High/Low Volume of Service Encounter and its effect on overall Service Quality of Hotel Park Inn - Research Proposal Example

Running Head: DO HIGH/LOW VOLUME OF SERVICE ENCOUNTER EFFECT OVER ALL High/Low Volume of Service Encounter and its effect on overall Service Qualityof Hotel Park Inn [Writer’s Name] [Institution’s Name] Table of Content High/Low Volume of Service Encounter and its effect on overall Service Quality of Hotel Park Inn Chapter 1: Introduction Overview This paper shall analyze the impact of high/low volume of service encounter on the overall service quality of Hotel Park Inn. As hotel and leisure is the second largest industry in Pakistan. Hotel market can be divided into main sector, corporate and consumer. The corporate sector is the most significant in terms of size. Revenue in this sector is generated from the room night, conference, wedding halls, meeting halls and sports avenues like swimming pools and fitness centers. Many of the national hotel groups have been established separate brand for the market Green hotel, Park Inn, Zabil palace for instance. The growth of these local companies is giving very tough competition to international chain hotels like Pearl Continental, Holiday Inn not only in terms of price but quality of product and services as well. Background Info Quality service is a major challenge facing the hospitality sector in this millennium. Competitive advantage and competitive success relies heavily on the service quality in this industry. The delivery of service depends upon various factors and the most important factor is the people or human resources. Every interaction is a service encounter in the hospitality sector and interactions take place at various levels. Assessing the customer expectation and efficiency in delivery of service is a big challenge in this highly competitive and fast moving industry. This paper will attempt to study whether the high or low volume of service encounter affects the overall service quality at Hotel Park Inn, Peshawar. It will try to determine how the contribution of employees, of the managers, technology, innovative ideas, and the consumers themselves help meet the challenge in the new millennium. Hotel Park Inn, Peshawar (PIP) is a 3 start hotel and experiencing rapid growth. Its products and services give the customers a feel of a 4 star hotel. The hospitality sector in Pakistan can be divided into the corporate and the consumer sector, the corporate being a very large and dominating sector. This is especially in view of Afghanistan as the neighboring country which uses Pakistan as the entry and exit point for all its travels. The hotel has 70 rooms on offer apart from conference and wedding facilities. Conferences contribute towards revenue generation but its main revenue comes from rooms sold. The hotel is very strategically located which provides easy access to both the discerning corporate clients as well as the leisure traveler. It also offers wedding facilities for the local people. The PIP’s association with recognized tour operators adds to its service quality as it is in a position to offer sightseeing packages to its foreign clientele. During the lean season this also becomes a source of revenue. Hotel Park Inn can boast of a large number of loyal customers. Hotel Park Inn is basically a type of room night segment of the hospitality industry although it provide leisure and conference facilities as well. It is situated in the heart of historical Khyber bazaar Peshawar, in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan. Its location is very much suitable for targeted segment of market i.e. business visitors/customers. One can get access from the hotel to all the important places of the city like airport, national train, motor highway, historical places and all the business centers. The hotel building consists of six stories, newly constructed which contains 70 double rooms, 2 dining halls, 3 conference rooms and a immense basement car park where 70 cars can easily be parked . This building has been designed and constructed by a renowned architect Mr.Zaheer. The firm is owned by Hajji Group which was founded in 1996. This group manages three other menus in Peshawar city ranging from one star to three stars. The main aim of this group is to get a big slice of hotel market in Peshawar that’s why they keep different venue in different standard and prices. The main strength of this group is that they are the sole owner of these venues and they don’t have to pay lease or mortgage. It gives them competitive advantage whenever there is a price war among the competitors. Research Questions and Rationale of Research This report aim is to show the various economic aspects of hotel park inn. Peshawar, Pakistan, which is 3star rank and very fast growing business .but its product and service quality is almost equal to 4star standard. It mainly provides room night and meeting room for its customers. This report will also analyses different aspect of the country which will impact on the hotel industry like interest rate, currency value, repatriation of afghan refugees and reconstruction of its neighboring country Afghanistan by us and united nation because Peshawar city is geographically is happen to be located at afghan border which is a land lock state which is mostly rely on the Pakistan air ,land rote and sea which has a great impact on the Pakistan hotel industry in general and Peshawar city’s hotels in particular. This report will also explore wither this hotel is able to cope with demand and perform to its optimum capacity in today’s competitive environment within over all hotel industry. This report shall try to address the following research questions: 1) Does high/low service encounters have an impact on the overall customer encounter in case of the hospitality industry (specifically Hotel Park Inn). 