Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry: Strategy, … · 2017. 11. 5. · Human Resource Management (HRM) has increasingly come to be utilised as the framework within which

Human ResourceManagement in theHotel Industry

To what extent have hotels adopted new more sophisticated approaches to HRM Whatfactors have encouraged the adoption of these new approaches How has HRM impacted onorganisational performance in the hotel industry

Over the last decade human resource management has come to be viewedas the dominant paradigm within whic h analyses of the world of work havebeen located This volume examines the nature and assesses the impact o fHRM with in a h igh ly under-researc hed par t o f the ser v ice sector namelythe UK hote l industry

Common perceptions of management practices in the hotel industry typicallyinc lude work intens i f i cat ion h igh labour tur nover l ac k of t ra in ing andpoor career prospects and casual ised terms and condit ions of employmentUs ing data f rom a sur vey of over 200 hote l s th i s book cha l lenges suc hstereotypes by demonstrat ing that th i s par t o f the ser v ice sector i s jus tas likely to have experimented with new approaches to HRM as is manufactur ingindustry I t suggests that pr imary inf luences on manager ial decis ion-makingin the hotel industry are no di f ferent from the pr imary inf luences af fect ingdecision-making elsewhere countering the argument that mainstream managementtheor ies are inappl icable within hotels industry Fur ther more where hotelsemphas i se the impor tance of ser v ice qua l i ty enhancement and where theyintroduce HRM as an integrated mutual ly suppor t ing pac kage of pract icesa strong relationship between HRM and organisational performance is identified

Human Re sour c e Management in the Hote l Indu s t ry i s es sent ia l reading notonly for s tudents and researc her s with a spec i f ic interes t in the hote l andcater ing industry but a l so for researc her s with a wider interes t in thenature and impact o f HRM

Kim Hoque is Lecturer in HRM at Cardiff Business School He has publishedwidely in the field of human resource management having conducted researchon g reenfield s i te establ ishments foreign-owned establ ishments the natureand impact of the per sonnel function and ethnic minor it ies in employmentas well as conducting research into the hotel industry He is a lso the co-

ordinator of Cardiff Business Schoolrsquos Equality and Diver sity Researc h Unit

Routledge Studies in Employment Relations

Series editors Rick Delbridge and Edmund Heery

Cardiff Business School

Aspects of the employment relationship are central to numerous courses at both

undergraduate and postgraduate level

Drawing on insights from industrial relations human resource management

and industrial sociology this series provides an alternative source of research-

based materials and texts reviewing key developments in employment research

Books published in this series are works of high academic merit drawn from

a wide range of academic studies in the social sciences

Rethinking Industrial Relations

Mobilisation collectivism and long waves

John Kelly

Social Partnership at Work

Workplace relations in post-unification Germany

Carola MFrege

Employee Relations in the Public Services

Themes and issues

Edited by Susan Corby and Geoff White

The Insecure Workforce

Edited by Edmund Heery and John Salmon

Public Service Employment Relations in Europe

Transformation modernization or inertia

Edited by Stephen Bach Lorenzo Bordogna Guiseppe Della Rocca and David Winchester

Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry

Strategy innovation and performance

Kim Hoque

Human Resource Managementin the Hotel IndustryStrategy innovation and performance

Kim Hoque

London and New York

First published 2000by Routledge11 New Fetter Lane London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby Routledge29 West 35th Street New York NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor ampFrancis Group

This edition published in the Taylor amp Francis e-Library 2002 copy 2000 Kim Hoque All rights reserved No part of this book may be printed or reproducedor utilised in any form or by any electronic mechanical or other meansnow known or hereafter invented including photocopying andrecording or in any information storage or retrieval system withoutpermission in writing from the publishers British Library Cataloguing in Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is availablefrom the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataHoque Kim 1970ndash

Human resource management in the hotel industry strategyinnovation and performanceKim Hoque

p cm mdash(Routledge studies in employment relations)Includes bibliographical references (p)1 Hotels-Personnel management I Title II SeriesTX9113P4H67 1999 99ndash2613964794 068 3ndashdc21 CIP

ISBN 0-415-20809-2 (Print Edition)ISBN 0-203-02086-3 Master e-book ISBNISBN 0-203-20760-2 (Glassbook Format)

To my parents

Contents

List of tables ix

Acknowledgements xi

Preface xiii

1 Introduction and framework for analysis 1

2 Is there a role for HRM in the hotel industry 22

3 New approaches to HRM in the hotel industry

a comparative analysis 49

4 Influences on HRM in the hotel industry 67

5 HRM in practice in the hotel industry 95

6 HRM and performance in the hotel industry 124

7 Conclusion 144

Bibliography 155

Index 164

Tables

31 Hotel chains within the sample 52

32 Star ratings of respondentsrsquo hotels compared with

the sample as a whole 54

33 Regional distribution of the respondentsrsquo hotels

compared with the sample as a whole 55

34 Usage of HRM practices in hotels and manufacturing 58

35 Comparison of HRM strategy in hotels and

manufacturing 63

36 The personnel function within the hotel industry

compared with the rest of the private sector 64

41 Relationship between HRM and internal factors in

the hotel industry 83

42 Resistance to organisational and technical change in

43 The relationship between HRM technical and

organisational change in the hotel industry 86

44 The relationship between HRM the personnel

function and labour turnover in the hotel industry 87

45 Relationship between external factors and HRM

in the hotel industry 90

46 Relationship between internal and external factors and

HRM in the hotel industry 91

61 The relationship between HRM and human resource

outcomes in the hotel industry 132

62 The relationship between HRM and organisational

performance in the hotel industry 135

x List of tables

63 HRM strategy and human resource outcomes in the

hotel industry 137

64 HRM strategy and performance outcomes in

65 HRM internal fit and human resource outcomes

66 HRM internal fit and performance outcomes in

Acknowledgements

I would like to extend special thanks to all those who have offered assistance and advice at

various stages of this project in particular Donna Brown Steve Dunn David Guest

Rosemary Lucas John McGurk Steve McIntosh Riccardo Peccei John Purcell Kate

Purcell Ray Richardson Keith Whitfield Marcus Rubin Steve Wood and Steve Woodland

Thank you also to Louise for your continual support and encouragement This book is

dedicated to my parents for their unyielding support throughout my education

I would a lso l ike to thank the respondents to the 1995 Sur vey of Human

Resource Management in the Hotel Industry and the 1993 Survey of Human

Resource Management in Greenfield Sites I should l ike to extend par ticular

thanks to the par t ic ipants with in the inter v iew prog ramme that fo l lowed

the 1995 Sur vey

Final ly I would l ike to thank the Economic and Socia l Researc h Counci l

(research grant R00429424160) without whose financial suppor t this project

would not have been poss ible

Preface

Human Resource Management (HRM) has increasingly come to be utilised as the framework

within which unfolding developments in the world of work are interpreted However as a

theory HRM has its roots firmly entrenched within a manufacturing paradigm In addition

the vast majority of the empirical testing of HRM has been conducted within manufacturing

organisations Yet almost 76 per cent of the working population is now employed within

services Unless it can be shown to be relevant within this sector what future is there for

HRM as the lsquodominant paradigmrsquo within which unfolding developments within the world of

work can be interpreted The aim of this book is to address this question by evaluating the

relevance of mainstream HRM theory within the UK hotel industry

The book addresses three key i ssues The f i r s t i s sue concer ns the extent

to which hotels have exper imented with new approaches to HRM The second

issue concerns the factors that influence HRM decision-making and whether

these factor s are any d i f ferent with in the hote l industry than e l sewhere

The th ird i s sue concer ns the re la t ionsh ip between HRM and per for mance

in the hotel industry These quest ions are addressed us ing sur vey data from

230 hotels and both quantitative and qualitative methodolog ies are adopted

1 Introduction andframework for analysis

By mid-1998 the proportion of the UK employed population working in service sector jobs

had grown to 757 per cent The comparable figure in mid-1986 was 683 per cent Over

the same period the proportion of the employed population working within production

industries fell from 252 per cent to just 184 per cent (Office for National Statistics 1999)

These figures clearly demonstrate the size the growth-rate and the ever-increasing economic

importance of the service sector

The g rowing impor tance of the sector i s fur ther demonstrated by the

enor mous power now wie lded by ser v ice f i r ms worldwide For example

as noted by Quinn (199217ndash20) Toys R Us now ear ns three t imes the

revenue of the worldrsquos l argest toy manufacturer and they are in a pos i t ion

to be able to d ic tate the products whic h reac h the marketplace how they

are packaged des igned and transpor ted Suc h i s the power of McDonalds

that the butter and fat markets co l lapsed when they took the dec i s ion to

switch to hea l th ier products

Trade in ser v ices i s now the fa s tes t g rowing e lement of inter nat iona l

trade with 20 per cent o f world trade and 30 per cent o f US expor ts

now being ser vice based (Mathe and Per ras 1994) Several key forces have

encouraged th i s process F ir s t ly cu l tura l homogenisat ion has led to the

development of key s imi lar i t ies in consumer preferences across nat ions

Secondly e lectronic point o f sa le (EPOS) tec hnology i s now capable o f

captur ing the data necessary to engage in sophisticated international marketing

pract ices Thirdly the deregulat ion of world markets has led to a loosening

or l i f t ing of restr ict ions on foreign owner ship (Segal-Horn 1994) Ser vice

products are becoming increas ingly sophis t icated inter nat iona l ly tradable

and capable o f generat ing a t remendous amount o f wea l th and ser v ice

sector g loba l i sat ion has become a rea l i ty

2 Human resource management in the hotel industry

This g loba l i sat ion wi l l inev i tably prov ide UK ser v ice prov ider s wi th

over seas expor t oppor tuni t ies However UK ser v ice provider s wi l l a l so

have to cope wi th in tens i f i ed compet i t ion f rom over seas In re ta i l ing for

example incursions by European food retailers such as Aldi into UK domestic

marke t s have caused concer n (Knox and Thompson 1994) I f the UK i s

to compete e f f ec t i ve ly wi th in increa s ing ly g loba l i s ed se r v i ce marke t s in

the f ace o f suc h pre s sure deve lop ing an under s t and ing o f the fa c tor s

that enable ser vice provider s to generate and sustain competit ive advantage

i s a mus t

A lack of service-based empirical research

At odds with the growing economic importance of services is the lack of empirical

research undertaken within the sector As far back as 1948 Whyte in his book lsquoHuman

Relations in the Restaurant Industryrsquo stated that human relations had only ever been

studied in a manufacturing environment and that more attention should be paid to the

ever-increasing service industries Replace lsquohuman relationsrsquo with lsquohuman resource

managementrsquo and Whytersquos statement would be as true as we approach the millennium as it

was in 1948 Gabriel (19886) Rajan (19872) and Shamir (1978295) all make the point

that the services remain ever neglected with there being a scarcity of systematic

fieldwork when compared with the wealth of research undertaken in manufacturing

industries Lucas and Wood (1993) make similar assertions concerning the hotel and

catering sector stating that although todayrsquos position is an improvement on ten years ago

there is still precious little published What there is tends to be removed from the

mainstream and confined to specialist journals such as the lsquoInternational Journal of

Hospitality Managementrsquo which probably remain unheard of amongst mainstream

management academic circles The importance of services and the extent to which that

importance has increased is yet to be reflected within empirical research despite the fact

that it is studies of the service sector that will shed the greatest light on the future

employment relationship

By contrast the wealth of empirical research conducted within manufacturing

has revea led ev idence o f not incons iderable c hange in recent t imes wi th

companiesmdashsomet imes drawing insp i rat ion f rom Japanese t ransp lant s or

f rom exemplar Amer ican compan ie s suc h a s IBMmdashhav ing exper imented

with new communication techniques teamworking Total Quality Management

and new organ i s at iona l cu l ture s fo r example Whether the s ame l eve l

o f exper imentat ion ha s occur red wi th in the se r v i ce s rema ins ve r y muc h

open to ques t ion

Introduction and framework for analysis 3

HRM theory rooted in manufacturing

Not only is there a scarcity of empirical research conducted within the service sector but

also the theoretical concept which Storey (19922ndash3) notes has been used to lsquomake sensersquo of

recent developmentsmdashHuman Resource Management (HRM) mdashis entrenched within a

manufacturing paradigm For example Waltonrsquos (1985) highly influential paper which laid

out the differences between commitment and control approaches to the management of

human resources focused entirely on factory workersmdashservice sector workers not meriting

a mention Similarly the tendency for the services to be overlooked in HRM and industrial

relations research is now seemingly being replicated within the emerging debate concerning

the impact of HRM on performance However the sheer size and economic importance of

the service sector relative to the numbers employed in manufacturing in particular the

number of people who actually work on production lines themselves1 calls into question

whether it is any longer indeed whether it has ever been valid to treat factories and the

production line as the dominant paradigm by which HRM is conceptualised Indeed it is

becoming increasingly important for the future validity of HRM to demonstrate that HRM

theory developed within a manufacturing sector lsquoproduction linersquo paradigm is also relevant

within the service sectors of the economy What future is there for HRM as a theory if it is

not seen in the services within which almost 76 per cent of the working population are

employed as a credible approach By providing a test of the applicability of HRM in a

service environment this is a key focus of this book

The problematic nature of service sector research

Researchers are faced with a major definitional problem when looking at services namely

what exactly is meant by the term lsquoservice sectorrsquo This question can be answered

superficially by arguing that any firm which is included within Standard Industrial

Classification categories 6 to 9 is a service sector firm SIC sector 6 comprises hotels and

catering and distribution (both retail and wholesale) 7 comprises transport and distribution

8 comprises banking finance insurance business services and leasing and 9 comprises

lsquootherrsquo services Immediately the heterogeneous nature of the service sector becomes

apparent This heterogeneity makes generalisations about the services difficult within

empirical analyses unless care is taken to use accurate industry controls and a sample

representative of all service sector firms To complicate matters further as Quinn (1992)

states a great number of people working for manufacturing companies are in fact

performing lsquoservicersquo related functions such as personnel sales and marketing finance legal

work secretarial work cleaning and catering Indeed Quinn estimates that as much as 65 to

75 per cent of the activity within lsquomanufacturingrsquo firms is actually service related The

definition of a service based firm or a service based job is therefore not as straightforward as

it first appears

H oweve r t h e h e t e ro g e n e i t y o f t h e s e r v i c e s d o e s n o t a u t o m at i c a l ly

l e ad to t he conc lu s ion th at a s e c tor -by - sec tor approac h to r e sea rc h w i l l

b e p re f e r a b l e A r m i s t e a d ( 1 9 9 4 2 8 ) a r g u e s f o r e x a m p l e t h a t i n d u s t r y -

leve l ana lys i s wi l l provide too nar row a bas i s on which to develop gener ic

proposi t ions concerning the lsquoser vice sectorrsquo as a whole and i t i s therefore

p re f e r a bl e t o f o c u s o n j o b s a c ro s s t h e s e r v i c e s w i t h a s i m i l a r c o n t e n t

However th i s approac h wou ld be unable to t ake in to account the impac t

o f i n d u s t r y o r s e c t o r - s p e c i f i c e nv i ro n m e n t a l f a c t o r s s u c h a s p ro d u c t

a n d l a b o u r m a r ke t s o n a p p ro a c h e s t a ke n t o H R M Fo r e x a m p l e t h e

s p e c i f i c s e a s o n a l n a t u re o f d e m a n d e x p e r i e n c e d i n h o t e l s a n d c a t e r i n g

i s u n i q u e t o t h a t s e c t o r a n d i s n o t f o u n d i n b a n k s o r i n s u r a n c e T h e r e

m ay b e s u p e r f i c i a l s i m i l a r i t i e s b e t we e n t h e j o b o f a h o t e l re c e p t i o n i s t

and that of a bank clerk but different market and environmental contingencies

f a c e d by b a n k s a n d h o t e l s m ay re s u l t i n d i f f e re n t a p p ro a c h e s t o H R M

b e i n g t a ke n I n t e s t i n g t h e i m p a c t o f a r a n g e o f e x t e r n a l c o n t i n g e n c i e s

suc h a s product and l abour market s on po l i c y c ho ice a gener i c lsquo lumping

togetherrsquo of ser v ice f i r ms could eas i ly resul t in general i sat ions over s ights

o f i n d u s t r y - s p e c i f i c c o n t i n g e n c i e s a n d a l o s s o f a n a ly t i c a l c l a r i t y I n

t e r m s o f o p e r a t i o n a l i s a t i o n f o r re s e a r c h p u r p o s e s t h e lsquo s e r v i c e s e c t o r rsquo

is best seen as a gener ic term encompassing a diverse range of heterogeneous

c o n s t i t u e n t p a r t s A s s u c h i t i s p re f e r a b l e t o a n a ly s e i n d i v i d u a l p a r t s

o f t h e s e c t o r r a t h e r t h a n s e r v i c e s a s a w h o l e

Ref lect ing th is approach the focus within the analys i s to be under taken

h e r e w i l l b e o n o n e o f t h e s e r v i c e s e c t o r rsquo s c o n s t i t u e n t p a r t s n a m e l y

t h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y T h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y h a s s e e n c o n s i d e r a b l e g row t h

i n r e c e n t ye a r s w i t h t h e t o t a l n u m b e r s e m p l oye d r i s i n g f ro m 2 7 9 5 0 0

i n J u n e 1 9 8 8 t o 3 1 8 7 0 0 i n J u n e 1 9 9 8 ( O f f i c e f o r N a t i o n a l S t a t i s t i c s

1998) Howeve r a s Luca s (1995 14 ) s t at e s t he re rema in s a r emarkable

d e a r t h o f i n f o r m a t i o n o n h u m a n r e s o u r c e m a n a g e m e n t i s s u e s i n t h e

i n d u s t r y w h i c h s h e a r g u e s i s a l l t h e m o r e s u r p r i s i n g g i ve n t h e o f t -

q u o t e d p h r a s e w i t h i n t h e i n d u s t r y t h a t lsquo p e o p l e a re o u r m o s t i m p o r t a n t

r e s o u r c e rsquo T h e a n a ly s i s w i t h i n t h i s b o o k t h e r e f o r e a i m s t o h e l p t o f i l l

t h i s g a p

Te s t s o f t h e re l eva n c e o f m a i n s t re a m H R M t h e o r y w i t h i n h o t e l s h ave

several impor tant implicat ions where hotel industry research is concerned

As s tated by Lucas (199514) a body o f l i terature has deve loped showing

t h e s e c t o r t o b e s o m e h ow lsquo d i f f e r e n t rsquo b e i n g c h a r a c t e r i s e d by a d h o c

m a n a g e m e n t a l a c k o f t r a d e u n i o n s a n d h i g h p o s s i b ly u n av o i d a b l e

l a b o u r t u r n ov e r A v i ew c o m m o n ly e x p r e s s e d a m o n g h o t e l m a n a g e r s

according to Mull ins (19931) i s that these key fundamental organisat ional

d i f f e re n c e s re n d e r i n a p p ro p r i a t e t h e g e n e r a l p r i n c i p l e s o f m a n a g e m e n t

d ev e l o p e d i n o t h e r i n d u s t r i e s a s t h ey f a i l t o t a ke i n t o a c c o u n t t h e

u n i q u e c o n t i n g e n c i e s f a c i n g m a n a g e r s w i t h i n t h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y A l s o

t h e a r g u m e n t t h a t t h e i n d u s t r y i s s o m e h ow lsquo d i f f e r e n t rsquo i s o f t e n u s e d

t o e x p l a i n w hy h o t e l m a n a g e m e n t r e s e a r c h t e n d s t o b e c h a n n e l l e d i n t o

i n d u s t r y - s p e c i f i c j o u r n a l s a n d e x c l u d e d f r o m t h e m a i n s t r e a m

However Mullins (19937ndash8) believes that the only substantive difference

b e t we e n h o t e l s a n d m a n u f a c t u r i n g i s t h a t t h e c u s t o m e r i s i n e x t r i c a b ly

invo lved wi th in the proces s i t se l f r ather than s imply be ing the rec ip ient

o f t h e p r o d u c t a t t h e e n d o f i t W h i l e i t i s t r u e t h a t t h e h o t e l s e r v i c e

cannot be s toc kp i l ed and produc t ion smoothed out to cope wi th demand

surges and that i t i s more d i f f i cu l t to ac h ieve economies o f sca le because

s i t e s e l e c t i o n i s d e t e r m i n e d by c o n s u m e r d e m a n d s t h e s e d i f f e r e n c e s

a r e a c c o r d i n g t o M u l l i n s ( 1 9 9 3 ) m e r e ly c o n t e x t u a l E v e r y t h i n g e l s e

that ho te l manager s have to do fo r example the p l ann ing o f ob jec t i ve s

s t r a t e g y - m a k i n g e n s u r i n g l e g a l r e q u i r e m e n t s a r e m e t a n d o r g a n i s i n g

d i r ec t ing and con t ro l l i ng s t a f f i s common to f i r ms i n a l l o the r s ec to r s

T h e re f o r e t h e t h e o r e t i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f lsquo m a n a g e m e n t rsquo s h o u l d n o t

b e a ny d i f f e r e n t i n h o t e l s t h a n i n t h e r e s t o f t h e e c o n o my T h o s e w h o

a r g u e o t h e r w i s e s u g g e s t s M u l l i n s ( 1 9 9 3 1 5 ) a r e p r ov i d i n g a n e x c u s e

f o r l a c k o f i m p r ove m e n t G i l b e r t a n d G u e r r i e r ( 1 9 9 7 ) s u p p o r t t h i s

position claiming that there is an increasing realisation of the generalisability

o f h o t e l m a n a g e m e n t p r i n c i p l e s w i t h m a n a g e r s m ov i n g b o t h t o a n d

f r o m o t h e r s e c t o r s o f t h e e c o n o my T h ey a l s o h i g h l i g h t t h e i n c r e a s i n g

r e c o g n i t i o n o f t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f g e n e r a l m a n a g e m e n t q u a l i f i c a t i o n s

a s o p p o s e d t o i n d u s t r y - s p e c i f i c q u a l i f i c a t i o n s M o re ove r g i ve n t h a t

mu c h o f t h e e x c e l l e n c e l i t e r a t u r e f o c u s e s o n t h e i n d i v i d u a l i t m ay

wel l be more su i ted to the hote l indus t ry where co l l ec t i ve re l at ionsh ip s

a r e a t a m i n i m u m

By ana ly s ing the ro le o f HRM wi th in the hote l indus t r y th i s book i s

able to test the asser tions made by Gilber t and Guerr ier (1997) and Mull ins

(1993) I f i t i s found that HRM theor y prov ides a su i t able f r amework

with in whic h to locate ana lyses o f the hote l industry there wi l l no longer

be any ju s t i f i c a t ion to e i ther marg ina l i s e ho te l i ndus t r y re searc h in to

special i st industry jour nals or to ignore HRM theory within hotel industry

empir i ca l ana ly se s

The human resource management model

As the aim of this book is to assess the relevance of HRM within a hotel industry context it

is necessary at the outset to provide a definition of HRM The definition used here draws

strongly on the models presented by Beer et al (1984) Guest (1987) and Walton (1985)

These models typify the prescriptive solutions offered in response to new challenges it is

argued that companies have faced since the end of the 1970s and the early 1980s As stated

by Piore and Sabel (1984) the conditions that enabled stable mass production systems to

thrive in the past no longer exist For example global competition has increased product

life-cycles have shortened product markets have become increasingly differentiated and

increasingly turbulent and consumer tastes have become increasingly sophisticated In

addition competition from low-wage developing countries now precludes the possibility of

competition on price or cost factors (Beaumont 199324)

As suc h i t i s argued that Wester n companies have been under increas ing

pressure to seek a new approach involv ing a re- focus ing of act iv i t ies onto

the product ion of h i-tech h igh value-added products Rather than focusing

s imply on product iv i ty and cost factor s a lone companies must now ensure

high quality production a high level of innovation and production flexibil ity

in order to be able to take advantage of h igher va lue-added new market

niches as and when they emerge The new approac h to HRM that companies

would have to adopt in the face o f these c ha l lenges i s encapsulated with in

the Beer e t a l (1984) Guest (1987) and Walton (1985) models

Implicit within these models of HRM is that if organisations are to achieve

the requis i te leve l s o f innovat ion organi sat iona l f lex ib i l i ty and product

qua l i ty to be able to compete in increas ing ly turbulent product markets

traditional Taylor ist ways of managing and working well suited to production

of standardised goods for large and stable markets will no longer be adequate

It is no longer sufficient to view worker s as unthinking automatons following

order s l a id down by management Hence a l l o f the models o f HRM stress

the need to generate employee commitment to quality to encourage worker s

to take responsibility for quality to develop systems through which employees

can contr ibute to the process o f cont inuous improvement and to create

an environment where worker s feel confident to be innovative and creative

The emphas i s i s increas ing ly on what Blyton and Tur nbul l (19924) re fer

to as lsquo re leas ing untapped reser ves o f human resourcefu lness rsquo and get t ing

worker s to go lsquobeyond contract rsquo mdashgoing the extra mi le for the company

Gett ing the lsquopeoplersquo s ide of the organi sat ion r ight i s therefore seen as

the key to the ac h ievement o f compet i t ive advantage

A fur ther source of potent ia l compet i t ive advantage i s provided by the

in imitab i l i ty o f human resource sys tems As they must take into account

complex issues of power and resistance to change effect ive human resource

systems are extremely d i f f i cu l t to copy By compar i son other resources

available to the firm such as technology marketing engineer ing and financial

systems are a l l repl icable (Bec ker and Gerhar t 1996781) I f compet i t ive

advantage i s generated a long any one of these d imens ions ga ins would be

shor t- l ived as compet i tor s would be able to copy the sys tems developed

Being more diff icult to mimic human resource systems are therefore capable

of prov id ing sus ta ined compet i t ive advantage

The cent ra l i t y o f the manner in wh ic h human re sources a re managed

in terms of the achievement of competitive advantage has two major implications

F i r s t ly i t becomes e s sen t i a l tha t HR concer ns and HR dec i s ion-mak ing

become sen ior management pr ior i t i e s and not the re spons ib i l i t y o f a

separate sub-board level spec ia l i s t funct ion (Beaumont 199221 19931

17 S torey 199226ndash7) Th i s i s one e lement o f what Gues t (1987) re fer s

to a s lsquo s t rateg ic - in teg rat ionrsquo Guest (1987) s tates that a s human resources

are the most var iable resource a company possesses and the most d i f f icul t

to under s t and they a re un l ike ly to l e ad to compet i t i ve advantage un le s s

fu l ly in teg rated in to the s t r ateg i c p l ann ing proces s A boardroom focus

on marke t ing f inance or product ion for example w i l l f a i l to t ake in to

account the more complex i s sues o f va lues power and company cu l ture

As suc h HRM has a r ight fu l p lace a longs ide other core management ro les

a t boardroom leve l

Secondly the centrality of human resources to the achievement of competitive

advantage resu l t s in a ph i losophy that the precur sor o f h igh per for mance

wi l l be the ac h ievement of a set o f HR outcomes or goa l s HR pol ic ies

and practices within the organisation should be geared towards the achievement

of these goa l s The models presented by Beer e t a l (1984) Guest (1987)

and Walton (1985) a l l make th i s point For example Walton (1985) s ta tes

that centra l to the HRM phi losophy should be the be l ie f that employee

commitment will lead to enhanced performance The impor tance of el icit ing

workforce commitment i s a l so one of the HR outcomes s tressed with in

the model presented by Beer a t a l (1984) This model a l so s tresses the

impor tance of competence ( in ter ms of a t tract ing keeping and developing

people with requis i te ski l l s and knowledge) cong r uence (the minimisat ion

of conf l ic t between interes t g roups) and cost e f fect iveness (both for the

organi sat ion the ind iv idua l and soc iety as a whole) The HR goa l s with in

the Guest (1987) model aremdashonce aga inmdashhigh commitment funct iona l

and organisational flexibility high quality (in terms of recruiting and retaining

sk i l led and mot ivated employees publ ic image and job per for mance) and

f inal ly s trateg ic integrat ion (the high prof i le accorded to HR issues within

the bus iness s t ra tegy and the incor porat ion of an HRM per spect ive with in

line management decision-making) This latter issue is also stressed by Storey

(199227) who states that l ine management should recognise the impor tance

of HRM and engage in behav iour and dec i s ion-making whic h re f lects th i s

HRM should be the int imate concern of l ine manager s They should lsquoownrsquo

implement and act in accordance with HRM pr inc ip les

The HR outcomes are therefore seen as the pr imary or f i r s t order goals

of the organisation which if achieved will lead to a considerable organisational

payof f Looking f i r s t a t the goa l o f commitment Guest (1987) argues that

committed employees wi l l be more sa t i s f ied more product ive and more

adaptable more wi l l ing to accept organi sa t iona l goa l s and va lues and to

exer t lsquoextra-rolersquo ef for t on behal f of the organisat ion Committed worker s

are a l so more l ike ly to make e f fect ive contr ibut ions wi th in cont inuous

improvement processes Moreover self-directing workers need less supervision

so cutting overheads in terms of manager ial headcount becomes a possibil ity

Also i f the organisat ion achieves a coincidence of interest between worker s

and managers organisational change is less l ikely to be viewed with suspicion

(Beer e t a l 198537ndash8) I f the f lex ib i l i ty goa l s t ressed by Guest (1987)

is achieved with a multi-skilled workforce able and will ing to move between

tasks as the work demands a more effective uti l isation of labour will result

F ina l ly the goa l s o f qua l i ty (Guest 1987) and competence (Beer e t a l

1985) wi l l equip a f i r m with the sk i l l s and resources necessary i f the f i r m

is to dea l with c hange in the face of unstable environments

Achieving human resource outcomes

While the achievement of a set of HR outcomes is seen as the precursor to higher

performance within models of HRM in order to achieve these HR outcomes

organisations have at their disposal a range of HR practices relating to recruitment job

design pay systems communication and training Particu-larly emphasised within the

HRM literature is the importance of the principle of reciprocity within the design of

these HR practices If workers are to be expected to be committed to company goals

to be flexible and to contribute towards continuous improvement processes the

company must provide in return fair treatment a commitment to employment security

and to career development and a removal of status differences between workers and

managers for example This is an essential principle Workers cannot be expected to be

committed to the organisation and play a part in business improvement unless the

organisation is prepared to make a commitment back

T h i s p o i n t i s a r g u e d by Wa l t o n ( 1 9 8 5 ) w h o s t re s s e s t h e i m p o r t a n c e

of practices emphasising mutuality He highlights the impor tance of horizontal

and ver t ica l job integ rat ion whic h enables worker s to have respons ib i l i ty

a n d i n f l u e n c e ove r t h e i r wo r k H e a l s o h i g h l i g h t s t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f

s i n g l e s t a t u s a n d e m p l oy m e n t s e c u r i t y c o u p l e d t o re t r a i n i n g w h e r e o l d

j o b s a re e l i m i n a t e d a n d n ew o n e s c re a t e d a n d c o m p e n s at i o n b a s e d o n

equity ga in shar ing s toc k owner sh ip and prof i t shar ing Beer e t a l (1984)

s t a t e t h a t t h e key H R p o l i c y a r e a s o f i m p o r t a n c e a re t h o s e re l a t i n g t o

employee influence human resource flows (recruitment dismissals promotion

decisions appraisal training and development) outflows from the organisation

reward systems and work patter ns Guest (1987) emphasises the impor tance

o f c a re f u l s e l e c t i o n j o b d e s i g n t h e m a n a g e m e n t o f c u l t u re a n d t h e

impor tance o f the deve lopment o f va lues emphas i s ing the organ i s at ionmdash

employee l i nkage As suc h bo th t he f o r ma l and p syc ho log i c a l con t r a c t s

o f f e re d t o s h o p f l o o r wo r ke r s s h o u l d b e a k i n t o t h o s e t y p i c a l ly o f f e red

t o m a n a g e r s ( G u e s t 1 9 8 9 4 3 )

HRMmdashits relevance to the hotel industry

Turning to the hotel industry the main issue of consideration is whether or not the

philosophy or principles underlying the models of HRM discussed here and the practices

stressed within those models are of relevance In other words are there performance gains

to be made by adopting the philosophy that as human resources are the key strategic lever

within the organisation competitive advantage is dependent upon the achievement of certain

HR goals In turn is the achievement of these HR goals dependent upon the adoption of a

coherent strategically integrated package of innovative HRM practices These are among the

central questions that will test the validity of HRM as a concept within the industry

However the re levance of HRM with in the hote l industry i s not s imply

dependent upon an ana lys i s o f the extent to whic h es tabl i shments have

adopted the approaches as espoused with in the models o f HRM discussed

above The mainstream HRM literature contains within it a series of asser tions

in re la t ion to a range of factor s that potent ia l ly in f luence the approac h

that a company takes to HRM A test of the relevance of HRM within hotels

must a l so therefore tes t whether the in f luences on HRM dec i s ion-making

debated within the mainstream l iterature have the anticipated impact within

a hote l industr y context The fo l lowing sect ions cons ider the in f luences

as d i scussed with in the mainstream l i terature

Factors influencing approaches taken to HRM

Situational contingency approaches to HRMmdashthe impact of

product markets

Product markets are seen as particularly influential within the mainstream literature in

determining the approach to HRM that companies are likely to adopt The approach to HRM

described above is all very well where a firm is pursuing a strategy producing high value-

added goods or services in a knowledge-based industry for example (Legge (199567)

quoting Capelli and McKersie (1987443ndash4)) However as Legge continues what of

situations where the firm is competing within a labour-intensive high-volume low-cost

industry generating profits through increasing market share by cost leadership In such

organisations employees are likely to be seen as a variable cost that needs to be minimised

As such the approach to HRM described within the models presented above may only be

applicable in certain product market environments In other situations a lsquohardrsquo approach to

HRM emphasising a quantitative calculative management of headcount might be more

appropriate As Boxall and Dowling (1990202) state the full utilisation model of HRM is

but one approach to the management of human resources It is not generic as it excludes all

approaches where employees are considered to be expedient exchangeable factors of

production

This point i s made with in a range of typolog ies presented by Mi les and

Snow (1984) Schuler (1989) Schuler and Jackson (1987) and Tichy Fombrun

and Devanna (1982) Within these lsquosituational contingencyrsquo models of human

resource management the key message is that HRM strategy should suppor t

or f i t bus iness s t ra tegy As suc h whether or not the approac h to HRM

descr ibed by Beer et al (1984) Guest (1987) and Walton (1985) is appropr iate

should be cont ingent upon the bus iness s trategy of the organisat ion which

in tur n should be dependent upon the nature of the product market with in

which the organisation is competing These approaches are therefore underpinned

by what Evans and Lorange (1989) descr ibe as a lsquoproduct market log icrsquo

The more success fu l the organi sat ion i s a t ach iev ing f i t between product

market bus iness s t rategy and HR s trategy the more success fu l i t wi l l be

in ter ms of ac h iev ing organi sat iona l outcomes

T h e t y p o l o g i e s d eve l o p e d by t h e lsquo s i t u a t i o n a l c o n t i n g e n c y rsquo t h e o r i s t s

f o c u s o n t wo m a i n i s s u e s T h e s e a re f i r s t ly p ro d u c t m a r k e t s t r at e g y

and second ly g rowth s t r ategy or organ i s at iona l l i f e -c yc le s Tur n ing f i r s t

t o t y p o l o g i e s f o c u s i n g o n p ro d u c t m a r ke t s t r a t e g y S c h u l e r ( 1 9 8 9 ) a n d

Schuler and Jackson (1987) base their analysis on strategy models presented

by M i l l e r ( 1 9 8 6 ) a n d Po r t e r ( 1 9 8 0 1 9 8 5 ) T h ey s t a t e t h a t d e p e n d e n t

upon the produc t marke t env i ronment w i th in wh ic h a f i r m i s opera t ing

i t wi l l adopt e i ther an innovator qual i ty enhancer or cost reducer product

m a r ke t s t r a t e g y ( S c h u l e r a n d J a c k s o n 1 9 8 7 2 0 8 ) T h ey mu s t t h e n l i n k

HR s t r a tegy and bus ine s s s t r ategy the r a t iona le be ing that e ac h s t r ategy

w i l l re q u i r e e m p l oye e s w i t h d i f f e r i n g s k i l l l eve l s d i f f e r i n g l eve l s o f

c re a t i v i t y a n d c o n c e r n f o r q u a l i t y d i f f e r i n g d e g re e s o f w i l l i n g n e s s t o

t a ke r i s k s o r w i l l i n g n e s s t o a c c e p t re s p o n s i b i l i t y a n d a d a p t a b i l i t y t o

c h a n g e Fo r e x a m p l e i n a n o r g a n i s a t i o n f o c u s i n g o n a c o s t re d u c t i o n

b u s i n e s s s t r a t e g y t h e H R s t r a t e g y wo u l d e m p h a s i s e t h e r e d u c t i o n o f

o u t p u t c o s t - p e r - e m p l oye e T h i s wo u l d b e a c h i eve d t h o u g h t h e u s e o f

non-standard employment subcontract ing and Taylor ised working pract ices

suc h as job prescr ipt ion a h igh deg ree o f spec ia l i sat ion min imal t ra in ing

and development and a high degree of monitoring The HR strategy appropriate

to f i r ms adopt ing a qua l i ty enhancer bus iness s trategy would by contras t

a i m t o f o s t e r e m p l oye e c o m m i t m e n t t o q u a l i t y a n d c o n t i n u o u s q u a l i t y

i m p rove m e n t Wi t h i n t h e i n n ovat o r f i r m t h e H R s t r a t e g y wo u l d f o c u s

o n t h e d eve l o p m e n t o f a n e nv i ro n m e n t c o n d u c i ve t o t h e s t i mu l a t i o n o f

c re a t i v i t y Wi t h g ro u p s o f h i g h ly t r a i n e d s p e c i a l i s t s wo r k i n g t o g e t h e r

t h e H R s t r a t e g y wo u l d n e e d t o e l i c i t a h i g h d e g re e o f c o l l a b o r a t i o n

and decentra l i s at ion o f power to those respons ib le for innovat ion With in

t h e q u a l i t y e n h a n c e r a n d i n n ovat o r a p p r o a c h e s t h e re f o re t h e re i s a f a r

g reater scope for the h igh commitment approach to HRM descr ibed above

Where the firm is competing on pr ice such an approach would be considered

i n a p p ro p r i a t e

Other models with in th i s t rad i t ion a l so s tress the impor tance of the

product market a s a deter minant o f the approac h taken to HR s trategy

Miles and Snow (1984) look at the rate of innovat ion as the key cont ingent

var iable The approac h to HRM should vary depending upon whether the

firm is a prospector (highly innovative) an analyser (moderately innovative)

or a defender (rarely innovat ive) The more innovat ive the approac h to

strategy the more appropr iate developmental approaches to HRM become

An alternative approach is taken by Kochan and Barocci (1985) and Tichy

Fombr un and Devanna (1982) whose s i tuat iona l cont ingency typolog ies

re la te to organi sa t iona l l i fe-c yc le Koc han and Barocc i (1985) argue that

as an organisation progresses through star t-up g rowth matur ity and decline

human resource act iv i t ies wi l l va ry depending upon the s tage of the l i fe-

cyc le reac hed For example concer ning recr ui tment the emphas i s dur ing

star t -up would be on the recr u i tment of the most ta lented candidates As

the organisat ion prog resses through growth s tages recr ui tment remains

impor tant but at tent ion a l so has to be pa id to success ion p lanning and

the management of inter nal labour markets As the organisat ion prog resses

into matur ity and decline stages managing labour turnover to effect workforce

reductions becomes more impor tant Kochan and Barocci (1985) trace similar

pat ter ns with in the ir model with re ference to compensat ion and benef i t s

tra in ing and development and labour re la t ions S imi lar ly Tic hy Fombr un

and Devanna (1982) focus on the way in whic h the str uctures of bus inesses

change as they develop The appropr iate approaches to select ion appraisa l

rewards and development wi l l c hange as the organi sat ion passes through

single product g rowth by acquisit ion of unrelated businesses diver sif ication

and mult i -nat iona l phases

Product markets are therefore viewed as instrumental within the mainstream

HRM l i terature in deter mining the approac h to HRM that companies are

l ikely to adopt Within the context of the hotel industry being a consumer

ser v ice i t would be sens ib le to hypothes i se that product market s igna l s

will also prove to be highly influential However it is by no means a foregone

conclus ion that hote l s f aced with par t icu lar market demands wi l l c hoose

to meet those demands in the manner predicted by the situational contingency

models As argued above muc h HRM theor i s ing has taken p lace with in a

manufactur ing paradigm There i s no par t icular reason why therefore the

techniques widely held as appropr iate to a quality enhancer business strategy

within manufactur ing wil l be deemed appropr iate to a ser vice-based qual ity

enhancer s trategy For example i t may not necessar i ly be the case that

the enhancement o f commitment i s centra l to the ac h ievement o f qua l i ty

in a ser v ice context and even i f i t i s the HRM tec hniques for maximis ing

commitment in hotels may well differ from those used within a manufactur ing

setting Therefore even if hotels emphasise the impor tance of product markets

within their business strategy it remains to be seen whether the HR strategy

adopted to ac h ieve the demands of a g iven bus iness s trategy wi l l be as

predicted with in the s i tuat iona l cont ingency models o f HRM

The s i tuat iona l cont ingency models ra i se a fur ther impor tant quest ion

namely the approach to business strategy most l ikely to lead to competit ive

success in the hotel industry product market On th is i s sue muc h depends

upon emerg ing consumer trends With in the mainstream l i terature there

is considerable debate Piore and Sabel (1984) in their f lexible special isation

thes i s argue that with the saturat ion of consumer goods markets in home

markets with consumer tastes becoming increasingly sophist icated and with

the emergence of low-wage industr ia l economies in South East As ia and

Lat in Amer ica Wester n companies have had to re focus the ir s t ra teg ies on

the high quality production of special ised or customised goods and ser vices

Similarly Walton (1985) argues that the condit ions enabl ing control models

of management to thr ive no longer ex i s t Product markets are no longer

character i sed by a s table leve l o f demand for mass-produced s tandardi sed

products and ser vices Increas ingly instabi l i ty argues Walton i s beg inning

to a f fect a l l organi sat ions Hence a premium i s increas ing ly at tac hed to

respons iveness to customer needs

However th i s argument i s not without i t s cr i t ic s Hyman (1991) and

Poller t (1991) argue that the extent of product market change is over stated

For example much of the success of Japanese consumer electronics companies

i s in mature mass markets reac h ing sa turat ion where cost control and the

use of mass product ion tec hniques i s equa l ly as impor tant as a focus on

innovat ion or the provis ion of customised or batc h produced goods

A s imilar inconclusiveness in relat ion to the nature of the hotel industry

product market might a l so be expected For example wi th in the hote l

industry product market i t remains to be seen whether the provi s ion of

ser v ice qua l i ty i s now more impor tant than pr ice compet i t iveness or t ight

cost control This i ssue must be addressed before conclus ions can be drawn

concerning the universal applicabil ity of the Beer et al (1984) Guest (1987)

and Walton (1985) models o f HRM with in the hote l industr y

The strategy-making process

While product markets are viewed as the key determinant of HRM within the situational

contingency models discussed above there is a tacit assumption within the situational

contingency typologies that the meshing of business strategy and HR strategy is a

straightforward uncomplicated process However several writers argue that this is a

somewhat stylised view which fails to take into account a range of factors that might hinder

such a process of integration As such product markets may not be as deterministic as

immediately assumed

Fir stly Legge (1995) drawing on the work of Whittington (1993) argues

that i t i s only poss ible to matc h HRM pol ic y to bus iness s t rategy where

strategy reflects a lsquoclassical deliberatersquo approach emerg ing from a conscious

rational decision-making process Where strategy is evolutionary or emergent

or where i t i s processua l emerg ing in smal l success ive s teps there i s no

long-term formulated business strategy to which HRM policy can be matched

Therefore s ituational contingency models are only able to make predictions

concerning the appropr iateness of different approaches to HRM in companies

whic h not only consc ious ly at tempt to integ rate HRM pol ic y and bus iness

s trategy but a l so have a consc ious ly p lanned for mulated bus iness s trategy

in the f i r s t ins tance

The ev idence suggests that the c las s ica l de l iberate approac h descr ibed

by Legge (1995) i s f ar f rom the nor m with in the UK For example Whipp

(1992 50ndash1) argues that strateg ic planning is absent in most British companies

S imi lar ly Beaumont (199318) comments that many companies in the UK

have been pur su ing an incons i s tent set o f act iv i t ies over the 1980s and

into the 1990s involving downsizing lay-offs and redundancies while simultaneously

emphas i s ing product or ser v ice qua l i ty These act iv i t ies do not add up to

a consistent coherent strategy Thus to use Mintzbergrsquos (1987) terminology

strategy in the UK has tended to reflect ad-hoc formation rather than planned

for mulat ion I f the fundamental touchstone of HRM is as s tated by Keenoy

(1990) that i t i s meshed with bus iness s trategy what i s HRM meshed with

in the major i ty o f companies where suc h s tra teg ic ana lys i s does not take

place or l ac ks cons i s tenc y

Secondly even where there i s a wel l - for mulated bus iness s t ra tegy how

l ike ly i s i t that there wi l l be an integ rat ion of HRM with that s t rategy I t

is not necessar ily the case that this will happen automatically Indeed Mabey

and Sa laman (199549) descr ibe the chances of suc h integ rat ion occurr ing

as lsquoextremely rarersquo They argue that the process o f for mulat ing a s trategy

ident i fy ing the key behav iour s necessary to implement the s trategy and

introducing the organisat ional processes required to generate the required

behav iour s as sumes that sen ior management have been ab le to scan the

environment for key s igna l s have ana lysed those s igna l s and then have

been wi l l ing and able to re for mulate organi sa t iona l s t r uctures Thi s they

state i s a lsquodaunt ing and demanding l i s t of prerequis i te s teps for any g roup

of sen ior manager s rsquo Thi s l i s t may be made even more daunt ing by the

fact that a s h igh l ighted by Guest (1987) and S i s son and Storey (1990)

manager s with in the UK have typ ica l ly demonstrated a l ac k of s t rateg ic

capabi l i ty and ab i l i ty to manage c hange

Third ly the ab i l i ty to adopt an HRM strategy appropr iate to bus iness

s trategy may a l so be par t ly dependent upon the power and in f luence he ld

by the per sonnel or HR function Whipp (1992) states that where per sonnel

management i s undeveloped with in an industr y the appropr iate s tra tegy

i s unl ikely to emerge This i s suppor ted by Guest and Hoque (1994a) who

found that where a firm has a well-developed sophisticated personnel department

it is more l ikely to be pur suing practices associated with an HRM approac h

on the pr inc ip le that i t i s the per sonnel depar tment or the manager with

responsibil ity for personnel who is the most l ikely to encourage or champion

HRM initiatives Similar arguments are presented by Marginson et al (1993)

using data from the 1992 Warwick Company Level Industr ial Relations Survey

He suggests that where there i s a per sonnel or HR director a t boardroom

level there i s a h igher l ike l ihood of an integ rat ion between HRM strategy

and bus iness s t ra tegy

However Beer e t a l (198527) suggest that a fur ther reason for a poor

f it between HRM and business strategy might l ie within the HR depar tment

i t se l f I f HRM and bus iness s t rategy dec i s ion-making i s not integ ra ted

there i s the danger that HR depar tments wi l l develop prog rammes that

l ine management do not cons ider re levant This might occur where there

is a difference in perspective between the long-term people-or iented approach

adopted by HR manager s and the shor t- ter m prof i t s -or iented approac h

adopted by l ine manager s Suc h d i f ferences could expla in the introduct ion

of some aspects o f HRM in s i tuat ions where the bus iness s trategy suggests

a need for a more ca lcu lat ive cost -consc ious approac h

In the context o f the hote l industry the re levant quest ions therefore

concer n f i r s t ly whether there i s a tendenc y for s trategy-making with in

the industry to reflect a conscious planned approach or an ad-hoc emergent

approach I t i s only where a for mulated bus iness s trategy exis ts and where

a consc ious meshing takes p lace that bus iness s tra tegy would be expected

to impact on HR pol ic y choice in the manner predicted by Miles and Snow

(1984) Sc huler (1989) Schuler and Jackson (1987) and Tic hy Fombr un

and Devanna (1982) I f s t ra tegy-making i s consc ious and p lanned to what

extent do hotels make a conscious effor t to mesh human resource strateg ies

with bus iness s t rategy Also the ab i l i ty o f management to handle c hange

within the hotel industry and the relative power and influence of the personnel

function may influence the approach taken to HRM within the sector Answers

to these quest ions wi l l deter mine whether i s sues concer ning the s trategy-

making process v iewed as in f luent ia l wi th in the mainstream l i terature

should a l so be deemed impor tant with in the hote l industr y

Workforce characteristics

Several arguments are made within the HRM literature relating to the potential impact of

workforce characteristics on HRM policy choice Firstly Beer et al (198525) raise the

contention that the motivation capacities and potential of the workforce will restrict policy

choices available to management Similarly Guest (1987) states that many workers will not wish

to show high intrinsic motivation at work and thus attempts to apply innovative HRM techniques

to an established workforce will not always be practical (Guest 1987516) The adoption of HRM

will therefore be restricted if the workforce proves resistant to change or where working

practices are entrenched The take up of HRM may be proportionately higher on greenfield sites

where management are given a clean slate and where they do not have to fight against existing

attitudes and existing systems of industrial relations (Guest and Hoque 1993)

