Employee Satisfaction in The Hotel Industry

Question: Describe the Essay for Employee Satisfaction in The Hotel Industry. Answer: Introduction This research proposal aims to analyze the extent to which communication management strategies impact on employee satisfaction level in the hotel industry. Equally, it examines important communication strategies that can be utilized to increase employee satisfaction as well as describing the gap in New Zealand hotel industries. According to Biswas (2009), communication openness is an essential element in enhancing employee satisfaction. In the study conducted by the author, it was clear that open communication between subordinates and supervisors increases employee satisfaction as well as organizational performance. Equally, Men (2014) substantiates this claim by arguing that as a central process, internal communication allows employees to create relationships, share information, construct organizational values and culture as well as make meanings. Likewise, strong internal communication is essential in creating positive staff attitudes including job satisfaction, organizational comm itment, building trust, enhancing positive relationship between employees and the organization as well as organizational identification (Zhang Venkatesh, 2013). Establishing a sense of trust and community via internal communication entails maintaining and establishing relationships between employees, supervisors, and the organization. Organizations through social exchange theory understand employee attitudes and workplace relationships. The theory posits that understanding social exchange relationships in the workplace is essential in providing significant insights into the correlation between employee engagement and internal communication (Mishra, Boynton Mishra 2014). It is so unfortunate that a majority of organization system are centralized, thus affecting the flow of information between managers and employees. For all these reasons, organizations in the hotel industry need to boost employee morale by putting in place open channel of communications. Besides, creating a supportive environment is crucial in promoting employee job satisfaction. Therefore, the purpose of conducting this research is to analyze the role of management in enhan cing employee satisfaction in Holiday Inn Hotel Rotorua in New Zealand. The primary focus will be on the various management communication strategies being utilized in this hotel to enhance the performance and loyalty of its employees as well as its competitiveness in the hotel industry. The independent variable in the study is communication strategies and the dependent variable is employee satisfaction. The type of communication strategies utilized by the organization greatly determines the level of employee satisfaction. However, there is the lack of adequate information regarding effective communication strategies that can be used to enhance employee satisfaction in the hotel industry. For this reason, the current research aims to address this gap by studying the communication strategies used by Holiday Inn, Hotel Rotorua in New Zealand to improve employee satisfaction. The study sample will comprise of employees working in various departments in Holiday Inn, Hotel Rotorua in New Zealand. Besides, it will take into consideration individuals from distinct racial backgrounds, ages, and occupy distinct positions in the organization. The study sample will answer various questions on their views regarding communication openness in the organization and how they think it affects their job performance. The obtained data will be presented in various themes and tables for easy interpretation. The Aim of Conducting the Above Research Internal communication plays an essential role in providing crucial information to employees in order to perform their jobs effectively. Getting accurate and timely information makes employees feel valued by the organization. Therefore, carrying out the research will provide significant insights on how employee productivity and morale is affected by the available communication channels and management style utilized in the hotel industry. Ideally, management styles and strategies as well as communication effectiveness affect the level of employee satisfaction, and subsequently their productivity. Research Questions Finding out the role of internal communication in enhancing employee satisfaction in the hotel industry Determining how hotels can utilize both upward and downward communication strategies to boost employee satisfaction To find out the role of management in promoting effective communication between employees and customers Research Objectives The primary objectives of the research are: To provide a detailed analysis of the types, methods, and channels of internal communication strategies utilized in Holiday Inn, Hotel Rotorua in New Zealand To figure out whether employees are satisfied with their jobs in relation to the communication strategies used, and how they intend to develop their careers To analyze the process and flow of communication in Holiday Inn, Hotel Rotorua in New Zealand To determine any gaps in the communication process that makes employees feel less satisfied with their jobs. Research Hypothesis Implementation of effective communication strategies in the hotel induustry results in positive attitudes among employees including job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and improved trust. Literature Review As a central process, internal communication allows staffs to establish relationships and share information. Karanges et al.(2014) consider internal communication as the foundation for contemporary companies. According to existing evidence, excellent internal communication is essential in creating positive attitudes among employees and consequently organizational learning, improved performance, and higher productivity. Various factors influence internal communication including enforcing an organizational culture that is more participative, diversity, and asymmetrical communication system. These factors are crucial in facilitating communication between employees and the management. Walandari and Burgess (2011) note that communication between subordinates and organizational leaders are the main aspect of the internal communication system because leaders are considered credible and preferred information sources by the staff. However, organizational leaders communication styles, communic ation competence, and communication behaviors influence the outcome of employees. For instance, managers have a tendency of utilizing their interpersonal interaction and organization system to persuade their