Two Kilkenny businesses win big at Fáilte Ireland Employer Excellence Awards

Two Kilkenny tourism businesses were recognised at Fáilte Ireland’s Employer Excellence Awards which took place in the Fitzgeralds Woodlands House Hotel & Spa, Limerick, last night.

Smithwick’s Experience Kilkenny won the Best Employer – Attraction Award. Castlecomer Discovery Park won the Best Employer – Adventure Award.

The awards ceremony celebrated businesses who have demonstrated their commitment to making the tourism industry an appealing and rewarding place to work through their participation in Fáilte Ireland’s Employer Excellence programme. This is the third year of the award ceremony.  

The 14 winning businesses are:  

• Best Employer – Outstanding: O’Callaghan Coaches, Kerry
• Best Employer – Large Business: Radisson Blu Hotel Dublin Airport
• Best Employer – Medium Business: Sandhouse Hotel, Donegal
• Best Employer – Small Business: O’Callaghan Coaches, Kerry
• Best Employer - Wild Atlantic Way: The Bedford Townhouse, Limerick
• Best Employer - Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands: Castle Varagh Hotel, Westmeath
• Best Employer - Ireland’s Ancient East: The Goldie Fish & Ale Restaurant, Cork City
• Best Employer - Dublin: GPO Museum, Dublin
• Best Employer - Attraction: Smithwick’s Experience Kilkenny
• Best Employer - Food and Drink: Orso Kitchen & Bar, Cork
• Best Employer - Hotel Group: PREM Group, Dublin
• Best Employer - Golf: Lahinch Golf Club, Clare
• Best Employer - Adventure: Castlecomer Discovery Park, Kilkenny
• Best Employer – Tour Operator: Vagabond Adventure Tours, Wicklow

“Tourism is fundamentally a people business, and nowhere is this more evident than in Ireland, where our greatest asset is the Céad Míle Fáilte provided by tourism staff and businesses to our visitors," said Fáilte Ireland CEO Paul Kelly.
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"An engaged workforce is key to delivering successful businesses and this warm welcome to our visitors. The Fáilte Ireland Employer Excellence Awards celebrate the businesses that have set the industry standard for employee engagement and workplace culture. These awards will help drive further improvements in both the quality and perception of careers in the tourism sector.”
 

"As part of the programme, a survey was conducted with staff of participating businesses, which gave them the chance to highlight the strengths of their workplace, along with areas for further development. Fáilte Ireland is now supporting these businesses to implement actions identified in their survey to further enhance employee engagement. The winning businesses completed management upskilling, engaged with HR experts and were then chosen based on employee feedback.  

Jenny De Saulles, Fáilte Ireland’s Director of Sector Development added:  “Our latest figures show that since the programme launched in 2022, it has positively impacted 30,000 employees across the tourism sector nationwide. Employee engagement scores for businesses now in their third year of the programme have grown to 75%, 8% higher than the average across the wider employment sector, with significant improvements made in the areas of induction, reward and benefit, and management involving people in decisions affecting their jobs. So, it’s fantastic to gather together for these awards to showcase the best-in-class examples of employers along with those professionals who are thriving in the industry.”  

Tourism businesses who are interested in joining Fáilte Ireland’s Employer Excellence programme can find out more at https://www.failteireland.ie/employerexcellence.aspx”