Crisis Management Practices in Hospitality: Radisson Blu Case Study UK

This research report investigates crisis management practices adopted by the UK hospitality industry, specifically focusing on Radisson Blu, to address challenges, including those posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. It explores the conceptual framework of crisis management, the challenges faced by Radisson Blu in the absence of such practices, and the specific strategies implemented to mitigate crises. The research employs a quantitative approach, utilizing both primary and secondary data collected through questionnaires. The findings contribute to understanding how crisis management aids in developing successful business strategies within the hospitality sector, offering recommendations for enhancing resilience and adaptability in the face of unforeseen events.

Research project
(Various crisis management practices adopted
by Hospitality industry of UK to deal with
different crisis)
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The major reason for conducting the investigation is to determine all the practices which can be
used by the hospitality sector to mitigate the challenges faced at the time of Covid 19 pandemic.
The current research report will help in understanding how crisis management aids in developing
successful business for the company. The investigation will have accumulated quantitative data
from the study so that aim and objective can be attained in significant manner. to gather
quantitative data both primary and secondary information will be used so that in depth study can
be made. To collect primary data questionnaire will be designed in closed ended form so that
numerical information can be obtained.
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Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................2
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT...............................................................................................................4
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................5
Overview of the topic..................................................................................................................5
Background of the organisation...................................................................................................5
Research problem........................................................................................................................5
Research aim and objective.........................................................................................................5
Research question........................................................................................................................6
Research rational.........................................................................................................................6
LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................................................7
What is the conceptual framework of Crisis management and different phase of crisis
management?...............................................................................................................................7
What are the challenges faced by Radisson Blu in absence of Crisis management practices?...7
What are various crisis management practices adopted by Radisson Blu to deal with different
crisis including Covid 19?...........................................................................................................8
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY..................................................................................................10
DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS..........................................................................................12
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION............................................................................22
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................22
Recommendation.......................................................................................................................22
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................23
APPENDIX....................................................................................................................................25
Questionnaire.............................................................................................................................25
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my gratitude to my professor for providing me the opportunity to
conduct the investigation on the topic effectiveness of crisis management. I sincerely appreciate
the effort they put to provide the guidance so the total research can be done in systematic
manner. they provide me all the resources which is required to conduct the research.
Secondly, I want to thank my parents and family to support me and motivate me in gathering and
analysing information in order to conduct investigation. With the efforts put by them I am able to
carry out research within given time duration.
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INTRODUCTION
Overview of the topic
Crisis management is the application of various strategies that is developed by the
organisation to deal with the unexpected events which impact the company in negative manner.
With the aids of various crisis management practices organisation seeks to minimise the damage
and impact that affect the performance and productivity of the company. In the recent era one of
the biggest crisis that is faced by the hospitality industry is Covid 19 pandemic (Hu and et. al,
2021). The present research significantly focuses on managing the crisis that occur at the time of
global pandemic. This research will also identify the different measure that are used by the hotels
to reduce the fear of damages and risk as well the following report will also highlight the
challenges that were faced by the hospitality industry at the time of Covid 19 pandemic (Brown
and et. al, 2018).
Background of the organisation
To carry out the investigation the chosen hospitality organisation is Radisson Blu. It is one
of the leading chain of hotels that is operated by the Radisson hotel. The hotel as founded in
1960 but the brand gains their market image in the year 2002. Radisson blu served their service
worldwide and approach they operates their business in more than 380 locations. Radisson open
their property in metro cities, key airport gateways.
Research problem
The major problem that is determined in the present study is that hospitality industry has
faced unexpected event that damage their business function in great manner. the time of Covid
19 has force the hotel to close their business operation which decreased their performance and
productivity (Beirman, 2020). The outbreak of the pandemic has created numerous challenges
which force the hotel to developed various crisis management practices so that they can deal
with the damage in sound manner.
Research aim and objective
Research Aim
To identify various crisis management practices adopted by Hospitality industry of UK to
deal with different crisis including Covid 19: A case on Radisson Blu.
Research Objectives
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 To understand the conceptual framework of Crisis management and different phase of
crisis management
 To determine the challenges faced by Radisson Blu in absence of Crisis management
 To identify various crisis management practices adopted by Radisson Blu to deal with
different crisis including Covid 19
Research question
 What is the conceptual framework of Crisis management and different phase of crisis
management?
 What are the challenges faced by Radisson Blu in absence of Crisis management
practices?
