Specific Set of Skills and Competencies Required for Effective Management of Hotels - Assignment Example

The skills and attributes required to manage a hotel Contents Contents 2 Introduction 3 Competencies and Skills 3 Skills and competencies to run hotels 3 Summary 8 Reference List 9 Introduction The purpose of this paper is to focus on the skills and attributes that are important to run a hotel efficiently. Hospitality industry has blossomed ever since the liberalization of economies post globalization. It has been observed that the customers of the hospitality industry has become highly demanding and diverse. Multiple researchers have concluded that travellers in the contemporary times have become highly self-indulgent who wants superior quality service with smooth multi-cultural integration. Based on this agenda, it has become very important for the hotel managers and the employees to develop their skills and competencies to provide quality service to customers to remain competitive. It can be argued that the hospitality industry has transformed itself from a product-focused business to a customer-focused one and from a physical-asset intensive business to an experience-centric one. Competencies and Skills In order to understand the skills that are required by managers and employees in a hotel to perform better it is important to understand the concept of competencies. Competencies can be described as factors that improve the performance of individuals in jobs. According to the definition provided by Woodruffe (1993), competency provides “provide the dimension against which people should be assessed for readiness or potential to move into jobs against which they should be appraised and upon which they should be developed”. Skills has been defined as parameters that helps in achieving environmental goals by maximizing certainty of achievement by minimizing cost and time spent (Wadongo, Kambona and Odhuno, 2011). Skills and competencies to run hotels In the past three decades, large number of researchers has focused on the importance of skills and competencies required to run hotels. Skills and competencies are important for both managers and graduates who chose to enter in the hospitality industry. The ability to take initiative has been identified as one of the biggest skills needed to run hotels on the part of managers. This is because initiative can be identified as a parameter that is able to gain support and motivation from others. Hotels are visited by customers from all over the world and managers needs to guarantee satisfaction for the guests. In order to manage the guests and provide them proper satisfaction managers need to have three major types of skills namely conceptual skills, technical skills and human skills. Requirement of skills are further dependent on the hierarchy of the organization and the type of work of the employees. This implies the skills required by a frontline staff will be considerably different from the staff working in the kitchen or housekeeping (Wadongo, Kambona and Odhuno, 2011). The existing literature shows that different authors have used different approach to specify the kind of skills required to work in hotels. Some of the researchers have focused on the expectations of customers and evaluated the kind of skills needed by managers. Their findings have suggested that efficient managers should have the capability of solving the problems of guests, understand the problem of customers, have fluency in written and oral communications and finally be able to develop positive relations with customers. Major competencies include planning, informing, problem-solving, motivation, support, networking and delegation (Suh, West and Shin, 2012). Researchers like Baum (1990) had categorized competencies according to their rank. He had divided competencies according to ranks and grouped them under three broad headings namely essential competencies, competencies of considerable importance and competencies of moderate importance. Communication, solving problems of guests, motivation and positive customer relations have been identified as most essential competencies whereas identification of employees’ problems, operational problems and strategic planning has been described as skills of moderate importance. Finally, skills like balanced program and energy management programs have been identified as skills of relatively lesser importance. The research conducted by Bharwani and Jauhari (2013) had focused on competencies required to create memorable experience for customers in a hospitality industry. The results obtained from their study had confirmed that there are three main dimensions which can be used by managers to enhance customer experience namely hospitality intelligence, emotional intelligence and cultural intelligence. According to their study hospitality intelligence comprises cultural intelligence, experiential intelligence and emotional intelligence and all these factors combined with technical competence leads to positive customer experience. These factors can be equated to the development of soft skills by individuals to improve their performance in the job sector. The research conducted by Jones and Lockwood (1998) had focused on the role and competency of hotel managers. Their research had confirmed that hospitality managers must have the quality of entrepreneurial, ambitious, extrovert, optimistic, and cheerful. Additionally researchers have argued that hotel managers must exhibit interpersonal skills which allow them to communicate effectively with others, leadership qualities, creativity, administrative capabilities and technical knowledge. It has also been argued that development of interpersonal skills is extremely important for