Issues in Human Resource Management

This report explores the contemporary issues and emerging trends in human resource management (HRM) in the hospitality industry. It discusses the importance of effectively managing human resources in achieving organizational goals and maximizing customer satisfaction. The report also covers job description and person specification for a hotel supervisor position in Hilton hotels, along with challenges faced by HR in the hospitality industry.

Issues in Human
Resource Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
LO1 & LO2......................................................................................................................................3
Contemporary issues and emerging trends in HRM...............................................................3
LO3..................................................................................................................................................6
Job description and person specification................................................................................6
Lo4.................................................................................................................................................10
Managing people and performance......................................................................................10
LO5................................................................................................................................................12
Training material that can help HR......................................................................................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................13
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................14

INTRODUCTION
In an organisation humans are the most important assets as they help in using their skills and
talents so that the organisational goals are achieved on time and in a desired manner. As
hospitality industry is related with giving hospitable treatment to gussets so that their experience
can be maximised it is important to effectively manage the human resources of company.
Managing human resources involves recruitment, selection, training and development,
remuneration, motivation etc. of employees so that the employees of company with appropriate
skills and talents can help in achieving company goals (Viitala, Kultalahti and Kangas, 2017).
Their efficient and effective management is important so that they can feel encouraged to
perform their tasks in the best manner and increase customer experience so that strong brand
image of company can be built. In this report Hilton hotels &Resorts is taken which is a global
hotel chain located in 85 countries and having its headquarters in Virginia, US. The hotel chain is
known for its luxurious facilities which it provides to its customers. In this report the Hilton hotel
of London is taken so as to study various contemporary issues and trends in managing human
resources, approaches in managing performance and people, talent management etc. Further in
this report a training material will be developed which will help the HR manager in so that they
can make policies and practices to effectively manage people in hotel.
LO1 & LO2
Contemporary issues and emerging trends in HRM
Hospitality industry is related with directly interacting with customer so that they can be
given high quality of services like accommodation, food and beverages, travel and tourism etc.
which can help in enhancing their experience that can help in repetitive business opportunity to
company. It is thus important that the employees of company are effectively managed so that
they can help in maximising customer satisfaction by creating high value for them that can help
in increasing company sales. Following are some articles that suggest certain contemporary
trends and issues that are being faced while managing employees in hotel industries:
HR trends in hotel industry:
According to the views of Simon Willmore, 2019, people are the backbone of the
hospitality industry who help in maximising the profits of this industry by utilising their skills
and talents and maximising customer satisfaction. In order to select the best candidates from the

limited available talent pool it is important that the HR mangers of hotels focus on the following
trends that is emerging in hotel industry:
 Improving brand image: As the employee turnover rate in hotel industry is more and also
the pool of candidates having the required is low it is important that string brand image is
built of the company that can help in attracting employees. Marketing through various
sources can help in building strong brand image of company like social media, TV
advertisement etc. so that more potential candidates can be attracted (Budhwar and
Mellahi, 2018).
 Implement automated response systems: With the advancement in technology it is
important that they are applied while employing people like using tracking systems and
chat bots so that candidates can be pre screened and amount of time in recruiting can be
reduced.
 Flexible working environment: It is important that employees are given the facility of
flexible working environment so that they can work as per their convenience irrespective
of their time and location. This will help in improving their work life balance and also
their job satisfaction will increase which will help in enhancing their work performance.
 Emphasis on soft skills: In order to build more integrated and comprehensive work
environment it is important that the use of effective interpersonal skills is done so that the
team members can work together in teams. It also help in increasing innovative and
creative thinking among employees that can help in making the wok more efficient.
Management issues in hospitality industry:
As per the article of Soeg jobs, 2020, managing workforce in hotel industry is not easy as this
industry is one of the fastest growing industries along with the use of technological
advancements in them so that high customer satisfaction can be achieved. There are certain
contemporary issues that are faced by mangers in managing people in company:
 Skilled labour shortage: The pool of talented candidates from where the employees
having effective skills and talents can be selected have become small which affect the
availability of skilled labour in the hotels who can help in maximising customer
experience. In order to give highest quality of hospitality service to customers skilled
labour force is required by the company (Weller and Gerhart, 2018).

