RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION
Recruitment and Selection is important and crucial in hotel industries as it determines a wide range of capable staff and employees behind the business to attain growth and success and that the management of human resource or people must be integrated with the management of the hotel, because people comprise the hotel enterprise and the labor needed for it to function, human resource is therefore also a function and responsibility of the management. Human resource management has become one of the main assets in business era. The proper management of human resources is significant in determining the success of a certain organisation. Making awareness of recruitment and selection of employees that adds value to hotels is required and manpower selection should be in control of hotel standards and regulations as there is a concise recruitment and selection abilities in standard assumptions in order to manage such human resources in an organisation wide that will have great impact on selecting right employees for hotel sectors respectively. Thus, there needs to have a proper determination and evaluation of recruits and be amicably considered such as employee recruitment and selection, performance evaluation, compensation and benefits, professional development and labour relations. Actually, there can be a formulated human resource management model that should respond in the recruitment and selection process in lieu of maintaining a diverse hotel industry workforce, dealing with major technological changes, keeping up with governmental regulations, handling corporate restructuring and downsizing, and formulating strategies essential to personnel management. In addition, good HRM model also considers training and motivations of recruits in order to have high and quality performance.
The obvious, direct route to high performance would seem to be the discovery of those motivational wellsprings that drive human action. Motivation to action starts with awareness of the situation's existence and an understanding of its structure. It moves on to interpret and analyse the situation's implications for personally desired or undesired outcomes, then proceeds to determination of preference for a suitable behavioural response and ends with assessment of what response to choose and the appropriate level of energy with which to apply that response. A large number of people within the organization has to be equipped with the needed managerial skills given the fact that these organizations are very large ones and needs to be managed by each department or division. n the above introduction, it was made clear that human resource is the function and responsibility of the management. Thus whatever that occurs in the human resources will likely have an impact on the management strategy of an organization, and could significantly affect the quality of service of the international hotel industry. Developing managerial skills in organizations is definitely a must for organizations. Hospitality services are other hospitality activities that take place within other parts of the economy. When we speak of hospitality services, these are mainly concerned with the provision of food, beverage and other services in areas such as hotels, in-flight catering, and meals in schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, care homes and prisons. The importance of being able to offer hotel customers a high quality experience was unquestionable. By definition, the hospitality industry epitomizes customer service. Anyone who has ever stayed or worked in a hotel knows that outstanding guest services are par for the course in running a successful property. When profits and occupancies are high, it is easily taken for granted. Along with quality, empowerment is on its way to redefining management in the 1990s. They are intimately related.
The quality of service delivered by staff is linked to higher management training. The work force in most the hotel industry is young. Young management, by nature, is insecure and insecure management abuse power. And therefore hotels have a tremendous emphasis on management training in interviewing, counseling, and building relationships with employees. Employees are encouraged to do what they think is right in order to take care of guests. There are restrictions, but employees given the right to make decisions that need to be made on the spot. Different economic, social, legal and political factors create particular cultures and diverse employment systems. Employment policies and practices continue to conform to the management-driven 'unbridled individualism' thesis, based on cost-control, but may also reflect a more affiliated and liberal managerial approach within a customer-service ethos. Employees are not necessarily alienated and may trade off low pay for other compensations demonstrating 'enfranchised realism'. The employment relationship is both transactional and relational, and may also reflect 'resigned realism' and exploitation. Hospitality employees are different, providing more compelling evidence that trade unions face an even more daunting task in attempting to recruit members and organize workplaces. We need to develop our understanding of why managers and employees do not share commonly held assumptions of 'good' employment relations. We also need to determine how far the employment relationship, rather than the personal values of employees, affects the state of the psychological contract. Today, in contrast with many decades ago, there is little overt opposition in any large organization, private, nonprofit, or public, in industrialized or developing countries, to the general belief that management development is a vital necessity (2002). There is little overt resistance, and there is often enthusiasm, among managers for participating in such programs.
