The Rotana Hotels Management Corporation - Research Paper Example

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report is written on the Human Resource Management and procedures at the Rotana Hotels. The effects of the Human Resource strategies are observed through Operations Management in the report. The information for the report was gathered using both primary and secondary methods of data collection including books, websites and personal interviews. The report provides a brief introduction to the Rotana Hotels in general. It offers readers information regarding the Human Resource Planning which includes the forecasting of employees, Job Design and Job Analysis. Furthermore, it also enlightens the readers about Recruitment, Selection, Employee Retention, Training, Performance Management, Career Development and the Compensation programs offered by the Rotana Hotels to their employees. Lastly, recommendations based on the Operations Management are given at the end of the report. INTRODUCTION The Rotana Hotels Management Corporation known as the Rotana Hotels’ basic philosophy is that ‘hospitality is a fine art. There is no way it can be learnt; it has to be a way of life.’ Even though it is very simple, yet it clearly illustrates the fact that the aspect of hospitality is a part of every level of the organization and is the basic foundation to its standards. Short History of the Organization The Rotana Hotels Management Corporation known as the Rotana Hotels, one of the leading hotel management companies in Middle East, was established in 1992, by a partnership between Nasser Al Nowais and Selim El Zyr, who were joined three years later by Nael Hashweh and Imad Elias. The Rotana Hotels Management Corporation started its operation as Rotana hotel in 1993 in Abu Dhabi. Vision “Our vision is to be the Leading and Preferred Hospitality Management Company within the Middle East, operating Hotels, Suites and Resorts. We have the expertise, the passion and the competitive strength to achieve this goal”. Mission Statement “We will identify and exceed the expectations of our Guests, Staff and Owners through innovative and creative solutions, combined with personalized care to gain their loyalty. We will constantly maintain International quality standards complemented with traditional Arabic Hospitality”. ANALYSIS OF THE HUMAN RESOURCES PLANNING 1. Forecasting The forecasting for hiring new staff at Rotana Hotels mainly depends on increase in the number or branches or new extensions. This indicates that if Rotana Hotels is extending its existing operations then they would work on recruiting or promoting previous staff for the new positions available. Forecasting demand: According to the requirements of the operations and making use of the trend analysis based on previous information regarding the experienced occupancy, Rotana Hotels is able to forecast the forthcoming needs of employment in every aspect by using both bottoms up forecasting and to down forecasting. Once the forecasting is achieved, Rotana Hotels implements the most appropriate technique to fulfill the demand. This is done through: Internal supply sources in form of possible promotions and making use of succession plans. External supply sources which is hiring of new employees through various techniques. Based on the manpower forecast and to create a balance between the internal and external supply sources Rotana Hotels looks into the internal supply sources before turning to external sources. In order to look for employees internally, the organization needs to acquire a pool of skills that requires high level of employee development involvement to ensure that a wide range of skills are obtained by the current employees. 2. Surplus/Shortage of Employees As an organization, Rotana Hotels is aware of the significance of standard policies regarding the issues of promotion and retirement. These standard policies facilitate the Human Resource Managers in times of dealing with surplus or shortage of employees. Promotion system: In case of shortage of employees, Rotana Hotels implements the promotion system. This is done through the encouragement of succession planning for the already existing employees, as each employee after passing the probation period of six months, is subject to succession plan for his/her career development. Upon the completion of the succession plan, the employee’s skills are updated using various training techniques after which s/he is becomes a candidate for the promotion, either internally or within any sister hotel if required. Balancing supply and demand considerations: In case of surplus of employee, Rotana Hotels downsize using the following methods: Retirement: The retirement policy at the Rotana Hotels is controlled by the Human Resource Department which determines the age of retirement based on the working labor laws of the country and also determines the and rights and benefits to be received by the employees upon retirement. Moving the extra employees to their sister Hotels: Furthermore, in case of surplus employees, the Human Resource Department at Rotana Hotels can shift the extra employees to any other branch of Rotana Hotel either within the UAE or even abroad. The decision of downsizing is an extremely difficult decision to make as all the employees give their best to the organization. In my opinion, the best possible way of downsizing at Rotana Hotels is to shift the employees to a sister hotel. Due to this the employees would be more experienced and knowledgeable, thus proving to be an asset for the organization. Moreover, in case of retirement, the employees might develop feelings of disregard towards the employer as the employee might still be able to offer more to the organization’s well-being. