Management Assessment and Recommendations for La Pomme

Introduction

Businesses tend to face many issues while manufacturing products or providing customer service. Some organizations find themselves unable to respond to these challenges, while others manage to turn the problems into opportunities to develop. Thus, the essential goal for businesses is to understand what challenges are affecting their performance and what recommendations are appropriate to address them. To cope with the task, one should conduct careful research to identify and analyze scientific literature and find possible responses. For La Pomme, the recommendations are to promote change leadership, offer training and financial incentives to maximize motivation, invest in cultural education, implement culture-sensitive practices, and contribute to gender equality and poverty reduction.

Context

The present report focuses on La Pomme, a small hotel in Oxford. The organisation offers 12 en-suite rooms and communal spaces for guests. Simultaneously, the hotel has a small restaurant that is sometimes booked by non-guests for events. That is why it is reasonable to present a general overview of the hospitality industry in Britain. In 2016, this sector showed total revenue of $44 billion, which was accompanied by an increased consumption volume (Marketline, 2017, para. 4-5). According to Mullins and Dossor (2013, p. 3), this industry employs more than two million people. That is why it is not a surprise that La Pomme also had access to these benefits.

However, the state of affairs above witnessed significant changes in 2020 when the coronavirus crisis shocked Great Britain. Similar to other businesses in Britain and globally, La Pomme has faced many challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, Ofori (2021, p. 187) admits that approximately 50% of hospitality businesses in the United Kingdom witnessed a decrease in footfall in 2020. Simultaneously, many researchers do not expect daily revenues per hotel room to return to “2019 levels until 2024 in London, and 2023 across the rest of UK” (Ofori, 2021, p. 187). In this case, there is no doubt that such a challenging situation requires appropriate responses to mitigate the adverse effects of the health crisis.

Simultaneously, it is necessary to admit that the COVID-19 problems and the necessity to manage change are not the only issues that affect the hospitality industry in Britain. Firstly, scientific evidence demonstrates that there is gender inequality in this sector. Even though the given industry is a principal employer of women in the UK, there is an evident lack of female employees in senior management positions (Calinaud, Kokkranikal and Gebbles, 2021, p. 678). Secondly, employees from the hospitality industry are subject to reduced motivation. Part-time workers are typically less committed to the organisation because “over 70% of UK hospitality workers are emotionally worn-out due to work,” which adversely affects their motivation (Kotera, Adhikari, and Van Gordon, 2017, p. 232). Thirdly, the United Nations (n.d.) published 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and businesses should meet at least some of them to perform responsibly. Thus, there is no doubt that hospitality organisations require specific approaches to address these issues. The present report will identify and analyse scientific evidence to explain how La Pomme can respond to the four challenges.

Main Argument

Change Management

La Pomme requires an appropriate approach to respond to the changing environment. According to Mullins and Dossor (2013, p. 459), a change “is an inescapable part of individual, social and organisational life.” Such an event can occur in a volatile environment because of uncertain economic or political conditions, globalisation processes and others. Some businesses also introduce changes by themselves to improve their organisational performance by affecting the structure, technology, or business approaches (Boddy, 2017, p. 417). That is why it is reasonable to analyse the relevant literature to identify suitable actions for La Pomme.

An appropriate strategy of action is to promote change leadership. According to Al-Ali et al. (2017, p. 724), it is essential to have a leader who is committed to bringing improvements to the organisation. Possible advantages are maximised if many, not one, employees share the same approach. Al-Ali et al. (2017, p. 725) demonstrate that change management initiatives can be successfully implemented if a leader acts as a role model for other employees. This information indicates that managers bear a significant responsibility regarding whether a change will be implemented to bring the accompanying benefits.

Since it has been found that promoting change leadership is required, it is necessary to understand how it can be performed by La Pomme. Firstly, Al-Ali et al. (2017, p. 726) admit that an appropriate organisational culture should exist to ensure that the business welcomes the proposed changes. There are different types of corporate cultures, but a hierarchy one seems effective because it relies on subordination and control, meaning that managers should offer changes, while employees should follow the suggestions (Al-Ali et al., 2017, p. 726). This approach can create a productive environment to bring improvements to the organisation.

Secondly, an effective way is to make leaders develop emotional intelligence. Issah (2018, p. 1) clarifies that this phenomenon includes “self-awareness, self-regulation, self-motivation, empathy, and social skill.” These five factors can help managers understand other employees’ emotions and feelings, build a coherent team and overcome individual resistance to change (Issah, 2018, p. 1). That is why there is no doubt that mastering emotional intelligence can contribute to more effective change leadership.

Thirdly, it is possible to achieve the desired goals with the help of specific education programmes. In particular, Lamm, Sapp and Lamm (2018, p. 121) stipulate that a leadership development programme is effective in increasing the level of change leadership among the involved participants. This information demonstrates that managers require qualified assistance to understand how and when they need to implement change leadership principles to guide the organisation and the employees.

