Abstract
This report looks into the concepts that should be applied in the management of Albert Court Motor Lodge. This follows the evaluation that was conducted on the performance of the motel. The report gives some recommendations that can be done to make sure that the management and the performance of the motel meet international standards. Some of the concepts recommended are concerned with the location, marketing and the specialization in the services offered.
Introduction
In this paper, I will look into a hotel which is within the vicinity in town. I will research into the hotels location, operation, management, marketing and specifications. To achieve this there are concepts that are concerned with the management of a hotel such as human resource management, empowerment of the workers and international management of the hotels (Powers, 1995, p. 174).
The other concepts to watch are the yields that the hotel gains from the combination of all other concepts. For my project I will look into a motel situated in Hamilton. The name of the motel is Albert Court Motor Lodge. The motel is owned and operated by Kathryn & David Gillingham.
In addition, the motel was started in February 2010 meaning that the motel is only one year old. In order to manage the needs of individuals, couples and families who are different they have introduced lodge regulation to take sports team to engage families.
Background information
The motel is as mentioned above; it is called Albert Court Motor Lodge. It is located in Hamilton city, New Zealand. The location of this business is attractive for residency either for people staying for short period or long term. Some of the scenes are short walking distances to the river and there is a beautiful park next to it. It is located in Hamilton East suburb where there are Hamilton east shops.
The area is very quiet and adequate for relaxation. In addition, it is very close to the Hamilton CBD. So, it is convenient location for people looking to spend weekends or holidays in Hamilton. On the view of the marketing strategies it shall be concerned with the target that the motel has in the market. The motel targets travelers who require quality accommodation during the week, and particularly key local & national businesses.
For instance, Waikato University couples who require executive accommodation to stay for weekends or public holidays will consider staying in the motel. In addition, the lodge has a Website which provides key information and attitude environment to suit primary target. Furthermore, it has a Channel manager enabling bookings to be made via a number of key websites e.g. Wotif, AA and Jasons.
Advertising in key accommodation publication via AA accommodation Guide, and Jasons Motel Guide is one of their attraction techniques. To capture the market there is the need to establish the areas the motel is specifically interested in. It is indicted that other than being a lodge, customers can also enjoy the motels luxurious facilities. The motel has apartments that are of style liable to offer comfort and relaxation to its customers.
There are a number of selections that a customer can choose from; there are spacious rooms that vary according to the number of rooms that are needed by the customers. Customers can be able to choose from a 1 bedroom to a 2 bedroom units depending on the customers’ preference. What I observed is that the motel has close to 18 units that are kitchenette and are furnished with two hotplates, microwaves, toaster, pots and pans.
In addition, the units are technology compliant since they are fitted with internet access ports that will be of help to customers who are after business information. They are fitted with wireless network and broadband that is accessible everywhere in the motel. Other facilities offered to keep costumers entertained; they are able to watch sky channels in Wall-mounted 32″ LCD TVs and Stereo system with iPod docking.
To add convenience to the facilities, they are fitted with air conditioning systems. This will make the rooms more convenient to hold meetings and it will also reduce cases of rooms heating up too much during a hot season. The bathrooms are fitted with efficient facilities that ensure that the customers feel and enjoy the servicers.
The bathrooms are large nonslip tile ensuite bathrooms with impressive shower, make-up lights and hairdryer are also provided; and some units have spa bath and/or private courtyard. In addition, some of the executive rooms are fitted with either super-size, super queen-size or supper single beds which are of high quality.
Methodology
To carry out the research I intend to use observation method. In this case, I will have to go personally to the motel and conduct a physical evaluation. However, there is some information that I will not be able to get from observations only meaning, that I will have to carry out interviews with the management of the motel.
There will be a need to interview some of the workers and some customers to comment on the management of the motel and the services offered respectively. After collecting all the information needed, I will need to compile the information and come up with a comprehensive report about the management of the motel.
Challenges
Some of the challenges that I look forward to encounter are being denied access to the facility and carrying out my research on it. In addition, there is a challenge on obtaining information from customers or the workers at the motel. Also, getting some of the information that may be classified with the organization might be an uphill task since the management might be reluctant in releasing it to me.
To overcome some of the challenges it will be important that I obtain necessary authorization from the management. Another thing that can be done to make the process smooth is by making sure that I assure the management that all information that I will obtain from the motel will be used only for my thesis and will be treated with high confidence. In addition, I will make sure that I have created a rapport with the workers before I embark on interviewing them in order to get genuine information to keep me running and find appropriate results.