 Employee turnover: Managing employees in hospitality industry is difficult which affect
their job satisfaction level and the employee turnover in company gets increased due to
which the cost of frequent recruitment also increases. Inexperienced mangers: In hospitality industry it is difficult to find managers with
appropriate skills who can help in managing the employees of company by applying
effective strategies ad policies so that the employees can improve their performance. Stress management: Managing stress among workers also become difficult in hospitality
industry as customer expectations keep on changing which affect the overall productivity
ad performance of employees. It is important that the manager of company must be able
to delegate work among workers base on their capabilities and knowledge so that they
can effectively perform their work and also manage stress related to work in an efficient
manner (Riccucci, 2017). Customer care: It is difficult to train the staff members so that they can become more
efficient inn customer care so that the needs and wants of customers can be fulfilled and
they can be given highest quality of servicers that can help in enhancing their experience.
Also the care that a customer want vary from one to another which means that the
employees must be able to recognise their needs appropriately so that the same level of
services can be offered to them.
Challenges of HR in hospitality industry:
As per the views of Soumil kar, 2018, hospitality industry is basically related to enhancing
the customer experience by giving them high quality of services by monitoring their changing
tastes and preferences so that they can be accordingly satisfied. With the changing global
economic factors certain challeneges are faced by the HR in managing employees in the
hospitality industry:
 Training and development: It has become important to train and develop the employees
frequently so that they can acquire new skills that can help them in using the advanced
technologies in a efficient manner so that they can enhance customer satisfaction
(Sparrow and Otaye-Ebede, 2017).
 Focus on satisfaction and morale: It has become important for the organisations to focus
on enhancing the job satisfaction and morale of employees working in the hospitality

industry so that they can be encouraged to perform better and help in achieving company
goals on time.
 Culture and ethics: It has become important for companies to build a culture where the
ethical actions can be promoted so which can help in making better decisions and
maximising the interest of all the stakeholders.
While working as a HR manager in Hilton hotel i have faced certain problems in managing
the workforce of the company so that they can be encouraged to use their abilities in achieving
company goals. As satisfying the customers is most important component of hospitality industry
so that the customers can feel welcomed and can enjoy their stay at hotel employees play an
important role in creating high value for them. As the availability of loyal and efficient
employees is decreasing it has become difficult to select the best possible candidates who can
mange customers effectively. Training and developing them regularly is also another issue that
has to be faced y the company as the customer demands is changing with the advancement in
technology. I also faced the problems while resolving their conflicts so that they can work
together in an efficient manner and collaborate their work together to achieve timely goals. It is
also difficult to monitor their performance so that they can be improved as the demand of
customers differ from each other which make it difficult to ascertain the level of performance of
employees and make it difficult to train them. With the changing trends in market like employee
engagement, flexible working environment, maintaining a diverse and equal workforce etc. has
also made the managing of employees in hotels difficult. I have formulated various policies so as
to manage the staff of the hotel like participative work culture, 360 degree feedback strategy,
performance appraisal, training and development programmes etc. All these strategies and
policies has helped in enhancing the job satisfaction of employees which has resulted in the
increase in employee retention and also in building strong brand image of Hilton.
LO3
Job description and person specification
HR plays an important role in recruiting and selecting the employees having desired
capabilities and knowledge so that they can perform their work in an efficient manner and
complete the tasks on time and within stipulated budget. It is important that the right people are
selected for the right job role so that the work can be performed in a desired manner and

