UKG, a leading global AI platform unifying HR, pay, and workforce management, today announced that Dutchman Hospitality Group (DHG), a family-owned hospitality organization operating across Florida, Indiana, and Ohio, is transforming its high-volume frontline hiring process with UKG® Rapid Hire. Purpose-built for high-volume frontline employee roles, Rapid Hire can help eliminate the traditional job application with AI- and mobile-first conversational messaging to engage candidates, and move qualified applicants to interviews in minutes, not days — and into productive roles in days, not weeks.
For DHG, the pace and scale of its frontline operations made UKG Rapid Hire the perfect solution. With 1,500 frontline workers at more than 20 locations including restaurants, bakeries, inns, and gift shops, DHG depends on a steady pipeline of talent — including servers, prep cooks, housekeepers, and retail staff — to deliver exceptional customer service. The organization receives 50 to 60 applications per day across its hospitality group, making speed and responsiveness critical in a highly competitive labor market.
“Hiring in hospitality is nonstop — it’s constant,” said Erika Kamph, Vice President of Human Resources at DHG. “Before UKG Rapid Hire, scheduling interviews with even the best candidates could take days. Now, candidates can apply and book an interview in minutes, and in many cases, they’re interviewing the same day. It helps us define what we’re looking for upfront and connect with the right candidates faster, which is especially important for harder-to-fill roles.”
UKG Rapid Hire uses AI to engage frontline candidates the moment they express interest, initiating an immediate text-based conversation. AI then guides candidates through role-specific screening questions and captures their skills and availability. When candidates are ready to interview, they can view and select available days and times that work for them. For DHG, the impact has been significant: the organization reports reduced interview scheduling time for high-turnover frontline roles to under four minutes and that it moves 58% of qualified applicants into interviews.
The platform also empowered site managers at DHG to take a more active role in hiring over the past three years. In most locations, HR is not involved in interviewing. Instead, managers review candidates, conduct interviews as part of their already busy day-to-day operational leadership, and make final hiring decisions. After just two initial training sessions, leaders independently manage hiring, reducing administrative burden on HR while accelerating decision-making and getting new hires in the door and scheduled to work faster.
“Our managers are directly involved and able to move quickly,” said Kamph. “They review applicants, make decisions, and the system handles communication — from interview scheduling to follow-ups — saving significant time for our HR team. Once someone is hired, they often start within two to three days. There’s no waiting.”
DHG has created a faster, more responsive hiring process, one that benefits both managers and candidates. The hospitality group has improved the overall candidate experience while reducing reliance on external job boards.
“We’re spending less money on job boards and relying on them far less,” Kamph said. “Rapid Hire gets our jobs out where they need to be, and candidates can apply through our website on any device and go straight into the process. This has been a game changer for us. It gets candidates in quickly, makes the process easier for our managers, and allows us to keep up with the pace of our business.”
“Hiring in hospitality is directly connected to the guest experience. When roles aren’t filled quickly, it impacts service, team workloads, and, ultimately, the customer,” said Amy Brar, General Manager, Workforce Management at UKG. “UKG Rapid Hire is designed specifically for fast-paced, frontline environments, helping organizations move candidates from application to first shift quickly and confidently. By streamlining hiring as part of day-to-day operations, hospitality teams can stay staffed, support their people, and deliver the level of service their guests expect.”
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About UKG
UKG is a leading global AI platform for HR, pay, and workforce management. Unifying award-winning solutions with the world’s largest collection of workforce data and people-first AI, UKG delivers unrivaled insights into today’s workforce, helping organizations in every industry turn data into decisions that elevate productivity, culture, and the customer experience. Trusted by more than 80,000 organizations across 150 countries, tens of millions of employees — from small businesses to global enterprises — use UKG every day. To learn more, visit ukg.com.
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