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Rotana as a Hotel Management company has its own organizational structure in different scales: Corporate Office: This office belongs to the chairman Nasser Al Nuwais, who manages and monitors all the hotels in the Middle East by meeting up with the General Managers of the hotels. Furthermore, this office also looks over the projects initiated by the hotels of Rotana Management Company. Also, to initiate new projects or acquire new assets, the permission of this office is a pre-requisite. (see appendix 1 for the organizational chart) Hotels Organizational Chart: Every hotel of Rotana has its own organizational chart which includes the General Manager on the top and then comes the managers of each department. Departmental Organizational Chart: For each department there is a manager and an assistant. Also employees, subordinate to the manager, are mentioned in the chart. This facilitates the managers by giving them accurate information about their subordinates and also to decide on their vacations and leaves. JOB ANALYSIS To provide their customers with quality services standards, the Rotana Hotels Group believes that they require realistic jobs that directly relate to the services being offered by them. In order to do this, the management conducts job analysis to make sure that each employee is performing his/her duties perfectly which would ultimately result in providing the service standards that they are aiming to represent them in the market. To achieve these standards, the management at Rotana Hotels has combined job description and job specification to accomplish a better understanding of the nature of the job and the need of it. Job description: The objective of the job description at Rotana Hotels is to have a written summary that describes a job in detail which helps in hiring the right man for the right job. Moreover, it is a method to communicate the needs and requirements of the job to the employees and ensure consistency throughout the organization. There are numerous statements by Rotana Hotels regarding proper job description. These include: The Human Resources Managers are required to ensure that up to date job descriptions exist for all positions budgeted in the manning. All positions must have an up to date and accurate Job Description and should contain the following as per the standard format distributed: Job Title (Position) Report to (Direct) Report (Indirect) Responsible for Employees (who reports to this position) Scope and General Purpose of the Job (Summary of responsibilities) Specific Duties and Responsibilities General Responsibilities Occasional Responsibilities Legal Responsibilities Signature of the Department Head Signature of the Human Resources Manager Signature of the Holder Date Issues All job descriptions within Rotana Properties should be reviewed annually or when a job content changes. If the Job Description has changed substantially an updated version should be issued, upon mutual agreement with job holder. Job specification: In Rotana Hotels every Job has its own specifications, which means that each job has its own requirements of knowledge, skills and abilities. In my opinion, this is a very good way of hiring employees as it gives an opportunity to all levels of people to become a part of the Rotana family. Moreover, at Rotana Hotels, numerous positions do not require an academic degree but to have a certain level of experience. (see appendix 2 for example of Job Description) RECRUITMENT After fulfilling the forecasting demand of the employees, Rotana moves towards recruitment process which includes internal recruiting and external recruiting. Internal recruitment takes place if there is a need to shift an employee from the sister hotels or even from the same hotel. While, external recruitment involves hiring of employees from outside of Rotana Hotels. Internal recruitment Promotion opportunities Posting the vacancies on the staff notice board Staff referrals External recruitment Newspaper advertisement Internet job seeking website Recruitment agencies Governmental rehabilitation institutes Universities and Institutions, graduates and career fairs See appendix 3 for online recruitment example. The recruitment process at Rotana Hotels is quite appreciable because firstly, it is based on the Human Resources strategy and secondly, the recruitment process indicates that Rotana Hotels cares about their clients and welcomes any one who is well qualified to join the family member. SELECTION The selection process comes after obtaining a candidate pool. The selection process should be undertaken by a professional and experienced individual who would hire the right man for the right job. The steps in the selection process at Rotana Hotels include: Review the job description of the vacancy Review the required candidate profiles and job specification Review employment applications and CVs Select appropriate interviewing environment Develop interview questions Conduct interview Close interview Evaluate candidates Check references Decision of interview Developing (acceptance/ refusal) In my opinion, the steps undertaken in the selection process are adequate as they follow the basic Human Resource strategies and the use of one tool is appropriate as it would not confuse them and make it difficult to come to a decision. EMPLOYEE RETENTION It is significant for Rotana Hotels to retain their employees as it reflects on the turnover percentage of the manpower within the hotel. This is only possible if the management is considerate to the employees and offers them a conducive working environment. Rotana Hotels is employing various employee retention programs that include: Employee incentive schemes Succession planning Staff welfare committees Staff motivation plans Conducting regular market salary surveys Conducting regular market benefits surveys TRAINING All the employees at Rotana Hotels have to be trained according to the standards set by the Human Resource Department. Needs analysis: This is conducted by the Rotana Hotels and is divided into three parts: 1. External Pest Factors: These factors are Political/Legal, Economic, Social and Technological. These factors may have an impact on the operations of the Rotana Hotels. 