Professional Identity and Practice in Premier Inn: Evaluating Skills, Competencies, and Approaches for Personal and Professional Development

This report discusses the recent development in professionalism, self-directed learning, career opportunities, and competencies required for a hospitality manager job role in Premier Inn. It evaluates the benefits of personal and professional development, different learning approaches and theories, and critical evaluation of ongoing professional development.

Professional identity and
practice

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1 and TASK 2.......................................................................................................................1
Introduction and overview of organisation..................................................................................1
Evaluating benefits and importance undertaking personal and professional development and
how it enhance career opportunities............................................................................................1
Investigating skills and competencies expected by an employer for specific job role in selected
organisation..................................................................................................................................2
Critical evaluation of own ability, skills and competencies for in job role in organisation
through use of two self evaluation models to undertake an audit of own hard and soft skills....3
Review of different learning approaches and theories used for personal and professional
development.................................................................................................................................4
Best approaches of development to enhance own personal and professional development........5
Critical evaluation of on going professional development and related skills required within
context of selected organisation ..................................................................................................5
Critical evaluation of own skills and competencies most relevant approaches of development
of personal and professional life for specific job role..................................................................6
Critical evaluation of self competencies and skills required to meet expectations of employer
regarding specific job role...........................................................................................................6
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................6
Detailed development plan which applies underpinning theory of learning and development in
context to specific work...............................................................................................................9
Producing comprehensive development plan which sets out clear and achievable targets,
strategies as well outcomes of training and learning within context of specific job role............9
TASK 4 .........................................................................................................................................10
Undertaking a job interview for a specified job role ................................................................10
Review key strengths and weaknesses in regards with job interview process .........................10
Ascertaining job interview process and challenges to overcome them ....................................11
Producing critical reflection of interview process as well as own abilities ..............................11
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
The term professional identity is referred to as concept which describes how an
individual perceive itself in context of occupation and how it is communicated to others
(DiPietro and Bufquin, 2018). Professional identity can be defined as identification of an
individual along with their different attributes, beliefs, experiences, values, and objects which
directs a person in attaining organisational objectives. It includes practices that help with
adoption and identity development in the professional world. Such an identity is both perceived
as a profession and created through various aspects to define individuals in current and intended
professional life.
Premier Inn is chosen to have better understanding of professional identity and practices.
Chosen hospitality organisation is a British limited hotel chain and largest brand of UK wit more
than 72000 rooms and 800 hotels. This report discuss about recent development in
professionalism, self directed learning, career opportunities with motive to enhance professional
identity. It further focus on competencies, skills, different approaches of learning and
development to perform a particular job role.
TASK 1 and TASK 2
Introduction and overview of organisation
Premier Inn is group of hotel chosen to have better understanding of professional identity and
practices. Premier Inn is a British limited hotel chain and largest brand of UK wit more than
72000 rooms and 800 hotels (Premier Inn, 2020).
Evaluating benefits and importance undertaking personal and professional development and how
it enhance career opportunities
The ongoing professional development is the continuous process of maintaining,
developing and documenting professional skills of an individual (Qiu, Dooley and Xi, 2020).
These skills can be acquired formally through proper training or informally through watching
others at job. Ongoing professional development assist individual in gaining new knowledge and
developing problem solving ability. The importance and benefits undertaken in ongoing personal
and professional development at Premier Inn hotel group are mentioned below:
Improve work life balance: The individual who are dedicated towards professional and
personal development have better balance between work and personal life. The knowledge of

