Research Project: Employee Motivation and Service Delivery

This research project investigates the impact of employee motivation on service delivery within the hospitality sector, using the Four Seasons Hotel as a case study. The project begins with a research proposal, outlining the research project's specifications, factors contributing to topic selection, a review of relevant literature, research questions, and the chosen methodology which combines interpretivism and positivism using a deductive approach. Data collection methods include both primary and secondary sources, with ethical considerations and limitations acknowledged. The project aims to identify factors influencing employee motivation, determine its importance in the hospitality industry, analyze its impact on service delivery at the Four Seasons Hotel, and provide recommendations for improvement. The project also details factors contributing to the project's selection, a comprehensive literature review highlighting the importance of employee motivation for improved service quality and customer satisfaction, and finally a research report that analyzes the data collected using quantitative analysis and presents recommendations for improving employee motivation to improve service delivery.

RESEARCH
PROJECT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................3
NOTE 1: RESEARCH PROPOSAL ..............................................................................................3
1.1 Formulating and recording research project outline specifications ......................................3
1.2 Factors contributing to research project selection.................................................................6
1.3 Review of literature ...............................................................................................................6
1.4 Research questions ................................................................................................................7
1.5 Appropriate plan and procedures for agreed specification ...................................................7
1.5 Appropriate plan and procedures for agreed specification ...................................................7
NOTE 2: Implementing the Research Project .............................................................................8
2.1: Match resources to research question ..................................................................................8
2.2 Undertake the proposed research investigation in accordance with the agreed specification
and procedures ............................................................................................................................9
2.3 Record and collate relevant data by adopting systematic recording approaches..................9
NOTE 3 RESEARCH REPORT .....................................................................................................9
Research methodology...............................................................................................................10
Development of research questions ..........................................................................................11
3.1 description of methods that will be used fr analysing the collected data.............................11
3.2 Analyzing data and interpreting results in terms of original research specifications .........11
3.3 Recommendations and justifications of areas for further consideration ............................13
4.1 Use of agreed format for presenting outcomes....................................................................14
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................15
appendix ........................................................................................................................................17
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INTRODUCTION
There has been tremendous growth in the competition in the hospitality industry of UK.
With the emergence of new players, the existing organizations of hospitality sector have to excel
in various fields so as to make a distinct place in the minds of consumers. Service delivery is the
most important aspects through which hospitality organizations are able to attract new customers
and retain the old ones even in the time of fierce competition (Slatten and Mehmetoglu, 2011). In
this regard, another important factor that needs to be considered by the hospitality organizations
is the motivation of their employees. Employee motivation constitutes the psychological forces
that determine the behaviors of workers in an organization. The present research project has been
made with the purpose of finding out the impact of employee motivation on service delivery in
hospitality sector. For this, Four Seasons hotel has been chosen as the organization. Research
proposal has been prepared followed by conducting the research. Lastly, a research report has
been made. This topic has been chosen because employee motivation is an important concept for
hotel organizations. This is because it is known to impact the ways in which staff provides
service to the guests. For hotels, it is very important to provide satisfactory service to the clients.
This is required to fight the tough competition in the industry. Therefore, is a need to research on
the impact that employee motivation has on service delivery in hotel organizations.
NOTE 1: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
1.1 Formulating and recording research project outline specifications
Research project description
The prime concern of organizations in the hospitality industry is to provide excellent
customer service. This is required for staying ahead of competitors in this sector. Four Seasons
Hotel is an international luxury five star hotel management company. It provides highly
personalized 24 hours service. Employees are the face of a service organization like hotel Four
Seasons. It maintains its service culture which is admired by the customers and cannot be
replicated easily (About Four Seasons, 2015). The present research project will be carried out
with the purpose of determining the impact of employee motivation on service delivery in Four
Seasons Hotel. It will explore the concept of employee motivation. Further, importance of
employee motivation inhospitality industry will be analysed. The study will also determine the
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ways in which motivation provided to employees impacts service delivery in hospitality
organizations.
Aim
To evaluate the impact of employee motivation on service delivery in Hotel Four Seasons
Objectives
The present research will be conducted with the following objectives:
 To identify the factors that influence employee motivation.
 To determine the importance of employee motivation in hospitality industry
 To analyse the impact of employee motivation on service delivery at hotel Four Seasons. To provide recommendations for improving employee motivation at Hotel Four Seasons
for providing better service.
Research questions
The following will be the research questions for the study:
 What are the factors that influence employee motivation?
 What is the importance of employee motivation in hospitality industry?