Relating to workforce skill levels Beaumont (199326ndash7) and Keep (1989)

argue that the deficiencies in skills training and in vocational education in

the UK as highlighted by Finegold and Soskice (1988) will potentially hamper

the introduction of HRM Suppor ting this view Hendry and Pettig rew (1990

28) refer to research by Daly Hitchens and Wagner (1985) and Steedman

and Wagner (1987) which examines matched pairs of German and British metal-

working and kitchen furniture manufacturers The research demonstrated that

the lack of availabil ity of worker s with high-level skills in the UK influenced

firmsrsquo decisions to concentrate production on the cheaper mass-produced

end of the market

Existing workforce characteristics are therefore seen as a critical determinant

of the approach taken to HRM within the mainstream HRM literature It is

l ikely that workforce character istics will be viewed as an equally impor tant

determinant within the hotel industry To assess this issue it will be necessary

to evaluate the extent to which the hotel industry workforce is likely to prove

amenable or is l ikely to respond to HRM It may be the case for example

that overall skill and training levels are too low for an HRM approach to

prove viable Similarly resistance to change may present a problem These

questions will need to be addressed if it is to be ascer tained whether the

arguments concerning the influence of workforce characteristics on the approach

taken to HRM discussed within the mainstream literature are relevant within

the hotel industry

The impact of trade unions

It is commonly argued that a trade union presence will militate against the adoption of

HRM Where a union is present union officials might resist the introduction of innovative

HRM practices In particular they are likely to resist practices emphasising direct

communication between management and employees thus bypassing traditional union

collective bargaining channels They are also likely to resist practices attempting to elicit

employee commitment to the organisation and hence result in a reduction of the perceived

need for a trade union amongst the workforce HRM practices Beaumont (199235) claims

with their emphasis on teamwork flexibility employee involvement participation and

commitment lsquodrive a wedgersquo between unions and their members and is therefore logical for

union officials to resist the introduction of such practices

Conver se ly i t has o f ten been argued that a l ac k of t rade unions wi l l

fac i l i t a te the adopt ion of HRM As Beer e t a l (198532ndash3) argue non-

union firms will invest heavily in HRM policies including employment security

g r ievance procedures and open-door pol ic ies maybe of fer ing ter ms and

condi t ions whic h are more generous than those in unionised companies

in order to mainta in the ir non-union s ta tus

However Guest (1995) presents a d i f ferent v iewpoint He argues that

there i s a g reat dea l in common between HRM and trade union object ives

For example both emphas i se the ach ievement o f s tatus reduct ions job

secur i ty sk i l l enhancement and h igh bas ic pay Guest (1995) a l so argues

that muc h of what has been introduced in the UK under the descr ipt ion

of HRM has been p iecemeal unstrateg ic and somewhat ha l f -hear ted and

has had l i t t le impact on performance As such he argues that unions should

champion the introduction of a more strateg ic HRM approach instrumentally

encourag ing management and ass ist ing them in the implementat ion of high-

qua l i ty management pract ices and a l so ensur ing there i s no s l ippage in

the operat ion of those pract ices The unionrsquos ro le therefore becomes one

of lsquo inter na l consul tant rsquo and i s leg i t imated in the eyes o f management a s

they rea l i se the benef i t s o f jo int par tner sh ip This approac h i s suppor ted

by the Trades Union Cong ress (1994) who argue that unions can p lay a

h ighly in f luent ia l ro le in developing a lsquoworld c las s workplacersquo

The debate within the mainstream HRM literature concerning the relationship

between unions and HRM is therefore somewhat inconclusive In the context

of the hote l industry i t wi l l be somewhat d i f f i cu l t to tes t empir ica l ly the

impact of t rade unions on HRM g iven the lac k of recognised trade unions

within the industry Never theless i t wil l be poss ible to develop hypotheses

as to whether managers take advantage of the non-union nature of the industry

to exper iment with new approaches to HRM or to adopt labour-intensifying

or cost -cutt ing pract ices

The impact of labour markets

Beer et al (198531ndash2) argue that where labour market conditions are tight companies are

under increased pressure to ensure the recruitment and retention of the most qualified and

capable employees As such there will be a greater emphasis on policies relating to wages

career advancement and working conditions likely to attract and keep such staff Similarly

Ramsay (1991) claims that under tight labour market conditions managers threatened with

potential control loss will attempt to incorporate the workforce by allowing them to

participate in management decision-making thus stifling conflict As soon as conditions

allow however they return to a more direct approach As far as the hotel industry is

concerned this debate raises the question as to whether there is any labour market pressure

on management to adopt practices that encourage the recruitment and retention of the most

able staff or to adopt practices aimed at averting workforce recalcitrance

Organisation characteristics

It is widely acknowledged that in very small establishments formal HRM practices may be

inappropriate For example effective communication may be achieved via informal face-to-

face contact rather than via expensive and complex formal communication techniques As

such HRM may be inappropriate within small seaside resort hotels employing only a handful

of staff It will therefore be necessary to take into account establishment size when assessing

the extent to which HRM is practised within the hotel industry or at least the level within

the organisation at which it is likely to be practised

National ownership

A body of literature has developed concerning the relationship between ownership and

HRM Examples include the research on Japanese management (for example Oliver and

Wilkinson 1989 1992 Trevor and White 1983 Wickens 1987 Wood 1996) which

demonstrates that Japanese firms on the whole have adopted a more strategic approach to

HRM than have their UK-owned counterparts More recently attention has focused on

establishments from other national origins For example Beaumont Cressey and Jakobsen

(1990) Guest (1996) and Guest and Hoque (1996) find a surprising lack of interest in

techniques associated with an HRM approach amongst German-owned firms operating

within the UK The impact of national ownership on the approach taken to HRM within the

hotel industry is worthy of further consideration particularly if a relationship between HRM

and performance can be identified

Impact of financial markets

According to Kirkpatrick Davies and Oliver (1992132) and Purcell (1989 69ndash71) there

has been a rapid trend towards diversification and divisional-isation within the UK This is

because in the UK the stock market emphasis on short-term financial results has encouraged

a policy of decentralisation as companies attempt to ensure a regular positive cash-flow by

operating in a range of product markets all of which will mature at different times (Sisson

and Storey 1990) This in turn has led to the adoption of M-form company organisation

which is seen as the best way of managing a diversified business The enterprise is therefore

not seen as a unified business but as a collection of businesses

However M-form structures render infeasible the concept of a corporate-

wide HR strategy This i s because eac h segment of the business wil l require

d i f ferent approac hes to HRM depending upon the product market and

upon the s tage in the product l i fe-cyc le reac hed HRM dec i s ion-making

is therefore devolved to divis ional level In the absence of an HRM presence

at corporate level however financial cr iteria management accounting tighter

shor t-r un f inanc ia l control s (Ar mstrong 1989) and h igh accountab i l i ty o f

d iv i s iona l prof i t s (Purcel l 1989) wi l l come to dominate Suc h pressure

to achieve results in financial terms will preclude the longer term developmental

activit ies relevant to the lsquosoftrsquo motivation and commitment-or iented aspects

of HRM (Kirkpatrick Davies and Oliver 1992142ndash3) Even if line management

had an interest in pursuing HRM goals or where the product market suggested

HRM to be applicable such approaches would be precluded by the immediate

imperative of short-term financial performance targets imposed by the corporate

centre (S i s son and Storey 1990)

According to Storey (199243) the arguments presented above may well

be over s ta ted He s tates that there i s cons iderable var i at ion between the

HR policies adopted by the divisions within M-form companies which suggests

that there are other factor s in f luenc ing management behav iour other than

simply company structure He questions whether or not it would be possible

to develop unit level HR strateg ies without corporate management suppor t

and a l so notes that compet i t ion for investment funds with in a g roup i s

o f ten dependent upon the ab i l i ty to demonstrate that advances have been

made in ter ms of HRM

Never the less the re levance of th i s debate to the hote l industry wi l l

depend upon whether there is any pressure from decentralisation as described

by Ar mstrong (1989) Kirkpatr ic k Davies and Ol iver (1992) and Purcel l

(1989) with in the hote l industry I f so i t wi l l a l so be poss ible to tes t the

extent to which that pressure i s l ikely to res tr ic t the adopt ion of an HRM

approach

Summary

This chapter has developed a framework that outlines the models of HRM as presented by

Beer et al (1984) Guest (1987) and Walton (1985) and highlights the factors that are likely

to encourage or restrict the implementation of the approach to HRM as encapsulated within

those models The framework demonstrates that the likely adoption of HRM is dependent

upon a range of influences relating to product markets the resourcing of the personnel

department the ability of managers to handle change effectively workforce characteristics

union presence labour market conditions organisational size national ownership and

financial markets

The a im of th i s book i s to tes t the va l id i ty o f th i s f ramework with in a

ser v ice industr y context namely the hote l industr y The f i r s t tes t o f the

relevance of HRM in the hotel industry concerns the extent to which practices

associated with an HRM approach have been adopted The second test concerns

the factor s that are l ikely to in f luence the approac h taken to HRM in

par t icular whether the factor s v iewed as inf luent ia l within the mainstream

HRM l i terature are a l so v iewed as impor tant with in the hote l industry I f

manager s within the industry have to contend with a range of contingencies

not taken into account with in the mainstream debates the suggest ion wi l l

be that the hote ls are indeed somehow lsquodi f ferentrsquo and that the framework

out l ined above i s o f l imited re levance

The final test of the relevance of HRM within the hotel industry concerns

the re lat ionship between HRM and perfor mance This i s a cr i t ica l quest ion

concerning the applicability of HRMmdashit would only prove sensible to encourage

the wider adopt ion of HRM in the industry i f i t can be demonstrated that

HRM has a contr ibut ion to make to super ior per for mance

The book tests these issues in the following manner The following chapter

examines the factor s that wi l l potent ia l ly in f luence the approac h taken

to HRM with in the hote l industr y and develops hypotheses re la t ing to

the l ike ly impact o f these f actor s This c hapter a l so develops hypotheses

concerning the impact of factors not discussed within the mainstream literature

that are cons idered impor tant with in the hote l industry In drawing out

the differences and similarities between the factors seen as potential influences

on the approach taken to HRM discussed with in the two sets of l i terature

this i s a key c hapter in determining the appl icabi l i ty of HRM theory within

a hote l industr y context

The subsequent chapters test the hypotheses developed taking a quantitative

empir ical approach to examine the extent to whic h HRM has been adopted

the factor s influencing the approach taken to HRM and also the relationship

between HRM and organi sat iona l per for mance Chapter 3 introduces the

empir ica l under pinning of the book namely the 1995 Sur vey of Human

Resource Management in the Hote l Industry Data generated with in th i s

survey are compared with data from a sample of manufactur ing establishments

to as sess f rom a comparat ive per spect ive the extent to whic h pract ices

assoc ia ted with an HRM approach have been adopted with in the industr y

Chapter 4 uses data from the 1995 Sur vey of Human Resource Management

in the Hote l Industry to examine empir ica l ly the factor s in f luenc ing the

approach taken to HRM Chapter 5 provides a cor roborat ion of the resul ts

ac h ieved with in Chapter s 3 and 4 f rom a qua l i tat ive per spect ive

Chapter 6 looks at perfor mance issues A number of studies have recently

ascer ta ined a l ink between HRM and per for mance These s tudies inc lude

Ar thur (1994) Guest and Hoque (1994b 1996) Huselid (1995) Ichniowski

Shaw and Prennushi (1994) and MacDuffie (1995) Chapter 6 assesses whether

s imi lar per for mance e f fects can be ident i f ied with in the hote l industr y

In a s imi lar ve in to the mult ivar iate ana lyses under taken with in ear l ier

s tudies o f the impact o f HRM on per for mance th i s c hapter eva luates the

relat ionship between HRM and perfor mance within the hotel industry and

also the circumstances within which HRM contributes to superior performance

1 Littler (198919) estimates that in 1982 only about 14 million people worked in a massproduction industry and the number of direct workers on the line was only half thatnumber

2 Is there a role for HRMin the hotel industry

This chapter has two main aims The first is to examine existing character-isations of HRM in the hotel

industry The industry has been conventionally characterised as labour intensive and exploitative with there

being little or no scope for developmental approaches to HRM especially where more junior staff grades

are concerned In addition hotel industry managers have often been accused of lacking long-term strategic

vision

The second aim of the chapter is to begin to examine the factors that influence

decision-making in relation to HRM within the industry This will not only enable

the development of testable hypotheses concerning the factors that are likely to

influence the approach taken to HRM within hotels but it will also enable an

analysis of the extent to which the factors commonly seen as important influences

on HRM within the mainstream literature are also seen as important by hotel industry

researchers The extent to which there is common ground between the two is an

important test of the relevance of mainstream HRM theory within the hotel industry

Within the hotel industry literature whether or not the influences discussed

suggest a potential role for HRM is by no means a clear-cut issue There are compelling

arguments to suggest that tight cost control is essential if hotels are to remain

competitively viable However there are also equally compelling arguments that

as service quality becomes increasingly important for competitive success so does

the need for a committed and motivated workforce and management will not achieve

this commitment if they treat their workers as disposable resources However even

if service quality is considered important policy choice may be restricted by a

lack of workforce willingness to change entrenched working patterns and employment

instability for example These arguments will be looked at in the second part of

the chapter

The first section looks at the research under taken to date that character ises

the management of human resources in the hote l industry

Is there a role for HRM in the hotel industry 23

What characterises HRM in the hotel industry

Considerable debate has emerged recently concerning the degree of experimentation with

new approaches to HRM within the hotel industry Conventionally descriptions of the

industry have emphasised an autocratic management style and a reluctance on the part of

managers to allow employees any influence over work processes or their working

environment (Macfarlane 198239) Managementrsquos primary strategic control has tended to

emphasise a tight control over costs

This conventional depiction is supported by a number of empirical studies

For example Guerrier and Lockwood (1989a86ndash7) found that that where hotels

had experimented with joint consultative committees project teams staff development

exercises and employee involvement such initiatives had more to do with increasing

management control rather than developing a sense of commitment

Halesrsquo (1987) survey yielded encouraging results at first glance concerning

the extent to which HRM-type practices had been adopted Of the 32 establishments

within his sample none had worker directors only 22 per cent had autonomous

work groups and only 15 per cent used quality circles However job rotation

was found in 55 per cent of hotels job enlargement in 68 per cent job enrichment

in 59 per cent project teams in 68 per cent and works councils in 43 per cent

These percentages Hales (1987263) concedes might have been somewhat

h igh in that only those with someth ing to repor t may have repl ied to the

quest ionnaire More impor tant ly though a more in-depth analys is revealed

a considerable emphasis on labour intensification and a high degree of managerial

control As became ev ident in the 15 fo l low-up inter v iews the manner

in whic h the respondents inter preted the meaning of the pract ices a sked

about var ied g reat ly In some establ i shments job rotat ion s imply meant

management moving between depar tments Job enr ichment and enlargement

were on the whole used to g ive extra respons ib i l i ty to spec i f i c s ta f f

often management or as a means of rat ional is ing the management structure

in order to reduce headcount Individual development tended to be considered

a s ide- i s sue The works counci l s found with in the sur vey were of ten used

s imply to leg i t imate manager ia l dec i s ions or to d i scuss rout ine matter s

suc h as menus or s ta f f un i for ms Project teams were only in ev idence at

management leve l

The pr imary intent ions behind the introduct ion of the techniques asked

about within the survey were therefore either to enhance manager ial control

or to improve productivity via job loading No attempt was made to disguise

th is Indeed Hales (1987271) s tates that there was a readiness on the par t

of management to admit that tec hniques were used for these pur poses

Also most in i t i at ives appl ied exc lus ive ly to management there be ing a

general perception that non-management employees did not want any greater

respons ib i l i ty

Lockwood and Guerrier (1989) found a similar lack of interest in developmental

approac hes to HRM in the ir s tudy of 15 major UK hote l g roups Only

one company d i sp layed any ev idence of funct iona l f lex ib i l i ty and mult i -

sk i l l ing Shor t- ter m contracts were used to dea l with seasona l var i at ion

and par t - t ime working was used to dea l with da i ly or weekly var i at ion

Such practices reflected a manager ial desire to run a lsquot ight shiprsquo mdashmatching

headcount to var i at ions in demand as c lose ly as poss ible A fur ther s tudy

under taken by Guer r ier and Lockwood (1989b) looked more for mal ly a t

the issue of functional and numer ical f lexibil ity with reference to Atkinsonrsquos

(1984) core-per iphery model They found that management a lone f i t ted

the descr ipt ion of lsquocompanyrsquo core s ta f fmdash those who had career prospects

were multi-skilled and were geographically flexible They found little evidence

of the development of inter na l career paths with up to 80 per cent o f

vacanc ies be ing f i l led f rom the exter na l l abour market

This rel iance on numer ical f lexibi l i ty has a lso been demonstrated within

macro-level research looking at emerging employment trends in the industry

Looking a t the hospi ta l i ty industry as a whole between 1971 and 1981

there was an increase in number s employed from 680000 to 922000 a

36 per cent g rowth rate whic h far outs tr ipped that o f ser v ices a s a whole

whic h saw a 15 per cent increase over the same per iod (Robinson and

Wal lace 1984) However th i s job g rowth was due a lmost ent i rely to a

g rowth in par t - t ime working Of the 242000 jobs created 192000 were

accounted for by women and 38000 by men working less than 30 hour s a

week Ful l - t ime female employment actua l ly fe l l by 4000 with male fu l l -

t ime jobs increas ing by only 18000 By 1981 par t- t ime working in the

industry const i tuted 57 per cent o f male tota l employment and 67 per

cent o f tota l female employment

This trend cont inued into the 1980s Using Depar tment of Employment

quar ter ly es t imates and the New Ear nings Sur vey to examine job g rowth

in the hospital ity industry Lucas (1993) found that between 1980 and 1990

employment in the industry g rew to 1256 mi l l ion Growth was fa s ter in

the la t ter par t of the decade in response to the consumer boom However

as in the 1970s the main area of job g rowth was in par t-t ime employment

What i s more there was a d i spropor t ionate g rowth in par t - t ime worker s

working less than 16 hour s per week This may par t ly have been expla ined

by the g rowth in young worker s in the fa s t food sector and the g rowing

pressure on young people such as students to join the labour market Nevertheless

the trend towards the increased use of par t - t ime working would seem to

indicate manage-mentrsquos penchant for numerically flexible labour Such working

patterns enable wage bills to be reduced as employers can avoid both National

Insurance contr ibut ions and a l so the provi s ion of s tatutor y benef i t s such

as mater n i ty leave and s ic k pay (Lucas 199325)

However whi le many studies under taken in the past have revealed l i t t le

interes t in HRM in the hote l industr y a g rowing number of more recent

studies are beg inning to suggest a different picture For example Harr ington

and Akehur st (1996) found that 87 per cent o f hote l s with in the ir sample

considered quality to be a strategic concern with 82 per cent having invested

resources to t ra in employees in qua l i ty-re la ted endeavour s Anastassova

and Purcel l (1995) found that manager s par t icularly those in larger hotels

had moved away from a directive and autocratic style towards a consultative

approac h They a l so found manager s to have been tra ined in Tota l Qual i ty

Management and regarding themselves as practising HRM rather than personnel

management

In a s imi lar ve in Buick and Muthu (1997) found with in the ir sur vey

of hote l s in Scot land that the deve lopment o f in ter na l l abour markets

and career development had assumed an increased impor tance Watson and

DrsquoAnnunzio-Green (1996) in their study of two large hotels found appraisal

sys tems t ra in ing and development communicat ion sys tems and extens ive

consul ta t ion had been introduced in order to suppor t a cu l ture of ser v ice

quality Gilbert and Guerrier (1997122) argue that managers have increasingly

taken on board not ions o f empower ment and teamworking and the need

to devolve respons ib i l i ty to lower leve l s

However re f lect ing the development of cons iderable deba te over the

extent to whic h there has been c hange within the industry in recent year s

not a l l the recent accounts demonstrate an improvement For example

Pr ice (199452) argues that there is a worrying lack of basic professionalism

in the conduct o f per sonnel management With in her sample only 39 per

cent refer red to a l l the terms and condit ions st ipulated in the Employment

Protect ion Consol idat ion Act (1978) and only 24 percent re fer red to a l l

the discipl inary procedures in the Arbitrat ion Concil iat ion Advisory Ser vice

(ACAS) code of practice Word-of-mouth contact remained the most common

source of recr uitment for low-ski l l s ta f f While Pr ice (1994) concedes that

there may have been a deg ree of improvement among larger hote l s she

concludes that there remains a dearth of sophisticated human resource practices

within the industry Indeed she argues that researc h on employment-related

issues within an HRM framework would be meaningless g iven that the industry

i s so far removed from the HRM lsquo idea l typersquo (Pr ice 199448)

S imi lar ly Lucas (199590) mainta ins that a l ac k of innovat ion remains

the nor m with in the industry and she argues that there i s l i t t le ev idence

that any kind of HRM approach is being followed even among larger organisations

Although conceding that the data are not sufficient for a definitive conclusion

she suggests that the industry would f it within the lsquobadrsquo or lsquouglyrsquo categor ies

of the typology presented by Guest and Hoque (1994b) or the bleak environments

descr ibed by S i s son (1993) Teare (1996) suppor ts th i s pos i t ion arguing

that a l though some organi sa t ions are beg inning to exper iment with new

techniques the bulk of the evidence suggests that the sector remains bound

by trad i t iona l working methods and employment pract ices

Factors influencing HRM decision-making in thehotel industry

As demonstrated above the conventional view of the hotel industry is that it remains

backward in its approach to HRM Where innovative management techniques have been

experimented with they have been used primarily to intensify work effort rather than to

enhance commitment

Whi le there has been some recent debate over the extent to whic h th i s

conventional picture remains val id with a few studies presenting anecdotal

accounts o f exper imentat ion with new HRM techniques other s cont inue

to repor t the industry as s t i l l f a i l ing to adopt a more s tra teg ic approac h

The next sect ion a ims to develop hypotheses a s to why th i s might be the

case consider ing the factor s that might influence HRM policy choice within

the hote l industry The fo l lowing sect ion a l so assesses the extent to whic h

there is common ground between the influences on HRM considered impor tant

in the mainstream HRM l i terature and the inf luences considered impor tant

with in the hote l industry

Product markets and competitive strategy

The impact of product markets on the approach taken to HRM is emphasised within the

situational contingency models presented by Kochan and Barocci (1985) Miles and Snow

(1984) Schuler and Jackson (1987) and Tichy Fombrun and Devanna (1982) These models

discussed within the first chapter all emphasise the relationship between product markets

and business strategy and the relationship between business strategy and HRM policy choice

The models suggest that where there is scope for diversity in business strategies within any

given industry there is likewise scope for diversity in the approaches taken to HRM

Are product markets a l so v iewed as an impor tant in f luence on HRM

pol ic y c hoice with in the hote l industry Perhaps not surpr i s ing ly g iven

the nature of the hote l industry as a consumer ser v ice product market

s igna l s are indeed seen to have a cons iderable impact Moreover a s i s the

case with in the mainstream HRM l i terature ( see for example P iore and

Sabel 1984 Hyman 1991 Pol ler t 1991) the prec i se nature of product

markets i s sub ject to debate A few commentator s cons ider the market to

be pr ice- led whi le many increas ing ly cons ider qua l i ty enhancement to be

the key to competitive success The following section looks at these viewpoints

in deta i l

Price competition

In an examination of consumer trends Shamir (1978302) argues that hotel clientele is

increasingly being drawn from a wider social base A declining proportion of the market is

looking for the sort of personalised service offered in the days when the industry catered

solely for the higher classes While service quality remains important what is now required

is adherence to standards guaranteeing a certain level of quality rather than customised

quality tailored to suit the needs of individual customers

Shamir (1978302ndash3) also argues that tec hnological change in par ticular

the introduct ion of vending mac hines and tec hnology enabl ing customer

self-service facil itates increased product automation and a decrease in direct

customermdashstaff contact This render s the ser vice process more controllable

and more eas i ly gover nable by r u les and regulat ions Suc h mechanisa t ion

i s found in par t icu lar according to Shamir in budget hote l c ha ins where

standardisat ion of ser vice i s marketed as an assurance of a speci f ied deg ree

of ser v ice qua l i ty

This viewpoint is suppor ted by research conducted by Larmour (198391)

who found manager s to emphas i se the impor tance of cost control more

than the impor tance of qua l i ty enhancement Fol lowing in-depth semi-

structured inter views with 42 manager s he found that in response to r is ing

costs and the reduced spending power of customers hotels had implemented

cost-cutt ing exerc i ses and focused on pr ice i s sues with in the ir market ing

s tra teg ies Of cour se th i s f ind ing may be re la ted to the t ime the researc h

was under taken (dur ing the recess ion of the ear ly 1980s) but i t may have

had a cyc l ica l re levance in the ear ly 1990s

I f i t i s the case that consumer trends facing the hotel industry emphasise

the need for a cost-cutting approach to competitive strategy the appropr iate

HRM strategy may well involve an emphasis on deski l l ing and routinisat ion

I f so then the autocrat ic cost -consc ious approach to the management of

human resources within the industry descr ibed by Hales (1987) Lockwood

and Guerr ier (1989) and Macfarlane (1982) could well be a rational strateg ic

response to the product market cont ingenc ies f ac ing manager s with in the

industry

Quality enhancement

Contrary to the opinions expressed above many writers within the field (Callan 1994496

Haywood 1983165 Kokko and Moilanen 1997297 Lewis 198783 Nightingale 19859

Pye 19941) argue that as in manufacturing the satisfaction of evolving customer quality

expectations is increasingly more important than price competition and any hotel that does

not strive to improve its service quality will lose competitiveness As Rajan (198793) states

success is increasingly dependent on awareness of consumer tastes and on quality of service

Extras he claims are becoming essentials

The quality enhancement imperative is exacerbated according to Olsen

(19895) by the fact that the market is reaching matur ity As the market exits

its growth phase the generation of new business becomes dependent on the

ability to increase market share This in turn is dependent upon the abil ity

to provide quality and choice of ser vice According to Senior and Morphew

(1990 6) the competitive pressure to compete on quality does not apply to

the top luxury hotels alone but to the budget sector s also

Ser vice quality may well be increasingly cr itical to competitive success

but defining what exactly is meant by lsquoservice qualityrsquo is somewhat more problematic

It is according to Lewis (198784) an elusive concept which implies much

more than adherence to tang ible quality standards such as clean rooms the

correct number of bar s of soap in the wash rooms or meals ser ved at the

right temperature Lewis suggests that service quality exists along three dimensions

Technical quality concerns the quality of the bed and meal for example and

functional quality concerns the quality of the ser vice process itself Together

these two create subjective perceptions relating to lsquoimagersquo the third quality

dimension Similarly Nightingale (198510) suggests that service quality has

four components these being the quality of consumable physical goods such

as the food in a restaurant the quality of facilities the quality of interactions

with those providing the service and finally the quality of information about

the ser vice Jones (198393) suggests that quality should be viewed as a lsquovalue

packagersquo or a lsquobenefit bundlersquo which includes the ser vice and atmosphere as

well as the food and beverages Customer perceptions of quality involve the

whole synergy rather than the sum of the constituent par ts

While lsquoservice qualityrsquo might be difficult to define it is par ticularly notable

that within all the definitions of ser vice quality considerable impor tance is

placed on the nature of the interaction between the individual employee and

the customer at the point of service in terms of politeness overall professionalism

and the speed and thoroughness with which any problems can be addressed

As Mattsson (199448) comments the customer is inextr icably l inked to the

provision of the service As such the interaction between employee and customer

is a cr itical par t of the overall service product and cr itical to the customerrsquos

perception of the quality of that product

However ensur ing a high quality interaction at the point of service is no

easy task Fir stly management cannot monitor or supervise every interaction

so much responsibil ity for ensur ing a high quality of ser vice has to be left to

the individual contact person (Mattsson 199453) Secondly no two ser vice

interactions are ever identical and some customer requests may require unique

responses As such employees have to deal with a higher degree of uncer tainty

within their job roles than they would do if they were working within a manufacturing

environment (Schaffer 1984164) and they must be capable of tailor ing the

ser vice to lsquosuitrsquo individual customers Thirdly high quality ser vice provision

represents the ultimate in lsquoright-fir st-timersquo The customer expects performance

of certain functions without failure and the need to make corrective or compensating

actions will detract from the overall perception of quality particularly if problems

cannot be remedied quickly (Haywood 1983168ndash9) Hence an extremely

high degree of impor tance is attached to the job role performed by front-

line staff Indeed the high degree of impor tance attached to front-line staff

is emphasised within Nailonrsquos statement that

any combination of technology decor architecture sales promotion management

information systems or other sophisticated management techniques can be copied

The only unique asset of a commercial hospitality operation is the staff at the end of

the delivery system

Nailon (198977)

Matts son (199457) and Kokko and Moi lanen (1997299) argue that

front- l ine s ta f f are so impor tant that hote l organi sa t iona l c har t s should

be inver ted with the front-line employee at the top of the lsquoinverted pyramidrsquo

and management and al l backroom functions providing suppor t to the front-

line featur ing lower down the pyramid As within the models of HRM presented

by Guest (1987) Walton (1985) and Beer et al (1984) front-l ine employees

are v iewed as the organi sa t ionrsquos most impor tant a s set be ing capable o f

ac h iev ing and sus ta in ing compet i t ive advantage

However g iven the uncer tainty of the ser vice del ivery process i t i s not

possible to prescr ibe or routinise job tasks to ensure qual i ty standards as

the service process must account for the potential individuality of each customerrsquos

needs and the need to lsquota i lorrsquo the ser vice to suit individual customers For

example scr ipts for waiter ing staff or receptionists cannot take into account

the degree of complexity of customer behaviour Similarly quality assurances

and procedures der ived from manufactur ing for example BS 5750 which

focus on aspects of the production process would lead to a product rather

than a ser vice or ientat ionmdashemphasis ing for example properly made up

beds or c lean kitchens rather than the qual i ty of the interact ion at the

point of ser vice del ivery (Cal lan 1994486ndash9 Johns 19924ndash5) Suc h a

focus may not necessar ily address all the issues the customer sees as impor tant

As such several writers within the hotel industry emphasise the importance

of the development of employee commitment to service quality goals and

the development of competencies to enable staff to operate more effectively

within wider job roles For example Jones (198394) Lashley (199531 1996

344) Lefever and Reich (1991308) Wycott (1984) and Haywood (1983) all

emphasise the development of shared values and commitment to quality enhancement

Jones (198394) Lefever and Reich (1991308) Wycott (1984) and Haywood

(1983166) stress the impor tance of communication par ticipation and job

satisfaction Drawing on Peters and Waterman (1982) Lefever and Reich (1991309ndash

10) state that management in the industry should emphasise innovation informality

and a people orientation rather than a cost-conscious formal control orientation

The emphasis on commitment employee development and employee involvement

within the hotel industry literature is clearly congruent with the human resource

goals emphasised within the models of HRM presented by Guest (1987) Walton

(1985) and Beer et al (1984) In addition the justifica-tions offered concerning

the impor tance of commitment echo those found within the HRM literature

For example Jones and Davies (1991) argue that the development of workforce

commitment to the goals of ser vice quality is essential i f author ity is to be

devolved to the front-line in order that problems may be dealt with at source

Committed workers are also more likely to contribute to continuous improvement

processes Indeed because operative-level staff are in constant close contact

with customers and as such possess a considerable amount of knowledge in

relation to customer perceptions Nightingale (198518) sees their contr ibution

to continuous improvement processes as essential The development of workforce

commitment to quality is essential if this knowledge is to be tapped effectively

Fur thermore as within the Beer et al (1984) Guest (1987) and Walton

(1985) models of HRM the development of workforce commitment is viewed

within the hotel industry l iterature as dependent upon the introduction of a

specific set of HRM practices For example with reference to recruitment

and training Jones (198398ndash9) attaches impor tance to the careful selection

of those most l ikely to respond to a par ticipative management style and also

to training in social skills to enhance sensitivity to customer needs King (1984

92) suggests the need to screen out candidates that are unable to handle stress

and to screen out candidates with a directive rather than a supportive leadership

style Mills (198639ndash43) recommends per sonality testing to identify those

with an ability to empathise with customers Pye (19942) stresses the importance

of more sophisticated recruitment techniques to identify individuals with the

appropr iate lsquoser vice or ientationrsquo

Such an approach is also seen as having major implications for management

style For example Nightingale (19859) stresses managersrsquo participative role

as facilitators and providers of information Ross (1995) suggests that an empathetic

management in the eyes of employees may lead to a more positive and contented

workforce Mattsson (1994) comments that if the r ight values are to be nurtured

among staff it is essential that management adopt a lsquoservice leadershiprsquo approach

More specifically

hellipmanagers really should build a service climate and serve in a supportive function

by inspiring and communicating high quality standards The manager would then

become more of a coach than a bosshellip

(Mattsson 199456)

Lefever and Reic h (1991308) argue that qual i ty va lues should be taken

into account in long-ter m strateg ic p lanning at senior management leve l s

This would prevent organi sa t ions f rom re ly ing so le ly on shor t- ter m cost

measures or s imply the measurable aspects o f per for mance

To summar ise there i s a s trong argument that a focus on ser vice qual i ty

i s the key to compet i t ive advantage with in the hote l industry and a l so

that service quality cannot be improved by task prescription and routinisation

What is needed is a well-trained and professional workforce that is committed

to the ac h ievement of qua l i ty goa l s This in tur n i s dependent upon the

introduct ion of a spec i f ic approac h to HRM

This discuss ion of the inf luence of product markets clearly demonstrates

that whi le there i s some lac k of consensus concer ning emerg ing consumer

trends with in the hote l industry the nature o f product markets with in

the hote l industry l i teraturemdashas with in the mainstream HRM l i teraturemdash

is seen as a key deter minant o f the approac h taken to HRM

It i s a lso clear that a paradox exists within the hotel industry l i terature

The major ity of wr iter s have argued for some time that quality enhancement

i s the key to e f fect iveness However with the except ion of a few very

recent accounts the major i ty o f empir ica l s tudies have suggested a l ac k

of interes t in the approac hes to HRM that are the most l ike ly to suppor t

a qua l i ty enhancer s trategy This suggest s a mismatc h between emergent

consumer trends and both the bus iness s t ra tegy and HRM strategy that

have been adopted with in the major i ty o f hote l s One poss ib i l i ty i s that

there may be factor s other than those re lat ing to product markets that

mi l i tate aga ins t the adopt ion of an HRM approac h Al ter nat ively i t could

be that there i s noth ing par t icular ly s trateg ic about management dec i s ion-

making in the hotel industry As discussed in the previous chapter achieving

a matc h between bus iness s t rategy and HR strategy and between bus iness

s tra tegy and the product market i s by no means s tra ight forward (Legge

1995 Mabey and Salaman 1995) If strategy is emergent rather than planned

for example or where HR lacks boardroom representation such a mismatch

becomes a poss ib i l i ty The next sect ion looks f i r s t ly at th i s l ike l ihood

and then a t other factor s that might mi l i tate aga ins t the adopt ion of HRM

with in the industr y

How lsquostrategicrsquo is management in the hotel industry

Is it the case that managers in the hotel industry systematically analyse the product market in

which their hotel operates and then adopt a business strategy and the HR strategy most

appropriate to that market analysis Probably not according to Haywood (1983170) who

claims there to be a widespread belief within the industry that managers are able to identify

intuitively causes of customer dissatisfaction and rectify them immediately Haywood

continues by suggesting that unless formal techniques such as quality audits are used to

discover customer perceptions of service quality management will tend to focus on the

tangible more controllable aspects of the service such as cleanliness rather than on less

measurable aspects such as staff politeness The implication of his argument is that as few

hotels operate systematic mechanisms by which managers can find out what customers view

as important the development of a customer-oriented business strategy driven by customer

preferences is unlikely

Supporting this view Guerrier and Lockwood (1989a82ndash3) claim that management

in the industry reflects a lsquohands onrsquo lsquooperationalrsquo perspective character ised

by a preference for dealing with real lsquoliversquo problems and a focus on day-to-

day functioning and short time horizons rather than a reflective lsquobusiness perspectiversquo

approach characterised by strategic thought on how to best develop the business

It would seem therefore that conscious planned business strategy-making does

not figure much within the industry In such a situation as descr ibed by Legge

(1995) the link between product markets business strategy and HR strategy

will be lost It is highly unlikely that the appropr iate HR strategy will emerge

where managers in the first instance have failed to identify the business strategy

appropr iate to emerging market trends

Why the focus on operational issues and a lack of a lsquobusiness per spectiversquo

as descr ibed by Guerr ier and Lockwood (1989a) One view is that there are

shor tfalls in terms of management training The management apprenticeship

system has tended to emphasise the operational rather than strateg ic aspects

of hotel management Trainee managers moving between hotels to gain experience

in a number of f ields f ind themselves dealing with consecutive operational

cr ises never having the oppor tunity to analyse the root cause of problems

Thus the skills developed tend to be those necessary to deal with operational

issuesmdashsuch as how to car ve salmonmdashrather than the skills necessary to deal

with business-related issues such as how to use a spreadsheet or develop a

marketing plan (Guerr ier and Lockwood 1989a84)

As a solution several writers urge for greater attention to be paid to management

training and development For example Kelliher and Johnson (1987 107)

state that management should be made more conscious of the potential contribution

of the per sonnel function and that those involved in per sonnel management

should be trained in the relevant skills Similarly Kane (1986 51) claims

that training in the proper application of per sonnel management is essential

to reduce the industryrsquos chronic productivity and job satisfaction problems

Haywood (1983170) suggests that training managers in the use of quality

audits would help to address shortcomings relating to strategic business planning

A quality audit Haywood claims would reveal the complexity and volatil ity

of the ser vice process Managers would realise that a focus on cost control

would fail to meet customer expectations and they would subsequently realise

the need for a responsive and empowered workforce

Is it realistic however to argue that management training in quality audits

and in the appl icat ion of cer tain per sonnel or HRM tec hniques wil l have

much of an impact As previously noted Guerr ier and Loc kwood (1989a82)

argue that hotel management tends to be lsquohands onrsquo with an emphasis on

dealing with real lsquol iversquo problems and operating on short time hor izons rather

than taking a long-ter m ref lect ive approac h This s i tuat ion has developed

over time from traditional hotel industry organisational culture in par ticular

manager srsquo tradit ional roles as welcoming hosts This in tur n has led to a

culture that over-emphasises the impor tance of front-of-house and food and

beverage functions and the impor tance of being seen to lsquobe therersquo (Guerr ier

and Lockwood 1989a) This bias within management culture itsel f mil i tates

against the adoption of a more business-or iented approach as the prevail ing

culture dictates that i t i s more impor tant to be seen to be deal ing with

shor t-term operat ional di f f icult ies per sonal ly rather than to be concer ned

with longer-ter m business development Breaking away from this culture

will be diff icult Manager s have some degree of choice as to how they define

their roles but those who get on careerwise tend to be those who def ine

their roles as the senior management sees fit (Guerrier and Lockwood 1989a83)

I f the hotelrsquos management style i s lsquohands onrsquo then there wil l be pressure

on junior manager s to fol low suit and mimic the management style of their

super ior s irrespective of skills learned in an off-the-job classroom or college

training situation The effective introduction of a business-or iented approach

would therefore involve a quest ioning of some of the fundamental aspects

of existing management style and would require a significant cultural change

throughout the entire organisat ion (Guer r ier and Lockwood 1989a88)

Therefore b laming a lack of management tra in ing for a l ac k of interest

in HRM or suggest ing that improvements can be made i f manager s are

tra ined in HRM tec hniques over looks the fact that t rad i t iona l approac hes

to management would have to change at every level throughout the organisation

Whereas th i s does not mean that change i s imposs ible the fact that such

thoroughgoing c hange in management s ty le would be necessary i s perhaps

a fur ther reason why interes t in HRM is so l imited Manager s would have

to be very conf ident that suc h a major upheava l in s ty le and cul ture in

the shor t- ter m would pay d iv idends in the future

Therefore i f management in the industry i s a s suggested by Guer r ier

and Loc kwood (1989a) c haracter i sed by a concer n for operat iona l i s sues

i t i s qu i te poss ible that manager s are unaware of what the ir customer s

see as impor tant in ter ms of qua l i ty o f ser v ice and even i f management

are aware of a need for a g reater emphas i s on ser v ice qua l i ty i t may be

the case that they are unaware of the approaches to HRM required to achieve

i t or are prevented from exper imenting by entrenched management styles

There i s a s t rong argument therefore that even where product market

contingencies suggest the applicability of an HRM approach managers themselves

present a s tumbl ing bloc k to i t s introduct ion

Therefore a s wi th in the mains tream HRM l i terature i s sues re lat ing

to the s tra tegy-making process and the ab i l i ty o f management to handle

change are seen as h ighly inf luent ia l in deter mining the l ikely development

of HRM with in the hote l industry There i s c lear common g round between

the HRM l i terature and the hote l industry l i terature on these i s sues

Nature and influence of the personnel department

The existence of a well-developed personnel function is a precursor for the introduction of

HRM as argued by Guest and Hoque (1994a) and Marginson et al (1993) within the

mainstream literature Within the hotel industry there is an increasing consensus that the

number of personnel specialists is much higher than has previously been acknowledged

Boella (198630) estimates that prior to the 1963 Contracts of Employment Act there were

only about 20 personnel managers in the UK hotel industry The profession began to grow

following the introduction of the Act which required employers to provide written terms

and conditions and pay records The 1970s according to Boella (1986) saw a growth in the

number of personnel specialists and a growth in the number of boardroom personnel

specialists in the industry During the 1980s a maturing process took place with the

number of specialist personnel managers in the industry many of whom had experience of

personnel management elsewhere continuing to rise

The available empir ical evidence increasingly suppor ts Boellarsquos argument

at leas t with re ference to the number of per sonnel spec ia l i s t s wi th in the

industry For example Lucas (1996) us ing data f rom the th ird Workplace

Industr ial Relat ions Sur vey (WIRS3) found that within hotels and cater ing

there was a h igher inc idence of e i ther a manager respons ible for per sonnel

i s sues or a spec ia l i s t per sonnel manager than in other par t s o f the trad ing

sector Manager s respons ible for per sonnel were a l so bet ter qua l i f ied and

were more l ikely to be suppor ted by a team of bac k-up s ta f f S imi lar ly

Pr ice (1994) found the same propor t ion of the hote l s with in her sample

to have a specia l i s t as within WIRS3 and that the hotel industry specia l i s ts

were equa l ly wel l qua l i f ied

Other surveys also suggest that the number of per sonnel specialists within

the industry has increased Kelliher and Johnson (1987) found that while the

presence of a specialist was related heavily to size 96 per cent of hotels with

200 rooms or more had a personnel specialist plus back-up team By contrast

only 14 per cent of establishments with 100 rooms or less had a per sonnel

specialist In a follow-up sur vey conducted a decade later looking at hotels

with 150 rooms or more they found 88 per cent of establishments to have a

full-time member of staff responsible for per sonnel matter s (Kell iher and

Johnson 1997)

While there is significant agreement relating to the extent to which the

number of specialist per sonnel managers has r isen within the hotel industry

there is a higher degree of debate over the extent to which those personnel

specialists are l ikely to potentially champion the introduction of HRM Pr ice

(1994) suggests that despite the evidence of a growth in the number of personnel

specialists there remains a worrying lack of basic professionalism in the conduct

of personnel management Similarly Lucas (1996) argues that despite the apparently

high degree of per sonnel specialists the industry continues to suffer poor

industr ial relations outcomes relating to quit rates recourse to the gr ievance

procedure and the rate of dismissals The role of per sonnel specialists in the

industry may have more to do with the adminis-tration of these activities

than with the development of more sophisticated approaches to HRM

However other studies paint a more positive picture Kelliher and Johnson

(1987) or ig inally drew similar conclusions to those reached by Pr ice (1994)

though the ev idence with in the ir fo l low-up sur vey (Kel l iher and Johnson

1997) suggests that per sonnel depar tments within the industry have become

increas ing ly sophis t icated In the ir ear l ier s tudy they found that ha l f o f

the respondents had never had any prev ious per sonnel exper ience Most

had worked the ir way up through l ine management the ir knowledge of

per sonnel being acquired on the job Only one respondent had an Inst i tute

of Per sonnel Management ( IPM) qua l i f i ca t ion There was a g reat dea l o f

re l i ance on per sonnel ins tr uct ion manuals i s sued by head of f ice which

did not a l low for adaptat ion to loca l cont ingenc ies As such per sonnel

depar tments were found to be somewhat react ive and in f lex ible

Kel l iher and Johnson (1987) a l so found per sonnel depar tment act iv i t ies

to be narrowly defined Seventy-one per cent of respondents saw recruitment

as be ing the ir key respons ib i l i ty s imply get t ing enough s ta f f to f i l l jobs

in response to h igh tur nover S ixty- three per cent a l so ident i f ied tra in ing

as a key respons ib i l i ty once aga in in response to h igh leve l s o f l abour

turnover Of other possible areas of responsibility only welfare and maintenance

of staff records featured to any extent The conclusion was therefore reached

that on the whole per sonnel management was not taken ser ious ly in the

industry with many hotels par t icularly the smaller ones s imply lsquodumpingrsquo

the funct ion on a l ine manager

In the fo l low-up sur vey however Kel l iher and Johnson (1997) found

cons iderable ev idence of an increased leve l o f sophis t ica t ion The update

showed that whi le head of f ices cont inued to keep t ight control over the

act iv i t ies o f ind iv idua l un i t s there was ev idence of adaptat ion a t loca l

level of initiatives fed down from above Moreover 60 per cent of respondents

now repor ted involvement in budget sett ing and involvement in mainstream

business decis ion-making Kel l iher and Johnson (1997) therefore concluded

with in the ir more recent sur vey that per sonnel management with in the

hote l industry has developed into a mainstream bus iness act iv i ty and a l so

that per sonnel spec ia l i s t s are now involved in a wider range of act iv i t ies

than before

There is therefore considerable debate over the extent to which personnel

manager s are l ikely to c hampion the introduct ion of a more sophis t icated

approac h to HRM The nature of the per sonnel depar tment seen as an

important influence on the approach taken to HRM in the mainstream literature

i s a l so v iewed as an impor tant in f luence with in the hote l industr y

In a sense i t i s easy to blame management for the apparent fa i lure to

innovate in ter ms o f HRM I t i s manager s who have the resources and

author i ty to exper iment with more innovat ive approac hes yet they seem

to lac k the ab i l i ty knowledge or wi l l ingness to do so However manager s

have to dea l wi th a range of poss ible in f luences that might res tr ic t the ir

freedom to exper iment with HRM in i t i at ives These in f luences wi l l now

be cons idered in tur n

Variable nature of demand

It is commonly argued that because demand for the hotel industry product is inherently

seasonal high numbers of temporary and casual workers are required This problem is

worsened by the fact that it is not possible to hold stock to meet future demand as would be

the case in manufacturing (Haywood 1983169) Smoothing out staffing levels by continuing

production levels in slack times and holding stock until the market picks up as typically

happened in the UK car industry in the lead up to the August sales peak for example is not

an option in hotels As a result there is a greater urgency to match staffing levels to

variations in demand The potential cost savings to be made from the strategic management

of casuals temporary workers and part-time workers is considerable as found by Walsh

