The Lakeside Hall Hotel - Case Study Example

Case Study on Work and Organizational Change The Lakeside Hall Hotel Name Professor Subject Institution Date Abstract Most executive managers and administrators have at all times been faced by the need to make significant changes to their organizations but sometimes the strategies they put in place to do so does not work (Burke, 2009, p. 1). The kind of changes that these managers do aim at are turning the organisation into another direction by fundamentally modifying the way things are done; overhauling the whole structure and system and restructuring the organisation's decision making and accountability body in order to have a whole new vision for the future (Burke 2009, p. 1). To implement such, organisations must always change and adapt to respective environments. This is what comes to work and organisational change, which has certain models to assist in the process. Therefore, this paper is out to discuss in details the concept of organisational change and its models. The discussion has been tied to a case study of the Lakeside Hotel found in the English Lake district. In this discussion, the paper aims to present a field analysis of the present situation of the hotel, putting into consideration the pressures and tensions that are for and against bringing about organizational change together with a reflection on how to realise an equilibrium level of change. Through a model, the paper will review the implications of implementing the proposed changes and will go further to discuss the types of changes that can be used to plan, monitor and implement organisational change in the hotel. Introduction It is important to note that change at one point change do occur in the world and specifically the physical environment that includes organizations. The change normally comes to affect the way organizations and businesses are structured and conduct business. When change goes to that extent, there comes a need to manage it, that is, the concept of change management. As a way of changing individuals, teams and organization from their state to a different state, change management can also be viewed as that process that stakeholders can embrace and include in their businesses. Therefore, the tools used by change management are the same that control organizational change. The concept of organisational change simply means those changes that bring about impact on the way work is performed in an organisation and at most times, it normally has effect on the staff (Buono, 96). Some of the changes in an organisation that does come with organisational change are in the structure of the organisation. At times, the organisation's way of operation and the size of a workforce can also be affected. Majorly, what cannot be left untouched are changes in the working situations, structure, terms and conditions of environment (Buono, 96). Similarly, the working hours and some practises might also change. In short, organisational change involves restructuring, reorganising and turning around the company towards a desired goal (Dawson, 16 & Woodman et al, 213). The discussion on the concept of organisational change in this paper is geared towards studying a hotel to see how this process applies. Therefore, it would be wise to have a case study of the Lakeside House Hotel. Case Study: Lakeside Hall Hotel Lakeside Hotel is one of the 4 star hotels in England, specifically located on the shores of Lake Windermere in the English Lake District (Lakeside History, para 1). The hotel once started in the 17th century as a Coaching Inn. Since then, the hotel has grown to become one of the most developed hotels that has given the Lake district a good name and left it as a major tourist and business destination in England (Lakeside History, para 1). The development of Lakeside hotel has been because of the growth in the tourism and transport industry. The hotel was in the earlier years used as a staging and resting place for travellers who were working in the cotton industry in Lancashire and Yorkshire (Lakeside History, para 2). This was in 1990s when the hotel would receive guests who were on their way to local businesses such as the bobbin mills in the area. This led to the hotel being extended to get additional bedrooms in 1979, in order to ensure that the hotel gets a good view of the lake. Exceeding the expectations of the guests at every turn through meeting their needs and wants of guests has been the key point of operation for the hotel over the years (Lakeside History, para 4). With the progressive history in place, the hotel is now a 4 star hotel aiming even to go greater heights in the region and world at large. The current owner of the hotel is a local businessperson by the name Michael Davies, who has been committed to the hotel for the last five years. The owner of this hotel has always dreamt of the hotel giving and maintaining high quality services. This has been fully supported by the factors that surround the hotel and give it an advantage over other hotels in the region. Some of the inspirations of the hotel are like the lake Aquarium, Windermere lake cruises, lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway, the great knott wood at the doorstep, stott park bobbing mill and millerbeck light railway (Lakeside Hotel Attractions). Other very good and quality services and attractions are the facilities in the hotel like bedrooms with good rates, SPA treatments, facilities for short breaks, Christmas and new year, wedding and celebrations as well as conferences. Such services and attractions have so far made the hotel to receive visitors, who often go back to have another experience of the hotel. The guests at times spend at the hotel at least twice a year for two or three days and mostly on weekends and even winter season. The types of guests that can be found in the hotel are families, couples and people of 55 years and above. For a night, one can be charged £190.00 for dinner, bed and breakfast. The hotel's management is also structured to handle a population of around one hundred workers. The hotel has two managers: one in charge of personnel