How to hire and train an opening team in waves on a Gantt chart
Plan the people side of an opening on a Gantt chart: leaders first, then supervisors and staff in overlapping waves, training on the real systems, and a trial run before guests arrive. Hotel example, plus the hiring loop inside each wave.
A new hotel, store or restaurant needs a whole team ready on the same day, trained on systems that only arrive late in the build. This guide shows how to plan the hiring in overlapping waves on a Gantt chart and check that training finishes before the trial run.
The short version
- Hire leaders first, then each layer in a wave that starts a set number of working days after the layer above starts.
- Let the leaders write the procedures while the next waves are hired, so training has material ready.
- Make training depend on the last hiring wave, the procedures and the installed systems.
- End with a trial run that waits for the trained team, the placed supplies and the permits.
- Use Critical path in the View menu to see whether hiring or the building sets the opening date.
Hire from the top down, train on what you will use
An opening team cannot be hired all at once. The people who lead each department need to be in place first, because they help choose and train the people below them, and they write the procedures the rest of the team will learn. Supervisors come next, and the large group of line staff last. Hire too early and you pay a team with nothing to do; hire too late and they start on opening day without having worked a shift together.
On a Gantt chart that becomes a set of overlapping waves. Each wave is one task covering the time it takes to hire that layer, and each starts a fixed number of working days after the one above it starts: a start-to-start link with a lag, written for example as 5SS+10. The waves overlap because hiring a layer is many small recruitment loops, and the first people in a layer can start interviewing the next layer before the last of their own colleagues has signed.
Training is where the people plan meets the building. Staff should train on the systems and in the spaces they will use, and those usually arrive late: systems can only be installed once the back-of-house areas are handed over, and supplies only placed once the rooms are. So the training task depends on the last hiring wave, on the written procedures and on the installed systems, and the trial run depends on training, on the supplies and on the permits. The chart then shows whether people or the building set the date.
The example below builds the hotel pre-opening template, where the GM is appointed first and three hiring waves run while the contractor finishes the building. After it, the recruitment process shows the loop inside one wave: screening, shortlists, interviews and offers that are sometimes declined. A Gantt chart cannot draw a loop; it gives the wave a duration that has to allow for it.
All durations are illustrative. QueryChart does not know how many recruiters or trainers you have, so it will not warn you if the waves overlap more than your team can handle; set the lags to what your people can manage. For the whole opening see /guides/new-location-opening-gantt-chart, and for a hiring plan outside an opening see /templates/hiring-plan-gantt.
A hotel opening team, built in stages
Twenty-three tasks in five groups. Durations and lags are illustrative working days. Open the spreadsheet panel to see the rows behind each stage.
A leader and a sales office come first
"Appoint the general manager" (10 working days) leads to "Set the pre-opening budget and plan" (10). "Open the pre-opening sales office" (5) follows, and "Pre-sell groups, events and corporate accounts" (55) runs from there towards the opening.
Hiring runs in three overlapping waves
"Hire heads of department" (20) starts when the plan is set. "Hire supervisors" starts 10 days after it starts, and "Hire line staff in waves" (25) starts 10 days into the supervisors. "Write department procedures and standards" (15) follows the heads of department, and "Train teams on procedures and systems" (12) waits for the last wave and the procedures.
Systems and supplies the teams will use
"Select property, sales and point-of-sale systems" (10) and "Order operating supplies and equipment" (5) start with the plan. "Supplies manufacture and delivery" takes 40 days. "Install and test hotel systems" (10) and "Receive, unpack and place supplies" (10) both need parts of the building, which are added in the next stage, and training also waits for the installed systems.
The building decides when the teams can move in
"Contractor completes back-of-house areas" (50) starts at the beginning, and "Back-of-house handed over" on day 50 lets the systems be installed by day 60. Guest rooms start 30 days into the back-of-house works, then "Snag and accept rooms floor by floor" (10) leads to "Building handed over" on day 70. Supplies are placed and "Obtain occupancy and operating permits" (10) runs after that, both ending on day 80.
