Question
| Explain the keywords or theories in each of the questions (1.1,1.2,2.1,2.2,3.1,3.2,4.1). please do write the KEY WORK OR THEORIES in each question….roles, theories, and definitions Task B Review of the recent development Provide a written account demonstrating your understanding of the recruitment & selection process, and training & development in service industries businesses. It should provide an insight into the: a. Discuss a job description and person specification for a selected service industry job (ref: 3.1) b. Compare the selection process of different service industries businesses (ref: 3.2) c. Assess the contribution of training and development activities to the effective operation of a selected service industry business (ref: 4.1) Word count: for task B. 2000 words 1st 1.1 analyze the role and purpose of human resource management in a selected service industry 2nd 1.2 justify a human resources plan based on an analysis of supply and demand for a selected service industry business 3rd 2.1 Assess the current state of employment relations in a selected service industry 4th 2.2 Discuss how employment law affects the management of human resources in a selected service industry business 5th 3.1 Discuss a job description and person specification for a selected service industry job 6th 3.2 Compare the selection process of different service industries businesses 7th 4.1 Assess the contribution of training and development activities to the effective operation of a selected service industry business Specification of Assessment • Present your work in one business report style which should include a table of contents, reference list, foot or endnotes and appendices if any • Complete all the tasks. • Produce clear specific reasoning and arguments in support of your answers. • Submit your work in a single work processed document of not more than 5000 words for all Learning Outcomes. This word limit is only a guideline and does not include Appendices and Bibliography • You must include a bibliography at the end to show where your information was sourced. • Your sources must be identified using the Harvard referencing system. The words used in your bibliography will not be included in your word count. |
Answer
Recruitment and Selection Process
Contents
1.1 The Role and Purpose of Human Resource Management in the UK Hotel Industry. 2
2.1 The Current State of Employment Relations in the UK Hotel Industry. 4
2.2 How Employment Law Affects the Management of Human Resources in the UK Hotel Industry. 5
3.1 A Job Description and Person Specification for a Hotel Industry Job: Procurement Manager. 5
3.2 Comparing the Selection Process of two Service Industries Businesses: Hilton UK and Marriott 6
Introduction
Recruitment and selection are important functions in HRM, particularly in the service industry. In this industry, HR managers must recruit the most qualified professionals in order to be able to meet their business needs and to adapt to the changing nature of the service-industry environment. The challenge of personnel shortage in the service industry has compelled HR managers to explore new ways of attracting as well as retaining employees (Bonn & Forbringe, 1992). This translates into the need for existing recruitment and selection programs to be subjected to periodic reviews with a view to generating a strategic approach aimed at promoting business performance and reducing turnover.
The aim of this report is to investigate recent developments in the recruitment and selection process in the service industry and relating this analysis to the hotel industry in the United Kingdom. This report addresses seven issues relating to the recruitment and selection in the service industry. The first one is the analysis of the role of HRM in the hotel service industry. The second issue is the justification of a HR plan based on analysis of supply and demand for Hilton UK. The third issue is the assessment of the current state of employment in the hotel industry. Fourthly, the report discusses the impact of employment law on human resources on the service industry. The fifth issue entails a discussion of job description and personal specification in the job of a procurement manager in the service industry. Sixthly, the report compares the selection processes of two companies: Hilton UK and Marriott. Lastly, this report assesses the contribution of training and development to the effective operation of a service industry business.
1.1 The Role and Purpose of Human Resource Management in the UK Hotel Industry
In the UK hotel industry, HRM is associated with business performance (Hoque, 1999a). However, Hoque’s (1999a) study shows that this relationship depends on the business strategy that is being pursued by the hotel. This is an important observation particularly considering that it was based on an analysis of data from 200 hotels (Hoque, 1999a). Moreover, hotels that perform best are those that have adopted a HRM approach that is embedded on quality focus as part of the overall business strategy (Hoque, 1999a). Another important observation is that the possibility of HRM contributing to competitive success is higher if it is properly integrated into existing service practices in a service company such as a hotel. Based on this line of thought, the most important roles of HRM in the UK service industry include enhancing business performance, contributing to quality focus, and facilitating competitive success.