The report will help relate the theoretical aspects learnt in class. After the project, I will be in a position to offer adequate advice to the management in places that I will discover that they are going short of information. The project will also help me upgrade the necessary facilities that are of help to me and the management.
Project Report
From the research that was conducted on a motel by the name of Albert Court Motor Lodge, it was observed that there are places in the management of the motel that require changes so as to attain the desired changes in the management of the facility. The results also indicate that with adequate concepts put in place, it is possible to maximize utilization of the motel according to its position and how it is being managed.
The concept applied in the management mostly refers to the size of the market as well as the size of the motel. It is also related to the position of the motel and also according to the marketing strategies that have been put in place. The results also indicated that there is a need to watch the performance of the workforce that should be done under the watch of the human resource management. I will put across recommendations that needs be applied to the human resource management team to come up with the needed strategies in management.
Marketing
It is evident that hotels are involved with services; the services rendered to their customers are intangible. The other characteristics of the services rendered to the customers are that they are perishable, variable and are inseparable (Booms & Bitner, 1981, p. 47). Developments observed in the world are in most cases shifting towards services industry. This makes motels and hotels a viable investment in the world to day (Booms & Bitner, 1981, p. 47).
The shift in the needs of the economy is as a result of there being a lot of disposable income among the society which has brought about the fact that there are more needs for leisure and recreation services (Booms & Bitner, 1981, p. 47). The changes indicated are also applicable in China where the economy is registering an increase in time needed to relax and the best place to do so is at the hotels or motels (Booms & Bitner, 1981, p. 47).
Despite the fact that there is an increasing need for services, there is also a need to understand the types of products that our motel is dealing with. To attain the intended market size and the needed influence of the market, there is a need to consider aspects of market mix.
There is a need to consider; the products, price, promotion and the place (Brien & Jeannie, 1993, p. 130). Albert Court Motor Lodge should focus on the product it offers to the customers. Meaning, it should be sure that the services are what is needed by the customers. However, the evaluation of the products that are the services; it is hard to determine the complexity of the products.
For a service industry, it will add other three Ps to make them to 7Ps of market management (Jagels & Coltman, 2004, p. 232). The concepts to be considered are the participants, physical evidence and the process. Therefore, our company should be very careful to look into the approach that it takes to look at the marketing strategies. The strategies in most cases are guided by the basic needs of human wants, needs and demand.
The needs are concerned about the basic needs of human beings that are shelter, food and clothing (Jagels & Coltman, 2004, p. 232). To consider the needs, the company should also consider the cultural diversity of the target market. Wants are things that the market analyst will have decided as the needs for the community while on the other hand; demand is the buying power of the market.
The buying power of the market will help us in pricing of our commodities and goods. It is very important that the motel have to understand what the customers are willing to spend in order to get the services being provided (Jagels & Coltman, 2004, p. 232). The motel management should appreciate the fact the need to purchase hotel services is contributed by the need or the urge that is as a result of a television commercial (Jagels & Coltman, 2004, p. 232).
This translates to the fact that Albert Court Motor Lodge should invest into marketing promotion and exhibitions that will help in advertising their commodities. It is also important that the motel management gets to know how their customers do select their products (Lawson, 1995, p. 27). It is also important to know why a customer will not choose a bed suit from another motel and select their products.
It should be understood that the perception a guest may have on a motel may change suddenly after the experience or by word of mouth from another customer (Lawson, 1995, p. 27). This will mean that the management should not compromise on the quality of services they offer to at all times. It is important that the management will consider adding more facilities and fittings to the rooms to make them more competitive in the market.
It is also important that Albert Court Motor Lodge carries out an interactive discussion with the customers to ascertain their needs as they come into the motel. Such interactions will help the management respond to them as they are wants, this makes sure that the motel is always leading in terms of quality services. This is true since most of the customers come from a different background making them the best source of information that is vital to the maintenance of the services integrity (Lewis, 1984, p. 26).
In order to best understand the needs of the customers, market segmentation will be advised. Market segmentation will target the specific needs of the customers in different markets. Albert Court Motor Lodge management should be able to discover all the needs of different customers (Biehal, 1983, p. 83). Since we are involved with housing and motel services we should segment our floors to have different prices and different services in the rooms.