(1991107) using data from nine case studies The productivity enhancement arising from a

lsquojust-in-timersquo flexible labour utilisation should not Walsh concludes be underestimated

There i s obv ious ly a t rade-of f Employing l arge number s o f s ta f f on

non-s tandard contracts and grant ing them l i t t le in ter ms of job secur i ty

or career prospects wi l l inev i tably impact on workforce commitment and

adherence to qua l i ty goa l s As Guer r ier and Lockwood (1989b15) s ta te

i t i s impor tant to get the coreper iphery mix r ight in order to enable

qual i ty to remain a centra l focus whi le s imultaneous ly enabl ing cost s to

be minimised Never the less i f the ga ins to be made f rom the s tra teg ic

use of temporary and par t-t ime worker s are as high as Walsh (1991) cla ims

manager s would have to be very confident that the addit ional costs involved

in of fer ing g reater s tab i l i ty o f employment would pay d iv idends in the

long ter m

This argument however rests on the extent to whic h demand i s indeed

var iable While there wil l inevitably be var iat ions in the demand for labour

dur ing the cour se o f the day there i s g reater debate over the extent to

whic h demand in the hote l industry fo l lows a seasonal pat ter n Inev i tably

where demand i s seasona l a h igh propor t ion of the workforce wi l l be on

temporary contracts However Shamir (1978302) argues that the propor tion

of hote l conference bus iness i s increas ing and because suc h bus iness lac ks

a cyc l ica l pa t ter n demand i s s tab i l i s ing Hence with in hote l s dependent

for a s i zeable propor t ion of the ir t rade on bus iness customer s seasonal i ty

becomes less of an issue where HRM polic y choice is concer ned The extent

of the impact o f seasona l i ty o f demand on the approac h taken to HRM is

therefore by no means a foregone conclus ion

Workforce resistance to change

Guest (1987) makes the point that workforce resistance to change will impede the

introduction of HRM Similarly within the hotel industry the amenability of the

workforce to change and whether or not that amenability would stretch to an acceptance

of HRM practices is open to question For example Guerrier and Lockwood (1989c)

found staff to be favourable towards the idea of flexibility as long as it was not downwards

Similarly research by Mars Bryant and Mitchell (1979) quoted in Wood (1992143)

showed that multi-skilling could work though it required the recruitment of fresh labour

Wood (1992 146) also believes that there is scope for functional flexibility where

chambermaids are concerned in that they can be given autonomy over their own set of

rooms and made responsible for their own quality Shamir (1978304) notes that multi-

skilling in the form of the lsquohostessrsquo system within which a single employee acts as

receptionist chambermaid and waitress for a group of customers has been experimented

with successfully in some hotels

However there i s a l so cons iderable ev idence to suggest that any change

in working arrangements would be met by possibly insurmountable resistance

from existing entrenched working practices and patterns of industrial relations

Macfarlane (198237) quoting the Commission on Industr ial Relations (1971)

s ta tes that qu i te o f ten depar tments with in hote l s operate on the bas i s

that other par t s o f the hote l do not ex i s t Suppor t ing th i s argument in

their two case study hotels Guer r ier and Loc kwood (1989c412ndash13) found

that because cons iderable author i ty had been decentra l i sed to ind iv idua l

depar tments a l l o f whic h had been des ignated as ind iv idua l cost centres

front- and bac k-of-house funct ions developed a s trong sense of at tac hment

to their ski l ls occupational identity and dist inct sub-cultures For example

s ta f f in the spor t and f i tness centre had l i t t le interes t in the r unning of

the res t o f the hote l As a resu l t i t was d i f f i cu l t to fos ter any sense o f

cross- funct iona l f lex ib i l i ty

Although Wood (1992143 146) notes potent ia l for the mult i - sk i l l ing

of chambermaids he is less optimistic where other occupations are concerned

many of whic h are c haracter i sed by r ig id ly adhered to s tatus d iv i s ions

For example in the k i tc hen and d in ing areas the head wai ter i s jun ior to

the head c hef but i s sen ior to a jun ior c hef Wood (199252ndash60) a l so

comments on conflict both within and between departments Within departments

conf l ic t i s most l ikely where jobs are t ippable Wood (199257) provides

examples o f wai tresses h id ing equipment in order that they may rect i fy

the lsquomistakesrsquo made by other waitresses and hence maximise their l ikelihood

of a t ip Fr ic t ion between jobs that are t ippable and those that are not i s

a l so l ikely the c las s ic example be ing between wai ter s and c hefs Chefs

are put under pressure for speedy service from waiters but they are conscious

of the fact that th i s pressure i s a resu l t o f wai ter s wish ing to maximise

the ir t ips Fur ther examples o f conf l ic t between depar tments inc lude the

potent ia l for resentment towards recept ioni s t s owing to the ir ab i l i ty to

generate work for other depar tments such as housekeeping maintenance

and portering Such conflict is unlikely to prove conducive to team development

and cross- funct iona l f lex ib i l i ty

Fur ther potent i a l fo r work force re s i s t ance to c hange i s genera ted by

the in for mal contracts that tend to develop between ind iv idua l employees

and their direct super iors Wood (199247ndash51) drawing on work under taken

by Mar s and Mi tc he l l (1976) a rgues tha t the prac t i ce o f p i l f e r age and

pet ty the f t wh ic h i s r i f e th roughout the indus t ry i s to l e rated wi th in

limits Indeed management has an interest in maintaining these relationships

a s i f t he need a r i se s to reduce headcount i t i s pos s ible to do so qu ic k ly

and c heap ly s imply by se lec t ing for d i smi s s a l those known to engage in

suc h ac t i v i t i e s In th i s manner redundanc y payment s or l eng thy not i ce

per iods can be avo ided Natura l ly the work force a l so ha s an in tere s t in

suc h re l a t ionsh ip s s ee ing p i l f e r age a s a nor ma l par t o f remunerat ion

There i s there fore potent i a l fo r re s i s t ance to the in t roduct ion o f HRM

in i t i a t ives i f they a re l ike ly to re su l t in an eros ion o f in for mal contrac t s

Any re for m to pay sy s tems or a t tempt to re for m workp lace cu l ture that

might break the in for ma l cont rac t be tween super v i sor and employee or

might result in the super visor removing his or her endorsement of pilferage

would be seen by the employee a s a wor sen ing o f t e r ms and cond i t ions

What i s more re s i s t ance i s l ike ly to be s t ronges t f rom the organ i sat ionrsquo s

core employees a s i t i s they who a re the mos t l i ke ly to have deve loped

an in for ma l cont rac t w i th the i r super v i sor and hence wi l l exper ience

the l a rger deb i t e f f ec t

Thus as argued within the mainstream l i terature there are considerable

g rounds to argue that cer ta in entrenc hed custom and pract ice may resu l t

in workforce resistance to the introduction of new style working arrangements

Whi le Wood (199260) concedes that suc h problems are not unique to the

hote l industry he s ta tes that they are too ins t i tut iona l i sed s imply to be

solved by bet ter management

Workplace size

As emphasised within the HRM models presented by Hendry and Pettigrew (1986 1990)

workplace size is viewed as an important influence on the approach taken to HRM within

the hotel industry Site location within the industry is governed by consumer demands so it

is not possible to distribute the hotel product from a centralised unit as tends to happen in

the manufacturing sector (Mullins 19935) As a result the industry is dominated by small

establishments (Price 1994) within which communication and consultation relies on face-

to-face contact between owners and staff rather than on formal HRM procedures

Admittedly there are small firms in manufacturing where the same principle applies but the

proportion of small firms is greater in the hotel industry Formal HRM policies are therefore

inappropriate to a larger proportion of the industry

However th i s does not mean that HRM is i r re levant in l arger hote l s

For example Pr ice (1994) found that l arger hote l s were improving the ir

per sonnel pract ices and increas ing ly rea l i s ing the need for t ra in ing Also

HRM may hold g reater re levance with in hote l c ha ins Whi le not d i sput ing

that the actua l s i ze o f ind iv idua l un i t s i s smal ler in the hote l industry

than in manufacturing Shamir (1978303) argues that hotel chains are accounting

for an increas ing ly l arge propor t ion of the tota l market Cha ins need to

adopt a cons i s tency between workplaces in order that s tandardisat ion may

be so ld as a guarantee of qua l i ty As suc h they are more l ikely to take a

for mal approach to HR planning a s sen ior manager s implement r u les and

regulat ions and lsquobest pract icersquo manual s in order to s tandardi se employee

behav iour across the c ha in

Workforce instability and labour turnover

According to Wood (199295) there is general agreement concerning the level of turnover

in the industry Commonly quoted figures are an industry average of 70 per cent though

unit rates as high as 300 per cent are not uncommon In Johnsonrsquos (1985) study of ten hotels

he found that labour turnover was 75 per cent on average down from 125 per cent five

years earlier Johnson put this down to the higher level of unemployment hence fewer

alternative employment opportunities at the time of the second survey Either figure

demonstrates a level of labour turnover that is much higher than within the rest of the

economy within which turnover is in the region of 14 per cent according to WIRS3

(Millward et al 1992) It seems therefore that the problem of high turnover is in many

respects unique to the hotel industry

I t i s l ikely that h igh leve l s o f l abour tur nover wi l l have a potent ia l ly

detr imenta l impact on at tempts to adopt an HRM approac h As Na i lon

(198977) suggests employment s tab i l i ty i s es sent ia l i f shared va lues are

to develop He s ta tes

The achievement of excellence takes time not only for thinking and planning

Stability is therefore requisite in that both manager and staff must work together over

a significant period of time to establish quality consistency and guaranteed

standardshellip

The s tab i l i ty that Nai lon suggests i s so impor tant i s l ac k ing in the vast

major i ty o f hote l s in the UK

However there i s cons iderab le debate a s to whether i t i s pos s ib le to

reduce the labour tur nover that exist within the UK hotel industry Several

wr i te r s a rgue that tur nover c an be reduced by be t te r management For

example Johnson (1985) suggests that turnover may be the result of management

inab i l i ty to moni tor occupanc y over t ime leve l s and s ta f f depar tures Th i s

f ind ing i s cor roborated by Macau ley and Wood (199248) who l i kewi se

attr ibute very high levels of labour turnover in their study to miscalculations

in manpower p l ann ing There fore the impl i ca t ion i s that i f manpower

p l ann ing we re to improve r ate s o f tur nover wou ld decrea se Denv i r and

McMahon (1992147) sugges t that l abour tur nover in the indus t r y can

be reduced cons iderably i f management create an environment that foster s

the re tent ion o f h igh qua l i ty s t a f f Le fever and Re ic h (1991308) sugges t

that tur nover can be reduced by lsquo sur f ac ingrsquo the va lues o f the organ i sat ion

a t an ear ly s t age wi th in the recr u i tment proces s Ohl in and West (1994)

sugges t tha t f r inge bene f i t s and re t i rement prog rammes can he lp reduce

tur nover though Iver son and Deer y (1997) sugges t that mec han i sms suc h

a s improved in ter na l l abour marke t s job secur i ty c a reer deve lopment

and promot ion oppor tun i t i e s a re l i ke ly to prove more e f f ec t i ve Indeed

Wood and Macau ley (1989) found hote l s that had deve loped super v i sor y

and management development prog rammes and a lsquoh ire from withinrsquo pol ic y

to have reduced tur nove r

However other s argue that s tudies suggest ing l abour tur nover would

be reduced i f the industry were to be made a more a t tract ive employment

prospect ignore the rea l f act s o f hote l l i fe Refer r ing to s tudies by Mar s

Bryant and Mitchell (1979) and Shamir (1981) Wood (199217ndash25) descr ibes

worker s in the hotel industry as lsquonon-conformingrsquo lsquonomadicrsquo and dishonest

delinquents who are psychologically and socially marginalised Shamir (1981)

suggest s that the pract ice o f lsquo l iv ing- inrsquo adds to ins tab i l i ty by a t tract ing

unstable marg ina l g roups to the industry for example fore igner s looking

for free accommodation young people looking for the oppor tunity to leave

home and those with broken marr iages lsquoLiving-inrsquo fur ther adds to instability

by making moves between workplaces eas ier Trans ience i s a l so generated

by spl i t sh i f t s which result in worker s being present within the workplace

whi le not on duty hence contr ibu-t ing to fee l ings o f a need for a c hange

of scene High guest mobi l i ty a l so increases fee l ings o f t rans ience Given

the inherent instability of the industryrsquos workforce Wood (199223) concludes

that i t i s overly optimist ic to suggest that labour tur nover can be overcome

by pract ices a imed at the encouragement of employee retent ion

Moreover there i s cons iderable debate over the extent to which labour

tur nover i s in fact dys funct iona l Johnson (1985) found management to

be happy with h igh leve l s o f l abour tur nover a s i t enables them to shed

inef f ic ient s ta f f and to reduce headcount quic kly and eas i ly However he

st i l l concludes that h igh tur nover leads to h igh replacement and tra in ing

costs and lower qua l i ty s ta f f l ac k ing f i r m-spec i f ic human capi ta l Denvir

and McMahon (1992143) argue that a high tur nover rate which is a pointer

to sat i s fact ion and morale problems leads to compromised standards poor

productivity reduced quality of staff and a reduced stock of skil ls Similarly

Iver son and Deery (199780) argue that tur nover dramat ica l ly increases

costs and reduces ser v ice qua l i ty

By contrast Ri ley (1993) argues that g iven the peaky nature of demand

for hote l ser v ices l abour tur nover i s a cr uc ia l mec hanism that enables

management to deal with fluctuating manpower needs Using labour turnover

for this purpose also encourages management to adopt a deski l l ing strategy

as i t i s eas ier to manipulate the manpower levels of unski l led worker s than

skilled workers Thus the cost-cutting potential of labour turnover is twofold

F ir s t ly i t provides a mec hanism by whic h var i a t ions in demand for l abour

can be dealt with Secondly by encourag ing deski l l ing i t enables pay levels

to be kept to a min imum

There i s therefore cons iderable debate over the l ikely impact o f l abour

turnover in the industry It is seen by some as inevitable and not necessar ily

problematic Given the cost-control potentia l of labour turnover and g iven

the doubt as to whether i t can be reduced anyway i t i s not sur pr i s ing a s

Wood (1992103) argues that most manager s in the hote l industry do not

v iew i t a s a problem With in suc h a context where h igh l abour tur nover

i s v iewed as a fact of l i fe there i s l i t t le scope for the e f fect ive appl icat ion

of HRM By contrast other s v iew tur nover as damag ing to ser vice qual i ty

yet reducible via better management and the introduction of HRM practices

Either way th is debate i s in many respects unique to the hotel industry

with tur nover not being viewed as a major inf luence on HRM pol icy within

the mainstream l i terature According to WIRS3 tur nover i s in the reg ion

of 14 per cent (Mi l lward e t a l 1992) for the economy as a whole The

extent to which turnover influences management decision-making is therefore

an impor tant tes t o f the extent to whic h the hote l industry i s lsquod i f ferentrsquo

from industr ies e l sewhere

Workforce skill levels

Within the mainstream HRM literature Keep (1989) argues that Britainrsquos training record

acts as a serious hindrance to the adoption of new approaches to HRM Within the hotel

industry Prais Jarvis and Wagner (1989) found a lack of vocational training in UK hotels in

comparison with hotels in Germany This was instrumental in explaining the differences in

labour productivity within the hotels studied in the two countries It would be sensible to

hypothesise that as multi-skilling and functional flexibility are likely to feature as key HR

goals a lack of skills training will militate against the adoption of HRM within the industry

as it is seen to do within the mainstream HRM literature

Trade unions

Trade union density within the hotel industry is extremely low and as such the impact of

unions on management decision-making is likely to be minimal According to WIRS3

(Millward et al 1992) trade union density is 3 per cent in the hotel industry with unions

recognised in only 8 per cent of establishments The low level of unionisation is partly

explained by the high proportion of seasonal and part-time workers within the industry

though Wood (1992 104ndash5) points out further reasons why recruitment within the industry

is particularly difficult Firstly the practice of tipping has generated an ethos of individualism

and instrumentalism which in turn detracts from workforce cohesion Secondly the

industry is isolated from wider working class influences For example lsquoliving-inrsquo isolates the

employee from dichotomous views of class society Also the close working relationships

which often develop between employees and guests who are on the whole of a higher social

status than employees tend to result in a desire among employees to emulate or to identify

with superiors rather than to identify with working-class goals Finally the industry is

characterised by the existence of numerous small units The resulting geographical dispersion

of the industry makes recruitment difficult To date the unions have failed to develop

solutions to deal with these issues

Whi le there i s cons iderable debate over the impac t o f t r ade un ions

on the approac h t aken to HRM wi th in the ma in s t ream l i t e r at u re ( s ee

for example Gues t 1995 Trades Un ion Cong res s 1994) l i t t l e ha s been

wr i t ten expres s ly on the impact o f un ions on HRM in the hote l indus t ry

Never theless whi le unions are unl ikely to inf luence management decis ion-

mak ing (Luca s 1996) the non-un ion nature o f the indus t r y i s wor thy

o f fur ther d i s cus s ion A combinat ion o f the l a c k o f t r ade un ions in the

industry and the marginality of the hotel industry workforce could encourage

exploitat ion and work intensi f icat ion rather than the introduction of HRM

I f un ions he ld more in f luence wi th in the indus t r y then manager s might

be encouraged to adopt a lsquobe s t prac t i ce rsquo approac h a s i t wou ld not be

pos s ible to ac h ieve product iv i ty ga in s v i a work in tens i f i c at ion or cos t

sav ings v ia low pay Conver se ly should manager s wish to exper iment with

innovative approaches to HRM they will not be hindered by union resistance

(Gi lber t and Guer r i e r 1997122)

While the lack of trade unions in the industry will inevitably give management

a cons iderable deg ree of f reedom in ter ms of the approac h to HRM they

choose to adopt i t i s not the case that the non-union nature of the hote l

industry contr ibutes to the industryrsquos uniqueness Fir stly much of the HRM

literature i s wr itten from a unitar ist per spect ive and in the case of Walton

(1985) v i r tua l ly makes an assumpt ion of non-unionism Secondly t rade

union density in the UK cur rently stands at around 30 per cent and within

the pr ivate sector only one in f ive worker s be longs to a t rade union The

hote l industry i s i f anyth ing par t o f the r u le on th i s i s sue ra ther than

the except ion

Foreign ownership

Much has been written in recent years on the HRM practices adopted within high-profile

manufacturing inward investors and about the effectiveness of the approaches they have

adopted There is evidence that British companies have attempted to emulate the success of

their overseas counterparts also Whether such demonstration effects exist within the hotel

industry remains open to question Nevertheless Price (1994) claims that the foreign-owned

hotels within her sample appear to have developed a more professional approach towards

personnel management than have British-owned hotels Others demonstrate similar findings

(Lucas and Laycock 1991)

I f fore ign-owned hote l s have indeed been more success fu l in adopt ing

a sophis t icated approac h th i s has severa l impl icat ions F ir s t ly a s pointed

out by Pr ice (1994) the best g raduates f rom hote l and cater ing col leges

will not be attracted to Br itish hotel chains Secondly if there is a relationship

between HRM and per for mance Br i t i sh hote l s wi l l lose out in ter ms of

competitiveness to their foreign r ivals It is of paramount importance therefore

to es tabl i sh both the nature of HRM in fore ign-owned hote l s and a l so the

nature of the re la t ionsh ip between HRM and per for mance I t i s c lear that

the i s sue of nat iona l owner sh ip seen as impor tant with in the mainstream

HRM l i terature par t icu lar ly in re la t ion to the Japani sa t ion debate i s a l so

an i s sue of cons iderable impor tance with in the hote l industr y

Conclusions and discussion

This chapter highlights a range of potential influences on HRM policy choice in the hotel

industry Debates concerning the appropriate competitive response to emerging consumer

trends workforce or management receptiveness to change the strategic capacity of

management to handle change fluctuations in patterns of demand organisational aspects of

the industry such as establishment size workforce instability and national ownership

highlight the differences in opinion which exist concerning the potential role of HRM in the

industry There are compelling arguments suggesting that HRM has a potential contribution

to make but equally compelling arguments that its role will always be restricted Subsequent

chapters will test the extent to which the factors discussed here either encourage or restrict

the adoption of HRM in the industry

One thing that is clear however is that there are key similar ities between

the debates in the hotel industry literature and debates in the HRM literature

in re la t ion to the factor s that are l ike ly to in f luence the approac h taken

to HRM Fir st ly as within the mainstream HRM literature product markets

within the hotel industry are seen as a key determinant of business strategy

and as a key deter minant o f HRM pol icy c hoice The Schuler and Jac kson

(1987) model seems par t icu lar ly re levant g iven that in l ine with the key

differences of opinion within the hotel industry it emphasises cost reduction

and qua l i ty enhancement as a l ter nat ive approac hes to bus iness s t rategy

Moreover both Schuler and Jackson (1987) within the mainstream literature

and a l so Kokko and Moi lanen (1997299) Lefever and Reic h (1991308)

and Matts son (199457) with in the hote l industry l i terature suggest the

HR strategy appropriate to quality enhancement to be one of high commitment

Conver se ly where cost reducer bus iness s trateg ies are concer ned both

sets o f l i terature suggest the use o f non-s tandard labour and desk i l l ing to

be the appropr ia te HR responses

Secondly the conflicting interpretations of changing market trends within

the industry offered by Callan (1994) Haywood (1983) Kokko and Moilanen

(1997) Larmour (1983) Lewis (1987) Nightingale (1985) and Shamir (1978)

bear a resemblance to the confl ict ing viewpoints offered by Piore and Sabel

(1984) and Poller t (1991) Whether consumers real ly are coming to demand

higher qual i ty customised and per sonal ised products under pins the debate

over the appl icab i l i ty o f the Beer e t a l (1984) Guest (1987) and Walton

(1985) approac hes to HRM and the extent to whic h these models can

be v iewed as univer sa l ly re levant In the hote l industr y l i terature Cal lan

(1994) Haywood (1983) Kokko and Moilanen (1997) Lewis (1987) Nightingale

(1985) and Pye (1994) of fer an interpretat ion not d i s s imi lar f rom Piore

and Sabel (1982) and Walton (1985) arguing that consumer trends are

indeed coming to reflect the need for higher quality and as such the appropriate

approac h to HRM is to try to increase workforce commitment By contrast

Larmour (1983) and Shamir (1978) argue in a similar vein to Poller t (1991)

that consumer trends have not undergone suc h dramat ic c hange in recent

t imes and as suc h HRM is not necessar i ly any more appropr ia te in the

industry today than a t any t ime in the pas t

Tur ning to the debates re lat ing to workforce c haracter i s t ic s fur ther

s imilar i t ies between the hotel industry l i terature and the mainstream HRM

literature can be identif ied Guest (1987) sees entrenched working practices

as one explanat ion behind the low take-up of HRM This i s sue i s accorded

a cons iderable deg ree of impor tance by Guerr ier and Loc kwood (1989a)

Wood (1992143 146) and Macf ar lane (1982) with in the hote l industry

In addi t ion arguments s imi lar to those made by S i s son and Storey (1990)

as wel l a s Guest (1987) re la t ing to the inab i l i ty o f management to be

able to handle strategic change are raised by Guerr ier and Lockwood (1989a)

and Haywood (1983) with in the hote l industry l i terature The impact o f

unionisa t ion or the lac k of unions in the case of the hote l industr y i s

discussed by Gilbert and Guerrier (1997) and Lucas (1996) Concerns relating

to the leve l o f vocat iona l sk i l l s t ra in ing as ra i sed by Keep (1989) with in

the mainstream HRM l i terature are vo iced by Pra i s Ja r v i s and Wagner

(1989) with reference to the hotel industry Foreign ownership is also considered

by Lucas and Laycock (1991) and Pr ice (1994) to be an impor tant inf luence

on the approach taken to HRM Finally issues within the mainstream literature

relat ing to workplace c haracter i s t ics are a l so cons idered impor tant with in

the hotel industry Pr icersquos (1994) arguments relat ing to establ ishment s ize

and Shamirrsquos (1978) arguments re lat ing to hote l c ha ins are not d i s s imi lar

to those discussed within Hendry and Pettigrewrsquos (1986 1990) HRM framework

Indeed the only in f luences on HRM that can be cons idered unique to

the hotel industry are labour turnover and instabi l i ty of demand and there

i s cons iderable debate over the l ike ly impact o f these f actor s anyway The

only major influence on HRM discussed within the mainstream HRM literature

that fa i l s to receive attent ion within the hotel industry l i terature concer ns

the impact of financial markets and decentralisation as discussed by Kirkpatrick

Davies and Ol iver (1992) and Purcel l (198973) I t would be reasonable

therefore to conclude that there i s cons iderable common g round between

the in f luences on HRM seen as impor tant with in the hote l industry and

the influences on management seen as important elsewhere This is an important

tes t o f the re levance of HRM theory in the hote l industr y There i s l i t t le

to suggest that the factor s l ikely to in f luence dec i s ion-making in re la t ion

to HRM with in the industry are huge ly d i f ferent f rom the f ac tor s that

are l ike ly to in f luence dec i s ion-making in other industr ies Hence there

i s l i t t le to suggest that the hote l industry i s rea l ly any lsquod i f ferentrsquo f rom

industr ies elsewhere and there are no reasons why theoretical proposit ions

developed within the mainstream HRM l i terature though developed within

a manufactur ing paradigm should be considered inapplicable to the industry

A fur ther i s sue ra i sed by th i s c hapter concer ns what exact ly i s meant

by lsquobest pract icersquo HRM in the context o f the hote l industry There are

cur rent ly several g rey areas Li t t le i s sa id on pay mec hanisms for example

whether a merit pay system linked to performance appraisal would be appropriate

There is likewise little on job design or on training Perhaps more importantly

l i t t le i s sa id on how shared va lues can be ac h ieved when leve l s o f pay are

so low Teare and Brother ton (1991) are pret ty wel l a lone in expl ic i t ly

suggesting that ter ms and condit ions career str ucture salar ies and benefits

are in need of improvement Focus ing a t tent ion on the implementat ion of

methods of employee involvement for example may have the e f fect o f

def lect ing attention away from more cost ly i ssues relat ing to improvements

in bas ic pay and condit ions Fur thermore most of the l i terature suppor ting

the usage of HRM in the hote l industry focuses on f ront- l ine s ta f f coming

into direct contact with customer s Yet l i t t le i s sa id about HRM in relat ion

to bac k-of f ice s ta f f who are not in d irect contact ro les Address ing these

issues wil l enable a more sophist icated descr ipt ion of what exactly is meant

by lsquobest pract icersquo HRM in the context o f the hote l industr y

F ina l ly i r respect ive of in f luences on HRM pol ic y c hoice th i s c hapter

a l so h igh l ights the emerg ing debate over the extent to whic h hote l s have

implemented pract ices as soc ia ted with an HRM approac h Anastassova and

Purcel l (1995) Buic k and Muthu (1997) Harr ington and Akehur st (1996)

and Watson and DrsquoAnnunzio-Green (1996) present primarily anecdotal accounts

of HRM in pract ice in the hote l industry By contrast Lucas (1995) Pr ice

(1994) and Teare (1996) argue that there i s s t i l l l i t t le to suggest that more

sophis t icated approac hes to HRM are be ing adopted

The next c hapter looks a t th i s i s sue by f i r s t introducing the empir ica l

under-p innings o f the book namely the 1995 Sur vey of HRM in the Hote l

Industry and then from a comparat ive per spect ive consider ing the extent

to whic h there has been an adopt ion of HRM with in the industry

3 New approaches toHRM in the hotelindustry1

A comparative analysis

As discussed within the previous chapter considerable debate has developed concerning the

extent to which there has been experimentation with HRM in the hotel industry in recent

years To recap briefly the hotel industry has conventionally been characterised as dominated

by practices aimed at an enhancement of managerial prerogative and cost reduction and a

predominance of authoritarian management styles Empirical analyses have typically

supported this characterisation For example Hales (1987) found a general perception

amongst hotel industry managers that non-managerial employees did not want greater

responsibility Guerrier and Lockwood (1989b) and Lucas (1993) report a high level of

short-term and part-time working Prais Jarvis and Wagner (1989) found a lack of

vocational training in the hotel industry Price (1994 52) concludes from her research that

there remains a worrying lack of basic professionalism in personnel practice Lucas

(199590) and Teare (1996) argue that there is little evidence to suggest that any kind of

HRM approach is being followed even among larger organisations

However some recent s tudies have suggested that exper imentat ion with

new approac hes to HRM is becoming increas ing ly common For example

Har r ington and Akehur st (1996) f ind that hote l s are tak ing ser v ice qual i ty

more ser ious ly Anastassova and Purcel l (1995) f ind ev idence to suggest

that hote l s are adopt ing a more consul ta t ive management s ty le Buic k and

Muthu (1997) suggest that hotels are increasingly developing inter nal labour

markets and career str uctures Gi lber t and Guer r ier (1997122) argue that

manager s have taken on board not ions o f empower ment and teamworking

and the need to devolve respons ib i l i ty to lower leve l s When compared

with the conclusions reached by Lucas (1995) Teare (1996) and Pr ice (1994)

and also with the conclusions reached within the research under taken dur ing

the 1980s i t becomes apparent that increas ing debate over the extent to

whic h HRM has taken hold with in the hote l industry has emerged

There is a lso increasing debate over the extent of development of the

personnel profession An increasing number of studies suggest that a relatively

high number of per sonnel special ists now operate within the industry For

example both Lucas (1995 1996) and Pr ice (1994) find per sonnel specialists

to be more in evidence in the hotel and cater ing sector s than elsewhere

They also f ind special i sts within the industry to be better qual i f ied than

personnel manager s in other sectors of the economy There is however some

debate over the role of per sonnel specialists within the industry Past research

has tended to identi fy a lack of strategy and profess ional ism within unit-

level personnel departments (for example Guerrier and Lockwood 1989a82ndash

3 Kelliher and Johnson 1987) Lucas (1995 1996) suggests that their presence

may have more to do with the consequences of high labour tur nover rather

than the development of a more strateg ic HRM approach By contrast Kelliher

and Johnson (1997) argue that personnel departments have become increasingly

strateg ic and inf luentia l within management decis ion-making processes

The a im of this c hapter i s to shed l ight on the debates relat ing to the

extent of adoption of HRM within the industry and also the extent of development

of the per sonnel function but to do so from a comparat ive per spective

The analysis here therefore not only looks at the extent to which HRM practices

have been adopted within a sample of hotel industry establ ishments but

also tests whether the usage of the practices asked about is any more widely

repor ted within a sample of manufactur ing sector establ ishments To date

such a comparative approach has rarely been used Indeed research under taken

by Lucas (1995 1996) const itutes the only systematical ly conducted in-

depth comparat ive analyses of the industry Earl ier studies have looked at

hotels in isolat ion and have infer red from the results that the industry is

lagg ing in terms of innovation and professionalism However without comparing

directly the extent to which HRM has been adopted within the hotel industry

with the extent to whic h i t has been adopted elsewhere such conclusions

wil l a lways be subject to a degree of uncer tainty I f i t can be demonstrated

that hotels have shown less of an interest in HRM than have manufactur ing

establ ishments and that they treat HR issues in a less strateg ic manner

considerable weight wil l be added to the bleak conclusions presented by

Lucas (1995 1996) Pr ice (1994) and Teare (1996)

This chapter tests this i ssue by analys ing data from two quest ionnaire-

based sur veys The f ir st conducted in June-July 1995 col lected data on a

sample of hotels The second conducted in May-June 1993 collected similar

data on a sample of greenfield-site manufacturing establishments The establishments

New approaches to HRM in the hotel industry 51

within both samples were asked the same set of quest ions about their HRM

policies and practices Combining the two sur veys yields a dataset that enables

a direct l ike-with-like analysis of the repor ted usage of HR practices adopted

within the hotel industry in compar ison with manufactur ing and a s imilar

comparat ive analys is of i ssues relat ing to HR strategy The data a lso enable

an examinat ion of the nature and extent of development of the per sonnel

depar tment within the hotel industry from a comparat ive per spect ive

The hotels with in the sample are a l l l arge by industry s tandards having

on average 12495 employees ( in compar i son wi th 23539 employees in

the 1993 manufac tur ing s ample ) In add i t ion a lmos t 82 per cent o f the

hote l s w i th in the s ample a re par t o f a c ha in ( see Tab le 3 1) The s ample

i s there fore pa tent ly unrepresentat i ve o f the indus t r y a s a who le g i ven

tha t 81 per cent o f ho te l s employ f ewer than 25 peop le (Depar tment o f

Nat iona l Her i t age 1996) However focus ing on a s ample o f l a rge hote l s

makes sense where the s tudy o f HRM i s concer ned a s i t i s on ly wi th in

larger e s tabl i shments hote l or o therwise that an in teres t in HRM would

be expec ted G iven the l a rge propor t ion o f sma l l e s t abl i shment s w i th in

the hote l indus try i t would come as no sur pr i se to f ind leve l s o f in teres t

in HRM to be low wi th in the indus t r y a s a who le Howeve r the more

convincing test which would provide suppor t for the bleak scenar io presented

by Luca s (1995) Teare (1996) and Pr i ce (1994) wou ld be to cons ider

whether there i s a h igher repor ted u sage o f HRM wi th in manufac tur ing

es t abl i shment s than wi th in ho te l s o f a comparable s i ze a s i t i s amongs t

the se e s t abl i shment s that an in tere s t i n HRM might be expec ted

The resul t s ach ieved with in th i s ana lys i s should be of interes t not only

to those with a pr imary researc h focus on the hote l industry but a l so to

those with a broader interes t in HRM F ir s t ly a s d i scussed in the f i r st

chapter HRM has its roots firmly entrenched within a manufacturing paradigm

However g iven that a lmost 76 per cent of the populat ion now work within

the ser v ice sector the future credib i l i ty o f HRM is dependent upon i t s

re levance with in the ser v ices By examining the extent to whic h there has

been an acceptance of HRM with in one par t o f the ser v ices the ana lys i s

here sheds l ight on th i s i s sue

Secondly the extent to which companies within the UK have adopted

HRM as encapsulated within the models presented by Guest (1987) Walton

(1985) and Beer et al (1984) remains very much open to quest ion For

example Wood and Albanese (1995) conclude that we can now speak of

a lsquohigh commitment management on the shopfloorrsquo However Sisson (1993)

Table 31 Hotel chains within the sample

discuss ing HRM with reference to WIRS3 argues that only lsquo fragmentsrsquo of

HRM can be found Storey (1992) finds that it is not an uncommon occurrence

for HRM to be introduced alongside traditional structures rather than replacing

them The debate over the extent to which HRM has been adopted within

the UK is made al l the more inconclusive g iven that so l i tt le is known about

HRM within the ser vices By test ing the extent of adoption of HRM in a

ser vice setting the analysis conducted here contr ibutes towards this debate

The next section descr ibes the two sur veys to be used within the analysis

in fur ther deta i l

The data

The 1995 Survey of Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry

The 1995 Survey of Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry has three main

sections The section that will be the focus of attention here examines the adoption of HRM

practices relating to terms and conditions of employment recruitment training job design

pay systems quality issues communication and pay systems

A fur ther sect ion within the quest ionnaire focuses on factors that are

likely to influence the approach taken to HRM Thus information is collected

on nat ional owner ship the inf luence of the parent company the s ize and

nature of the personnel function technical and organisational change competitive

strategy number of employees the propor tion of the workforce employed

on a par t-t ime basis and the propor t ion of the workforce who are union

members An analysis of the factor s that might influence HRM policy choice

within the industry is presented within the fol lowing chapter

The f inal par t of the quest ionnaire looks at outcome measures These

measures include HR outcomes (for example commitment of lower grades

of staff to the organisation workforce flexibility) employee relations outcomes

such as disputes and absenteeism and perfor mance outcomes relat ing to

f inancial performance qual i ty and productivity An analys is of these data

wil l demonstrate whether hotels adopting a more sophist icated approac h

towards their HRM practices report benefits in terms of super ior effectiveness

This i ssue is addressed in Chapter 6

Sample selection

Using the 1995 Automobile Associationrsquos UK Hotels guide as a source hotels were selected for

the sample using a straightforward size criterion namely that they had 65 bedrooms or more This

figure was selected following initial piloting work suggesting that hotels above this size threshold

would be likely to have an interest in HRM Following initial piloting work questionnaires were

mailed to 660 hotels In the event usable replies were received from 232 a response rate of 3515

per cent Some questionnaires were not used as the respondents replied with reference to the

organisation as a whole rather than with reference to the specific hotel to which the questionnaire

had been mailed

Representativeness of the sample

Because of the not inconsiderable data contained within the Automobile Association (AA) guide it

is possible to assess how representative the 232 responses to the questionnaire are of the total

sample of 660 hotels Assuming the AA guide itself is representative such an assessment will reveal

whether or not the sample achieved here is representative of UK hotels with more than 65 rooms

Fir s t ly looking at s tar rat ings Table 32 shows a remarkable s imi lar i ty

between those who replied and the sample as a whole Looking at the percentage

ratings g iven to establ ishments by AA inspectors a s imilar picture emerges

with the percentage rat ings of respondents averag ing 6466 compared with

6403 for the sample as a whole There i s therefore no ev idence of b ias

on these two i s suesmdashin other words there i s noth ing to suggest that only

the bet ter r un or the h igher qua l i ty hote l s repl ied to the sur vey

The fact that few of the hote l s wi th in the sur vey have a one or two

star rat ing i s not ind icat ive o f b ias Thi s sur vey looks at l arger hote l s

whic h s imply as a resu l t o f the ir s i ze are able to provide a wider range

of f ac i l i t ies and hence are l ike ly to rece ive a h igher s tar rat ing Looking

at the reg ional representat iveness of the sur vey as demonstrated by Table

33 there i s a l so no par t icu lar ev idence of sys temat ic b ias

Table 32 Star ratings of respondentsrsquo hotels compared with the sample as awhole

Note Frequencies given Percentages in brackets

In the event there was evidence of b ias on two i ssues F ir st ly the pr ice

per room amongst the respondents was marginally higher at pound8961 compared

with pound8479 for the sample as a whole Secondly concer ning establ i shment

s ize there was some ev idence to suggest that respondents with in l arger

hote l s were more inc l ined to reply The average number of rooms among

the respondents was 1556 compared with 1412 for the sample as a whole

The g reater wi l l ingness o f l arger hote l s to respond h ints a t the fact that

interest in HRM may be pos i t ively correlated with establ i shment s ize This

i s sue i s tes ted for mal ly with in the fo l lowing c hapter

With the except ion of these two i s sues the ev idence suggest s that the

232 repl ies to the sur vey const i tute a representat ive sample of the 660

hote l s to whic h quest ionna ires were or ig ina l ly mai led

The 1993 Survey of Human Resource Management in Greenfield

The 1993 Survey of Human Resource Management in Greenfield Sites contains within it 322

manufacturing industry establishments (see Guest and Hoque (1994c) for a full description

of the survey) Given that the establishments within this survey were asked the same

questions about their HRM policies and practices as were the hotels within the 1995 Survey

of Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry this sample provides a control group

against which the hotel industry establishments can be directly compared

Table 33 Regional distribution of the respondentsrsquo hotels compared with thesample as a whole

The response rate to the 1993 questionnaire was 385 per cent This was

achieved following reminder s and a number of telephone calls pr ior to which

the response rate was 19 per cent By contrast the response rate of 3515 per

cent for the 1995 hotel industry sur vey was achieved without such reminder s

or telephone calls This is in itself a revealing finding Although there were differences

between the 1993 and the 1995 surveys in terms of construction (the 1993

sur vey contained an additional section asking about HR policies and practices

one year after star t-up) and in the manner in which the data were collected

(the 1995 survey was mailed to named individuals whereas the 1993 survey

was addressed to lsquoThe Personnel Managerrsquo) there is still a remarkable difference

in the initial response rates This could be seen as indicative of the comparative

levels of interest in issues relating to HRM between the two industr ies At the

very least it calls into question the argument put forward by Pr ice (1994)

that it would be nonsensical to conduct research focusing on HRM within the

hotel industry as the industry is too far removed from the HRM ideal-type

However in u t i l i s ing the two dat a se t s d i s cus sed here for comparat i ve

pur pose s a f ew potent i a l c aveat s mus t be t aken in to account F i r s t ly the

1993 sur vey was des igned pr imar i ly to look a t whether or not the HRM

pract i ces o f g reenf ie ld- s i te e s t abl i shments a re any more soph i s t i cated than

are the HRM prac t i ce s adopted wi th in o lder e s t abl i shment s As a re su l t

the 1993 sur vey conta in s w i th in i t a d i spropor t iona te number o f new and

greenfield-site establishments As the analysis of the sur vey revealed greenfield-

s i t e e s t abl i shment s have indeed adopted a more soph i s t i c a ted approac h to

HRM than have the i r o lder counter par t s (Gues t and Hoque 1994c) The

repor ted usage of HRM may therefore be h igher amongst the es tabl i shments

wi th in the 1993 s ample than acros s manufac tur ing indus t r y a s a who le

Secondly i t must be cons idered whether or not the two samples to be

used here are comparable from the point of view of establishment size Looking

at the 1995 hotel industry sur vey the average number of employees per hotel

i s 12542 and in the manufactur ing sur vey the average number of employees

is 23559 If there is a relationship between establishment size and the likelihood

of HRM being adopted the fact that the manufactur ing establ ishments within

the sample are approximate ly twice as l arge as the hote l s may introduce a

b ias into the resu l t s However i f i t i s the case that a l l the es tabl i shments

within the sample are over a size threshold above which HRM becomes relevant

th i s may not present a problem

Thirdly the two sur veys under considerat ion were under taken at separate

points in t ime with the manufactur ing sur vey being under taken two year s

pr ior to the hotel industry sur vey Ideal ly for comparative pur poses i t would

be preferable to have data on manufactur ing and hotels at a s ingle point in

time as a degree of change may have occurred within the manufactur ing industry

sample in the two-year inter val between the t iming of the two sur veys There

is therefore the poss ibi l i ty that the repor ted usage of HRM may be s l ightly

lower within the manufactur ing sample than it would have been had the sur vey

been conducted two years later at the time the hotel industry survey was conducted

Bear ing these caveats in mind the next sect ion descr ibes the methods to

be ut i l i sed to address the hypotheses out l ined above

Method of analysis

Both the 1993 and 1995 surveys obtained detailed information on HRM policies and practices

Bi-variate chi-square tests are used to ascertain whether any of the HRM techniques asked about

are more widely reported in one industry than in the other

Establ i shments with fewer than 25 employees with in whic h for mal HRM

procedures are unl ikely to have muc h of a ro le to p lay are dropped from

the analysis This results in eight manufactur ing industry establ ishments being

dropped from the ana lys i s y ie ld ing a subsample s i ze of 314 and two hote l s

be ing dropped y ie ld ing a subsample s i ze o f 230

HRM practices

Concerning the specific HRM practices pursued both surveys asked for information about

terms and conditions of employment recruitment and selection training job design quality

management communication consultation and pay systems This list of practices is in part

derived from Wood and Albanese (1995) and from Guest and Hoque (1994c) Table 34 contains

a full listing of the questions asked in each of these areas

HRM strategy

The data collected within the surveys enable a comparison of issues relating to HRM strategy and

the extent to which HR issues are accorded strategic importance within both hotels and

manufacturing

The first issue here relates to the strateg ic integration of HR decision-

making with business strategy As emphasised within the models presented by

Schuler and Jackson (1987) Kochan and Barocci (1985) and Tichy et al (1982)

as well as the models presented by Guest (1987) Beer et al (1985) and Walton

Table 34 Usage of HRM practices in hotels and manufacturing

(1985) the approach that is taken to HRM should be consciously tailored to

meet the needs of the individual business To assess the extent to which respondents

view this as impor tant a question is asked as to whether an attempt has been

made to deliberately integrate HR strategy with business strategy

The second i s sue re lat ing to s trateg ic integrat ion concer ns inter nal f i t

Irrespective of the individual HRM practices adopted it is stressed universally

with in the HRM l i terature that those pract ices should cohere with each

other and for m par t o f an integ rated mutua l ly suppor t ing pac kage rather

than be ing seen as sys tems operat ing in i so la t ion f rom eac h other This i s

emphas i sed with in Guest rsquo s (1987) goa l o f s t rateg ic integ rat ion and a l so

with in Beer e t a l rsquo s (198518) re ference to the impor tance of f i t between

