Problems faced by Imperial Hotel

Specific key areas of management are required to be paid adequate attention in order for an organisation to operate in a proper manner. Inability to cater to these aspects has lead to the current problems faced by the Imperial Hotel. It is a 4-star hotel operated by the Star Hotels Company which has operated for nearly 100 years. This hotel caters to various customers and the key source is revenue is garnered from tourists and international business. However, the hotel has been facing quite a few problems in its operations. Among them, inadequate staffing and lack of training and development program have made the staff careless to the basic rules and regulations. This has been causing sufficient lack of customer satisfaction and its impact has been felt it the profitability garnered from the overall revenue. Previous counter action plans have failed to bring any significant changes because of the huge financial strain and estimated loss. The aspect of poor operation along with an increase in operating cost has been highlighted in this study. Through the aid of this study, the root cause of the problem in the department of housekeeping has been adequately identified so that proper solutions can be formulated. Therefore, this study would provide adequate assessment through which the Imperial Hotel can not only enhance its rate of productivity but also gain back its reputation in the hotel industry by providing effective services.  

The Imperial Hotel has been in functioning for quite a long amount of time. This hotel consists of about 400-500 rooms which are overseen by the six administrative departments of the hotel. However, with the rate of increase expectation from customers as well as new competition in the market, the hotel has been suffering from a few problems. One of the core problems that have been identified by the Imperial Hotel is lack of proper functioning by the back house staff. This is due to the lack of following proper rules and regulations as per the standards of the hotel. According to the opinion of Christopher (2016), proper management is the core requirement for any organisation. The Imperial Hotel has been suffering due to the lack of these aspects. The staffs of the hotel have also been failing to keep up to the basic Standard Operating Procedure, also known as SOPS which is a must for every hotel. Due to the failure of these aspects, the hotel’s annual revenue rate along with its reputation has been suffering a lot. Therefore, it is utmost necessary to integrate adequate strategies for the improvement of staff functioning so that the problems can be eliminated as fast as possible.

There are several standards for basic housekeeping which falls under SOPS. As opined by Armstrong and Taylor (2014), starting from cleaning to maintenance are all important tasks undertaken by the housekeeping along with kitchen and maintenance department. However, the back house staffs of Imperial Hotel have been failing to comply with the set standards. For instance, one of the most common tasks which fall under the housekeeping department is making beds for guests. This process requires seven to eight steps starting from removing the old linen to adjusting the new one (Scarborough, 2016). However, as the housekeeping staff has failed to oblige these basic standards, therefore the implementation of training and development program is a must through which the staff can be made aware of the SOPS and adequate training would provide them with the necessary guidelines through which effective tasks can be performed. Therefore, through the aid of performance management theory, this aspect can be thoroughly accessed.

Assessment of problems faced by Imperial Hotel in accordance to performance management theory

Among the performance management theories, expectancy theory is the best suited for assessing this study. The lack of effective performance may be the result of various aspects such as the lack of proper incentives or not enough motivation (Leary and Baumeister, 2017). Therefore, through the aid of expectancy theory, an organisation can set appropriate goals and objectives through which it can achieve the desired result. Not only individual motivation can be enhanced but also the rate of overall performance. According to the expectancy theory, without adequate motivation, the rate of performance cannot be enhanced in any organisation. As per the view of Reeve (2014), adequate rewards or compensations are required in order for the work to be done in a proper manner.

                                                       Figure 1: Main components of expectancy theory

                                                                  (Source: changingminds.org, 2018)

According to the expectancy theory, the problem faced by the Imperial Hotel has been thoroughly accessed. The root cause of the problem is due to inadequate training and development program within the organisation. This aspect has creates not only lack of adequate knowledge required for proper functioning of the organisation but also miscommunication within the organisation. Thus, not only is the progress of the staff improving nor are the problems getting solved. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to integrate this theory in the practical functioning of the hotel so that it can benefit from it. According to Boella (2017), in order to motivate the employees for performing well, reward and return policy would prove to be very effective. Not only will be the problems be eliminated but the rate of performance can be enhanced as well.

This policy can be integrated with that of an incentive scheme through which the employees would be kept motivated so that their rate of performance can be kept up to the mark. The Imperial Hotel is required to take a strategic measurement to eliminate the problems faced in the housekeeping department along with kitchen staffing and maintenance department. It is of utmost importance to integrate a training and development program so that the housekeeping and other back house departments understand the importance of standard guidelines. A progressive training and development program will provide the necessary information to the staff members and their work productivity would not be hampered as well (Pereira-Moliner et al. 2015). All the rules and regulations would be set accordingly so that respective departments can completely understand their tasks.

An organisation is dependent on various factors upon whose its functioning depends upon. Factors such as employee and customer satisfaction are two of the main focus upon which the reputation of a company massively depends on. As regarded by Scarborough (2016), the vision and focus of an organisation are needed to be clear so that this aspect can be reached without many ordeals. The main problem within the organisation of the Imperial Hotel is lack of a training and development program due to which more than half of the staff are following according to the rules and regulation standards of the hotel. Lack of adequate motivation has also been identified as another cause through the aid of expectancy theory. Therefore, the integration of a training and development program would not only spread awareness within the organisational staff but also motivate to perform in accordance with that.