 How does employee motivation impact on service delivery at hotel Four Seasons? What would you suggest to improve employee motivation at Hotel Four Seasons?
Research methodology
It is of utmost importance to adopt the right methods for collecting data, analysing it and
proceeding with the study. The research methodology section provides details about the tool and
techniques that will be used for carrying out the study (Sekaran, 2006.). It provides information
on various types of research techniques that the researcher selects for a particular study along
with justification for their selection. It covers the aspects such as philosophy, approach,
reliability and validity, data analysis, ethical considerations and limitations of research.
Research philosophy
This is related to developing knowledge about the research. There are various types of
research philosophies (Vaivio, 2008). For the present research, a combination of interpretivism
and positivism philosophy will be used. Interpretivism philosophy will help the researcher in
assigning significance to his beliefs (The Interpretivist Paradigm, 2008). With the help of this,
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real facts and figures will be extracted. Positivism philosophy will be used as it will help the
researcher to evaluate the social world by providing his view point.
Research approach
There are two types of research approaches. These are inductive and deductive (Chenail,
2011). For the present study, deductive approach has been used. This approach moves from
general to more specific. Deductive approach will be used as it will help the researcher in
making observations and narrowing down to specific confirmations.
Data collection methods
Data collection is the prime aspect of every research. It concerns with gathering
information for answering the research questions. In this way, data collection helps in arriving at
conclusion. There are two methods of gathering data, primary and secondary (Harrison and
Reilly, 2011). For the present study, data will be collected by using both the methods. Primary
data collection methods will provide rich and detailed information on the topic. It is for this
reason; primary data will be collected in the current study. Secondary data will be collected by
using various journals, books, organizational websites, online articles etc. Secondary data will be
gathered as it assists in developing an understanding of the subject matter.
Access to data
Access to the required data will be gained by obtaining prior permission for accessing full
content of journal articles. Concerning the primary data, access will be gained by setting
appointment schedules with the respondents. The participants will be approached as per the
schedule when they are free.
Data analysis
Data analysis is concerned with transforming the data so as to derive meaning out of it.
This can be done with the help of two methods. These are qualitative analysis and quantitative
analysis (Modell and Humphrey, 2008). For the present study, data will be analysed with the
help of quantitative analysis. This will help in understanding the behaviors and underlying
motivations of people.
Ethical considerations
Ethics are the norms of conduct that make a research morally and logically sound
(Gregory, 2003). These ensure that the study has been carried out in correct manner. Therefore, it
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is important for the researcher to consider ethical norms. In the absence of these, there may arise
various ethical issues. While carrying out the present research, various ethical considerations will
be taken into account by the researcher. These involve obtaining informed consent of the
participants, taking prior permission for gaining access to certain sites. The researcher will also
ensure that research works of other authors are properly cited.
Limitations of research
Carrying out the research is a prolonged and complicated process. As such, the
researchers face various limitations (Bryman, 2008). While carrying out the current study on
employee motivation, certain limitations may be faced by the researcher. Firstly, there will be
limited time available with the researcher. Secondly, insufficient secondary information may be
found as some of the sites may not provide access to full content.
1.2 Factors contributing to research project selection
There are various factors that contribute to the process of selection and motivated the researcher
to to choose the topic for research. They have been identified below: Interesting topic- The present topic was chosen as it seemed to be interesting. Employee
motivation is a broad concept which is important to be considered by all organizations.
Hospitality organizations are known for their service delivery. The current topic would
require not only researching the concept of employee motivation and its impact but also
studying a luxury five star hotel, Four Seasons, of UK. Therefore it was selected. Availability of literature- This is another factor that contributes to selection of research
project. Sufficient literature was available on the subject matter concerning the current
topic of impact of employee motivation on service delivery. This acted as a source of
motivation for the researcher to choose the topic of employee motivation and its impact. Growth of the company- This topic has been chosen for the present research project
because employees’ motivation helps in the growth of the company. It makes the
employees perform better work. Enable to get the company more organized- The research project on employee
motivation was selected because it enables the company to get more organized. In this
way, it proves to be beneficial for hotel organizations.
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 Encourages the employees to put efforts- Employee motivation encourages the
employees to put all their efforts in their job.
