Assessment of Management Skills and Career Development in Hospitality

Desklib provides past papers and solved assignments for students. This report analyzes management styles and career development.

1
The
Develo
ping
Manag
er

Table of Contents
Introduction:...............................................................................................................................4
Task 1.........................................................................................................................................5
LO1: Understand principles and practices of management behaviour...................................5
1.1 Compare different management styles.........................................................................5
1.2 Discuss leadership characteristics within two organisations........................................7
1.3 Evaluate communication processes in selected businesses..........................................8
1.4 Analyse organisational culture and change in selected businesses.............................10
Task 2.......................................................................................................................................12
LO2: Be able to review own potential as a prospective manager........................................12
2.1 Assess own management skills performance..............................................................12
2.2 Analyse personal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats...........................14
2.3 Set and prioritise objectives and targets to develop own potential.............................16
Task 3.......................................................................................................................................18
2

LO3: Be able to show managerial skills within a business and services context.................18
3.1 Lead and motivate a team to achieve an agreed goal or objective.............................18
3.2 Justify managerial decisions made to support achievement of agreed goal or
objective and recommendations for improvement............................................................20
Task 4.......................................................................................................................................21
LO4: Be able to create a career development plan for employment within a business and
services context....................................................................................................................21
4.1 Explain how own managerial and personal skills will support career development.. 21
4.2 Review career and personal development needs, current performance and future
needs to produce development plan..................................................................................23
Conclusion:..............................................................................................................................24
References:...............................................................................................................................25
3

Introduction
The importance for the development of managers as well as the employees has increased in
today’s times. Due to immense competition, it has become important for the managers to
develop personally as well as professionally so as to become capable of keeping up with the
changes taking place in the business environment. The following assignment is based on the
various aspects of the developing manager. In the following assignment, we will compare the
various styles of management as well as the leadership characteristics by comparing two
leading organisations Thomas Cook and TUI of UK. The communication process in the two
organisations will also be discussed. In addition to this, we will discuss the various
managerial skills required to grow in the hospitality industry and the personal assessment will
also be carried out. The future development plan will also be discussed later in the
assignment in order to enable an individual to build a successful personal and professional
development.
4

Task 1
LO1: Understand principles and practices of management behaviour.
Introduction
The following report has been prepared in order to gain the understanding of the principles of
management by taking into account two different organisations from the hospitality industry
of UK. Being a consultant at PKF Hotel experts, I have taken into consideration Thomas
Cook and TUI in order to compare the different management styles and leadership
characteristics. The communication process followed in both the organisations will also be
discussed in the following report.
1.1 Compare different management styles.
The speed at which the travel and tourism industry of UK is growing is quite significant and
therefore its impacts on UK’s GDP are also positive. The organisations in the travel and
tourism industry of UK such as Thomas Cook and TUI have added to the growth of the
industry by offering enhanced as well as quality services and products to the tourists by
effectively managing their resources. In order to provide their customers with the best
services as well as quality products and that too in accordance with the market trends and
needs of customers, the various different styles of management are used by the managers of
Thomas Cook and TUI. Therefore, in order to attain their organisational objectives and to
effectively utilise their resources, the following styles of management are used by Thomas
Cook and TUI organisation.
Thomas Cook: Thomas Cook is one of the leading organisations in the travel and tourism
industry of UK which is best known for their products which are of best quality and services
that are considered to be the best in the industry. The main reason behind their high quality
services and products are their management which maintains the level of effectiveness in the
development of the organisation’s services. The management style used by the senior
management of Thomas Cook so as to run the organisation and to maintain the effectiveness
of the organisation is observed to be Active Management Style. The senior management of
Thomas Cook uses the active style of management in order to motivate the employees to
5