Individual about which hours are best for work and understanding break time can enhance better
work life balance of authorities at Premier Inn.
Build confidence level of individual: The development programmes related to personal
and professional development makes improvement in confidence level of individuals which
assist them in improving their productivity level (Mauri and Et. Al., 2018). High confidence
level is important to improve abilities in order to take critical decisions for work at organisation.
Continuous personal and professional development is main focus of authorities at Premier Inn
with motive of increasing their confidence level. The increased confidence level of authorities
assist them in quickly responding and making effective decisions for operations.
Career promotions: Continuous personal and professional development is regarded as
vital chance for promotions in career of an individual. The authorities of Premier Inn focus on
personal and professional development in order to create new career opportunities as well as
promotions in current organisation. Promotion to new role likely to involve new learning of new
skills and acquiring key interpersonal skills.
Investigating skills and competencies expected by an employer for specific job role in selected
organisation
An individual require various skills and competencies to perform their job role
effectively. Every job role require different set of skills and competencies which are being
expected by employer from potential employee. The skills and competencies which are required
by employer of Premier Inn for hospitality managers job role are described below:
Communication skills: The most important skill for being a hospitality manager is good
communication skills. The employer ask for good communication skills from an individual to
become managers of Premier Inn. Having good communication skills enable a managers to
manage and communicate with its guests, employees, vendors in an effective way.
Empathy skills: A good manager must be empathetic, it means being able to understand
what is the feeling of their customers and employees (Schwepker and Dimitriou, 2021). The
employer of Premier Inn expect that its manager must be empathetic which will enable them to
see perspective of others and see things from different angles. If a manager has empathy than it
enable them to get through many difficult situations.

Leadership skills: The employer of Premier Inn expects that their manager must have
good leadership skills which can enable them to provide direction to its team. It also assist them
to get work form their team members.
Critical evaluation of own ability, skills and competencies for in job role in organisation through
use of two self evaluation models to undertake an audit of own hard and soft skills
It is important for a individual to evaluate band analyse own skills, abilities,
competencies required for specific job role (Lee, Lee and Dopson, 2019). The techniques for self
evaluation are personal SWOT analysis, technical skill audit and many more. Manager of
Premier Inn can use SWOT analysis and technical skill audit for evaluating their own skills.
SWOT analysis: It is a model which assist an individual to evaluate their own strength,
weakness, opportunity and threat. The description of strength, weakness, opportunities and threat
are given below:
Strength: Strength of an individual are their positive feature which are beneficial for own
growth in an effective manner. My strengths as a manager includes good communication skills,
team management ability, leadership skills, interpersonal skills along with better presentation
skills.
Weakness: It is a negative feature which can be limitations for an individual to perform
specific task. My weakness manager is that I lack in better time management skills which reduce
their efficiency.
Opportunity: This is the component which plays positive role and helps in further growth
of an individual. I have opportunity to create my own startup using skills and knowledge that are
being pursued by me.
Threat: It is describes as the component which can create damage to life, property and
are considered as negative factors towards growth. The threat for me can be increasing
competition and changing behaviour of customers.
Technical and soft skills audit: IT is model which analyses soft skills as well as
technical skills pursued by an individual (Peters and Kallmuenzer, 2018). It is important for
managers to have knowledge of skills to acquire growth in their professional as well personal
life. The technical skills related to management theories are technical skills pursued by a
manager. It assist managers to address issues and aids them to take effective decisions. The soft

skills pursued by managers include communication skills, leadership skills, problem solving
ability.
Evaluation of skills in relevance to manager are:
Skills Good Average Bad
Interpersonal skills 
Problem solving ability 
Communication skills 
Time management
skills

Creativity 
Review of different learning approaches and theories used for personal and professional
development
There are numerous types of approaches for learning and theories which can assist
individual to make improvement in personal as well as professional skills required at Premier
Inn.
Learning theories and approaches: It aids individuals in taking different perspectives to
understand the manner in which they study based on perceived objectives (Balaji, Jiang, and Jha,
2019). Some of the learning approaches are explained below:
Behaviouristic approach: This includes new changes as well as behaviours that react
quickly. It is based on the belief that knowledge exists inside and outside of a person. The
individual believes in the concept of learning takes place within an employee or organization
when behavioural or situational changes are achieved under stimuli and responses. Premier Inn is
planning to adopt use of new technology which will aid the organisation to attract new
customers. The behaviour of employees will be considered as behaviour approach after adoption
of new technology.
Cognitive approach: This approach uses a psychological concept that helps in the study
of the mind and thought process of others. By applying such a theory, managers observe what is