The information above allows for suggesting that La Pomme can benefit from a few specific steps to implement more effective change management. Firstly, it is necessary to establish hierarchy organisational culture that promotes subordination to senior managers and an overall cooperative environment. Secondly, leaders should master emotional intelligence to understand employees and address their needs to make the latter engaged in change processes. Finally, appropriate educational programmes will also be necessary to help leaders at La Pomme lead the team through changes.

Motivation

Motivation is a complex phenomenon that makes people perform their tasks or refrain from them. When it comes to the hospitality industry, it becomes challenging to motivate employees since they are typically part-time workers who deal with customer contact roles (Mullins and Dossor, 2013, p. 290). Since this issue affects La Pomme, it is reasonable to identify practical approaches to ensure that the employees are sufficiently motivated to meet job expectations.

In the beginning, it is necessary to organise specific training and education for both employees and managers. This step is required to establish a psychological contract between these two groups. The term stands for “the set of understandings people have regarding the commitments made between themselves and their organisation” (Boddy, 2017, p. 478). This information denotes that employees and their supervisors should perfectly comprehend what expectations they have and how they should behave in particular situations during worktime.

However, establishing a psychological contract is not an easy task because it requires sufficient effort. Jaworski et al. (2018, p. 1) admit that specific training methods can positively affect the motivation and job satisfaction of part-time employees in the hospitality industry. The researchers indicate that on-the job training, including job instruction, coaching and job rotation, and shadowing are the most effective (Jaworski et al., 2018, p. 3). One should explain that shadowing implies that an employee should always follow their supervisor to receive meaningful feedback (Jaworski et al., 2018, p. 6). These approaches can help part-time employees identify their job requirements, while supervisors will understand the required amount of work that is expected from employees. This statement refers to the fact that managers should not think that part-time workers are motivated to work extra hours.

In addition to that, it is not necessary to ignore the effectiveness of monetary incentives. Multiple authors stipulate that this approach can significantly increase employees’ motivation (Jaworski et al., 2018, p. 1; Boddy, 2017, p. 481). However, Boddy (2017, p. 481) explicitly mentions that benefits may only be given when a worker has followed the required behaviour. This information demonstrates that wages can also help motivate workers.

Furthermore, employees’ motivation depends on how productive and friendly a working environment is. On the one hand, Ann and Blum (2020, p. 324) indicate that hospitality industry workers are more motivated and committed to the organisation when recognition is present. This information means that employees are more willing to meet expectations when they see that the organisation values them. On the other hand, providing workers with challenging and meaningful tasks contributes to their higher motivation (Calk and Patrick, 2017, p. 131). Thus, managers can use multiple approaches to increase the motivation of their part-time subordinates.

The literature findings above allow for making some recommendations for La Pomme. It is essential for the hotel to develop a specific training programme that will help create a psychological contract between managers and employees. Additional helpful factors include financial incentives, promoting recognition and providing workers with challenging and meaningful tasks. These interventions can result in the fact that part-time employees will show high job satisfaction and commitment to the organisation.

Cultural Diversity

The issue of cultural diversity is of significance for the hospitality industry. According to Mullins and Dossor (2013, p. 92), this sector implies “a mixed gender, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural workforce.” This information demonstrates that managers should do their best to govern such versatile teams. Simultaneously, Boddy (2017, p. 364) supports the idea above and highlights the possible challenges that can arise, including age and gender issues. That is why it is reasonable to comment on effective practices that can help La Pomme promote cultural diversity at the workplace.

On the one hand, it is necessary to ensure that a sufficient number of people with diverse cultural backgrounds enter the organisation. This can be possible with the help of appropriate hiring principles. In particular, the human resource department should not discriminate against people based on their ethnic peculiarities because this practice is considered illegal (Mullins and Dossor, 2013, p. 91). It denotes that businesses are welcome to hire representatives of various cultural minorities (Lozano and Escrich, 2017, p. 687). If La Pomme implements this principle, the organisation will have a diverse workforce, which will positively affect diversity.

On the other hand, specific approaches are required to ensure that the already hired employees promote cultural diversity. A suitable intervention is to organise relevant training sessions to facilitate positive intergroup relations, address prejudice and others. Roberson (2018, p. 78) highlights that positive outcomes can be achieved if a training programme offers valuable and appropriate content to make individuals respect one another’s peculiarities. These training sessions should teach individuals to assess their own biased ideas and make sure that they are not present in their behaviour (Roberson, 2018, p. 78). That is why it is possible to believe that this approach can generate positive outcomes.

In addition to that, it is possible to promote increased cultural intelligence with the help of mentorship. Young, Haffejee and Corsun (2017, p. 319) indicate that this practice can be beneficial for both mentors and their subordinates when these individuals represent different ethnic groups. The rationale behind this statement refers to the fact that when individuals from ethnic majorities and minorities work in close cooperation, they learn one another’s cultural peculiarities. As a result, this mutually beneficial process contributes to the fact that both managers and lower employees gain cultural intelligence and empathy to others (Young, Haffejee and Corsun, 2017, p. 319). Consequently, there is robust reasoning behind introducing the given practice in the hospitality industry.