The services could range from either colour used in the rooms being different or different services could be fitted in different rooms. Such a diverse nature of rooms should be secured in a manner that will be beneficial to a vast group of customers that have different tastes and purchasing power (Biehal, 1983, p. 83). In this we shall be able to widen our customer base and at the same time perfect our performance.
When segmenting the market, we should be specific on the criteria we use to select the market. Our motel can target only the locals, foreigners or both. This will be concerned about the location of the motel. Targeting only the foreigners will not work for our motel since Hamilton is not a tourist hub. The steps involved in market segmentation takes into consideration the consumption power of the target market (Wearne & Marrison, 1996, p. 235).
However, the process does not take into consideration the differences in each segment; this will obscure the management from comprehending the best practises of the market. The appropriate methods to market segmentation should be performed via demographic segmentation in terms of age, life stages, income and gender.
It is important to get the statistics of the group of customers that does migrate into the area and the special needs they have that we can serve (Wearne & Marrison, 1996, p. 235). Another concept to be considered under marketing is differentiation of the products; differentiation means that one needs to make his products different from those offered by the competitors (Wearne & Marrison, 1996, p. 235).
In this regard, we perceive that the demand will be created by the customers. When attending to the differences, it is important that the differences not be attended to the same way. Since the products offered by the hotels are not tangible, the differences will not be in the products directly but they will be in the form of processing the products.
It is believed that the differences in the products will create awareness in the mind of the customers (Wearne & Marrison, 1996, p. 235). Our motel, being situated in a busy town will be focused on the facilities that are vital to adding the quality to life and the management is very vital to these services. Product differentiation can be achieved with the help of creating a website where the comments of the customers can be posted and responded to according to the needs of the customers.
According to Wearne and Marrison indicated that the method is the cheapest (1996, p. 236). The method attracts customers and determines if the customers are long term or only for a short time. Under marketing it is important that our motel creates an emotional attachment with the customers (Barsky & Nash, 2002, p. 40). This is as a result of the fact that customers that are attached emotionally to the hotel are likely to come back again.
From the influence of the emotions, it is possible to cause an attachment that will affect the changes in the administration of the hotel (Barsky & Nash, 2002, p. 40). The other field to check under marketing is the relationship between the customers and the management (Lewis, 1984, p. 29). The management should be concerned about creating a good customer care since they are the first contact between potential customers and the motel.
In addition, room service personnel should be courteous and honest such that they cannot interfere with the customer’s personal effects. The mandate should be left in the hands of the supervisors to ensure that staffs working under their lines are competent and reliable at all times. Despite the fact they are the initial contacts with the company, they are also the images that shows the effective management of a company.
When the staffs are not well behaved they will always fail the management. This further indicates that the management of the company has created a communications channel with their employees (Lewis, 1984, p. 30).
Location
Since we do not wish to change the location of our company, the company will have to make sure that the location of the market is taken care of by the management. When looking at the feasibility of putting up a hotel or motel, the location is very vital and it should be ensured that the management conducts a feasibility study on the location of the facility. It research shows that the location of the motel will dictate the rates of the rooms (Plog, 2001, p. 18).
When the rooms are located close to business meeting venues, it will be helpful in the determination of the rates to put across. For our motel, we can consider setting up the rooms at a place that is much far from town; here we shall include meeting points and other facilities that are vital in consideration of the market (Pearce, 1995, p. 217). Such conference halls will attract business meetings that will further consider using our other facilities such as rooms and food.
The other change that may be made to the location of the hotel is changing the appearance of the hotel. The strategic positioning of the hotel can change over time and it will depend on the future plans that are meant to help the performance of the hotel (Pearce, 1995, p. 220). It is true that the position of the hotel can determine its survival but still, the conception created by the customers’ matters greatly.
Albert Court Motor Lodge management should focus on creating a positive conception with the guests. I recommend that the management be very critical in ensuring that guests’ needs and wants are met; this will be achieved by having a comprehensive relationship with the customers and ensuring that their complains are taken care of.
If the hotel is placed at a place that is continuously experiencing shifts in the number guests, the management have to consider either selling the premises to a different investor, this will help in attaining an appropriate price refund, but this should not be an attempt to reshuffle the investment (Pearce, 1995, p. 220).
Another aspect under location is the development of the hotel at the same place without moving it to a different place; it should be considered to achieve the intended customers’ confidence. The motel management can be able to target a different hotel in the market where the parent motel, Albert Court Motor Lodge will mortgage the land or an existing facility.
