Impact of COVID-19 on Operations and Strategies of UK Hospitality Sector: A Study on Nandos

Research Project
(Impact of COVID-19 on the operations and
strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality
sector: A study on Nandos)
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ABSTRACT
Main aim of the current dissertation is to ascertain the impact of COVID-19 on the
operations and strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality sector. This is a main purpose
and achieving this, research questions are addressed successfully. There are various types of
methodologies used for addressing research questions. All these types of methodologies are;
quantitative research, deductive approach, positivism philosophy, survey strategy, questionnaire
instrument, primary and secondary methods of data collection etc. All these are main methods
and helped researcher in achievement of each objective of the dissertation in successful manner.
Main findings of this dissertation are achieved research aim and objectives through research
questions that are concept of change management, challenges facing by Nandos in relation to
managing change, extent to which COVID affected business operations of Nandos and strategies
to Nandos for managing change effectually.
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Contents
ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................................2
Contents...........................................................................................................................................3
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................5
Background..................................................................................................................................5
Rationale......................................................................................................................................5
Case study....................................................................................................................................6
Objectives and research questions...............................................................................................6
Dissertation structure...................................................................................................................7
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.........................................................................................8
Introduction..................................................................................................................................8
Topics:.........................................................................................................................................8
What is the effect of COVID on Nandos’s operations?............................................................12
What are the strategies that would be used by Nandos for managing change effectually?.......12
Summary....................................................................................................................................13
Questions:..................................................................................................................................13
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY AND METHODS...................................................................14
Introduction................................................................................................................................14
Physiological assumptions.........................................................................................................14
Research Questions....................................................................................................................15
What is the concept and models of change management?..............................................16
Which challenges Nandos facing due to COVID-19?.....................................................16
What is the effect of COVID on Nandos’s operations?..................................................17
Validity and reliability...............................................................................................................19
Data selection and collection.....................................................................................................19
Ethics and bias...........................................................................................................................20
Limitations.................................................................................................................................20
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION............................................................................21
Introduction................................................................................................................................21
Response rate.............................................................................................................................21
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Results........................................................................................................................................23
Summary....................................................................................................................................38
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION......................................................................................................39
Introduction................................................................................................................................39
General conclusion....................................................................................................................39
Research questions conclusion..................................................................................................40
Recommendations......................................................................................................................41
Errors and limitations................................................................................................................42
Recommendations for further study..........................................................................................43
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................44
Appendix........................................................................................................................................48
Questionnaire.............................................................................................................................48
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Background
Coronavirus is a pandemic situation that has direct impact on all industry and organisation.
Hospitality is one of the main industry that directly and negatively affected from Covid 19.
COVID-19 has direct impact on the operations and strategies of company operated their business
within hospitality sector of UK (Ahmad and et. al., 2021). These impact are decreased sales,
increased employee turnover, reduced business performance, legal issues etc. These are major
issues that have harmful impact on hospitality industry. While the economic downturns as well
as low expenditure power is going to be the main short-term challenges. One of the main long-
term challenges or issue is to carefully lookout and also creatively acts on the dynamic forces of
making new consumer behaviours, perceptions, consumption patterns, expectations and trends.
There are some strategies that would help hospitality industry in overcoming of challenges
associated with COVID 19. These are social distancing, stay-at-home orders, following health
and safety act 1974, increasing innovation and technology work etc. Therefore, all these are
effective and useful ways for overcoming challenges of COVID 19.
Rationale
Main rationale behind conducting of this dissertation is to identify the major impact of
COVID-19 on the operations and strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality sector. This
is a main reason behind conducting of this dissertation. This topic or research is important at
personal as well as professional level. At personal level, current research will help researcher by
improving its research skills such as time management, decision making, literature review,
presentation and many other. All these are main skills that would help investigator in completing
of full dissertation within given time and in successful manner. At professional level, current
research is essential for students by increasing their knowledge about the impact of COVID 19
fast food chain of UK. Along with this, there are various stakeholders that will be benefited with
the help of this research. These are an individual, organisation, industry etc. This research helps
them by providing accurate information regarding the effects of COVID 19 and ways for
overcoming those effects effectively.
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Case study
Nandos is a given case study for this dissertation. Nandos is a South African fast food
chain. Company was founded in 1987 by Fernando Duarte and Robert Brozin and headquartered
in Lorentzville, Johannesburg, South Africa. Nandos is specialises in producing of Chicken and
related cuisine. Company is well known for its spicy peri-peri chicken and has an increasing
number of evangelists spreading the globe regarding what might be the coolest. During COVID
19, company faced various challenges i.e. shut down shops, decreased sales, reduced customer
base, decreased demand and supply, high employee turnover and many more (ALESSA and et.
al., 2021). All these are major challenges that had direct as well as negative impact on business
performance of Nandos.