perform in a more effective manner by identifying and meeting their safety needs, self-
actualisation as well as physiological needs. Therefore, the active management style is used
by the Thomas Cook organisation to provide directions to their staff and to involve them in
planning process by asking their feedback. The active management style is used mainly by
the organisation in order to provide motivation to employees so as to increase the
organisational profit by enhancing the productivity of employees (Thomas Cook Group,
2017).
TUI: Another major leading organisation within the travel and tourism industry of UK is TUI
which is best known for providing all kinds of services to its customers. The style of
management used by the senior management of TUI so as to manage the staff and their
activities in the organisation is observed to be Consultative management style. The
consultative style of management is used by the managers so as to motivate the employees by
providing adequate training to them and making them capable of meeting the future
requirements and needs. In order to achieve this, the management collects the information as
well as the views and opinions of different staff members and plan services. The target is set
by the managers and the performance of various employees is measured against the standard
so as to provide customers with the best services (TUI Group, 2018).
6

1.2 Discuss leadership characteristics within two organisations.
A leader is a person who aims to bring change in the organisation and the leadership is the
process through which the individual leads the group of individuals to achieve organisational
goals and objectives. The leaders at Thomas Cook follow the autocratic and participative
leadership style. The autocratic style of leadership allows the leaders at Thomas Cook to
make decisions by their own without involving others and to exercise full control on
employees. They give commands to their employees. The autocratic leaders at Thomas take
all the decisions related to finances, marketing etc. The decision making process is quite fast
in Thomas Cook as autocratic leader does not involve many people in the decision making
process. Autocratic leaders focus on the individual task of the every team member so that the
team may achieve goals more efficiently (Holten, et. al., 2015).
The leaders at Thomas Cook also follows participative style of leadership depending on the
situation in which the leaders takes the input from the various staff members but the final
decision is made by the leader himself. The participative leaders are best motivators as they
efficiently boost the morale of the employees so as to increase their productivity. The leaders
at Thomas Cook mainly use participative style of leadership when organisation undergoes
any changes or changes are made in the processes of the organisation. The participative
leaders are very good at making employees accept those changes easily. Therefore, the styles
adopted by the leaders at Thomas Cook vary with the situations and the business environment
and the style which is best suited to the situation is adopted (Coutney, et. al., 2013).
The leadership style followed by the leaders at TUI organisation is observed to be
transactional style. The transactional style of leadership is the style where the leaders believe
in the process of exchange and therefore benefits are exchanged with the employees in the
form of rewards and recognition. The leaders using this style motivate the employees by
rewarding them or by punishing them based on their performance. The main objective of the
leaders at TUI is to utilise every employee to their best possible potential (Evans, et. al.,
2012).
7

1.3 Evaluate communication processes in selected businesses.
Communication may be defined as the process through which information travels form one
source to another source. It can be considered as the major factor that decides the success of
the organisation as without communication, no organisation can function in an effective
manner. The importance of communication for the travel and tourism industry cannot be
understated as effective communication is vital for the flow of information in this
organisation so as to plan the services and products in accordance with the changing trends
and environment. The management and the employees in travel and tourism organisation
make use of communication so as to exchange information regarding issues and changes
required in the processes (Aaker & Joachimsthaler, 2012). As both Thomas Cook and TUI
are the leading organisations in the Travel and Tourism industry, the communication
processes are mainly same in both the organisations which are described as below:
Emails: Electronic Mail or simple Email is one of the simplest methods of communicating
with the staff. The organisations like Thomas Cook and TUI are making use of the Emails in
order to exchange information with their staff at different levels in the organisation. Email is
a kind of upward communication which is followed by both the organisations. The various
guidelines as well as the important information and knowledge are shared by means of
Emails. The various policies and the information regarding changes in processes of
organisation are shared through Emails with the concerned or with all the employees so as to
make them capable of achieving organisational goals in accordance with the standards
defined.
Meetings: In order to develop effective interaction with the staff members of the
organisation, the organisations like Thomas Cook and TUI held meetings. Meetings are yet
another kind of communication which is considered to be formal. Meetings enable the
managers in these organisations to get the instant reaction and effective response from the
various staff members regarding particular project or policy. This method of communication
is used by the Thomas Cook and TUI so as to motivate employees, provide them proper
guidelines and to resolve various organisational issues (Weske, 2012).
Written: Written communication is the most traditional method of communication. The
organisation like Thomas Cook and TUI are still using this method of communication for
sharing information with various staff members. The various different forms of written
8

communication that are used in these organisations are notices, memorandums, letter heads
etc. This form of communication is considered to be quite costly as well as time consuming.
9