going on in the minds of learners or employees. The managers at Premier Inn analysis skills by
identifying problems and simultaneously training them for further improvements.
Humanistic approach: This approach helps define experiences relating to the individual.
It destroys stress, unusual feelings and negative elements from a person's behaviour. The
manager of Premier Inn hotels Group applies this approach to reduce stress and workload and
helps employees execute plans to improve their skills and reach heights.
Social learning theory: The theory of social learning is based on processes of learning as
well as social behaviours gained through observation or imitation of others. It defines learning as
a cognitive process that is socially contextual (Rabiul and Yean, 2021). It has been further
described that learning can be gained through punishments or rewards as a means of vicarious
reinforcement. This approach is used by Premier Inn, where the learning of new skills and
experiences by employees is noted through observation of managers or other employees. The
personnel of the selected companies observe the actions of the manager and learn to deal with
critical circumstances or situations. It also helps in applying effective business decisions.
Best approaches of development to enhance own personal and professional development
The hospitality manager can apply learning theories and approaches in order to improve
professional skills and personal development. This will help in learning new concepts and
solving various problems or problems that arise in the workplace. Such approaches will help the
manager observe the behaviour of other managers and will receive guidance on how to respond
to the acceptance of new technologies in certain situations.
Critical evaluation of on going professional development and related skills required within
context of selected organisation
The continuous process of ongoing personal and professional development is considered
as vital for individuals (Kim and Et. Al., 2018). The skills can be acquired by an individual
through proper training or by observing others at job. The skills expected by employer of
Premier Inn are good communication skills, leadership skills, empathetic in nature which enable
managers to perform their duties effectively. Communication skills enable manager to effectively
communicate with employees, vendors as well as customers. Leadership skills enable them to
lead their team in correct direction. Being empathetic enables them to view things from others
perspective also.

Critical evaluation of own skills and competencies most relevant approaches of development of
personal and professional life for specific job role
It is important for an individual to evaluate self skills and abilities which are relevant to
perform specific job role at organisation. My own skills and competencies were evaluate by me
through use of two methods such as SWOT analysis and technical and soft skills audit. I have
good communication skills, team management skills, leadership skills but lack in time
management skills. I have good opportunity to create my own startup using these skills and
competencies. Technical and soft skills audit is a analysis technique which analyses the technical
skills pursued by an individual.
Critical evaluation of self competencies and skills required to meet expectations of employer
regarding specific job role
Evaluating self competencies and skills are essential for an individual to perform specific
job function in an organisation (Alnawas and Hemsley-Brown, 2019). A SWOT analysis is
performed to do evaluation of self competencies and skills. The strength such as communication
skills, leadership skills help me to positively move towards growth. The weaknesses such as bad
time management skills restricts me to grow in my job.
TASK 3
A performance development plan is considered as a technique which is used in
organisations to improve performance of employees. The process of performance development
plan helps managers as well as employees to identify those areas which require improvement,
goal setting, progress measurement and outlining strategy to attain those objectives. The
managers of Premier Inn provides regular training to its workforce to solve conflicts between
them. This plan help managers to improve their skills for relevant job role and acquire growth
opportunities. Development plan with use of SMART target approach is being described below:
Current skills and
competencies
Professional
development plan
(Using SMART
target)
Evaluation of
progress
Evaluation of
effectiveness of
personal
development plan
Time management Specific: With time
management skills
The report which
includes record of time
All improvement in
time management

time set for
completion of task is
specific.
Measurable: Stop
watch can be used as
well as others can be
asked for help to
measure time in order
to focus on managerial
activities.
Achievable: Both goal
and time period should
be started to develop
skills and achieve
objectives (Adeyinka-
Ojo, 2018).
Relevant: It is related
to job role of
hospitality manager.
Time: The time
required for enhancing
time management
skills is three months.
period can be
evaluated and analysed
in order to determine
progress.
skills can be evaluated
through analysing
reports.
Initiation skills Specific: It is specific
to improving skills of
taking initiative.
Measurable: It can be
measured through
implementation of new
activities in separate
situations and
All those initiations
and progress can be
evaluated at work
place to know
progress.
Through evaluating
changes which took
place and following
professional who are
experienced in
managing work an
analysis can be drawn

evaluating ability of
individuals.
Achievable: Different
types of initiated tasks
are analysed for
growth of selected
hotel group.
Relevant: It is relevant
to take critical
decisions for initiation
at workplace.
Time: The time period
of 6 months is required
for improving
initiating skills.
out.
Creativity skills Specific: This plan is
specific to improve
creativity in task
performance (Xu,
Stienmetz and Ashton,
2020).
Measurable: To
measure improvement
of this skill managers
can formulate different
ideas through
application of creative
knowledge in decision
making process.
Attainable: This skill
is achievable by an
Through application of
innovative ideas and
making essential
decisions progress can
be evaluated.
Improvements in
innovation criteria
effectiveness of
personal development
plan can be evaluated.

