Corus Hotels Communication Practices: A Case Study

Desklib provides solved assignments and past papers to help students succeed.

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
1

Executive summary
The present report analyses the effective communication practices of Corus Hotels of the UK
that is interested to open hotel in Sri Lanka. The principles of communication and purpose of it
in the organisational structure are analysed. The communication principles and inter
departmental communication between the employees of the hotel are also discussed here.
Barriers of communication and the mitigation strategies are also included in it that improves
operational efficiency of the business.
2

Table of Contents
Assessment 1 –Staff Handbook Guidance Document.....................................................................4
Identify common challenges and barriers to effective communication.......................................4
Devise and develop strategies for overcoming communication barriers.....................................4
Demonstrate awareness of cultural influences on communication and negotiation....................5
Security of resort..........................................................................................................................5
Promotional techniques of resort.................................................................................................5
Assessment 2 - Individual Report....................................................................................................8
Introduction......................................................................................................................................8
Literature review..............................................................................................................................8
Purposes and principles behind different forms of organisational communication....................8
Principles of effective communication to enhance practice........................................................9
Evaluation of the communication practices of Corus Hotels....................................................10
Analysis and discussion.................................................................................................................10
Measurement of inter-departmental cooperation of Corus Hotels............................................10
Barriers to effective communication and strategy to overcome them.......................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................12
References......................................................................................................................................13
3

Assessment 1 –Staff Handbook Guidance Document
Identify common challenges and barriers to effective communication
The barriers and challenges of communication that are identified among the employees of Corus
hotel are,
● Culture barrier
● Emotional barrier
● Attitude barrier
● Distractions
● Lack of skills of employees
● Improper communication channel
● Lack of technology used
● Lack of understanding of the needs of the employees
The cultural barrier is high for Corus Hotels as the company has identified that the employees
have different cultural background and it is difficult for them to communicate with each other
(Corus Hotels, 2019). On the other hand, culture of the customers and labours of Sri Lanka is
different from the UK that can create a challenge for the company.
Devise and develop strategies for overcoming communication barriers
The strategies that are required for the company to reduce the communication barriers are,
● Implementation of proper communication channel
● Training for the employees to reduce the conflict between them
● Determination of the needs of the employees and improve the services based on it
● Improvement of body language and posture is required
● Flexibility in the target of the employees as well as the improvement of the experiences
● Visual methods of communication can be used by the company
● Use of effective language is also required
Therefore, it is identified that mitigation of communication barrier is required for the employees
to improve the operational efficiencies and maintain effective flow in the organizational
structure. In this process, an effective communication channel is required for the employees that
4

help them to provide feedbacks regarding the hospitality services and management improvement
(Serenko and Bontis, 2016).
Demonstrate awareness of cultural influences on communication and negotiation
Awareness of the cultural influences is required for the organisation as it can reduce the cultural
barriers among the employees. For this purpose, training is necessary for the employees to gain
more access of the organizational resources and conduct proper planning for improving the
communication with the employees and customers (Jenifer and Raman, 2015). As the people of
Sri Lanka has different culture, it is necessary for them to identify the cultural background of the
Sri Lanka in order to expand the business effectively to the country. It can also enhance the
negotiation possibilities of the company and they can easily communicate with the employees
and labours of Sri Lanka to improve communication.
Security of resort
Corus Hotels can also emphasise on the security arrangement of the resort as there is possibilities
of terrorist attacks in Colombo. For this purpose, closed circuit television can be created by the
organization and it is required for controlling after hour access. Safety meetings are required for
the company as well as updating of locks are necessary for increasing security (Johnson et al.,
2015). Alongside, automatic deadbolts can be implemented by the company in order to reduce
external threats.
Promotional techniques of resort
Promotion is required for the company to make the people of Sri Lanka aware about the products
and services of Corus Hotels. Besides, social media marketing can be organised by the company
as it can help the company to provide advertisement of their foods and services more effectively;
as they can reach to more number of customers in small amount of time. A promotional
campaign can be organised by them and they can invite the people of Sri Lanka through social
media and leaflets. The people can identify the detailed information of the products and services
of Corus Hotel from their official websites.
(Refer to poster)
5

