Hotel Handbook for Intercultural Competence

HOTEL HANDBOOK FOR
INTERCULTURAL
COMPETENCE

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
Managing guest experience for international guests...................................................................3
Key cultural differences between UK and JAPAN.....................................................................4
Importance of Cultural Competence............................................................................................7
Do’s and Don’ts for Hotel Staff...................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Intercultural competence is defined as the capacity to function productively across
various cultures, to behave and think appropriately, and to work and communicate with guests of
different countries. It is an important skill for the employees working in such industries to learn
attributes like communication, behaviour, conflict resolution and addressing problems for guests
in the hotels. This report aims at providing a handbook for employees of Hilton hotel focussing
on service of guests from two countries, i.e., UK and Japan and addressing key cultural
differences between them. Hilton is an American multinational brand of hotels and resorts and
provide hotels for business and leisure travels. The report critically evaluates the significance of
cultural intelligence and provides a brief of Do’s and Don’ts for the hotel staff.
MAIN BODY
Managing guest experience for international guests
Hospitality industry is synonymous with customer service and therefore the quality and
consistency of guest experience management is vitally important. A quality experience can turn
into loyal customers and helps the hotel in retaining the guests. Guest experience can be
categorised into tangible experience and human experience. Tangible experience includes food,
cleanliness, rooms, facilities and ambience. The human experience includes customer service,
attitude, behaviour of the staff, ability to address their problems with a positive attitude (Altan,
2018).
Hilton is a global hotel chain and the guests tend to be from multiple cultural backgrounds and
countries. International visitors are generally more valuable to hotel as they stay longer. With the
growth in global travel, it is important for hotel staff to adjust with the increased demand and
improve their skills and service accordingly to secure more international bookings (Kenesei and
Stier, 2017). There has to be a fundamental change in the training of hotel staff by educating
them about cross-cultural sensitivity, body language, behaviour, conflict resolution,
communication for effective customer service.
The two countries that have been taken into consideration are UK and Japan. Therefore,
employees of the Hilton must have intercultural competence when addressing the international
visitors to make them feel valuable through taking care of their needs, wants, problems and
personalised attention to any cultural issues (Torres and Sipe, 2020).
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Key cultural differences between UK and JAPAN
Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions
Using Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, the fundamental differences between British and
Japanese cultures have been evaluated as follows:
1. Power Distance: Japanese people are usually conscious of the hierarchical position
which reflects on their social setting and behaviours. This leads to a slow decision-
making process due to adherence to various levels and top authority. On the other hand, a
sense of fair play drives British people’s belief in minimising the inequalities among
people.
2. Individualism: Japanese society is collectivistic and value society more than individual
opinions. They are more loyal to their extended family and local community and follow a
paternalistic culture. They are considered more reserved private than other Asian
cultures. On the other hand, UK scores highly on individualism and people tend to think
about themselves more than society and for them happiness lies in personal fulfilment.
Figure 1: JAPAN’s Cultural Dimesions
Source: Michael Minkov, Culture and Organisations, 2010
3. Masculinity- Femininity: Japan is primarily a masculine society although not very
assertive. Children are competitive when it comes to sports, and business culture
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