Hospitality industry veteran Jerry O’Sullivan has launched a new talent sourcing service titled Astoria Partnership. With an office on Dawson Street in Dublin and another in Portland Street, London, the company aims to recruit the best talent for the hospitality industry in Ireland and overseas.
Having joined Sodexo in 1997, O'Sullivan proceeded to strike out on his own in 2001 and established Caterassist. Commenting on his early experiences running a company, he said, "In the boom I had seven offices and around that time I also purchased another recruitment company from the legendary Kay Caball. Once the recession hit, a company specialising in permanent recruitment was never going to last, so I closed the business and moved to Noel Recruitment as business manager for Ireland."
After four years of working at Noel Recruitment, O'Sullivan left to set up Astoria Partnership. O'Sullivan looks to countries including Germany, Holland, Italy and Canada as well as the UK market to find the right staff for his clients.
He explained, "I have clients in Ireland, the UK, Europe, Canada & the USA and the variants of the salary bands are huge in each country. This is making it difficult to find the right people. Ensuring employees are paid correctly and reward & recognition is an issue in the market."
He continued, "I don’t get people 'jobs', I really dislike that word. I get people careers. While I work with exclusive five-star hotels, resorts and groups, I also have clients at three-star and QSR groups, and I treat them all the same. I’ve built up a high level of trust with longstanding clients who are happy to take on the one referral I send them. I’m confident doing that because during the interview process, I feel that I drill down to the core of what a person is telling me. There is analysing, verifying and detective skills required to be a top recruiter and I’m lucky in that I know so many names and places from my years working in the hospitality sector.
"When someone doesn’t work out I always go back to the employer and question why and then go back to the candidate. It’s not always the right fit and that is life, but in 99% of cases, I get it right.”
Through Astoria Partnership, O'Sullivan's aim is to be the recruiter of choice for the hospitality sector, with building trust with both clients and candidates being the key to the business.
“I will only take on a job once I know I can fill it," O'Sullivan asserted. “I’m a true advocate of hospitality and I know that it’s a 24/7 business. I’m always available to both clients and candidates and that’s what sets Astoria apart. I don’t want to be the biggest, just the best.”
All of the company's details can be found via astoriapartnership.com, while O'Sullivan himself is contactable by e-mailing [email protected] or by phone at 0861001444.
© 2018 Hospitality Ireland – your source for the latest industry news. Article by Dave Simpson. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.