6
Security of resort
 Closed circuit television can be created by the organization
and it is required for controlling after hour access.
 Safety meetings are required for the company as well as
updating of locks are necessary for increasing security.
Promotional techniques of resort
 Social media marketing can be organised by the company as it
can help the company to provide advertisement of their foods
and services more effectively
 Promotion is required for the company to reach more number
of customers in small amount of time.
Security of resort
 Automatic deadbolts can be
implemented by the company in order
to reduce external threats.
 Hiring of security guards
Promotional techniques of resort
 A promotional campaign can be organised by them and they can
invite the people of Sri Lanka through social media and leaflets.
 The people can identify the detailed information of the products
and services of Corus Hotel from their official websites.
Poster

7
Identify common challenges and barriers to effective
communication
● Improper communication channel
● Lack of technology used
● Lack of understanding of the needs of the
employees
Identify common challenges and barriers to
effective communication
● Culture barrier
● Emotional barrier
● Attitude barrier
● Distractions
● Lack of skills of employees
Devise and develop strategies for overcoming
communication barriers
● Implementation of proper communication channel
● Training for the employees to reduce the conflict
between them
● Determination of the needs of the employees and
improve the services based on it
Devise and develop strategies for overcoming communication
barriers
● Improvement of body language and posture is required
● Flexibility in the target of the employees as well as the
improvement of the experiences
● Visual methods of communication can be used by Corus

Assessment 2 - Individual Report
Introduction
Communication is required between different departments of the organisations to build
relationship among the employees, improve the effectiveness of the business and overcome
conflict between the employees. Passing information in time is possible through the effective
communication. In the present report, a chain of hotel and resort of the UK namely Curious
Hotels has been selected to determine inter departmental communication of the hotel. It is also
important for maintaining efficient hospitality services in the hotel to increase customer
satisfaction as well as it is necessary for expanding the business to Sri Lanka successfully.
Barriers of communication of the hotel are identified and overcoming strategies are discussed
along with importance of cultural awareness.
Corus Hotels is a chain of hotel and restaurant headquartered in the UK. They have different
hotels in 10 areas and the hotel is planned to move to Sri Lanka to provide effective services
(Corus Hotels, 2019).
Literature review
Purposes and principles behind different forms of organisational communication
Purpose of communication is improvement of operational efficiencies, creation of relationship
with the employees and managers that are effective for achieving the customer base and
satisfaction. Communication is required for successful segmentation the jobs and responsibilities
among the employees based on their skills and experiences (Holley and Sentance, 2015).
Different communication forms are verbal and nonverbal communication. On the other hand,
planning, controlling, leading and organising are required for successful communication.
Therefore, Corus hotel needs to improve communication to successfully expand the business in
Sri Lanka.
Passing of information is required for the organization to identify the issues faced by the
employees in the hotel that can increase communication between them. Purpose of business
communication is maintaining good relationship with the employees and staffs. Communication
8

with the people of Sri Lanka is also required to determine the demand of the customers in order
to increase customer base.
Principles of effective communication to enhance practice
The principles of effective communication are
Clarity
Clarity of thoughts is required for the business communication that means of the objectives of
communication needs to be clear. The suitable media for communication required to be
identified in order to improve the communication possibilities (Gut et al., 2017). Clarity of
expression is also necessary to encourage the receiver about the message and transmit the
message carefully. Using of simple word, active construction is required along with avoiding
ambiguity.
Completeness and active listening
Completeness in the messages is required for effective communication as it can transmit the
messages to the receiver more accurately and full information can be provided to the receiver.
Active listening and attention of employees is essential for communication in order to gather
proper messages.
Conciseness
Conciseness of the message is essential for the business communication as it can transmit the
expression. Necessary details should be included in the communicating messages to reduce the
possibilities of repetition of messages (Punch, 2016). Revenant facts in the messages can make
the communication coherent and effective.
Correctness and integration
Transmission of correct messages is required to improve the consistency and reliability of the
messages. Integration of messages is also necessary for the business communication as it
includes all necessary and correct information of their business operations.
Consideration of network
Effective communication network is required for the successful communication as it increases
effectiveness and flexibility of information. All necessary information can be passed through it
9

