This is the place to be if you want more from your career…

 

I didn’t want to be a General Manager.

 

I’ve been in hospitality since I was 17 with various restaurant chains, working my way up to Area Chef and I’d seen some good GMs and some truly awful ones. One thing that they all had in common though was they all struggled with the demands of the job.

 

I’d built a career in the kitchen, spending 12 years with a well-known hospitality business where I’d always seen the GMs run ragged. They’d work all hours and miss out on special occasions like family birthdays but not just that, some had missed out on weddings and funerals and I just thought it wasn’t for me. It looked scary.

 

But, that said, I’d reached a point where I wondering where else my career could go. I’d left the business briefly, for a rival who promised the world but delivered little. I was sold the dream – better pay, better hours, development. It didn’t play out that way and I went back to the employer I’d always known.

 

Although I was back in an environment I felt comfortable in, I just couldn’t shake off the feeling that I’d done all this before. Nothing had changed.

 

My wife’s also in hospitality and worked for Whitbread. She could see I was coming home from work unhappy and told me something had to change. Despite us working in the same industry, she was never grumpy after a shift, so I started to think maybe it’s not me, it’s the company. She told me of her experience with Whitbread but made the point of saying ‘you need to find it out for yourself.’

 

So I did. I found a Kitchen Manager role on Indeed at the Bridgewater Arms. We’d visited before as a family and I liked that the feel was that of a real local pub at the heart of the community, rather than a brand. The recruitment process was totally reassuring. The Whitbread Recruiter called me and got me really excited for the role but the interview was with a Regional Operations Manager. This threw me, as I’d only ever needed to interview in front of a GMs, and I was a bit intimidated by hierarchy.

 

I needn’t have been. Ian, my ROM, made me feel so comfortable to the point when I thought ‘I am who I am’ and a 30 min interview became a 2 hour one as we spoke so easily. It was my first proper in-depth interview. He wanted to know what I was about inside and out of work. He wanted to know about me, my goals and ambitions – and did a great job of telling me about Whitbread.

 

I came off the call feeling like I wanted to work for him. I was cautious, because I’d been sold the dream before. But this felt different, it felt exciting – so I took the leap.

 

The Whitbread difference was there from day one. I had a great induction – 2 weeks off site training with the Area Chef who made me feel so welcome. Ian came to meet me, to check in with me – I didn’t see the ROM my whole time at other restaurants I worked in for years. The welcome pack you get, it all just feels warm and heartfelt. I knew there was a place for me here.

 

Only a few weeks in to being the KM, there was an opportunity to step up. I’d said when I met Ian, that this would be my last KM role, but when he called me, the conversation wasn’t one I was expecting. He said he rated me, he felt I had the required behaviours needed and wanted me to apply for the vacant GM role.

 

I haven’t looked back, since. I love being a GM – don’t get me wrong, it’s hard work – but I’m really seeing something happen here at the Bridgewater Arms. As a team we’ve come on leaps and bounds and I’m so proud.

 

When I began as a GM, I felt like a fish out of water. I was so used to the systems at my old company; now I had a whole host of new ones to learn and I had so many questions. But the support here is something else. Fellow GMs in my region are always around for you, it’s amazing. I was nervous about reaching out but you know what? People here want to help. Mental wellbeing is high on the agenda and the Diversity & Inclusion networks are so helpful in making you feel at home.

 

Now I’m a GM, I want to role model that you can be a leader in this industry, work hard and still have a life outside of work! With Whitbread I believe I’m at the business to do this.

 

Heather, General Manager, Whitbread Inns

 

Come and join the UK’s leading hospitality business here…

 

 

 

We're shaking up the steak world and offering you a fresh + exciting approach to dining out.

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Our first brand and still one of the UK's best loved restaurants.

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Our aim is - 'To serve the nation's favourite pub food, at great value prices, in a family friendly environment.'

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Cookhouse & Pub, a great place to get together.

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hub by Premier Inn is a smart new concept in urban hotels.

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Is it our beds, our food, our great value or our people that people love so much?

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Table Table is the perfect place to get together with family and friends.

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We serve up delicious dishes full of seasonal flavour and a variety of drinks including local cask ales.

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We get to serve an amazing 25 million customers each month in the UK.

About Us
A new kind of hotel for Premier Inn

A new kind of hotel for Premier Inn

The first ZIP will be opening in Cardiff March 2019, with more coming soon. Keep your eyes peeled for a ZIP near you.