This is true, in part, because the nature of managerial behavior constantly changes as the result of new research findings and the development of an impressive array of management techniques and approaches by both the analytic and behavioral science schools. Most large organizations, as a result, are meeting their managerial needs by educating professional managers in special management development programs. Quality service not only in hotels, but in other service industries as well, requires its human resource to possess key attributes. The most important of which is the acquisition of management and leadership qualities. Human resource personnel in the hospitality industry must know and practice the business functions of planning, directing, controlling, staffing, coordinating and evaluating hospitality operations. Leadership qualities include being able to develop vision that when implemented adds value to an operation. A leader whose vision has no strategic planning and action is like a manager who plans to fail because he failed to plan. Taking action within the parameters of operation demonstrates leadership potential. Other leadership skills/qualities include staying in a learning mode; promoting team concepts as human resource management develop people. Human resource must develop the greatest abilities: accountability, credibility, reliability, and responsibility. Quality is the hotel industry's hedge against economic erosion. The economics are changing. The big annual increase in room rates is not possible in most places, and room rates are not able to keep pace with increased operating costs or rising labor costs. The only way to protect hotels’ bottom lines and maintain customer loyalty over the long haul is to keep on adding technology, improving skills, and motivating staff. The company’s goal and not only the employees’ personal goal is achieved if there is proper implementation of a human resource model. With regards to ever-changing environment forces, the company should be aware of these changes and formulate long term solutions about the problems.
The company should anticipate accurately the possibly effect of ever-changing environment forces in order to avoid downfall of business. Apparently, changes in government regulations may also affect HRM models such attributes of recruits. Executives worldwide are concerned with the effectiveness and value of the human resource function. Whether a company is streamlining HR processes, redefining the relationship between human resources and the line, or defining new competencies for HR professionals, one fact is perfectly clear. The role of the human resource function is dramatically changing. Such changes are influenced by many critical issues affecting a firm. This stimulated the emergence of HR as a general management responsibility. In the face of globalization, the role of management in hospitality industries is therefore changing. Its focus has long been on getting the right people into the right places at the right times through recruitment, succession management, training, and other forms of development, of which this need is more pronounced in the hospitality industry and as the places have changed from static boxes on an organizational chart to strategic and business goals, so the role has come to encompass the implementation of these new strategies and plans. There are a number of management development programs and many industries use a variety of these techniques and methods. The responsibility of the international hotel industry and the human resource department does not stop after the training of their people. There is also a need to do a good job of evaluating their management development initiatives. There is no reason to neglect this important activity, given the high cost of most management development programs and how easy it is to measure their effectiveness.
TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
Training and Development in hotel industries is an attempt to improve employee performance on a currently held job or one related to it. This usually will lead to changes in specific knowledge, skills, attitudes, or behaviors. These changes can result to long-term productivity. However, it often the case that companies only consider training for new hires. Many feel that training is just a way of introducing to the new hire the culture of the organization. It is also an opportunity to impart with them the lessons that senior employees had that helped them in furthering the growth of the company. The qualities of the employees are determined by their development through training and education. In turn, quality employees are factors in defining the long-term stability and profitability of the company. It is a fact that the rigorous hiring process of many companies a ways of ensuring that they will only be hiring the best of the best. However, this is not enough to say that the people they hire will be delivering effective performances. It might be true that they can see potential in those people and that is why they hired them. Nevertheless, these potentials cannot be put into use unless they are accordant with the company’s visions. This is the reason why training must take place.
Training and Development of hotel employees’ pertains to giving the employees the basic knowledge necessary for them to be able to perform their tasks. In addition, employee training will also enhance the inherent capacity of the employees. Development needs to be dealt with continuously enhancing employees’ abilities through training to match the changes in the business industry. Thus, training is being used to facilitate education. In addition, training is also seen as a tool to retain employees, improve corporate culture and design incentive programs for employees. Trainings are also being conducted so that the company will be able to create a pool of employees that can readily and adequately replace those who have left the company. Due to fast technological developments, employees must be continuously and/or regularly trained to be able to adapt to the developments that will affect the company. Training development then motivates hotel staffs and teams by allowing them to become more efficient. If a company is able to train and develop highly-competent employees then they will be able to fill positions needed for expansion. Since training can develop efficient employees and create rooms for expansion, this means that training can also result to lower employee turnover rates. This means that many hotel companies are losing precious capital in attempting to replace the employees that left the company. So if training can reduce turnover rates, it means that companies will also be able to reduce costs of operation. The results of training and development start a chain reaction. When the company is able to produce effective employees then their profitability will increase. When this happens, they will also be able to compensate their employees based on their contribution to the company’s growth. In turn, it will create a feeling of satisfaction that will motivate them to improve further their efficiency and then the cycle will once again begin.