2) Does employee motivation play a part in increasing/decreasing customer satisfaction? If so, how? 3) How can the overall service quality of the hospitality industry (specifically Hotel Park Inn) be improved and enhanced in view of the present study’s inference? Chapter 2: Literature Review Overview The hospitality industry recognizes the importance and value of the people – both employees and guests in the service delivery process. It remains a challenge for the managers to respond to the changing expectations of the customers while considering the changing values and attitudes of the employees. A survey of managers revealed that they preferred to hire graduates with strong practical skills and ‘soft’ people management skills rather than analytical skills although the survey did not take into account the educational background of the respondents in the survey (Connolly & McGing, 2006). Degrees in hospitality are not important; hands-on experience is required. Tertiary qualifications are not mandatory in the hospitality industry. Discussion At the Park Inn, investment in staff training and retention is very high as most of the staff employed is students. They usually leave the job after their study is completed. This leads to high turnover of staff and the hotel has to reinvest for the same process. This practice affects the service quality especially during high season as continuity is affected. When new staff joins, the remaining older staff has to spare time to train the new recruits which further affects efficiency and productivity. The front office staffs are the representatives and reflect the corporate image and culture. It is the main contact point for the guests within the hotel. They have to be amiable, quick-witted, and aware of the hotel product, be efficient in marketing and be able to understand the guest (Hai-Yan & Baum, 2006). To maintain efficient service and continuity, training and development of the front office staff is essential. This is yet another department at Hotel Park Inn where turnover of staff is high due to low wages. The front office staff has apprehensions about their career and growth prospects in the hotel industry as most are from professional or vocational schools. This leaves a gap in service quality at Park Inn. A study by Khan (2003) contends that human resources have great significance in the service industry, especially the hospitality industry. Their study revealed that there exist a sizeable gap between the product of educational institutions imparting management training in Pakistan and the needs of the users in the hospitality industry in Pakistan. According to Khan the hospitality industry has failed to specify their exact requirements to the providers. The education imparted is general in character and the employer is expected to induct training or build capacity as per individual requirements. These factors lead to high staff turnover as expectations on both ends remain unfulfilled. Another strong reason for high turnover of staff is that most are seasonal or part-time workers and they do not take this as their career. This is especially in view of the low wages even though labor laws require minimum wages to be paid to the staff. Managing people – customer satisfaction The hospitality industry is vying to attract repeat customers and for this they need to maintain a quality approach to customer needs and expectations. Quality and good consumer rapport is essential to eliminate the threat of profitability and long-term survival, observe Douglas and Connor (2003) while Kandampully and Suhartanto (2000) contend that dedicated focus on customer loyalty will become a prerequisite for the survival of the hotels. A 5 percent increase in customer loyalty could bring an increase of 25-30 percent in profits (Lee, Barker & Kandampully, 2003). About 60 percent of increased sales can be attributed to customer recommendations. Fortunately, Hotel Park Inn boasts of a large number of loyal customers. Quality of service also depends on how the service is delivered during the process, apart from the end result. How the intangible elements of service – inseparability, heterogeneity and perish ability of service are perceived by the consumer is important. Customer satisfaction and experience with the performance of reception, food, beverage, housekeeping and price determines whether a customer will repurchase or recommend. There exists a gap between the managers’ perception and the consumers’ expectations. This results in loss of business. At Park Inn however, the proactive consumers help to some extent when they bring to notice the inadequacy of service. Customers make the choice of hotel depending upon the location, facilities and the service quality. It has been observed through a study by Ekinci, Prokopaki and Cobanoglu (2003) that the dimensions of intangibles contribute towards greater tourist satisfaction. According to Gray, Matear and Matheson (2000), since the hospitality firms face less turbulent markets, managers do not feel it is essential to form closer relationships with customers. Market turbulence has since increased due to rapid changes and globalization. Hotels normally