IHMN
The hospitality industry is categories under the service providing industry. Its focus is on lodgings, theme parks, event planning, transportation, and some fields in the tourism industry. Notably, the hospitality industry is several billions dollar. According to Select USA website, the travel and tourism industry generated approximately $1.5 trillion in terms of economic output for the USA in 2012. The hospitality industry is highly competitive. Those in the industry face competitions from new entrants and among themselves. Essentially, firms and organization in the industry are always alert with the ever-charging market demand, supply, as well as technological advancement. The fact that they will have to deal with such inconsistencies without affecting their productivity means that they have to be innovative in their dealing (Adler & Adler, 2004). The presentation seeks to analyze, reflect, related, and questions the current hospitality industry.
The hospitality industry is ever charging. Consequently, leaders and managements are responding strategically to ensure that their organizations thrifts through the challenges and adversaries. According Torres’ talk this year, she explained three important practices by leaders who have been able to successful grow their potentials in the 21 Century. First, these leaders gather information of the market. They develop models based on what they learn from the market. Secondly, these leaders have learned to measure personal and professional stakeholder network diversity. Essentially, they understand relationships of different people. The understanding is important because enables you relate with other people well, thereby, they trust you and easy cooperation in achieving common goal. Lastly, these leaders are courageous, take bold steps, and are willing to take risks. They acknowledge that they think differently are willing to join in taking a risk. On the same, Abdelgawad, Zahra, Svejenova, &Sapienza, in 2013 holds entrepreneurial capability in shaping how and business performs in the market. In addition, just like Torres, states that a firm must be able to sense, select and shape opportunities in a strategic manner.
Labor force, especially skilled, is an important component of any industry. According to Dave Cowen, the General Manger of Garden and current chair of Tourism, there are more trained professionals in the hotel industry compared to the available vacancies (Paul & Elder, 2007). However, he states further that there are about 108, 383 jobs in the industry but the professionalism and experience of people do not meet necessary qualifications. In addition, Cowen argues that there is need to replace some individuals in the hospitality industry. Lastly, he conclude by saying that there is need to address labor issues in the industry.
According to Adler & Adler, 2004, there are various ways of addressing the labor challenges presented by Cowen. Among them is thinking about giving the hospitality management a completely new approach in the way they recruit their workers and maintain them within the industry. The workers are important part of the industry, therefore, they should be treated fairly and in a manner that they will feel a sense of belonging. Principally, works that feel important and treated fairly give a personalized approach in their daily duty in the industry (Tesone, 2005). Essentially, the most important factor with the labor industry in hospitality is how to improve on the image of the company. It can only be possible if the respective industries were able to close the gap in labor supply that stood at 14,000. Closing this gap means that these people had to be professionals in the respective fields which was only possible through experience and acquiring the appropriate skills. It means that people who are responsible for the image of the company, especially the cooks, the chefs, and the servers must have a good mastery of their jobs (Adler & Adler, 2004).
Demand and supply are important force that drives the market. These forces some affect the hospital industry to a significant level especially the tourism industry. The tourism industry has high and low seasons. Consequently, when there are more tourists, that is high demand for services, this industry employs an extra number of workers to meet the client expectations. Essentially, understanding how demand and supply are related is an important point toward solving labor issues in the hospitality industry.
According to the HR principles, replacing individuals, especially those who are experts in their fields such as the chefs and the cooks would require a lot of time before the institution resumes normality or even better starts realizing the benefits of such kinds of changes (Tesone, 2005). Training individuals requires patience, time, and resources before realizing the benefits of such kinds of advances. What is even worse is the fact that after such kinds of training exercises the trainees may seek for better grounds for exploiting what they have been taught by their previous employers. It places a greater part of the challenge on the trainers to come up with ways of retaining their employees such us increasing their labor wages or salaries and improving the working conditions of the workers.
The hospitality industry faces many challenges. Therefore, any organization that is under this industry should have a disaster management community. For instance, tourism industry is an international mobile industry; consequently, this industry must faces hazards like contagious diseases and terrorist attack (Accessible Tourism, 2010). Mostly, hotel industry faces much of the risks associated to terrorist attack. Implying that hotel invest a lot of money in putting in place measures that lowers risks being attacked under disaster management (Gruman, Chhinzer, & Smith, 2011). . However, terrorists are becoming organized day after day. Thus, professionals of disaster management have and are developing frameworks to put in place to cub the ever-increasing risk in disaster management. However, it cannot be ignored; the hospitality industry as well has mechanisms in place to help in recovery in case of a disaster that is pro-activeness (Krummert, 2005). .
After the presentations, proposing changing of employees in the hospitality industry I feel to know what would be the effects on the institution’s activities and economic growth. I also wanted to discuss with the speaker the role of those in authority in retaining their employees. However, much of the talk was centered on the nature of the labor industry, but very little was mentioned in line with the reasons as to why the problem continues to persist and their origin. The only people who are closest to workers in the hospitality industry are their respective employers. If there is a labor gap, the employers are at a position to clarify the sectors where such professionalism is required. Human resource has a lot to do with the leadership status of the organizations (Adler & Adler, 2004). In hospitality industry, little has being done with regard to the administrative challenges that the workers have to put up with in their daily duty. The way in which those who are in authority manage the workers has everything do with how their decisions affect the respective workers (Adler & Adler, 2004).
The hospitality industry is important and for it to be more efficient and adaptive to changes, its leadership should employ and put in place measures necessary. The employees as well require necessary skill in order to improve the quality of services given to the clients.
References
Abdelgawad, S., Zahra, S., Svejenova, S., &Sapienza, H. (2013). Strategic Leadership and Entrepreneurial Capability for Game Change. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 20(4), 394-407. doi: 10.1177/1548051813475484.
Accessible Tourism. (2010). Clevedon: Channel View Publications
Adler, P. A., & Adler, P. (2004).Paradise laborers: Hotel work in the global economy. Ithaca [N.Y.: ILR Press.
Coleman, S., &Crang, M. (2001).Tourism: Between place and performance.Oxford: Berghahn.
Gruman, J. A., Chhinzer, N., & Smith, G. W. (2011). An exploratory study of the level of disaster preparedness in the canadian hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Administration, 12(1), 43-59. doi:10.1080/15256480.2011.540980
Mitchell, J., & Ashley, C. (2010).Tourism and poverty reduction: Pathways to prosperity.London: Earthscan.
Krummert, B. (2005). How to stay in the game after a crisis. Restaurant Hospitality, 89(10), 28-28
Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2007). The miniature guide to critical thinking: concepts and tools. Dillon Beach, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking Press. 13 pages.
Tesone, D. V. (2005). Human resource management in the hospitality industry: A practitioner's perspective.Upper Saddle River, N.J: PEARSON/Prentice Hall.
Roselinde Torres "What it Takes to Be a great Leader". [Video file]