and front office operations while the other is in charge of food and beverage operation. The hotel also has departments managed by the two managers. These departments also have their heads namely: reception manager, head chef, leisure club manager, head housekeeper, restaurant manager and bars manager. The department heads have the duty of ensuring that all staff remains focussed in customer service. The kind of service the staff should offer to the customer should be one that exceeds their expectations. In order to achieve this, the hotel has a training programme for all employees and each of them must attain the NVQ qualifications in their areas of specialisation. The success of this programme is ensured by a local college near the hotel. In addition to the NVQ, all employees also must also attend a ' Welcome Host' course delivered by Cumbria tourism. The emphasis on this course has been a strategy to ensure the hotel improves its services to the better. This structure of management made the hotel to enjoy a lucrative business for a while. It was until recently that a problem was noticed in the hotel. In assessing its standards before, the hotel got an approval as the Investors in People of the year, an approval that regards training and development of people as a vital factor for any organisation that wants to achieve its goals. However, in a recent re-inspection, the hotel failed to reach the standards on performance measurements and continuous improvements. Michael Davies was also in a position to note a few concerns in the hotel especially with respect to the standard that had gone down. For example, an irate lady guest complained that the hotel was a brothel. This was confirmed after pornographic magazines were found in rooms in four different occasions for a period of one year. Another complaint was on the leisure club facility which was claimed lacked the ambience of a high-class establishment with problems of cleanliness and an imaginative set of activities classes. The worst of all, the complaints extended to the food department where complaints were launched on the quality of food. Moreover, the standards of the restaurant especially the services had been questioned. On the side of marketing, the hotel has before enjoyed good markets especially during holidays and short breaks. The level of marketing has risen due to the presence of conference and corporate hospitality. For example, in April 2012, the hotel realised a good response of visitors who had occupied up to 61% of the hotel. The hotel has a sales manager who is directly answerable to Michael Davies. His major duty is normally to co-ordinate the marketing activities of the hotel. The sales manager does this with the help of two staffs within this department and two other sales staff based in the filed, that is, Newcastle and Manchester. These two staffs in the filed do the work of targeting potential corporate business in the North East and North West. However, it has been noted that they is need to be much more focussed with regard to performance. This would involve them being given realistic goals and development opportunities. To advise the business well, the hotel does send electronic and standard mail shots to their already existing guests and potential guests twice a year. The hotels also advertise in the holiday publications that are relevant to the hotel industry and such adverts have proved useful. On the use of internet for advertisement, some sites have made the hotel to realize success since the internet has become a positive tool for bookings and brochure requests. In addition to that, the hotel puts weekly advertisements in the 'Sunday Times'. Unfortunately, the sales manager has been working at the hotel for over forty years and does not realise the potential of the electronic media to market the business nor does he have an understanding of it. Change Management Process and Force Field Analysis in Lakeside Hotel Any organisation at one point, however how lucrative, must always experience the need for change in the way it does its operations. Lakeside Hotel is an example of those firms that have had the need for change especially after an assessment that showed that its standards have dropped in almost all the major departments. The process of selecting which area to change and implementing that particular change is one big challenge for such organisations (Resnick, 2013). The challenge at times becomes bigger when the change has to involve all sectors in an organisation, which would even require new structures. This explains why most companies have little success in their change management processes. The reason behind these difficulties is the fact that organizational change involves the way an organisation does business and this may even require the personnel as well to change their lifestyles (Resnick, 2013). Therefore, if any organisation like the Lakeside Hotel wants to implement changes in the areas they have noted, then a great determination, discipline, commitment, persistence and a plan must be in place first (Resnick, 2013). The second reason as to why organizational change at times becomes a challenge is the resistance by people who naturally resist change. To overcome this, the company management must always put measures to essentially manage such resistance (Resnick, 2013). Other experts in organizational change also do argue that most businesses are used to their models and whether they make results or not, they can always predict. However, change cannot be predicted because the results at times are far better but at times worse. Now, to fully realise success in the change management process, one needs to stay in the course of implementation. However, this process meets so many factors that are either for change or against the change being implemented. For the case of Lakeside hotel, the advancements in technological world are pushing for a change in the hotel. The use of websites to advertise proved a success for the company and this became its greatest strength. The need for change was brought about by the standards that went low and the complaints from their customers. The