How the London 2012 Olympics Impacts Human Resources Management Strategies - Case Study Example

How the London Olympics Impacts Human Resources Management Strategies The frenzied lobbying for votes to win the right to host the Olympics is a public indicator of the enormous and sustained economic advantages for candidate cities. London has been a major tourist and financial center for decades, but its vanguard position has always been under attack from both rivals in Europe and from other continents as well. Creation of new jobs is always a pressing priority, and the spreading tentacles of the hospitality sector have many advantages in this respect. The connection between tourism and jobs, as well as with enterprises of many kinds, is well established. The 2012 Olympics will give a fillip to the London economy, and it is a major opportunity for all organizations in the metropolis. Stadiums, swimming pools, courts, residential accommodation for athletes, officials and for spectators spring first to mind when most people think of the economic fall-out of a city being chosen for the Olympics. Physical assets have limits in reality, for returns cannot be achieved without qualified, skilled, experienced and motivated teams of people. The 2012 Olympics is a challenge for Human Resources Management, as much as it is a chance for civil engineers and architects to get busy! The Olympics represent an acute opportunity that comes to a city for about a week like a comet, once in decades! It nears years of careful preparation, with a full agenda for Personnel departments. Every function tends to inflate its own importance, but even those who are not full-time professionals from the Human Resources field will agree that finding and retaining people of the right caliber is going to be a major obstacle to be overcome, for any London institution to reap the rewards of their home city being selected for the 2012 Olympics. This document attempts to develop some key policies for a chosen London organization, so that it prepares for this major world event. Overview of the London Aquarium Every metropolis has an aquarium, and London is not lacking in this respect. The London Aquarium has an especially spectacular collection, and a central location that puts it in the path of major tour operators and individual tourists alike. It has certain appeal for all the people who will come to London to watch some part of the Olympics. The 2012 event promises to be a chance for the London Aquarium to experience a surge in revenues if it is able to gear up for the flood of visitors who will descend on London from all corners of the globe. Young people from parts of the United Kingdom other than London itself will be amongst the most prized new visitors, because many of them can become regulars as well. The London Aquarium is privately owned, and is relatively small with an investment of about $50 million. It has a collection that spans all the oceans and major fresh water bodies from all over the globe, including a terrifying collection of real sharks! The staff includes a number of eminent specialists from relevant fields, and it depends on volunteers as well. The premises include laboratory, maintenance and catering facilities, and are available for private functions outside hours for the public. The London Aquarium is housed in the County Hall, and has many entertainment and recreation attractions in the vicinity. The London Aquarium is a good choice to study the Human Resources Management impact of the 2012 Olympics, because the organization operates on a relatively modest scale, with specialization in technical aspects of marine biology, and with a location that is bound to be amongst the top drawers with tourists during the mega sports event. It therefore faces exciting prospects and daunting challenges at the same time. Opportunities and Challenges The impact of the 2012 Olympics will be not unique in the world of business. The commercial and industrial environment has undergone revolutionary changes in many fields. The task of management itself has changed (Hamel and Prahalad, 1994). The Human Resources Management function of an organization has the potential and the responsibility of leading management teams through the process of adaptation and change. The ability of the London Aquarium in taking full advantage of the increased tourist inflow during the 2012 Olympics will depend in large measure on its policies and practices with respect to its people. Organizations that limit themselves to physical increases in capacity will not be able to earn satisfactory returns on investment. New sets of skills, new employees and a sea change in attitude hold the keys to success. The year 2012 will see a rapid move towards globalization, with people from all over the world coming to London to view the Olympics. Local organizations will find themselves all of a sudden in a ‘borderless world (Ohmae, 1991). People in the London Aquarium with domain expertise in marine biology, must suddenly cope with the challenges of multi-cultural hordes descending on their premises, all looking for quality entertainment. Neglecting this sudden rush is laden with risk, for the entire world will be watching London during the Olympics. The investments in London for the games have to be made largely by a central body: the returns have to be garnered by diverse and autonomous organizations such as the London Aquarium! The London Aquarium must deal with hugely increased numbers of visitors during the Olympics. It should also be in a position to entertain and to satisfy people who speak many different languages and who hail from divergent cultures. There is a special opportunity with respect to domestic visitors, as they may be persuaded to return to the aquarium in the months following the main sports event. The marketing efforts of the London Aquarium are modest at best, when compared with the top brands that sponsor events such as the Olympics. The Aquarium owners may like to invest in promotion during 2012, to take full advantage of the international event. There is also a chance to start new lines of revenue as from the sale of refreshments (which are currently not allowed in the premises), by selling books, souvenirs and also some collectibles and aids for enthusiasts. The present complement of staff is neither adequate nor appropriate to take advantage of the 2012 opportunity. A major Human Resources Management initiative can set things right. There is a strong case for this function to lead the changes that the London Aquarium needs to make for the upcoming event. It is convenient to plan for such changes in the light of the People element of the Services Marketing Mix (Payne, 2002). Training Interactive marketing, languages, process analysis and communication are some of the new skills that existing employees will need (Payne, 2002). The London Aquarium may retain its present Mission Statement, but will need to equip its present complement of staff to cope with the demands of working in united fashion towards the mission goals in the changed circumstances of the 2012 Olympics. The Human Resources Function will have to recommend the use of third party consultants to impart such training, unless the owners have suitable resources within their Group. Personnel should set benchmarks to assess training effectiveness, since the program will call for significantly higher spending on training than the aquarium may have invested in during the past. It will also be necessary to draw up an inventory of skills and knowledge available within the organization, so that redundancy in training is kept to a minimum. This implies that the training plan should dove-tail with the annual appraisal system. The latter may have to be developed from scratch