Crisis Management in the Hospitality Sector: A Study on The Edinburgh Grand

This research report investigates the importance of managing crisis in the hospitality sector, with a focus on the challenges faced by the Edinburgh Grand during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report aims to identify current practices adopted by the hotel, investigate the importance of managing crises, and recommend better strategies for managing crises during the pandemic.

PHigher National in Hospitality Management
Unit 18 Research Project
RESEARCH PROPOSAL FORM
STUDENT DETAILS
Section One : Research Title, Aim and Objectives
Research Title: Crisis management in the hospitality
sector…………………………………………….
Introduction
The current Research report is based on the crisis management in the hospitality sector. This crisis is
based on the covid-19 pandemic. It is important to manage the crisis because if it is not managed
then it can lead to the great losses to the organisations and bad reputation in the marketplace. That is
why the current Research report has the aim which specifies the importance of managing the crisis in
the hospitality sector. Organisation chosen is the Edinburg Grand hotel which is headquartered in
United kingdom. The following discussion has the objectives such as the identification of the
challenges faced by the hospitality sector during covid-19 pandemic crisis. Other objectives are the
practices adopted by the hotel while managing the crisis and to investigate the importance of
management of the crisis. The final is the recommendation with proper conclusion.
Research Aim(What do you wish to find out or achieve?) :
The aim of this project is to investigate/explore/study The importance of managing crisis in
the hospitality sector: A study on The Edinburgh Grand
……………………………………………………………
Research Objectives (How do you want to achieve this aim. At least three/four objectives).
To achieve this aim, the following objectives have been proposed.
i. To identify the challenges faced by hospitality sector during Covid 19 pandemic crises
ii. To assess the current practices adopted by The Edinburgh Grand while managing the
crises of covid 19 pandemic
iii. To investigate the importance of managing crises to The Edinburgh Grand
iv. To be able to recommend better strategies for managing the crises at the time of Covid 19
pandemic
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Research Questions (convert eachobjective above into a research question)
i. What are the challenges faced by hospitality sector during Covid 19 pandemic crises?
ii. What are the current practices adopted by The Edinburgh Grand while managing the
crises of covid 19 pandemic?
iii. What is the importance of managing crises to The Edinburgh Grand?
iv. What can be the recommendation for better strategies for managing the crises at the time
of Covid 19 pandemic?
Section Two: Research Rationale and Scope
Rationale/Justification for the Topic: this should briefly cover the following three areas.
i- Personal reasons for choosing the project topic (e.g. links to other subjects you are
studying, personal interest, future plans, knowledge/skills you want to improve)
ii- The gap identified in the literature
iii- Practical benefits of the study (i.e. state the beneficiaries of the study).
I have chosen this topic because I have a personal interest in investigating the hospitality sector.
Covid-19 is the current situation and the trendy topic on which the investigation and taking can be
effective and can provide solutions to the organisation as well. I have gained skills such as Research
and communication skills and I have also used the existing skills such as the problem solving skills
and the time management skills. I have found out the gaps identified in the literature which is in the
terms of Data collection methodology which lacks the authentication of the information delivered in
the Research report. This Research report benefits both the investigator as well as the organisation
on which the investigation is undertaken. This can help in providing the various solutions to the
crisis and its management.
Research Scope:this should briefly cover the following.
i. State the geographical area and name of organisation the research will focus on. Give
reason.
ii. State the units of study (i.e. the target groupsthat the study will focus on)
iii. List the theories and/or themes that will be involvedin the study.
I have undertaken this research on the Edinburg Grand hotel because this is one of the highest
rated hotels in the United kingdom. Therefore various theories and models are studied in the
current report so that it can be known that how the highest rated hotel has managed its crisis during
the covid-19 and how they will overcome with various strategies they have adopted in order to
resolve all the issues they are facing currently in its operations and Management.
Section three : Preliminary Literature Review
The Literature Review, at this stage of the research process, does not have to be critical literature
review but each reviewed source should cover the following
i. Cite the author(s) and yearaccording the Harvard referencing style
ii. The focus of the literature
iii. Summary of the main points/findings.
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iv. Methodology used ( if applicable)
v. Briefly note why that literature/study is helpful in your project.
Challenges faced by hospitality sector during Covid 19 pandemic crises
According to Le and Phi, (2021), There are various challenges which are faced by the
hospitality sector during covid-19 pandemic crisis. Low sales and income is one of the
challenges which states that there are less number of people who prefer the hospitality
services in the covid-19 as compared to pre covid-19. This is because most of the people
are becoming health conscious and are reluctant to use the outside services. Therefore it
has resulted in the loss of sales and income for the hospitality sector.
According to Le, Phi and Le, (2021), Pandemic has led to the lockdown in which the
customers are unable to take the services of the hospitality sector. Even the customers who
are willing for the hospitality services are not able to receive due to the lock down policy for
some months in the entire world. The hospitality sector has also faced the challenge in
human resource management because of the large turnover and low morale of the
employees as well.
Current practices adopted by The Edinburgh Grand while managing the crises of covid
19 pandemic
According to Garrido-Moreno, Garcia-Morales and Martin-Rojas, (2021), There are several