hotel needed to do more of a rescue mission in its promises to counter the 'brothel' name it had been given. Changing into a 4 star hotel, the staff needed to change their way of operations. However, there are so many factors standing on the way of change in this hotel. An example is the sales manager who has been in the company for over forty years. He has not been able to realise the potential of the company's growth when it advertises through social media and internet sites despite his being there for forty years. The manager at the food and beverage section can also not realise that the levels of nutrition change with modernity and thus there is need for an improved quality of food. Such forces, which are mainly the staff of the hotel, are contributing to the resistance that is making the change management process unsuccessful. Because of these forces, there is need for a proper management of the change process. The success in this case will be based on a definite guide the change and an appointed change leadership team (Resnick, 2013). The Change Leadership Team must not be a full-time team but should be one that is given a full mandate, authority, responsibility and accountability to implement the required changes (Resnick, 2013). The change to be implemented can take two dimensions: an organization-wide, paradigm-shifting change or a major subset of the organization (Resnick, 2013 & Burke, 2002). If the change is organization-wide, a senior management team will be required but if it is for a major subset, a separate cross-functional team will be required (Resnick, 2013 & Burke, 2002). Whatever the case, the team should be clearly defined and given the capacity to have time, resources and authority to carry out changes (Resnick, 2013 & Burke, 2002). In particular, the Lakeside hotel at its present situation needs an integration of both teams in order to fully implement change. The company needs a major change in its subsets as well as an extended organization wide change. Therefore, Michael Davies should appoint a team of experts who can perform a range of functions. The experts should work closely with the senior management team of the hotel; that is all the managers of major departments in the Lakeside Hotel. The team once formed should be given a full mandate by the owner to carry out changes like rising the standards of the hotel, provision of quality food and adoption of new marketing strategies especially use of social media. In order for this team to offer good results in highlighting the points of change in the Hotel, a model is required to explain the change management process. McKinsey’s Seven ‘S’ model and The Lakeside Hotel This model is a good tool for doing an analysis in an organisation like The Lakeside Hotel. The model is known for providing a structure, which can be used mostly to do an analysis in a whole company with the aim of solving the organisation's problems and then recommending a strategy for development and implementation of change. The model links strategy with organisational effectiveness (Provenmodels.com). The seven’s’ model has seven elements namely: strategy, structure, systems, shared values, style, staff and skills. Strategy as an element involves the organisation's use of resources and its capabilities to win its market (Kariof 1993, p. 165). In other words, it is the plan an organisation has put in place to help maintain and build a strong competitive advantage over its rivals (Cellars, 2007). The structure element gives a description of an organisation's roles, responsibilities and accountability relationships, that is, the formation of the organisation's chart and how positions are interrelated (Egnar 2009, p. 8 & Kariof 1993, p. 165). The system element involves the procedure, guidelines and routine processes required to do the work and make information flow smoothly in the company (Egnar 2009, p. 8 & Kariof 1993, p. 165). The staffs are the different departments within the organisation like marketers, chefs, managers and security officers. Style in the seven's model characterizes the set goals and behaviour conduct for managers in their bid to realise the organisational goals (Egnar 2009, p. 8 & Kariof 1993, p. 165). This element links closely with skill, which is the ability of the organisation to have a sustainable growth. The last element, shared values, stands in for core beliefs in the organisation and what the members' expectations are (Egnar 2009, p. 8 & Kariof 1993, p. 165). The values are the ones that give guidance in every activity performed in the organisation. The main idea in this model is that the effectiveness of an organisation is subject to functional degree of fitness achieved among the factors and the environment (Cawsey et al. 2011, p. 90). For example, if the Lakeside hotel has had a change in their experiences, the degree of fitness will automatically be affected. At this point, change management process will get a challenge of making changes so that the hotel can achieve high levels of fitness among the seven elements of the model (Cawsey et. al. 2011, p. 90). The model is such that a change in one of the components affects all the other components s an interconnected set of levers (Cawsey et al 2011, p. 90). For example, if the lakeside hotel is making changes to its information system and advertisement programs to make the customers more responsive, the team making such changes must be very careful to look into the implications on the other components and thus should be fully prepared to manage in a more holistic fashion (Cawsey et al. 2011, p. 90). This means that making changes on one of the components and ignoring the implications on the others will lead to failure. In its application, the model requires that the internal and external alignments be looked into, as they are key to organisational effectiveness (Cawsey et al 2011, p. 90). In other words, if Michael Davies had selected a team to makes changes in the hotel's operations, the team should use the seven’s’ model by first thinking of the external environment and the alignment of key organisational dimensions (Cawsey et al 2011, p. 