 Achievement – The given topic will aid to increase my overall knowledge on the given
subject area. As a researcher, I can gain a wide array of information so as to increase my
future learning.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Employee motivation is considered as an important aspect when the workforce
satisfaction is to be studied. As per the views of Lin, (2007), for every organization, motivation
of employees is important. Motivated employees remain committed to work. They focus on
achievement of organizational objectives (Lin, 2007). This demonstrate high level of dedication
towards developing better image of the company they work in. honest service of superior quality
is provided by them to the customers. According to Liao and Chuang, (2004), it is important for
the organizations in hospitality sector to pay attention towards customer service. This is required
for fighting the fierce competition and staying ahead of the competitors (Liao and Chuang,
2004). It is the service delivered by a hotel that is remembered by the customer. Therefore,
service delivery is an important aspect and need to be emphasized for attracting new customers
and retaining the old ones. But, it can be analyzed that there are various factors which determine
the quality of service delivery. These are employee satisfaction, availability of resources, skills
and qualities possessed by staff etc. Employee motivation is also an important factor on which
service depends. Kusluvan and et.al., (2010) stressed that when customers enter an organization,
they make their first contact with the employees. Therefore, employees are rightly regarded as
the face of a company (Kusluvan and et.al., 2010).
According to Rainlall (2004), the motivation helps in enhancing the willingness of
employees to carry out a particular task. Motivated employees perform their work effectively and
efficiently. It is because of this that hotels are able to provide better service (Rainlall, 2004).
However, it can be critically evaluated that sometimes good service may not be provided by the
staff even if they are adequately motivated. This is because of their careless attitude. But,
Salanova, Agut and Peiro, (2005) argue that customer complaints and issues are resolved by the
employees in a better way when they are provided enough motivation (Salanova, Agut and Peiro,
2005). Therefore, it can be said that motivated employees provide better service. There are
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elements of energy as well as controlled behavior in customer’s service of superior quality.
Motivation plays an important role in enabling the employees to control their behavior. In this
way, they possess the energy of addressing customer complaints and fulfilling their needs. Kim,
Tavitiyaman and Kim, (2009) asserted that high level of innovation is demonstrated by the
motivated employees (Kim, Tavitiyaman and Kim, 2009). With this, they develop innovative
ways of providing desired service to the customers.
Impacts of employee demotivation
Employee demotivation presents a number of disadvantages for the employees as well as
the organization. Kusluvan and et.al., (2010) found that demotivated employees lose the zeal to
work to their best (Kusluvan and et.al., 2010). They thus perform their job for the sake of income
and not because of their willingness. This proves to be disastrous for the organizations. It can be
analyzed that employee demotivation acts as a hindrance in the achievement of organizational
goals and objectives. Liao and Chuang, (2004) asserted that lack of employee motivation leads to
customer dissatisfaction (Liao and Chuang, 2004). The employees do not serve the customers
well as they are not motivated about their work.
From the literature review it can be summarized that employee motivation has
significant impact on service delivery. Motivated employees are able to deliver better service by
possessing a control over their behavior. Moreover, these employees are more satisfied and
hence tend to give their best to the guests. The present research aims to analyze the impact of
employee motivation on service delivery at hotel Four Seasons. It can be analyzed that, being a
luxury hotel, Four seasons is well known for its service. Therefore, employee motivation would
be the influencing factor which encourages its employees to provide memorable experience to
the guests.
1.5 APPROPRIATE PLAN AND PROCEDURES FOR AGREED SPECIFICATION
ACTIVITIES/WEEK 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
SELECTION OF SUITABLE
TOPIC FOR THE RESEARCH
STUDY
Formulating goals and
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objectives to facilitate the
study
Analysing the intention and
principle behind the study
Reviewing the literature for the
study
Determining the Research
methodology
Studying appropriate methods
for evaluation
Data interpretation and
discussion
Providing recommendation and
proposition
Preparation of report in a
presentable mode
Submission of research report
NOTE 2: IMPLEMENTING THE RESEARCH PROJECT
2.1: Match resources to research question
This research study is made with an intention to demonstrate the matching of resources
efficiently with the defined research questions. The main objective of defining the research
questions is to achieve the purpose of the report making (Daniel and Sam, 2011). Data collection
is the most vital aspect of the overall study. Therefore, the use of primary and secondary data has
been used to address the research questions. The aim of collecting primary data is to assess the
first hand information to facilitate the overall study. In respect to the current study where efforts
are made to understand the impact of employee motivation on service delivery at Four Seasons
Hotel has been analysed. The information collected from the primary source is by using the
mode of questionnaire. This is made by asking questions from the employees of Four Seasons
Hotel. Secondary data has been used to gather the information on impact of employee
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motivation. Various books, journals, online blogs, articles have been used to analyse the purpose
of this research study.