Training development motivates employees by empowering them. Through training and development will have to acquire skills and knowledge that will help those hotels in improving their performance but, there is a feeling of autonomy drives employees to persist in their work. In addition, hotel employees could report that they enjoy their work and they have high interest in their work as well and that people in the industry are motivated when the feel that they affect their environment. This means that employees will be motivated if the feel and see that they are competent in what they do. Therefore, in order for employees to become competent in their work, they must undergo continuous training to enhance their skills. Consequently, when employees exhibit excellence, employers must see to it that they are being reward. This is to let employees know that their hard Work and work competence are being recognized. As such, it can be said that the implementation of an efficient rewards system is a result of effective employee training. Pay is an integral concern of the organization. In addition, people in the hospitality industries work because they want career opportunities that would allow them to explore their capabilities as individuals and team players. People want to grow and this drives them to improve themselves in the workplace. However, it is also a fact that people work because they have financial gains, which is one of the main factors why people work. Therefore, if companies have reward systems, involving monetary benefits, employees will have something to look forward to when they are able to do a good job. This means that financial benefits or reward can drive employees to worker harder and be more competent in what they do. However, money does not always answer the needs of employees as stated earlier. Employers must recognize that their employees are human beings who have hopes and dreams that they want to fulfill. This means that there must be a balance between the kinds of reward the companies provide their employees. It is essential that the holistic need of a person for improvements be taken into consideration upon the formulation and implementation of key activities such as training, motivating and rewarding.
Aside, discovering the most qualified employees and matching them to the jobs for which they are best suited is significant for the success of any organization. However, many enterprises are too large to permit close contact between top management and employees. Human resources, training and employee relations managers and specialists provide this connection. In the past, these workers have been associated with performing the administrative function of an organization, such as handling employee benefits questions or recruiting, interviewing, and hiring new staff in accordance with policies and requirements that have been established in conjunction with top management. Today’s human resources workers manage these tasks and, increasingly, consult top executives regarding strategic planning. They have moved from behind-the-scenes staff work to leading the company in suggesting and changing policies. Senior management is recognizing the significance of the human resources department to their financial success. In an effort to enhance morale and productivity and help organizations increase performance and improve business results, they also help their firms effectively use employee skills, provide training and development opportunities to improve those skills and increase employees’ satisfaction with their jobs and working conditions. Although some jobs in the human resources field require only limited contact with people outside the office, dealing with people is an important part of the job. The responsibilities of human resources generalists can vary widely, depending on their employer’s needs. In a large corporation, the top human resources executive usually develops and manages human resources programs and policies. The director of human resources may supervise several departments, each headed by an experienced manager who most likely specializes in one human resources activity, such as employment, compensation, benefits, training and development as well as employee relations.
Expertise in designing and administering training development programs continues to take on importance as employer-provided benefits account for a growing proportion of overall compensation costs, and as benefit plans increase in number and complexity. For example, training and development implies certain industry benefits that might include savings and thrift, profit-sharing and stock ownership plans; health benefits might include long-term catastrophic illness insurance and dental insurance. Familiarity with training and development is a top priority for employee managers and specialists as some hotel companies and firms struggle to cope with the rising cost of formal training for recruited and selected hotel employees that are being hired for manpower labor. In large firms, certain training programs, such as those dealing with sanitation security and food safety, may be in separate departments headed by other managers. Increasingly, management recognizes that training development offers a way of developing skills, enhancing productivity and quality of work and building worker loyalty to the firm, and most importantly, increasing individual and organizational performance to achieve business results. While training and development in hotels is widely accepted as an employee benefit and a method of improving employee morale, enhancing employee skills has become a business imperative. Increasingly, managers and leaders realize that the key to business growth and success is through developing the skills and knowledge of its workforce. Thus, hotel training specialists in some companies set up leadership or executive development programs among employees in lower level positions. These programs are designed to develop leaders to replace those leaving the organization and as part of a succession plan. Aside, successful hotel management trainers also lead programs to assist employees with job transitions as a result of mergers and acquisitions, as well as technological changes. In government-supported training programs, training specialists function as case managers.