90). Therefore, in thinking about change at the Lakeside hotel and the components of the 7’s’ model, the team must first look into the question why change is needed. For example, the need for change at Lakeside Hotel has been propelled by public complaints (the fact that the organisation's customers are no longer happy with the way it performs). This includes their bedrooms, quality of food and even the need to change marketing strategies. Once the team does the changes, they will have the ability through this model to know where congruence and incongruence exist and consider what options are available (Cawsey et al. 2011, p. 91). The use of this model then means that a change approach will be fully developed and this will lead to high levels of congruence among all the organisational factors and the environment resulting in a heightened organisational performance (Cawsey et. al. 2011, p. 91). Considering the problem at Lakeside Hotel using this model, analysis shows that there is a slip between the alignment of strategy and structure in the hotel. The sales manager looks restructured from the other management team and is getting to close to the owner of the hotel. In this case, he is not able to see and even implement other innovative ideas that can come from other managers; this explains why despite being there for forty years, he is not able to realise the potential of the hotel in using internet sites for its advertisement programs. Another gap can be seen in the staff and the skills. For customers to complain about the quality of food and filthiness in the bedrooms means that a certain number of staff is not being resourceful because the skills they are using to deliver the core products is poor making the customers to complain. The hotel was known for providing good holiday and short break services with high standards but after a diagnostic review, the standards are now low. This means there is a gap also between the systems and the structure. The internal rules and processes in the hotel are thus not being utilized to maintain the high standard that had already been set. Information flow is as well poor. All the major staff is not able to realise and act on the complaints in time, making the standards go down. Therefore, this analysis shows that the ongoing challenges at Lakeside Hotel should be acted upon by encouraging openness to new ideas, experimentation, organizational learning and the capacity to implement and refine the system and structure (Cawsey et al. 2011, p. 91). This model is a good choice for propelling change management process at Lakeside Hotel because it provides the change management team with a checklist of critical variables that need to be analysed by also focussing on the their interconnectedness and the need for alignment between the variables (Cawsey et al 2011, p. 92). However, the model does not give a flow from environmental variables to organizational ones, which can lead to performance outcomes (Cawsey et al. 2011, p. 92). The model emphasizes interconnections and congruence that is most needed by the Hotel. However, it does not look at the cause-effect relationship. Types of Organisational Change for Implementing the Proposed Changes Considering the types of changes that have been proposed for the improvement of services at Lakehouse Hotel may require many types of organisational changes to be merged together. For example, the owner of the hotel together with the senior management team can opt for a planned type of change that involves a deliberate and conscious decision to improve the hotel's system deeply and fundamentally (Burke 2009, p. 144 & Kreitner, p. 429). This type of change can also be integrated with unplanned change, which requires the management team respond to external pressure by creating a completely new system of technology that affects the core of the hotel operations (Burke 2009, p. 144). For example, the use of electronic media to advertise the services at the hotel. The management team can also adopt an evolutionary change termed first-order-change. In this instance, the team will be required to eliminate a layer of management in the hotel administration or have alterations in the existing system characteristics like the hotel's mission (Ramanathan, p. 21). This is normally both developmental and evolutionary. In addition, the hotel can adopt a second- order-change, which is more of paradigmatic: changing the deep structure of the hotel (Burke 2009, p. 144). Conclusion A close analysis at the Lakeside Hotel shows that the hotel has so much potential to go to the greater heights except for the problems that are rising. It would be advisable for the change management team set up to make changes to adopt a Mckinsey's seven 's' model in a doing a diagnosis on the elements that need congruence in the hotel so as to be able to bring equilibrium and as well achieve desired results. The need for this model is because it provides the change management team with a checklist of critical variables that need to be analysed by also focussing on their interconnectedness and the need for alignment between the variables. In implementing the changes, the team would be required to integrate a series of types of organisational change like planned and unplanned, strategic, evolutionary and developmental changes. In the end, the Lakeside Hotel will achieve high levels of congruence among all the organisational factors and the environment resulting in a heightened organisational performance. References: Buono, Antonny & Jameison, David, (2010). Consultation for Organisational Change. New York: IAP. Burke, Warner, (2002). Organization Change: Theory and Practice. London: SAGE. Cawsey, Tupper et al. (2011). Organizational Change: An Action-Oriented Toolkit. Washington, DC: Sage. Cellars, Tara. (2007). Change Mangement Models: A Look at McKinsey's Model. Web, May 10, 2007 < http://voices.yahoo.com/change-management-models-look-mckinseys-7-s-model-334598.html> Accessed on 22nd January 2013. Dawson, Patrick. (2003). Understanding organisational Change: The Contemporary Experience of People at work. 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