Staff shortage ahead of summer season

Rooms are booked, kitchens are not — and the season starts in six weeks.

Typical for: seasonal leisure hotels in mountain and lake destinations, family-run houses with kitchen and service, operations without a dedicated HR function

Documented by Hospis

How you recognize it

The season roster has gaps that can't be organised away anymore — mainly kitchen and service
The same job ads have been running on the same portals for months — barely anything comes back
Applicants drop out the moment the housing question comes up
You hire whoever is available — not whoever fits
Last year's regulars signed elsewhere — and you only found out in spring
The family plugs the gaps itself and enters the season burned out

Matching Hospis

Javier Torrente

Operations · Concept · Team — Palma de Mallorca

Works with protel · Mews · Mews POS · Smart Host

AdviseImplementOperate

His core focus: setting up team building and season planning so that the core stays and turn-over days don't fail on staffing.

Mapped to root cause

Season planning cycleHousing as offerEmployer brandYear-round logic

View profilePersonally vetted · independent match

Olivia Torrente-Dorninger

Sales · Revenue · Marketing — Palma de Mallorca

Works with protel · Mews · Mews POS · Smart Host

AdviseImplement

Her core focus: setting up the employer brand and its channels so applications come in — and the right ones. From storytelling to social-media execution.

Mapped to root cause

Employer brandHousing as offer

View profilePersonally vetted · independent match

Javier Torrente

Operations · Concept · Team — Palma de Mallorca

Works with protel · Mews · Mews POS · Smart Host

AdviseImplementOperate

His core focus: setting up team building and season planning so that the core stays and turn-over days don't fail on staffing.

Mapped to root cause

Season planning cycleHousing as offerEmployer brandYear-round logic

View profilePersonally vetted · independent match

Olivia Torrente-Dorninger

Sales · Revenue · Marketing — Palma de Mallorca

Works with protel · Mews · Mews POS · Smart Host

AdviseImplement

Her core focus: setting up the employer brand and its channels so applications come in — and the right ones. From storytelling to social-media execution.

Mapped to root cause

Employer brandHousing as offer

View profilePersonally vetted · independent match

Which path fits your situation?

Diagnosis

390 € fixed price

A vetted Hospi analyses your situation in a structured way — in conversation and with a written result. Every statement clearly labelled: FACT, BENCHMARK, HYPOTHESIS or CONCLUSION. You get a concrete path, not a sales meeting.

A legitimate outcome is also: no engagement needed.
If an engagement follows, the diagnosis fee is fully credited.

Urgent support

Acute situation? Your case is reviewed with priority — response within 48 hours.

Cause fields — how to tell them apart

This situation rarely has a single cause. Usually two or three of these fields are at work at once — the point is to separate them before you act.

These fields are complete, and many properties get there on their own — that is what this page is for. The cost simply does not appear on an invoice: internal hours, a few attempts, and a season that keeps running in the meantime.

Team planning starts too late and miscalculates

How you spot it

Planning starts from the spring booking picture instead of the operating model in autumn. The plan lists positions but ignores no-shows, onboarding time and days off during peak season.

The way out

Treat season planning as a yearly cycle: secure the core team in autumn, calculate needs realistically (including buffers), prioritise returners over new hires.

Housing isn't part of the offer

How you spot it

You dodge the question "Where do I live?" Staff rooms are leftovers, not an argument — or they don't exist at all.

The way out

Treat housing as a fixed part of the compensation package and actively promote it. In seasonal destinations, the room decides more often than the wage.

As an employer you're invisible

How you spot it

Your job ad reads like every other one in the valley: "motivated team, fair pay." What it actually means to work with you is nowhere to be found — and your team doesn't appear on your channels.

The way out

Build the employer brand from the real operation: show who works there, how people live, what stays. Same care as for guest marketing — for applicants.

The seasonal logic itself drives the good ones away

How you spot it

If you can only offer five months of work, you lose the best people to year-round operations — every year, with onboarding costs rising each time.

The way out

Think in year-round terms: shoulder-season offers, partnerships with winter/summer operations for continuous employment paths, keep the core team all year instead of searching from scratch every season.

Team planning starts too late and miscalculates

How you spot it

Planning starts from the spring booking picture instead of the operating model in autumn. The plan lists positions but ignores no-shows, onboarding time and days off during peak season.

The way out

Treat season planning as a yearly cycle: secure the core team in autumn, calculate needs realistically (including buffers), prioritise returners over new hires.

Housing isn't part of the offer

How you spot it

You dodge the question "Where do I live?" Staff rooms are leftovers, not an argument — or they don't exist at all.

The way out

Treat housing as a fixed part of the compensation package and actively promote it. In seasonal destinations, the room decides more often than the wage.

As an employer you're invisible

How you spot it

Your job ad reads like every other one in the valley: "motivated team, fair pay." What it actually means to work with you is nowhere to be found — and your team doesn't appear on your channels.

The way out

Build the employer brand from the real operation: show who works there, how people live, what stays. Same care as for guest marketing — for applicants.

The seasonal logic itself drives the good ones away

How you spot it

If you can only offer five months of work, you lose the best people to year-round operations — every year, with onboarding costs rising each time.

The way out

Frequently asked

Isn't this just the labour market?: The market is tight, yes. But in the same valley, in the same market, some houses fill their teams and others don't. The difference is almost always in planning, housing and employer presence — all three are within your control.
What can we still do six weeks before the season starts?: Short term: activate returners and referrals from your existing team, resolve the housing question, rewrite the ad honestly and concretely. The structural fix starts afterwards — in autumn for the next season.
Is an employer brand worth it for a small house?: Especially there. A family business can show what a chain doesn't have: short paths, real responsibility, a temporary home. It takes honesty, not an agency budget.

Describe your situation

The problem context is automatically included — you do not need to repeat anything.

Problem

Staff shortage ahead of summer season

See all problems

Staff shortage ahead of summer season

How you recognize it

Matching Hospis

Javier Torrente

Olivia Torrente-Dorninger

Javier Torrente

Olivia Torrente-Dorninger

Which path fits your situation?

Diagnosis

Urgent support

Cause fields — how to tell them apart

Team planning starts too late and miscalculates

Housing isn't part of the offer

As an employer you're invisible

The seasonal logic itself drives the good ones away

Team planning starts too late and miscalculates

Housing isn't part of the offer

As an employer you're invisible

The seasonal logic itself drives the good ones away

Frequently asked

Describe your situation

Related situations

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Our rosters are in constant crisis mode

As an employer we're barely visible