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Compensation and Benefits makes a difference in most hotel industries as there is a sense of need along with differences in the cost of compensation in the public and private sectors stem from a number of factors, particularly the large variation in the work activities and occupational structures of the two sectors. For example, certain activities that are required in hotels, such as recreation activities and safety, call for a large proportion of white-collar professionals and highly skilled service occupations. In contrast, certain industries such as hotels there indicates a unique a unique stance that occupations with comparatively lower compensation costs, such as sales. When certain industries common to both sectors are examined, such as health services, total compensation costs are similar. The availability and characteristics of benefits such as paid leave, retirement, and certain insurances vary considerably in the two sectors. Compensation costs are based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Cost Index which measures quarterly changes in employer costs for employee compensation. Data from the ECI are used to produce measures of employer cost per hour worked for each component of compensation and much of the difference in average compensation costs in hotel industry can be explained by differences in the mix of industry activities in the two sectors. The activities that occur solely in one sector generally result in a higher average cost of compensation for government and a lower average cost for private industry.
The work force required to perform these activities includes a large proportion of white-collar and skilled service occupations that had comparatively high compensation costs. In addition, hotel management is one of the providers of labor services. Aside, compensation costs should be definite and follows rules and regulations for certain hotel activities that caters to the employees in hotel as run by the private hotel sectors that can have such compensation costs as it may combine for a better employee benefit for a successful industry employment. Hotel management activities for example, employed more than one-fifth of the private sector work force that can be per hour calculation for total monthly compensation. Retail trade activities employed a large proportion of sales workers and service workers, whose compensation is less than that of the largely white-collar workers in State and local governments. Compensation costs were similar for industry activities common to government and the private sector. The overwhelming concentration of hotel employment in terms of compensation services and benefit administration demonstrates the role of the state governments as unique providers of particular employee services that will aim to strengthen their compensation and benefit schemes that will impact on the compensation costs in the hotel industries that can be equivalent to the cost of training and development provided as certain employee sanctions that are common to the hotel management ways and measures are to be examined carefully.
The differences in the industry mix between the public and the private sectors also lead to differences in the occupational composition of their work forces. The following shows the mix of occupations and their costs of compensation in the two sectors. The hotel compensation costs can be higher for each of the major work groups than costs in some private sector groups. There can be large cost difference within the hotel service workers, who as a group had compensation costs that can be higher in other types of hospitality industries. The disparities in compensation costs between workers in the same broad occupations in the public and private sectors reflect the differences in the composition of jobs making up those broad occupational groups. Professional and technical employees represented more than half of the government white-collar work force, compared with less than one-fourth of the private sector work force. In contrast, more than one-fifth of the private sector white-collar employees were sales workers, a job seldom found in government. The difference in the cost of compensation for service occupations is due largely to the mix of service jobs. Conversely, the private sector work force includes a large proportion of comparatively low compensated service occupations not readily found in government. For example, wages for waiters and waitresses and food preparation workers in eating and drinking establishments were often at, or below, the Federal minimum wage. In addition to wages, tips are frequently paid to employees in these industries; however, the Employment Cost Index excludes tips from the calculation of average hourly compensation because they are not part of the employer-paid compensation package.
Moreover, differences in compensation costs between hotel industries were small for white-collar occupations that are more closely related in both sectors. For example, executive, administrative and managerial occupations accounted as there can be hourly compensation costs were virtually identical. However, broad comparisons between government and private employee compensation may conceal distinct differences. For example, employer costs between the public and private sectors show some variability when particular white-collar occupations in specific locations are compared. There needs to have certain factors that will have influence on benefit costs and can possibly contribute to the gap between employees and the management in hotel sectors. Firstly, some benefits are linked to earnings like for instance, cash incentives and paid leaves and as a result, the costs for these benefits are affected by the higher average wage levels for hotel management occupations. Next, employee benefits usually are more common in successful hotel establishments as compared to other business sector. Finally, differences in the provisions of benefit plans contributed to differences in benefits costs. It is important to emphasize that estimates of employer costs for particular benefits are not sound measures of employee welfare. For example, although a defined benefit retirement plan may be costlier to employers than a defined contribution plan, the benefit paid out to employees at retirement for a defined contribution plan may be the same or higher. Second, the incidence of benefits varies widely by establishment size in the private sector.