HRM pol ic ies and sys tems In addi t ion there i s increas ing ev idence that

es tabl i shments introducing the ir HRM pract ices a s a coherent package or

bundle wi l l outper for m establ i shments with in which HRM pract ices are

introduced in an ad-hoc manner ( see for example Ic hniowski Shaw and

Prennushi 1994 MacDuff ie 1995) In order to ascer ta in the extent to

whic h such bundl ing i s seen as impor tant respondents are asked whether

the ir HRM pract ices are de l iberate ly integ rated with each other

Third ly a ser ies o f quest ions i s a sked that at tempts to ascer ta in the

strateg ic impor tance accorded to HR i s sues Respondents are asked f i r s t ly

whether there i s an HR strategy for mal ly endor sed and act ively suppor ted

by sen ior management a t the es tabl i shment This wi l l be ind icat ive o f the

leve l with in the organi sa t iona l h ierarc hy a t which HRM dec i s ion-making

takes place Secondly the ser iousness with which HR issues are taken from

a s tra teg ic point o f v iew i s a l so l ike ly to be re f lected with in the content

of mission statements As such respondents are asked whether their establishment

has a miss ion statement and i f so whether it explicit ly refer s to HR issues

The personnel function

Concerning the extent of development of the personnel function only the hotel industry

survey asked detailed questions concerning qualifications and staffing levels within the

personnel department However as respondents were asked to state their job titles within

both surveys it is possible to assess whether the proportion of personnel specialists within

the hotel industry sample varies significantly from the proportion of personnel specialists

within the manufacturing industry sample

As there are no fur ther data within the 1993 manufactur ing sur vey a

subsample of 315 manufacturing establishments that have a personnel specialist

i s taken from the third Workplace Industr ia l Relat ions Sur vey (WIRS3) in

order to examine a wider range of per sonnel depar tment features from a

comparative perspective However several problems emerge when using WIRS3

for comparat ive pur poses here Fir st ly the response rate to WIRS3 was 83

per cent compared with 3515 per cent within the 1995 hotel industry

sur vey Non-response bias therefore presents a potential problem Secondly

WIRS3 was conducted in 1990 With the hotel industry survey being conducted

f ive year s later i t i s poss ible that c hange over t ime wil l explain di f ferences

in the results ac hieved between the two samples However from the point

of view of establ ishment s ize the WIRS3 manufactur ing subsample is st i l l

comparable with the hotel industry sample Within WIRS3 the average number

of employees within the manufactur ing sector is 12495 when the data are

weighted to account for the fact that WIRS3 oversamples larger establishments

compared with 12542 within the 1995 hotel industry sample

Whi le bear ing the caveats d i scussed above in mind i t wi l l be poss ib le

to use WIRS3 to look at i s sues concer ning the re lat ive levels of resourc ing

within per sonnel depar tments in relat ion to the t ime the respondent spends

working on per sonnel i s sues the ir qua l i f i cat ions and whether they have

any suppor t s ta f f

Results

Usage of HRM practices

What becomes immediately apparent from Table 34 is that there is no evidence whatsoever

to suggest the reported usage of practices associated with an HRM approach is any lower

within the hotel industry sample than within the manufacturing sample In three of the areas

examined namely terms and conditions of employment training and communication and

consultation the practices asked about are in fact more widely reported within the hotel

industry sample than within the manufacturing sample

Concer ning the other pol icy areas namely recr uitment and select ion

job design quality issues and pay systems the picture is less clear-cut Nevertheless

the results st i l l by no means lend suppor t to the thesis that hotels at least

those of the larger var iety under investigation here lag behind manufactur ing

establ ishments in ter ms of the repor ted adoption of HRM

Firstly looking at recruitment and selection trainability is more frequently

cited as a major select ion cr iter ia in the hotel industry and for mal systems

for communicat ing the va lues and sys tems in the company to new s ta f f

are a l so more in ev idence in hote l s However the usage of rea l i s t ic job

previews i s no h igher and the use of psyc holog ica l tes t s a s the nor m for

se lect ion of a l l s ta f f i s lower amongst hote l s Indeed only 69 per cent

of the hote l industry sample c la im to use psyc holog ica l tes t ing compared

with 1469 per cent o f the manufactur ing industry sample Never the less

with the except ion of th i s l a s t i s sue the hote l industr y es tabl i shments

seem to be jus t a s care fu l a s the manufactur ing es tabl i shments in re la t ion

to the manner in whic h they recr u i t the ir s ta f f

Concerning job design a higher propor tion of respondents within the hotel

industry sample claim to have adopted teamworking arrangements On the

other measures however namely flexible job descr iptions not l inked to one

specific task and the deliberate design of jobs to make full use of worker srsquo

skills and abilities there are no differences between hotels and manufactur ing

Looking at pay systems fewer of the hotels use merit pay than do the

manufacturing establishments though hotels are more likely to carry out regular

formal appraisals Although performance appraisals in the hotel industry sample

are used in all but seven cases where merit pay is used it is never theless the

case that 5567 per cent of hotels adopting performance appraisals do not

use them in conjunction with merit pay Formal appraisals can ser ve either

as an evaluative mechanism to determine mer it pay awards or they can serve

a developmental or communicative purpose The suggestion here is that in

the hotel industry they more commonly ser ve the latter of these purposes

In one pol ic y area that o f qua l i ty the pract ices in quest ion are les s in

ev idence in hote l s than in manufactur ing F ir s t ly employees in hote l s are

less l ikely to be respons ib le for the ir own qual i ty This i s a surpr i se a s i t

might be expected that employees in the hotel industry would be accorded

g reater respons ib i l i ty for ser v ice qua l i ty g iven the d i f f i cu l t ies involved

with in the hote l industry in ter ms of monitor ing and control l ing qua l i ty

If on the other hand ser vice quality is considered to be of such impor tance

with in the overa l l product i t may be seen as too cr i t ica l an i s sue to be

le f t to indiv idua l employees Hence management might wish to mainta in

respons ib i l i ty for qua l i ty v ia lsquomystery customerrsquo monitor ing sys tems or

lsquobrand s tandardsrsquo qua l i ty targets for example

However i t i s a l so sur pr i s ing that fewer of the hote l s c la im to have

set up qual i ty improvement teams than have manufactur ing establ i shments

Hotel employees exper ience hundreds of interact ions with customers every

day with in the ir jobs As Night inga le (1985) argues s ta f f knowledge of

customer percept ions i s potent ia l ly inva luable with in cont inuous qua l i ty

improvement processes and management should ensure that such knowledge

i s tapped and ut i l i sed product ively The resul t s here suggest that th i s i s

not happening within hotels to the extent to which it is happening in manufacturing

Despite this latter result the overall level of adoption of practices associated

with an HRM approac h is remarkably high within the hotel industry sample

in compar i son with the manufactur ing sample There i s no ev idence to

suggest that the hote l industry l ags behind manufactur ing in ter ms of the

adopt ion of new HRM pract ices An ana lys i s o f th i s nature inev i tably does

not provide a comprehensive picture concerning the nature of HRM Several

unanswered questions remain par ticularly in relation to the specif ic manner

in which HRM practices operate and the spir it in which they were introduced

Never the less the resu l t s here demonstrate a widespread wi l l ingness to

adopt the rhetor ic and discour se of HRM within the hotel industry Whether

there i s substance behind th i s rhetor ic i s d i scussed with in Chapter 5

The existence of a formal HRM strategy

As can be seen from Table 35 the results would seemingly indicate that the hotels within the

analysis approach the management of human resources in a more strategic manner than do

their manufacturing industry counterparts

F ir s t ly respondents with in the hote l industr y sample are more l ike ly

to repor t the ex i s tence of an HR s trategy for mal ly endor sed and act ive ly

suppor ted by senior management at the s i te suggest ing that respons ib i l i ty

for HR pol ic y-making i s located h igher up the es tabl i shment h ierarc hy in

hote l s The impor tance accorded to HR i s sues i s fur ther re f lected by the

fact that the hotels are more l ikely to have a mission statement and mission

statements with in the hote l industry sample are jus t a s l ikely to re fer to

HR i s sues as are miss ion s ta tements with in the manufactur ing sample

Moreover a higher propor tion of the respondents within the hotel industry

sample cla im to have achieved an integrat ion between their HR pol icy and

their business strategy Similarly the hotels are a lso more l ikely to cla im

to have del iberately integrated their pract ices with each other poss ibly as

par t of an overal l synerg ist ic mutual ly suppor t ing configurat ion Looking

at Table 35 over 74 per cent of hotels claim to have deliberately integrated

their HR practices with each other compared with 54 per cent of establishments

within the manufactur ing sample

Overa l l the re su l t s i n th i s s ec t ion cou ld be in ter pre ted a s ind i cat i ve

of a high level of acknowledgement within the hotel industry of the potential

contr ibution which human resources and the way in which they are managed

can make to the ac h ievement o f the goa l s o f the bus ine s s

The resu l t s so far s t rongly endor se the pos i t ive conclus ions reac hed

within the more recent research conducted by Anastassova and Purcell (1995)

Buic k and Muthu (1997) Gi lber t and Guer r ier (1997) Har r ington and

Akehur st (1996) and Watson and DrsquoAnnunzio-Green (1996) in re la t ion to

the extent to whic h there has been exper imentat ion with HRM with in the

industry The ev idence would seem to conf l ic t wi th Lucasrsquo s c la ims that

lsquohellipa strateg ic approac h to manag ing employee relat ions expressed through

an HRM strategy i s unl ikely to be a prominent featurersquo (Lucas 199528)

Extent of development of the personnel function

Of the 225 hotel industry respondents who gave a job title 138 (60 per cent) had

lsquopersonnelrsquo lsquohuman resourcesrsquo lsquoemployee resourcingrsquo or lsquotrainingrsquo within their job title

Looking at the manufacturing sample the corresponding figure for the 307 respondents was

155 or 5049 percent2 Supporting Lucasrsquos (1995 1996) analysis of data from WIRS3 the

figures suggest that there is proportionately a higher number of personnel specialists within

the hotel industry sample than within the manufacturing sample

As explained earlier no fur ther data were collected in relation to personnel

depar tments within the 1993 manufactur ing sur vey Therefore a subsample

of 315 manufactur ing f i r ms that have a manager with respons ib i l i ty for

per sonnel i s sues i s taken f rom WIRS3 in order to enable an examinat ion

of a wider range of per sonnel i ssues from a comparat ive per spect ive These

Table 35 Comparison of HRM strategy in hotels and manufacturing

establ i shments are compared aga ins t the 132 hote l s with in the 1995 hote l

industry sur vey that have a per sonnel spec ia l i s t

Firstly looking at formal qualifications 7899 per cent of the hotel industry

per sonnel special ists hold a qual i f icat ion of some sor t rang ing from City

and Guilds to MBAs As can be seen within Table 36 4783 per cent hold

a specialist personnel management qualification (an IPD qualification a degree

in personnel management or a diploma in personnel management) This compares

with a f igure of 4239 per cent within the WIRS3 manufactur ing subsample

Special i sts within the hotel industry subsample spend on average 7054 per

cent of their time working on per sonnel-related matters in compar ison with

WIRS3 manufactur ing respondents who spend 6858 per cent of their t ime

working on per sonnel-related matter s 8583 per cent of the hotel industry

respondents spend 50 per cent or more of their t ime working on per sonnel-

related matter s compared with 7708 per cent of the special i sts within the

WIRS3 manufactur ing subsample Finally 5942 per cent of hotels have staff

other than the most senior manager responsible for personnel working specifically

on personnel issues compared with 422 per cent within the WIRS3 manufacturing

subsample Where suppor t staf f are in evidence within the hotel industry

subsample however their numbers are low with there being only 18 suppor t

staf f per depar tment on average where any suc h staf f were present

As highlighted earlier these results may be biased by the fact that WIRS3

was conducted five years prior to the hotel industry survey hence the situation

may have changed within manufactur ing Also the response rate to WIRS3

Table 36 The personnel function within the hotel industry compared with therest of the private sector

Note Data from WIRS3 are weighted Percentages given

is higher than the response rate to the hotel industry survey so non-response

bias may present a problem Never theless the results within Table 36 would

seem to indicate that per sonnel special ists within the hotel industry are as

well qualified as their manufacturing industry counterparts and are if anything

more l ikely to be suppor ted by back-up staf f The results presented here

therefore suppor t the conclusions reached by Kell iher and Johnson (1987

1997) Lucas (1995 1996) and Price (1994) concerning the increasing proportion

of hotel industry establ ishments that have a special i st per sonnel manager

and the sophistication of those specialists in terms of their formal qualifications

Discussion and conclusions

The findings reported within this chapter lend support to the currently emerging view

that at least within the larger hotels of the type examined within this analysis there is

nowadays a growing level of interest in HRM The results also suggest that hotels of the

type under investigation here attach a high degree of strategic importance to HR issues

There is no evidence whatsoever to suggest that manufacturing establishments

demonstrate a greater interest in HRM than do comparatively sized hotels If anything the

opposite is true

Th i s c hapter a l so repor t s f ind ings to suppor t the cur rent ly emerg ing

view that the occurrence of specialist personnel managers within the industry

i s more widespread than prev ious ly ac knowledged (Luca s 1995 1996

Pr ice 1994) This does not necessar i ly suggest that the per sonnel special ists

wi th in the indus t r y a re p l ay ing an increa s ing ly s t r ateg i c ro le in t e r ms

of championing the adoption of more sophist icated HR pract ices As argued

by Lucas (1995 1996) and Pr ice (1994) the existence of personnel specialists

may have more to do wi th the need for cont inua l recr u i tment and ba s i c

sk i l l s t r a in ing re su l t ing f rom the indus t r y rsquo s l abour - in tens ive nature and

high leve l s o f l abour tur nover Th i s i s sue i s te s ted empir ica l ly in the next

c hapter The re su l t s here s imply re l ate to the ex tent to wh ic h per sonne l

manager s a re in ex i s tence wi th in the indus t r y r a ther than the func t ions

they per for m

It is impor tant to reiterate that the hotels under investigation within this

analysis are large by industry standards This is deliberate as it is only amongst

these hotels that an interest in HRM might be expected However the conclu-

sions reached here should not be extrapolated to smaller hotels within which

poor per sonnel practice as descr ibed by Pr ice (1994) for example may well

be commonplace Never theless as this analysis demonstrates larger hotels

would appear to have taken on board the need to improve and develop HR

policy and practice These hotels by nature of their size and prominence may

influence standards in the industry more widely

It is also impor tant to reiterate the caveat discussed earlier in relation to

the timing of the two sur veys used within this analysis Ideally it would be

preferable to have data on the hotel industry and on manufactur ing at the

same point in time The fact that the sur vey from which the manufactur ing

data were drawn was conducted two year s pr ior to the hotel industry sur vey

may have introduced a bias into the results

Never the less the resul t s repor ted with in th i s ana lys i s would seem to

cor roborate the conclus ions reac hed by Buic k and Muthu (1997) Gi lber t

and Guerr ier (1997) and Watson and DrsquoAnnunzio-Green (1996) concerning

the extent to whic h the hote l industry has undergone c hange in recent

year s I t seems that a s manager s have taken on board the impor tance of

ser v ice qua l i ty they have a l so taken on board the need to f ind new ways

of employing their staff Much of the evidence por traying the hotel industry

as bac kward and unstrateg ic dates back to the 1980s Suc h convent iona l

stereotypes now seem somewhat dated at least where larger hotel establishments

are concer ned

F ina l ly the f ind ings repor ted wi th in th i s c hapter should be o f in teres t

not only to those whose pr imary research focus is within the hotel industry

b u t a l s o t o t h o s e w i t h a b ro a d e r i n t e re s t i n H R M A s d i s c u s s e d i n t h e

opening chapter HRM as a concept is rooted f ir mly within a manufactur ing

parad igm and i t s c red ib i l i t y w i l l be s e r ious ly under mined i f i t i s shown

to be i r re levant or inapp l i cable wi th in the ser v i ce s wi th in wh ic h a lmos t

76 per cent o f the working populat ion i s employed However the ana lys i s

h e re s u g g e s t s a w i d e s p re a d a d o p t i o n a n d c o n s i d e r a b l e e x p e r i m e n t at i o n

w i t h n ew H R M i n i t i a t i ve s w i t h i n a s e r v i c e s e c t o r c o n t e x t a t l e a s t i n

ter ms o f the adopt ion o f the l anguage and d i s cour se o f HRM The extent

t o w h i c h t h e re i s s u b s t a n c e b e h i n d t h i s d i s c o u r s e w i l l b e c o n s i d e red

i n C h a p t e r 5

1 The results reported within this chapter are also reported in the Human ResourceManagement Journal 1999 9(2)

2 Both of these figures omit those respondents who described themselves as regionalpersonnel managers or directors as this was taken as indicative that the personnelfunction was based at regional rather than unit level

4 Influences on HRM inthe hotelindustry

The results presented within the previous chapter suggest that there has been a greater

degree of experimentation with HRM within the hotel industry than has typically been given

credit for in the past The aim of this chapter is to assess the impact of factors that are likely

to influence the approach taken to HRM within the industry

As d i scussed with in Chapter s 1 and 2 severa l potent ia l in f luences on

HRM policy choice are considered to be important within both the mainstream

HRM l i terature and the hote l industry l i terature To recap br ie f ly these

inf luences can be sp l i t into three categor ies The f i r s t category concer ns

in f luences that are common to both set s o f l i terature These inc lude the

fol lowing

i) Whether the hotelrsquos business strategy emphasises tight cost control and competition

on price factors rather than service quality

ii) The seriousness with which senior managers within the industry take HR issues and

more specifically whether personnel managers lack strategic vision and resources

iii) Workforce characteristics relating in particular to the extent to which the workforce

is likely to prove resistant to the introduction of new style working practices Related

to this is the issue of establishment age Within older establishments it might be

expected that practices will be more entrenched in custom and practice making the

introduction of new approaches more difficult

iv) Establishment size HRM could be of limited relevance in the industry due to the

smaller than average size of units Conversely HRM may be more applicable in hotels

that are part of a chain

v) The non-union nature of the industry This could aid the introduction of an HRM

approach as it would not be necessary to gain trade union acquiescence prior to the

introduction of new practices However if management choose to use their

prerogative to introduce cost-cutting or labour-intensifying practices it could also

hinder the introduction of HRM

vi) National ownership Foreign owned hotels might operate a more sophisticated

approach to HRM than their UK-owned counterparts

The second category comprises influences on HRM that are seen as unique

to the hote l industr y These inc lude

i) The variable just-in-time nature of demand within the industry This may result in an

emphasis on the use of peripheral or casual labour and numerical flexibility rather than

on HRM

ii) High levels of labour turnover These may militate against the introduction of HRM as

workforce instability hinders the development of shared values and the development of

workforce competencies

Given that these factor s are seen as potent ia l ly h ighly inf luent ia l within

the hote l industry the extent to whic h they in f luence dec i s ion-making

will be cr itical in determining the extent to which the industry can genuinely

be v iewed as lsquod i f ferentrsquo

T h e t h i r d c a t e g o r y c o n c e r n s i n f l u e n c e s d i s c u s s e d e x c l u s i ve ly w i t h i n

the HRM l i t e r ature Only one fac tormdashthe impac t o f f i nanc i a l marke t smdash

f a l l s i n t o t h i s c a t e g o r y E s t a b l i s h m e n t s t h a t a re p a r t o f a d i ve r s i f i e d

b u s i n e s s m ay b e l e s s l i ke ly t o h ave a d o p t e d H R M a s s u c h a n a p p ro a c h

w i l l c o n f l i c t w i t h t h e s h o r t - t e r m pr o f i t m a x i m i s i n g f o c u s t h a t i s l i ke ly

to emerge at head of f ice leve l Whi le there i s no cor responding d i scuss ion

w i t h i n t h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y l i t e r at u re o n t h i s i s s u e i t wo u l d b e s e n s i b l e

to hypo the s i s e t h at where ho te l s a r e p a r t o f a d i ve r s i f i ed bu s ine s s t hey

will be subjected to the type of pressures as discussed within the mainstream

H R M l i t e r a t u re

As can be seen f rom th i s categor i sa t ion the major i ty o f in f luences on

HRM policy-making viewed as impor tant within the hotel industry are common

to both set s o f l i terature Indeed the s imi lar i t ies between the in f luences

on HRM discussed with in the hotel industry and the mainstream l i terature

resul ted in the conclus ion with in Chapter 2 that there are few g rounds

at least on the bas i s of a l i terature review to argue that the hotel industry

i s rea l ly in any way lsquod i f ferentrsquo

The aim of this chapter is to test this asser tion empir ical ly by identifying

the fac tor s tha t exer t the g reate s t in f luence on HRM po l i c y c ho ice I f

Influences on HRM in the hotel industry 69

the f ac tor s cons idered impor tan t w i th in both se t s o f l i t e r ature have the

more subs t an t i a l impac t th i s w i l l add we igh t to the conc lu s ion reac hed

in Chapter 2 tha t the in f luences on management dec i s ion-mak ing wi th in

the hote l i ndus t r y a re no d i f f e rent f rom the in f luences on management

dec i s ion-mak ing e l sewhere However i f t he f ac tor s cons idered un ique

to the ho te l i ndus t r y have the l a rger impac t th i s w i l l p rov ide suppor t

for the a rgument that the indus t r y i s lsquod i f f e ren t rsquo the impl i c at ion be ing

tha t manager s in the indus t r y do indeed f ace cer t a in indus t ry - spec i f i c

cont ingenc ie s

Before looking at the methods and independent var iab les to be used to

tes t the potent ia l in f luences on HRM the next sect ion looks in deta i l a t

the dependent var iable used to def ine HRM

Defining human resource management

There is general agreement that HRM practices should be introduced as a mutually

reinforcing coherent package This is stressed within Guestrsquos (1987) goal of strategic

integration and also by Beer et alrsquos (198518) reference to the importance of fit

between HRM practices and systems Within the literature on performance the degree

of fit between practices is viewed as a key moderating factor (Huselid 1995

MacDuffie 1996)

However there i s a cons iderable l ac k of consensus over the spec i f ic

pract ices that should be included within the HRM pac kage In their review

of the more prominent models o f HRM Wood and Albanese (1995222ndash

4) highlight several differences of opinion For example while Guest (1987)

and Walton (1985) emphasise the provision of challenging jobs that eliminate

the wor st a spects o f rout in i sed work th i s i s sue i s by no means cons idered

impor tant by a l l the wr i ter s Walton (1985) and Koc han and Dyer (1992)

both put more emphasis on employment secur ity than do UK-based theor ists

a l though in operat iona l i s ing HRM the UK pos i t ion on th i s i s sue i s more

closely mir rored by the recent empir ica l work by US management scholar s

Ar thur (1994673) and Huse l id (1995638) Wood and Albanese (1995)

also draw attention to the disag reement over payment systems For example

Purcel l (199140) cons ider s mer i t pay or per for mance-re la ted pay to be

an essent ia l par t of the commitment bui lding process However Beer e t a l

(1984147) state that the focus within commitment-enhancing HRM should

be on non-wage factors and not on pay-for-performance systems that emphasise

the cash-nexus nature of the employment relationship Var iation in the design

of HRM pract ices i s a lso demonstrated within compar isons of organisat ions

of d i f ferent nat iona l or ig ins For example Guest and Hoque (1996) f ind

suppor t for the hypothesis that US-owned companies will emphasise unitar ist

individualistic practices and Japanese companies will emphasise single status

job secur i ty and team-working Given the not incons iderable d i f ferences

between the more prominent theoret ica l models o f HRM Guest (1997)

suggest s that jus t about the only common emphas i s wi th in the models i s

the impor tance a t tac hed to tra in ing

Thus whereas there i s a genera l ag reement that HRM pract ices should

be introduced within a mutually reinforcing package there is g reater debate

over the spec i f ic pract ices that should be inc luded with in that pac kage

I t seems that there i s no necessary lsquoone best wayrsquo theoret ica l model to

achieve desired HR outcomes but lsquoseveral best waysrsquo Some might emphasise

tra in ing other s might emphas i se employee involvement and other s might

emphas i se job des ign No one approac h i s necessar i ly super ior to another

As suc h HRM is perhaps bet ter v iewed as a ph i losophy of management

rather than as a spec i f ic set o f pract ices or tool s whic h management can

introduce to ach ieve des i red HR outcomes

However i f HRM is to be v iewed as a phi losophy of management rather

than as a set of prescr ibed techniques its operationalisation becomes somewhat

diff icult g iven the equif inite configurations of practices that can be adopted

Severa l approac hes to the constr uct ion of a dependent HRM var iable have

been taken in the past for example within one par t of his analysis Husel id

(1995) takes a straightforward cumulative count of the number of HR practices

used While deal ing with the need for equi f inal i ty such an approach misses

the cr i t ica l i s sue that pract ices should cohere each other By ignor ing th i s

i s sue suc h an approac h i s unable to d i s t ingui sh between those f i r ms that

have introduced HRM in a p iecemeal c her ry-p ic ked manner and those

that have introduced a coherent set of pol icies del iberately and consciously

des igned to synerg i s t ica l ly suppor t each other

Wood (1996) and Wood and Albanese (1995) take an alternative approach

Their lsquolatent var iablersquo analysis examines the manner in which HRM practices

cluster together They then look at each cluster and determine which cluster

most accurately resembles a theoretical model of lsquohigh commitment managementrsquo

However g iven that the theoret ical posit ion i tsel f i s ambiguous such an

approach leaves much to the researcher s discret ion as to which clusters are

representat ive of lsquohigh commitment managementrsquo and those which are not

As stressed within the theoret ical discuss ions di f ferent f irms in di f ferent

situat ions may accentuate di f fer ing pract ices within their HRM policy I t i s

therefore difficult to see how this approach which relies on a pre-determination

on the par t of the researcher as to which par ticular cluster should be defined

as HRM can deal with the equif inite approac hes to HRM that may exist in

practice

The dependent var iable to be used here therefore attempts to address both

the need for equifinality and also the need for a coherent strategically integrated

approach The var iable is dichotomous hence it identif ies hotels that can be

considered to be practising some sor t of coherent approach to HRM and

those that are not To be categor ised as a user of HRM the hotel must be

using above the mean number of HR practices asked about (in this case at

least 14 out of 22 mdashsee Chapter 4 for a detailed description of these practices)

and must also have provided a positive response to the question asking whether

HR practices are deliberately integrated with each other

This approac h overcomes the problems h ighl ighted above in two ways

Fir stly it is highly l ikely that hotels practising some form of HRM whatever

the prec i se conf igurat ion are us ing a wide range of HR pract ices They

may a l l be a t tempt ing to pract i se an HRM approac h but in doing so may

emphas i se d i f ferent HRM pract ices Thus hote l s l ike ly to have adopted

some for m of HRM approach can be ident i f ied without the impos i t ion of

any arb i trary pre-deter mined def in i t ion as to what that approac h should

cons i s t o f As suc h the var iable i s able to take into account the need for

equi f ina l i ty

Secondly the var iable overcomes the problems encountered when us ing

a measure based on a cumulat ive count of the number of pract ices adopted

A cumulat ive count fa i l s to dist inguish establ i shments that have introduced

their HRM practices in a piecemeal manner from those that have introduced

them as par t o f a coherent pac kage Requir ing lsquoHRMrsquo hote l s to have made

an a t tempt to s trateg ica l ly integ rate the ir HR pract ices with eac h other

addresses th i s problem

Based on the def in i t ion descr ibed above there are 73 (465 per cent)

hote l s that are def ined as hav ing adopted an HRM approach and 84 (535

per cent) that have not

Independent variables and method of analysis

The data used here are drawn from the 1995 Survey of Human Resource Management in the

UK Hotel Industry described in detail in the previous chapter When missing data are

accounted for the sample size is 157 As discussed earlier the aim of the analysis to be

conducted here is to assess the impact of the range of potential influences on the adoption of

an HRM approach This section describes the variables to be used to test the impact of these

influences In doing so the variables in question are divided into internal and external

influences This will enable conclusions to be drawn as to whether external environmental

factors such as market contingencies play a more powerful role in shaping HR policy than do

internal organisational factors such as establishment size or workforce characteristics

Internal variables

According to Guest (1987) workforce resistance to change is an important factor in

explaining why firms within the UK have failed to adopt HRM In order to test the impact

of workforce resistance to change on the extent to which HRM has been adopted in the

hotel industry respondents were asked firstly whether there has been an attempt to

implement either a major technical change (eg introduction of computers or cooking

vending equipment) or a major organisational change (eg introduction of work teams

delayering or decentralisation of decision-making) in the last six years (or since operations

commenced if the establishment is less than six years old)

I f the reply to e i ther o f these two quest ions was pos i t ive respondents

were then asked the extent to whic h the workforce of fered res i s tance to

the most recent prog ramme of c hange on a sca le o f one to f ive where

one was lsquovery lowrsquo and f ive was lsquovery highrsquo A f inal question asked whether

or not the res i s tance of fered was suf f ic ient to prevent the c hange f rom

being implemented

This ser ies o f quest ions as sesses the impact o f workforce res i s tance by

f i r s t ly ind icat ing whether res i s tance has proved suf f ic ient to prevent the

introduction of a proposed change Secondly the inclusion in the multivar iate

analysis of var iables looking at the extent to which there has been resistance

to c hange wi l l show whether the introduct ion of HRM has been hampered

in situations where the workforce has demonstrated a willingness or tendency

to res i s t c hange

Management innovation and strategy

The questions described above relating to resistance to change capture information on

whether there have been attempts to introduce organisational and technical change within

the last six years or since the hotel opened (if less than six years old) This information will

enable an evaluation of the impact of management willingness to innovate Guest (1987) and

Sisson and Storey (1990) attach particular importance to this issue arguing that the failure to

adopt HRM is often the result of management inability to handle change effectively The aim

here therefore will be to test whether managers that have displayed an overall willingness to

embrace change generally are more likely to have innovated in terms of HRM Whether or

not the 89 (567 per cent) hotels that have attempted technical change or the 98 (6242 per

cent) hotels that have attempted organisational change in the last six years are more likely to

have adopted HRM will shed light on this issue

Workplace age

On a new site unrestricted by problems of resistance to change entrenched attitudes and

working practices management have the opportunity to introduce the practices they would

ideally like to use This is tested empirically by Guest and Hoque (1993) who demonstrate

that using data from WIRS3 greenfield-site establishments have indeed adopted a more

sophisticated approach to HRM Similarly within the hotel industry Mars Bryant and

Mitchell (1979) found a hotel on a new site employing lsquogreenrsquo labour which had no precon-

ceived notions in relation to job design in the industry to have successfully introduced multi-

skilling with positive results

I t i s not poss ible to ident i fy g reenf ie ld s i tes a s suc h with in the hote l

industry data used here However it will be possible to evaluate the relationship

between es tabl i shment age and the l ike l ihood of HRM being pract i sed to

assess whether or not newer hote l s have been more success fu l in adopt ing

the approach to HRM they would idea l ly l ike to see

Peripheral employment

As a result of seasonal and daily variations in demand for the hotel industry product an

above average proportion of the industry workforce is employed on a part-time or

temporary basis A heavy focus on numerical flexibility and the usage of peripheral workers

is likely to according to Guerrier and Lockwood (1989b) and Walsh (1991) hinder the

adoption of an HRM approach

The inclusion of a var iable looking at the proportion of part-time employees

to total employees in the reg ress ion wil l demonstrate whether or not there

is a negative association between the adoption of HRM and par t-time working1

2397 per cent of the tota l number of employees with in the subsample

under invest igat ion here are working on a par t - t ime bas i s

Trade unions

Within the HRM literature there is considerable debate as to whether a trade union

presence encourages or militates against the implementation of HRM (see Trades Union

Congress (1994) Guest (1995) Guest and Dewe (1991) Beer et al (1985) Beaumont

(1992) for insights into this debate) If as argued by Guerrier and Lockwood (1989a)

managers within the hotel industry are pursuing a strategy based on cost reduction it is

possible that the autonomy resulting from non-unionism will facilitate the introduction

of labour-intensifying or wage cost minimising practices which would be resisted by

trade unions if deemed exploitative Conversely the lack of trade unions may give

managers the opportunity to experiment with HRM without having to firstly gain trade

union acquiescence

A va r i abl e i s t he re fore inc luded wi th in the ana ly s i s t h a t w i l l eva luat e

t h e i m p a c t o f a t r a d e u n i o n p re s e n c e w i t h i n t h e i n d u s t r y Wi t h i n t h e

s a m p l e o n ly 1 7 ( 1 0 8 3 p e r c e n t ) h o t e l s h ave a t r a d e u n i o n p re s e n c e

a n d ave r a g e m e m b e r - s h i p w h e re a t r a d e u n i o n i s p re s e n t i s o n ly 1 0 2 9

p e r c e n t T h e i n t e n t i o n wa s a l s o t o t e s t w h e t h e r u n i o n s h ave a s t ro n g e r

i n f l u e n c e o n t h e a p p ro a c h t a ke n t o H R M w h e re t h ey a re re c o g n i s e d

f o r p ay - b a r g a i n i n g p u r p o s e s H oweve r o n ly f i ve ( 3 1 8 p e r c e n t ) h o t e l s

c l a i m t o a c t u a l ly re c o g n i s e t h e u n i o n ( s ) t h a t a re p re s e n t A s s u c h i t i s

not pos s ible to t e s t whether management behav iour would be modera ted

i n t h e f a c e o f m o re p owe r f u l o r we l l - o r g a n i s e d t r a d e u n i o n s a s t h e re

a re t o o f ew re c o g n i s e d u n i o n s f o r a re l i a b l e e s t i m at e o f t h e i r e f f e c t

T h e o n ly t e s t t h at c a n b e c a r r i e d o u t re l a t e s t o t h e i n f l u e n c e o f t h e

weak for m of t rade un ion i sm that ex i s t s wi th in the industr y a s de l ineated

by t r a d e u n i o n p re s e n c e

Labour turnover

It is usual to treat the level of labour turnover as a measure of the effectiveness of HRM

However in the case of the hotel industry it makes sense to treat turnover as an independent

variable as much of the debate concerns its likely impact on the introduction of HRM in the

first instance The hotel industry workforce is highly unstable as demonstrated by a level of

labour turnover well above the average for the economy as a whole This may militate against

the adoption of HRM in two ways Firstly the stability necessary for the successful

introduction of shared values is lacking (Nailon 1989) Secondly Wood (199222ndash3) claims

that high labour turnover is endemic and institutionalised within the industry As such the

introduction of HRM would do little or nothing to alleviate it so it is unlikely that

management would attempt such an approach Moreover it is not clear within the industry

whether or not managers see labour turnover as a problem (Johnson 1985) as they can use

it to shed inefficient staff and to reduce headcount quickly and cheaply Given the potential

cost control benefits of high levels of labour turnover and the fact that an inherently unstable

workforce is unlikely to respond to HRM it seems sensible to hypothesise that the higher

the level of labour turnover the less likely it is that experimentation with HRM will have

been attempted

Average l abour tur nover for 1994 wi th in the s ample be ing looked a t

here was 3417 per cent w i th tur nover wi th in ind iv idua l ho te l s r ang ing

f rom 2 per cent to 95 per cent To a scer t a in the re l at ionsh ip be tween

the adopt ion o f HRM and l abour tur nover a s e r i e s o f dummy va r i able s

look ing at ho te l s w i th 0ndash20 per cent 21ndash40 per cent 41ndash60 per cent

and over 60 per cent l abour tur nover in 1994 wi l l be inc luded wi th in

the ana ly s i s

Workplace size

Mullins (1993) makes the point that because of the importance of location hotels cannot

centralise the production of the service they supply Hence they tend to be small in size

Indeed the Department of National Heritage estimates that 81 per cent of hotels have fewer

than 25 employees (Department of National Heritage 1996) In addition hotels with more

than 25 employees tend to be smaller than establishments in other industries Within WIRS3

which samples establishments with 25 or more employees the average number of employees

within hotels is 6225 compared with 9192 for the rest of the private sector when the data

are weighted

HRM may be o f l i t t l e re l evance wi th in sma l l e r e s t abl i shment s where

interper sonal contact between owner s or manager s and employees is greater

and per sona l re l at ionsh ip s or a fami ly a tmosphere a re l i ke ly to negate

the need for for ma l procedures To te s t th i s i s sue a s e r i e s o f dummy

var i able s look ing at ho te l s employ ing 25ndash49 50ndash99 100ndash199 and 200

or more s t a f f i s i nc luded wi th in the ana ly s i s I t i s wor th re i t e rat ing that

the s ample u sed here i s o f ho te l s tha t a re muc h l a rger than the indus t r y

average I f the relat ionship between s ize and HRM is weak this may s imply

sugges t that there i s a par t i cu l a r e s t abl i shment - s i ze thre sho ld wi th in the

indus t r y above wh ic h HRM has a ro le to p l ay I t w i l l be impor tan t no t

to extrapolate the results to smal ler hotels on whic h suc h a f inding would

have no bear ing

National ownership

A body of literature has developed recently concerning the approach to HRM adopted

within establishments of differing national origin This includes the literature on

Japanese transplants (for example Oliver and Wilkinson 1989 1992 Trevor and White

1983 Wickens 1987 Wood 1996) and the literature on German-owned companies

(for example Beaumont Cressey and Jakobsen 1990 Guest 1996 Guest and Hoque

1996) Lucas and Laycock (1991) and Price (1994) suggest that within the hotel

industry foreign-owned establishments have adopted a more sophisticated approach to

HRM than have domestically owned establishments and they will reap rewards in terms

of financial performance and market share as a result As such this issue is particularly

worthy of analysis

With in the sample looked at here 24 (1529 per cent ) hote l s descr ibe

t h e m s e l ve s a s f o re i g n ow n e d A va r i a b l e w i l l b e i n c l u d e d t o a s c e r t a i n

w h e t h e r t h e s e e s t a b l i s h m e n t s a re a ny m o re l i ke ly t o h ave i n t ro d u c e d

a n H R M a p p ro a c h t h a n a re d o m e s t i c a l l y ow n e d e s t a b l i s h m e n t s

Chain hotels

As discussed in Chapter 2 Shamir (1978) suggests that a more formal and sophisticated

approach to HRM is likely to be found amongst hotels that are part of a chain They are

more likely to have a formal strategy dictated to them from above as the corporate

centre will not only be concerned with the efficiency of individual business units but

they will also wish to achieve a consistency of approach in order that staff can be easily

moved around within the organisation as a whole By contrast independently owned

hotels are able to rely on an informal family atmosphere and interpersonal relationships

between staff and owners and they do not need to worry about the need for a formal

consistent approach between units

To t e s t w h e t h e r o r n o t s u c h a r g u m e n t s h o l d t r u e w i t h i n t h e s e d a t a

a va r i a bl e i s i n c l u d e d t h a t i d e n t i f i e s c h a i n h o t e l s 1 3 1 o r 8 3 4 4 p e r

cen t o f t he ho te l s w i th in t he s amp le f i t t h i s de s c r ip t i on t hough i t mus t

b e re m e m b e re d t h at t h e c h a i n s va r y i n s i z e f ro m t h e l a r g e c h a i n s s u c h

a s Fo r t e a n d T h i s t l e t o mu c h s m a l l e r c h a i n s s u c h a s S a rova o r M i n o t e l s

o f B r i t a i n ( Ta b l e 3 1 i n t h e p rev i o u s c h a p t e r c o n t a i n s a c o m p l e t e l i s t

o f t h e h o t e l c h a i n s w i t h i n t h e s a m p l e ) N eve r t h e l e s s t h i s v a r i a bl e w i l l

demonstrate whether chain hotels are indeed more l ikely to have introduced

a n H R M a p p ro a c h a s hy p o t h e s i s e d e a r l i e r

Extent of development of the personnel department

The need for a well-developed personnel function if HRM is to flourish is emphasised within

the mainstream HRM literature Guest and Hoque (1994a) find that where an establishment

has a well-developed personnel department it is more likely to have adopted practices

associated with an HRM approach Similarly within the hotel industry literature Boella

(198633) suggests that the future role of personnel managers could be to encourage a more

participative approach to decision-making

In order to tes t the impact o f the uni t - leve l per sonnel funct ion on the

approac h taken to HRM in the hote l industry a ser ies o f measures the

frequen-c ies for whic h can be found in Chapter 4 have been developed

These are as fo l lows

a) Whether or not there is a manager at the hotel with specific responsibility for

personnel issues

b) If the answer to a) was positive

mdash Whether or not the manager responsible for personnel spends 50 per cent or

more of their time working on personnel issues

mdash Whether or not the manager responsible for personnel has a formal qualification

in personnel management or a related subject

mdash The number of staff with the exception of the most senior manager responsible

for personnel who work specifically within the personnel department of the

The inc lus ion of these var iables with in the mult ivar iate ana lys i s wi l l

demonstrate the impact of the nature and development of personnel departments

on the approac h taken to HRM with in the industry

The location of HR decision-making

The final issue to be tested in relation to factors internal to the organisation concerns

Guestrsquos (1987) argument that if HRM is to flourish responsibility for HR decision-

making should be fully integrated into the strategic planning process at senior

management levels To test this issue a dichotomous variable has been constructed that

asks whether or not the hotel has a human resource strategy that is formally endorsed

and actively supported by senior management at the hotel Within the sample used here

121 (7707 per cent) hotels claim to have such a strategy As stressed in the previous

chapter this is high in comparison with manufacturing The aim here is to assess the

impact of the location of decision-making in relation to HRM issues within hotels on

the approach taken to HRM

External variables

This section describes the variables to be used to test the impact of a range of potential

influences relating to the environment within which hotels operate on the approach taken

to HRM

As argued within the situational contingency typology presented by Schuler (1989) and

Schuler and Jackson (1987) an HRM approach will be considered more applicable in

situations where product markets dictate quality enhancement to be the key to competitive

advantage Conversely HRM will be considered inappropriate in instances where product

markets emphasise cost control

T h e S c h u l e r ( 1 9 8 9 ) a n d S c h u l e r a n d Ja c k s o n ( 1 9 8 7 ) hy p o t h e s i s i s

t e s t e d a s f o l l ow s F i r s t ly f ro m a c h o i c e o f p r i c e q u a l i t y c o s t c o n t ro l

re s p o n s i ve n e s s t o c u s t o m e r n e e d s a dve r t i s i n g m a r ke t i n g p rov i d i n g a

d i s t i n c t i ve s e r v i c e o r lsquo o t h e r re p l i e s rsquo r e s p o n d e n t s a re a s ke d t o s t a t e

t h e t wo f e a t u re s t h a t m o s t a c c u r a t e ly d e s c r i b e t h e i r h o t e l rsquo s a p p ro a c h

t o bu s i n e s s s t r a t e g y A va r i a bl e i s t h e n c re at e d t h a t s p l i t s t h e s a m p l e

into hotels emphasis ing a qual i ty enhancer approach and hotels emphasis ing

a c o s t re d u c e r a p p ro a c h A t h i r d c a t e g o r y i s a d d e d c o m p r i s i n g h o t e l s

wi th a somewhat more ambiguous approac h to bus ines s s t rategy (poss ibly

re p re s e n t i n g t h o s e e s t a bl i s h m e n t s t h a t Po r t e r ( 1 9 8 5 ) wo u l d d e s c r i b e

a s lsquo s t u c k i n t h e m i d d l e rsquo )

Hotel s spec i fy ing the fo l lowing features of the ir ser v ice to be the most

cr uc ia l for compet i t ive success are des ignated as cost reducer s

bull price AND one of the following

bull cost control

bull OR responsiveness to customer needs

bull OR advertisingmarketing

bull OR providing a distinctive service

bull OR human resources (listed by respondent in the lsquoother repliesrsquo space

Also included as cost reducer s are those who state the fol lowing features

are the most cr uc ia l to compet i t ive success

bull cost control AND one of the following

bull responsiveness to customer needs

bull also lsquoresponsiveness to customer needsrsquo AND lsquovalue for moneyrsquo (listed by a respondent

in the lsquoother repliesrsquo space)

Thir ty-s ix (2293 per cent) hotels within the sample fa l l into this category

Hote l s spec i fy ing the fo l lowing are des ignated as qua l i ty enhancer s

bull quality AND one of the following

Seventy-three (465 per cent) hotels within the sample fall into this category

Hote l s spec i fy ing the fo l lowing are des ignated as lsquoother s rsquo

bull price and quality

bull quality and cost control

bull responsiveness to customer needs AND one of the following

bull advertisingmarketing

bull OR cleanliness

bull OR workforce skills

bull OR responsiveness to staff needs

The la t ter three responses were g iven in the lsquoother repl ies rsquo space by

respondents For ty-e ight (3057 per cent) hote l s fa l l in to th i s ca tegory

The main aim of this categor isation is to assess whether hotels emphasising

qual i ty enhancement are more l ikely to have adopted HRM than have hotels

emphas i s ing cost reduct ion However the f ind ing that 465 per cent o f

the sample v iew qua l i ty enhancement as the key feature o f the ir bus iness

s trategy compared with 2293 per cent who v iew cost minimisat ion as the

key i s in i t se l f a notewor thy f ind ing Cal lan (1994) Kokko and Moi lanen

(1997) Matts son (1994) Olsen (1989) and Pye (1994) argue that qua l i ty

enhancement i s becoming increas ing ly impor tant for compet i t ive success

within the industry The classification here demonstrates that a large proportion

of hote l s wi th in th i s sample have apparent ly taken th i s message on board

The AA hotels guide on which the 1995 hotel industry sur vey was based

conta ins in for mat ion on two fur ther i s sues re la t ing to s trategy The f i r st

concer ns the s tar ra t ing of the hote l and the second concer ns the pr ice

of a standard double room per night HRM might be viewed as more relevant

with in four or f ive-s tar hote l s or with in more expens ive hote l s g iven the

g reater emphas i s on ser v ice qua l i ty that might be expected With in the

sample 2 hotels are categor ised as two-star 72 are three-star 50 are four-

star 6 are f ive-star and 27 are unclass i f ied (company-owned chain hotels)

The mean pr ice of a double room per n ight with in the subsample under

invest igat ion here i s pound8740 There i s cons iderable var i at ion however the

c heapest pr ice quoted with in the sample be ing pound39 per n ight the most

expensive being pound264 Var iables descr ibing both the star rat ing of the hotel

and also the pr ice per night are included in the analysis This will demonstrate

whether it is only the higher star-rated hotels or the more expensive hotels

that have adopted HRM or whether exper imentation with HRM has occurred

across a l l the s tar categor ies and across the whole pr ice range

Market stability

As seasonality is likely to result in the need for a large number of temporary or casual

workers it might be expected that where hotels operate within particularly seasonal markets

there will be less scope for an HRM approach To test this relationship a three-part variable

is used which asks whether the market for the hotelrsquos services is stable seasonal but

predictable or unpredictable Eighty (5096 per cent) hotels within the sample fall into the

first category 65 (414 per cent) fall into the second and 12 (764 per cent) fall into the

third This in itself is a revealing result Over half of the hotels within the sample do not

report any seasonal fluctuation in demand This may be due to the fact that many of the

hotels within the sample are large city-centre hotels with corporate clients comprising the

major clientele whose demand for hotel services is year-round (although business trade

tends to dip in August this is predictable and can sometimes be compensated for by passing

holiday trade) Therefore although the usage of HRM may be lower amongst hotels

experiencing seasonal fluctuations it should be remembered that seasonality may not be a

major logistical problem for the type of hotel under investigation within this sample

Impact of decentralisation

To test the argument put forward by Kirkpatrick Davies and Oliver (1992) and Purcell

(1989) that HRM is less likely to have been adopted among establishments that have

decentralised as a result of pressure from financial markets the following series of

questions were asked Firstly respondents were asked about the level of influence of

their parent companymdashon a scale of one to five (where one is lsquovery lowrsquo and five is

lsquovery highrsquo) mdashover the hotelrsquos financial control (eg cost centres profit centres setting

budgets and performance targets) They were then asked whether their parent company

and its subsidiaries were best described as a single business (more than 90 per cent of

sales in one line of business) a dominant business (70ndash90 per cent of sales in one line of

business) a related business (no single line of business accounts for more than 70 per

cent of sales but businesses are related to each other) or a conglomerate business (many

unrelated businesses) If the theory is of explanatory value in the hotel industry less

evidence of HRM would be expected amongst hotels that are part of a related or

conglomerate business in particular where a high degree of financial control is

exercised by the corporate centre (in other words where the hotel fits the description

of the type of business unit described by Kirkpatrick Davies and Oliver (1992) and

Purcell (1989))

Two var iables have been constr ucted to examine th i s i s sue The f i r st

enables a compar i son of the approaches taken to HRM in the 24 (1702

per cent) hote l s that are par t o f a conglomerate bus iness the 46 (3262

per cent) that are par t o f a re la ted bus iness the 33 (234 per cent) that

are par t o f a dominant bus iness and the 38 (2695 per cent) that are par t

of a s ing le bus iness I t would be expected that interest in HRM would be

lower in hote l s that are par t o f a conglomerate bus iness

A second var iable tes t s the theory more prec i se ly This var iable looks

at hote l s that are par t o f a re la ted or conglomerate bus iness and whose

parent has a f a i r ly or ver y h igh leve l o f in f luence over f inanc ia l control

F i f ty-one (3617 per cent) hote l s wi th in the sample f i t th i s descr ipt ion

I f decentra l i sat ion impacts a s predicted on HRM pol icy c hoice with in the

hotel industry it would be expected that hotel units within such organisations

would be less l ikely to have adopted HRM

Further control variables

All regressions control for the region in which the hotel is located

Results

The impact of internal factors

What becomes immediately apparent from equation 1 in Table 41 is that there is very

little relationship between many of the internal factors and the likelihood of an HRM

approach having been adopted Firstly the slight relationship with workforce size

suggests that the medium-sized hotels within the sample (employing between 100 and