The adoption of HRM in the UK hotel industry is also characterized by a tendency to introduce it alongside traditional structures instead of replacing them (Hoque, 1999b). However, this practice does not cut across all companies operating in the service industry. For some, HRM approaches being used remain unclear, meaning that it is equally unclear what the companies seek to achieve through HRM. Nevertheless, it is still possible for researchers to talk about a HRM trend that is characterized by “high commitment management” in the UK service industry (McGunnigle & Jameson, 2000). This is an important development because HRM is traditionally associated more with the manufacturing industry and less with the service industry. This may explain why HRM has not yet reached a point where it can replace traditional structures in the service industry. Based on these observations, HRM may be credited with the increase in the level of commitment to issues affecting employees employed by service-oriented businesses in the UK such as hotels. This may be explained well through the analysis of the notion of high commitment management.
1.2 Justification for a Human Resources Plan Based on an Analysis of Supply And Demand for Hilton UK
Hilton UK is a successful hotel business that owns 76 hotels operating in the United Kingdom. The company’s human resource plan has been designed in such a way that it is possible for HRM roles to be devolved to line managers (Watson, Maxwell & Farquharson, 2007). A major benefit of this HR plan is that it creates a platform for HR managers and line managers to work together in improving performance in HR activities. Moreover, this plan has enabled HR specialists to develop good relations with line managers. On the negative side, it has increased short-term job-related pressures and workloads for line managers.
The main reason why Hilton UK adopted this HR plan, referred to as Esprit, was the introduction of the company’s service quality initiative. The core of this HR plan is to encourage line managers to take over the responsibility for HRM activities aimed at supporting strategic drivers. As a corollary to this, the HRM activities being devolved include recruitment, selection, employee motivation, training and development, and performance management. To perform their duties well, line managers routinely receive support and professional assistance from HR staff stationed at the head office. As a result, a new trend has emerged at Hilton UK, whereby HR specialists must work in partnership with line managers to deliver on HR activities.
The justification for Esprit at Hilton UK may be derived from an in-depth analysis of supply and demand. On the near-term, the business environment in terms of both demand and supply remains strong in the UK. There is a healthy growth in demand, which seems to be outpacing supply growth levels that still remain below long-term averages (Sargeant & Mohamad, 1999). When these two trends are taken together they paint an image of sustainable industry growth in the long run (Sargeant & Mohamad, 1999). When the challenge of personnel shortage in the service industry is brought into focus, one begins to understand why a large company like Hilton UK chose to adopt Esprit. As Bonn and Forbringe (1992) point out, this personnel shortage is responsible for the recent trend whereby HR managers are exploring new HR plans. This provides justification for Hilton UK’s adoption of the human resources plan.
2.1 The Current State of Employment Relations in the UK Hotel Industry
Currently, there is a lot of emphasis on the need to promote employee commitment in the UK hotel industry. The need to achieve this goal has led to the introduction of sophisticated methods of recruitment and selection (Wilton, 2006). Despite these efforts, there is little evidence showing that the methods of recruitment and selection currently being used are commensurate with this objective (McGunnigle & Jameson, 2000). For the most part, the use of employee relations to promote commitment is more evident in training and development than in recruitment and selection.
As long as HRM continues to be associated with training and development rather than recruitment and selection, the UK hotel industry will continue to be associated with poor employment relations (Wilton, 2006). Currently, most hotels adopt an informal and instrumental approach to HRM, thereby contributing to the problem of poor employment relations. The fact that some studies have identified cases of form HRM approaches may be more an indication of unresolved theoretical and methodological issues than a sign of impending shift towards better employment relations (Wilton, 2006).
2.2 How Employment Law Affects the Management of Human Resources in the UK Hotel Industry
In the UK, employment law has a far-reaching impact on the way human resources are managed in the hotel industry (Smith & Morton, 2001). A case in point is the Hotel Employment Law; some of the issues that this law addresses include tribunal awards for statutory redundancy payments, parental leave and statutory sick leave, employee discrimination and uniform regulations. Others include minimum wage rates, confidentiality obligations, employment contract requirements, and post-termination restrictions. Some of these laws, for instance post-termination restrictions seek to protect hotel businesses against unscrupulous employees who terminate their contracts in order to poach their employers’ customers. Others, for instance minimum wage rates, seek to protect employees against exploitation by employers through slave wages. By so doing, the employment law in the UK provides an excellent platform for human resource management in the hotel industry.
3.1 A Job Description and Person Specification for a Hotel Industry Job: Procurement Manager
The job description under discussion in this section is that of a procurement manager. In most hotel companies, a procurement manager reports to the manager in charge of commercial services. A good job description should contain the location, nature of the job, main duties, number of hours to be worked per week, requisite knowledge and skills, and qualifications. This job is all about procuring goods and services in a manner that delivers best value for money. The main duties include giving assistance to commercial directors, working with the hotel’s contract managers, as well as reviewing and scrutinizing operational process flows. Other duties include ensuring clarity of all financial aspects of contracts to all parties, ensure that every stakeholder understands contractual obligations, and conducting risk assessment.