2. Internal Post Factors: These factors include the People and the skills required of them, Objectives and goals that need to be achieved, Structures in the organization, hotel or department and Tasks or jobs that need to be done. Short Terms Issues: Rotana also conduct a needs analysis on short terms issues such as, mistakes that occur in the job. Program design: Rotana Hotels program designs are done by an external consultant and the training officer within the organization does the training plan. Implementation of the training program: Rotana Hotels deliver their trainings internally and externally. For the internal training the existing training officer trains the employees. Orientations Customer care On-Job Trainings Managing employee development Case studies for the managerial level (See appendix for more internal training) For external training specialized personnel is hired and is used mainly for the high level employee. Training for Sales and Conference Management (TSA) Team Buildings Intermediate and Advanced Food Hygiene First Aids EVALUATION The evaluation process at Rotana Hotels is done through: Evaluation form: The trainee evaluates their trainer and the session by answering a questionnaire. Observing: The trainer at the Rotana Hotel observes the trainee through covert observation. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT Performance appraisal program: This is an annual process employed by Rotana Hotels to appraise the performance of their employees. Methods of evaluating the employees may include but not limited to: Observation of the department operation Rotana Guest Satisfaction Survey results, guest complaints and comments Employees Feedback Departmental Employee Development Reviews External audits Mystery Guest report (See the booklet with the appendix as an example of the ways of appraising employee). Link to corporate objectives: The performance of the employees can also be analyzed by linking their performance to the corporate objectives which would allow the management to know whether the employee is meeting the organizational standards or not. Measurements and standards: This is the recording of Standards of Performance completed by the employees. These include the job description and whether the employee if fulfilling his/her duty or not according to the Performance of Standards. (See appendix for an example of standards performance) Performance problems: If an employee is not performing according to the set standards, them he/she would be given a warning. After a period of six months, if there is no change in the employee’s attitude then he/she would be given a second warning. And if no change takes place after a year, then the employee is terminated. CAREER DEVELOPMENT At Rotana Hotels, the Hotel Career Development Plan exits for a minimum of six months. Identification of the development needs takes place effectively using the Managing Career Development (MCD) process. These include: External and Internal influencing factors (PEST/ POST) Review of previous plan Rotana Guest Satisfaction Survey results Rotana Employee Satisfaction Survey results Mystery guest reports Summary of course critiques Accident reports analysis Business revenue plan Performance Reviews/ Development needs Hotel/ Department budget Succession Plan Departmental Career Development plans Departmental Career Development reviews Hotel’s previous Career Development standards review results and action plan Exit interview analysis The Hotel Career Development plan is completed by the hotel’s Employee Development Manager at least four weeks prior to commencement of the plan and copies are sent to the General Manager, Department Heads, Area Director of Career Development and to the rest of the Hotel. The career development plan has SMART objectives including Specific, Measurable, Achievable (related to the person), Relevant (related to the person) and Time bound. The Rotana Hotels’ format of the Hotel Career Development Plan includes the following sections: Area of Development Development Objectives Development Method/Description Delegate Level Responsibility Date(s)/Duration/Completion Date Review Method COMPENSATION Rotana Hotels makes use of the Balanced Scorecards System. It is a new approach to strategic management and enables organizations to align business goals with individual goals and to link both to performance rewards. The measures or indicators should be selected to best represent the factors that lead to improved customer, operational and financial performance thus, representing a clear basis for aligning all activities with the company’s goal. At Rotana Hotels, these measures are referred as Key Performance Objectives (KPO). They are financial and non-financial metrics used to reflect the strategic performance of the organization. RBS Objective: The purpose of the RBS (Rotana Balanced Scorecard) is to reward employees for a combination of good financial and individual performance. RBS opportunity is determined by the employee’s level within Rotana Hotels. The table below specifies the maximum RBS opportunity, by level and as a percentage of the annual base salary of the employee: Level/Band Percentage Hotel Managers 45.0% Grade 1,2 35.0% Grade 3,4,5 30.0% Grade 6,7,8,9,10 (Outside UAE) 20.0% Grade 6,7,8,9,10 (UAE Only) Service charge (1%) Rotana Hotels have agreed that