Strategic Management of Projects: Abu Dhabi National Hotels Case Study

This report provides a strategic analysis of project management within Abu Dhabi National Hotels (ADNH), a prominent hospitality organization in Abu Dhabi, UAE. It examines ADNH's dynamic and operational capabilities, including its services in restaurants, hotels, and destination management, and its performance in areas like technology efficiency and resource management. The report assesses the maturity of ADNH's project management capabilities, highlighting strengths and weaknesses. It identifies key challenges such as poor reservation systems, lack of guest-room innovation, and ineffective data mining, which contribute to project underperformance. The study recommends that ADNH prioritize technological advancements to improve its services and maintain a competitive edge. The report concludes that while ADNH demonstrates effective operational capabilities, it needs to address technological gaps to enhance its performance and customer satisfaction.

Running Head: Strategic Management of Projects
strategic Management of projects
Abu Dhabi National Hotels

Strategic Management of Projects 1
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Dynamic and Operational Capabilities of Abu Dhabi National Hotels...........................................3
Maturity Assessment of organization capability in managing projects...........................................6
Recommendation.............................................................................................................................7
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

Strategic Management of Projects 2
Introduction
Project management is considered a most important strategic tool. It is known as the application
of skills, tools, knowledge, and techniques to project activities to fulfill project requirements.
Moreover, the process of project management calls for the establishment of a small
organizational structure which is often a microcosm of the larger organization. This paper mainly
concentrates on Abu Dhabi National Hotels a hospitality organization that is situated in Abu
Dhabi, UAE. It was founded almost four decades ago as an asset manager and hotel owner and
has evolved into a hospitality group that encompasses restaurants, catering, hotels,
transportation, and destination management services. The organization has also taken benefit in
the growth of metropolitan country of UAE. Under its Hotel Division, Abu Dhabi National
Hotels owns some of the most recognizable and reputable hotels in the Emirates and beyond. Its
management style and quality of services make it different from the other hospitality
organizations. The portfolio of the organization contain services like restaurants, hotel facility,
destination services, transportation, and catering. Irrespective of the success, Abu Dhabi National
hotels also faces a lot of problems with the technology such as poor reservation system, less
guest-room innovation, and various others. Sometimes it becomes difficult for the organization
to complete its project on a timely basis despite the fact that required time and budget allocation
are provided perfectly. Thus, the main motive behind this paper is to study problems and issues
faced by Abu Dhabi National Hotel that influence the organization.

Strategic Management of Projects 3
Dynamic and Operational Capabilities of Abu Dhabi National
Hotels
Abu Dhabi National Hotels mainly engage in providing hospitality services to restaurants,
destination, transportation, and catering with the sole motive of providing high-quality services
to its customers. Apart of this, the organization work on the international level and providing its
services to worldwide customers. It takes help from a large number of organization in improving
the quality of its services provided to the consumer. These organizations involve Rotan Hotel
Management Corporation Limited, Flora Hospitality, and Byblos Hotel. The organization starts
its functions by analyzing potential customers and marketing of its products and services.
Marketing activity of the organization makes it popular among the people of UAE and the other
countries (Al Kaabi, 2015). On the basis of its marketing strategies the organization able to sell
high services to its potential customers. Its activity schedule can understand by following figures:

Strategic Management of Projects 4
The organization is performing well in the hospitality field. The below-mentioned figure
represents the name of activities and their level as per maturity period:
ADNH Activities Level
Management Control 3
Technology efficiency 5
Resource Management 3
Finance Management 3
Customer Service Effectiveness 3
Personnel Management 3
Stakeholder relationship 3
Technology efficiency of the organization is at 5 it means that the organization is performing
efforts to improve its technology. The organization can enhance its productivity by improving its
technology. Technology efficiency enforces the organization to use its portfolio as a means of

Strategic Management of Projects 5
predicting and optimizing performance over time. The organization scored level 3 on resource
management, personnel management, stakeholder relationship, finance management, and
customer service effectiveness (Talk, 2016). An analysis from the P3M3 shows that the
organization has effective management strategy to maintain a schedule of different departments,
and customer queries.
Apart of this, it can be said that organization is performing well and associating with its
stakeholders in a significant manner. It maintains all its schedules by conducting an overall
assessment on a timely basis. This help the organization in maintaining its competitive image in
its potential market. While marketing its services, the organization ensures that all information
represent correctly without any misrepresentation. Its marketing strategies are the main reason
behind its success. On the other hand, the organization assesses performance of its employees on
a regular basis to maintain their profitability. Moreover, ADNH ensures that good quality
services are offered to its customers so that it can create its image in the mind of its customers. If
the organization is able to do so, it can gain huge expansion opportunities in its near future. It
uses the principle of integrity and transparency while delivering services to its customers, it able
the organization to maintain consistency and transparency in its performing tasks. On the other
hand, environmental and safety measures are also offered to customers to ensure their security
in-destination services. The organization performs a large number of efforts to attain its
predetermined goals and objectives. Attainment of objectives motivates its staff to give their
more and more effort for getting further success.
Thus, it can be said that the organization has sufficient operational capabilities with which it
performs its work effectively (Stephenson, 2014). But the main thing that it requires to improve