199 staff) have been marginally more successful in introducing HRM Apart from this

the coefficients of the other size dummies suggest a general applicability of HRM within

the size of hotels covered by this sample with there being no evidence that the smaller

hotels (employing between 25 and 49 staff) are less likely to have adopted an HRM

approach than hotels employing more than 200 staff for example As stated earlier

given that the hotels being looked at here are much larger than the hotel industry

average it is important not to extrapolate this result to hotels with fewer than 25

employees

Second ly cont ra r y to expec tat ions there i s no th ing to sugges t that

operating with a high propor tion of par t-t ime worker s hinders the adoption

of an HRM approac h I t may be the case there fore that par t - t ime worker s

should not necessar i ly be v iewed as per iphera l Given the h igh propor t ion

o f f ema le employees wi th in the indus t ry work force i t may be the ca se

that such working ar rangements suit both workforce as well as management

S imply because the se worker s work f ewer hour s per week than do fu l l -

t ime s t a f f there i s no rea son why they shou ld be any l e s s commit ted

or indeed any l e s s l i ke ly to re spond f avourably to HRM par t i cu l a r ly i f

they a re work ing par t - t ime out o f c ho ice A l te r nat i ve ly i t may be the

case that where there is a high propor t ion of par t-t ime per ipheral worker s

HRM i s app l i ed exc lu s ive ly to the core fu l l - t ime work force

The insignif icant union presence var iable suggests that the weak unionism

within the industry neither encourages nor hinders management in implementing

the pol ic ies o f the ir c hoice I t i s wor th re i terat ing here however that

noth ing i s known about whether a s tronger for m of unionism would have

a more potent impact

Looking at the es tabl i shment age dummies there i s noth ing to suppor t

either the hypothesis that policies will mature or become more sophisticated

over t ime or the a l ter nat ive hypothes i s that new establ i shments are more

l ike ly to be have adopted an HRM approac h hav ing been in a pos i t ion to

introduce f rom scratc h the pol ic ies they would idea l ly l ike to use

Indeed with in the f i r s t equat ion only two factor s s tand out as be ing

assoc iated with an HRM approach F ir s t ly hote l s that descr ibe themselves

as fore ign owned have apparent ly adopted a more sophis t icated approac h

This i s a robust resu l t whic h does not c hange when fur ther control s are

added e i ther in Table 41 or l a ter in Tables 42 and 43 The resul t here

therefore suppor ts the argument put forward by Lucas and Laycoc k (1991)

and Pr ice (1994) that fore ign-owned hote l s in the UK are l ikely to have

adopted more sophisticated approaches to HRM than have UK-owned hotels

Table 41 Relationship between HRM and internal factors in the hotel industry

Notes Dependent variable 1=HRM hotels 0=non-HRM hotels Logit analysisCoefficients given (standard errors in brackets) All regressions control for region significant at 10 per cent significant at 5 per cent

Secondly there i s some ev idence to suggest that c ha in hote l s are more

l ike ly to have adopted an HRM approac h This resu l t i s moderated by the

inclusion of the HR strategy var iable The suggest ion is therefore that chain

hotels are more l ikely to have adopted an HRM approach because HR issues

are taken more ser ious ly by sen ior management with in these hote l s a s

measured by the existence of an HR strategy for mally endor sed and actively

suppor ted by senior management Indeed only 4231 per cent o f hote l s

that are not part of a chain claim to have such a formal HR strategy compared

with 8397 per cent of hotels that are part of a chain However the relationship

between the seriousness with which HR issues are taken at senior management

level and the adopt ion of an HRM approach i s weak in equat ion 2 of Table

41 and disappear s completely from equat ion 3 onwards This suggests that

there i s no automat ic re lat ionsh ip between the ex i s tence o f a for mal ly

suppor ted HR strategy and the adopt ion of an HRM approac h per s e I t

may be the case that suc h a re la t ionsh ip only ex i s t s wi th in cha in hote l s

Equations 3 and 4 of Table 41 look at resistance to change issues As demonstrated

by Table 42 resistance to technical change is rather low Resistance to organisational

change is somewhat higher with almost 43 per cent of hotels that have attempted

a major organisational change in the last six year s having repor ted medium

or fairly high levels of resistance This suppor ts the conclusions reached by

Daniel (1987) who finds that resistance to organisational change is higher

than resistance to technical change as it is more l ikely to be associated with

fear of job loss and the conclusion reached by Handy (1985) who argues

that lsquorole strainrsquo may result from a fear of an expansion of job roles or an

increase in responsibil it ies in the face of organisational change

Table 42 Resistance to organisational and technical change in the hotel industry

Concerning the impact of resistance to change none of the technical change

attempts had failed as a result of workforce resistance and only one of the

hotels within the sample repor ted that the last organisational change attempt

had failed as a result of such resistance This suggests one of two things Firstly

it might be the case that workforce resistance to change can be overcome

quite easily perhaps via a par ticipative or a normative re-educative approach

Alternatively it might be the case that change initiatives are pushed through

irrespective of the views or fears of the workforce Which of these two scenarios

is closest to the truth can be addressed within the case study inter views

Never theless the tendency of the workforce to resist does not seem to have

exer ted any influence on manager ial policy choice in relation to HRM Within

equations 3 and 4 in Table 41 there is no suggestion of a relationship between

the extent to which the workforce has demonstrated a tendency to resist change

and the l ikelihood of an HRM approach being pursued

I t i s fur ther hypothes i sed above that where management has d i sp layed

innovat ive behav iour in re la t ion to technica l and organi sa t iona l c hange

HRM is a l so more l ikely to have been adopted Equat ions 1 and 2 in Table

43 show that where there has been both organisational and technical change

in the la s t s ix year s or s ince operat ions began es tabl i shments are indeed

more l ikely to be pract i s ing an HRM approach Equat ion 3 in Table 43

would seem to indicate that major organisat ional c hange has been the more

influential factor with the significance of the major technical change var iable

d i sappear ing with the introduct ion of the organi sat iona l c hange var iable

The resu l t s therefore suggest a tendency for hote l s to have adopted HRM

hand-in-hand with an overall package of organisational change This is further

demonstrated by the fact that hote l s that have at tempted organi sa t iona l

change are a l so more l ikely to have an HR s tra tegy for mal ly endor sed

and act ively suppor ted by sen ior management To be prec i se 8367 per

cent o f hote l s that have exper ienced an organi sat iona l c hange a t tempt in

the la s t s ix year s have a for mal HR s trategy compared with 661 per cent

of those that have not a resu l t that i s s ign i f icant in a c h i - square tes t

This result has one fur ther implication The inclusion of a change var iable

into the equation introduces a notion of dynamics In that it is quite strongly

l inked to organisat ional change having taken place within the last s ix year s

innovat ion in ter ms of HRM i t se l f wi th in the industry may wel l be qui te

a recent phenomenon in many hote l s

Equat ion 1 of Table 44 sheds l ight on the re la t ionsh ip between HRM

and the nature of the per sonnel depar tment Looking back fir stly to equation

1 of Table 41 there is no relat ionship between the presence of a per sonnel

spec ia l i s t and the adopt ion of an HRM approac h Equat ion 1 of Table 44

looks in more deta i l at hote l s where there i s a per sonnel spec ia l i s t This

equation shows that personnel specialists are no more likely to be responsible

for introducing HRM ir respective of the qualif ications they hold the amount

of t ime they spend working on per sonnel i s sues or the number of suppor t

s ta f f they have working on per sonnel i s sues

On the basis of the results presented here it would seem that unit-level

personnel is not responsible for the introduction of more sophisticated approaches

to HRM What therefore is their role This is at least in par t revealed by

the fact that labour tur nover in hotels where there is a per sonnel specialist

Table 43 The relationship between HRM technical and organisational changein the hotel industry

Notes Dependent variable 1 = HRM hotels 0= non-HRM hotelsLogit analysis Coefficients given (standard errors in brackets)All regressions control for region significant at 10 per cent significant at 5 per cent

present is on average 3813 per cent compared with only 2871 per cent

where there is no such specialist Thus one impor tant task of the unit- level

per sonnel specialist may well be to deal with the recruitment and manpower

planning needs created by high levels of labour turnover This would lend

Table 44 The relationship between HRM the personnel function and labour turnoverin the hotel industry

Notes Dependent variable 1=HRM hotels 0=non-HRM hotels Logit analysisCoefficients given (standard errors in brackets) All regressions control for region significant at 10 per cent significant at 5 per cent significant at 1 per cent

suppor t to the conclusions reached by Pr ice (1994) and Lucas (1995 1996)

concerning the role of per sonnel specialists within the industry

The question remains however as to who is responsible for championing

the introduction of HRM if it is not unit-level per sonnel managers The chief

contenders are presumably unit-level general managers or alternatively regional

or head office-level per sonnel In the latter of these instances HR policy

and practice initiatives may be generated at head or reg ional office level and

implemented top-down The fact that HRM tends to be more sophisticated

where hotels are par t of a chain would suggest support for this interpretation

It therefore seems that within the hotel industry the influence of reg ional

or head office may well be impor tant in terms of the introduction of a more

sophisticated approach to HRM While further questions relating to the nature

of the relationship between unit-level hotels and head and reg ional offices

can be addressed within the follow-up interviews it would nevertheless seem

on the basis of the results achieved here that where innovation has occurred

the involvement of unit-level per sonnel may well be somewhat l imited

The second equation in Table 44 looks at the relationship between labour

turnover and HRM In that it shows hotels with an annual labour turnover

of g reater than 60 per cent to be sl ightly more likely to have adopted an

HRM approach than hotels with labour turnover of less than 20 per cent

this result is something of an anomaly It could be explained in any one of

three ways Firstly there may be a positive relationship between labour turnover

and HRM as hotels with high labour turnover have introduced HRM practices

albeit somewhat unsuccessfully aimed at reducing tur nover

Secondly there may a problem with missing data within this equation Hotels

classified as having adopted an HRM approach are more likely to have reported

their labour turnover than are hotels that are not classified as having adopted

such an approach To be exact 768 per cent of hotels classified as users of an

HRM approach reported data on labour turnover compared with 6905 per cent

of hotels not classified as such raising the possibility of non-response bias

Thirdly related to the previous point i t i s poss ible that hotels adopting

an HRM approac h also take the monitor ing of HR outcomes such as labour

tur nover more ser iously I t may only be when effect ive monitor ing takes

place that the tr ue extent of labour turnover is revealed Where monitor ing

is non-existent or less ef fect ive respondents may underest imate the actual

level of labour turnover within their hotels Given these potential measurement

problems there are good reasons why this counter- intuit ive f inding should

be treated with caution

In sum the fo l lowing factor s inter na l to the organi sat ion s tand out as

impor tant F ir s t ly i t seems that fore ign-owned hote l s have on the whole

adopted a more sophisticated approach to the management of human resources

than have UK-owned f i r ms Secondly there has been a tendency for HRM

to be introduced hand- in-hand with organi sa t iona l c hange with in the l a s t

s ix year s Finally approaches to HRM tend to be sl ightly more sophist icated

amongst c ha in hote l s and a l so amongst medium-s ized hote l s

The impact of external factors

The results showing the relationship between factors external to the firm and the likelihood

of an HRM approach having been adopted are presented in Table 45

Concer ning the ins igni f icant var iables there i s no re lat ionship between

product market s tab i l i ty and the l ike l ihood of the hote l hav ing adopted

HRM This f ind ing a long with the fact that fewer than 8 per cent o f the

hotels within the sample descr ibe their demand as seasonal and unpredictable

would suggest that seasonality can be discounted as a major log istical problem

in hote l s o f the nature under invest igat ion with in th i s ana lys i s

The var iables a s sess ing the impact o f the s tar ra t ing of the hote l and

the pr ice charged for a standard double-room per night are also insignificant

Therefore i t i s not only the more expens ive hote l s or those with a four-

or f ive-s tar rat ing as opposed to a one- to three-s tar rat ing where HRM

has a ro le to p lay

The variables relating to the impact of decentralisation are also insignificant

In an attempt to test the thesis put forward by Purcell (1989) and Kirkpatrick

Davies and Oliver (1992) (discussed above) equations 4 and 5 of Table 45

show no negative relationship between the likelihood of HRM being practised

at unit level and the extent of diver s i f icat ion within the organisat ion as a

whole Hotels that are par t of a conglomerate are no less l ikely to have

adopted HRM than are hotels that are par t of a dominant business This

test may be somewhat superf ic ia l as nothing is known as to the reasons

why the organisations have diversified or whether diversification has necessarily

led to a weakening of the perceived impor tance of HRM at head off ice level

Moreover innovation in individual hotels that are par t of a conglomerate

could be the result of local-level initiatives (local level in this instance referring

to subsidiary or divis ional level rather than unit level) Never theless at

least on the surface the evidence presented here does not suppor t the theory

put forward by Purcel l (1989) and Kirkpatr ick Davies and Oliver (1992)

The one external factor that stands out as a particularly important influence

on HRM is the approac h to bus iness s t rategy the hote l has adopted I t i s

c lear from equat ions 1 and 3 presented in Table 45 that an HRM approac h

i s more l ikely to be found with in hote l s emphas i s ing qua l i ty enhancement

as the key to business strategy than within hotels emphasising cost reduction

This provides c lear suppor t for the matc h ing model presented by Sc huler

(1989) and Sc huler and Jackson (1987) and a l so for the arguments ra i sed

Table 46 Relationship between internal and external factors and HRM in thehotel industry

Notes Dependent variable 1=HRM hotels 0=non-HRM hotelsLogit analysis Coefficients given (standard errors in brackets) All regressions control for region significant at 10 per cent significant at 5 per cent

with in the hote l industr y l i terature by Haywood (1983) Lewis (1987)

Matts son (1994) and Night inga le (1985) that an HRM approac h i s more

l ike ly to be v iewed as impor tant where the es tabl i shment i s focus ing on

qual i ty enhancement with in i t s compet i t ive s trategy

Internal and external factorsmdashwhich are the more influential

Table 46 reports an equation that includes both the internal and external independent

variables under consideration so far The results demonstrate that there are both internal and

external influences that operate independently of each other Firstly in line with situational

contingency or matching models the usage of HRM is higher amongst hotels emphasising

quality enhancement within their business strategies Secondly chain hotels and foreign-

owned hotels are more likely to have adopted HRM irrespective of the business strategy

pursued Also irrespective of the approach taken to business strategy there has been a

tendency for HRM to be introduced hand-in-hand with organisational change

Discussions and conclusions

The aim here has been to test the influence of a range of factors both internal and external

to the organisation put forward in both the hotel industry literature and also within the

generic HRM literature

In the event severa l o f the potent ia l inter na l in f luences on HRM had

very l i t t le or no e f fect whatsoever Workforce res i s tance to c hange does

not seem to have a major in f luence ne i ther does the propor t ion of the

workforce working part-time (a finding which suggests that the daily fluctuations

in demand within the hotel industry do not present major log istical problems

in ter ms of the introduction of HRM) The weak unions within the industry

would also seem to have little influence on policy choice Looking at personnel

manager s the ir presence appear s to be unre lated to the introduct ion of

HRM i r respect ive of how wel l qua l i f ied they are how muc h t ime they

spend working on employ-ment-re la ted i s sues and how many suppor t s ta f f

they have Their pr imary role may well have more to do with the manpower

planning requirements ar is ing from high levels of labour tur nover I t seems

probable therefore that HRM innovat ion has been championed at e i ther

reg iona l or head of f ice leve l ra ther than by uni t - leve l per sonnel

Tur ning to factor s inter na l to the f i r m that are re lated to the adopt ion

of an HRM approac h two inter na l f actor s s tand out with in the ana lys i s

as be ing par t icu lar ly impor tant F ir s t ly an HRM approach i s more l ike ly

to have been adopted where management has attempted a major organisational

change with in the la s t s ix year s or s ince operat ions began This suggests

f i r s t ly that an HRM approach has been introduced as par t o f an overa l l

pac kage of organi sat iona l c hange poss ibly involv ing de layer ing and new

organi sat iona l s t r uctures I t a l so suggest s that the adopt ion of HRM may

be qui te a recent phenomenon with in the hote l industry

The second inter na l f actor that s tands out re la tes to owner sh ip the

evidence suggesting that foreign-owned hotels have adopted more sophisticated

approac hes to HRM than have UK-owned hote l s In addi t ion there i s a

s l ight suggest ion that amongst c ha in hote l s the adopt ion of HRM is more

l ikely This would seem to be expla ined by the fact that HR i s sues are

more l ikely to be cons idered to be a sen ior management concer n with in

these hote l s than with in independent hote l s

Tur ning to exter na l f actor s market ins tab i l i ty which does not appear

to be par t icu lar ly h igh (with only 764 per cent o f hote l s repor t ing the ir

demand to be seasonal and unpredictable compared with 5096 per cent

who descr ibe demand as s table) does not have any par t icu lar in f luence

on the approac h taken to HRM Seasonal i ty i t seems can be d i scounted

as a major deter minant o f the approac hes taken to HRM with in hote l s o f

th i s nature

By contras t the approach taken to bus iness s t ra tegy would appear to

be a h igh ly in f luent ia l deter minant o f the approac h taken to HRM The

resul t s here c lear ly demonstrate that HRM is more widespread amongst

hotels where service quality enhancement is emphasised as the key component

within business strategy than amongst hotels where cost reduction is viewed

as centra l I t would appear there fore that where manager s wi th in the

industry have rea l i sed the impor tance of ser v ice qua l i ty they have a l so

rea l i sed the impor tance of the adopt ion of an HRM approac h

Finally the analysis within this chapter suggests that the factors influencing

HRM dec i s ion-making with in the hote l industry are no d i f ferent f rom the

factor s influencing HRM decision-making elsewhere The conclusion reached

within Chapter 2 was that very few of the inf luences on HRM policy choice

di scussed with in the hote l industry l i terature are in fact un ique to the

industry The empir ical analysis conducted here demonstrates that the impact

of these few unique in f luences i s min imal with ins tab i l i ty o f demand and

labour tur nover hav ing l i t t le or no impact on the approach taken to HRM

By contrast business strategy nat ional owner ship and being par t of a c hain

all exer t a major influence All of these factors are also considered impor tant

with in the mainstream l i terature As suc h the resu l t s do not suppor t the

argument that the hote l industry i s in any way lsquod i f ferentrsquo or sub ject to a

unique set o f cont ingenc ies not faced by manager s in other industr ies

The fo l lowing c hapter examines the HRM pract ices adopted with in a

se lect ion of hote l s in c loser deta i l a s sess ing in par t icu lar whether the

hote l s categor i sed as lsquoHRM hote l s rsquo wi th in th i s chapter are deser v ing of

their title and whether there is substance behind the widely reported rhetoric

of HRM repor ted with in Chapter 3 F ina l ly one of the key explanatory

var iables with in the ana lys i s presented in th i s c hapter re la tes to bus iness

strategy This is a lso a key var iable within the analysis of outcomes repor ted

in Chapter 6 and as such is wor thy of fur ther investigation and ver if ication

The fo l lowing c hapter therefore provides an as sessment o f the va l id i ty o f

the lsquoqua l i ty enhancerrsquo lsquocost reducerrsquo and lsquootherrsquo c la s s i f i ca t ions

1 The intention was also to include a variable looking at the proportion of temporaryworkers However this has been omitted as there is a question mark concerning thequality of the data collected within the survey Respondents were asked to state thenumber of employees on fixed-term or casual contracts of 12 months or less induration Many responded by saying that the entire workforce fell within this categoryGiven the probability that this variable has been misinterpreted it is omitted from theanalysis

5 HRM in practice in thehotelindustry

This chapter focuses on a series of interviews conducted between September and November 1996

as a follow-up to the 1995 Survey of Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry As

discussed at the end of the preceding chapter these interviews were conducted primarily to test

the validity of the variable used to define lsquoHRMrsquo and lsquonon-HRMrsquo hotels lsquoHRMrsquo hotels were

defined as those using above the mean number of HRM practices asked about (in other words at

least 14 out of 2 2) and also claiming to deliberately integrate their HR practices with each other

Is it the case that the hotels falling into this category merit their lsquoHRMrsquo title

Secondly the follow-up interviews aim to provide suppor t for the business

strategy typology constructed in the previous chapter This is a highly important

predictor of the extent to which HRM is being practised and as such it is

worthy of further validation How far is lsquoquality enhancementrsquo or lsquocost reductionrsquo

a fair descr iption of the pr ior ities within the business strateg ies of the hotels

classif ied as such The emphases within the business strateg ies of the hotels

classif ied as lsquootherrsquo will also be examined in fur ther detail

Thirdly in that the follow-up interviews involve a more in-depth analysis of

the practices introduced within each of the hotels the manner in which they

function and the spirit in which they were intended further corroboration will

be possible in relation to the results presented in Chapter 3 concerning the extent

of usage of HRM in the industry As discussed in Chapter 2 Hales (1987) received

highly positive responses to his questionnaire examining the introduction of quality

of working-life practices but in his follow-up interviews he found that many

of the practices introduced were aimed solely at management and were aimed

at labour intensification and job loading Hales (1987) also found a general belief

amongst management that staff were not interested in accepting greater responsibility

A similar finding here will cast serious doubt on the conclusions reached in chapter

three in relation to the nature and extent of usage of HRM within the industry

Finally it will also be possible within the follow-up interviews to shed further

light on the factors that influence managerial decision-making in relation to

HRM discussed in the previous chapter For example the results in Chapter 4

would seem to suggest that sophisticated approaches to HRM are more in evidence

within chain hotels The follow-up interviews will enable an assessment of the

relationship between corporate and regional headquar ters and individual units

in terms of the extent to which HRM practices have emanated from regional

or head offices as opposed to having been developed at unit level An analysis

of the extent to which the hotel industry workforce is as willing to accept

change as implied within the analysis in the previous chapter will also be possible

as will an evaluation of the attitudes of interviewees towards trade unions

Hotels were selected for inclusion within the follow-up interview programme

as follows Firstly g iven the impor tance of business strategy as a predictor of

the extent to which HRM has been introduced the sample was split into lsquocost

reducersrsquo lsquoquality enhancersrsquo and lsquoothersrsquo Each of these sub-samples was then

split into lsquoHRM organisationsrsquo and lsquonon-HRM organisationsrsquo using the definition

adopted in the previous chapter As such six categor ies were created these

being lsquoHRM cost reducersrsquo lsquonon-HRM cost reducersrsquo lsquoHRM quality enhancersrsquo

lsquonon-HRM quality enhancersrsquo lsquoHRM othersrsquo and lsquonon-HRM othersrsquo One hotel

was then selected from each category To maintain consistency all the selected

hotels were part of a chain were non-union and had attempted a major organisational

change in the last six years All interviewees were designated personnel specialists

Given the amount of the intervieweersquos time that extensive follow-up interviews

take the willingness of managers to take part in the interview programme was

in itself surpr ising In the event only one manager refused to be interviewed

point blank From a methodological point of view this is important as there is

no reason why the hotels visited should be considered unrepresentative of the

categories from which they have been selected

The next sect ion addresses each of the case-study inter views in turn

consider ing in par t icular whether the HRM categor isat ion and the business

strategy typology are just i f ied

The lsquonon-HRM cost reducerrsquo

The lsquonon-HRM cost reducerrsquo hotel is located in central London and is part of a small family-

owned chain The underlying philosophy of the hotel which employs 115 staff emphasises

the efficient management of staffing levels and cost control Staffing levels are set and agreed

by the senior management team and variations in demand for labour are dealt with using

HRM in practice in the hotel industry 97

casual staff who receive no contract of employment and no sick pay or pension entitlements

About 50 per cent of food service staff are casual workers passing through the UK maybe

spending six months there at most Typically they have careers in their home countries and

have come to the UK to learn English These employees are trained to a level necessary to

provide a certain level of service but they are provided with no further training beyond this

There is no evidence of single status terms and conditions of employment

despi te c la ims to the contrary with in the quest ionna ire Management s ta f f

rece ive more benef i t s than do non-management s ta f f but operate on an

lsquohour s-as-requiredrsquo bas i s whereas s ta f f up to super v i sor y leve l work 40

hours per week plus paid over time Concerning the pension scheme manager s

are ab le to jo in f rom day one Non-management s ta f f by contras t have

to wait a year Management are eligible for private healthcare Non-management

staff are not All employees including casuals are appraised every six months

Recr ui tment i s car r ied out pr imar i ly v ia word-of-mouth or v ia inter na l

adver t i sements with in the g roup Se lect ion i s on the bas i s o f inter v iews

there be ing no use of se lect ion tes t s a l though a l l new s ta f f go through a

one-day induct ion

Ninety-five per cent of training over and above customer care courses for

front-line staff and hygiene training for waiters and chefs in line with statutory

requirements is on the job Many of the staff are seen as unwilling to take on

extra responsibilities or to be trained or developed and developmental training

tends to be reserved for supervisory staff Never theless there are opportunities

to progress for operative staff demonstrating aptitude and a positive attitude

Attempts have been made recent ly to improve communicat ions with in

the hote l In for mat ion i s cascaded down the organi sa t ion v ia memos and

notice-boards and via head of department meetings and depar tmental meetings

Bi-weekly meetings are held between depar tmental representatives and either

the genera l manager or other depar tment heads These meet ings provide

another for um whereby problems can be d i scussed as and when they ar i se

The hote l operates an lsquoopen-doorrsquo management pol ic y and the major i ty

of manager s are known to s ta f f by the ir f i r s t names This i s cons idered

ef fect ive to a deg ree the per sonnel manager comment ing ldquohellipwe tend to

f ind that genera l ly i f people have got problems they wi l l d i scuss them at

any t imehelliprdquo

Despite the not inconsiderable number of communication and consultation

forums key decisions are never theless often made unilaterally by management

For example dur ing the recess ionar y ear ly 1990s fo l lowing d i scuss ions

at sen ior management leve l and c hecks on the lega l i ty o f the proposa l s

s ic kness benef i t provi s ion was reduced as a cost cut t ing measure without

any consul tat ion with s ta f f As the per sonnel manager commented

hellipeven if they [the staff] had a problem with it it still happened because we were

giving them the required contractual notice of change of termshellip

Although it is only in the field of communication where any major changes

to HRM pract ices have been made in recent year s the hote l never the less

has Investor s in People accredi ta t ion Accredi ta t ion was sought in par t to

at tempt to at tract h igher ca l ibre s ta f f a l though the per sonnel manager

expressed the sent i -ment that the qua l i ty o f s ta f f a t the hote l was not a s

h igh as perhaps i t could be comment ing

helliptherersquos still a lot of people who donrsquot care what we do as long as we look after

themhellipfeed them give them a uniform and give them their payhellip

Overa l l the lsquonon-HRMrsquo labe l at tac hed to th i s hote l would seem to be

justified The interview also supports the picture painted within the questionnaire

in re lat ion to the pract ices that have been adopted by the hote l Only

with reference to the s ingle status i ssue did the hotel c la im to be operat ing

a pol ic y that in rea l i ty i t was not

However whi le the lsquonon-HRMrsquo label would appear to be accurate what

of the lsquocost reducerrsquo l abe l When quest ioned on th i s i s sue the per sonnel

manager commented

hellipwe will provide a quality product and a very good service for the price we are

offeringhellipcost control is very importantmdashlarge accounts will move for the sake of

pound5 a nighthellip

HR policies are geared to meet the needs of this lsquobottom l inersquo approach

Wage increases and wage costs in par t icular are t ightly control led Heads

of depar tments are g iven budgets and they are required to forecast wage

costs each week This is compared with expected revenue in order to generate

a wage percentage I f i t i s too high depar tment heads have to f ind a way

to reduce labour costs ( in other words shed a few casual staff) A conscious

decis ion has been taken to increase the number of casual worker s in order

that headcount can be matched more closely to peaks and troughs in demand

The lsquocost reducerrsquo label therefore seems just i f ied

On both business strategy and the approach taken to HRM the questionnaire

p a i n t s a f a i r ly a c c u r a t e p i c t u re w h e re t h e lsquo n o n - H R M c o s t re d u c e r rsquo i s

c o n c e r n e d

The lsquoHRM cost reducerrsquo

The lsquoHRM cost reducerrsquo which employs 130 staff and is located in central London is part

of a large international chain It was awarded Investors in People accreditation in September

1995 Is its label as an lsquoHRM hotelrsquo justified

The hotel is currently going through several considerable changes though

it a lready displays many of the pract ices commonly associated with an HRM

approac h Tur ning f i r s t ly to job des ign the hote l i s moving away f rom

the use of job descr ipt ions to job prof i les with the intent ion of increas ing

funct iona l f lex ib i l i ty One example of th i s i s in housekeeping The hote l

is looking to launch a lsquoKeymaidsrsquo programme Under this programme chambermaids

wi l l be respons ible for the ir own f loor and they wi l l dea l not only with

traditional chambermaiding tasks but also with maintenance and paperwork

Super visor s will randomly spot check a couple rather than all of the rooms

The expectat ion i s that the introduct ion of the lsquoKeymaidsrsquo concept wi l l

take t ime Other hotels within the g roup have already introduced it though

i t has taken 12 to 18 months for the sys tem to be ins ta l led because of

the extent of tra in ing that has had to take place and the need to overcome

fear s emanat ing f rom expanded job ro les At th i s hote l there are s imi lar

concer ns in re lat ion to tra in ing par t icu lar ly where maintenance and the

paperwork the maids wi l l be respons ible for are concer ned Never theless

i t i s hoped that when introduced the lsquoKeymaidsrsquo concept wi l l ra i se the

sta tus o f the job and a l so resu l t in h igher pay leve l s a s i t i s genera l ly

accepted that maids wi l l have to be pa id more to re f lect the wider range

of sk i l l s necessary to per for m the job

Attempts are also being made to empower front-line operative staff The

realisation of the need for this stems from the exper iences of senior head office

managers all of whom are expected as part of their ongoing training and development

to spend short periods of time working within an operative role Their experiences

have led them to realise that unless front-line staff have the author ity to solve

non-routine problems as and when they ar ise customer impressions of quality

and professionalism at the point of service delivery will be impaired Many

examples of empowerment in action are smallmdashfor example being able to deal

quickly with quer ies related to billing or offering to hail a taxi for customers

who are checking out and are in a hurrymdashbut they can make a tremendous

difference to the customerrsquos perception of the quality of service

For such an approach to operate effectively the need for managers to play

a lsquocoachingrsquo rather than a lsquocontrollingrsquo role has been realised such that if a

member of staff makes a mistake they are encouraged to see it as a learning

exper ience The interviewee stressed that managers have taken on board that

they must allow operative staff to use their discretion and that they must

ensure staff have the confidence that super visors trust them to act alone

The adopt ion of suc h an approac h has led to a ser ies o f other c hanges

in relation to HR practices within the hotel For example where recruitment

i s concer ned emphas i s i s now placed on ident i fy ing the candidates most

l ikely to be prepared to use their own discretion and judgement Displaying

the r ight att itude is seen as more impor tant than possessing technical ski l ls

In l ine with this ethos behavioural tests are being developed for recruitment

to non-manager ia l pos i t ions These tes t s a im to as sess for example the

ab i l i ty o f appl icants to work in a team and whether the appl icant has the

requis i te per sonal i ty to work in a ser v ice de l iver y pos i t ion Concer ning

recr ui tment to manager ia l pos i t ions lsquobehav ioura l event inter v iewsrsquo are

used The hotels group is soon to introduce assessment centres for recruitment

to super v i sor y pos i t ions and above

Training and development has also assumed greater importance The personnel

manager a ims to ensure that everybody no matter how shor t a t ime they

spend in the hotel wil l leave having lear ned something new The emphasis

on the role of depar tment heads as coaches and trainer s has increased as

has the need to involve as tra iner s a range of both non-manager ial as well

as managerial staff On the new off-the-job customer care course for example

non-management staf f noted for par t icularly high work standards have been

g iven the responsibi l i ty of providing tra ining to other staf f Other tra ining

init iat ives under development include a resource centre equipped with CD-

ROM foreign language training cour ses and job-swaps between hotels within

the g roup The hotel also sponsor s staff on an ad-hoc basis to attend courses

outs ide the hotel Reflect ing the lsquocontinuous developmentrsquo ethos ef for ts

are made to ensure that the highest poss ible propor t ion of promotions are

made internal ly with vacancies within the g roup as far af ie ld as the Middle

East and Afr ica being adver t ised monthly

Performance appraisals have been introduced to assess individual training

needs and to identify the staff most likely to respond to developmental training

Appraisals also provide a mechanism by which HRM practices can be integrated

with the grouprsquos business strategy Staff are appraised on six lsquocritical practicesrsquo

These are aimed at the achievement of the individual departmentrsquos and the

hotelrsquos lsquoStatement of Purposersquo which in turn is derived from the UK and regional

lsquoStatement of Purposersquo The lsquoStatement of Purposersquo at this hotel stresses

hellipleading the way in best business practice and innovative concepts hellipproviding a

communicative environment for our employees to train and develop their skills and

recognise opportunities for advancementhellip

The s tatement then cont inues by emphas i s ing

hellipimproved quality standards increased guest delight and a growth in hotel profithellip

The lsquocr it ical pract icesrsquo or role behaviour s required to ac hieve the goals

specified within the lsquoStatement of Purposersquo are fir st the need to be outgoing

second to a lways look for ways to improve ser v ice de l ivery and not to

provide any ser v ice whic h i s not up to s tandard th i rd to a lways be a

team player four th to per sonal ly see through ser v ice de l iver y f i f th to

ident i fy ser v ice de l ivery problems and resolve the s i tuat ion even where

i t i s not the indiv idual rsquo s spec i f ic job role and f ina l ly to take an organised

approach to work By focus ing tra in ing and development recr uitment job

design and communication on the achievement of these six lsquocr itical practicesrsquo

HR strategy and HR pract ices can be consc ious ly des igned to ac h ieve the

goa l s wi th in the hote l rsquo s lsquoS tatement o f Pur posersquo

Finally concerning terms and conditions most but not all status differences

between management and non-management staff have been removed Holiday

ent i t lement and the pens ion sc heme i s common to both management and

non-management staff Non-management staff have a slightly different medical

scheme however Concerning hours of work heads of depar tment and cer tain

super v i sor s work on an lsquohour s-as-requiredrsquo bas i s whereas operat ive level

s ta f f work 40 hour s per week plus pa id over t ime Perfor mance-related pay

based on per for mance appra i sa l has been introduced recent ly This i s seen

as a method by whic h commitment and h igh ac h ievement can be rewarded

There i s no doubt that the hote l in quest ion i s wor thy of i t s lsquoHRMrsquo

t i t le What however o f i t s c la s s i f i cat ion as a lsquocost reducerrsquo I t i s c lear

with in the hote l rsquo s s tatement o f pur pose and the cr i t ica l pract ices (with in

whic h cost control i s not ment ioned once) that th i s hote l would f i t more

comfor tably with in the qua l i ty enhancer category

As mentioned earlier this hotel is undergoing considerable transformation

and one par t of this transformation is an increasing emphasis on the services

that add value to the product offered by the hotel In l ine with this a great

deal of low-rate business has been shed Nevertheless at the time of the survey

the respondent r ightly highlighted the emphasis on pr ice competition

Therefore th i s hote l fur ther demonstrates the lsquoHRMrsquo category to have

been appropr ia te ly def ined The hote l d i sp lays many of the pol ic ies and

practices and an underlying ethos in line with an HRM approach This provides

fur ther suppor t for the conclus ions reac hed in Chapter 3 re la t ing to the

extent o f usage of HRM There i s no ev idence that the pract ices a sked

about in the quest ionna ire have been mis inter preted by the respondent

and the pract ices the respondent c la imed were in operat ion a t the t ime

of the sur vey were in the event operat ing with in the hote l a s expected

The lsquonon-HRM quality enhancerrsquo

The follow-up interview within this hotel which employs 98 staff further confirms the validity of

the categorisations adopted in the previous chapter In line with its lsquonon-HRMrsquo label this hotel

displayed very few of the characteristics associated with an HRM approach For example there

has been no conscious effort to remove status differences between management and non-

management staff and there is no usage of behavioural selection tests during recruitment

Upward communication seems to be left to chance the personnel manager commenting

hellipwe hope that people are not afraid to come forward to talk to ushellip

Training is provided in three areas these being technical training customer

service training and off-the-job training which includes college and management

cour ses There i s a l so the oppor tunity for one sta f f member from the hotel

per year to a t tend a four-week cour se a t Cor nel l Univer s i ty In addi t ion

the hote l organi ses work p lacements over seas Exter na l co l lege cour ses

adver t i sed on a not iceboard with in the hote l are ava i l able to anybody

However it is not the case that training needs are identified in any systematic

way Tra in ing i s provided to those who show an interest As the per sonnel

manager commented

hellipproviding opportunities must encourage people Whether they actually take

advantage of them is a different matter You can buy someone a ticket but you canrsquot

actually put them on the trainhellip

It seems that there i s no for mal mec hanism to sys temat ica l ly ident i fy

those who require remedia l t ra in ing or those who have the potent ia l to

benef i t f rom developmenta l t ra in ing

The hotel extensively recr uits casuals from Germany and France They

come to the hotel on year-long contracts with the pr imary aim of improving

English language skil ls but they br ing with them the skil ls they have lear ned

dur ing their apprenticeships in their home countr ies As suc h they are seen

as compensating for the poor qual ity of appl icants drawn from the domestic

jobs market They fill a wide range of positions from reception and restaurant

posit ions to management roles

No attempts have been made to redesign jobs to enhance staff motivation

or f lex ib i l i ty On th i s i s sue the per sonnel manager commented

hellipif somebody wants a change of jobs for example they will come and ask can I go

and work in so-and-so Wersquore very simple very primitive in that sense People know

their jobs and they are not complicated There isnrsquot a complicated job in the hotelhellip

Simi lar ly no a t tempts have been made to decentra l i se author i ty With

reference to the concept of empowerment the personnel manager commented

hellipdo you keep control of the business if you allow a waitress to replace somebodyrsquos

complaint letrsquos say their steak without calling the manager I would say nohellip

Ref l ec t i ve o f th i s approac h i s the ho te l rsquo s lsquoqu i c k f i re mes sage sy s temrsquo

whereby i f an employee receives a complaint they do not have the author ity

to dea l wi th themse lves they must immediate ly f ind a manager to hand le

i t There ha s been no decent ra l i s a t ion o f au thor i ty suc h that compla in t s

or quer ie s c an be dea l t w i th at source by f ront - l ine s t a f f

The hotelrsquos lsquonon-HRMrsquo label i s c learly just i f ied The per sonnel manager

neve r t h e l e s s s t re s s e d a s w i t h i n t h e q u e s t i o n n a i re t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f

s e r v i c e q u a l i t y c o m m e n t i n g t h a t c u s t o m e r s a re w i l l i n g t o p ay e x t r a

f o r h i g h s t a n d a r d s o f s e r v i c e p a r t i c u l a r ly i n t e r m s o f i n t e r a c t i o n s w i t h

s t a f f t h e p e r s o n a l n a t u re o f t h e s e r v i c e a n d t h e a b i l i t y t o d e a l w i t h

requests in a profess ional manner To ac hieve the requis i te ser v ice qual i ty

lsquo h o t e l p e o p l e rsquo ( t o u s e t h e p e r s o n n e l m a n a g e r rsquo s p h r a s e ldquo hellip p e o p l e w h o

get pleasure from ser vinghelliprdquo) are targeted dur ing recr uitment Candidates

are a s ses sed in in ter v iews on the i r for mer work exper ience presentat ion

a n d t h e i r c o m mu n i c at i o n a n d i n t e r p e r s o n a l s k i l l s ( t h e s e b e i n g j u d g e d

on intuit ion dur ing inter views) Beyond this el icit ing the staff commitment

n e c e s s a r y t o a c h i eve t h e re q u i re d s e r v i c e s t a n d a r d s s e e m s t o b e l e f t t o

c han c e

hellipmost people know whatrsquos right They know their job and management gets the

standard of performance it will accepthellipand management here does not accept

second besthellip

Motivat ion i s not something that can be ac h ieved though HR pol ic ies

and pract ices in the opin ion of the per sonnel manager

hellipmotivation is from within You can lead by example motivate them marginally

but for how long

How ef fect ive the hote l i s in ac h iev ing i t s qua l i ty enhancer goa l s i s

open to question Of the 5 per cent of guest questionnaire replies expressing

dissat i s fact ion many compla ints concer ned s ta f f -re lated i s sues rather than

tec hnica l i s sues suc h as f au l ty equipment in rooms as h igh l ighted by the

fo l lowing quote f rom the hote l rsquo s 1994 lsquomani fes torsquo

hellip [guests] complained of incidents which could have well been prevented if the

staff involved had acted with greater observance or tact in their personal exchange with

the guest The consequence of poor attention to detail is that the guest leaves the hotel

with the impression that we donrsquot caremdashthereby undoing all the good conscientious

work that is done most of the time Staff who allow their personal feelings to show by

being too abrupt also leave the guest feeling that their comfort and welfare is of little

concern

Service quality enhancement is clearly seen as more important than competition

on pr ice thus suggest ing the categor isat ion of this hotel within the lsquoqual ity

enhancerrsquo category as va l id However the lsquonon-HRMrsquo labe l a t tac hed to

th i s hote l a l so seems to be va l id Al though the hote l o f fer s oppor tuni t ies

for training there is no formal mechanism whereby those in need of training

or those most likely to benefit from a developmental approach can be identified

Jobs are not des igned in such a way that employees would be able to put

the ir sk i l l s into pract ice on retur ning to work and there i s no ev idence

that s ta f f capable of career prog ress ion are be ing systemat ica l ly developed

and of fered promot ion oppor tuni t ies

The lsquoHRM quality enhancerrsquo

This hotel employing 140 staff is part of a national chain of hotels which in turn is part of

an international hotel group It is located on the outskirts of Milton Keynes and has Investors

in People accreditation

In the quest ionna ire the per sonnel manager c la imed to operate a l l but

f ive of the HRM pract ices a sked about a p ic ture that on the whole was

conf i r med by the fo l low-up inter v iew suggest ing the descr ipt ion of th i s

hotel as an lsquoHRMrsquo hotel to be accurate However there seemed to be some

confus ion over the i s sue of s ing le s tatus There was l i t t le ev idence that

status di f ferences between management and non-management staf f had been

removed despi te the fact that the hotel c la imed to have har monised ter ms

and condi t ions For example management are e l ig ib le for pr ivate hea l th

insurance and a l so a bonus sc heme whereas s ta f f are not

Otherwise the picture painted by the questionnaire was ver if ied by the

follow-up inter view Looking fir stly at recruitment emphasis is placed upon

the selection of applicants with an aptitude for customer service Past experience

or qualif ications are seen as impor tant but not as impor tant as the r ight

attitude However the view was that lsquothe r ight attitudersquo could be spotted at

inter view with psychometr ic or behavioural tests not being used

Induct ion into the hote l i s extens ive On ar r iva l new recr u i t s are put

through a standard company induction which introduces them to the hotelrsquos

miss ion s ta tement and the impor tance of customer ser v ice New recr ui t s

a l so undergo lsquoreg ional or ientat ionrsquo where they are taken to another hotel

to walk a lsquocustomerrsquos journeyrsquo Cross- funct iona l co-operat ion and team

bui ld ing i s a l so emphas i sed with in the of f - the- job commerc ia l hosp i ta l i ty

cour se which a l l new s ta f f undergo with in the ir f i r s t s ix months The a im

is to encourage s ta f f to v iew the hote l a s a uni t ra ther than as a co l lect ion

of discrete functions Employees from different functions both management

and non-management are de l iberate ly brought together to he lp develop

an under standing of the problems that ar i se in other areas and the ways

in which d i f ferent funct ions can suppor t each other

Multi-skill ing and cross-functional flexibility is extensive both within and

between departments Staff move between front of house and food and beverage

quite freely For example it is not unusual for reception staff to wait on

tables if a major conference or banqueting function is taking place Inter-

functional lsquocross-exposurersquo training is also seen as an impor tant par t of the

team-building process An example of this is the lsquocross-exposurersquo between

accounts and reception The accounts function star ts with reception where

bill ing is handled In the past er rors made by the front desk have created

difficulties for accounts damaging relationships between the two departments

Deliberate lsquocross-exposurersquo between these two departments has enabled those

in accounts to experience and appreciate the problems encountered by reception

and has enabled receptionists to appreciate the impact of errors on the accounts

depar tment In a similar vein housekeeping super visors also spend time on

reception as these two functions also work together closely

Job des ign in i t iat ives do not end with cross- funct ional f lexibi l i ty There

have recent ly been a t tempts to decentra l i se respons ib i l i ty and author i ty

to lower g rade s ta f f In dea l ing with customer compla ints the a im has

been to g ive front-line staff as much responsibility or lsquoownershiprsquo as possible

to dea l with customer compla ints a s f ar a s they can on the ir own ra ther

than passing the complaint on to the duty manager For example receptionists

now have the author i ty to dea l wi th quer ies over b i l l s and i t i s wi th in

the ir author i ty to remove i tems f rom the b i l l i f they fee l a compla int i s

justif ied In the restaurant staff are given the author ity to provide customers

with dishes on the house in order to compensate for a complaint Previously

only duty manager s would have had the author i ty to take suc h act ion

In terms of communication the hotel has introduced consultative committees

that look at ways in which the running of the hotel can be improved These

are attended by elected representatives from each depar tment as well as the

general manager and the per sonnel manager Any points of dissatisfaction or

ideas for improvement however small can be raised here The hotel also operates

annual lsquoTalkbackrsquo attitude surveys (conducted at group rather than unit level)

aimed at eliciting the workforcersquos views on a range of issues such as terms

and conditions of employment the appraisal system the amount of communication

and training On the basis of the results each hotel develops a six-point plan

relating to areas of improvement in the coming year

Eac h employee i s appra i sed on a year ly bas i s Object ives and areas o f

development are jo int ly ag reed with in the appra i sa l inter v iew After s ix

months there is a follow-up lsquosemirsquo appraisal to assess whether those objectives

are be ing met and whether fur ther object ives can be set Appra i sa l s are

cur rent ly not l inked to mer i t pay though th i s may happen in the near

future In addi t ion the appra i sa l sys tem i s used to fac i l i t a te success ion

planning in that the appra i sa l s enable the ident i f i ca t ion and development

of staff with the abil ity and inclination to prog ress through the organisation

Promotion is from within whenever possible As such some staff have progressed

very quic k ly career-wise The as s i s tant res taurant manager for example

was recr uited in i t ia l ly as a casual only two year s ago and has subsequently

been promoted through the ranks This is just one example of the not uncommon

rapid career prog ress ion for those who demonstrate potent ia l

The hote l has c lear ly developed a range of sophis t ica ted HR pract ices

over the pas t few year s and as suc h the lsquoHRMrsquo labe l appear s accurate

When quest ioned on the lsquoqua l i ty enhancerrsquo under ly ing phi losophy with in

the bus iness s t rategy the per sonnel manager commented

hellipI think that overrides everything to be honesthellipitrsquos something that is really

preached to the staff and they all try to live by ithellip

The personnel manager also claims not inconsiderable success in achieving

the lsquooutstanding customer ser vicersquo goal laid down within the hotelrsquos mission

statement

hellipthe staff are fantastic here in the way in which they deal with people Staff from

other hotels like to come here and be seen to be the best at what they dohellip

As suc h the categor i sa t ion of th i s hote l in the prev ious chapter f i r s t ly

as an lsquoHRM hote l rsquo and secondly as a lsquoqua l i ty enhancerrsquo would seem to be

just i f ied

The lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo

The Manchester-based lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo employs 240 staff and is one of a large worldwide

chain of international hotels Although originally categorised as a lsquonon-HRMrsquo hotel within

the questionnaire a range of practices associated with an HRM approach were found to be in

operation There are two possible reasons for this discrepancy Firstly the hotel is undergoing

considerable change and as such several new practices had been introduced since the time

the questionnaire was conducted Secondly within the questionnaire the question relating to

trainability as a major selection criterion was left blank though in the event it should have

been answered in the affirmative Also the single status question was correctly answered in

the negative (the only hotel to do this despite the fact that extensive moves had been made

to harmonise terms and conditions) This may have been enough for this hotel to be classified

as lsquonon-HRMrsquo on the basis of the definition adopted within the previous chapter