the following performance indicators will be used as the basis for setting Key Performance Objectives: Mandated KPOs: These are set by the Area Vice President, approved by the Corporate Office and include Gross operating profit, guest satisfaction, survey results, employee satisfaction and survey results. Personal KOPs: These are set jointly by the employee and Line Manager and approved by the next level up. These include competencies rating from the annual performance review and personal targets related to individuals areas of responsibility. How do Rotana Hotels write the KPOs: The KPOs should be based on SMART that is, Specific, Measurable, Achievable (related to the person), Relevant (related to the person) and Time bound. RBS Eligibility of Employees Completed the probationary period Employees grades from 6 to 10 working in properties based in the UAE will not be entitled to participants in the RBS (which will substituted by Service Charges). Employee whose employment ends for one of the following reasons remain eligible for RBS payment calculated on pro rate basis: (Retirement, Redundancy, Disability or death). If an employee transfer to another Rotana Hotels property during the Plan Year, the overall Performance/ competency Rating as well as the Personal KPOs (if applicable) will be considered as “On Target” rating and the RBS payment will be pro-rated accordingly. If an employee is promoted and a change of grading occurs, the incentive payment will be pro-rated according to each RBS scheme of the related employment grade. The compensation plan for the employees is good, but one drawback is that the rewards offered are on annual basis which is not a motivating the employees as they need continuous encouragement. To overcome this problem, the management at Rotana Hotels can employ a number of methods to motivate and make the employee exceed their expectations. One of these ways is to add the payment on their salary per month. Another method is to reward the employees every six months by adding their salary. Finally, Rotana also can divide these bonuses into to halves. The first half can be added to the employee’s salary and the other half can be added to the employee’s account so that when the employee leaves the organization, he/she can have it. RECOMMENDATIONS If I had been the operational manager at the Rotana Hotels, I would have been quite satisfied with the existing Human Resource Management. But I would have like to make a few changes regarding some of the aspects in managing the personnel. These include: The employees at the Rotana Hotels should be more customer-focused. In order to do this, employees should be trained to fulfill the demands of the customers as their first and foremost priority. Also, the employees should be more proactive in their approach while dealing and interacting with the customers. Even though certain organizational standards should be set, but the employees at all levels should be given the feeling of ownership of the job which would enhance their loyalty towards the organization. Another aspect that calls for attention is the need to train the employees to be multi-skilled. A multi-skilled workforce not only benefits organizations financially, but also psychologically as it gives them a competitive edge in the market. Furthermore, self-managed teams should also be established among the employees Rotana Hotels. This would enable them to set and monitor their own goals. It would also help them develop various qualities like leadership, acting in emergency, etc. Also, the employees need more invectives and bonuses to be motivated to perform better. These could include paid vacations, free education and medical facilities for the employee and his/her family. Other packages could also be offered as incentives so that the employees are encouraged and exceed the standards of the organization CONCLUSION In conclusion, Rotana Hotels deals with all the aspects of Human Resource Management. The effects of the Human Resource strategies can be observed through Operations Management as it explains the influence of Human Resource activities such as training, recruiting, compensation, etc. The implementation of the Human Resource strategies is done by sourcing potential candidates, providing job security and career enhancement of the employees through appropriate training and development and also creating a sense of belonging and loyalty towards the Rotana family. Furthermore, the first priority of Rotana Hotels is customers and in order to fulfill the required standards the hotel has to have the best and the most well qualified employees. Moreover, the organization is extremely considerate towards their staff which makes them confident and secure about their jobs. In addition, Rotana Hotels offer attractive compensations and rewards to their employees for their achievements in keeping the reputation of the hotel as one the world’s best. Thus, the response of the Human Resource strategies to Operations Management illustrates the variations in the implementation of the policies and strategies. REFERENCES AbuYagi, Joseph. Personal Interview. 28 Nov. 2007. Corporate Vice President Human Resources, Corporate Office of Rotana Hotels. Holtzhause, Monique. "New Faces in Al Ain Rotana Management Team." Al Ain Times 17 Nov. 2007, Issue 36 ed.: 6. Hotels, Rotana. "Human Resources Updates." Connections 19 Nov. 2007: 6-7. Management, Rotana Hotel. "Rotana Hotels: Middle East Luxury Hotels: " Rotana Hotel. 09 Feb. 1999. 22 Sept. . Maymouna, Nathalie. Personal Interview. 12 Dec. 2007, Training Officer, Al Ain Rotana Hotel. Ramzy, Hany. Personal Interview. 2 Dec. 2007, Human Resources Manager, Al Ain Rotana Hotel. Woods, Robert H. Managing Hospitality Human Resources, Fourth Edition. Education Institute, 1910. Read More