact you about a position in your company, you are by law not allowed to reject them based on their age. An age limit may only be proposed in extremely rare circumstances where it’s been proven to be a necessary occupational qualification. In addition to this, you can’t deny any benefits any other employee might receive (I.E. health insurance) based on the prospective employee’s age.
Consider all of the positions in your business where older employees may be able to not only function but flourish, and don’t immediately discount a more elderly candidate. If you do, and this can be proven by governmental investigators, you may be on the hook for a large amount of money and further litigation.
Top Things Overlooked in Hospitality Hiring that Might Lead to a Discriminations Suit (Part one)
We’ve all seen it in the news lately-racial discrimination seems rife in the nation and tensions are running extremely high. We, as a country, are becoming especially sensitive in regards to what discrimination is and how it affects us. This sensitivity is undoubtedly going to be leading to a greater amount of scrutiny into the hiring practices of employers in all industries, whether it be engineering firms or construction companies. One industry whose visibility in terms of staffing is much higher than others (and therefore will need owners and managers who are very educated on the subject) is the hospitality industry. Customers will be able to see and experience the makeup of your staff in such a direct way that differs from almost every other industry. This can lead to major problems if you are not well versed in the laws surrounding discriminatory hiring practices. These are some examples of non-intuitive discrimination that most managers wouldn’t even consider, and some tips for avoiding them.
- Discrimination based on national origin.
The biggest mistake hiring managers make in terms of potentially damaging discriminatory practices is thinking that discrimination ends at gender or racial reasoning. That is not even close to the truth! Take national origin discrimination: it is illegal to discriminate against an individual because of their birthplace, ancestry, culture, or linguistic characteristic common to their ethnic group.
This means that even in the simple case of you requesting employment verification for people who speak Spanish, or whose English skills are not at a level of fluency, you are practicing discriminatory hiring practices.
To avoid litigation, make sure you have a standardized hiring process that treats EVERY employee the same.
- Discrimination based on language
If you’re running a restaurant, you may want your waiting staff to have an accent that is similar to your typical customers. This may incite you to promote only English-fluent, non-accented personnel from within the business to the higher paying position of waiter. Unfortunately, this is another example of discriminatory employment practices. As long as you can understand the potential server reasonably well, it is illegal to not promote him based on their accent
When you are hiring, you have to keep in mind that the only reasons you cannot hire or promote someone based on their fluency in a certain language is due to it possibly making your workplace environment dangerous or terribly inefficient. If you give a fluency test as a requirement for hiring, make sure that fluency test only covers what language skills they need.
To be continued in part two!
TOP 3 MISTAKES MADE HIRING IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
Hiring continues to be one of the most difficult aspects of managing and growing a successful business. A massive amount of research has gone into the subject and methods of all kinds have been created by thinktanks and scholars, yet it remains one of the top 3 objects of worry for business leaders in the U.S. While finding the perfect hiring method may have eluded us so far, it is possible for us analyze the biggest mistakes hospitality managers make that keep businesses from realizing their potential level of success.
- Succumbing to Panic
It’s not uncommon for business owners or managers to find themselves desperately understaffed after a previous team member suddenly resigns or acts in a way that necessitates their immediate severance. It’s in these instances that it is easiest to succumb to the pressure of your staff to hire replacements immediately to fill the holes left by the previous employees, regardless of whether or not those rushed hires are compatible with the business or the best fits for the job. This can lead to workplace instability, conflict with staff, and a lowered productivity level that can easily sink your business.
The best way to avoid this is being proactive and having a plan for staffing emergencies. It’s very easy to get into a comfortable place and fail to observe changes in the behavior of your employees that may becoming less invested in your business and their job. This is the number one sign of an oncoming opening in your staff-and you do NOT want to be caught unprepared. Always be on the lookout for people who may be interested in working for you-take down the contact information of anyone who comes in wondering if you’re hiring, and keep a lookout on employment services like linkdin and job boards around your area for people who are looking for a job in your industry.
ALWAYS utilize pre-employment checks before settling on a candidate. No matter the pressure you’re under to fill a spot, never let your guard down lest your business suffer the consequences of a lying candidate.
- Not Following Gut Instincts
We see it in movies and television all the time: the down-on-their-luck man or woman who goes from place to place looking for a job to no avail. If only someone would just give them a chance, they would make an exemplary employee and be a boon for business! We all root for this person, and when we see it in real life, we want to see them succeed all the more. While such generosity and empathy should be undoubtedly encouraged, we must express temperance, as it is easy to get caught up in the moment and ignore the signs we feel may not seem entirely right about a prospective employee.
The guilt we feel over not giving somebody the chance that they desperately need, or perhaps the self-righteousness and vindication we feel when we decide that WE are the ones who will give that person the opportunity can easily cloud our better judgment. Always take a step back and analyze your gut feeling about a person. It doesn’t matter if it’s the homeless woman down the street or the snazzily dressed middle class man with the impeccable résumé smiling at us from across the table, if something feels off about them, listen to that instinct. People can catch small idiosyncrasies subconsciously, and those little inconsistencies give us a sense of unease. If you feel that unease during the hiring process, that candidate may very well not be worth the chance.
- Tunnel Vision
As managers, it’s easy to become fixated on certain traits we believe to be imperative in a successful role fulfillment while hiring. The checklist of main personality aspects and skills that are essential to the role drown out everything else on the list of things that make a good employee. While they are important, we can’t focus on such traits to the absolute exclusion of all other things.
For example, when hiring for a sales position, we may think that the most important aspect of a potential employee’s personality may be the gift of gab and conversation. Once we find someone who can easily build rapport and close a sale, we hire them without looking at the other aspects of their personality. Once hired, though, we find out they may be lazy, deceitful, or are incapable of operating as part of a team. The same principle applies to the hospitality industry-we may hire a server who is personable, attractive, and coordinated, but they may be disorganized, forgetful, and unprofessional in their relationships with their coworkers.