1.4 Analyse organisational culture and change in selected businesses.
Organisational culture is made up of the way the workforce interacts with each other within
an organisation (Alvesson, 2012). Thomas Cook is one of the leading organisations in travel
and tourism industry. The organisation follows the hierarchical structure so as to manage the
activities and to maintain the effectiveness in the decision making process. The organisational
culture of Thomas Cook is considered to be a friendly where the employees get the support
from the management and this enables them to perform their organisational tasks in effective
manner. The senior management of the Thomas Cook has been observed to be supportive and
provides guidelines to their employees so that they perform tasks in accordance with the
standards so as to provide services in accordance with the changing trends and customer
requirements (Carter, 2012). The organisational culture of Thomas Cook facilitates strong
and healthy relations between the employees and between the employees and management
and this makes the working environment positive which serves as the major strength of the
organisation.
On the other hand, the organisational culture of TUI is based on the organisational success
and is customer-centric. The main focus of the organisation is making their customers as well
as their employees satisfied and therefore they aim to spread smiles among their staff as well
as their customers. The organisation comprises of skilled and talented staff that provides
customers with delighted experiences. Their organisational culture is made up of three
elements of success i.e. winning together; push the limitations and freedom to over shine. The
culture of the TUI inspires its employees to work mutually co-operating each other (TUI
Group, 2018).
Another important factor that needs to be focussed upon by organisations carefully is the
requirement of change as change is important as well as unavoidable. Both TUI as well as
Thomas Cook is part of service industries and therefore it is imperative that changes will take
place in the organisations as well as their processes. The increased competition has led to the
immense pressure that leads to the introduction of the various changes in the processes so as
to provide enhanced and improved services to customers. The organisations understand the
value of change and therefore keep updating staff in accordance with the changing trends and
technological advancements (Graves, 2013).
Conclusion
10

The above report has discussed the styles of management and the leadership characteristics of
the leaders at Thomas Cook and TUI organisations. The importance of communication and
the different forms of communication used by both the organisations and their organisational
culture has been discussed as well in the above report.
11

Task 2
LO2: Be able to review own potential as a prospective manager.
Introduction
The following report has been prepared with the primary objective of reviewing one’s own
potential to become a prospective manager from the assistant manager of Clayton Crown
Hotel, London. In the following report, the various managerial skills will be analysed.
2.1 Assess own management skills performance.
I consider myself appropriate for becoming the prospective manager of the Clayton Crown
Hotel as I have the following abilities:
Personal Skills: I possess some really good personal skills and my interpersonal skills as
well as motivational skills are excellent. This enables me to make great bonds with others
very easily. Others can easily connect with me and share their issues with me. However, I
lack in patience and therefore needs to work upon it (Anca & Dumitru, 2012).
Communication skills: Communication skills are not just important but essential in order to
become a prospective manager of such a big hotel. Being a part of the hospitality industry,
one should have excellent and effective communication skills. I have excellent verbal and
written communication skills which mean that I can share my ideas and views effectively
with my colleagues and can interact with customers in an effective manner.
Planning Skills: Another important managerial skill that is important and is possessed by me
is the skill to plan effectively. I am an effective planner and therefore plans my tasks in a
manner that can be achieved easily and effectively. I make sure that I achieve my tasks on
time by following my plans and therefore I have the capability of leading others by showing
them directions.
Technical Qualification: All the technical abilities and the qualification required to become
the prospective manager of Clayton Crown Hotel. Being an assistant manager of the same, I
have learnt and gained several required skills and technical abilities (Kong, et. al., 2012).
Decision Making Skills: A good leader as well as an effective manager is the one who has
excellent decision making skills and is capable of making decisions quickly and effectively. I
12