They can hire and improve the facilities to make it applicable to more customers and serve different needs. In addition, the location of the motel should be guided by social classes of the place (Pearce, 1995, p. 220). The concept can be applied by Albert Court Motor Lodge to determine the best location of the motel depending on the place where it is located and the social classes around the motel.
When the motel is designed to attract a certain group of the social class it should be located at a place that it accessible to them easily and in an environment that is reliable to them (Plog, 2001, p. 27). The other concept to consider in the location of the motel is the employment opportunities it will create to the neighbours.
It is important that it is placed at a place that will offer potential positive aspects to the motel. It should also be known that the setting up of the motel at a place will cause socioeconomic factors of the society.
Human Resource Management
It is within notice of many that many motels use part-time employment instead of using fulltime employment. The reasons that are contributing to using part-time employment are that the employer will not have long term attachments with the employees (Stamper & Van Dyne, 2003, p. 34). However, the activity has negative consequences such as; employees employed part-time do not have commitment to the work and they will always come to get their pay and go back.
Employing part-time employees will create a turnover effect that is more than employing them on a permanent basis. Due to the lack of commitment to the hotel, there is no adequate communication between the management and the employees. It is also evident all the part-time employees are less concerned about the well being of the hotel (Stamper & Van Dyne, 2003, p. 34).
In the motel, it is important that the management get involved in ensuring that all the employees are well trained in matters that pertain to showing respect to their place of work as well as the customers. Research conducted showed that part-time workers in most cases exhibit the critical work attitude and ethic than the full-time workers (Stamper & Van Dyne, 2003, p. 34). Some of the workers are shown to contribute highly to the welfare at the work place.
It should be noted that most of the managers usually look down upon part-time workers since they see as less committed to their work despite the fact that they are always doing the same job as the rest of the workers who are employed full-time (Stamper & Van Dyne, 2003, p. 34).
There is over simplification of the concept that most of the motel employees are not educated. The oversimplification has contributed to the fact most of the customers will always complain that the staffs are not competent and that they do not measure up to have a conversation with the customers (Stamper & Van Dyne, 2003, p. 36).
To avoid the oversimplification, our motel should be focused on ensuring that it employs trained personnel who are competent with their work. This will also call for training of workers who have stayed in the company for long or who were previously employed in a manner that merit was not considered. The other recommendation I should make to the management is that there should be refresher courses that will make sure that the workers are taught on the need for security and other management problems (Stamper & Van Dyne, 2003, p. 34).
It is also important that the motel get to tap its manpower from the available trained resources from Hamilton. To ensure that the staffs of the motel have the same training and they respond to issues in a similar manner, there should be common courses that are taught to the workers before they are hired.
The other concept to consider is the occupancy of the manpower, it is important to consider the condition that the workers are living at, despite the fact that such an act will be taken as an intrusion into the private life of the staff (Simons & Hinkin, 1992, p. 66). It is very important that the staffs employed are people who are presentable and are concerned about their personal grooming (Simons & Hinkin, 1992, p. 66).
The other issue that is very common among the workers is the issue of the work week. Most of the employees need to have a rest day within a week. It is always important that the off-day be communicated to the employees before they sign their contract letters (Johnson, 1998, p. 32).
This will reduce chances of future disagreements when the employees are being posted according to their duty roster. This should also include the job rotation schedule that it should be done in a manner that it does not oppress the employee (Oliver, 1996, p. 253). It will give them the peace of mind as they work in the motel which will be a perfect means of ensuring that there is efficiency in the motel (Jone, 1990, p.147).
Empowerment of the Employees
The other concept that should be considered in the management of the lodge is the empowerment of the employees to make them feel important to the company this also will make them more responsible (Brymer, 1991, p. 60). The motel should adopt the process of decentralization of decision making; ideas should be contributed by all the workers and every stakeholder in the management of the motel (Hales & Klidas, 1998, p. 88).
I also advise that the workers in the motel be allowed to create groups that will be representing them to the managerial committees. (Prado, 2001, p. 789; Lashley, 2001, p. 343)
Conclusion
It is important that the management of the motel take into consideration the importance of marketing strategies that will take the motel to the higher levels. The location of the motel is vital in the determination of the future of the motel as well upgrading it to focus on other targets of the market.
In addition, human resource management should be careful in ensuring that they hire the most competent workers who will upgrade the level of the services offered. This also includes the empowerment of the workers, to raise their commitment while discharging of their duties.
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