Impact of Covid-19 on Work Flexibility in Hospitality: A Case Study on Hilton Hotel

LT6P19GN: Research Methods and Project
ASSESSMENT COVER SHEET
PROGRAMME TITLE: BA (Hons) Hospitality Management (Top Up)
MODULE TITLE: Research Methods and Projects
MODULE CODE:
INTAKE/SEMESTER:
ASSESSMENT TITLE: Research Project Proposal
MODULE LEADER/LECTURER
STUDENT ID: (London Met)
STUDENT ID:
STUDENT NAME:
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: 019
I declare that all material in this assignment is my own work except where there is clear
acknowledgement or reference to the work of others and I have complied and agreed to the
College statement on Plagiarism and Academic Integrity on the College Student Handbook
provided at Induction.
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should be submitted in electronic format via college systems on or before the submission deadline. The
e-submission system will not allow late submissions. By submitting this assignment and cover sheet
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Research Proposal (HM Top-Up)- Autumn 2021

LT6P19GN: Research Methods and Project
Research Topic/ Research Question:
1. INTRODUCTION.
Research Background: Work flexibility refers to the opportunity provided to employees in order to
work freely at their own timings and even work remotely for the benefit of the organization ( Angelici,
and Profeta, 2020). It has been determined that before the outbreak of Covid 19, the employees within
hospitality sector used to work 24*7 as the nature of their work demands the same. However, the
outbreak of Covid 19 has provided the workforce within the hospitality sector to manage them
according to their own time and convenience and made them learn how things can be operated
remotely. The adaptability to change is helping the hospitality industry to grow and manage the
operations easily within their hotels. In the present proposal, the Hilton Hotel has been chosen which
provides its customers with premium quality services at reasonable price. The present proposal will aim
to determine the impact of Covid 19 on the operating and work flexibility of the workforce within the
hospitality sector.
Aims & Objectives
Aim: To analyse the impact of Covid 19 on work flexibility and environment of hospitality
organizations: A case study on Hilton Hotel.
Objectives:
I. To develop an understanding about the concept of work flexibility.
II. To determine the impact of Covid 19 on the work flexibility of the employees within the hospitality
sector
III. To assess the importance of work flexibility within the hospitality sector.
Research Questions:
i. What is the concept of work flexibility with its benefits as well as drawbacks?
ii. How Covid 19 affected the work flexibility and the environment of the hospitality sector?
iii. Determine the importance of work flexibility with respect to the hospitality industry.
iv. To recommend ways in which the work flexibility can be implemented within the
hospitality industry.
Research Rationale: The major reason behind carrying out this research is to determine how Covid 19
affected the work flexibility and environment of the Hilton Hotel. This is recognized as the research
issue as it has been determined that the Covid 19 has affected the operations, policies, and timings of all
the industries. It is considered as an issue because it has been identified that there are organization who
are satisfied with the changes brought within their organization after the Covid 19 but there are several
organizations who have faced difficulties in such times. Therefore, thematic perception test technique
will be used in order to determine the impact of Covid 19 on the work flexibility and the environment
of the Hilton Hotel.
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Research Proposal (HM Top-Up)- Autumn 2021

LT6P19GN: Research Methods and Project
Scope of Research Study: The present study will be helpful for the research scholars carrying out
research similar to the current study in evaluating the data collected by them and forming conclusions
on the basis of the same.
2. LITERATURE REVIEW:
Theme 1 : To determine the meaning and concept of work flexibility including its advantages
and disadvantages.
According to Beno, (2018), work flexibility can be defined as the opportunity given by the
employer to the employee to work freely at the time when it is convenient for them. It provides the
employees the opportunity to continue working with their jobs by taking those timings which are
suitable for them to carry out their work related activities. As investigated by Vyas, and Butakhieo,
(2021), it can be stated that the flexible working hours helps an organization with a number of
advantages such as the ability to work at flexible hours increases the comfort of the workforce and
thus, increases their productivity. It also helps the organization in hiring employees from remote place
who cannot work from office to make them work from their home and utilize their talent for the
benefit of the organization. Since, less employees work from office, it also reduces the office
expenses of an organization. On the contrary, Yawson, (2020) states that there are certain
disadvantages of the work flexibility too. This involves not making optimum use of the time provided
to them. There are certain employees who misuse the facility of work in flexible shifts as there is no
one to keep an eye on them.
Theme 2 : To identify the impact of Covid 19 on the work flexibility and environment of the
Hilton hotel.
As investigated by Chung, and Van der Lippe, (2020), due to the Covid 19, many workers
within the Hilton Hotel were not able to join the hotel as the employees within the hotel belongs to
various regions. Due to the outbreak of Covid 19 and the imposition of lock down, the Hilton Hotel
had to face staff turnover and also face a reduction in the staff working within the hotel. Due to which,
the hotel had to provide the employees the opportunity to manage the work by being at remote places.
Theme 3 : To determine the importance of work flexibility in the context of hospitality sector.
According to Lehdonvirta, (2018), the work flexibility is of great use for the hospitality
industry as it increases the productivity of employees, enhances the satisfaction of employees, retains
the talent , reduces as the cost and lastly enhances the profitability of the business.
METHODOLOGY
Research type
There are mainly two types of research, namely, qualitative and quantitative. In order to
determine the impact of Covid 19 on the work flexibility of the hospitality sector, the qualitative
research has been chosen.
Research Approach
For the purpose of evaluating the impact of the Covid 19 on the hospitality sector , the
inductive approach of research will be used. The inductive approach of research helps in analysing
and forming conclusions on the basis of qualitative data collected.
Research design
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Research Proposal (HM Top-Up)- Autumn 2021