individual through
developing creative
and innovative ideas.
Relevant: It is relevant
as it involving
improvement of
creativity skill in
manager of a hotel
group.
Time: The time
required to improve
this skills is around 1
year.
Detailed development plan which applies underpinning theory of learning and development in
context to specific work
Performance development plan is a technique which assist business in its growth and
development (Edghiem and Mouzughi, 2018). The process of performance development plan
aids employees and managers to identify areas which require improvement, setting of goals,
measuring progress and outlining strategy to achieve objectives of organisation. The managers of
Premier Inn provides regular training to its workforce to solve conflicts between them. This plan
help managers to improve their skills for relevant job role and acquire growth opportunities.
Producing comprehensive development plan which sets out clear and achievable targets,
strategies as well outcomes of training and learning within context of specific job role
The comprehensive development plan sets out achievable targets and clear objectives for
Premier Inn. The skills which are set for improvement are time management skills, Initiation
skill and creativity skills. These skills are achievable in different time period as three months, six
months and one year.

TASK 4
Undertaking a job interview for a specified job role
Interview can be understood as a practice whereby formal communication is made among
employer and candidates (Jiang and Alexakis, 2017). Formal interview in regards with job post
of hospitality manager of Whitbread Plc is as follows:
Formal interview for the post of Hospitality Manager
Question 1.
Interviewer- Provide a brief introduction of yourself.
Interviewee- I am John Smith and belongs to London. I have done graduation from Oxford
University. I am pursuing my post graduation in hotel management. My hobbies are painting,
cycling and dancing.
Question 2.
Interviewer- What are the strengths and weakness?
My strengths are communication and leadership skills which can help me in motivating people
around me in an effective manner. My weakness is that I am unable to manage time properly
which I am trying to enhance through using stopwatches.
Question 3.
Interviewer- Why should we recruit you?
Interviewee- I have potential skills in addition with competence for this role. I will give my best
of choose for this role.
Question 4.
Interviewer- Were you involve in any internship or training programme?
Interviewee- Yes, I have taken internship at Thomas Cook restaurant as a hotel management
trainees for 3 months.
Review key strengths and weaknesses in regards with job interview process
Strengths- This interview helps me in enhancing my strength regarding facing interviews
with confidence. It proves to be a valuable experience for me as it helps me to improvise my
communication and interactive skills. I noticed that training help me tackling this interview
easily.

Weaknesses- I have noticed that I am lacking in time management which has led me to
reach to the interview venue on time. I am also unable to provide some facts regarding my
university courses which I have attended. This also creates an embarrassing situation for me as I
was unable to give answers.
Ascertaining job interview process and challenges to overcome them
It has been ascertained that not only interviewees but preparing for interviews is a tough
task for interviews too (Ruiz-Palomino and Et. Al., 2019). They have to prepare questions
regarding specified job role and also try to make comfortable situation in an effective manner. I
faced challenge in reaching the venue on time as I was not aware of that region very specifically.
For overcoming this again, I have decided to look for the directions of the interview venue in
order to reach in time in a strategic manner.
Producing critical reflection of interview process as well as own abilities
I was nervous before going to interview as I lack in some skills. However when it get
started, I gain my confidence back and reply the answers of interviewer in an apt manner. This is
due to my good communication skills which I have developed through participating in debate
competition and interactive session. I also asked questions regarding my job role and corporate
culture to employer without hesitation.
CONCLUSION
From the above information, it is ascertained that personal and professional development
are closely related and should be strictly considered by individuals. The personal development
plan helps people evaluate their strengths and areas of development for future reference.
Learning approaches are considered essential for employers to be evaluated to effectively
formulate training and development programs.

REFERENCES
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Online : Premier Inn, (2020), [Available through]
<https://www.premierinn.com/gb/en/home.html>