2.2 Undertake the proposed research investigation in accordance with the agreed specification
and procedures
Motivating employee in an organization is considered to be very vital aspect. It is the way
by which employees who are providing services can be influenced to perform in better way
(Lundberg, Gudmundson and Andersson, 2009). It has been analysed from the primary and
secondary data sources that a motivated employee always contribute more in effective output.
Pilot survey has been used to address the significance of how employees at Four Seasons Hotel
are impelled to provide better customer services. It has been analysed that for achieving the
organizational objectives, there is a requirement of understanding customers need and
aspirations.
Moreover, with the evaluation of subject by using pilot survey, it has been depicted that
motivation also helps to ripe the benefit of growth in the business. In accordance to the
respective hotel, the improvement factor is required to manage the working of the organization.
There reflect the dimensions which shows that it is the way by which manpower of this hotel is
trained to deal, serve and communicate with the guests and visitors. These are the aspects which
are part and parcel of developing the organizational performance.
2.3 Record and collate relevant data by adopting systematic recording approaches
The collection of relevant and suitable data during the research study needs to be
recorded systematically (Goddard and Melville, 2004). The objective behind adopting a
systematic recording approach for the recording of data is made so that management of the Four
Seasons Hotel can access the same to motivate its manpower. The motivation plays very
important role in empowering personnel so that they could work in better way to achieve
organizational objectives. In this research study, primary data is collected to measure various
levels in which employee can be best motivated. As per the method used in primary data
collection method, questionnaires are best record which is information about views of employees
as respondents at Four Seasons Hotel.
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NOTE 3 RESEARCH REPORT
Research is undertaken with the objective of evaluating the impact of employee
motivation on service delivery. Hospitality organizations are required to provide customer
service of high quality (Leisink and Steijn, 2009). It is even more important in a luxury hotel
organization like Four Seasons. Customers of the hotel come into the contact of its employees.
The first impression about the service is captured by the customers with their interaction with
employees. The present project focused on determining the impact that employee motivation has
on service delivery in Four Seasons hotel.
Research methodology
Data collection methods: There are two methods of gathering data, primary and secondary
methods (Young, 2004). The present research was carried out by collecting primary data.
Primary data has been collected from the employees of hotel Four seasons. This was done with
the help of survey questionnaire. Survey has been undertaken with the aim of obtaining views
and opinions of the respondents. It proved to be a suitable method as less time was required and
the respondents could fill it as per their convenience.
Sampling: For selecting the sample of employees, probabilistic sampling technique has be used.
This is because it provides an equal chance of every unit to be included in the study (Kumar,
2014). Sample was selected by using simple random sampling method. The sample size was
taken to be 25. Therefore, primary data was collected from 25 employees of hotel Four Seasons.
The questionnaire was distributed through google docs.
Data analysis: There are two methods of analyzing the data. In the present research on employee
motivation, the data was analysed by using quantitative methods. This was used as it helped in
understanding the behaviour of employees when they were motivated. Impacts of employee
motivation on service delivery have been studied appropriately with quantitative analysis
(Gregory, 2003).
Ethical considerations: The research took note of various ethical norms while carrying out the
present study on employee motivation. Informed consent was obtained for the participants of the
study. They were informed about the nature and purpose of study. Some sites which contained
relevant secondary information did not provide access to full text. The researcher obtained
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permission to access those sites. While using the works of other authors, the research ensured
that they are properly cited.
Research limitations: Various limitations were faced by the researcher while carrying out the
present study on employee motivation at four seasons. There was limited time available with the
researcher to carry out the entire research. Therefore, he may have missed on some important
information. Another limitation that the researcher faced was related to insufficient secondary
information. It may further be difficult to generalize data findings on similar topics
Development of research questions
The following research questions have been developed:
 What are the factors that influence employee motivation?
 What is the importance of employee motivation in hospitality industry?
 How does employee motivation impact on service delivery at hotel Four Seasons?
 What would you suggest to improve employee motivation at Hotel Four Seasons?
3.1 description of methods that will be used for analysing the collected data
The collected data will be analyses by utilizing qualitative technique. Thematic analysis
has been carried out for evaluating the data. In the present study on employee motivation, the
data was collected from the employees with the help of survey questionnaire method. Since the
topic required detailed and in - depth investigation. This was done with the help of quantitative
analysis. The responses of the participants were analyzed by using quantitative techniques. These
were presented with the help of charts.
3.2 Analyzing data and interpreting results in terms of original research specifications
The data has been analysed with the help of the following themes:
Theme 1: Salary and promotion are the major factors that influence employee motivation
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