The insight, which analyses raw data from more than 35,000 employees across the sector and has been published in a free evidence-based report, reveals a link between promoting managers from within and achieving lower staff churn.

The findings suggest a strategic shift for operators grappling with retention challenges. The wider industry faces a 3% year-on-year increase in labour costs, with these rising to 35% of total sales for businesses across the sector.

The bulk of that increase came in the last quarter, as expected, but put a lot of pressure on operators ahead of the busy festive season. The report highlights that investing in internal career pathways is the most effective strategy for building stable, high-performing teams and protecting the bottom line.

The key findings for hospitality leaders include:

• Internal promotion drives stability: The rate of internal promotions for key on-site leadership roles has risen, with head chef promotions seeing the largest jump from 44% to 51%.
• Management vacancies fuel team turnover: Persistent gaps in management teams are a primary driver of overall team turnover.
• Rising costs and mixed morale: While retention is improving, labour costs have climbed to 35% of revenue.