Finally, there needs to apply certain cost difference for retirement benefits reflects the incidence of benefits, the effects of wage levels and differences in benefit provisions. Furthermore, calculations of employee retirement benefits are usually based on employee wages; therefore, higher aggregate average wage levels among government workers tend to increase the costs for government retirement benefits relative to the private sector. Finally, hotel retirement plans have tendencies to have different provisions than plans in the private sector. The majority of hotel workers, unlike private industry workers, participated in defined benefit plans, typically the most expensive retirement plans in terms of employer costs and hotels plans had their benefits calculated using a terminal earnings formula, compared with just under three-fifths of the private sector pension plan participants. There has a terminal earnings formula that is typically a costlier formula for employers because the benefit is based on a percentage of an employee's final average earnings during the several years preceding retirement, rather than a career average or a flat dollar amount. The cost of paid leave for white-collar government employees was one-third more than the average for white-collar private employees, reflecting the higher average government wage rates. There must be realization and application of such workers compensation program for those hotel staff and employees that will be able to provide medical care, hospitalization benefits, and income-maintenance protection to workers whose disabilities ire the result of work-related injuries or illnesses. The income-maintenance benefits are intended as partial replacement for lost wages. The program provides survivor benefits to the dependents of deceased workers whose deaths result from job-related accidents and/or occupational diseases. Before the enactment of workers' compensation laws, an injured worker could recover damages only if he or she could establish that the incident was due to the negligence of the employer. Currently, proof of employer negligence is not t prerequisite for benefit payment.
PERFORMANCE AND APPRAISAL
The variables that are associated with perceptions of performance appraisal system acceptance were investigated. Employee acceptance is a critical factor in the development of an effective system. The data were derived from a national survey of municipal government personnel administrators. Factor analysis was used to produce reliable and valid measures of employee voice, information validity and the dependent variables of employee acceptance. Stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to analyze the relationships. The results indicated that the systems that were perceived to have effectively deployed processes to implement voice and performance appraisal information validity were associated with a higher level of perceived employee performance appraisal system acceptance. Employee acceptance is a critical component of an effective performance appraisal system. Research in organizational behavior clearly demonstrates that employee attitudes influence behavior and participant attitudes toward performance appraisal systems are no exception. The attitudes of system participants play a key role in both the short and long term success of a performance appraisal system.(4) The goal of this research is to identify the characteristics of municipal government performance appraisal systems that are associated with perceived employee acceptance as reported by a national sample of municipal government personnel officials. Performance appraisal systems are but one component of an overall system of human resources management that is designed to enhance employee effectiveness. The key is the proper design and administration of the system in order to benefit both employees and management. Performance appraisal systems are employed to serve a host of administrative and developmental purposes from providing specific performance feedback to generating information for merit pay, promotion, demotion and other personnel decisions.
Personnel officials were the mandated respondents as stipulated by the grant that partially funded the research. The analysis is only suggestive for the obvious reason that the direct participants in the process, raters and ratees, are not the research subjects. Nevertheless, this effort provides insight and information on both the structural characteristics of appraisal systems and the perceptions of a key actor in the appraisal process. One of the serious weaknesses in existing performance appraisal research is a dearth of attention to performance appraisal system acceptance, the appraisal system is congruent or doesn't conflict with the employee's personal goals and values, and when the appraisal process does not exceed the bounds of the "psychological contract" between rater and ratee. There are a number of negative consequences if a system is perceived to be unfair or unacceptable because employees will reject the performance rating and the process that generated it. The consequences include a reduction in the motivation to change behavior based upon appraisal feedback, a rejection of the validity and usefulness of appraisal information,(8) and unwillingness to accept the validity of personnel decisions based upon appraisal information. In terms of expectancy theory, a lack of acceptance will adversely influence employee perceptions. That effort will lead to a designated performance level because performance measurement is viewed as being inaccurate or unfair. Employee attitudes influence the attitudes of raters. If employees are hostile and reject the system, raters may be unwilling or unable to effectively implement performance appraisal due to the costs attached to employee resistance. Raters that lack motivation to effectively implement the process will meet only the minimum requirements, and with performance appraisal, the minimum is rarely sufficient. This lack of motivation will lead to rating errors, general or ambiguous performance feedback, inadequate performance documentation, and a lack of confidence in the utility of performance appraisal information.