nurture a short-term view; they are contented with status quo, and have an unclear view of the customer and a lack of competitive differentiation. As markets become turbulent these perceptions would have to change too. Even though Park Inn recognizes the threats that competition poses, they still need to spruce the service quality. Customer service is not a generic abstraction but a series of specific services – before, during, and after the transaction. This helps to identify the individual elements of customer service. Apart from the external customers, internal service counters are equally important where one department serves another, which ultimately means enhancement of service to the end customer. These depend on interpersonal relationships and have both benefits and drawbacks. Factors that influence the internal service counters include professionalism, dependability, conscientiousness of the internal suppliers, their communication skills, and the consideration they show to the internal customers (Paraskevas, 2001). Khan too agrees that such internal customers should be viewed not be viewed by support personnel as co-workers but as internal customers. If each department viewed the others as customers, the overall efficiency could be easily enhanced. The educational institutions do not recognize this change in attitude and expectations which results in lack of service quality. At Park Inn all attempts are made to ensure that interdepartmental communication remains excellent and each views the other as internal customers. Other Strategies Another strategy to remove the barriers to efficient services in the tourism and hospitality sector as cited by Hwang and Lockwood (2006) is the business networking for experiences sharing in quality. Instead of imitating competitors or attempting to gain competitive advantage through distinctive performance, firms would allow for motivation and share experiences to solve mutual problems and gain excellence. Park Inn is already thinking in lines of motivating employees to impart quality service. They have frequent sessions where the subordinates are allowed to voice their problems and opinions. This makes them feel a part of the hotel and perhaps would ultimately reduce the rate of staff turnover. Training of people has to start at the education level itself, which implies that the hospitality education must be relevant to today’s economic environment. Both academicians and industry practitioners should be involved at the education level. The students need to understand the theory and principles behind a theory, which would enable them to apply it in any situation they may encounter during the work life (Jayawardena, 2001). They have to keep abreast of the latest tools and techniques as they are the future managers responsible for service in the industry. According to Khan, business schools should no longer offer teaching but should offer learning results. Unless this is changed, attrition in the industry would continue. Lack of continuity of staff affects service quality which is prominently experienced during high season. Park Inn has to seriously think in terms of imparting the right training until the education system itself undergoes change. According to O’Connor (2006), hospitality is a human virtue which should spring naturally from within. Skills and experience can be developed but the trait of being hospitable and the level of natural hospitableness should be evident at the time of recruiting, as customer delight is a better measure of customer satisfaction feel Torres and Kline (2006). Delight is a stronger state of customer engagement. A need-based model gives a better understanding of the dynamics of customer emotions. Strategies have to be developed to bring delight to customers and this can be achieved only through organizational effort. Hotel Park Inn should strive to retain and hire individuals who have a natural passion for quality service and customer delight. The selection process should enable hiring the right people for the right job. Hospitality operations are complex and involve a large amount of interactions between staff and consumers. When hospitality firms try to please as many customers as possible, they have to compromise on quality standards (Ingram, 2000). Tourists have become increasingly demanding and do not focus on the price alone. To improve the corporate image, to gain competitive advantage and to enter new markets, hotels must create a quality culture (Claver, Tari & Pereira, 2006). Park Inn is concentrating on these lines and is aware of the threat from all corners specially as bed and breakfast lodging facility is now available in Pakistan and more so in Peshawar. The hotel being a family-owned business helps to some extent, as decisions can be taken instantly especially at the turn of events or in emergencies. Conclusion of Secondary Research This literature research illustrates that customer satisfaction in the service industry has increased dramatically in recent years (Peterson and Wilson, 1992). The increase has been aggravated by the increasing growth of the service industries (Danaher and Haddrell, 1995). Providing high quality service and enhancing customer satisfaction are widely recognized as important factors leading to the success of companies in the hotel, catering and tourism industries (Barsky and Labagh, 1992; LeBlanc, 1992; Stevens et al., 1995; Legoherel, 1998). In order to be successful in the industry and to outweigh other competitors, hotel providers must