Case Study The Hotel Paris competitive strategy is to use superior guest service to differentiate the Hotel Paris properties, and to thereby increase the length of stay and return rate of guests, and thus boost revenues and profitability

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Case Study

The Hotel Paris competitive strategy is to use superior guest service to differentiate the Hotel Paris properties, and to thereby increase the length of stay and return rate of guests, and thus boost revenues and profitability. HR manager Lisa Cruz must now formulate functional policies and activities that support this competitive strategy by eliciting the required employee behaviours and competencies. Lisa knew that the Hotel Paris s performance appraisal system was archaic. When the founders opened their first hotel, they went to an office-supply store and purchased a pad of performance appraisal forms. The hotel chain uses these to this day. Each form is a two-sided page. Supervisors indicate whether the employee s performance in terms of various standard traits including quantity of work, quality of work, and dependability was excellent, good, fair, or poor. Lisa knew that, among other flaws, this appraisal tool did not force either the employee or the supervisor to focus the appraisal on the extent to which the employee was helping the Hotel Paris to achieve its strategic goals. She wanted a system that focused the employee s attention on taking those actions that would contribute to helping the company achieve its goals, for instance, in terms of improved customer service. Lisa and her team also wanted a performance management system that focused on both competencies and objectives. In designing the new system, their starting point was the job descriptions they had created for the hotel s employees. These descriptions each included required competencies. Consequently, the front-desk clerks’ appraisals now focus on competencies such as able to check a guest in or out in 5 minutes or less. Most service employees’ appraisals include the competency, able to exhibit patience and guest support even when busy with other activities. There were other required competencies. For example, the Hotel Paris wanted all service employees to show initiative in helping guests, to be customer oriented, and to be team players (in terms of sharing information and best practices). Each of these competencies derives from the hotel’s aim of becoming more service-oriented.

1. _________________ performance is fairly similar across jobs and is not likely to be role prescribed. *

A. Task

B. Contextual

C. Exceptional

D. None of the above

2. Declarative knowledge is: *

A. Information that an employee can be tested on

B. Information about facts and things

C. Information that is included in the employee handbook

D. All of the above

3. Contextual performance and task performance should: *

A. Only be considered in higher level employees

B. Be considered as one and the same

C. Be considered separately

D. Be listed in the employee manual

4. The behavior approach emphasizes ______________ rather than _____________. *

A. employee traits; results

B. results; employee traits

C. what employees do; employee traits or results

D. None of these are correct