 What are various crisis management practices adopted by Radisson Blu to deal with
different crisis including Covid 19?
Research rational
The main rational for conducting the investigation is to acquire knowledge on the
importance of different crisis management practices used within hospitality sector at the time of
Covid 19 pandemic. With the assist of this investigation investigator will also full fill dual
objective that are: personal and professional objective. In respect to the personal perspective,
investigator will understand various measure and tools used for collecting and analysing data. on
the other side, with professional perspective researcher learn about the importance of crisis
management strategy within the organisation (Pillai and et. al, 2021).
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LITERATURE REVIEW
What is the conceptual framework of Crisis management and different phase of crisis
management?
According to Mackay, 2021, crisis management is a team of systematic framework and
practices which is adopted by the organisation of hospitality sector in order to protect their
company from the harmful effects of various uncertainty. Through this management the
commercial enterprise can enhance their business productivity. Crisis can be occur from the
events which are unpredictable or unseen that can negatively affects the overall function of
business. The presence of this management can assist an organisation to overcome the huge loss
face by them during pandemic. Crisis management is a comprehensive process that takes place
before a crisis occurs. Crisis management techniques are used before, during, and after a crisis.
Crisis management helps a business enterprise of hospitality industry to identify the upcoming
negative event in early stage which can create trouble in their business. With the presence of
crisis management it is possible for a company to examine and evaluate the total loss which they
have faced after the pandemic. Furthermore, there are four stages present in crisis management
which are mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. Mitigation is the first stage of this
process in which planning is done by the crisis management. In this phase the higher authorities
of the company make a team of highly educated and skilled employees in order to successfully
deal with the crisis which may occur in future (Filimonau, Derqui and Matute, 2020). During this
stage an organisation identify the area which are most likely to be affected. The second phase of
the frameworks is preparedness in which an organisation create a most effective and suitable
crisis management plan within their company. Response is the third crucial phase of this
procedure in which the company target the most pressing issue which can be faced by them. The
last stage of this process in recovery, during this a commercial enterprise adopt a strategic plan
which will help them to rebuild their business operations. Crisis management attempts to
minimize the damage caused by a crisis. However, this does not mean that crisis management is
similar with crisis response.
What are the challenges faced by Radisson Blu in absence of Crisis management practices?
As per the opinion of Connolly, 2019 , with the absence of crisis management practice
the organisation of Radission Blu had experienced numerous challenges within their company.
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One of the main issue which they have faced during the Covid-19 is that they are not able to run
their business operation in a effective and efficient manner. The absence of crisis management
practices also has the direct impact on hotel's finance area. The activities done by this
management assist a company to rotate their funds in such a way that can help them to cover
issues in a short period of time. The next issue faced by Radisson blu is that they are not able to
provide effective and proper training to their employees regarding their work area. Due to this it
is very hard for an employee to give the best working performance in their respective field. The
management is not able to enhance the knowledge of their employees in a proper manner. In
addition, if any unpredictable or unwanted crises will occur then it is very difficult for a
company to successfully manage their business productivity and enlarge their market share. In
the absence of crisis management it is very difficult for hotel to properly manage their
operational issues such as reservation problems, front desk work, maintenance problem and
many more issues (Breier and et. al, 2021). It is very important for an organisation to conduct
crisis management practices as it will encourage every employees of their company to properly
face the unexpected development. It will allow their employees to adjust well in the changes
made the company after any crisis. The management of Radisson blu is not able to understand
and analyse the appropriate cause of unwanted situation with the absence of crisis management
practices. Due to the absence of crisis management department it is very hard for the manager of
the company to make and implement business strategy in order to come out from uncertain
condition. In the event of a crisis, the crisis manager is responsible for directing the
organization's response in accordance with the established crisis management plan.
What are various crisis management practices adopted by Radisson Blu to deal with different
crisis including Covid 19?