provide customers with unmitigated service satisfaction. It is believed that customers, when experienced with the services they have had, are more likely to establish loyalty (Cronin and Taylor, 1992), resulting in repeat purchases (Fornell, 1992) and favorable word-of-mouth (Halstead and Page, 1992). The upshot is that the hotel with good service quality will ultimately improve the companys market share and profitability (Oh and Parks, 1997). In a highly competitive hotel industry, which offers homogenous products and services, individual hoteliers must find ways to make their products and services to stand out among the others. In this regard, what hoteliers need to do is to understand their customers’ needs, and to meet or exceed these needs. Chapter 3: Proposed Methodology Rationale The methodology proposed for this paper is a combination of primary and secondary research. As this approach would be very handy when involved in developing theory and comparing it with the practical information which is collected through primary research. Considering my research questions the nature of the data is expected to be mostly qualitative.The details about the nature of my data are given below. I will focus on the following methodological steps in this research: (a) the literature review, (b) research questions, (c) sampling, (d) data collection procedures, (e) data analysis procedures, (g) credibility of qualitative findings, and (h) limitations of the research. Secondary and Primary Researches In the absence of prior research, it was impossible to follow ‘someone else’s footsteps’. Thus, semi-structured in-depth interviews and a short questionnaire were deemed as appropriate for this research. An interview schedule was derived from the literature that identified the key issues to be explored and allowed us the flexibility to let interviews develop naturally and without leading or direction from the interviewer. As the interview/questionnaire schedule depends greatly on the availability of the respective respondents, therefore presenting the interview/questionnaire plan right now would be very premature and difficult. Details of Data Collection Following Teo (2001), in this study the researchers also examine the direct association of a range of various factors having an impact on the customer satisfaction in the service industry, the interviews are expected to take place at the Hotel Park Inn (Peshawar) and at the icebreaking stage of every interview; managers shall be specifically informed that this research is concerned with the various aspects of the high/low volume of service encounter and the effect of this on the overall service quality of Hotel Park Inn. Details of proposed Data Analysis Before presenting findings it is necessary to summarize the key issues which underpinned the high/low volume of service encounter and the effect of this on the overall service quality of Hotel Park Inn. Therefore, once the research has been conducted, the results shall be collected and the method used to analyze the data shall be done by using statistical software SPSS version 11.0 (Statistical package for social sciences). Datasets shall be converted to Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and frequency distributions shall be run to check that all variables contained only values in the accepted range and variable labels. During this exercise, attention shall also be given to’ outlying’ values. These shall be followed up by drawing the questionnaires and correcting them to the best of our ability. After the datasets are edited, programs are used to calculate weights. Unweighted data shall be analyzed using the SPSS and SAS for the analysis of high/low volume of service encounter and its effect on the overall service quality of Hotel Park Inn. Secondary Research (Importance and role) Secondary Research shall be used to assist and supplement the primary research. The main sources for secondary research shall come from latest Journals and recent Newspapers, which have discussed and analyzed the hospitality industry specifically those which have a focus on the South-Asian region. A few hotel websites would also be helpful in this secondary research, and therefore they shall also be used in the research process. Conclusion of proposed Methodology This research (both primary and secondary) shall help me identify the high/low volume of service encounter and its effect on the overall service quality of Hotel Park Inn. The analysis would not only be presented in tabular form, but detailed explanation shall be accompanied with it so that vivid understanding of the impact of high/low service encounter can be studied. The research technique and methodology was based on Martyn Denscombe’s ideas which were mentioned in his popular book “The Good Research Guide: For Small-scale research Projects”. References Barsky, J. and Labagh, R., 1992. A strategy for customer satisfaction. The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly 35 3, pp. 32–40. Claver, E. Tari, J. J. & Pereira, J. (2006), Does quality impact on hotel performance? International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management Vol. 18 No. 4, 2006 pp. 350-358 Connolly, P & McGing, G (2006), Graduate education and hospitality management in Ireland, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management Vol. 18 No. 1, 2006 pp.50-59 Cronin Jr., J.J. and Taylor, S.A., 1992. Measuring service quality: a reexamination and extension. 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