According to the information above, it is possible to rely on multiple approaches to promote cultural diversity. One can divide them into two different groups, and the first one includes appropriate hiring practices that welcome diversity. This statement denotes that every hospitality organisation should ensure that its hiring procedure does not promote discrimination. The second group consist of various cultural education interventions, including training sessions and mentorship practice. It is possible to suggest that the combination of all these suggestions can contribute to the fact that cultural diversity, cultural intelligence, and empathy are present in the workplace.

Responsible and Sustainable Business Practice

Every organisation, irrespective of its size and specialisation, should ensure that its activities are responsible. The United Nations Organisation (no date) formulated 17 sustainable development goals that comment on what actions are required to make a better world for people. There is no doubt that it is almost impossible for a single hotel to meet all the objectives, but addressing a few of them can make a notable difference. That is why it is reasonable to explain what organisational practices can effectively be used to ensure that some of the UN goals are achieved.

On the one hand, it is worth admitting that one of the UN goals directly addresses the issue that is significant for the UK hospitality industry. It has been mentioned above that the business sector lacks female employees in senior management positions (Calinaud, Kokkranikal and Gebbles, 2021, p. 678). Simultaneously, Goal 5 advocates for gender equality and empowerment of women and girls (United Nations Organisation, no date). That is why it is reasonable to determine what efficient strategy can be used to address the issue. The article by Chang and Milkman (2020) focuses on the topic and analyses the existing interventions. According to the authors, blind decision-making is a practical approach to providing women with equal rights and opportunities at the workplace (Chang and Milkman, 2020, p. 100709). This strategy implies that a gender factor should not be available to a decision-maker. For example, when it comes to a hiring decision, a manager should evaluate candidates’ resumes that hide their genders and names. Simultaneously, an outside manager can deal with blind decision-making to determine which candidate should receive a promotion.

On the other hand, the UN also commented on those areas that do not directly affect the hospitality industry. For example, Goal 1 indicates that specific efforts and resources are necessary to combat poverty (United Nations Organisation, no date). Even though it can seem that the objective is global for a single hotel, every business can contribute to addressing it. Rhou and Singal (2020, p. 102330) stipulate that hotels can engage in charitable giving to impact communities. Since a business receives some profits from society members, it is logical that it can allocate some of its profits to bring positive changes to this society. Simultaneously, Lin, Wu and Tsai (2020, p. 103430) highlight the benefits of charity activities for a business because they satisfy ethical and philanthropic needs. Organisations deal with charity giving to promote social values and norms as well as help others (Lin, Wu and Tsai, 2020, p. 103430). The diagram below reveals that philanthropic and ethical needs are the most significant in society (Crane and Matten, 2016, p. 51). These literature findings demonstrate that meeting the UN goal can provide hospitality organisations with certain benefits.

It is possible to state that every business can make valuable contributions toward making the world better. Such an outcome is possible if organisations deal with responsible and sustainable activities. A few scholarly articles have demonstrated that hotels can participate in achieving some of the sustainable development goals by the United Nations Organisation (no date). Blind decision-making can lead to higher gender equality during hiring and promotion steps, while charitable giving is a practical approach to combat poverty in the community. These strategies are practical solutions to address significant issues that address society.

Conclusion

The paper has presented an analysis of multiple management issues in the hospitality industry. La Pomme is a small hotel in Oxford, and this business was considered an example to investigate the topic. The research activity has focused on four distinct areas, including change management approaches, part-time employee motivation, cultural diversity, and responsible and sustainable business practice. For each of these issues, the paper has found and synthesised relevant theoretical data and research findings. The ideas were extracted from reputable and timely books and scholarly articles. As a result, a robust scientific background supports the statements in the paper.

It is also worth admitting that the report has been organised according to a specific structure to ensure an easy flow of thought and connection between its constituent parts. The overview of the hospitality industry in the United Kingdom was followed by the analysis of the best management practices in various spheres. Each point of interest created a separate subheading, which satisfied the logic of the whole writing piece. Each subheading also had a concluding paragraph that summarised the literature findings. To sum it up, one should explicitly state how La Pomme can benefit from the identified data, and the following and final section will offer a few recommendations.

Recommendations

It is possible to offer five pieces of advice for La Pomme to manage the challenges that the business faces. Firstly, it is reasonable to implement better change management practices by promoting hierarchy organisational culture, welcoming emotional intelligence and using educational leadership programmes. Secondly, specific interventions are necessary to improve part-time employee motivation. Appropriate actions are to implement specific training programmes and offer financial incentives for meeting the required behavioural standards. Thirdly, it is possible to promote cultural diversity by making employees and managers participate in specific training sessions and mentorship programmes. This approach will help representatives of different ethnic groups better understand one another’s peculiarities. Fourthly, other culture sensitive practices can also have positive outcomes since they bring diversity to hiring and promotion decisions. Fifthly, hotels and other organisations are encouraged to involve in charity giving to combat poverty and achieve sustainable development goals. These suggestions can help La Pomme manage the existing challenges and become a successful organisation.

Reference List

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