effective results are achieved. In the hospitality industry it is important that the employees who
are selected have great interpersonal skills which can help in enhancing the experience of
customers and they can feel safe and secure in the hotel. Understanding the number of employees
that are required in the hotel along with the level of skills and talents they must possess is
important so that right number of people can perform the right job that can help in enhancing the
profits of company. Hospitality industry deals with customers directly which makes it important
that the employees of company are trained and developed so that they can deal with the
customers and help in fulfilling their demands (Yadav and Yadav, 2017).
Hilton is a global hotel chain which is well known for the luxurious services it provide to
its customers so that they can be highly satisfied and the brand image of company can be
increased in market that can help it in remaining competitive. As the company has a good brand
image it help in attracting candidates for job vacancies in the company so that the job roles can
be effectively done and high customer satisfaction is achieved. Hilton hotel is a global chain of
hotels which provide its customers with highly luxurious facilities so that their stay can be made
more enjoyable and entertaining. The headquarter of Hilton hotel is located in Virginia, US and
it has its hotels located in 85 countries having 858 hotels which help both the business and
leisure travellers in enhancing their experience by giving them high quality of services so that
high brand reputation can be built. As the tourism industry is expanding and there is a high need
of employees in the company it is important that the company retains its employees and take
measures so that their job satisfaction can be increased that can help in improving their
performance (Ayentimi, Burgess and Brown, 2018). There is a requirement of hotel supervisor in
the London branch of Hilton hotels which means that the company need to recruit the candidate
having abilities to supervise the work in an efficient manner. In order to attract the candidates
with the set level of skills and qualifications required it is important that a person specification
and job description are formed which can help in clearly stating the characteristics and qualities
which a hotel supervisor is desired to possess so that only the candidates having desired skills
can be attracted making the recruitment process easy.
Hotel supervisor: Hotel supervisor supervises all the operations which are carried out in a
hotel and also assist the hotel managers so that the management task can be completed
efficiently. They play an important role in giving high quality experience to customers by
checking-in , checking-out the guests, managing the inventory of rooms, supervising the security

and safety of hotel, managing the room service work etc. so that all operations can be carried out
smoothly. The supervisors thus play an important role in monitoring and controlling the flow of
work in company so that high quality of services can be produced.
Job description: It is a written document which helps in outlining the required qualities,
characteristics, qualifications, experiences etc. that a candidate must possess so that they can
become eligible for a job post and they can be selected for job vacancy in company (Kallio and
Hyvönen, 2016). This whelp in screening the pool of candidates at the first level as only the
candidates having the described qualities will apply or the job that will help in making
recruitment process easy. a job description for the post of hotel supervisor which is required in
Hotel Hilton is given below:
Hotel supervisor job description
Job title: Hotel supervisor
Company: Hilton hotels and resorts
Reports to: Hotel manager
Prepared date: May, 2020
Job purpose: The purpose of hotel supervisor is to monitor and supervise all the activities which
are being carried out in the hotel so that they can be coordinated which can help in completing
the work on time. The person will also be responsible for managing the task of all team members
so that their work can be appropriately scheduled.
Qualifications:
 .Degree in hotel management from a recognised university with minimum 60% marks.
 Specialisation in hotel supervisor position.
Essential duties:
 Scheduling the work of all the staff members so that all the teams can perform their work
in an efficient manner.
 Managing the performance of workers by giving them feedbacks so that their work
efficiency can be improved.
 Monitoring the effectiveness of employees in maximising customer satisfaction so that
the needs and wants of customers can be fulfilled.
 Giving regular reports and activity updates to the management of hotel.

Person specification: This is a document that helps in describing the qualities and skills which
are expected in candidates so that they can be selected for a job vacvany. This will help
candidates in determining their eligibility for a job vacancy. A person specification for the post
of hotel supervisor is given below:
Person Specification
 Post: Hotel supervisor
 Department: Operations department
 Key: This shows what is required as an evidence:
 (A): Application form, (I): Interview, (R): Role
Attributes Essential Desirable
 Qualification &
Experience
 Degree in hotel
management from a
renowned university.
 Past experience of
working in as a hotel
supervisor in known
hotel for 1 year.
 The person must have
a certificate in
interpersonal skills.
 The person must have
effective
communications skills
so that the customers
can be given efficient
services.
 Skills or knowledge  The person must have
skills of operating
computers with strong
knowledge in excel,
word etc.
 Skills regarding
managing tam must be
present.
 Ability to identify
problems so that
effective measures can
be taken that can help
in maximising
customer experience.