Turning to business strategy issues the respondent emphasised responsiveness

to customer needs provid ing a d i s t inct ive ser v ice and va lue for money

within the quest ionnaire As such the hotel did not automatical ly f i t e i ther

the cost reducer or the qua l i ty enhancer def in i t ion Fur ther quest ioning

in the fo l low-up inter v iew however suggested ser v ice qua l i ty to be a key

emphas i s wi th in the hote l rsquo s bus iness s t rategy

In terms of the achievement of service quality goals the conclusion has

been reached within the hotel g roup that it is necessary to empower those

people within the organisation who deliver the service in other words operative-

level staff Examples of empowerment include the projectmdashstill in its infancy

mdashto get r id of scr ipts specifying a ser ies of questions that must be asked to

the guest on ar r ival Getting r id of such scr ipts enables staff to use their

judgement over what to say to new arr ivals and how br ief or extensive to

make the interchange For example if a queue is forming or if a guest is

noticeably tired it is preferable to keep the interchange brief These are contingencies

that receptionists can spot and are capable of judging The aim is to harness

this judgement and enable service delivery to be tailored to specific situations

Suc h empower ment i s s t i l l embryonic and cer ta in dec i s ions suc h as

the discounts staff should be allowed to offer are yet to be made Nevertheless

there i s an awareness amongst manager s that they must a l low sta f f to make

mistakes without fear of sanct ions In the past management s ty le has been

a problem and the per sonnel manager admits that there are s t i l l qu i te a

few lsquo trad i t iona l i s t s rsquo wi th in the g roup However the new genera l manager

development programme which has run over the last three year s i s v iewed

as instr umenta l in the development of a less control-or iented management

approac h Al though the prog ramme i s a imed at the upg rading of a range

of bus iness sk i l l s re la t ing to f inance sa les and market ing human resource

i s sues are a l so heav i ly emphas i sed As suc h the manager s who complete

th i s cour se have tended to be more open to innovat ive ideas in re la t ion

to HRM Secondly on a separate i s sue the prog ramme has a l so presented

an oppor tuni ty for women to reac h genera l management pos i t ions a s l ine

manager s from all disciplines are recruited to the programme The traditional

route into genera l management in the pas t was v ia the male-dominated

food and beverage funct ions Female manager s in the industry have tended

to cluster within the sales and per sonnel functions and as such have typically

been over looked in ter ms of promot ion to genera l manager posts

The decentralised approach emphasised by empowerment is also reflected

with in the lsquocont inuous ser v ice improvement prog rammersquo whic h involves

depar tmental meetings held once a week that look at complaints from duty

senior manager s rsquo log books and ways o f avoid ing them in the future

As wel l as attempts to empower lower-level s ta f f e f for ts have a lso been

made to improve f lexibi l i ty and mult i -sk i l l ing Previously job descr ipt ions

were nar rower for example recr u i tment would be to the res taurant or to

the bar rather than to the food and beverage function as a whole However

food and beverage lsquohost s rsquo who are t ra ined in the sk i l l s necessary to work

in the dining room the lounge and in room ser vice have been introduced

Often one of these areas is busier than the other s so multi-ski l l ing enables

s ta f f to move around as required More recent ly mult i - sk i l l ing has been

introduced into the f ront o f f ice suc h that a recept ioni s t i s now tra ined

to work as a concierge on the switchboard in food and beverage co-ordination

in reser vat ions or in sa les To fac i l i t ate th i s process these funct ions have

a l l been moved into one area with in the hote l S ta f f are repor ted as be ing

pos i t ive about mult i - sk i l l ing

hellipwe found the staff like it because generally it gives them more strings to their

bow and it makes the job more interestinghellip

A fur ther benef i t o f mult i - sk i l l ing i s that i t enables a leaner operat ion

hellippreviously what we were doing was getting casuals in because we might be short in

one particular area even though we would have people standing around in another

areahellip

Although i t i s d i f f i cu l t to separate out the exact cause and e f fect a s

other c hanges were tak ing p lace a t the same t ime par t o f the 10 per cent

fall in labour turnover the hotel has experienced is accredited to the introduction

of th i s s ty le o f working

The policy of multi-skilling and empowering the workforce has had considerable

knoc k-on e f fects on recr u i tment and tra in ing As the per sonnel manager

commented

hellipif you are going to get people who are empowered you have got to make sure you

are recruiting the right person in the first place so you have to concentrate much

more on the personality aspects than on the technical sidehellipbut you have also got to

assess whether they have got the sort of mental agility because they have to be fairly

responsive to customers who ask a question and not just say ldquoIrsquoll go and get the duty

managerrdquo so you are looking for a more educated personhellip

There is a lso a focus within recruitment on att i tude rather than on ski l l

par ticularly at operative level Behavioural testing is carried out for operative

grades and psychometr ic tests are used for management g rades Assessment

centres are be ing extended beyond the se lect ion of g raduates to se lect ion

to other pos i t ions a l so On an ad hoc bas i s sc hool leaver s i f they show

interest in working in the industry might be invited to spend a shor t per iod

of t ime working with in the hote l in order that they can exper ience hote l

l i fe f i r s t hand Graduates with a non-hote l and cater ing deg ree who show

an interest in working in the industry have also been offered these opportunities

in the pas t 1

Once s ta f f have been se lected the hote l operates a day- long for mal

induct ion dur ing whic h sta f f are introduced to the companyrsquos procedures

policies and values Staff are formally appraised at the end of their probationary

period and lsquopersonal business objectivesrsquo (relating to training or skills acquisition

for example) are set

As such the hotel goes to considerable lengths to ensure the recruitment

of those with the requisite abil ity and att itude to function effectively within

a multi-skilled and lsquoempoweredrsquo environment However it has been acknowledged

that higher cal ibre employees come at a pr ice Attempts are therefore being

made to encourage the head of f ice to increase pay rates A pay and benef i ts

working par ty has been set up the minimum rate has been increased and

the working par ty i s now looking a t increas ing ra tes h igher up the pay

sca le in order to res tore d i f ferent ia l s The impact on the overa l l payrol l

throughout the g roup wi l l be cons iderable The expecta t ion i s that the

ra i s ing of sa lar ies wi l l t ake p lace in a s tep-by-s tep manner poss ibly over

a f ive-year per iod Never theless there is an appreciat ion that pay increases

are necessary to at tract employees o f the requis i te ca l ibre to the hote l

The need for a functionally flexible lsquoempoweredrsquo approach has also had

an impact on the approach taken towards training As well as training staff in

a range of functional skills staff have also undergone lsquopositive influencingrsquo

and lsquointeraction managementrsquo courses to help them develop their interpersonal

skills and to be able to deal with situations on their own Performance appraisals

are instrumental in identifying those who require training They are also used

for succession planning in par ticular to select staff for developmental training

if they show the requisite interest and potential Indeed there are considerable

career oppor tunities for those at operative level All vacancies are adver tised

locally and 50 per cent of these vacancies are fi l led from within This has

been the case for the last 3 to 4 year s and has been accredited to the heavier

emphasis on developmental training within the appraisal system which has

made managers more aware of the capabilit ies and aspirations of their staff

Self-appraisal has recently been introduced whereby operatives appraise themselves

pr ior to the appraisal meeting with their super visor

The hote l has a l so made e f for t s to minimise s tatus d i f ferences between

management and non-management s ta f f wi th the introduct ion of a s ic k-

pay sc heme for non-management s ta f f and the introduct ion of the same

pens ion sc heme for s ta f f a s i s ava i l able to manager s This i s fur ther seen

as necessar y to a id recr u i tment o f h igher ca l ibre s ta f f Everyone i s pa id

direct into the ir bank accounts on a for tn ight ly bas i s The only d i f ference

in terms and conditions st i l l in existence concerns the bonus scheme within

whic h management tend to rece ive a l arger percentage (10 per cent o f

sa lary as opposed to 25 per cent for g raded s ta f f l a s t year)

This follow-up interview casts slight doubt on the validity of the classification

of HRM and non-HRM organisations used in the previous chapter Nevertheless

i t fur ther va l idates the conclus ions reac hed with in the Chapter 3 in that

i t prov ides a fur ther example of substance behind the rhetor ic o f HRM

The lsquoHRM otherrsquo

This hotel employs 217 staff is located within central London and is part of a national chain of

hotels which in turn is part of an international group Investors in People accreditation was

achieved in May 1996 Within the questionnaire the respondent gave more positive responses

than any other respondent within the follow-up interview programme answering in the

negative only to the questions concerning the use of psychological tests and whether there is an

explicit policy in relation to formal training In the event while the picture painted within the

questionnaire is somewhat exaggerated this hotel was nevertheless correctly categorised as an

lsquoHRMrsquo hotel

The major discrepancy within the quest ionnaire repl ies related to s ingle

s ta tus ter ms and condi t ions ar rangements In common with four of the

previous f ive case-study hotels the respondent at th is hotel c la imed s ingle

status to be in operation which in the event was not the case While holiday

entitlements and sick pay provision were the same pension provision healthcare

ar rangements and hour s o f work were not The mis inter pretat ion of the

s ing le s tatus i s sue has proved to be a common theme with in a l l but one

of the fo l low-up inter v iews

In other respects the hote l i s operat ing qui te a sophi s t icated pac kage

of HR tec hniques But what o f the bus iness s t ra tegy these tec hniques are

des igned to complement On the bas i s of the quest ionnaire responses th i s

hote l was categor i sed as lsquootherrsquo though in the event the hote l rsquo s bus iness

strategy would have f itted comfor tably into the lsquoqual ity enhancerrsquo category

ser v ice qua l i ty be ing an obvious focus with in the hote l On th i s i s sue the

per sonnel manager commented

hellipto be successful you have to have that little bit extra to give the guests the lsquomagicrsquo

that no other hotel giveshellipthat extra smile using their name the way we answer the

telephonehellipare all noticeable and are picked up on by the guesthellip

Ser vice qual i ty i s undeniably seen as the key to success as i s developing

an under s tanding of what the customer sees a s impor tant

hellipcustomer needs are changing all the timehellipyou have to be responsive to

thathellipguest comments have to be discussed so we know exactly what the customer

wantshellip

The manner in whic h human resources are managed i s centra l to the

ac h ievement o f the lsquomag icrsquo descr ibed above When asked what makes the

bus iness success fu l the per sonnel manager repl ied

hellipthe peoplehellipthe way people look after their staff the way they are introduced to

the business the way they are trained the way they are communicated tohellip

This i s re f lected with in the HR pract ices in operat ion a t the hote l In

relation to recruitment and selection the most impor tant criter ion is attitude

Appl i -cants with a customer ser v ice focus and those with an apprec ia t ion

for what the job entails are selected on the basis of their role-play responses

within behavioural s ituation inter views All potential new recr uits are made

aware of the job descr ipt ions dur ing the se lect ion s tage

Once recr ui ted a cons iderable emphas i s i s p laced on for mal induct ion

New sta f f a t tend an induct ion prog ramme with in the hote l they have been

recruited to within which they are introduced to the hotelrsquos mission statement

whic h heav i ly emphas i ses the ethos of outs tanding customer ser v ice After

four weeks employees are sent on a reg ional induction programme in another

hote l wi th in the g roup

As wel l a s recr u i t ing those with the r ight at t i tude anyone with the

potent ia l to take on super visory respons ib i l i t ies i s a l so par t icular ly sought

af ter The v iew with in the hote l i s not that employees are recr u i ted to a

par t icu lar pos i t ion but to a career Indeed the hote l g roup has recent ly

es tabl i shed a lsquoCareer Trac ksrsquo prog ramme whic h deta i l s s t r uctured career

paths Thus s ta f f who demonstrate potent ia l and a wi l l ingness to take on

greater responsibility are made aware of the promotion opportunities available

to them not jus t with in the ir own depar tment or hote l but with in the

hote l g roup as a whole Indeed there i s a pol ic y with in the g roup that

a l l pos i t ions have to be adver t i sed inter na l ly and a l l inter na l candidates

have to be inter v iewed I t i s only i f there i s no su i tab le candidate f rom

with in the organi sat ion that exter na l recr u i tment takes p lace

Reflecting the career development ethos within the hotel training activities

focus as heavily on developmental training as on foundation and technical

training Developmental training is offered to staff after they have worked

within the organisation for at least eight months to one year There is no

policy specifying the amount of time to be spent in training but training is

never theless seen as cr itical A lsquoTraining Stepsrsquo document emphasising the

cumulative rather than ad-hoc nature of training has been recently introduced

Pr ior to the commencement of a training programme staff attend a lsquopre-

course briefrsquo with their head of department to discuss the relevance and objectives

of the cour se On returning from the training programme staff meet again

with their head of depar tment for a lsquopost-cour se br iefrsquo to discuss what they

learned from the cour se whether it met their expectations and how they

will be able to apply the skills they have learned There is considerable enthusiasm

amongst the staff for the training provided Indeed the heavy emphasis on

training is in the opinion of the personnel manager one of the major attractions

to the hotel for new staff and a major factor in encourag ing staff retention

Performance appraisals under taken every six months have been introduced

recently These enable staff with the potential to move into supervisory positions

to be identif ied and developed They also ensure that staff have the requisite

confidence skills and abilities to operate effectively within their current position

Communication is also heavily emphasised within the hotel Several formal

channels of communicat ion are used to reinforce the companyrsquos values and

to provide a two-way forum within which new ideas can be voiced Issues

such as health and safety technical tra ining and operat ional aspects of the

job are discussed at monthly depar tmental communicat ion meetings As a

result of init iat ives emanating from these meetings a staf f newspaper has

been set up as has a lsquog reenrsquo committee whic h looks at ways in which the

hotelrsquos operat ions can be made more environmental ly fr iendly The bi l l ing

and ledgering system was also changed following suggestions raised by employees

within communication meeting discussions The company also operates a staff

sur vey the a im of whic h is to el ic i t opinions on a range of i ssues relat ing

to training welfare and the level of communicat ion for example

As with the other lsquoHRMrsquo hote l s a t tempts have been made to empower

front- l ine s ta f f Thi s i s demonstrated by the manner in whic h compla ints

are handled Where s ta f f are faced with a problem they fee l they can dea l

with they are encouraged to take the in i t i a t ive ra ther than to ca l l in a

manager This extends to making reduct ions to b i l l s where a ser v ice in

the judgement of the employee has not been adequate ly provided The

hotelrsquos lsquoValue Policyrsquo states that i f a ser vice is not delivered or if a problem

is not remedied then i t should not be c harged for The lsquoValue Pol icyrsquo a l so

provides staff with guidelines in terms of making decisions over bill reductions

and how muc h they can d i scount However where major compla ints are

concerned staff are encouraged to refer the complaint to the duty manager

on the pr inciple that the customer would feel that their compla int i s being

taken more ser ious ly i f i t i s dea l t wi th at manager ia l leve l

Although attempts have been made to decentral ise author ity and there

is heavy emphasis on training and the communicat ion of values to ensure

standards of service there is never theless a considerable amount of monitor ing

and staf f sur vei l lance The hotel i s assessed monthly by a mystery customer

who evaluates booking procedures ser vice del ivery the product and lsquotake

outrsquo (a subject ive assessment of the overal l exper ience) Each depar tment

is given a separate score and shortcomings are indicated Staff are also routinely

monitored by manager s in the perfor mance of their day-to-day job tasks to

assess whether they meet required standards These mechanisms are seen as

cr it ical in ensur ing staf f ac hieve the requis i te level of ser vice qual i ty

Despi te the apparent emphas i s on for mal sys tems of monitor ing and

sur ve i l l ance there i s never the less a g reat dea l to suggest that th i s hote l

i s operat ing a wide range of pract ices commonly assoc ia ted with an HRM

approac h The fo l low-up inter v iew therefore provides fur ther suppor t for

the HRM categor i sat ion adopted with in the prev ious c hapter

Summary

The six follow-up interviews provide support for both the business strategy and the HRM

categorisations used in the previous chapter Looking at the hotels originally categorised as

lsquootherrsquo in the follow-up interviews both emphasised the importance of service quality If

representative of the hotels classified as lsquootherrsquo within the previous chapter the suggestion is

that a service quality focus is perceived as the key to competitive success in all but 23 per

cent of the hotels within the sample However it must be remembered that neither of the

hotels in the follow-up interview programme explicitly emphasised cost reduction or price

as a key focus so this conclusion should be treated with caution There may be considerably

greater variation within the business strategies of the hotels within this category than is

revealed by the follow-up interviews

Concerning the lsquoHRMrsquo and lsquonon-HRMrsquo categor isat ions only one of the

six hotels did not f i t i ts c lass i f icat ion as a lsquonon-HRMrsquo hotel On the whole

the hote l s are operat ing in a manner cons i s tent with the ir quest ionna ire

responses The only except ion to this concer ns s ingle s tatus whereby none

of the hote l s v i s i ted have complete ly har monised ter ms and condi t ions o f

employment whereas f ive o f the case-s tudy hote l s c la im to have done so

with in the quest ionna ire Never the less the fo l low-up inter v iews va l idate

the quest ionna ire responses in re la t ion to job des ign in i t i at ives the use

of performance appraisals selection tests training and communication techniques

There i s no ev idence as found by Hales (1987) that respondents had in

any way mis inter preted the quest ions asked about or were apply ing the

techniques only to management The follow-up inter views therefore suppor t

the argument presented in Chapter 3 concer ning to the extent to whic h

there has been exper imentat ion with new approac hes to HRM with in the

hote l industry

Investors in People

A further unexpected finding within the follow-up interviews was that five of the six hotels

within the sample had Investors in People accreditation Requiring the fulfilment of set

criteria concerning developmental training communication and the evaluation of the impact

of training Investors in People is seen as the hallmark of a quality employer The first hotels

to have achieved accreditation did so following local-level initiatives Following these

successes regional offices have increasingly taken up responsibility for Investors in People

with a view to achieving group-wide accreditation Indeed in one instance moves were

under way to transfer Investors in People to the grouprsquos continental operations

The sheer number of hote l s that are now at tempt ing to ga in Investor s

in People accreditation can be taken as indicative of the impor tance attached

to the manner in which human resources are managed with in the industry

Whi le the f i r s t hote l with in whic h fo l low-up inter v iews were conducted

did not receive accreditat ion unti l 1993 there were at the t ime of wr it ing

according to figures from the Investor s in People database 587 hotels seeking

accredi ta t ion with 446 hav ing a l ready ach ieved i t Only a few year s ago

Investor s in People accredi tat ion would have been v i r tua l ly unheard of

with in the industr y However one inter v iewee es t imated that up to 60

per cent o f hote l s o f the nature under invest igat ion with in th i s ana lys i s

in the London area are now e i ther a iming for i t or a l ready have i t

The hote l s with in the fo l low-up inter v iew programme have engaged in

a cons iderable overhaul o f the ir HRM pol ic ies and pract ices a s a resu l t o f

the process o f ga in ing Investor s in People accredi ta t ion par t icu lar ly in

relat ion to communication and the development of more systematic training

and appra i sa l mechanisms As one per sonnel manager commented

hellipgoing for Investors in People really highlighted the areas where we were doing

well with our staff and the areas where we were failing our staffhellip

Tra in ing provi s ion tended to be adequate in ter ms of the amount o f

tra in ing but i t tended to be too remote f rom da i ly job funct ioning with

s ta f f not be ing made aware as to why they were be ing sent on a par t icu lar

cour se or how they could use the sk i l l s once they retur ned Investor s in

People led to the rea l i sat ion that t ra in ing act iv i ty was never eva luated

nor was i t l inked to the ac h ievement of spec i f ic bus iness object ives As

suc h a g reater focus on the eva luat ion of the impact o f t ra in ing act iv i ty

in ter ms of i t s cost s and benef i t s and i t s e f fect on the bottom l ine has

been encouraged As one per sonnel manager commented

hellipyou become much more focused in terms of your training and development in

terms of linking it into your business goals whereas before we just trained and

developed because that was what we thought we should be doinghellip

Investor s in People has a l so led to the rea l i sat ion that t ra in ing should

be the respons ib i l i ty of l ine as wel l a s per sonnel manager s L ine manager s

were repor ted to have become increasingly involved in the training process

somet imes in i t i at ing the ir own tra in ing prog rammes

In addi t ion improvements have been made to communicat ion sys tems

as a result of Investor s in People In the process of going for accreditat ion

one hote l conducted three monthly sur veys o f s ta f f to eva luate whether

in for mat ion f rom senior management was reac h ing operat ive g rades only

to f ind out that i t somet imes took as long as 12 months for in for mat ion

to f i l ter through Another hote l found cons iderable d i screpanc ies in the

quality of communication in different areas of the hotel Some were communicating

wel l because of the nature of the par t icular head of depar tment However

infor mation would often be passed down as far as head of depar tment level

and would s top there To improve on th i s s i tuat ion the hote l introduced

lsquoone-to-onersquo meet ings every three months and increased the f requenc y

of depar tmental communication meetings to one per month Attitudes towards

the dissemination of information changed considerably the personnel manager

comment ing

hellipwe are much more open with information than we were before That was one of

our biggest failingshellip

As a resu l t o f the d i f f i cu l ty o f separat ing out the impact o f Investor s

in People f rom other s imultaneous ly occur r ing c hanges and a l so because

i t has in genera l been introduced in l ine with the upswing in the bus iness

cyc le i t i s d i f f i cu l t to separate out tang ible ev idence of i t s impact on the

bottom l ine However one respondent expressed the hope that Investor s

in People accredi ta t ion would ra i se the prof i le o f the industry by he lp ing

to dispel the image that hotels are poor employers and by helping to dispel

the h i s tor ica l myth that lsquohellipanybody can work in a hote lhelliprsquo

Influences on HRM decision-making

While the follow-up interviews provide verification of the business strategy and HRM

classifications used in the previous chapter they also allow for a further investigation of the

factors that influence management decision-making in relation to HRM policy choice The

previous chapter suggested that chain hotels are more likely to have adopted HRM while

market instability resistance to change labour turnover and unionisation have no impact

The next section assesses the importance attached to these influences within the follow-up

interview programme

Hotel chains

The follow-up interviews support the notion that the adoption of HRM is more widespread

within hotel chains However it would seem that the impact of the head office on the

approach taken to HRM at unit level depends a great deal upon the size of the chain For

example the lsquonon-HRM cost reducerrsquo is part of a small chain of 13 hotels and there are only

two operational grades above that of general manager The result is little hierarchy and little

instruction from above in terms of policies and practices The unit-level personnel manager

is therefore free to introduce practices as she sees fit yet has no guidance or instruction from

above in terms of the introduction of new practices

However amongst the l arger c ha ins there i s cons iderable ev idence of

pract ices deve loped a t reg iona l or head of f i ce leve l be ing fed down to

uni t leve l The ro le o f the per sonnel manager i s to ta i lor the pol icy to

the ir spec i f ic s i tuat ion The fo l low-up inter v iews therefore suppor t the

conclusion reached in the previous chapter that innovation emanates primar ily

from head office unit-level personnel management rarely initiating innovation

Never theless uni t - level per sonnel i s increas ingly v iewed in a profess iona l

light one respondent commenting that a unit-level personnel manager would

not now be appointed with in the ir c ha in unless they were IPD qual i f ied

In addit ion there were examples of indiv idual uni t- level manager s p lay ing

a ro le in the innovat ion process Two respondents descr ibed how pract ices

developed at uni t leve l were d i s seminated through the g roup v ia regular

meetings of unit-level personnel managers at which lsquobest practicersquo innovations

could be d i scussed Be ing par t o f a l arge c ha in therefore fac i l i t ated the

bottom-up d i s seminat ion of loca l ly developed lsquobest pract icersquo

Attitudes towards unions

The analysis within the previous chapter suggested that the weak unionisation that exists

within the industry has little or no effect on the approach taken to HRM While it is not

possible to test the impact of strong unionisation in the industry the respondents speculated

that the presence of strong unions would undoubtedly slow down the decision-making

process and the implementation of new practices particularly practices that relied upon the

ability to communi-cate directly with the workforce One respondent who had moved into

the industry from a manufacturing environment felt that the non-union nature of the hotel

industry was a particularly important factor explaining the relatively higher levels of

innovation in terms of HRM within the hotel industry

However whereas there i s an apprec iat ion o f the f reedom of ac t ion

enta i led by a l ac k of s t rong unions with in the industry there i s ev idence

that manager ia l prerogat ive i s a l so used to uni la tera l ly impose unpopular

decis ions which in many other industr ies would be subject to consultat ion

and negotiation For example within the lsquonon-HRM cost reducerrsquo as mentioned

ear l ier s ic kness benef i t provi s ion was reduced as a cost cut t ing measure

in 1993 The dec i s ion to take th i s act ion was made without consul ta t ion

with the workforce The non-union status of the hotel undoubtedly facilitated

th i s process

Labour turnover

While the analysis in Chapter 4 suggests that there is no particular relationship between the

level of labour turnover and the approach taken to HRM several questions remain

unanswered Firstly there is considerable debate relating to the causes of labour turnover

within the industry Secondly there is considerable debate as to whether turnover should be

viewed as problematicmdashin that it generates higher recruitment and training costs and causes

the depletion of valuable firm-specific human capitalmdashor whether it should be seen as a

mechanism by which headcount can be reduced and wage costs controlled and by which

inefficient staff can be shed Thirdly whether labour turnover can be reduced by better

management or whether it should be viewed as a lsquofact of lifersquo operational contingency that

is unlikely to be affected by HRM-type initiatives remains open to question The follow-up

interviews conducted here shed light on these debates

In the event most respondents v iewed labour tur nover in a negat ive

l ight f rom the point o f v iew of the addi t iona l recr u i tment and tra in ing

costs generated Also s tressed was the addi t iona l pressure put on other

s ta f f who have to provide cover for employees who have le f t and a l so the

fact that standards are af fected as new member s of staf f lack hotel-speci f ic

knowledge However the extent to whic h tur nover i s seen as a problem

also depends in par t on the reason why i t i s occurr ing and who i s leav ing

For example l abour tur nover in the lsquoHRM otherrsquo was 48 per cent dur ing

1995 The high propor t ion of foreign staf f on f ixed-term contracts boosted

th i s f igure Suc h s ta f f ver y of ten come to the UK with a pr imary goa l o f

lear n ing Engl i sh Hote l s in the UK are wi l l ing to employ them as they

are seen as provid ing both an inter nat iona l lsquo f l avourrsquo with in the hote l and

also an element of f la ir and creat iv i ty acquired on highly-regarded tra ining

courses in their home countr ies If such workers leave to continue employment

in their home countr ies labour tur nover is seen as an inevitable consequence

of choos ing to employ foreign worker s and i s v iewed neither as a problem

nor as an indicator o f workforce d i s sa t i s fact ion

Whether or not labour tur nover impacts on the approach taken to HRM

is a l so par t ly dependent upon the jobs with in whic h quit rates are h ighest

Within the lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo high rates of turnover amongst kitchen hands

i s seen as les s problemat ic because these s ta f f do not come into d irect

contact with the customer and as such would not affect the hotelrsquos empowerment

programme This argument cal ls into question whether HRM in the industry

i s seen as apply ing to a l l worker s or whether i t i s only appl ied to cer ta in

key g roups of worker s operat ing in f ront- l ine pos i t ions

However some respondents suggested that while it is considered problematic

labour turnover is also an inevitable lsquofact of lifersquo The profile of the industryrsquos

workforce i s qu i te young and as such s ta f f o f ten leave to broaden the ir

hor izons Comment ing on the inev i tab i l i ty o f l abour tur nover the lsquonon-

HRM qual i ty enhancerrsquo inter v iewee commented

hellipa year is a long time in this industry Itrsquos hard work and people look for a

changehellip

Financial reward is a fur ther reason behind high quit rates The interviewee

with in the lsquoHRM qual i ty enhancerrsquo commented that the buoyancy of the

loca l l abour market provided p lent i fu l oppor tuni t ies for s ta f f to move to

boost their salary either to another hotel or to another industry The implication

therefore is that higher salar ies would aid retention Is paying higher salar ies

feasible Not according to the inter viewee within the lsquonon-HRM cost reducerrsquo

who commented that the savings in terms of lower recr uitment and training

costs would not outweigh the addi t iona l sa lar y cost s should sa lar ies be

increased to a leve l that would have a s ign i f icant impact on retent ion

This i s not to say that labour turnover is unavoidable or that nothing

can be done to reduce it The training offered to staf f i s seen as a key factor

in encouraging retention at the lsquoHRM otherrsquo As mentioned earlier the introduction

of mult i-ski l l ing and functional f lexibi l i ty at the lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo i s seen

to have contr ibuted to a fa l l in labour tur nover However in some areas of

the hotel par t icularly within housekeeping labour tur nover is v iewed with

a g reater degree of inevitabi l i ty The lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo has attempted to

reduce turnover among chamber maids by g iving them responsibil ity for their

own quality standards and hence raising levels of autonomy So far the scheme

has met with little success and it is now felt that turnover amongst chambermaids

is the result of factor s that job design init iat ives wil l do l i t t le to solve

Many recruits to housekeeping positions find that the job does not suit child-

care ar rangements or that the work is harder than or ig inal ly ant ic ipated

A number of i ssues wil l therefore have to be taken into account i f tur nover

is to be reduced amongst the chamber maids within this hotel

As can be seen therefore there is a complex two-way relationship between

approac hes taken to HRM and labour tur nover I t i s seen as a problem

though g iven the predominance of young worker s in the industry low pay

and a h igh propor t ion of fore ign worker s i t i s a l so seen to an extent as

inev i table Never the less HRM in i t i at ives par t icu lar ly those re lat ing to

tra in ing may prove e f fect ive in reduc ing i t However a s demonstrated

by the examples of the chamber maids at the lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo the reduction

of labour tur nover wi l l remain di f f icul t unless a range of problems leading

to employee d i s sat i s fact ion can be addressed

Market instability

It is commonly argued that in instances where demand is seasonal and where a high

proportion of the workforce is employed on temporary contracts there will be little interest

in HRM However the previous chapter suggested that for hotels of this nature seasonality

is not a major problem demand being relatively stable all year round

The fol low-up inter views conf ir med this p icture Demand was repor ted

as be ing s table throughout the year these be ing l arge c i ty-centre hote l s

re l i ant only to a very minor extent on hol iday trade Any peaks in demand

would indeed be met by the usage of casua l l abour though for the most

part this would only be necessary on a large scale in conference and banqueting

Dai ly peaks and troughs faced by a l l hotel industry operat ions for example

breakfas t sh i f t s would a l so be dea l t wi th v ia the usage of casua l s

Therefore whi le seasona l i ty might present an operat iona l problem to

hote l s re l i ant on hol iday trade i t i s not a major i s sue amongst hote l s o f

the type under invest igat ion here Be ing large c i ty-centre hote l s with a

h igh propor t ion of cor porate c l ients demand i s s table Though trade may

dip in August th i s can usua l ly be handled by core s ta f f t ak ing hol idays

and by casuals not being hired As such large numbers of temporary seasonal

worker s are not a necess i ty with in hote l s o f th i s nature

Resistance to change

The analysis in the previous chapter suggests that workforce resistance to change within the

hotel industry is low though resistance to organisational change was seen to be somewhat

higher than resistance to technical change The last chapter also demonstrated that the low

level of resistance that does exist has no impact on the approach taken to HRM

Thi s p i c ture was suppor ted in the ma in by the fo l low-up in ter v iews

Typ ica l t ec hn ica l c hanges inc luded the computer i s at ion o f the food and

beverage funct ion f ront o f f i ce funct ions re ser vat ions and housekeep ing

Organisat ional changes inc luded the f lat tening of s tr uctures ( for example

the remova l o f a s s i s t an t head o f depar tment g rades ) o r the merg ing o f

func t ions ( for example bar and re s t auran t func t ions ) In many re spec t s

the impact of these c hanges has been g reater on the job roles of manager s

and re f l ec t ing th i s re s i s t ance to organ i s at iona l c hange ha s t ended to be

h igher amongs t management than amongs t opera t i ve g rades Howeve r

management resistance has not been caused by a fear of job loss as headcount

reduct ions where necessary have tended to be handled by natura l wastage

rather than by redundanc ie s Fear s re l at ing to an expans ion o f job s cope

and an increa se in re spons ib i l i t i e s have c reated g reater problems For

example in the case of the lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo de-layer ing did not necessar ily

re su l t i n an increa se in the work load o f ind iv idua l manager s a s i t wa s

expected that a more de lega t ive approac h to management would deve lop

However management anx ie ty re su l ted f rom the f ac t that they were now

respons ible for the super v i s ion o f a l a rger t eam and were re spons ib le

for a l arger par t o f the hote l rsquo s operat ions In tur n th i s meant they would

have to l ea r n how to de lega te more e f f ec t i ve ly and they would have to

deve lop a g reater bus ine s s awarenes s o f the r unn ing o f the i r par t o f the

hote l This anxiety was eventua l ly addressed through management tra in ing

initiatives focusing on the development of team leadership skills interpersonal

sk i l l s and bus ines s sk i l l s v i a bus ines s s imula t ion exerc i se s

Where operat ive- leve l s ta f f are concer ned there has been an apparent

wi l l ingness to embrace c hange Sta f f responses to computer i sa t ion were

repor ted as pos i t ive S imi lar ly a s s tated by the inter v iewee with in the

lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo s ta f f v iewed mult i - sk i l l ing favourably a s i t increased

the ir sk i l l range and genera l ly added var iety to jobs

The follow-up interviews confirm the validity of both the business strategy categorisation

and the HRMnon-HRM categorisation used within the previous chapter Concerning the

business strategy categorisation hotels categorised as lsquoquality enhancersrsquo and lsquocost reducersrsquo

seem to be correctly classified although attitudes towards the importance of cost reduction

and price competition have changed in one of the lsquocost reducersrsquo since the time the

questionnaire was undertaken Both of the hotels classified as lsquootherrsquo display similar

approaches to those categorised as lsquoquality enhancersrsquo This would suggest that quality

enhancement is seen as the key to competitive success in all but 23 per cent of the hotels

within the sample However as mentioned earlier this inference remains somewhat

speculative and there may be much more diversity amongst the hotels within the lsquootherrsquo

category than is revealed by the analysis of the two hotels under consideration here

The fo l low-up inter v iews a l so demonstrate the va l id i ty o f the lsquoHRM

non-HRMrsquo categor i sa t ion used with in the prev ious c hapter Al l three of

the lsquoHRMrsquo hote l s d i sp layed c haracter i s t ic s commonly as soc ia ted with an

HRM approach Only one of the lsquonon-HRMrsquo hotels was incorrectly classified

that be ing the lsquonon-HRM otherrsquo whic h in the event had adopted a wider

range of HRM pract ices than suggested with in the sur vey response

Equally impor tantly the follow-up inter views also provide corroborating

ev idence for the resu l t s repor ted in Chapter 3 concer ning the extent to

whic h HRM has been adopted with in the hote l industry The lsquoHRM hotels rsquo

within which fol low-up inter views were car r ied out have introduced a wide

range of pract ices commonly assoc iated with an HRM approach There was

no ev idence tha t the pract ices a sked about in the quest ionna ire had been

mis inter preted or that they were be ing used for the pur poses o f l abour

intensification as found by Hales (1987) The follow-up inter views therefore

strongly endor se the conclus ions reac hed with in Chapter 3 and suggest

that there i s cons iderable substance behind the widespread adopt ion of

the rhetor ic o f HRM with in the hote l industry

1 The negative response to the question concerning the realistic use of job previewsdespite the fact that such practices were clearly in place may further explain theclassification of this hotel as lsquonon-HRMrsquo

6 HRM and performancein the hotel industry1

The analyses conducted within Chapters 3 and 5 have demonstrated an undeniably high degree

of experimentation with new approaches to HRM within the hotels under investigation here

This chapter returns to the 1995 Survey of Human Resource Management in the Hotel

Industry in order to examine the relationship between HRM business strategy and

organisational effectiveness Effectiveness is considered in terms of human resource outcomes

such as commitment flexibility and absenteeism and also in terms of performance outcomes

such as quality of service and financial performance This is an important test of the relevance

of HRM within the hotel industry It would only be sensible to encourage the adoption of such

an approach if it can be demonstrated that it has a beneficial impact on performance

The analysis of the relationship between HRM and performance has become

a research key issue in recent times Researcher s have used large-scale data

sets to attempt to ascer tain the links between what Wood and Albanese (1995)

and Wood and De Menezes (1998) descr ibe as high commitment management

(HRM) or what Huselid (1995) describes as lsquohigh-performance work practicesrsquo

and performance However as discussed in Chapter 1 researchers have tended

for the most part to either focus on manufactur ing (for example Arthur (1994)

looked at steel minimills and MacDuffie (1995) focused on the auto industry)

or alternatively they have not treated services as a var iable but have looked

at the HRM and performance relationship across the economy as a whole (see

for example Fernie and Metcalf 1995 Huselid 1995) With systematic tests

of the relationship between HRM and performance yet to be conducted within

the services it would seem that the tendency for the services to be overlooked

in HRM and industr ial relations research is now being replicated within the

debate concerning the impact of HRM on performance By looking at the

HRM and performance relationship within a service-related context the analysis

repor ted here beg ins to redress this imbalance

HRM and performance in the hotel industry 125

Hypothesis to be tested

Typical analyses of HRM and performance have in the main focused on two key conceptsmdash

internal and external fit These concepts will form the basis of the analysis to be undertaken here

Tests of external fit

The situational contingency models presented by Kochan and Barocci (1985) Miles and

Snow (1984) Schuler and Jackson (1987) and Tichy Fombrun and Devanna (1982)

suggest that the appropriateness or effectiveness of HRM will vary depending on

organisational lifecycle or the product market within which the organisation is

operating For example Schuler and Jackson (1987) and Schuler (1989) argue that

HRM will only prove effective if the firm emphasises the importance of either quality

enhancement or innovation within its business strategy If the organisation is competing

on price the logical HR approach would be a focus on numerical flexibility and wage

cost control In such a situation the values and goals imbued within HRM would be

inconsistent with the organisationrsquos primary cost-reduction goals External fit therefore

refers to the lsquoorganisational logicrsquo argument that HR strategy should be meshed with

business strategy such that there is a consistency between the values and aims within

each (MacDuffie 1995199)

T h e f ew a t t e m p t s t h at h ave b e e n m a d e t o a s s e s s t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f

external fit have failed to find evidence that the impact of HRM is contingent

upon the approac h t aken to bus ine s s s t r at egy Neve r the l e s s r e sea rc her s

h ave rema ined r e luc t an t to wr i t e o f f t he concep t For example Huse l i d

( 1 9 9 5 6 6 7 ) d e s c r i b e s t h e c o n c e p t u a l a r g u m e n t s re l a t i n g t o e x t e r n a l f i t

a s lsquo c o m p e l l i n g rsquo B e c ke r a n d G e r h a r t ( 1 9 9 6 ) a r g u e t h a t t h e u n i ve r s a l

e f f e c t s d e m o n s t r a t e d w i t h i n mu c h o f t h e r e s e a r c h d o n o t n e c e s s a r i ly

contrad ic t the impor tance o f cont ingenc y e f fec t s They argue that re su l t s

demonstrat ing un iver sa l i ty operate on the leve l o f lsquo a rc h i tec ture rsquo Hence

t h e s a m e p r a c t i c e mdash m e r i t p ay f o r e x a m p l e mdash m ay b e e q u a l l y a p p l i c a b l e

in f i r ms w i th d i f f e r ing bus ine s s s t r a t eg i e s bu t t he behav iour s r ewarded

w i t h i n t h e m e r i t p ay s y s t e m w i l l d i f f e r d e p e n d i n g o n a p p ro a c h t a ken

to bus iness s t rategy As suc h these resu l t s do not prec lude the poss ib i l i ty

t h a t p e r f o r m a n c e i s c o n t i n g e n t u p o n t h e t a i l o r i n g o f p r a c t i c e s t o f i r m -

s p e c i f i c s i t u a t i o n s

The f ir st i ssue to be addressed within this analys is i s therefore whether

wi th in the hote l i ndus t r y the e f f ec t i venes s o f HRM i s cont ingent upon

the approac h to bus ine s s s t r ategy that ha s been adopted

Is HRM universally relevant within the hotel industry

While it might be the case that the effectiveness of HRM is dependent upon it being coupled

with a quality enhancer business strategy is there any evidence that an lsquoHRM quality

enhancerrsquo approach is likely to prove the most effective within the context of the hotel

industry This is an important issue when considering the universal relevance of HRM

When testing univer sal ism it is impor tant to acknowledge the difference

between the universal effects that HRM might have and the universal relevance

of HRM as an approach Where universal effects are concerned the implication

i s that contrary to exter na l f i t arguments HRM has per for mance e f fects

irrespective of circumstances or irrespective of the business strategy adopted

Most tes t s o f univer sa l i sm have focused on th i s i s sue

By contras t tes t s o f the univer sa l re levance of HRM do not contrad ict

cont ingency arguments I t might be the case that the ef fect iveness of HRM

is contingent upon a coupl ing with a qual i ty enhancer or innovator strategy

(supporting the lsquoorganisational log icrsquo contingency argument discussed earlier)

However i f a l l hote l s are exper ienc ing g reater product market turbulence

and are increasingly under pressure to adopt a business strategy emphasis ing

f lexibi l i ty qual i ty and innovat ion the implicat ion is that an HRM approac h

wi l l be univer sa l ly re levant This would not detract f rom the cont ingency

argument that the success o f HRM is dependent upon i t be ing coupled

with a par t icu lar approac h to bus iness s t rategy

Whether HRM has univer sa l re levance therefore depends to a large par t

upon the nature of the industry product market For example Guest (1987)

and Walton (1985) suggest that to vary ing deg rees a l l organi sa t ions are

operating in increasingly uncer tain environments within which the emphasis

is on responsiveness to customer needs and on the provision of higher quality

customised goods and services In such conditions innovative or developmental

approac hes to HRM a imed at e l ic i t ing employee f lex ib i l i ty adaptab i l i ty

and commitment to the organi sa t ion wi l l have a univer sa l re levance

However i f an industr y product market i s more d iver se in nature than

i s suggested by Guest (1987) and Walton (1985) there i s no reason why

HRM should necessar i ly prove e f fect ive I t may be the case that in cer ta in

s i tuat ions cost control or pr ice compet i t ion remains impor tant and that

an HR strategy focusing on cost reduction numerical flexibility and a careful

control over headcount wi l l prove more e f fect ive I f th i s can be shown to

be the case suppor t for the univer sal relevance of HRM is lost The second

a im of th i s c hapter i s to tes t th i s i s sue

Is internal fit important

The second notion of fit that HRM researchers have explored relates to internal fit This

refers to the synergistic benefits resulting from the introduction of HRM as an institutionally

supported package of practices that cohere and mutually reinforce each other

Var y ing deg rees of suppor t for a re la t ionship between f i t o f th i s nature

and per for mance has been found with in empir ica l ana lyses to date ( see

for example Guest and Hoque 1994b Huse l id 1995 Ichniowski Shaw

and Prennushi 1994 MacDuff ie 1995) The th ird a im of th i s c hapter i s

to test whether hotels c la iming to have introduced HRM tec hniques within

an inst i tut ional ly suppor ted coherent pac kage outperfor m those that have

introduced s imi lar HRM pract ices though in an ad hoc f a sh ion and not as

par t o f an overarc h ing pol ic y or s trategy

The data

The data used here are taken from the 1995 Survey of Human Resource Management in the

Hotel Industry When missing data are accounted for and when establishments with fewer

than 25 employees are dropped 209 hotels in total are used within the analysis

Dependent variables

Within the 1995 survey data were collected on a wide range of both HR outcome and

performance outcome measures against which the effectiveness of HRM is commonly assessed

HR outcomes

Respondents were asked to rate each of the HR outcomes asked about within their own

hotels on a scale of one (very low) to five (very high) The HR outcomes asked about were

as follows

i) The commitment to the organisation of lower grades of staff

ii) The level of job satisfaction of lower grades of staff

iii) The flexibility of staff

iv) The ability of staff to move between jobs as the work demands

v) The quality of work of lower grades of staff

vi) The quality of staff currently employed

Respondents were also asked to provide information relating to the number

of days lost through all types of absence during 1994 The average absenteeism

rate for 1994 was 835 per cent

Respondents were also asked whether or not there had been an industr ial

d i spute at the hote l with in the l a s t s ix year s This var iable i s not used in

the ana lys i s a s the inc idence of industr ia l d i sputes i s so low with only

four hote l s in the tota l sample of 209 hav ing exper ienced any industr ia l

act ion dur ing the s ix year s pr ior to the sur vey be ing under taken

Performance outcomes

Three questions were asked concerning performance outcomes Respondents were asked to rate

each on a scale of one (much worse) to five (much better) These questions were as follows

i) How well does labour productivity at your hotel compare with the hotel industry

average

ii) How does quality of service at your hotel compare with the hotel industry average

iii) How would you compare the financial performance of your hotel with the hotel

industry average

Independent variables

The measures of HRM to be used to test the relationship between HRM and the

performance measures outlined above are based upon the 22 HRM practices listed within

Table 34 in Chapter 3 These practices relate to terms and conditions of employment

recruitment and selection training job design communication consultation quality issues

and pay systems The mean number of practices used within the sample used here is 134

The precise manner in which the HRM independent variables are constructed to test the

impact of internal and external fit and the universal relevance of HRM is discussed in detail

within the following sections

Testing the impact of external fit

As suggested by Schuler and Jackson (1987) HRM should only prove effective within hotels

emphasising a quality enhancer or innovator approach to business strategy and should prove

ineffective where the hotelrsquos business strategy emphasises cost cutting or competition on

price factors

To tes t th i s hypothes i s the bus iness s t ra tegy typology introduced in

Chapter 4 whic h draws on the ana lys i s presented by Sc huler and Jac kson

(1987) is used here The f ir st category consists of hotels with a competit ive

strategy focusing on cost reduction or pr ice competition The second category

consists of hotels with a competitive strategy focusing on quality enhancement

The third category consists of hotels with an ambiguous approach to business

s tra tegy For ty-seven or 2249 per cent o f the hote l s with in the sample

fa l l into the cost reducer category 104 or 4976 per cent o f the sample

fa l l into the qua l i ty enhancer categor y and 58 or 2775 per cent o f the

sample f a l l into the lsquootherrsquo ca tegory

The development of a hypothes i s concer ning the re lat ionsh ip between

the adopt ion of HRM and per for mance i s somewhat more d i f f i cu l t where

the lsquootherrsquo hote l s are concer ned than where the cost reducer or qua l i ty

enhancer hote l s are concer ned The ambigui ty impl ied with in the bus iness

strateg ies of the lsquootherrsquo hotels suggests they may be what Por ter (198516ndash

17) descr ibes as lsquo s tuc k in the middlersquo

However a focus on quality does not necessar i ly preclude a s imultaneous

focus on costs Indeed as Por ter (1985) argues f irms focusing on qual i ty

should attempt to minimise costs as far as possible so long as cost reduction

is not detrimental to the achievement of the firmrsquos primary quality enhancement

focus (and vice ver sa) Therefore i f the hotels within the lsquootherrsquo category

have a pr imary focus on qual i ty enhancement a relat ionship between the

adoption of HRM and performance might be expected Less of a relationship

might be expected i f these hotels are focusing pr imar ily on cost reduction

Nothing more is known about the nature of the business strategy within

the lsquootherrsquo hotels Thus if business strategy has a moderating effect a relationship

between HRM and performance amongst the lsquootherrsquo category could be taken

as indicative that these hotels are indeed focusing primarily on quality enhancement

The measure of HRM to be used within this part of the analysis is cumulative

with eac h hote l be ing ranked according to the extent to whic h they have

adopted the twenty-two HRM pract ices d i scussed ear l ier The a im of th i s

var iable i s to examine the re la t ionsh ip between the extent to whic h HRM

pract ices have been adopted and per for mance By sp l i t t ing the sample as

descr ibed above and then regress ing this cumulat ive HRM var iable on each

of the dependent outcome variables it will be possible to assess the effectiveness

of HRM in the context o f lsquocost reducerrsquo lsquoqua l i ty enhancerrsquo and lsquootherrsquo

bus iness s trateg ies

Testing the universal relevance of HRM

Is it the case that the hotels within the sample adopting HRM coupled with quality

enhancement enjoy performance levels superior to those achieved by other hotels Answers

to this question will shed light on whether HRM holds universal relevance within the

industry

This i s sue i s tested as fo l lows The sample having been spl i t three ways

to per for m the exter na l f i t tes t s descr ibed above i s re-c las s i f ied here to

enable compar i sons between bus iness s t rategy categor ies a s fo l lows

1) lsquoLow-HRM cost reducersrsquo using 10 or fewer HR practices Ten hotels fall into this

category

2) lsquoMedium-HRM cost reducersrsquo using more than 10 but less than 16 HR practices