subordinates. French, Bell, and Zawacki (2000) argues that the manner in which a leader distributes and gathers information is a source of power. For this reason, some organization managers hold information from their staff to render them powerless. Such an action from Malik and Goyal(2003) point of view jeopardizes employee commitment, input and motivation. For communication to be effective, trust must be nurtured between organizational leaders and managers. Zemguliene(2012) in his study concludes that trust plays an essential role in developing openness and effective communication between the management and employees; between management and trade union and between subordinates and superiors. The author also notes that open and effective communication improves job performance whereas trust helps in building stability, cooperation, and interpersonal relationship within the company. Various scholars highlight the importance of communication openness in boosting staffs job satisfaction. For example, Bryne and LeMay(2006) suggests that there is a connection between superiors and subordinates job satisfaction, pay and promotion satisfaction and communication openness. Overview of Internal Communication in the Hotel Industry According to Proctor and Doukakis (2003), staffs in the hotel industry are mandated to communicate effectively to their clients. However, possessing effective communication skills requires workers in the hotel industry to exhibit strong communication skills. Failure to communicate effectively with customers jeopardizes the performance of the hotel business. Communication in the hotel industry is not only limited to customers but also effectively communicating inventory and sales reports with various departments (Sarangi Srivastava, 2012). Therefore, a majority of organizations in the hotel industry make use of both downward and upward communication strategies to improve employee job satisfaction and customer service. Accordingly, they make use of a wide range of communication techniques including memos, social media sites,bulletins, press releases, CDs and newsletters to pass crucial information to both employees and customers (Xiaojun Venkatesh, 2013). The use of social media site s such as facebook provides instant communication between employees and managers. Additionally, it allow employees to air their grievances and take part in the decision making process regarding issues affecting the organization. This in turn results in employee satisfaction and productivity. However, Diercksen et al.(2015) note that poor use of social media in the organization can take away employee value especially when staffs channel most of their time chatting with friends rather than marketing the organizations. In a study conducted among the United Kingdom employees, it was evident that staff spends about 40minutes on a single day surfing the internet. This time is used for personal issues rather than work, hence reducing their productivity. Downward communication refers to the flow of information from the top management to the subordinates (Yan, 2011). It is the upper management that is required to initiate downward communication. Through these communication strategies, it becomes easier to assign tasks, give orders, and provide directions and instructions. Downward communication strategy is also utilized to identify problems that require immediate attention, inform staff of job policies and procedures, and offer employees with feedback regarding their job performance (Hall, 2016; Keyton et al., 2013). Ideally, downward communication is essential in telling employees what is expected from them and how they are performing in regards to achieving organizational objectives. In terms of satisfying the needs of employees, it is important that they obtain accurate and sufficient information about their jobs and the overall performance of the organization. According to Yan (2011), there are six main areas that employees expect to know about from the organization top management. These areas include what their jobs entail, their performance, if the organization really cares about them, how their department is performing, the future of their organization and what they need to do to help the organization in realizing its objectives. Research also indicates that it is essential for the organization management to communicate why certain decisions are made. It is so unfortunate that a majority of managers fails to inform employees on what is going on in the organization because they consider it unnecessary. However, research indicates that explaining to employees what is going on in the organization improves their support for and commitment to company objectives and goals (Abdullah Antony, 2012). In addition to downward communication, it is also important for the hotel industry to also invest in upward communication. The primary objective of upward communication is to inform managers about subordinates feelings and their concerns in the workplace (Abdullah Antony, 2012). Through upward communication, supervisors and managers can obtain important feedbacks regarding problems and changes in a project as well as creative ideas on how to boost profits and customer satisfaction. For all these reasons, the organizations in the hotel industry should promote both downward and upward communication strategies to enhance job satisfaction and improved performance. Summarized Individual Studies According to a study conducted by Quirke (2005), the hotel industry just like any other organizations requires effective communication to minimize costs and enhance employee job satisfaction. The author also notes that effective communication networks are crucial in sharing best practices, raising standards, and developing cohesive teams. Accordingly, internal communication practices in an organization are essential in staff engagement and improved productivity. In another study conducted by Abdullah and Antony (2012), to enhance employees job satisfaction, effective and strategic communication is essential in disseminating proper, accurate, and timely information to organization staff. The author also found out that horizontal communication, top-down communication, and bottom-up communication improves the relationship between the hotel and its employees. Through effective communication strategies, both the staff and the public are informed of the decisions and events that affect the productivity and the operation of the hotel. To realize the benefits of communication, it is important for the organizations in the hotel industry to sustain and nurture a systematic flow of relevant, timely, and credible information. Besides, the hallmark of effective communication