As per the view of Sachweh, 2019, the hotel Radisson blu has implemented various crisis
management practice in their company in order to maintain their brand position. One of the most
important crisis management practice is that it allow a company to build a crisis analysis team
which will help them to identify the uncertainty in the early stage. Due to this it is very easy for a
company to make such a effective strategy which can help them to successfully deal with various
uncertainty. Another strategy which can be adopted by the management of the company is that
they can save their funds so that it can be used by them when any disaster occurs. Thus, it will
allow Radisson blu to enhance their financial performance and business productivity in greater
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sense. The management of Radisson blu also conduct seminar and training program in order to
enhance the knowledge or skills of their workforce. Radisson blu has also develop a proper
communication plan in their company by which the present employees are able to give their
opinion regarding the changes made by higher authorities. The management of the company has
appointed legal professional in order to manage the legal trouble which may occur in their
company (Foroudi, Tabaghdehi and Marvi, 2021). The management of Radisson blu has adopted
technological method or procedures in order to do their business operations. Leader of Radisson
blu share the information of crisis through document in a very short period of time to every level
of the organisation. The management has also developed official website in order to convey vital
information during the crisis when computers and email might not be accessible (González-
Torres, Rodríguez-Sánchez and Pelechano-Barahona, 2021).
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research methodology is the section which plays a very critical role in the project as
through this section the research aim and objective are attained in significant manner. Research
methodology is well-defined procedure to accumulate and evaluate information as per the
selected topic. This part is very beneficially for the readers as well as the investigator as both get
to know about the type of information needed to carry out the investigation in effective manner.
Research methodology is classified into various sub components which helps in extracting out
the right information so that correct evaluation of data can be made (Willmott, 2020).
Research philosophy: There are two philosophies to know about the kind of phenomenon
which can be used to accumulated data and then analysed the social world which are positivism
and interpretivism. In the current research report, researcher has opted for positivism philosophy
which will gather quantitative data so that social world can be understood in accurate way.
Research approach: There are two types of approaches which facilitates in testing the
hypothesis and theories according to the researcher thoughts which are deductive and inductive
approach. In the existing study researcher has selected deductive approach so that predefined
theories can be tested with the assistance of quantitative data (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019).
Research strategy: Some of the strategies through which data can be extracted and
assemble for the investigation are survey, systematic literature review, action research, grounded
theory and many other. As per the investigation, survey strategy has been used so that numerical
information can be gathered in less time as well as in more quantity.
Research choice: To carry out the investigation there are two research method that are
quantitative and qualitative. In the existing investigation, investigator has opted for quantitative
research method so that numerical information can be gathered and research can be conducted in
appropriate manner. Data is in number, figure, facts and value which assist in attating aim in
more valuable manner (Daniel, 2018).
Time horizon: Time Horizon is the time framework which helps in recognizing the
investing time for the research. Cross sectional and longitudinal are the two-time horizon which
is used by the investigator. In the present research report, cross sectional time horizon is used so
that overall investigation can be completed in sort span of time as well as real time data can be
gathered for the investigation.
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Data collection: Data collection is the method through which information can be gathered
and analysed for the study. Primary and secondary are the two data source for collecting facts
and figures. In the current investigation, researcher has chosen both the source so that valuable
data can be gathered. To collect fresh information questionnaire is designed by the investigator
and for secondary data books, online site and journal is used (Arantes do Amaral and Lino dos
Santos, 2018).
Data analysis: Data analysis is the technique to inspect the information so that valuable
information can be obtained from raw data. As per the study frequency distribution as the
technique is used for analyzing information so that mathematical and statistical data can be
measured accurately (Datta, 2018).
Sampling: Sampling is the process to select samples and there are two forms through
which respondent can be taken which are probability and non-probability sampling. As per the
study probability sampling is used in order to select applicant. Through this rational and
equivalent participant are selected for the study. The sample size is 30 employees of Radisson
blu (VanKooten, 2019) .
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DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
Frequency distribution table
Q1) Do you think, crisis Management has gained significant importance
after the outbreak of global pandemic Covid 19?
Frequency
a) Yes 23
b) No 5
c) Maybe 2
Q2) Do you agree that, hospitality sector should focus on developing crisis
management practices in order to deal with numerous crisis?
Frequency
a) Yes 25
b) No 2
c) Can’t say 3
Q3) As per your perspective, which is the most important phase of Crisis
management?
Frequency
a) Prevention 8
b) Mitigation 9
c) Preparedness 4
d) Response 7
e) Recovery 2
Q4) As per your knowledge, what are the challenges which were faced by
Radisson Blu at the time of Covid 19 pandemic?
Frequency
a) Ineffectiveness in performing business operation 4
b) Lack of training and development of staff 6
c) Cancellation of pre booking 8
d) Poor supply chain management 3
e) Low revenue and profit 9
Q5) As per your perspective, all these issue has negatively affected the
performance and productivity of Radisson Blu in vast manner?
Frequency
a) Strongly affected 16
b) Affected 9
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