Lo4
Managing people and performance
In order to enhance the work efficiency so that high quality of services can be produced it
is important that the people in organisation are effectively managed so that they can use their
complete potential in achieving company objectives. The HRM department of company is
responsible to enhance the performance of employees by efficiently motivating them and
managing their work required to produce high quality of services (Ljungholm, 2016). The
strategies which are used in managing people and their performance depend on the value the
hotels want to create for their customers so that the expectation of customers can be successfully
met. 4 star and 5 star hotels use different strategies in managing their employees that can help in
generating the quality of services which help in improving customer satisfaction. The
performance management strategies used by 4 star hotels like Tartan Lodge, Crowne Plaza
London, Best Western Mornington hotel are given below: Training and development programmes: These hotels give their employees regular
training so that they can build required skills and develop their abilities which can help
them in becoming better at their work. Also the employees can become efficient in
building their abilities with technological advancements so that they can use them
appropriately thereby maximising customer experience. Mentoring and coaching: The managers and leaders of hotel regularly mentor and coach
the employees in how they can use their skills in the best possible manner which help in
boosting their confidence and encouraging them to perform better. Giving learning opportunities: The managers of company encourage group discussions
so that learning opportunities can be created for them that can help them in using their
knowledge in dealing with problems and finding out innovative solutions. It also help in
encouraging team work within company so that their work can be collaborated that can
help in finishing work on time (Kerpershoek, Groenleer and de Bruijn, 2016).
The people development approaches which are used in 4 star hotels are:
It is important to develop people regularly so that they can learn on using new techniques
and improving their skills so that their work performance can get improved and they can become
more effective in dealing with customers. Following are certain such strategies:

 On job training: The employees are give on job training so that they can become better in
performing the job roles allotted to them. They also become efficient in dealing with the
problems on the spot when they are facing them so that customers can be completely
satisfied.
 Seminar and open sessions: Regular seminars and open sessions from influential people
can help in building confidence among employees that they can do better.
 Mentoring : Through regularly mentoring the work of employees they can be instructed
on how they can improve the level of efficiency of their work that can help them in
completing their work on time (Boella and Goss-Turner, 2019).
The 5 star hotels also need to manage the people and their performance so that high quality of
services can be provided to their customers and the brand recognition of company in market can
be improved. Following are the performance management strategies and policies which are used
by Hilton Hotel Bankside, Mandarin Oriental Hyde park and The May Fair, A Radisson
collection hotel are given below:
 Performance appraisal: The employees in these hotels are given appraisals base on their
performance so that only they can get rewarded for their better performance. This help in
encouraging the people of company to perform better as they can get more remuneration
which will help in improving the overall performance and productivity of company.
 Effective communication: Use of effective communication channels like e-mails,
messages, video calls etc. help in monitoring of work in an efficient manner and also the
flow of information in organisation can become more fast and accurate that can help in
maximising the results so achieved. Also it help the employees in understanding better
their roles and responsibilities so that they can use their skills and talents in an efficient
manner and help in maximising the profits of company (Katou, 2016).
 360 degree feedback: This method help in the overall improvement of the performance of
employees as they get feedbacks from customers, managers, supervisors, customers etc.
so that they can improve their performance so that they can all be satisfied and the work
efficiency of workers get improved. This is also an effective tool in helping employees to
user their skills and qualities in the best way possible.
These companies also need to develop their employees so that they can become better in
completing their work which is important for company to remain competitive in market as their

goals are achieved within time and budget. Following are people development strategies used in
the 5 star hotels:
 Performance tests and observations: It relates to regularly testing the performance of
employees based on certain benchmarks so that they can be improved if they are unable
to achieve the benchmarks of performance standards within specified time.
 Ranking method: In this method the performance of various employees are ranked based
on their efficiency in dealing with customers. This can motivate the employees who are
ranked lowest to improve their performance so that they can get good position in the
company.
 Psychological appraisals: It relates getting appraisals based on the psychology of
managers wherein the employees impress the mangers through their performance and get
appraisals which help in developing their skills and talents so that better performance can
be achieved (Santhanam and Ziegler, 2017).
Thus Hilton hotel being a 5 star hotel can use the people development and performance
management techniques discussed above so that better results can be achieved that can help it in
providing high level of quality in their services thereby maximising customer satisfaction.
LO5
Training material that can help HR
It is important a new HR at Hilton hotel is provided with training material that can help them
in effectively training and developing employees of company which is given below:
 Benchmark against the competition: It relates to setting certain standards that are to be
achieved as against the competitors of company in the market so that better performance
can be achieved as compared to the competitors.
 Survey the employees: It means that the abilities and skills of employees are surveyed so
that the level of improvement which is to be made can be determined and effective
approach can be taken to make the performance of employees better (Radjenovic, 2018).
 Align training with management’s operating goals: It is important that the training
which is given to employees must make them efficient in such a manner that they can
help in achieving company’s goals on time.