Current practices adopted by the hotel while managing the crisis of covid-19 pandemic.
Such as the hotel has analysed that they are becoming low in their sales and revenue
generations from the past few months. They are very well known about the current situation
of covid-19 and because of the external business environment, the situation is
uncontrollable and nobody can do anything to improve the situation.
According to Wut, Xu and Wong, (2021), Therefore the hotel has decided to use this period
of covid-19 to change their business model and their strategies so that their finances can be
maintained and they can convert their human resource management into strategic human
resource Management. They have changed their decision making policies and data analysis
by simply implementing the new technologies in their hotel so that they can reach the
customer experiences.
Importance of managing crises to The Edinburgh Grand
According to Papadopoulos, Baltas and Balta, (2020), It is important to manage the crisis for
the hotel by adopting the strategies of operations and human resource management in an
effective and efficient manner so that the productivity can be at its potential level at the time
of crisis. The reason behind the importance of managing the crisis is that it can help the
hotel in improving productivity and enhance the number of sales and revenue generated.
According to Zhong, Sun, Law and Li, (2021), Moreover, they can boost the employee’s
morale and motivate their staff so that they can work harder and smarter both at the same
time. This can also reduce the employee turnover and can increase the sales turnover.
Moreover, it can also result in the innovation and creativity in the organisation so that the
unique selling proposition can be more effective in the marketplace. That is why
management of a crisis is important for the hotel.
Recommend better strategies for managing the crises at the time of Covid 19 pandemic
According to Ratten, (2020), It is recommended that the hotel must adopt some of the
effective strategies for managing the crisis at the time of covid-19 pandemic. Such
recommendation includes the adoption of different operation management techniques such
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as total quality management and just in time management along with the inventory
management with the help of six sigma as well.
According to Filimonau, (2021), It is suggested that total must focus on the employee
management and engagement as well so that the proper communication flow can be
maintained with better interaction level among the employers and employees. This helps in
maintaining the positive working environment and diversity management as well.
Section Four: Overview of Research Methodology:
Discuss in short your research methods, philosophical approaches, research design e.g
qualitative/quantitative/mixed, research sample and sampling techniques.
Research philosophy used in the current Research report is positivism. Research approach used is
the deductive approach for the current investigation. Research choice used is the mono method in
the form of quantitative data analysis. The research strategy used for the current research is the
survey in the form of a questionnaire which will contain the set of questions multiple choice answers
have to be answered by the participants. There will be 50 participants. Research time horizon
chosen is the cross-sectional which is a short-term investigation. Research techniques and
procedures used are both the primary and the secondary data collection methods. Primary
collection is used in the form of literature review which will contain the delivered content with the
help of books and journals along with the articles and internet. Secondary collection is used in the
form of surveys with the help of questionnaires in which the data will be collected from different
participants and will be analysed in the form of graphs and interpret results.
Ethical Aspect of Study
See Ethics Form below
SECTION FIVE: BREAKDOWN OF ACTIVITIES AND TIMESCALE
Include a Gantt Chart to reflect your research planning.
List of References : References used so far (using Harvard referencing style)
Filimonau, V., 2021. The prospects of waste management in the hospitality sector post COVID-
19. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 168, p.105272.
Garrido-Moreno, A., Garcia-Morales, V.J. and Martin-Rojas, R., 2021. Going beyond the curve:
Strategic measures to recover hotel activity in times of COVID-19. International Journal of
Hospitality Management, 96, p.102928.
Le, D. and Phi, G., 2021. Strategic responses of the hotel sector to COVID-19: Toward a refined
pandemic crisis management framework. International Journal of Hospitality
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Management, 94, p.102808.
Le, D., Phi, G.T. and Le, T.H., 2021. Integrating Chaotic Perspective and Behavioral Learning
Theory into a Global Pandemic Crisis Management Framework for Hotel Service
Providers. Service Science, 13(4), pp.275-293.
Papadopoulos, T., Baltas, K.N. and Balta, M.E., 2020. The use of digital technologies by small and
medium enterprises during COVID-19: Implications for theory and practice. International
Journal of Information Management, 55, p.102192.
Ratten, V., 2020. Coronavirus (covid-19) and entrepreneurship: changing life and work
landscape. Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship, 32(5), pp.503-516.
Wut, T.M., Xu, J.B. and Wong, S.M., 2021. Crisis management research (1985–2020) in the
hospitality and tourism industry: A review and research agenda. Tourism Management, 85,
p.104307.
Zhong, L., Sun, S., Law, R. and Li, X., 2021. Tourism crisis management: Evidence from COVID-
19. Current Issues in Tourism, 24(19), pp.2671-2682.
…………………………………………………………………………………………
Student Declaration
I confirm that the proposed Research Project is not work that has been or will be submitted for
another qualification or by another student and is appropriate:
Student Name and Signature: Date:
Comments and Agreement from Tutor
Comments:
I confirm that the project is not work that has been or will be submitted for another qualification and
is appropriate:
Agreed: (Name) (Date)
Research ethics approval form
All students conducting research activity that involves human participants or the
use of data, collected from human participants, may be required to gain ethical
approval before commencing their research. Please answer all relevant questions
and note that your form may be returned if incomplete.
For further support and guidance please see your Unit Tutor.
Unit 18 Research Project Proposal–
Spring 2021