Strategic Management of Projects 6
is its technological consideration. Improvement in technology enables the organization to gain
significant competitive advantages in its potential market.
Maturity Assessment of organization capability in managing
projects
Generally, it can be said that the organization is mature in performing its projects. As and when
the organization engages in planning for a destination event or any other event it concentrates
more on make it excellent than its competitors. In today scenario, competition is high in the
hospitality industry and organization performing efforts to gain a subsequent competitive
advantage in its potential market. These done through improving its service offering and provide
a large number of additional benefits. The one important thing about the organization is that
when there is a lack of financial resources, it mainly focus on those activities which have the
most significant impact on hotel efficiency (Rowe, 2015). While working on different projects, it
mainly focuses more on determining such areas which require huge attention so that the
management team of organization can devote their huge attention on areas that will result in
improved performance. Such activities of Abu Dhabi National Hotels improves the service
offering of the organization. Apart of this, it spent a huge amount on improving the skills and
qualities of its staff members. Such effective step of an organization helps it in controlling the
efficiency of project deliverables.
On the other hand, it uses a large number of management tools to manage its day to day
operations such as planning, and leadership. On the basis of its efficient strategies, it is known all
over the world. The leadership style of its employees enforces it to deal with a large number of
issues.

Strategic Management of Projects 7
Reason behind Project Underperformance
The main reason behind its project underperformance is technology. The challenges of keeping
up with the developed and innovative technology are expensive and difficult to it. Due to the
presence of technological challenges the organization face following problems:
 Poor Interactive Reservation System: Customers in today competitive environment
requires internet interactive reservation system. Failure in technology adoption prevents
the organization in doing so.
 Poor Guest-room Innovations: In the hospitality sector, guests are the main reason behind
the establishment of an organization. Due to the lack of technical exposure, the
organization not able to perform innovation in its services (Golini, 2014).
 Poor Data Mining System: Marketing seems ineffective in the absence of effective data
mining system.
Thus, it can be said that the organization has full potential to manage its competitive advantage
in its market. Despite it, Abu Dhabi National Hotels should pay more consideration towards the
development of technology and upgrade the whole system as per changes in technology. This
will be helpful in maintaining a brand image in the eyes of its potential customers.
Recommendation
It can be recommended that the organization should pay more consideration on adopting current
technology in its functions. A customer of today scenario demands high innovative and creative
services which cannot provide without following recent technology (Alexander, 2013).
Technology can develop by conducting high research in its field. Conducting research enable it
to introduce new features in its services with more concentration on creativity. Apart of this, it

Strategic Management of Projects 8
should focus more on technological advancements followed by its competitors. Through this, it
can also adopt the same technology to improve the quality of its functioning and offerings.
Conclusion
After studying all this, it can be concluded that Abu Dhabi National Hotels has been faced a
large number of technological challenges, which have reduced its performance and reputation in
the eyes of customers. These challenges require deep research of marketing activities to identify
technological advancements. Conducting research aware the organization about recent
developments and it can make changes accordingly. On the other hand, it can be said that
organization is performing its activities in an effective manner and have gained a significant
image in its potential market.

Strategic Management of Projects 9
References
Alexander, K. (2013). Facilities management: theory and practice. Routledge.Brandon-Jones,
A., Lewis, M., Verma, R., & Walsman, M. C. (2016). Examining the characteristics and
managerial challenges of professional services: An empirical study of management consultancy
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Al Kaabi, A., Al Mazrouei, A., Al Hamadi, S., Al Yousuf, M., & Taylor, E. (2015). Knowing the
status: Gathering baseline data on food safety management across the Abu Dhabi hospitality
industry. Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, 7(1), 17-32.
Golini, R., & Landoni, P. (2014). International development projects by non-governmental
organizations: an evaluation of the need for specific project management and appraisal
tools. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, 32(2), 121-135.
Rowe, S. F. (2015). Project management for small projects. Management Concepts Inc..
Stephenson, M. L. (2014). Deciphering ‘Islamic hospitality’: Developments, challenges and
opportunities. Tourism Management, 40, 155-164.
Talk, O. M. (2016). Operations management.