The job typically requires 40 hours of work per week, although the employee may sometimes be expected to extend his or her normal working hours to attend to international clients. At this point, the salary range may also need to be mentioned. In terms of qualifications, the candidate needs to have a university degree and five years of experience as a commercial manager at a multinational company. In terms of knowledge and skills, the candidate should understand aspects of contract law and forms of contract. He or she should also possess specialized knowledge of channels of distribution and an in-depth understanding of commodity markets, sources of supply, grades, qualities, and price trends.
3.2 Comparing the Selection Process of two Service Industries Businesses: Hilton UK and Marriott
In many cases, the selection process may differ from one service-industry business to the other. For example, at Hilton UK, some managers have in the past complained that the hotel’s selection process does not give sufficient autonomy to enable them to make the right decisions (Maxwell & Watson, 2006). Hilton UK is famous for maintaining strong relationships with top hotel schools across the world as part of its employee process (Barron, 2008). The hotel also uses internet recruitment and electronic applicant tracking. Its selection process is also influenced by turnover statistics and background research.
In contrast, Marriott, another UK hotel, relies almost exclusively on online application and selectin processes. The company has even pinned an announcement on its official website indicating that they do not accept resumes via other means apart from the online platform. These differences in the selection process are a reflection of variations in HR practices as well as lack of uniformity in the way HR functions are undertaken by business players in this industry.
4.1 The Contribution of Training and Development Activities to the Effective Operation of Hilton UK
At Hilton UK, training and development has been found to play a critical role by maintaining service quality. Through this HR function, Managers at the company have taken on a new culture whereby values of team-working and empowerment are promoted through training and development, thereby facilitating the actualization of the underlying objective of devolving responsibility to lower managerial levels (Barron, 2008). Moreover, training and development is a core component of the wider objective of promoting professionalism in the service industry. By focusing on professionalism-oriented training and development programs, Hilton UK has placed itself in a strategic position where it stands to benefit from the sustainable industry growth that is expected to unfold in the long run.
Conclusion
This report has examined the issue of recruitment and selection process in the service sector. For purposes of illustration, it has provided examples from Hilton UK and Marriott Hotel. The report has found out that the UK hotel industry is expected to experience sustainable growth in the long run. However, the role human resource management in this industry has not yet been clearly defined, although companies are increasingly edging towards high commitment management in regards to various HR functions. With a strategic HR plan, such as the one being implemented by Hilton UK, hotel companies can succeed in establishing a culture of service quality. In this endeavor, it is important to assess the role of employment relations and how it is impacted on employment law. Selection as well as training and development activities can also help hotel businesses in the UK to promote service quality.
References
Barron, P. (2008). ‘Education and talent management: Implications for the hospitality industry’, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 20, no. 7, pp. 730 – 742.
Bonn, M & Forbringe, L (1992). ‘Reducing turnover in the hospitality industry: an overview of recruitment, selection and retention’, International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 47–63.
Hoque, K (1999a). ‘Human Resource Management and Performance in the UK Hotel Industry’, British Journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 37, no. 3, pp. 419–443.
Hoque, K (1999b). ‘New approaches to HRM in the UK hotel industry’, Human Resource Management Journal, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 64-76.
Maxwell, G. & Watson, S. (2006). ‘Perspectives on line managers in human resource management: Hilton International’s UK hotels’, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, vol. 17, no. 6, pp. 1152-1170.
McGunnigle, P & Jameson, S (2000). ‘HRM in UK hotels: A focus on commitment’, Employee Relations, vol. 22, no. 4, pp. 403 – 422.
Sargeant, A & Mohamad, M. (1999). ‘Business Performance in the UK Hotel Sector – Does it Pay to be Market Oriented?’ The Service Industries Journal, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 42-59
Smith, P & Morton, G (2001). ‘New Labor’s Reform of Britain’s Employment Law: The Devil is not only in the Detail but in the Values and Policy Too’, British Journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 39, no. 1, pp. 119–138.
Watson, S, Maxwell, G & Farquharson, L (2007). ‘Line managers’ views on adopting human resource roles: The case of Hilton (UK) hotels’, Employee Relations, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 30 – 49.
Wilton, N (2006). ‘Strategic Choice and Organizational Context in HRM in the UK Hotel Sector’, The Service Industries Journal, vol. 26, no. 8, pp. 903-919.
USE THE FOLLOWING COUPON CODE :
SPRINGDISCOUNT