the satisfaction of customers. Managers need to interact with different types of customers from multiple cultural and ethnic backgrounds which make their social skills highly relevant. The research conducted by Nolan (2002) had focused on the competency needs of the hotel industry by specifically concentrating on the Irish hotel industry. Their research had highlighted that in case of the hospitality industry there is a mismatch between the education provided by the institutions to the hotel management graduates and the expectations of employers. This is because the hotel industry is highly dominated by operational competence and this leads to difference between skills and expectations. It has been agreed by the researchers that operational and technical skills have become less important in the present context and people management, interpersonal and strategic skills are more important competencies that is required to run a hotel. The aspect of cultural importance and skills required to run hotels in a multi-cultural context has also become quite relevant in the present scenario. It has been argued that multi-cultural settings have increased the challenge of managers to deal with clients from separate ethnic backgrounds. Some researchers have focused on the financial skills required by managers to run a hotel. Based on the existing research that has been conducted in this regard it has been found that financial management skills is definitely one of the most important skills need for smooth running of the hotel. The study conducted by Agut, Grau and Peiro (2003) had focused on skills and competencies to run hotels. Results from their study had shown that there are few technical skills which are relatively more important to run hotels. These skills included fluency in multiple languages, computing and IT knowledge and knowledge about economics and financial management. According to the view of the researchers generic management skills like self-control and performance efficacy are inherent and could not be improved by providing training the new employees. It is rather technical skills which could be enhanced by providing techniques. The researchers had identified that technical skills refers to skills like marketing, finance and accounting and quality management. Another research was taken up by Burgess (2007) to verify whether managers in the hotels have sufficient skills to manage their organization. Important insights can be obtained from this study. The research had pointed out that hospitality industry is extremely dynamic and the managers have high pressure to meet the financial objectives of organization. However, according to financial controllers most of the managers and departmental executives do not have the required financial competence to perform their duties which makes their organization vulnerable in the long-run. The implications of this research suggest that if the persistent conditions are not rectified shortly then it can lead to negative returns for hotels and make them suffer adverse consequences. A large of researchers has focused on the competency models that are important indicators of skills required to work in the hospitality industry. Two broad approaches have been followed by researchers to develop competency models, the first group is based on managerial competency models and second group is based on technical skills. The research undertaken by Testa and Sipe (2012) had incorporated the concept of service quality in the competency models of management literature. Results obtained from their study had shown that managers and leaders need to be business savvy and make rich plans about organizational success. They need to provide continuous effort for improvement and be technically skilled. Managers must also be people savvy in the sense that they should be good in interpersonal communication, team orientation and customer-centric in their approach. Finally, research has also concluded that managers must be self savvy which includes skills like time management, optimism, flexibility and creativity of managers. The importance of soft skills in the hospitality industry is of critical importance. Some researchers have also focused on the food and beverages competency required by hotel managers to run their business. The research conducted by Horng and Lu (2006) had focused on the importance of food and beverages and lodging in the hospitality industry. Results obtained from their study had indicated in case of food and beverages industry requires special skills like cooking, housekeeping and table manners for delivering prominent service while in case of the lodging different set of skills like communication skills and leadership skills are dominant. The research had indicated that most important skills required in the food and beverage industry included five cognitive factors (like design of food and beverages, environmental protection, organization and operation, knowledge and relevant service), seven skill factors (control competence, executive competence, inter-national service, interpersonal communication, inter-national service, efficiency management and international service) and affective factors (like self-sentiment, macro-view and job commitment. Researchers have also focused on the skills that must be developed by students to become competent in the hotel industry in long-run. It has been observed that there are six main areas of development which should be considered by management institutions while they are imparting skills to the graduates (Christou, 2002). The main genres identified by researchers include human resource management, financial analysis, total quality management, communication skills, leadership and services marketing. Educators