SectionOne:Basicdetails
ProjectTitle:
Before completing this form, we advise that you discuss your proposed research fully with your
Unit Tutor. Please complete this form in good time before your research project is due to
commence.
Crisis management in the hospitality sector
Student Details
Student Name Student ID
Section Two: Project summary
Please select all research methods that you plan to use as part of your project:
Interviews
Questionnaires
Observations
Use of Personal Records
Data Analysis
Action Research
Focus Groups
Other (please specify)
Section Three: Participants
Will your research involve human participants? Yes
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No

Who are the participants? Tick all that apply
Ages 12-16 Adults:
How will participants be recruited (identified and approached)?
Participants will be identified according to the target age group audiences who
will majorly be adults and youngsters but not children. They will be approached
through survey links and advertisements so that they can fill up the survey at
their own interest.
Describe the process you will use to inform participants about what you are
doing:
Survey form which will be in the form of questionnaire will contain the
information about the investigation and the set of questions as well in the form
of multiple choice questions with the availability of options.
How will you obtain consent from participants? Will this be written? How will it
be made clear to participants that they may withdraw consent to participate at
any time?
Consent will be in the written form attached with the questionnaire survey
containing all the detailing about the investigation.
Unit 18 Research Project Proposal–
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Young people aged 17-18:

Studies involving questionnaires: Will participants be given the option of omitting
questions they do not wish to answer?
Yes:
If No, please explain why below and ensure that you cover any ethical issues
arising from this:
Studies involving observation: Confirm whether participants will be asked for their
informed consent to be approved.
Yes:
Will you debrief participants at the end of their participation? (e.g. give them a brief
explanation of the study)
Yes:
Will participants be given information about the findings of your study? (This could be
a summary of your findings generally)
Yes:
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No:
No:
No:
No:

Section Four: Data storage and security
Confirm that all personal data will be stored and processed in compliance with
the Data Protection Act (1998)
Yes:
Who will have access to the data and personal information?
The investigator itself
During the research
Where will the data be stored?
With the investigator
Will mobile devices, such as USB storage and laptops, be used?
Yes:
If yes, please provide further details:
After the research
Where will the data be stored?
The investigator itself
How long will the data and records be kept, and in what format?
Till further five years
Unit 18 Research Project Proposal–
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No:
No:

Will the data be kept for use by other researchers?
Yes:
If yes, please provide further details:
Section Five: Ethical issues
Are there any particular features of your proposed work which may raise ethical
concerns? If so, please outline how you will deal with these:
It is important that you demonstrate your awareness of potential risks that may
arise as a result of your research. Please consider/address all issues that may
apply. Ethical concerns may include, but are not limited to the following:
informed consent : Yes with the participants
potentially vulnerable participants : Can be among the adults
sensitive topics : Issues related to crises management
risks to participants and/or researchers : No
confidentiality/anonymity : Yes of personal data
disclosures/limits to confidentiality : No
data storage and security, both during and after the research (including transfer,
sharing, encryption, protection) : Stored in a confidential manner, only
investigator can access it
Section Six: Declaration
I have read, understood, and will abide by the [Nelson College London ]
Research Ethics Policy:
Yes:
I have discussed the ethical issues relating to my research with my tutor:
Yes:
I confirm that, to the best of my knowledge, the above information is correct and that this is a full
description of the ethical issues that may arise in the course of my/our research.
Unit 18 Research Project Proposal–
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No:
No:
No:

Student Name(s) Date
Unit 18 Research Project Proposal–
Spring 2021