if it does not exist in a professional way. Overall, the major challenge for the aquarium is to acquire better marketing skills to match its eminent technical resources. Its Human Resource Management procedures should reflect this priority. Recruitment Negotiation with city authorities for additional space in County Hall, liaison with Olympic organizers for promotion at sites, dispensing of refreshments, books and souvenirs from kiosks and media events are some important tasks which call for specialized skills and contacts. Some of these needs could be on-going and worthy of permanent positions in the organization, while others may have to be filled in through specialists on short-term assignments. Listing recruitment needs, distinguishing between permanent and temporary positions, advertising vacancies and devising suitable selection procedures, are some of the important tasks that will occupy the Personnel function of every London hospitality organization as it prepares for 2012. Recruitment will be on the critical path as the aquarium prepares for the Olympics, with increasing competition for the best people as the year of the event approaches. Personnel will need to liaise with management schools and get access to the databases of consultants, in order to give the aquarium as wide a choice as possible in the selection of new staff members. Many of the new recruits would be from fields other than marine biology, and would need sound induction programs to become knowledgeable about the aquarium’s exhibits, and to develop team spirit with existing employees. Remuneration Demand for skilled and trained personnel will clearly outstrip supply as 2012 approaches in London. Retaining people is not solely about remuneration, but it does play a significant part. The Personnel function of each city organization should plan to benchmark their salary and incentive structures with direct and indirect competitors. Balancing between the competition for new recruits with specialized qualifications and experience on the one hand, and the need to be just to loyal hands on the other, is another challenge for Human Resource Management specialists. Leveraging Human Resources The upheaval that the 2012 Olympics will cause in London organizations may be welcomed by those who wish to start their careers and the young armed with modern qualifications. However, it will not be a pleasant experience for old-timers and specialists who have reached a state of equilibrium in their careers. They will respond to impulses for change with negative feelings, ranging from indifference to overt resistance (Barger and Kirby, 1995). Some of them will suffer debilitating stress and may inadvertently slow down or even sabotage the essential changes that their organizations have to make in order to respond to the challenges of a sudden surge of demand. It is primarily the Human Resources Management function that should provide the means to smooth over the transition, and help recalcitrant employees learn to adapt to the changed situation. A Leadership Challenge The opportunity presented to London organizations such as the Aquarium requires a transformation in how such institutions operate. They will have to review all their processes and gear them to meet the requirements of the emerging situation. All categories of employees will be affected by the changes. This kind of situation puts an additional premium of the task of senior executives. The latter must have the vision to foresee the unfolding situation, the skills to prepare their organization for adequate response and the ability to forcefully communicate their plans to the teams for which they are responsible. These are characteristics of the Leadership function in all institutions during times of flux (Hout and Carter, 1995). Human Resource Management professionals do not always have positions in the top rungs of all organizations. The challenge of communicating professional concerns to top management can be daunting for the Personnel function. The people responsible for Human Resources Management in the London Aquarium could have a difficult task on hand if the most senior executives hold different points of view! Benchmarking with other London organizations may be a diplomatic way of raising awareness of the nature of the leadership task. Human Resources and Corporate Strategy The real pay-off of the 2012 Olympics resides in ongoing business that enterprises in London can create. This calls for an abiding integration of the Personnel function with core management practices (Lewin, 2003). Studies from all over the world show that companies with superior business performance give due importance to Human Resources Management. Employment security, appropriate recruitment, and team development are some of the focus areas with respect to human resources that distinguish the best organizations from others. Employees in relatively prosperous cities such as London will not be satisfied by lower-order factors alone, and will look forward to avenues for self-actualization (Quattro, 2004). Modern organizations that operate to serve global customer segments have to adopt progressive practices in the field of Human Resources Management in order to compete and to prosper. The London Aquarium must involve from a local institution with the best marine biology resources, to one with global standards in terms of the ability of its people to meet visitor expectations in an exceedingly competitive environment. Competing in the Services Sector The days when service was viewed as a subjective element are long over (Shostack, 1984). There is an imperative need for a systematic approach to setting professional standards in service in order to build a competitive edge. The transition from the old bureaucratic way of administering services to using it as a means of customer delight requires a sea change in the mind set of people. Human Resource professionals are adept at finding new recruits with personalities and qualifications in modern fields that render them as experts in satisfying customer needs. However, the existing staff structure that tends to contain a number of senior and experienced people, have also to be carried along. The Human Resource Management challenge is for organizations such as the London Aquarium to motivate and train all categories of employees so that the organization may build sustained revenues from the opportunity presented by the London Olympics. A matching change in the remuneration and reward system is easier to implement in a commercial organization than it can be for one such as an Aquarium, but the need does not diminish in the face of such a difficulty. The Aquarium is certain to find that the quality and capabilities of its people will determine what it makes of the Olympics. References Barger, NJ & Kirby, LK, 1995, The Challenge of Change in Organizations, Davies-Black, Palo-Alto, California Hamel, G & Prahalad, CK, 1994, Competing for the Future, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, Massachusetts Hout, TM & Carter JC, 1995, ‘Getting it Done: New Roles for Senior Executives’, Harvard Business Review, Volume 73, Number 6, pp 133-145 Lewin, D, 2003, ‘Human Resource Management and Business Performance’, Human Resources in the 21st Century, edited by Effron, M, Gandossy, R & Goldsmith M, John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken, New Jersey Ohmae, K, 1991, The Borderless World, Harper Collins, Glasgow, Great Britain Payne, A, 2002, The Essence of Services Marketing, Prentice-Hall, New Delhi, India Shostack, GL, 1984, ‘Designing Services That Deliver’, Harvard Business Review, Reprint 84155 Quattro, SA, 2004, ‘HR Minded Leadership’, Leadership, edited by Sims, RR & Quatro SA, M. E. Sharpe, Armonk, New York Read More