is clarity because without it, employees become complacent, confused, and in some instances chaotic (Abdullah Antony, 2012). The author also argues that the vital role of employees in the communication process is only acknowledged if they have the support, tools, and capability to accomplish their tasks which consequently results in enhanced job satisfaction. The function of communication in the hotel industry is to establish mutual understanding between the staff and the upper management and vice versa. Besides, using and determining the right methods, channels, and internal content improves connectedness and understanding among employees regarding the hotel events and corporate goals. Research Methodology The research design for my study is mixed study design also known as triangulation. The reason for choosing this study design is because it permits the study participants to respond to questions from multiple perspectives. It also makes sure that there are no gaps in regards to the data or information obtained (Bryman Bell, 2015). Since mixed methodology is an integration of qualitative and quantitative approaches, when one of the approaches fails in providing the required information, the other one complements it. For selecting study participants, I will make use of snow-ball sampling because it will help in interviewing staffs working at different departments in Holiday Inn, Hotel Rotorua. Advantages of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Design As an exploratory research, qualitative research is used to gain a better comprehension of the underlying motivations, opinions, and reasons behind a research. It also provides significant insights into the research problem and aids in the developing hypothesis or ideas crucial for quantitative research. Quantitative research, on the other hand, quantifies the study problem by generating data or numerical information that is changed into useful statistics. For the study, questionnaires will be utilized to obtain in-depth information from the study participants. A questionnaire refers to a set of written or printed queries used in a statistical study or survey. The benefits of using questionnaires include permitting the collection of data in a cost effective manner from a large number of people; it is practical, and the results are easily quantifies using a software package (Bryman Bell, 2015). The use of questionnaires will provide study participants with an opportunity to provide t heir viewpoints regarding the subject under study. A likert scale (1-Strongly Agree; 2-Agree, 3-Undecided, 4-Strongly Disagree and 5-Agree) will also be utilized to rate employees level of satisfaction in regards to the communication strategies used by the organization. Snow-ball sampling Snow-ball sampling is the best method for my study. Through this method, I will be able to sample employees from different departments in the company under study. As such, I will be in a position to acquire detailed information regarding the management strategies utilized to enhance their performance and whether the communication strategies in place are effective. Projected Findings The projected findings are that communication, both upward and downward communication plays an essential role in enhancing employee satisfaction and reducing turnover in the organization. For this reason, it is the responsibility of organizational leaders to invest in various communication channels where employees can air their grievances and the management responds to their queries. Additionally, through communication, employees can add value to the company services and products as well as share their creative ideas. Descriptive analysis tool will be utilized to find the relationship between independent and dependent variables. Through this tool, summaries about the measures and sample used will be outlined. Additionally, it makes use of simple graphics to analyze data obtained from the questionnaires. Conclusion Conclusively, based on the above research, it is evident that the projected findings emphasize the importance of strategic communication in enhancing employee and organization performance. The use of both upward and downward communication strategies are crucial in making employees committed towards realizing the organizational objectives and making them satisfied. Poor communication in the industry also results in confusion, chaos, and reduced productivity. For this reason, it is important for managers in the hotel industry to invest in communication strategies such as upward, downward, and horizontal communication strategies that motivate their workers and in turn enhances the experience of customers in the industry. The potential users of the study findings are managers and leaders in various industries who wish to enhance the morale of their employees and enhance their competitiveness in the industry. For instance, the study findings aim to provide the target audience with crucial information on the role that leaders play in promoting transparent communication. Additionally, the paper provides significant insights on how effective communication in the organization promotes job satisfaction and performance of the staff. Through the research, the target audience will gain significant insights on the importance of having in place a decentralized system and investing in various communication channels. However, the outcome of organization effectiveness greatly depends on the integrity, transparency, accountability, consistency, and fairness of leaders. The study is characterized by various limitations that should be considered in future research. To start with, the research is only limited to employees working in the hotel industry. For this reason, future studies should compare organizations from distinct industries. Secondly, the information for the research target employees from various departments rather than also taking into account the perspective of the managers. Therefore, future research should also consider organizational leaders perspective so that obtained findings can be generalized to the whole population. Despite the fact that the study enhances the target audience comprehension of the connection between employee outcomes, internal communication, and leadership, it does not incorporate a wide range of data collection methods including the use of participant observation, focus group and documentary analysis. The study is limited to interviews and questionnaires. For all these reasons, studies in the future should util ize samples from various cultural settings and organizations rather than limiting themselves to one sector and culture. 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