Why Every Hospitality Business Needs a Strategic People Plan
As 2026 approaches, hospitality leaders across the UK are still facing some familiar challenges: high turnover, labour shortages, rising costs and ever-changing employment laws.
Day-to-day, it can feel like all your energy goes into keeping service levels high, dealing with last-minute rota changes, or plugging recruitment gaps. But without a longer-term view, people problems can easily start holding your business back.
That’s where a Strategic People Plan comes in. It’s your roadmap to ensure you’ve got the right people, in the right roles, at the right time, so your growth plans aren’t derailed by workforce challenges.
What is a Strategic People Plan?
Think of it as your business plan, but for your employees. It sets out how you’ll manage, develop and support your workforce in line with your business strategy. For hospitality, this often means:
- Forecasting staffing needs across different departments and sites
- Recruiting and retaining the right people
- Investing in learning, training, and leadership development
- Improving employee engagement and wellbeing
- Ensuring compliance with upcoming legal changes
- Planning succession for key roles
In other words, it takes the guesswork out of people management and keeps everything connected to your wider goals.
Why Should You Have a Strategic People Plan?
Hospitality is a people business. Without your employees, there is no guest experience. Here’s why a Strategic People Plan is essential for 2026:
Stay ahead of change
New legislation is on the horizon. For example, from 2026, employees may have the right to claim unfair dismissal from day one. Hospitality businesses need structured probation and performance processes in place now to prepare.
Reduce risk
From grievances to harassment claims, people issues can quickly escalate if not handled properly. A proactive plan helps reduce costly disputes and protects your reputation.
Boost engagement and retention
A clear plan for training, development and wellbeing shows employees they’re valued. This keeps your best people motivated and reduces turnover, which is vital in a competitive labour market.
Support business growth
Whether you’re opening new sites, expanding menus, or enhancing guest services, having the right people in place ensures your growth isn’t slowed down by recruitment struggles or high turnover.
Confidence for managers
With clear processes for probation, performance and progression, managers can lead with confidence, instead of firefighting people issues on the fly.
Where Do You Get the Information for a Strategic People Plan?
A Strategic People Plan isn’t something you create in isolation. It’s built from a combination of data, insights, and strategy. Here’s what to draw on:
- Internal data – turnover rates, absence records, recruitment costs, exit interviews, grievance and disciplinary cases. Additional information about internal data and how to analyse this data can be found in our handy eBook Measuring and Presenting Key HR KPIs for the Hospitality Industry.
- Employee voice – engagement surveys, team feedback sessions, job chats, focus groups, development reviews, suggestion app.
- External trends – legal changes (e.g. unfair dismissal, harassment prevention), labour market shortages, customer expectations.
- Business strategy – expansion plans, financial targets, brand values and culture ambitions.
This mix of insights ensures your plan is both realistic and forward-looking.
Bringing It All Together
The point of a Strategic People Plan isn’t to add more paperwork. It’s to give you a clear, practical, and actionable roadmap so your workforce strategy directly supports your business goals.
It helps you stop reacting to crises and start shaping the kind of culture, team, and leadership that will carry your business through 2026 and beyond.
Ready to Build Your 2026 People Plan?
If you don’t have the resources internally to create a Strategic People Plan, we can help. At Frances Gillespie HR, we know hospitality inside out, from the front line to the boardroom.
We’ll work with you to create a tailored people plan that ensures your employees are engaged, compliant and aligned with your growth ambitions.
Send us a message today or give us a call on 020 4534 3456 and let’s make sure your 2026 growth isn’t held back by people challenges.