Rethinking employee attraction and retention strategies in tourism and hospitality: insights into workforce ecosystems

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify challenges and opportunities for a resilient workforce ecosystem in a peripheral region by exploring employee attraction and retention strategies within a tourism and hospitality business ecosystem. The study analyzes how tourism and hospitality actors describe the internal and external conditions for employer branding, staff attraction and retention. Design/methodology/approach The study takes an exploratory, qualitative approach. Empirical data were collected through interviews with 25 actors across different levels of the tourism and hospitality ecosystem in northern Sweden. Findings Attracting and retaining competent staff is one of the greatest challenges in tourism and hospitality, due to contextual and employer-related factors. The way forward demands a new approach that looks beyond the organizational level. Co-opetition on competence development, retention strategies and employer branding activities in the business ecosystem can be a solution to increase resilience and industry brand strength. Research limitations/implications There are limitations related to sampling and study context. Future research could identify good examples and solutions to address the challenges posed by the macro environment and further examine the formation and dynamics of collaborative networks in tourism and hospitality. Practical implications Several opportunities for a resilient workforce ecosystem for tourism and hospitality are outlined. These can be used strategically by actors at different levels of the ecosystem. Originality/value The ecosystem perspective has only recently been applied to workforce structures and employer branding, and studies in the tourism and hospitality industry are scarce.