Analysis of the impact of Training and Development at Imperial Hotel

                                                     Figure 2: Impact of training and development

                                                          (Source: managementhelp.org, 2018)

One of the major impacts of a training and development program is that staff members of an organisation would learn to perform their duty in the desired manner. For instance, in the Imperial Hotel a training and development program would shape up the staff in accordance to the needs of the hotel, only then will it be able to reach its desired goals and objectives. In the organisation of the Imperial Hotel, the training and development program would consist of all the respective duties required to be performed. The basic Standard Operating Procedure is one of the key aspects which would be adequately taught in the module of the training and development program. The biggest advantage is that the staff of the hotel would be able to experience this first hand (Xie, Zhang and Zhang, 2014). As stated earlier the organisation of Imperial Hotel is required to follow a progressive form of training, therefore, practical experience can be gained through the aid of such aspect (Refer to Appendix 1).

In order to eliminate the core problems faced by the Imperial Hotel, the management of the hotel is required to input quite a few aspects. One of the major aspects that are needed to be integrated by the hotel is a training and development plan. This is very essential for the hotel as through its aid the backhouse staff can be made aware of the certain problems faced by the hotel. A thorough assessment of the Imperial Hotel has also resulted in the understanding that lack of adequate motivation is one of the main reasons due to which the functioning of the hotel is suffering. Due to this, the hotel is required to engage incentives based on the performance of the backhouse staff. Not only will it provide motivation but also enhance the rate of performance. This aspect is in alignment with the reward and returns policy due to which the adequate amount of motivation can be awarded to the employees.

The incentive scheme would prove to be quite beneficial for the whole functioning of the Imperial Hotel. Through the aid of such an aspect, the employees will have a constant motivation to work accordingly so that they can reap the benefit in the end. As per the view of Molina-Azorín et al. (2015), motivation is one of the core requirements for assessment of adequate functioning. Therefore, in order for the workers to meet the standards of excellence of the hotel, an incentive scheme is of utmost necessity. Among the incentives scheme, various aspects can be integrated such as an employee of the month or employee of the department. This would help in pushing their mental motivation so that steady and appropriate results can be the ultimate outcome. Rewards based on performance would prove to be beneficial for the Imperial Hotel as a competitive atmosphere would be created in the organisation. This would raise the level of productivity to a significant aspect and its impact can be faced by the hotel itself. Along with the increase in revenue, a significant reputation will also be enhanced through appropriate customer service.

Conclusion:

For an organisation to work in an appropriate manner, there are a lot of aspects which are needed to be maintained in a thorough manner. One such aspect includes the functioning of the staff members through which the hotel can move forward towards a positive direction by getting positive feedback through satisfied customers. In order to this, the case study of Imperial Hotel has been chosen for this study. Through the aid of this study, adequate light has been shed on the current problems being faced by the organisation. It has been identified the poor performance of the backhouse staff including the kitchen, house staff as well as maintenance has been creating adequate problems in the Hotel. Due to this factor, the whole performance of the hotel has been suffering. This aspect has been thoroughly accessed through the aid of performance management theory. In order to avoid such problems, a thorough assessment has been conducted through which proper solutions have been formulated. It has been observed that the integration of a training and development program would prove to be beneficial for the Imperial Hotel as the staff would be made aware of the guidelines needed to be followed by them.  The impact of motivation has also been identified through the aid of this study. Through the implementation of incentives scheme, the motivation level of employees can be enhanced along with their performance rate. Therefore, all these aspects have been given adequate importance in this study. Integration of these aspects is a must through which the Imperial Hotel can benefit from it.

Armstrong, M. and Taylor, S., 2014. Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice. 3^rd ed. New Jersey: Kogan Page Publishers.

Boella, M., 2017. Human resource management in the hotel and catering industry. 2^nd ed. Abingdon: Routledge.

changingminds.org (2018), Expectancy Theory, Available at:  https://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/expectancy.htm [Accessed on: 24-11-2018]

Christopher, M., 2016. Logistics & supply chain management. 4^th ed. Abingdon: Pearson UK.

Leary, M.R. and Baumeister, R.F., 2017. The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. In Interpersonal Development, 2(1), pp.57-89.

managementhelp.org (2018), Training, Available at:  https://managementhelp.org/training/index.htm [Accessed on: 24-11-2018]

Molina-Azorín, J.F., Tarí, J.J., Pereira-Moliner, J., López-Gamero, M.D. and Pertusa-Ortega, E.M., 2015. The effects of quality and environmental management on competitive advantage: A mixed methods study in the hotel industry. Tourism Management, 50(3), pp.41-54.

omicsonline.org (2018), The Impact of Training and Development on Workers Productivity, Available at:  https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/the-impact-of-training-and-development-on-workers-productivity-2315-7844-1000160.php?aid=59847 [Accessed on: 24-11-2018]

Pereira-Moliner, J., Font, X., Tarí, J.J., Molina-Azorin, J.F., Lopez-Gamero, M.D. and Pertusa-Ortega, E.M., 2015. The Holy Grail: Environmental management, competitive advantage and business performance in the Spanish hotel industry. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(5), pp.714-738.

Reeve, J., 2014. Understanding motivation and emotion. 4^th ed, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.

Scarborough, N.M., 2016. Essentials of entrepreneurship and small business management. 2^nd ed. Abingdon: Pearson.

Xie, K.L., Zhang, Z. and Zhang, Z., 2014. The business value of online consumer reviews and management response to hotel performance. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 43(2), pp.1-12.