Toxic, high-turnover environment - Anonymous employee Brightstar Hospitality Management Employee Review

No pros come to mind

Brightstar took over management of the hotel and since then staff turnover has been high and staff satisfaction low. The management of the company claim to be people first and let seem to have no regard for the staff working in the hotels often not even bothering to learn names of the staff there. They want to cut costs at the expense of over working what few staff they have which removes any aspect of work life balance. Safety never seemed to be a concern multiple safety concerns were raised to them with the response being work around it there isn't enough money to fix it putting staff and customers at risk. What few staff are left at the hotel working under them still do not have good things to say and those that disagree with them often find themselves bullied out of a a job and replaced with someone who will do whatever they want

The company operates in a fast-paced hospitality environment, which may appeal to people who enjoy high-pressure work and constant change.

In my experience, management is very top-heavy and disconnected from the day-to-day workload. Senior managers do not appear to be closely involved in execution and instead place a significant amount of responsibility on other staff, often without adequate guidance or support. There is a noticeable clique culture within management. From the beginning, I felt disadvantaged due to my lack of prior hotel experience, despite this being known at the time of hiring. No formal training, onboarding, or structured learning was provided during my time there, and there was little opportunity or time made available to develop the required skills. Meetings were frequently difficult to follow. Managers often relied heavily on acronyms and commercial terminology without explaining context, which made it challenging for newer team members to fully understand expectations. Clear briefs were rarely provided, yet full deliverables were expected regardless. When trying to talk to managers about workload I was patronised with a lecture about 'working smarter not harder. ' Workloads were consistently excessive, with unrealistic deadlines and insufficient staffing. Management openly stated that additional resources would not be hired because the department was not seen as directly revenue-generating in the same way as other departments do. This approach appeared to contribute to widespread stress and burnout. I personally observed colleagues under extreme pressure. One colleague reported experiencing serious stress-related health issues after an extended period of overwork. Management’s response focused on discouraging work outside of contracted hours, rather than addressing workload levels or resourcing concerns. The overall culture felt toxic and heavily influenced by favoritism. Employees who were perceived as being outside management’s inner circle appeared to be treated less favorably. I also witnessed very serious internal allegations being discussed involving staff members. Regardless of the validity of these claims, the way they were handled felt unprofessional and damaging, contributing to a climate of fear and insecurity. Overall, this was not a supportive working environment. The lack of training, excessive workload, unclear communication, and management culture made it a very difficult place to work.