As India’s leading job site for the service and hospitality sector, with a constantly expanding network, The Job Plus has become instrumental in turning many a young hospitality aspirant’s dream into reality. Natwar Nagar, Founder, The Job Plus, tells us all about his passionate endeavour…
- What triggered your interest in the hospitality industry?
I started my journey in the human capital advisory industry about 25 years ago when there were all of eight hotel brands with close to 100 hotels. The evolution and growth of the hospitality industry over the last two decades is testimony to the need for trained and skilled manpower. I believe that this industry has the most potential to absorb, empower and encourage the local youth for a better livelihood.
Over the past two decades, I have played an instrumental role in incubating and managing two of the most respected executive search firms in India – HVS and Hotelivate. This gave me the ability to create long-standing relationships, receive industry knowledge and be committed to excellence which have contributed towards creating a strong track record of being the search partner of choice to all my clients.
Further, the displacement of a large workforce during the pandemic led me to start two of the most relevant and sought after companies – The People Network and The Job Plus. I aim at building an eco-system that is not only self-sustaining but also one that offers an experiential service for providing superior and assessed talent.
- Tell us more about The Job Plus…
The pandemic had forced a re-sorting in the hospitality industry and had left a significant, displaced workforce in its wake. As the industry recovered and is moving onwards, we aimed to provide an equal opportunity platform for those affected to upskill and re-enter the sector. The Job Plus was incubated to create an equal opportunity platform to match the right talent with the right opportunity. The never-ending demand for quality talent presented an opportunity for The Job Plus to act as a conduit to bridge the gap and give back to the industry.
| Industry Veterans On The Job plus… |
| K B Kachru, Chairman Emeritus and Principal Advisor, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group “Natwar is playing a key role in uplifting the skilling ecosystem for the hospitality industry in India. “The Job Plus is a great platform to identify and train the best talent. They are working as a business partner in providing specially curated talent, which is definitely helping the hospitality industry at large Shailja Singh, Chief Human Resource Officer, The Oberoi Group “Innovation in hiring practices, especially in the hospitality sector, is long overdue. The Job Plus platform is trying to bring about that much-desired shift from traditional hiring matrices to more progressive, and well-curated career programs which will help bridge the talent gap in our sector. “Our recent collaboration with the team on various hiring initiatives has made us look beyond the traditional to something more sustainable. We wish them the very best and are happy to be part of their growth story in the country.” Vinay Jaswal, Sr Director of Human Resources South Asia, Marriott International “Skilling and employability are key pillars of a growing economy and we at Marriott Hotels want to be the leading contributors in this field. Through our recent collaborations on The Plus Initiative offered by The Job Plus team, we have made a considerable mark in establishing a new norm for our sector. “The Job Plus platform has opened a new perspective towards hiring for the hospitality sector.” Priyanka Gidwani – CHRO, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts “The Job plus has been an excellent source of talent for our resorts. The hospitality-focussed database is a boon in times of a talent crunch. The additional support they give on posted positions through their professionals is an example of going beyond. We look forward to working more with Job plus on various projects for our hiring needs.” |
- What is the Recruit-Train-Deploy model your organisation practices?
The Recruit-Train-Deploy model also known as The Plus Initiative is a joint effort between The Job Plus and Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council, and is aimed at providing an ‘Industry Ready, Skilled Workforce’ for the hospitality sector.
The idea came about when we studied some numbers, according to which the talent shortfall faced in the hospitality industry proved to be one of the significant threats to the recovery post-pandemic. As per our estimations, job growth is estimated to be 5.5% CAGR (to account for new openings and attrition from the industry) till 2029 – an additional requirement of 100,000- 150,000 skilled workforce year on year in the branded hotel segment alone.
Further, there is a visible gap when it comes to awareness around pursuing a career in the hospitality sector among the Indian youth. Accessibility is also a commonly discussed factor that discourages several students from pursuing quality education in the service-hospitality sector.
To address the skilled workforce demand of the hotel industry, the proposed initiative will develop a cadre of ‘Ready-to-Deploy’ workers. These projects will concentrate on generating 100% employment for a pool of qualified candidates, using the Recruit, Train & Deploy Model with the assistance of training partners, in accordance with the employer’s requirements. It is the first time that the industry has come together in such large numbers to invest in the training and skilling for future talent!
- What are the unique initiatives you undertake to make a difference in rural India?
With an aim to have an impact on the socio-economic conditions of our country, we came up with the idea of The Plus Initiative. At this point, we are the only organisation that has touched upon the idea of skilling and deploying individuals from local communities in the hospitality industry in order to empower and encourage the local youth. The Plus Initiative recruits individuals from local communities, trains them as per the standard operating procedures of the hotel they will eventually join and finally deploys them at those hotels on successful completion of the course. This program was launched with Westin, Resort and Spa, Himalayas, wherein we mobilised and trained youth from the state of Uttarakhand and were able to provide gainful employment to them.
Additionally, as part of our corporate social responsibility (CSR), I am currently on the board of Kosish – The Hospice, Chief Advisor at The Clothes Box Foundation and also serve as an Advisor to the School of Skill Development in India.
- You have recently launched a certificate program for hospitality students. Tell us more about it…
The Job Plus has collaborated with a ed-tech platform to launch a certificate course in Hospitality and Hotel Management with assured placements for aspirants looking to embark on their career journey with the hospitality industry. The certificate programme will equip learners with the critical industry skills required to master the profession and also gain experience by working with leading industry brands.
The five-month hybrid certificate programme in Hospitality and Hotel Management will include two months of hybrid learning and three months of on-the-job training with a stipend. The curriculum will include subjects such as Fundamentals of Hotel and Catering Industry, Standard Operating Procedures, Food and Beverages Production and Services, Front Office Operations and Administration, Customer Sale and Service, Personal and Professional Proficiency (PPP), among others.
“The Recruit-Train-Deploy model also known as The Plus Initiative is a joint effort between The Job Plus and Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council, and is aimed at providing an ‘Industry Ready, Skilled Workforce’ for the hospitality sector.”
Natwar Nagar, Founder, The Job Plus.
- COVID brought with it huge job insecurities in the hospitality industry. How does The Job Plus aim to address that?
Absolutely, as per our study, it is estimated that 40-50% of the industry’s workforce lost their jobs or had their work affected during the pandemic. Close to 20-25% were rethinking and realigning their career journeys in other relatively stable and high-paying sectors that also allow work-life balance.
In our endeavour to support the industry towards its rebuilding initiatives, The Job Plus has created a comprehensive job platform that serves as a one-stop-dedicated platform in the service-hospitality sector and allows employers to connect with job seekers through a seamless and user-friendly portal.