Objectives and research questions
Aim and objectives of the research are developed with the help of research title. There are
two variables in research aim i.e. dependent and independent variable. According to the current
research, operations and strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality sector is dependent
variable that is dependent on Covid 19. It means Covid 19 is independent variable. Therefore,
research aim and objectives of the current dissertation are shown as below:
Aims
Main aim of this dissertation is “To ascertain the impact of COVID-19 on the operations
and strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality sector”: A study on Nandos
Objectives
 To develop understanding about the concept of change management
 To identify challenges facing by Nandos in relation to managing change.
 To investigate the extent to which COVID affected business operations of Nandos.
 To recommend strategies to Nandos for managing change effectually.
Research questions
 What is the concept and models of change management?
 Which challenges Nandos facing due to COVID-19?
 What is the effect of COVID on Nandos’s operations?
Dissertation structure
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This is a significant part because it includes information about the entire chapters that will
be needed for completing dissertation in systematic manner. There are some chapters that are
explained as below with their purpose within a dissertation. These are:
Introduction: This is a first chapter of dissertation that includes information about the
topic, rationale, case study, aim, objectives and questions (Atadil and Lu, 2021). All these are
main information that will help investigator in carrying out of another chapter i.e. literature
review in systematic manner. Main aim of this chapter is to develop research aim and objectives
as well as research questions for achieving those aim and objectives.
Literature Review: This is an important chapter of completing full dissertation in
systematic manner. This section is completely based on secondary information that will be
collected from books, journals etc. Main purpose of literature review is to identify gap within
current dissertation.
Methodology and methods: This part of dissertation plays an important role in
dissertation by providing accurate information regarding the current study. There are different
types of methodologies and methods that will be used for collecting data about the impact of
COVID-19 on the operations and strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality sector. These
are; positivism philosophy, deductive approach, quantitative research, probability sampling,
survey, questionnaire etc. All these are main methodologies that are useful for investigator in
achievement of research objectives successfully.
Results and discussion: This chapter of the dissertation facilitate investigator in
evaluating of gathered information through research analytical technique. According to the
current dissertation, quantitative data will be collected from questionnaire and for analysing this
type of data; frequency distribution analysis will be used by researcher. This technique includes
frequency table that result in evaluation of quantitative data easily and within an allotted time
period (Boons and et. al., 2021).
Conclusion: This is a last chapter of dissertation that includes different information such
as recommendations, limitations, recommendation for further study etc. These are important
information and helps investigator in achievement of research aim and each objective in
successful manner.
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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
Literature review is the systematic process of collecting secondary information about the
topic. Literature review is defined as an in-depth, broad, systematic, comprehensive and critical
review of unpublished scholarly print materials, personal communication, audiovisual materials
and scholarly publications. There are various sources that are useful for collecting secondary data
regarding the topic. These are peer-reviewed articles, books, magazines, publication research and
many others. All these are major sources of secondary data collection that will be used within a
dissertation (Bui and et. al., 2021). There are also some main functions of literature review i.e.
explain the research context, identifies appropriate research questions, identifies gaps in existing
research, established the need of research, acknowledges the work of others and inform
theoretical framework for the research. These are main functions that are useful in conducting of
full dissertation systematic manner. Main aim of literature review is to find out research gap in
previous studies. According to the current dissertation, main gap is the impact of COVID-19 on
the operations and strategies of firm operating within UK hospitality sector. In previous studies,
there were lots of data available regarding the impact of Covid 19 on hospitality industry, but
there were lack of information about the effect of Covid 19 on strategies and operations of fast
food chain of UK. This is a main gap and for fulfilling this gap research questions are used by
researcher. These questions are explained as below:
Topics:
What is the concept and models of change management?
According to the Canhoto and Wei, (2021), change management introduces to the
systematic approach of managing change within an organisation. This process includes dealing
with transformation or transition of organisational goals, technologies, procedures and core
value. Main purpose of change management within an organisation is to successfully implement
methods and strategies for effective change as well as supporting employees to accept and adopt
to change. There are basically three types of organisational change such as developmental
change, transitional change and transformational change. These changes are explained as below:
 Developmental change: This type of change within an organisation improves and
optimises previously developed strategies, processes and procedures.
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