and continuous maintenance of the occupation channel helps the accuracy and transmission
speed of messages.
Evaluation of the communication practices of Corus Hotels
Communication practices are required for the business organizations to maintain flawless
services in the hotel and improve hospitality services. It is identified that Corus Hotels has
effective communication between different departments. Modern and innovative communication
technique is used by the company in order to get the important information in time (Trautrims et
al., 2016). For this purpose, a communication channel is used by the organisation to determine
the needs of the employees as well as collect their feedbacks for improving the hospitality and
management services of the hotel. A digital employee portal is used by them in which the staffs
can provide their feedbacks and it is also essential for measuring their performance and track
different services of the hotel. Telecommunication media as well as social media are also used by
the company to communicate with the staffs.
Corus Hotels also publish their annual report which includes profit and sales of the company.
Therefore, the annual meeting and documents include target for the employees for sales and
profit and performance of them are measured on the basis of it. Besides, training, workshops,
meeting and seminars are arranged by the managers to provide necessary information to the
staffs about hospitality services. BYOD policy in included in the hotel as well as enterprise based
mobile messaging platform that is necessary for communicating with the staffs in regular
manner. Health and safety policy as well as on-boarding initiatives are also involved in the hotel
communication that is necessary for improving the communication between staffs.
Analysis and discussion
Measurement of inter-departmental cooperation of Corus Hotels
Inter departmental corporation is required for the organisations in order to maintain flawless
services and communication in the organisation. Degree of success is directly related to the
cooperation of the team members, departments and consultants. In Corus hotel, interdepartmental
communication is effective to successfully operate the hospitality services. There are different
10

departments are present in Corus hotel such as food production, hospitality services,
accommodation and kitchen department. Better cooperation between the departments is required
to improve the accessibility of resources and reduce time of management and hospitality
services.
The other departments that are associated with the Corus hotel are front office, banquette,
security, and controller, housekeeping as well as marketing and sales department.
Communication with the marketing and sales department is effective for the company as this
department promotes the services and foods of the hotel that is necessary for gaining customer
attestation and satisfaction. Front office of the hotel is communicated with all other departments
of the hotels to identify whether there are appropriate resources to fulfil the needs of the
consumers (Bititci et al., 2016). Management of overseas communication is also included in the
hotel as it can increase information, resources and labour flow between different branches of the
hotels to improve hospitality services.
Barriers to effective communication and strategy to overcome them
Barriers in communication
Linguistic barrier
In Sri Lanka, most of the people do not understand proper English language. Due to this the
personnel in hierarchy of Corus hotels might not communicate properly with the local employees
thereby creating a linguistic barrier.
Emotional barrier
The emotional IQ of an individual states the ability to communicate (Mapjabil et al., 2017).
Therefore, the employees of Corus hotels who have a lower quotient of emotional IQ might not
be able to talk with greater freedom. This miscommunication might impact the service standards
of Corus hotels on an adverse manner.
Cultural barrier
The culture of the Sri Lankan folk is very much different and therefore the mixing of the local
employees of Corus hotels with the foreign employees would be very difficult due to cultural
differences. Furthermore, Corus hotel is a hospitality organisation in which the British decorative
style has been prevailing since its inception (Hamoud et al., 2016). This might pose questions in
the mind of Sri Lankan employees regarding the company principles.
11

Physical barrier
It has been witnessed in the offices of Corus hotels that the physical distance between the
subordinates and the hierarchy ranges very high. Therefore, in case of faulty communication
equipment, effective communication gets hampered thereby affecting customer service. If this
condition prevails in the set up in Sri Lanka, then the physical barrier in communication would
decrease the stakes of the hotel in the country.
Overcoming communication barriers
Provision of English language training
Corus hotels can provide adequate English language training to the local employees who are do
not have proficiency in English language. In this manner, they would be able to communicate
freely with the foreign officials which are essential for accomplishing the operations of the hotel.
Developing inter-cultural setup
The hierarchy of Corus hotels can add some additional features of the Sri Lankan regime so that
the local employees do not feel isolated from their culture. Moreover, this would enhance the
employees to work in an environment which is similar to their nation.
Reducing distance between cubicles
Corus hotels can reduce the distance between cubicles of employees so that their communication
does not get affected. Moreover, the communication among the employees would not be a
function of any communication equipment (Niemi and Pekkola, 2017). This would promote
more sharing of ideas which is essential for growth of the hotel for accomplishing their services.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is required for Corus hotel to maintain effective communication with the
different departments in order to maintain smooth and timely services. It can increase the
customer satisfaction and it is also required for gaining the needs of the customers of Sri Lanka.
It can be identified that the organisation has faced some barriers in communication and some
strategies such as training, selection of proper communication channel and flexibility of
achieving target of the employees are required for mitigating communication barriers between
employees. Communication practices and inter departmental communication of Corus Hotel are
also analysed in this report.
12