Answer to Question #266109 in Marketing for Saif

Question

The Hospitality sector is a good example wherein the businesses involve both manufacturing (food preparations) as well as service operations. The sold products are evaluated by the customers and they are also rated based on the service that the seller provides. With reference to the industry discuss the following aspects of service operations

a. Discuss the elements that need to be planned in a Service Framework of a Hospitality setup. (5 Marks)

b. What are the challenges faced by the Service Managers who manage these service operations?

Answer 1

(a)    There are three main types of businesses which make up the hospitality industry: Accommodation, Food and drink and Tourism and travel. Although hospitality businesses may vary, four important elements apply to all of them and are vital to achieving success in this competitive industry.

The first element is service. Good service is the key to success in any hospitality business. It is therefore important for hospitality industry to employ people who are suitably qualified and who have a warm, caring, positive attitude as good service will bring back customers, and their positive feedback will bring in new ones.

The second element is planning. Choosing the correct location is essential. The hospitality industry need to ensure that the business they aim to offer is actually needed in the location you have in mind. It is important for them to take time to plan thoroughly every aspect of the business to avoid running into unexpected costs which could ruin their hopes of a successful hospitality business.

Flexibility is another element that hospitality industry needs to plan on. Having a coherent, flexible business plan is essential to make their hospitality business as appealing as possible to a wide range of people. Lastly, there is the need for hard work. Making a success of a business in the hospitality area requires lots of hard work.

(b) The work that comes with hotel management is not always easy. Hotel managers are often forced to juggle a number of tasks at any given time from making sure that the books are balanced to ensuring that everything is running smoothly. Some of the challenges faced by the Service Managers include; continued Technological Changes and regular innovation, The Constantly Changing Expectations of Customers, Political and Security challenges, Seasonality of the hospitality industry and Skilled labor shortage, staff turnover and Irregular working hours.