 Run it like a business: The training and development programmes must be strategically
implemented in the company so that all the employees can make use of these
programmes in making their work efficiency better. It will also help in better integration
of these programmes in the work routine of employees so that they can both learn and
perform their task at the same time.
 Weave it into company’s culture: The training and development programmes must be
implemented in such a manner that they become a part of company’s culture and the
employees can be encouraged to apply their learning in improving their performance
(Murphy and Hutchinson, 2018)..
 Keep innovating: Innovation in the these programmes must be done with the introduction
of new and innovative techniques in market so that the employees can be made efficient
on using the technological advancements thereby enhancing customer experience.
 Measure results: The effectiveness of the programmes in achieving desired results must
be measured so that improvements can be made which can help in achieving better results
that can help the employees in becoming better in their performance.
CONCLUSION
From this report it can be concluded that HR department plays an important role in
managing the work of employees so that the goals and objectives of company can be achieved.
The HRM help in effectively managing, monitoring, controlling and directing the work in
company so that the employees can be aware about their roles and responsibilities and use their
skills in achieving better results. They also help in ensuring that the company is able to deliver
efficient products and services to customers so that the competitiveness of company can be
increased.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Viitala, R., Kultalahti, S. and Kangas, H., 2017. Does strategic leadership development feature in
managers’ responses to future HRM challenges?. Leadership & Organization
Development Journal.
Budhwar, P. and Mellahi, K., 2018. HRM in the Middle East. In Handbook of Research on
Comparative Human Resource Management. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Weller, I. and Gerhart, B., 2018. Methodological challenges for quantitative research in
comparative HRM. In Handbook of Research on Comparative Human Resource
Management. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Riccucci, N.M. ed., 2017. Public personnel management: Current concerns, future challenges.
Routledge.
Sparrow, P. and Otaye-Ebede, L., 2017. HRM and productivity. In A Research Agenda for
Human Resource Management. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Yadav, M. and Yadav, V.K., 2017. A Study of Challenges and Practices Related to HRM in
Software Industry. Asian Journal of Management, 8(4), pp.1233-1236.
Ayentimi, D.T., Burgess, J. and Brown, K., 2018. HRM development in post-colonial societies:
The challenges of advancing HRM practices in Ghana. International Journal of Cross
Cultural Management, 18(2), pp.125-147.
Kallio, K.M., Kallio, T.J., Tienari, J. and Hyvönen, T., 2016. Ethos at stake: Performance
management and academic work in universities. Human Relations, 69(3), pp.685-709.
Ljungholm, D.P., 2016. Organizational social capital and performance management. Linguistic
and Philosophical Investigations, (15), pp.108-114
Kerpershoek, E., Groenleer, M. and de Bruijn, H., 2016. Unintended responses to performance
management in Dutch hospital care: Bringing together the managerial and professional
perspectives. Public Management Review, 18(3), pp.417-436.
Boella, M.J. and Goss-Turner, S., 2019. Human resource management in the hospitality
industry: A guide to best practice. Routledge.
Katou, A.A., 2016. Human resource management and performance in the hospitality industry:
methodological issues. In Project Management: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and
Applications (pp. 1980-1999). IGI Global.

Santhanam, N., Kamalanabhan, T.J., Dyaram, L. and Ziegler, H., 2017. Impact of human
resource management practices on employee turnover intentions. Journal of Indian
Business Research.
Radjenovic, M., 2018. THE QUALITY OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN TOURISM AND
HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY IN MONTENEGRO. Transformations in Business &
Economics, 17(2).
Murphy, K., Torres, E., Ingram, W. and Hutchinson, J., 2018. A review of high performance
work practices (HPWPs) literature and recommendations for future research in the
hospitality industry. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management.
Domínguez-Falcón, C., Martín-Santana, J.D. and De Saá-Pérez, P., 2016. Human resources
management and performance in the hotel industry. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management.
Online
Simon .2019. HR trends [Online] Available through: < https://www.traveldailymedia.com/hr-
trends-2019/>
Soeg jobs .2020. Management issues in hospitality industry [Online] Available through:
<https://www.soegjobs.com/top-management-issues-hospitality-industry/ >
Soumil .2018. Challenges of HR in hospitality industry [Online] Available through:
<https://blog.gethyphen.com/5-challenges-for-hr-in-the-hospitality-industry>