Twenty-seven hotels fall into this category

3) lsquoHigh-HRM cost reducersrsquo using 16 or more HR practices Ten hotels fall into this

category

4) lsquoLow-HRM quality enhancersrsquo using 10 or less HR practices Twenty-two hotels fall

into this category

5) lsquoMedium-HRM quality enhancersrsquo using more than 10 but less than 16 HR practices

Forty-five hotels fall into this category

6) lsquoHigh-HRM quality enhancersrsquo using 16 or more HR practices Thirty-seven hotels fall

into this category

7) lsquoLow-HRM othersrsquo using 10 or less HR practices Thirteen hotels fall into this category

8) lsquoMedium-HRM othersrsquo using more than 10 but less than 16 HR practices Twenty-two

hotels fall into this category

9) lsquoHigh-HRM othersrsquo using 16 or more HR practices Twenty-three hotels fall into this

category

This ser ies o f dummies enables a comparat ive ana lys i s o f the leve l o f

per for mance dependent on the approac h taken to HRM and to bus iness

strategy Holding category six constant will show whether lsquohigh-HRM quality

enhancerrsquo hotels outperform the other categor ies of hotel within the sample

Testing the importance of internal fit

The final hypothesis to be tested concerns the importance of introducing HRM as a

synergistic package of mutually supporting practices Of the hotels adopting a wide range of

HRM practices those introducing their HRM practices as a coherent institutionally

supported synergistic package should outperform hotels within which HRM has been

introduced in a more ad hoc manner

In order to tes t th i s i s sue a t r ic hotomous var iable i s constr ucted as

fo l lows 2

i) lsquoStrategic HRMrsquo hotels above average (14 or more) usage of HRM practices

strategically integrated with each other Seventy-one hotels (4383 per cent) fall into

this category

ii) lsquoNon-strategic HRMrsquo hotels above average (14 or more) usage of HRM practices

which are not strategically integrated Twenty-five hotels (1543 per cent) fall into this

category

iii) lsquoLow-HRMrsquo hotels below average (less than 14) usage of HRM practices Sixty-six

hotels (4074 per cent) fall into this category

A hotel has lsquostrategically integratedrsquo its HRM practices in the typology above

if the respondent claims fir stly that the hotel has a human resource strategy

formally endorsed and actively supported by the top management at the hotel

and secondly that HR policies are deliberately integrated with each other If

internal fit is important the lsquostrategic HRMrsquo hotels within the fir st of these

dummies should outperform the other hotels within the sample

Control variables

The following control variables are included within the analysis The first is a dichotomous

variable concerning union presence This variable simply concerns whether or not a union is

present irrespective of whether it is recognised The second concerns establishment size

with dummies for hotels with between 50ndash99 employees 99ndash199 employees and 200 or

more employees being included within the regressions (the omitted category being hotels

with between 25ndash49 employees) The third concerns whether or not hotels are UK or

foreign owned The fourth concerns the price of a standard room per night The fifth

concerns the age of the hotel

Results

How important is external fit

Looking firstly at HR outcomes Table 61 demonstrates a strong link between the

cumulative HRM variable and all of the HR outcome measures for the sample as a whole

with the exception of labour turnover Concerning the lsquoquality enhancerrsquo subsample as

Table 61 The relationship between HRM and human resource outcomes in thehotel industry

Notes Ordered probit analysis except for absenteeism equation (OLS analysis)Absenteeism dependent variable=Log of (P(1ndashP)) where P=absenteeismR2 is pseudo except for absenteeism equation (adjusted) significant at 1 per cent significant at 5 per cent significant at 10 per centCoefficients given (standard errors in brackets)HRM variable is cumulative

Table 61 (continued)

predicted the strong positive relationship identified within the sample as a whole is

replicated with the exception of only one measure namely the quality of staff currently

employed The labour turnover variable remains insignificant Thus for hotels with a

business strategy based on quality enhancement the extent to which HRM is used is strongly

and positively related to most of the HR outcomes under investigation here

Amongst hotels pur suing cost reducer strateg ies Table 61 demonstrates

a pos i t ive cor re lat ion between the extent to whic h HRM is pract i sed and

the level of organisat ional commitment and job sat is fact ion However there

i s no re lat ionsh ip between the extent to whic h HRM pract ices have been

adopted and the f lex ib i l i ty qua l i ty or absentee i sm measures HRM would

seem therefore to be more e f fect ive amongst the qua l i ty enhancer hote l s

than amongst the cost reducer hotels in terms of achieving the HR outcomes

under invest igat ion here

Looking a t the lsquootherrsquo es tabl i shments Table 61 demonstrates pos i t ive

correlations between the cumulative HRM var iable and all of the HR outcome

measures aga in with the except ion of absentee i sm The impact o f HRM

with in these hote l s would seem to be more ak in to the impact o f HRM

amongst the qua l i ty enhancer s than amongst the cost reducer s

Thus amongst the hote l s wi th an ident i f i able bus iness s t ra tegy there

is evidence to suggest that HRM proves more effective in terms of achieving

HR outcomes where the bus iness s trategy emphas i ses qual i ty enhancement

rather than cost control These resul t s provide moderate suppor t for the

impor tance of external f it However g iven that HRM also impacts posit ively

on two of the HR outcome var iables where the cost reducer s are concerned

th i s conclus ion should be treated with caut ion

The resul ts concer ning the re lat ionship between HRM and perfor mance

outcomes provide stronger evidence for the hypothesis that the effectiveness

of HRM is dependent upon the ac h ievement o f exter na l f i t As shown by

Table 62 across the sample as a whole there is a strong positive relationship

between the extent to which HRM is used and al l three of the organisational

perfor mance measures However where cost reducer hotels are concerned

this posit ive relat ionship completely disappear s I t i s par t icularly indicat ive

that the relationship between HRM and financial performance is very sl ightly

negative (though insignificantly so) Overall as hypothesised there is absolutely

no evidence that the adoption of HRM leads to improved performance where

hote l s put a premium on cost control with in the ir bus iness s trateg ies

The converse is true of quality enhancer hotels The HRM measure correl-

ates strongly with both the qual i ty of ser vice and the f inancial perfor mance

Table 62 The relationship between HRM and organisational performance in thehotel industry

Notes Ordered probit analysis Coefficients given (standard errors in brackets) significant at 1 per cent significant at 5 per cent significant at 10 per centHRM variable is cumulative

measure The only perfor mance measure not re lated to the extent to which

HRM is practised is labour productivity This may not come as a surprise since within hotels

emphasising service quality above cost control labour productivitymdashtypically measured as

customer-staff ratiomdashmay be seen as less important than the level of customer-staff contact

if the aim is to provide a more lsquopersonalrsquo high quality attentive service

Looking at the hotels in the lsquootherrsquo category as with the quality enhancer

hote l s a s t rong re lat ionsh ip i s in ev idence between the extent to whic h

HRM is pract i sed and per for mance Thus once aga in i t seems that the

behaviour of these hotels resembles more strongly that of the quality enhancers

than the cost reducer s

The resu l t s wi th in th i s sect ion suppor t the exter na l f i t hypothes i s that

the effectiveness of HRM is strongly dependent upon congruence with business

s tra tegy A pos i t ive corre la t ion between the cumulat ive HRM var iable and

ef fect iveness only exists within qual i ty enhancer and lsquootherrsquo hotels Where

hotels emphas ise cost control there i s no relat ionship whatsoever between

HRM and qua l i ty o f ser v ice product iv i ty and poss ibly most impor tant ly

f inanc ia l per for mance

The universal relevance of HRM

The aim of this part of the analysis is to assess whether the hotels adopting a lsquohigh-HRM quality

enhancerrsquo approach are the highest performing hotels within the sample Such a finding would

suggest that HRM coupled with quality enhancement holds universal relevance within the hotel

industry with hotels focusing on cost reduction or a low-HRM approach achieving sub-optimal

performance By contrast if lsquolow-HRM cost reducerrsquo hotels are performing equally effectively

the implication will be that a high-HRM approach is not necessarily universally relevant and

that there is sufficient diversity within the industry product market for alternative approaches

to business strategy and HRM to prove equally effective

The resul t s in Table 63 would seem to indicate that in re la t ion to HR

outcomes the hotels adopting a quality enhancer approach to business strategy

in conjunct ion with a lsquoh igh-HRMrsquo approac h are indeed per for ming best

These hote l s are not outper for med on any of the HR outcome measures

asked about In relation to quality of work the lsquohigh-HRM quality enhancersrsquo

outper for m a l l the other ca tegor ies o f hote l s They outper for m f ive o f

the other e ight categor ies in re la t ion to organi sat iona l commitment and

job sa t i s fact ion and four o f the other e ight in re lat ion to s ta f f f lex ib i l i ty

and the abi l i ty to move staf f as the work demands In addit ion absenteeism

is lower with in the lsquoh igh- HRM qual i ty enhancer s rsquo than with in the lsquoh igh-

(1ndashP

y=lsquoH

ersrsquo

HRM cost reducer s rsquo The ev idence there fore suggest s that a h igh-HRM

approach where i t i s coupled with a qual i ty enhancer approach to business

s tra tegy leads to super ior HR outcomes with in the hote l industr y

The re su l t s i n Table 6 4 fur ther sugges t tha t the lsquoh igh-HRM qua l i t y

enhancer s rsquo a re the h ighes t per for ming hote l s w i th in the s ample They

per for m s i gn i f i c an t ly be t te r than a l l c a tegor ie s o f f i r ms on a t l e a s t one

o f the organ i s a t iona l per for mance measure s u sed wi th the except ion o f

lsquoh igh-HRM other rsquo ho te l s The ev idence there fore sugges t s that a focus

on cos t reduc t ion or on pr i ce f ac tor s l e ads to sub-opt ima l per for mance

wi th in the indus t r y

The resu l t s here therefore suppor t the content ion that a lsquoh igh-HRM

quality enhancerrsquo approach is univer sally relevant to hotels within the sector

of the industry under invest igat ion in th i s ana lys i s There would seem to

be no rea l scope for a l ter nat ive approac hes based around cost reduct ion

to ac h ieve comparable per for mance resu l t s

Table 64 HRM strategy and performance outcomes in the hotel industry

Notes Ordered probit analysis Coefficients given (standard errors in brackets)All regressions control for region significant at 1 per cent significant at 5 per cent significant at 10 per centOmitted category=lsquohigh-HRM quality enhancersrsquo

The importance of internal fit

The aim of the analysis here is to assess whether hotels that claim to have introduced their

HRM practices as a strategically integrated package of mutually supporting practices

outperform hotels that have introduced their HRM practices in a more piecemeal manner

Looking at Table 65 the resu l t s suggest that lsquo s t ra teg ic HRMrsquo hote l s

rout ine ly outper for m the lsquo low-HRMrsquo hote l s across a l l o f the HR outcome

measures with the exception of absenteeism By contrast the lsquonon-strateg ic

HRMrsquo hote l s only outper for m the lsquo low-HRMrsquo hote l s where organisat iona l

commitment i s concer ned The resul t s therefore suppor t the hypothes i s

that HRM is more effective in enhancing HR outcomes where it is implemented

as par t o f an over-arc h ing pac kage of mutua l ly re in forc ing pract ices

The results concerning performance outcomes repor ted within Table 66

fur ther demonstrate the impact of internal f it on performance Whereas the

lsquostrateg ic HRMrsquo hotels outperform the lsquolow-HRMrsquo hotels in terms of labour

productivity quality of ser vice and financial performance the lsquonon-strateg ic

HRMrsquo hotels outperform the lsquolow-HRMrsquo hotels on only one of the performance

measures asked about namely financial performance The results here would

therefore seem to indicate the impor tance of introducing HRM practices as

par t of an institutionally suppor ted mutually reinforcing package

Table 66 HRM internal fit and performance outcomes in the hotel industry

Notes Ordered probit analysis Coefficients given (standard errors in brackets) significant at 1 per cent significant at 5 per centlsquoStrategicrsquo=above average no of HR practices used and establishment has formal strategylsquoNon-strategicrsquo=above average no of HR practices used but establishment does not have

formal strategyOmitted category=below average no of HR practices used

Conclusions

The analysis undertaken here has achieved several key findings the first of which relates to

the importance of external fit A relationship between HRM and performance only exists

amongst hotels emphasising the importance of quality enhancement and amongst hotels in

the lsquootherrsquo category HRM proves ineffective where cost control is seen as the key to business

strategy This analysis therefore provides support for the contingency hypothesis that the

effectiveness of HRM relies upon fit with business strategy

To date s tudies o f HRM and per for mance have been unable to ident i fy

suppor t for external f it (see for example Huselid 1995 Huselid and Becker

1996) One poss ible reason why the resu l t s ac h ieved here might d i f fer

from those ac h ieved with in ear l ier s tudies i s that th i s i s a s ing le- industry

study There is the poss ibi l i ty that contingency effects wil l be lost in mult i-

industry studies as such ef fects may only operate in cer ta in c ircumstances

whi le in other ins tances HRM might have univer sa l e f fect s at the level

of what Becker and Gerhart (1996786) describe as lsquoarchitecturersquo Alternatively

bus iness s t rategy may not have been measured adequate ly with in ear l ier

studies (Huselid (1995 668) admits that his measures of f i t are preliminary

for example) Whatever the reasons this study is unique in that it demonstrates

s trong cont ingenc y e f fects

The second key f inding suggests HRM to be univer sa l ly re levant with in

the hote l industry the ana lys i s suggest ing that among the hote l s wi th an

ident i f i able s tra tegy those adopt ing an ethos o f ser v ice qua l i ty coupled

with a high number of HRM practices are performing best It would therefore

seem that a lsquoh igh-HRM qual i ty enhancerrsquo s t rategy would be the key to

compet i t ive success with in hote l s o f the nature under invest igat ion here

with there be ing l i t t le scope for a s t rategy based on cost reduct ion or

pr ice compet i t ion to ac h ieve comparable resu l t s

Thirdly looking at internal f it there is evidence that fur ther performance

gains are to be found where HRM is introduced as a mutual ly cohesive and

inst itut ional ly suppor ted package Gains are less where HRM practices have

been implemented in a seemingly piecemeal uncoordinated fashion The results

here add to the conclusions reached by Guest and Hoque (1994b) Ichniowski

Shaw and Prennushi (1994) and MacDuffie (1995) who demonstrate varying

degrees of suppor t for the importance of this type of fit within their analyses

Concer ning the hote l s in the lsquootherrsquo category the resu l t s suggest that

HRM has a similar impact within these hotels as it does within hotels emphasising

qual i ty enhancement As d i scussed ear l ier whi le the bus iness s t rateg ies

with in these hote l s seem somewhat ambiguous compet ing on pr ice and

qual i ty s imultaneous ly need not necessar i ly be contradictory as a pr imar y

focus can be mainta ined on one of the two dimens ions One inter pretat ion

might be that g iven the similar ity in their behaviour to the quality enhancer s

the hotels in the lsquootherrsquo category are focusing primarily on quality enhancement

I f th i s a s sumpt ion i s cor rect adding the lsquootherrsquo hote l s to those in the

qual i ty enhancer category suggest s that approximate ly 77 per cent o f the

hotels within the sample as a whole have identified service quality enhancement

to be of centra l s t rateg ic impor tance This would seemingly suppor t the

arguments presented by Callan (1994) Kokko and Moilanen (1997) Mattsson

(1994) Olsen (1989) and Pye (1994) concerning the increasing impor tance

of ser v ice qua l i ty with in the hote l industry

Inevitably this analysis is subject to the caveats common to cross-sectional

ana lyses o f th i s nature not leas t that the resu l t s here cannot be v iewed

as causal All that is demonstrated is that perfor mance is higher in s ituations

where the hote l emphas i ses qua l i ty enhancement and has adopted a wide

range of HRM practices I t i s not known whether those pract ices or indeed

the qual i ty enhancer approach to bus iness s trategy i t se l f have caused h igh

performance or whether high-performing hotels have taken the oppor tunity

to innovate in ter ms of HRM I t i s imposs ible to deter mine whether th i s

i s the case espec ia l ly g iven the l imited range of control s ava i l able here

for other factor s that might impact on perfor mance To ascer ta in causa l i ty

long i tudina l data i s idea l ly required

The potential for common-method variance must also be taken into consideration

g iven that the same respondent provided data for both the dependent and

the independent var iables Common-method var iance at least in the context

of the HRM and per for mance debate i s a s soc iated with the phenomenon

of univer sa l ly h igher per for mance rat ings be ing repor ted by respondents

who cla im to have adopted a wide range of HRM pract ices However there

i s no re la t ionsh ip between HRM and per for mance where the cost reducer

hotels are concerned This could be interpreted as indicative that the positive

re la t ionsh ip between HRM and per for mance amongst the qua l i ty enhancer

and the lsquootherrsquo hotels may be more the result of genuine performance effects

rather than common-method var iance

Final ly i t i s wor th reiterat ing that the analys is here del iberately focuses

on larger hote l s a s i t i s amongst these hote l s that an interes t in HRM

would be expected As such the results should not be viewed as representative

of the hotel industry as a whole and i t may be the case that within smal ler

hote l s HRM has l i t t le or no ro le to p lay The resu l t s never the less suggest

that in l arger es tab l i shments with in the hote l industry h igh per for mance

is related to the adoption of a coherent pac kage of HRM pract ices coupled

to a business s trategy that focuses pr imar i ly on the enhancement of ser vice

qual i ty

1 The results reported within this chapter are also reported within the British Journal ofIndustrial Relations 1999 37(3)

2 Cost reducer hotels are dropped from this section as there is little evidence of anHRM-performance relationship within these establishments in the first instance

7 Conclusion

As argued within the opening chapter HRM has increasingly come to be viewed as the

dominant paradigm within which emergent developments in the world of work are

interpreted From a theoretical perspective however HRM has its roots firmly entrenched

within manufacturing where less than one in five of the UKrsquos working population is now

employed As such it has become increasingly important to demonstrate the validity of

HRM in the services After all what future is there for HRM as a lsquodominant paradigmrsquo if it

is deemed inapplicable to the services within which over 76 per cent of the working

population are currently employed This book has tested this issue by presenting an analysis

of the validity of HRM within the context of the UK hotel industry

The tes t o f the va l id i ty o f HRM in the hote l industry compr i sed three

main par ts The f i r s t concer ned the extent to whic h tec hniques as soc ia ted

with an HRM approac h have been adopted with in the industry The second

concer ned the extent to which the factor s inf luencing manager ia l decis ion-

making in re la t ion to HRM in the industry cor respond with the factor s

viewed as important within the mainstream HRM literature The third concerned

the re la t ionsh ip between HRM and per for mance In the event the s tudy

yie lded severa l key f ind ings

How extensively has HRM been adopted in thehotel industry

Concerning the extent to which HRM techniques have been adopted within the hotel

industry the debate has typically been characterised by a paradox From a theoretical

perspective Lewis (1987) Nightingale (1985) Haywood (1983) Mattsson (1994) and

Nailon (1989) have all argued for some time that as service quality becomes increasingly

critical to competitive success so does the need to provide staff with the skills and the

Conclusion 145

motivation to be able to deliver an empowered high quality professional service However

much of the empirical literature suggests a lack of interest in HRM in the industry and a

greater emphasis on tight control over costs (see for example Guerrier and Lockwood

1989a Hales 1987 Lockwood and Guerrier 1989 Lucas 1995 1996 Price 1994)

Only recently have empir ical investigations begun to demonstrate a higher

deg ree of the usage of techniques as soc ia ted with HRM with in the hote l

industry (see for example Anastassova and Purcel l 1995 Buic k and Muthu

1997 Harr ington and Akehur st 1996 and Watson and DrsquoAnnunzio-Green

1996) Suppor t ing the conclus ions reac hed in these s tudies the resul t s

with in Chapter 3 demonstrate a h igh repor ted usage of HRM pract ices

par t icu lar ly in re la t ion to recr u i tment and se lect ion tec hniques t ra in ing

job des ign and communicat ion and consul ta t ion The fo l low-up inter v iews

in Chapter 5 suggest that there i s genuine substance behind the repor ted

usage of HRM

The resu l t s here therefore suggest that theory and pract ice may not

be as d ivergent as prev ious ly be l ieved The tec hniques widely ta lked up

with in the mainstream HRM l i terature as lsquobest pract icersquo for example the

use of sophist icated select ion tests for a l l g rades of staf f the use of regular

perfor mance appraisals the development of career paths the empower ment

of lower leve l s o f s ta f f and the introduct ion of funct iona l f lex ib i l i ty are

now being utilised within the hotel industry at least within larger establishments

on a prev ious ly unac-knowledged sca le In addi t ion the resul t s suggest

that HR issues are accorded a high degree of impor tance within the industry

not least ref lected by the high propor t ion of hotels repor t ing the existence

of miss ion s tatements wi th an expl ic i t re ference to HR i s sues Indeed

miss ion s tatements with a spec i f ic reference to human resources are found

in over 61 per cent of the establ i shments within the hotel industry sample

compared with only 38 per cent of the establishments within the manufacturing

sample Moreover HRM is more l ike ly to be v iewed as a sen ior uni t level

management s trateg ic concer n with in the hote l industry with 76 per cent

of hotel industry establishments having a formal HR strategy actively supported

and for mal ly endor sed by senior management at the s i te in compar i son

with only 52 per cent of manufactur ing industry es tabl i shments When set

in context with the conclusions reached by Guerr ier and Lockwood (1989a)

Hales (1987) Loc kwood and Guer r ier (1989) Lucas (1995 1996) and

Pr ice (1994) these f ind ings re f lect the debate that has emerged in recent

t imes concer ning the extent to which more sophis t icated approac hes to

HRM have been adopted with in the industry

Why might the conclusions drawn from Chapter 3 be so different from

those achieved within many of the earlier analyses Fir stly it could be due

to the fact that the analysis here focuses on larger hotels Rather than looking

at a random sample of establishments across the industry as a whole the 1995

Survey of Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry focuses on hotels

with at least 65 rooms As is well documented the industry is dominated by

small businesses Assuming that HRM will be considered an irrelevance within

very small establishments a random sample of hotels may well yield a lower

level of adoption of techniques associated with an HRM approach than would

a random sample of manufactur ing establishments within which the average

establishment size will be considerably higher However there is no point in

looking for HRM where it is unlikely to be of relevance or unlikely to contribute

to effectiveness It may therefore be the case that across the industry as a

whole interest in HRM is lower than elsewhere However in hotels of the

size within which HRM would be expected to have a role usage is just as

high if not higher than within manufactur ing sector s

The di f ference between the conclus ions reac hed within this analys is and

those reac hed with in ear l ier ana lyses could a l so resu l t f rom methodology

The ana lys i s presented here i s comparat ive in nature Pret ty wel l a l l the

previous analyses of HRM in the hotel industry have examined the industry

in i so la t ion and have in fer red f rom the resul t s ac h ieved that the industry

i s bac kward and unstrateg ic in ter ms of the extent to whic h HRM has

been adopted However there seems to be an impl ic i t a s sumpt ion with in

much of what is written on the hotel industry that sophist icated approaches

are the norm within industr ies elsewheremdashan assumption that i s very much

subject to debate When direct ly compar ing the usage of HRM in the hotel

industry with manufactur ing there i s nothing to suggest the hotel industry

to be more backward or undeveloped in ter ms of the level of sophist icat ion

of the HRM techniques that have been adopted

Thirdly the results achieved within Chapter 3 could be explained by the

fact that respondents to the questionnaire have misinterpreted the nature of

the HRM practices asked about are fail ing to apply the techniques in the

spir it intended or have simply applied the discour se or rhetor ic of HRM to

existing practice However the follow-up interviews repor ted within Chapter

5 suggest that there is considerable substance behind the discour se of HRM

within the industry In the hotels visited the HRM techniques the hotels claimed

to operate within their sur vey responses were found for the most par t to

be in place and to be operating in the expected manner The only exception

Conclusion 147

to the rule related to single status which most of the hotels claimed to practice

but in the event did not Never theless the HRM practices in operation in

the hotels within the follow-up inter view programmes were well developed

with five of the six hotels visited having achieved Investors in People accreditation

The follow-up interviews therefore provided further support for the conclusion

reached within Chapter three concerning the extent to which there has been

exper imentation with sophisticated approaches to HRM

The conclusions reached within this analysis suggest therefore that there

has been genuine change within the hotel industry in recent year s Many of

the analyses suggesting HRM in the hotel industry to be backward or unstrategic

date bac k to the 1980s whereas some of the more recent accounts are more

posit ive in their conclusions The evidence that HRM in the hotel industry

is nowadays more sophisticated than before is therefore beg inning to mount

suggest ing that earl ier analyses demonstrat ing the industry to be backward

should now be viewed as somewhat dated a t least where larger hotels are

concerned Therefore the f ir st test of the appl icabi l i ty of HRM within the

hotel industry concer ning the extent to whic h tec hniques associated with

an HRM approach have been adopted has yielded posit ive results

Influences on HRMmdashis the hotel industry reallylsquodifferentrsquo

The second test of the applicability of HRM in the hotel industry concerned the factors that

might influence the approach taken to HRM Debates surround a range of potential

influences on management decision-making within the mainstream HRM theory These

include the impact of product markets the ability of management to implement change

workforce resistance to change establishment size the nature of trade unionism and foreign

ownership It is commonly argued however that managers within the hotel industry are

subjected to a further set of influences rendering the industry lsquodifferentrsquo in many respects

Because of these differences it has often been argued that management principles developed

outside of the hotel industry are inapplicable or inappropriate

However as demonstrated within Chapter 2 there is considerable common

g round between the in f luences on management dec i s ion-making seen as

impor tant with in the hote l industry l i terature and the in f luences seen as

impor tant with in the mainstream HRM l i terature For example both set s

of l i terature at tac h an extremely h igh leve l o f impor tance to the impact

of product markets workforce res i s tance to c hange management ab i l i ty

to handle change effectively national owner ship and the nature and influence

of the personnel depar tment The only potential influences on HRM discussed

exclusively within the hotel industry l iterature concern workforce instability

(in par ticular labour turnover) and the instabil ity and seasonality of demand

to be found with in the hote l industr y

Moreover not only are very few of the potential influences on management

decision-making discussed within the hotel industry literature genuinely unique

to the industry but those inf luences as demonstrated within the empir ical

analysis within Chapter 4 do not seem to have much of an impact in relation

to HRM decision-making Looking at instability of demand Haywood (1983)

Walsh (1991) and Guerr ier and Lockwood (1989c) argue that both dai ly

and seasonal demand f luctuat ions result in the need for large numbers of

casual and par t-t ime worker s I t i s true that hotels wil l a lways need par t-

time worker s to handle daily peaks for example to work on breakfast shifts

However seasonal and weekly f luctuat ions are less of an issue within the

hotels of the type being looked at within this analysis This is for two reasons

Fir st ly mult i-ski l l ing whic h was emphasised in several of the hotels vis i ted

within the fol low-up inter view programme enables staf f to move around

the hotel as the workload requires This eases the pressure created by fluctuating

headcount requirements in di f ferent par ts of the hotel Secondly seasonal

f luctuat ions do not seem to be an issue for many of the hotels within the

sample Only 764 per cent described their demand as seasonal and unpredictable

Half of the hotels stated that the demand for their ser vices did not vary

throughout the year The seasonal i ty that might prove inf luentia l where a

small seas ide hol iday hotel i s concer ned is of l i t t le s ignif icance within the

type of hotel under invest igat ion within this sample

In addition daily fluctuations in demand do not seem to have much of an

impact on the approach taken to HRM There was no suppor t within Chapter

3 for the hypothesis that there will be a negative correlation between the

proportion of part-time labour used and the likelihood of HRM being practised

Part-time workers may therefore not necessarily be viewed as per ipheral within

the industry If this is the case the careful recruitment appraising training

and the provision of career oppor tunities will be just as impor tant for par t-

time staff as for full-time staff Alternatively it may be the case that HRM is

applied to core workers irrespective of the propor tion of par t-time worker s

employed Either way instabil ity of demand does not seem to have a major

impact on the approach to HRM adopted within hotels of this nature

I t would a l so seem to be the case that l abour tur nover the other factor

seen with in the l i terature as render ing the hote l industry lsquouniquersquo has

l i t t le impact on the approach taken to HRM Never the less th i s does not

Conclusion 149

mean that turnover can be d i scounted in ter ms of HRM pol icy Nai lon

(1989) argues that the introduct ion of pol ic ies re ly ing on shared va lues

wil l be problematic where employment stabi l i tymdashnecessary i f shared values

are to developmdashis lack ing Whi le th i s i s a va l id point i t i s too s impl i s t ic

to suggest that where tur nover i s h igh the adopt ion of HRM wi l l be low

For example the impact o f l abour tur nover on HRM wi l l var y depending

upon the areas o f the hote l that are exper ienc ing h igh leve l s o f tur nover

One respondent with in the fo l low-up inter v iew prog ramme argued that

high tur nover would be a problem i f i t took place amongst front l ine s ta f f

as this would impact on the introduction of the lsquoempowermentrsquo programme

However a s most o f the hote l rsquo s tur nover took p lace in housekeeping and

in the k i tc hen areas i t was not seen as problemat ic Labour tur nover may

therefore be v iewed as les s o f a concer n i f i t t akes p lace with in pos i t ions

to whic h in i t i at ives suc h as lsquoempower mentrsquo do not apply

Fur thermore the follow-up interviews suggest that turnover is not viewed

as an endemic inst i tut ional i sed lsquo fact of l i fe rsquo that better management wi l l

do l i t t le to curemdasha point o f ten made to argue that the hote l industr y i s

lsquod i f ferentrsquo There i s a genera l be l ie f that i t i s poss ible to reduce labour

tur nover v ia the introduct ion of HRM tec hniques but that tur nover wi l l

a lways be h igher than e l sewhere because of the h igh propor t ion of fore ign

and young worker s with in the industry

The inf luences seen as unique to the hotel industry therefore have l i t t le

impact on management dec i s ion-making in re lat ion to HRM By contras t

the major in f luences on HRM seem to be those d i scussed with in both the

hote l industry l i terature and with in the mainstream l i terature As suc h

there i s no ev idence to suppor t the hypothes i s that hote l s are in any way

lsquouniquersquo and it would appear that the key influences on management decision-

making in re lat ion to HRM in the hote l industry are jus t the same as the

inf luences on management dec i s ion-making e l sewhere

One of the most impor tant of these in f luences appear s to be the nature

of the product market on which there i s a deg ree of d i sag reement with in

the industry Haywood (1983) Night ingale (1985) and Lewis (1987) argue

that e f fect iveness with in hote l s increas ing ly res t s on the sa t i s fact ion of

evolv ing customer expectat ions Conver se ly Shamir (1978) and Lar mour

(1983) argue that the market d ictates a need for a t ight control over costs

and pr ice competition Robinson and Wallace (1984) suggest that this position

i s re f lected by the h igh usage of temporar y worker s across the industry

as a whole The resu l t s ac h ieved with in th i s ana lys i s suppor t the for mer

of these propos i t ions Jus t under ha l f o f the sample express ly s tate that

the key to the ir compet i t ive s trategy i s the provi s ion of a h igh qua l i ty

ser v ice compared with only 23 per cent who emphas i se the impor tance

of cost control or pr ice factor s Of the remain ing hote l s both with in the

qua l i tat ive and the quant i tat ive ana lyses the hote l s c la s s i f ied as lsquootherrsquo

would seem to be more akin to the quality enhancer s than the cost reducers

I f th i s i s the case and these hotels are added to those expl ic i t ly speci fy ing

the impor tance of quality enhancement the implication is that approximately

77 per cent o f the hote l s with in the sample have ident i f ied the need for

ser v ice qua l i ty a s the key to compet i t ive advantage

What of the impact of business strategy on the approach taken to HRM

Schuler and Jackson (1987) within the HRM literature and also Jones (1983)

Lefever and Reich (1991) and Wycott (1984) within the hotel industry literature

argue that where an establishment emphasises the importance of service quality

within its business strategy it is also l ikely to view an HRM approach aimed

at the generation of staff commitment to ser vice quality goals as impor tant

This argument is suppor ted by the analysis in Chapter 4 Hotels specifying

quality enhancement to be the key to competitive strategy are indeed more

likely to have adopted HRM than are hotels emphasising cost reduction The

results therefore demonstrate that the nature of the product market which

is seen as highly influential in determining the approach taken to HRM within

the mainstream literature is also highly influential within the hotel industry

Also impor tant i s nat iona l owner sh ip Lucas and Laycock (1991) and

Pr ice (1994) f ind foreign-owned hotels to have adopted more sophist icated

approaches to HRM The results within Chapter 4 corroborate this argument

Other factor s d i scussed as potent ia l ly impor tant with in both the hote l

industry l i terature and in the mainstream HRM l i terature have a somewhat

more ambiguous impact Fir stly looking at manager ial capacity for strateg ic

decision-making and in particular the strategic impact of personnel departments

the resu l t s in Chapter s 3 and 4 suggest that per sonnel depar tments are

no more poor ly resourced than per sonnel depar tments in other sector s

of the economy Per sonnel spec ia l i s t s are jus t a s l ikely to be in ev idence

they are jus t a s wel l qua l i f ied and are jus t a s l ike ly to have access to

suppor t s ta f f a s are per sonnel spec ia l i s t s in other industr ies

These f indings suppor t conclusions reached by Lucas (1995 1996) and

Pr ice (1994) However there is l i t t le evidence within Chapter 4 to suggest

that unit-level personnel are responsible for the introduction of a more sophisticated

approach to HRM This i s consistent with the f inding that hotels that are

Conclusion 151

par t of a chain are more l ikely to have adopted HRM It seems that HRM

policy init iat ives have been introduced top-down in many instances

This i s not to suggest that unit- level per sonnel depar tments completely

lack any s trateg ic input The fo l low-up inter v iews suggest that un i t - level

personnel departments are responsible for tailoring top-down policy initiatives

to the loca l s i tuat ion Also d i s seminat ion of lsquobes t pract icersquo developed at

uni t - leve l i s f ac i l i t a ted by regular meet ings between uni t - leve l per sonnel

managers However it would also seem that unit level per sonnel depar tments

are responsible for the day-to-day recruitment and selection needs generated

by h igh leve l s o f l abour tur nover Where l abour tur nover i s h igh i t i s

more l ikely that the hote l wi l l have a per sonnel spec ia l i s t

Workforce resistance to change another potential influence on the approach

taken to HRM discussed with in both the HRM and the hote l l i terature

a l so seems to have l i t t le impact The resul ts with in Chapter 4 demonstrate

workforce resistance to technical change to be minimal Many of the technical

changes introduced with in the hote l s in the fo l low-up sur veys concer ned

computerisation Staff have tended to be positive about such changes appreciating

the oppor tuni ty to lear n new sk i l l s Suppor t amongst the workforce for

the introduction of functional flexibility as noted by Guerr ier and Lockwood

(1989c) was a l so ident i f ied with in the fo l low-up inter v iews conducted

here Severa l inter viewees suggested that operat ives apprec iate the chance

to broaden the ir range of sk i l l s and to be able to per for m a wider range

of functions within their everyday job roles Organisational change frequently

involving delayer ing and an increase in responsibi l i ty for management met

with higher resistance than technical change in par ticular from the manager s

whose job ro les were a f fected s ign i f icant ly

Tur ning to es tabl i shment s i ze i t i s commonly argued that the hote l

industry is dominated by small establishments within which HRM is irrelevant

with in for mal f ace- to- face inter per sona l communicat ion tak ing the p lace

of for mal pract ices (Pr ice 1994) I t may wel l be the case that with in suc h

smal l hote l s HRM is i r re levant This ana lys i s however says noth ing on

these es tabl i shments a s the 1995 Sur vey of Human Resource Management

in the Hote l Industry only looks at hote l s with more than 25 employees

However the resul ts do suggest that in hotels with 25 or more employees

there is no l inear correlat ion between hotel s ize and the l ikel ihood of HRM

having been adopted It i s not the case therefore that HRM is only practised

in the largest hotels within the sample Given that the smal lest s ize dummy

used with in the ana lys i s was for es tab l i shments with between 25 and 49

employees i t would seem that i f there i s a min imum s ize threshold be low

whic h HRM becomes i r re levant that s i ze threshold i s qu i te low

Looking at unionisation the results here suggest that the weak unionisation

in ex i s tence wi th in the indus t r y ha s l i t t l e or no impac t on management

pre rogat i ve though whether manager s c hoose to u se tha t pre rogat i ve to

introduce HRM or to unilaterally impose practices aimed at labour intensification

or cos t cu t t ing i s a d i f f e ren t mat ter Wi th in the fo l low-up in ter v iew

programme the inter viewees within the lsquoHRMrsquo hotels stressed the impor tance

of non-unionism in ter ms of being free to exper iment and innovate Within

the lsquonon-HRM cos t reducer rsquo however the l a c k o f a un ion had enabled

the un i l a tera l in t roduct ion o f cos t -cut t ing measures dur ing the reces s ion

o f the ear ly 1990s

F i n a l l y t h e r e i s n o e v i d e n c e t o s u g g e s t t h a t w h e r e h o t e l s a r e

p a r t o f a d i v e r s i f i e d c o n g l o m e r a t e b u s i n e s s t h e y a r e l e s s l i k e l y t o

h a v e a d o p t e d H R M t h a n a r e h o t e l s t h a t a r e p a r t o f s i n g l e r e l a t e d

or dominant bus ines se s There i s there fore no suppor t for the hypothes i s

pre sen ted by Purce l l (1989) and K i rkpat r i c k Dav ie s and Ol iver (1992)

O ve r a l l t h i s a n a ly s i s s u g g e s t s t h a t t h e s t ro n g e s t i n f l u e n c e s o n H R M

d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g i n t h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y re l a t e t o p r o d u c t m a r ke t s a n d

t o ow n e r s h i p T h e s e i n f l u e n c e s a r e re c o g n i s e d a s i m p o r t a n t w i t h i n t h e

m a i n s t r e a m H R M l i t e r a t u r e a l s o B y c o n t r a s t t h e i n f l u e n c e s t h a t a r e

o f t e n s e e n a s m a k i n g t h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y lsquo u n i q u e rsquo mdash d a i l y a n d s e a s o n a l

d e m a n d f l u c t u a t i o n s a n d h i g h l a b o u r t u r nove r mdash h av e n o i m p a c t T h e r e

i s n o e v i d e n c e t h e r e f o r e t h a t t h e i n f l u e n c e s o n m a n a g e m e n t d e c i s i o n -

m a k i n g i n t h e h o t e l i n d u s t r y a re a n y d i f f e r e n t f r o m t h e i n f l u e n c e s o n

m a n a g e m e n t d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g e l s ew h e re A s s u c h t h e re a re n o g ro u n d s

t o a r g u e t h a t t h e i n d u s t r y i s i n a ny w ay lsquo d i f f e r e n t rsquo o r t h a t t h e o r y

developed with in the mainstream management l i terature should be v iewed

a s i n a p p l i c a b l e

HRM and performance

The final test of the relevance of HRM within the hotel industry concerned the

relationship between HRM and performance The results in Chapter 6 suggest that the

better performing hotels are indeed those that have adopted a quality enhancer

approach to business strategy coupled with HRM Those that have introduced their

HRM practices in a strategic manner as part of a package of practices consciously

integrated and supportive of each other are performing even better Looking at hotels

Conclusion 153

emphasising cost reduction there is no relationship between the adoption of HRM and

performance whatsoever

W h i l e m a ny s t u d i e s h ave d e m o n s t r a t e d a re l a t i o n s h i p b e t we e n H R M

and per for mance ( for example Ar thur 1994 Delaney and Huse l id 1996

Huse l id 1995) f ewer have been able to e s t abl i sh a re l at ionsh ip be tween

HRM per fo r mance and the approac h t aken to bu s ine s s s t r a t egy de sp i t e

what Husel id (1995) descr ibes as lsquocompel l ing argumentsrsquo that HRM should

on ly prove e f f ec t ive in cer t a in c i rcumstances Th i s ana ly s i s demons t rate s

s u p p o r t f o r t h i s s o f a r e l u s i ve ye t lsquo c o m p e l l i n g rsquo l i n k a g e b e t we e n H R M

b u s i n e s s s t r a t e g y a n d p e r f o r m a n c e A s s u c h t h e s e re s u l t s re p re s e n t a

considerable advance on previous work examining the HRM and performance

r e l at i o n s h i p

Given that the hote ls whic h e i ther cont inue to focus on cost reduct ion

or fa i l to rea l i se the potent ia l o f a coherent pac kage of HRM pract ices

would seem to lose out in terms of organisat ional perfor mance the results

with in Chapter 6 a l so have prescr ipt ive impl icat ions A fa i r propor t ion

of the hotels within the sample seem to have already realised this Approximately

46 per cent spec i fy qua l i ty enhancement as be ing the key to compet i t ive

strategy and of these approximately 55 per cent have adopted an approach

to HRM congruent with their business strategy Never theless the fact remains

that 23 per cent of the hotels within the sample are focusing on cost reduction

or price competition and a further 21 per cent have specified quality enhancement

to be the key to compet i t ive success yet are not pur su ing an ident i f i ab le

HRM approac h The prescr ipt ive impl icat ion i s that these hote l s should

consider a reappraisal of the pr ior it ies within both their business strateg ies

and their HRM strateg ies and cons ider the adopt ion of a bus iness s trategy

that focuses on h igh ser v ice qua l i ty coupled with a coherent mutua l ly

suppor t ing pac kage of HRM pract ices

Once aga in however the embr yon ic na ture o f the se re su l t s shou ld

be emphas i sed no t to ment ion the f ac t that they a re c ros s - sec t iona l and

there fore not neces s a r i ly c ausa l There i s a need for fur ther empir i c a l

analysis testing in greater depth the relationship between HRM and performance

in the hote l i ndus t ry idea l ly u s ing long i tud ina l da t a I f fu r ther s tud ie s

can demonstra te l inkages between HRM and per for mance s imi lar to those

found here considerable weight wil l be added to the prescr ipt ive argument

tha t ho te l s shou ld be encouraged to a s t r ateg i ca l ly in teg ra ted pac kage

o f HRM prac t i ce s coup led wi th a qua l i t y enhancer approac h to bus ine s s

s t rategy

A re-focusing of hotel industry research

The results presented within this book would suggest that the theoretical propositions

relating to HRMmdashas developed within the mainstream HRM literature mdashare applicable

within the hotel industry The hotels within the sample have adopted a wide range of HRM

techniques and are subject to a similar set of influences in relation to HRM decision-making

as are establishments elsewhere HRM would also seem to contribute to performance within

the industry This is good news for researchers whose primary interest lies within the hotel

industry itself as it would seem that the HRM theory discussed in Chapter 1 provides a

sound theoretical framework within which future hotel industry empirical analysis can be

located In addition it is good news for HRM as a theory in that the analysis presented here

demonstrates the predictions and underlying assumptions within HRM theory to be relevant

within a service-related context

The resu l t s a l so suggest that hote l s o f the nature under invest igat ion

within this analysis may no longer be deserving of their image as lsquobad employersrsquo

The ana lys i s shows that a h igh propor t ion of hote l s with in the UK many

of whic h have Investor s in People accredi ta t ion and have wel l -developed

per sonnel depar tments are making e f for t s to develop the ir s ta f f t ra in ing

them in the sk i l l s necessar y to provide a h igh qual i ty profess ional ser v ice

Inevitably as in al l industr ies there wil l a lso be examples of poor practice

Never theless i t i s perhaps t ime researc her s s topped highl ight ing examples

of lsquobad managementrsquo and branding the industry as under-developed or

bac kward and star ted ident i fy ing approac hes to hotel management capable

of generating high perfor mance I f researcher s can indeed identify examples

of perfor mance-enhancing best pract ice encourage their disseminat ion and

ass i s t in the ir implementat ion they wi l l be in a pos i t ion to make a f ar

greater contr ibution towards the achievement of competit ive success within

the industry

Bibliography

Anastassova L and Purcell K (1995) lsquoHuman resource management in the Bulgarian hotel

industry from command to empowermentrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management

14 2 171ndash85Armistead C (ed) (1994) The Future of Services Management London Kogan PageArmstrong P (1989) lsquoLimits and possibilities for HRM in an age of management accountancyrsquo

in JStorey (ed) New Perspectives on Human Resource Management London RoutledgeArthur J (1994) lsquoEffects of human resource systems on manufacturing performance and

turnoverrsquo Academy of Management Journal 37 3 670ndash87Atkinson J (1984) lsquoManpower strategies for flexible organisationsrsquo Personnel Management 16 8

28ndash31Automobile Association (1994) The Hotel Guide 1995 Basingstoke AA PublishingBeaumont P (1992) lsquoThe US human resource management literature a reviewrsquo in GSalaman

(ed) Human Resource Strategies London SageBeaumont P (1993) Human Resource Management Key Concepts and Skills London SageBeaumont P Cressey P and Jakobsen P (1990) lsquoSome key industrial relations features of West

German subsidiaries in Britainrsquo Employee Relations 12 6 3ndash8Becker B and Gerhart B (1996) lsquoThe impact of human resource management on

organisational performance progress and prospectsrsquo Academy of Management Journal 39 4779ndash801

Beer M Spector B Lawrence P Quinn Mills D and Walton R (1984) Managing Human

Assets New York Free PressBeer M Spector B Lawrence P Quinn Mills D and Walton R (1985) Human Resource

Management A General Managerrsquos Perspective Glencoe IL Free PressBlyton P and Turnbull P (1992) lsquoHuman resource management debates dilemmas and

contradictionsrsquo in PBlyton and PTurnbull (eds) Reassessing Human Resource Management

London SageBlyton P and Turnbull P (eds) (1992) Reassessing Human Resource Management London

Boella M (1986) lsquoA review of personnel management in the private sector of theBritish hospitality industryrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 5 129ndash 36

Boxall P and Dowling P (1990) lsquoHuman resource management and the industrialrelations traditionrsquo Labour and Industry 3 195ndash214

Buick I and Muthu G (1997) lsquoAn investigation of the current practices of in-houseemployee training and development within hotels in Scotlandrsquo Service Industries Journal

17 4 652ndash68Callan RJ (1994) lsquoQuality assurance certification for hospitality marketing sales and

customer servicesrsquo Service Industries Journal 14 4 482ndash98Capelli P and McKersie R (1987) lsquoManagement strategy and the redesign of work rulesrsquo

Journal of Management Studies 24 5 441ndash62Commission on Industrial Relations (1971) The Hotel and Catering Industry Part I Hotels and

Restaurants London HMSODaly A Hitchens D and Wagner K (1985) lsquoProductivity machinery and skills in a sample

of British and German manufacturing plantsrsquo National Institute Economic Review February48ndash61

Daniel WW (1987) Workplace Industrial Relations and Technical Change London FrancesPinter

Delaney J and Huselid M (1996) lsquoThe impact of human resource management onperceptions of organisational performancersquo Academy of Management Journal 39 4 949ndash69

Denvir A and McMahon F (1992) lsquoLabour turnover in London hotels and the costeffectiveness of preventative measuresrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management

11 2 143ndash54Department of National Heritage (1996) lsquoPeople working in tourism and hospitalityrsquo

Tourism Competing With the Best Part 3Drenth P Koopman P and Wilpert B (eds) (1996) Organisational Decision-Making Under

Different Economic and Political Conditions Amsterdam Royal Dutch AcademyEvans P and Lorange P (1989) lsquoTwo logics behind human resource managementrsquo in P