Mock stays bring people, supplies and permits together
"Run mock stays and trial service" (5) waits for training, the placed supplies and the permits. Training ends on day 77, so it has 3 working days to spare: if the line staff wave slips by more than that, hiring sets the date. "Soft opening" (5) also waits for pre-selling, and "Hotel opens to guests" falls on day 90. With Critical path on, the building chain is lit.
The loop inside each hiring wave
The recruitment process as a flowchart. Every hiring wave on the Gantt chart is this loop, run once for each role.
A vacancy needs an approved headcount
"Vacancy identified" leads to the role profile and the salary band, then "Headcount approved?". In a pre-opening plan the headcount is usually approved in the budget, which is why the hiring waves on the Gantt chart start from "Set the pre-opening budget and plan".
Advert, screening and the shortlist loop
"Publish advert and source candidates", "Submit application" and "Screen applications against criteria" lead to "Suitable shortlist agreed?". When the answer is Reopen, the loop goes back to the advert, and that is time the wave on the Gantt chart has to allow for.
Interviews and assessment
"Run competency interviews" and "Complete role-related assessment" are where the leaders hired in the first wave spend their time. A panel that does not recommend a hire sends the role back to the shortlist.
Checks, offer and acceptance
Reference and right-to-work checks, the offer and "Offer accepted?" close the loop. A declined offer returns to the shortlist, so a wave that needs fifty acceptances will see some offers declined. Size the wave's duration for that, not for the best case.
How it works
Write down the layers
List the layers of the team you will hire, from the general manager or store manager down to line staff. Each layer becomes one hiring task, in a group of its own such as Recruitment and training.
Link the waves start-to-start
Make the first wave depend on the approved plan, and each later wave start-to-start with a lag on the one above, for example 6SS+10. Choose the lag from how soon the people already hired can help interview the next layer.
Add the procedures
Add a task for the leaders to write procedures and standards, starting when they are hired. Training cannot start without it.
Tie training to the systems
Make the training task depend on the last wave, the procedures and the installed systems. If the systems need a handed-over part of the building, link the installation to that handover.
End in a trial run
Add mock shifts, a trial service or mock stays that wait for training, supplies and permits, then the soft opening and the opening milestone. Turn on Critical path to see whether hiring or the building is lit.
Name the owners and track progress
Put the hiring lead for each wave in People and update progress as roles are filled. Progress does not move dates, so change a wave's duration if it is clearly running long.
Mistakes to avoid
Hiring every layer at once
Starting all the waves on the same day means the leaders are still being hired while their teams are interviewed by someone else. Start each layer after the one above has started, with a lag that matches reality.
Training before the systems exist
A training task linked only to the hiring waves can be scheduled weeks before the tills, booking system or kitchen are in. Link it to the installation too.
Waves sized for the best case
Shortlists reopen and offers are declined. A wave that only works if every first choice accepts will slip, and with little slack the opening slips with it.
Expecting the chart to balance workload
QueryChart does not know how many recruiters or trainers you have and does not level resources. If waves overlap too much for your team, lengthen the lags yourself.
Open the hotel pre-opening Gantt chart
Open the hotel template, set your own hiring waves and lags, and see whether training finishes before the mock stays.
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
When should I start hiring for a new location?
Early enough that the last wave finishes before training needs to start, and late enough that people are not paid with nothing to do. Draw the waves on the chart and read the slack between the end of training and the trial run.
What does a start-to-start link with a lag mean here?
The later wave starts a set number of working days after the earlier wave starts, whether or not the earlier one has finished. It is written as the task number, SS and the lag, for example 5SS+10.
Can I see who is hired in which wave?
Put the hiring lead in People and list the roles in the task's notes, or split a large wave into one task per department. For the structure the team is hired into, use an org chart such as /org-templates/hotel-business-organizational-chart.
Does it work for a store or restaurant?
Yes. A store hires a manager and then the team (/templates/store-opening-gantt-chart), and a restaurant hires the head chef and general manager before the kitchen and floor staff (/templates/restaurant-opening-gantt-chart). The waves are shorter, and the pattern is the same.
Does QueryChart track headcount or payroll cost?
No. The chart schedules the hiring and who owns it. Headcount, salaries and pre-opening payroll stay in your own records.