have often been advised to use methods like role plays and case studies to develop skills of individuals. All of the above approaches concentrate on the expectations of the managers or employers while they are hiring to employees. This view has been criticized as one-sided one which does not take into account about the view of the graduates who want to enter into the hotel industry. It has been observed that graduates are most willing to develop their communication skills and this finding is consistent with majority of findings in the literature which focuses on interpersonal skills (Knutson and Patton, 1992). It is believed that management skills are more important than technical skills for graduates. However, this view has been criticized by a number of researchers and there is considerable debate regarding the importance of management skills over importance of technical skills. The resources who support the notion of soft skills of employees have found that n umber of researchers in North America have been found to rely on their human skills for their development. Researchers have found that managers need to have a good understanding about the understanding of profit and loss statements, effective customer service skills, team building skills and dispute resolution skills. According to the research conducted by Kay and Moncarz, (2007) it has been found that middle-level managers requires to have higher information technology skills compared to upper level managers while managers have greater financial skills compared to middle-level managers. Another research was conducted by Chung‐Herrera and Lankau (2005) on the top-level managers to comment on their skills and competency. Results from their study have shown that self-management is the most important skills required by managers. Other skills include time management, ethical behaviour and integrity in the work place, self-development with learning agility and flexibility in dynamic business environment. Summary Effective management of hotels and industries require specific set of skills and competencies. Researchers have shown that competencies are required in a number of dimensions including technical, human resource and leadership management. It can be argued that combination of all these skills is important for running hotels. This is because if managers are good in handling guests and creates positive customer satisfaction but incapable in having strong financial knowledge then reputation of hotels may suffer. Communication, inter-personal skills, total quality management, leadership and strategic skills are some of the important skills required by hotel managers with technical knowledge and computer skills. An effective remedy to the problem can be division of hierarchy and developing skills needed for particular works. This approach has already been adopted by number of players in the business to guarantee customer satisfaction. Reference List Agut, S., Grau, R. and Peiro, J. M., 2003. Competency needs among managers from Spanish hotels and restaurants and their training demands. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 22(3), pp. 281-295. Baum, T., 1990. Competencies for Hotel Management: Industry Expectations of Education. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 2(4), pp. 13-17. Bharwani, S. and Jauhari, V., 2013. An exploratory study of competencies required to co-create memorable customer experiences in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 25(6), pp. 823-843. Burgess, C., 2007. Do hotel managers have sufficient financial skills to help them manage their areas? International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 19(3), pp. 188-200. Christou, E., 2002. Revisiting competencies for hospitality management: Contemporary views of the stakeholders. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Education, 14(1), pp. 25-32. Chung‐Herrera, B. G. and Lankau, M. J., 2005. Are We There Yet? An Assessment of Fit Between Stereotypes of Minority Managers and the Successful‐Manager Prototype. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 35(10), pp. 2029-2056. Horng, J. S. and Lu, H. Y., 2006. Needs assessment of professional competencies of F&B/hospitality management students at college and university level. Journal of teaching in travel & tourism, 6(3), pp. 1-26. Jones, P. and Lockwood, A., 1998. Operations management research in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 17(2), pp. 183-202. Kay, C. and Moncarz, E., 2007. Lodging management success: Personal antecedents, achievements, KSAs and situational influencers. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 26(1), pp. 33-48. Knutson, B. J. and Patton, M. E., 1992. How prepared am I to succeed in the hospitality industry? What the students are telling us. Hospitality & Tourism Educator, 4(3), pp. 38-43. Nolan, C., 2002. Human resource development in the Irish hotel industry: the case of the small firm. Journal of European Industrial Training, 26(2/3/4), pp. 88-99. Suh, E., West, J. J. and Shin, J., 2012. Important competency requirements for managers in the hospitality industry. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism Education, 11(2), pp. 101-112. Testa, M. R. and Sipe, L., 2012. Service-leadership competencies for hospitality and tourism management. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 31(3), pp. 648-658. Wadongo, B., Kambona, O. and Odhuno, E., 2011. Emerging critical generic managerial competencies: A challenge to hospitality educators in Kenya. African Journal of Economic and Management Studies, 2(1), pp. 56-71. Woodruffe, C., 1993. What is meant by a competency? Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 14(1), pp. 29-36. Read More