Evans YDoz and ALaurent (eds) Human Resource Management in International Firms

Basingstoke MacmillanFernie S and Metcalf D (1995) lsquoParticipation contingent pay representation and

workplace performancersquo British Journal of Industrial Relations 33 3 379ndash415Finegold D and Soskice D (1988) lsquoThe failure of training in Britain analysis and

prescriptionrsquo Oxford Review of Economic Policy 4 3 21ndash53Gabriel Y (1988) Working Lives in Catering London Routledge and Kegan PaulGilbert D and Guerrier Y (1997) lsquoUK hospitality managers past and presentrsquo Service

Industries Journal 17 1 115ndash32Guerrier Y and Lockwood A (1989a) lsquoDeveloping hotel managers a reappraisalrsquo

International Journal of Hospitality Management 8 2 82ndash8

Bibliography 157

Guerrier Y and Lockwood A (1989b) lsquoCore and peripheral employees in hotel operationsrsquoPersonnel Review 18 1 9ndash15

Guerrier Y and Lockwood A (1989c) lsquoManaging flexible working in hotelsrsquo Service Industries

Journal 9 3 406ndash19Guest D (1987) lsquoHuman resource management and industrial relationsrsquo Journal of Management

Studies 24 5 503ndash21Guest D (1989) lsquoHRM its implications for industrial relations and trade unionsrsquo in JStorey

(ed) New Perspectives on Human Resource Management London RoutledgeGuest D (1995) lsquoHuman resource management trade unions and industrial relationsrsquo in

JStorey (ed) Human Resource Management A Critical Text London RoutledgeGuest D (1996) lsquoThe influence of national ownership on the nature and effectiveness of

human resource management in UK greenfield establishments the peculiar case ofGermanyrsquo in PDrenth PKoopman and BWilpert (eds) Organisational Decision Making

Under Different Economic and Political Conditions Amsterdam Royal Dutch AcademyGuest D (1997) lsquoHuman resource management a review and research agendarsquo International

Journal of Human Resource Management 8 3 263ndash76Guest D and Dewe P (1991) lsquoCompany or trade union which wins workersrsquo allegiancersquo

British Journal of Industrial Relations 29 1 75ndash96Guest D and Hoque K (1993) Are Greenfield Sites Better at HRM CEP Working Paper No

435 London LSEGuest D and Hoque K (1994a) lsquoAn assessment and further analysis of the 1990 Workplace

Industrial Relations Surveyrsquo in DGuest STyson NDoherty KHoque and CViney The

Contribution of Personnel Management to Organisational Performance moving the debate on Issuesin Personnel Management No 9 London IPD

Guest D and Hoque K (1994b) lsquoThe good the bad and the ugly employee relations innew non-union workplacesrsquo Human Resource Management Journal 5 1 1ndash14

Guest D and Hoque K (1994c) Human Resource Management in Greenfield Sites Preliminary

Survey Results CEP Working Paper No 530 London LSEGuest D and Hoque K (1996) lsquoHuman resource management and the new industrial

relationsrsquo in IBeardwell (ed) Contemporary Industrial Relations Oxford OUPGuest D and Hoque K (1996) lsquoNational ownership and HR practices in UK greenfield

sitesrsquo Human Resource Management Journal 6 4 50ndash74Hales C (1987) lsquoQuality of working life jobs redesign and participation in a service

industry a rose by any other namersquo Service Industries Journal 7 2 253ndash73Handy C (1985) Understanding Organisations Harmondsworth PenguinHarrington D and Akehurst G (1996) lsquoService quality and business performance in the

UK hotel industryrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 15 3 283ndash98Haywood K (1983) lsquoAssessing the quality of hospitality servicesrsquo International Journal of

Hospitality Management 2 4 165ndash77Hendry C and Pettigrew A (1986) lsquoThe practice of strategic human resource

managementrsquo Personnel Review 15 5 3ndash8

Hendry C and Pettigrew A (1990) lsquoHuman resource management an agenda for the1990srsquo International Journal of Human Resource Management 1 1 17ndash44

Huselid M (1995) lsquoThe impact of human resource management on turnoverproductivity and corporate financial performancersquo Academy of Management Journal 38635ndash 72

Huselid M and Becker B (1996) lsquoMethodological issues in cross-sectional and panelestimates of the human resource-firm performance linkrsquo Industrial Relations 35 3400ndash22

Hyman R (1991) lsquoPlus ca change The theory of production and the production oftheoryrsquo in APollert (ed) Farewell to Flexibility Oxford Blackwell

Ichniowski C Shaw K and Prennushi G (1994) The effects of human resource management

practices on productivity Columbia UniversityIverson R and Deery M (1997) lsquoTurnover culture in the hospitality industryrsquo Human

Resource Management Journal 7 4 71ndash82Johns N (1992) lsquoQuality management in the hospitality industry part 2 Applications

systems and techniquesrsquo International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management

4 4 3ndash7Johnson K (1985) lsquoLabour turnover in hotelsmdashrevisitedrsquo Service Industries Journal 5 2

135ndash52Jones P (1983) lsquoThe restaurantmdasha place for quality control and product maintenancersquo

International Journal of Hospitality Management 2 2 93ndash100Jones P and Davies A (1991) lsquoEmpowerment a study of general managers in fourstar

hotel properties in the UKrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 10 3 211ndash17

Kane J (1986) lsquoParticipative management as a key to hospitality excellencersquo International

Journal of Hospitality Management 5 3 149ndash51Keenoy T (1990) lsquoHRM a case of the wolf in sheeprsquos clothingrsquo Personnel Review 19 2 3ndash

9Keep E (1989) lsquoA training scandalrsquo in KSisson (ed) Personnel Management in Britain

Oxford BlackwellKelliher C and Johnson K (1987) lsquoPersonnel management in hotelsmdashsome empirical

observationsrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 6 2 103ndash8Kelliher C and Johnson K (1997) lsquoPersonnel management in hotelsmdashan updatersquo

Progress in Tourism and Hospitality Research 3 4 321ndash31King C (1984) lsquoService-oriented quality controlrsquo Cornell Hotel and Restaurant

Administration Quarterly February 92Kirkpatrick I Davies A and Oliver N (1992) lsquoDecentralisation friend or foe of human

resource managementrsquo in PBlyton and PTurnbull (eds) Reassessing Human Resource

Management London SageKnights D and Wilmott H (eds) (1989) Labour Process Theory London Macmillan

Bibliography 159

Knox S and Thompson K (1994) lsquoGrocery retailing in the single European market mdashdevelopments in structure strategy and sharersquo in CArmistead (ed) The Future of

Services Management London Kogan PageKochan T and Barocci T (1985) Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations Text

Readings and Cases Boston Little BrownKochan T and Dyer L (1992) Managing transformational change the role of human resource

professionals Working Paper Alfred PSloan School of Management Cambridge MAMIT

Kokko T and Moilanen T (1997) lsquoPersonalisation of services as a tool for moredeveloped buyermdashseller interactionsrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management

16 3 297ndash304Larmour R (1983) lsquoSome problems faced by managers in the hotel and catering

industryrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 2 2 89ndash92Lashley C (1995) lsquoTowards an understanding of employee empowerment in hospitality

servicesrsquo International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 7 1 27ndash32Lashley C (1996) lsquoResearch issues for employee empowerment in hospitality

organisationsrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 15 4 333ndash46Lefever M and Reich A (1991) lsquoShared values no longer dirty words in company

successrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 10 4 307ndash12Legge K (1995) Human Resource Management Rhetorics and Realities London MacmillanLewis R (1987) lsquoThe measurement of gaps in the quality of hotel servicesrsquo

International Journal of Hospitality Management 6 2 83ndash8Littler C (1989) lsquoThe labour process debate a theoretical review 1974ndash84rsquo in D

Knights and HWilmott (eds) Labour Process Theory London MacmillanLockwood A and Guerrier Y (1989) lsquoFlexible working practices in the hospitality

industry current strategies and future potentialrsquo Journal of Contemporary Hospitality

Management 1 1 11ndash16Lucas R (1993) lsquoHospitality industry employment emerging trendsrsquo International

Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 5 5 23ndash6Lucas R (1995) Managing Employee Relations in the Hotel and Catering Industry London

CassellLucas R (1996) lsquoIndustrial relations in hotels and catering neglect and paradoxrsquo

British Journal of Industrial Relations 34 2 267ndash86Lucas R and Laycock J (1991) lsquoAn interactive personnel function for managing

budget hotelsrsquo International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 3 3 33ndash36

Lucas R and Wood R (1993) lsquoIntroductionrsquo Employee Relations 15 2 4ndash7Mabey C and Salaman G (1995) Strategic Human Resource Management Oxford

BlackwellMacauley I and Wood R (1992) Hard Cheese A Study of Hotel and Catering Employment

in Scotland Scottish Low Pay Unit

MacDuffie J (1995) lsquoHuman resource bundles and manufacturing performanceorganisational logic and flexible production systems in the world auto industryrsquoIndustrial and Labour Relations Review 48 2 197ndash221

Macfarlane A (1982) lsquoTrade unionism and the employer in hotels and restaurantsrsquoInternational Journal of Hospitality Management 1 1 35ndash43

Marginson P Armstrong P Edwards P and Purcell J with Hubbard N (1993) lsquoThecontrol of industrial relations in large companies an initial analysis of the secondcompany level industrial relations surveyrsquo Warwick Papers in Industrial Relations 45Warwick Industrial Relations Research Unit

Mars G and Mitchell P (1976) Room for Reform Milton Keynes Open UniversityPress

Mars G Bryant D and Mitchell P (1979) Manpower Problems in the Hotel and Catering

Industry Farnborough GowerMathe H and Perras C (1994) lsquoThe challenges of globalisation in the service

industryrsquo in CArmistead (ed) The Future of Services Management London KoganPage

Mattsson J (1994) lsquoImproving service quality in person to person encountersintegrating findings from a multidisciplinary reviewrsquo Service Industries Journal 14 145ndash 61

Miles R and Snow C (1984) lsquoDesigning strategic human resource systemsrsquoOrganisational Dynamics Summer 36ndash52

Miller D (1986) lsquoConfigurations of strategy and structures towards a synthesisrsquoStrategic Management Journal 7 233ndash49

Mills R (1986) lsquoManaging the service encounterrsquo Cornell Hotel and Restaurant

Administration Quarterly February 39ndash43Millward N Stevens M Smart D and Hawes W (1992) Workplace Industrial Relations

in Transition Aldershot DartmouthMintzberg H (1987) lsquoCrafting strategyrsquo Harvard Business Review 65 4 65ndash75Mullins L (1993) lsquoThe hotel and the open systems model of organisational analysisrsquo

Service Industries Journal 13 1 1ndash16Nailon P (1989) lsquoEditorialrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 8 2 77ndash8Nightingale M (1985) lsquoThe hospitality industry defining quality for a quality assurance

programmemdasha study of perceptionsrsquo Service Industries Journal 5 1 9ndash22Office for National Statistics (1998) Labour Market Trends NovemberOffice for National Statistics (1999) Labour Market Trends JanuaryOhlin J and West J (1994) lsquoAn analysis of the effect of fringe benefit offerings on the

turnover on hourly housekeeping workers in the hospitality industryrsquo International

Journal of Hospitality Management 12 4 323ndash36Oliver N and Wilkinson B (1989) lsquoJapanese manufacturing techniques and personnel

and industrial relations practice in Britain evidence and implicationsrsquo British Journal

of Industrial Relations 27 1 73ndash91

Bibliography 161

Oliver N and Wilkinson B (1992) The Japanisation of British Industry New Developments

in the 1990s (2nd edn) Oxford BlackwellOlsen M (1989) lsquoIssues facing multi-unit hospitality organisations in a maturing

marketrsquo Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 1 2 3ndash11Peters T and Waterman R (1982) In Search of Excellence New York Harper and RowPiore M and Sabel C (1984) The Second Industrial Divide New York Basic BooksPollert A (ed) (1991) farewell to Flexibility Oxford BlackwellPorter M (1980) Competitive Strategy Techniques for Analysing Industries and Competitors

New York Free PressPorter M (1985) Competitive Advantage Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance New

York Free PressPrais SJ Jarvis V and Wagner K (1989) lsquoProductivity and vocational skills in

services in Britain and Germany hotelsrsquo National Institute Economic Review

November 52ndash 74Price L (1994) lsquoPoor personnel practice in the hotel and catering industry does it

matterrsquo Human Resource Management Journal 4 4 44ndash62Purcell J (1989) lsquoThe impact of corporate strategy on human resource managementrsquo

in JStorey (ed) New Perspectives on Human Resource Management London RoutledgePurcell J (1991) lsquoThe rediscovery of the management prerogative the management of

labour relations in the 1980srsquo Oxford Review of Economic Policy 7 1 33ndash43Pye G (1994) lsquoCustomer service a model for empowermentrsquo International Journal of

Hospitality Management 13 1 1ndash5Quinn J (1992) Intelligent Enterprise A Knowledge and Service Based Paradigm For Industry

New York Free PressRajan A (1987) ServicesmdashThe Second Industrial Revolution London Institute of

Manpower StudiesRamsay H (1991) lsquoReinventing the wheel A review of the development and

performance of employee involvementrsquo Human Resource Management Journal 1 4 1ndash22

Riley M (1993) lsquoBack to the future lessons from the free market experiencersquo Employee

Relations 15 2 8ndash15Robinson O and Wallace J (1984) lsquoEarnings in the hotel and catering industry in

Britainrsquo Service Industries Journal 4 2 143ndash60Ross G (1995) lsquoManagement-employee divergences among hospitality industry

employee service quality idealsrsquo International Journal of Hospitality Management 14 111ndash24

Salaman G (ed) (1992) Human Resource Strategies London SageSchaffer J (1984) lsquoStrategy organisation structure and success in the lodging industryrsquo

International Journal of Hospitality Management 3 4 159ndash65Schuler R (1989) lsquoStrategic human resource management and industrial relationsrsquo

Human Relations 42 2 157ndash84

Schuler R and Jackson S (1987) lsquoLinking competitive strategies with human resourcemanagement practicesrsquo Academy of Management Executive 1 3 207ndash19

Segal-Horn S (1994) lsquoAre the services going globalrsquo in CArmistead (ed) The Future of

Services Management London Kogan PageSenior M and Morphew R (1990) lsquoCompetitive strategies in the budget hotel sectorrsquo

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 2 3 3ndash9Shamir B (1978) lsquoBetween bureaucracy and hospitalitymdashsome organisational characteristics

of hotelsrsquo Journal of Management Studies 15 3 285ndash307Shamir B (1981) lsquoThe workplace as a community the case of British hotelsrsquo Industrial

Relations Journal 12 6 45ndash56Sisson K (1993) lsquoIn search of HRMrsquo British Journal of Industrial Relations 31 2 201ndash 10Sisson K and Storey J (1990) lsquoLimits to transformation human resource management in

the British contextrsquo Industrial Relations Journal 21 1 60ndash5Steedman H and Wagner K (1987) lsquoA second look at productivity machinery and skills in

Britain and Germanyrsquo National Institute Economic Review November 84ndash 95Storey J (ed) (1989) New Perspectives on Human Resource Management London RoutledgeStorey J (1992) Developments in the Management of Human Resources Oxford BlackwellStorey J (ed) (1995) Human Resource Management A Critical Text London RoutledgeTeare R (1996) lsquoHospitality operations patterns in management service improvement and

business performancersquo International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 8 763ndash74

Teare R and Brotherton B (1991) lsquoAssessing human resource needs and prioritiesrsquoInternational Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 2 2 5ndash7

Tichy N Fombrun C and Devanna M (1982) lsquoStrategic human resource managementrsquoSloan Management Review 11 3 47ndash61

Trades Union Congress (1994) Human Resource Management A Trade Union Response LondonTUC

Trevor M and White M (1983) Under Japanese Management London HeinemannWalsh T (1991) lsquoldquoFlexiblerdquo employment in the retail and hotel tradesrsquo in APollert (ed)

Farewell to Flexibility Oxford BlackwellWalton R (1985) lsquoFrom control to commitment in the workplacersquo Harvard Business Review

63 March-April 76ndash84Watson S and DrsquoAnnunzio-Green N (1996) lsquoImplementing cultural change through

human resources the elusive organisational alchemyrsquo International Journal of

Contemporary Hospitality Management 8 2 25ndash30Whipp R (1992) lsquoHuman resource management competition and strategy some

productive tensionsrsquo in PBlyton and PTurnbull (eds) Reassessing Human Resource

Management London SageWhittington R (1993) What is Strategy and Does it Matter London RoutledgeWhyte W (1948) Human Relations in the Restaurant Industry New York McGraw-HillWickens P (1987) The Road to Nissan Flexibility Quality Teamwork Basingstoke Macmillan

Bibliography 163

Wood R (1992) Working in Hotels and Catering London RoutledgeWood R and Macauley I (1989) lsquoR for turnover retention programs that workrsquo The

Cornell Hotel Restaurant Administration Quarterly 30 1 79ndash90Wood S (1996) lsquoHow different are human resource practices in Japanese ldquotransplantsrdquo in

the UKrsquo Industrial Relations 35 4 511ndash25Wood S and Albanese M (1995) lsquoCan we speak of a high commitment management on

the shop floorrsquo Journal of Management Studies 32 2 215ndash47Wood S and de Menezes L (1998) lsquoHigh commitment management in the UK evidence

from the Workplace Industrial Relations Survey and Employersrsquo Manpower and SkillsPractices Surveyrsquo Human Relations 51 4 485ndash515

Wycott D (1984) lsquoNew tools for service qualityrsquo Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration

Quarterly November 78ndash91

ACAS 25accounts department 105ndash6Akehurst G 25 48 49 63 145Albanese MT 51 57 69 70 124Anastassova L 25 48 49 63 145appraisal systems 25 61 97 100 101

106 108 113 115apprenticeships see management

developmentArmistead C 4Armstrong P 15 20 35Arthur J 21 69 124 152Atkinson J 24attitude surveys 60 106 113Automobile Association 53 54 80 BS5750 30back office staff 48Barocci T 12 26 59 125Beaumont P 6 7 14 16 17 19 74

76Becker B 7 125 141Beer M 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 17

18 20 30 31 46 51 59 69 74Blyton P 7Boella M 35 77Boxall P 10breakfast shifts 148Brotherton B 48Bryant D 39 42 73Buick I 25 48 49 63 66 145

business strategy ambiguous approaches79 95 107ndash8 111 114ndash15 129141ndash2 150 changing nature of 46ndash7in the hotel industry 27ndash35 46 6878ndash80 89ndash91 93 94 147 andsituational contingency models ofHRM 26ndash7 46 59 see also pricecompetition service quality

Callan R 28 30 46 79 141Capelli P 10career development 25 48 106ndash7 see also

internal labour marketschain hotels approach to HRM adopted

41 76 84 88 89 91 93 96 151size of chain 117ndash18 within Survey ofHRM in the Hotel Industry 51ndash2

chambermaids keymaids 99 and labourturnover 120 121 and multi-skilling39 pay 99

chefs 39 97City and Guilds 64Commission on Industrial Relations 39common method variance 142communication systems 97 102 113 115comparative nature of analysis 50 146competitive strategy see business strategyconsultation systems 25 31 106 145Cornell University 102cost reduction see price competitionCressey P 19 76

Index 165

Daly A 16daily demand fluctuation 24 91 121 148Daniel W 84DrsquoAnnunzio-Green N 25 48 63 66

145Davies A 30Davies Annette 19 20 47 81 89 152Deery M 42 43Delaney J 152De Menezes L 124Denvir A 42 43Department of National Heritage 51 75Devanna M 10 12 15 26 59 125Dewe P 74Dowling P 10Dyer L 69 Edwards P 15 35electronic point of sale technology 1employee involvement 23Employment Protection Consolidation Act

(1978) 25empowerment 25 31 49 99 103 106

108 114 145establishment age 73 82establishment size and location 40 in

maintream literature 18 andperformance 142 and relevance ofHRM 41 47 51 67 75 82 89146 151

Evans P 11evidence of change in manufacturing

industry 2 Fernie S 124financial markets and decentralisation 19ndash

20 impact on HRM in hotel industry47 68 81 89 152

Finegold D 16flexibility casual staff 24 37ndash8 49 80

97 98 106ndash7 109 121 148 core-periphery 24 38 functional flexibility24 38ndash9 105 108ndash9 145 151multi-skilling 24 122 numericalflexibility 24 25 68 part-time

working 25 49 73 82 91 148 seealso daily demand fluctuations jobdesign seasonal demand

follow-up interviews design 96willingness to participate 96

Fombrun C 10 12 15 26 59 125food and beverage function 34 105 108

109 121foreign employees 97 103 119foreign ownership German ownership 19

76 in the hotel industry 45 47 6876 83 88ndash9 91 93 147 148 150Japanese transplants 2 76 Japanisation18ndash19 45

Forte Hotels 76front office 34 39ndash40 105 106 121 Gabriel Y 2Gerhart B 7 125 141Gilbert D 5 25 45 47 49 63 66Guerrier Y 5 23 24 25 28 33 34 35

38 39 45 47 49 50 63 66 7374 145 148 151

Guest D 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 1719 20 21 26 30 31 35 38 4446 47 51 55 56 57 59 69 7072 73 74 76 77 126 127 141

Hales C 23 24 28 49 95 115 145Handy C 84harmonised terms and conditions see

salaries and benefitsHarrington D 25 48 49 63 145Hawes W 41 43 44Haywood K 28 29 30 32 33 34 37

46 47 91 144 148 149head-office personnel function 88 91 96

117ndash18 150ndash1Hendry C 16 40 47high commitment management 51 124high performance work practices 124Hitchens D 16Hoque K 15 16 19 21 26 35 55 56

57 70 73 76 77 127 141lsquohostessrsquo system 39

166 Index

hotel industry growth rate 4housekeeping 40 106 121 149 see also

chambermaidsHubbard N 15 35human resource management adoption in

hotel industry 22ndash6 48 49 60ndash2 6595 119 123 145 147 153 adoptionin UK 51 146 critique of situationalcontingency models 13ndash16 asdominant paradigm 3 144 154 andexternal fit 10ndash13 125 128ndash9 131ndash6 141 152 full utilisation models 6ndash9 69ndash71 inimitability of HR systems7 and internal fit 59 69 127 130139ndash40 141 152 and performance 3124ndash43 situational contingency models10ndash13 125 universal relevance of 46ndash7 126 130 136ndash8 141 152

human resource outcomes 127 131 134136 138 139

human resource strategy 62 77ndash8 130ndash1145

Huselid M 21 69 70 124 127 141152 153

Hyman R 13 27 IBM 2Ichniowski C 21 59 127 141induction systems 61 97 105 108 112instability of demand see daily demand

fluctuation seasonal demand Instituteof Personnel Management Institute ofPersonnel and Development 36 64118

internal labour markets 24 25 42 4997 100 104 110 112ndash3 145 seealso career development

Investors in People 98 99 105 111115ndash17 147 154

Iverson R 42 43 Jackson S 10 11 15 26 46 59 78

91 125 128 129 150Jakobsen P 19 76

Jarvis V 44 47 49job design autonomous workgroups 23

extent of 115 145 flexible jobdescriptions 61 job enlargement 23job enrichment 23 103 104 109 jobprofiles 99 job rotation 23routinisation 30 teamworking 25 4961

Johns N 30Johnson K 33 36 37 41 42 43 50

65 75joint consultative committees 23Jones P 29 30 31 150 Kane J 33Kelliher C 33 36 37 50 65Keenoy T 14Keep E 16 44 47King C 31Kirkpatrick I 19 20 47 81 89 152Knox S 2Kochan T 12 26 59 69 125Kokko T 28 30 46 79 141 labour markets 4 18labour turnover figures relating to 41 75

and foreign employees 119 and guestmobility 42 impact on approach toHRM 22 41ndash3 68 74ndash5 88 148ndash9impact on service quality 43 119149 and living-in 42 missing data 88monitoring of labour turnover 88 andmulti-skilling 109 120 and pay 43120 and personnel departmentactivities 36 37 50 65 86ndash7 91151 potential for cost control 43 75and recruitment and training costs119 120 and split shifts 42 andtraining 113 120 uniqueness to hotels5 47 68 148 149 152 andworkforce characteristics 42 120 149

Larmour R 27 46 47 149Lashley C 30latent variable analysis 70

Index 167

Lawrence P 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 1617 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

Laycock J 45 47 76 83 150Lefever M 30 31 42 46 150Legge K 10 14 32 33Lewis R 28 46 91 144 149Lockwood A 23 24 28 33 34 35

38 39 47 49 50 73 74 145 148151

Lorange P 11Lucas R 2 4 5 24 25 26 35 36

44 45 47 48 49 50 51 63 6576 83 87 145 150

Mabey C 14 32Macauley I 42McDonalds 1MacDuffie J 21 59 69 124 125 127

141Macfarlane A 23 28 39 47McKersie R 10McMahon F 42 43maintenance 40 99management development 25 42 33

108 122management style coaching approach

100 108 consultative approaches 2549

lsquohands-onrsquo approach 33 andorganisational culture 34 serviceleadership approach 31 willingness toinnovate 34 47 72ndash3 85 89 9192 121ndash2 147 150

Marginson P 15 35Mars G 39 40 42 73Mathe H 1Mattsson J 29 30 31 46 79 91 141

144Metcalf D 124Miles R 10 11 15 26 125Miller D 11Mills R 31Millward N 41 43 44

Minotels of Britain 76Mintzberg H 14mission statements 59 62 100ndash1 112

145Mitchell P 39 40 42 73Moilanen T 28 30 46 79 141Morphew R 28Mullins L 5 40 75Muthu G 25 48 49 63 66 145 Nailon P 29 74 144 149Nightingale M 28 29 31 46 62 91

144 149National Insurance 25national ownership see foreign ownership Office for National Statistics 1 4Ohlin J 42Oliver N 18 19 20 47 76 81 89 152Olsen M 28 79 141 pay see salaries and benefitsperformance appraisal see appraisal systemsperformance outcomes 128 134 136

138 139 152ndash3 154Perras C 1personnel departments growth of 35ndash6

50 63ndash5 150 increasingsophistication 37 64ndash5 50 118 154influence on HRM strategy 15 68 7786 91 148 150ndash1 issues asked aboutin hotel industry survey 59ndash60 lack ofprofessionalism 25 36 50qualifications 36 59 64 77 86 118150 role of 36 37 50 65 86ndash7 91151

Peters T 30Pettigrew A 16 40 47pilferage 40Piore M 6 13 27 46 47Pollert A 13 27 46 47Porter M 11 78 129portering 40Prais S 44 47 49

168 Index

Prennushi G 21 59 127 141Price L 25 26 36 40 41 45 47 48

49 50 51 56 65 66 76 83 87145 150 151

price competition and cost control 98149 and deskilling 28 and impact onHRM 27ndash8 46 78ndash9 89ndash91 93150 152 importance of 67 114ndash15149ndash50 and organisationalperformance 124ndash43 152ndash3 andrecession 28 and standardisation ofservice 27 and technological change27 and trade unions 74 validity ofclassification 93 94 102

product markets see business strategyprice competition service quality

project teams 23Purcell J 15 19 20 35 47 69 81 89

152Purcell K 25 48 49 63 145Pye G 28 31 46 79 141 quality audits 32 33ndash4quality circles 23quality enhancement see business strategy

service qualityquality improvement teams 61ndash2quality monitoring 61 114Quinn J 1 3 4Quinn Mills D 6 7 8 9 10 13 15

16 17 18 20 30 31 46 51 5969 74

Rajan A 2 28Ramsay H 18realistic job previews 61 110 123Reich A 30 31 42 46 150resistance to change entrenched working

practices 16 22 39ndash40 47 72 8496 and flexibility 38ndash9 impact onapproach taken to HRM 47 67 8591 147 151 and management staff34 122 and organisational change 7284 121 151 role strain 84 and

technical change 72 84 121 151 seealso pilferage

recruitment and selection assessmentcentres 108ndash9 behavioural eventinterviews 100 behavioural testing100 102 108 112 115 145importance of careful selection 31100 105 109ndash10 112 as keyresponsibility of personnel 37 86ndash791 151 personality testing 31 97108 psychological tests 61 100trainability as a selection criterion 61word-of-mouth recruitment 25 97

Riley M 43Robinson O 24 149room price-per-night 80 89Ross G 31 Sabel C 6 13 27 46 47Salaman G 14 32salaries and benefits bonus schemes 105

holiday entitlement 101 111 hoursworked 97 101 111 and labourturnover 43 120 maternity leave 25merit pay 61 101 need forimprovement 48 110 pensions 97111 private healthcare 97 101 105111 sick pay 25 97 97ndash8 111 118single status 97 98 101 102 105111 115 147

sales function 108 109Sarova Hotels 76Schaffer J 29Schuler R 10 11 15 26 46 59 78

91 125 128 129 150seasonal demand and casual labour 37ndash8

97 80 148 influence on HRM 8089 93 148 stabilisation of 38 121148 uniqueness to hotels 47 68 148152 and workforce commitment 38

Segal-Horn S 1Senior M 28service quality achievement of 30ndash2

commitment to 30 customer

Index 169

expectations 28 112 149 definitionof 28ndash30 front line employees and29ndash30 impact on HRM 28ndash32 4679 89ndash91 93 150 152 importanceof 22 67 114ndash15 144ndash5 149ndash50154 and organisational performance124ndash43 152ndash3 and seniormanagement 31 validity ofclassification 93 94 104 107 111ndash12

service sector analytical problems 4applicability of HRM 144 growthrate 1ndash2 51 144 and heterogeneity3 international trade 1ndash2 lack ofempirical research 2 3 53 124

Shamir B 2 27 38 39 41 42 46 4776 149

Shaw K 21 59 127single status see salaries and benefitsSisson K 15 19 26 47 51 73Smart D 41 43 44Snow C 10 11 15 26 125Soskice D 16Spector B 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16

17 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

star rating 54 80 89Steedman H 16Stevens M 41 43 44Storey J 3 7 8 15 19 20 47 51 73students 25Survey of HRM in Greenfield Sites

comparability with hotel industrysurvey 55ndash6 HR strategy issues askedabout 57 59 practices asked about57 60 response rate 56 sample size55

Survey of HRM in the Hotel Industryanalysis of performance 127 chainhotels within 51ndash2 HR strategyissues asked about 57 59 influenceson approach taken to HRM 71personnel department issues askedabout 59ndash60 practices asked about

57 60 representativeness of thesample 54 response rate 54 56sample selection 53ndash4 size of hotelswithin 50ndash1 structure of 53

Teare R 26 48 49 50 51Thistle Hotels 76Thompson K 2Tichy N 10 12 15 26 59 125Total Quality Management 2 25Toys R Us 1Trade Union Congress 17 44 74trade unions attitudes towards 96 118

and geographical dispersion 44 andindividualism 44 influence on HRMstrategy 17ndash18 44ndash5 47 67ndash8 7482 91 147 152 and living in 44and unilateral management decision-making 118 union density figures inhotels 44 74

training college courses 34 102customer care 97 102 developmentaltraining 113 evaluation of trainingcourses 113 extent of 115 145 andfunctional flexibility 105 hygiene 97in social skills 31 110 job swaps100 lack of vocational training 1644 47 language training 100 role ofheads of department 100 116 andstaff retention 113 technical training102 see also managementdevelopment

Trevor M 18 76Turnbull P 7 unilateral decision-making 97 118unit general managers 88 Wagner K 16 44 47 49waiters 39 97Wallace J 24 149Walsh T 38 73 148Walton R 3 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16

17 18 20 30 31 45 46 47 5159 69 74 126

Waterman R 30

170 Index

Watson S 25 48 63 66 145West J 42Whipp R 14 15Whittington R 14White M 18 76Whyte W 2Wickens P 18 76Wilkinson B 18 76

worker directors 23workforce instability see labour turnoverWorkplace Industrial Relations Survey 35

36 43 44 60 63 64ndash5 73 75works councils 23Wood R 2 39 40 41 42 43 44 47 74Wood S 18 51 57 69 70 76 124Wycott D 30 150

Book Cover

Contents

List of tables

Acknowledgements

Preface

Introduction and framework for analysis

Is there a role for HRM in the hotel industry

New approaches to HRM in the hotel industry a comparative analysis

Influences on HRM in the hotel industry

HRM in practice in the hotel industry

HRM and performance in the hotel industry

Conclusion

Bibliography

Human ResourceManagement in theHotel Industry

To what extent have hotels adopted new more sophisticated approaches to HRM Whatfactors have encouraged the adoption of these new approaches How has HRM impacted onorganisational performance in the hotel industry

Over the last decade human resource management has come to be viewedas the dominant paradigm within whic h analyses of the world of work havebeen located This volume examines the nature and assesses the impact o fHRM with in a h igh ly under-researc hed par t o f the ser v ice sector namelythe UK hote l industry

Common perceptions of management practices in the hotel industry typicallyinc lude work intens i f i cat ion h igh labour tur nover l ac k of t ra in ing andpoor career prospects and casual ised terms and condit ions of employmentUs ing data f rom a sur vey of over 200 hote l s th i s book cha l lenges suc hstereotypes by demonstrat ing that th i s par t o f the ser v ice sector i s jus tas likely to have experimented with new approaches to HRM as is manufactur ingindustry I t suggests that pr imary inf luences on manager ial decis ion-makingin the hotel industry are no di f ferent from the pr imary inf luences af fect ingdecision-making elsewhere countering the argument that mainstream managementtheor ies are inappl icable within hotels industry Fur ther more where hotelsemphas i se the impor tance of ser v ice qua l i ty enhancement and where theyintroduce HRM as an integrated mutual ly suppor t ing pac kage of pract icesa strong relationship between HRM and organisational performance is identified

Human Re sour c e Management in the Hote l Indu s t ry i s es sent ia l reading notonly for s tudents and researc her s with a spec i f ic interes t in the hote l andcater ing industry but a l so for researc her s with a wider interes t in thenature and impact o f HRM

Kim Hoque is Lecturer in HRM at Cardiff Business School He has publishedwidely in the field of human resource management having conducted researchon g reenfield s i te establ ishments foreign-owned establ ishments the natureand impact of the per sonnel function and ethnic minor it ies in employmentas well as conducting research into the hotel industry He is a lso the co-

ordinator of Cardiff Business Schoolrsquos Equality and Diver sity Researc h Unit

John Kelly

Carola MFrege

Themes and issues

Kim Hoque

London and New York

To my parents

Contents

List of tables ix

Acknowledgements xi

Preface xiii

7 Conclusion 144

Bibliography 155

Index 164

Tables

manufacturing 63

x List of tables

hotel industry 137

Acknowledgements

the 1995 Sur vey

Preface

i s a mus t

open to ques t ion

it first appears

t h i s g a p

product markets

production

immediately assumed

end of the market

the hotel industry

National ownership

approach

Summary

financial markets

vision

the chapter

management leve l

respons ib i l i ty

management

enhance commitment

in deta i l

Price competition

industry

Quality enhancement

the delivery system

Nailon (198977)

More specifically

(Mattsson 199456)

Johnson 1997)

than before

long ter m

Workplace size

standardshellip

Trade unions

the except ion

Foreign ownership

The data

Sample selection

had been mailed

Method of analysis

HRM practices

HRM strategy

manufacturing

Results

opposite is true

they per for m

are concer ned

i n C h a p t e r 5

fol lowing

on HRM

cont ingenc ie s

MacDuffie 1996)

practice

equi f ina l i ty

Internal variables

being implemented

Workplace age

Trade unions

union acquiescence

Labour turnover

been attempted

the ana ly s i s

Workplace size

are weighted

have no bear ing

National ownership

worthy of analysis

Chain hotels

personnel issues

External variables

to HRM

bull cost control

bull OR cleanliness

Market stability

Purcell (1989))

Results

employees

th i s nature

one-day induct ion

manager commented

c o n c e r n e d

manager commented

c han c e

second besthellip

but for how long

concern

statement

just i f ied

areahellip

commented

in the pas t 1

lsquoHRMrsquo hotel

wantshellip

Summary

hote l industry

Investors in People

comment ing

interview programme

Hotel chains

th i s process

Labour turnover

changehellip

Market instability

The data

Dependent variables

HR outcomes

as follows

average

industry average

price factors

industry

category

into this category

category

fo l lows 2

this category

category

Control variables

Results

(1ndashP

y=lsquoH

ersrsquo

Conclusions

qual i ty

7 Conclusion

Conclusion 145

usage of HRM

Conclusion 147

Conclusion 149

Conclusion 151

HRM and performance

Conclusion 153

s t rategy

the industry

Bibliography

Bibliography 157

Bibliography 159

Bibliography 161

Bibliography 163

76Becker B 7 125 141Beer M 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 17

Index 165

(1978) 25empowerment 25 31 49 99 103 106

38 39 45 47 49 50 63 66 7374 145 148 151

Guest D 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 1719 20 21 26 30 31 35 38 4446 47 51 55 56 57 59 69 7072 73 74 76 77 126 127 141

166 Index

Huselid M 21 69 70 124 127 141152 153

91 125 128 129 150Jakobsen P 19 76

Johns N 30Johnson K 33 36 37 41 42 43 50

Index 167

Lawrence P 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 1617 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

38 39 47 49 50 73 74 145 148151

Lorange P 11Lucas R 2 4 5 24 25 26 35 36

44 45 47 48 49 50 51 63 6576 83 87 145 150

168 Index

49 50 51 56 65 66 76 83 87145 150 151

16 17 18 20 30 31 46 51 5969 74

Index 169

Shamir B 2 27 38 39 41 42 46 4776 149

17 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

17 18 20 30 31 45 46 47 5159 69 74 126

Waterman R 30

170 Index

Book Cover

Contents

List of tables

Acknowledgements

Preface

Conclusion

Bibliography

John Kelly

Carola MFrege

Themes and issues

Kim Hoque

London and New York

To my parents

Contents

List of tables ix

Acknowledgements xi

Preface xiii

7 Conclusion 144

Bibliography 155

Index 164

Tables

manufacturing 63

x List of tables

hotel industry 137

Acknowledgements

the 1995 Sur vey

Preface

i s a mus t

open to ques t ion

it first appears

t h i s g a p

product markets

production

immediately assumed

end of the market

the hotel industry

National ownership

approach

Summary

financial markets

vision

the chapter

management leve l

respons ib i l i ty

management

enhance commitment

in deta i l

Price competition

industry

Quality enhancement

the delivery system

Nailon (198977)

More specifically

(Mattsson 199456)

Johnson 1997)

than before

long ter m

Workplace size

standardshellip

Trade unions

the except ion

Foreign ownership

The data

Sample selection

had been mailed

Method of analysis

HRM practices

HRM strategy

manufacturing

Results

opposite is true

they per for m

are concer ned

i n C h a p t e r 5

fol lowing

on HRM

cont ingenc ie s

MacDuffie 1996)

practice

equi f ina l i ty

Internal variables

being implemented

Workplace age

Trade unions

union acquiescence

Labour turnover

been attempted

the ana ly s i s

Workplace size

are weighted

have no bear ing

National ownership

worthy of analysis

Chain hotels

personnel issues

External variables

to HRM

bull cost control

bull OR cleanliness

Market stability

Purcell (1989))

Results

employees

th i s nature

one-day induct ion

manager commented

c o n c e r n e d

manager commented

c han c e

second besthellip

but for how long

concern

statement

just i f ied

areahellip

commented

in the pas t 1

lsquoHRMrsquo hotel

wantshellip

Summary

hote l industry

Investors in People

comment ing

interview programme

Hotel chains

th i s process

Labour turnover

changehellip

Market instability

The data

Dependent variables

HR outcomes

as follows

average

industry average

price factors

industry

category

into this category

category

fo l lows 2

this category

category

Control variables

Results

(1ndashP

y=lsquoH

ersrsquo

Conclusions

qual i ty

7 Conclusion

Conclusion 145

usage of HRM

Conclusion 147

Conclusion 149

Conclusion 151

HRM and performance

Conclusion 153

s t rategy

the industry

Bibliography

Bibliography 157

Bibliography 159

Bibliography 161

Bibliography 163

76Becker B 7 125 141Beer M 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 17

Index 165

(1978) 25empowerment 25 31 49 99 103 106

38 39 45 47 49 50 63 66 7374 145 148 151

Guest D 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 1719 20 21 26 30 31 35 38 4446 47 51 55 56 57 59 69 7072 73 74 76 77 126 127 141

166 Index

Huselid M 21 69 70 124 127 141152 153

91 125 128 129 150Jakobsen P 19 76

Johns N 30Johnson K 33 36 37 41 42 43 50

Index 167

Lawrence P 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 1617 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

38 39 47 49 50 73 74 145 148151

Lorange P 11Lucas R 2 4 5 24 25 26 35 36

44 45 47 48 49 50 51 63 6576 83 87 145 150

168 Index

49 50 51 56 65 66 76 83 87145 150 151

16 17 18 20 30 31 46 51 5969 74

Index 169

Shamir B 2 27 38 39 41 42 46 4776 149

17 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

17 18 20 30 31 45 46 47 5159 69 74 126

Waterman R 30

170 Index

Book Cover

Contents

List of tables

Acknowledgements

Preface

Conclusion

Bibliography

Kim Hoque

London and New York

To my parents

Contents

List of tables ix

Acknowledgements xi

Preface xiii

7 Conclusion 144

Bibliography 155

Index 164

Tables

manufacturing 63

x List of tables

hotel industry 137

Acknowledgements

the 1995 Sur vey

Preface

i s a mus t

open to ques t ion

it first appears

t h i s g a p

product markets

production

immediately assumed

end of the market

the hotel industry

National ownership

approach

Summary

financial markets

vision

the chapter

management leve l

respons ib i l i ty

management

enhance commitment

in deta i l

Price competition

industry

Quality enhancement

the delivery system

Nailon (198977)

More specifically

(Mattsson 199456)

Johnson 1997)

than before

long ter m

Workplace size

standardshellip

Trade unions

the except ion

Foreign ownership

The data

Sample selection

had been mailed

Method of analysis

HRM practices

HRM strategy

manufacturing

Results

opposite is true

they per for m

are concer ned

i n C h a p t e r 5

fol lowing

on HRM

cont ingenc ie s

MacDuffie 1996)

practice

equi f ina l i ty

Internal variables

being implemented

Workplace age

Trade unions

union acquiescence

Labour turnover

been attempted

the ana ly s i s

Workplace size

are weighted

have no bear ing

National ownership

worthy of analysis

Chain hotels

personnel issues

External variables

to HRM

bull cost control

bull OR cleanliness

Market stability

Purcell (1989))

Results

employees

th i s nature

one-day induct ion

manager commented

c o n c e r n e d

manager commented

c han c e

second besthellip

but for how long

concern

statement

just i f ied

areahellip

commented

in the pas t 1

lsquoHRMrsquo hotel

wantshellip

Summary

hote l industry

Investors in People

comment ing

interview programme

Hotel chains

th i s process

Labour turnover

changehellip

Market instability

The data

Dependent variables

HR outcomes

as follows

average

industry average

price factors

industry

category

into this category

category

fo l lows 2

this category

category

Control variables

Results

(1ndashP

y=lsquoH

ersrsquo

Conclusions

qual i ty

7 Conclusion

Conclusion 145

usage of HRM

Conclusion 147

Conclusion 149

Conclusion 151

HRM and performance

Conclusion 153

s t rategy

the industry

Bibliography

Bibliography 157

Bibliography 159

Bibliography 161

Bibliography 163

76Becker B 7 125 141Beer M 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 17

Index 165

(1978) 25empowerment 25 31 49 99 103 106

38 39 45 47 49 50 63 66 7374 145 148 151

Guest D 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 1719 20 21 26 30 31 35 38 4446 47 51 55 56 57 59 69 7072 73 74 76 77 126 127 141

166 Index

Huselid M 21 69 70 124 127 141152 153

91 125 128 129 150Jakobsen P 19 76

Johns N 30Johnson K 33 36 37 41 42 43 50

Index 167

Lawrence P 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 1617 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

38 39 47 49 50 73 74 145 148151

Lorange P 11Lucas R 2 4 5 24 25 26 35 36

44 45 47 48 49 50 51 63 6576 83 87 145 150

168 Index

49 50 51 56 65 66 76 83 87145 150 151

16 17 18 20 30 31 46 51 5969 74

Index 169

Shamir B 2 27 38 39 41 42 46 4776 149

17 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

17 18 20 30 31 45 46 47 5159 69 74 126

Waterman R 30

170 Index

Book Cover

Contents

List of tables

Acknowledgements

Preface

Conclusion

Bibliography

To my parents

Contents

List of tables ix

Acknowledgements xi

Preface xiii

7 Conclusion 144

Bibliography 155

Index 164

Tables

manufacturing 63

x List of tables

hotel industry 137

Acknowledgements

the 1995 Sur vey

Preface

i s a mus t

open to ques t ion

it first appears

t h i s g a p

product markets

production

immediately assumed

end of the market

the hotel industry

National ownership

approach

Summary

financial markets

vision

the chapter

management leve l

respons ib i l i ty

management

enhance commitment

in deta i l

Price competition

industry

Quality enhancement

the delivery system

Nailon (198977)

More specifically

(Mattsson 199456)

Johnson 1997)

than before

long ter m

Workplace size

standardshellip

Trade unions

the except ion

Foreign ownership

The data

Sample selection

had been mailed

Method of analysis

HRM practices

HRM strategy

manufacturing

Results

opposite is true

they per for m

are concer ned

i n C h a p t e r 5

fol lowing

on HRM

cont ingenc ie s

MacDuffie 1996)

practice

equi f ina l i ty

Internal variables

being implemented

Workplace age

Trade unions

union acquiescence

Labour turnover

been attempted

the ana ly s i s

Workplace size

are weighted

have no bear ing

National ownership

worthy of analysis

Chain hotels

personnel issues

External variables

to HRM

bull cost control

bull OR cleanliness

Market stability

Purcell (1989))

Results

employees

th i s nature

one-day induct ion

manager commented

c o n c e r n e d

manager commented

c han c e

second besthellip

but for how long

concern

statement

just i f ied

areahellip

commented

in the pas t 1

lsquoHRMrsquo hotel

wantshellip

Summary

hote l industry

Investors in People

comment ing

interview programme

Hotel chains

th i s process

Labour turnover

changehellip

Market instability

The data

Dependent variables

HR outcomes

as follows

average

industry average

price factors

industry

category

into this category

category

fo l lows 2

this category

category

Control variables

Results

(1ndashP

y=lsquoH

ersrsquo

Conclusions

qual i ty

7 Conclusion

Conclusion 145

usage of HRM

Conclusion 147

Conclusion 149

Conclusion 151

HRM and performance

Conclusion 153

s t rategy

the industry

Bibliography

Bibliography 157

Bibliography 159

Bibliography 161

Bibliography 163

76Becker B 7 125 141Beer M 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 17

Index 165

(1978) 25empowerment 25 31 49 99 103 106

38 39 45 47 49 50 63 66 7374 145 148 151

Guest D 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 16 1719 20 21 26 30 31 35 38 4446 47 51 55 56 57 59 69 7072 73 74 76 77 126 127 141

166 Index

Huselid M 21 69 70 124 127 141152 153

91 125 128 129 150Jakobsen P 19 76

Johns N 30Johnson K 33 36 37 41 42 43 50

Index 167

Lawrence P 6 7 8 9 10 13 15 1617 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

38 39 47 49 50 73 74 145 148151

Lorange P 11Lucas R 2 4 5 24 25 26 35 36

44 45 47 48 49 50 51 63 6576 83 87 145 150

168 Index

49 50 51 56 65 66 76 83 87145 150 151

16 17 18 20 30 31 46 51 5969 74

Index 169

Shamir B 2 27 38 39 41 42 46 4776 149

17 18 20 30 31 46 51 59 6974

17 18 20 30 31 45 46 47 5159 69 74 126

Waterman R 30

170 Index

Book Cover

Contents

List of tables

Acknowledgements

Preface

Conclusion

Bibliography

Documents

Human Resource Management in the Hotel Industry: Strategy, … · 2017. 11. 5. · Human Resource Management (HRM) has increasingly come to be utilised as the framework within which