The production of valid performance appraisal information requires a systematic approach. The process begins with the supervisor. The supervisor is charged with generating and then interpreting/evaluating performance information. The supervisor may be the central figure in the process, but employee involvement is essential because performance appraisal accuracy and comprehensiveness are relative perceptions and most performance appraisal decisions involve varying degrees of subjectivity. Herein enters the role of employee attitudes. If employees perceive that the information is inaccurate, biased and not comprehensive, a perceived state of unfairness will result. This sense of unfairness will be exacerbated if the employee perceives no opportunity to rebut the information or present his or her views.(16) The task, therefore, becomes developing a process that cultivates accurate and comprehensive information in a manner that is perceived by employees as being fair. There can be three broad principles that influence perceived fairness in performance appraisal systems. First, employees should possess the ability to correct or rebut inaccurate information. Second, those specific procedures should be introduced to increase the accuracy of performance information. Third, those procedural safeguards are present to discourage biased ratings. To fully operationalize these principles, a much greater voice and role for the employee is necessary. Employee participation is the most common means for operationalizing voice. Participation enables the ratee to express opinions, correct misconceptions or inaccuracies, present additional information, develop more equitable performance standards and objectives, and increase the amount and quality of rater-ratee communication.
In addition to the supervisor's lack of complete information, the cognitive process of performance rating is replete with bias inaccuracy as participation can occur in the development of the system and in its operation. Participation within the performance appraisal process increases employee appraisal satisfaction and increases levels of acceptance and trust Self appraisal has been found to reduce defensive behavior,(24) has resulted in improved performance and increased rater-ratee performance agreement. Goal setting is a critical complement to the development of specific, objective performance standards. Effective goal setting requires two-way communication, even with assigned goals because understanding, clarification, revision and performance monitoring entails rater-ratee information exchange. The employment of goal setting within performance appraisal has been linked to higher managerial goal achievement, employee performance improvement perceptions that the performance appraisal was helpful, performance appraisal satisfaction, ratee job satisfaction, performance appraisal system effectiveness and increased performance criteria knowledge. Feedback is the other addition to employee voice. Performance feedback connotates one way information exchange, but in reality, effective feedback requires that employees possess the ability to clarify feedback, to point out external factors that influence performance, and the opportunity to suggest means for improving performance. One of the practical implications of the feedback literature is that it casts doubt on the utility of yearly performance appraisals. The provision of performance feedback is an important objective of most appraisal systems, and many employees report receiving inadequate feedback. The research on cognitive performance appraisal has begun to identify additional factors that determine perceptions of fairness in performance appraisal systems. If a supervisor lacks adequate opportunity to observe employee performance, the probability of appraisal decisions being based on an unrepresentative sample of behavior is increased substantially.
Employees may perceive that they are being penalized unfairly if their low ratings are due to circumstances beyond their control. Specific performance documentation is essential for accurate feedback. There are instances for the hotel industries that clearly shows that perceptions of rating fairness are enhanced when raters maintain adequate performance documentation. The literature states that it is extremely important to train all raters to observe job behavior effectively, to develop effective information processing strategies, to employ proper modes of decision making, and to avoid psychometric errors. If raters understand that performance appraisal is an important part of their job, they are likely to gather more accurate performance information and to be more motivated to rate accurately.
LABOR RELATIONS
Many workers in the tourism and hospitality industries can be classified as "front-line" service workers, as their jobs involve direct customer contact. The nature of speaking and acting in such work involves displaying emotions, which demonstrate a willingness to be of service. The management of such emotional display has become known which has been defined as the effort, planning and control needed to express organizationally desired emotion during interpersonal transactions. It has been suggested that the social interaction of a service exchange, in which the performance of emotional labor plays an integral part, is one factor used by customers as an indication of service quality. Indeed, such dimensions of the hotel management in terms of labor relations have potentially high emotional content. It has also been widely accepted that the delivery of quality service commences with the selection of suitable employees and the provision of appropriate training. In view of the impact of the performance of emotional labor on perceptions of service quality, it is important to examine the role of selection and training in the performance of such labor. The academic and practitioner literature contains a number of recommendations about the manner in which employee selection should be carried out, and the need for the training of employees is also widely acknowledged. This paper presents the preliminary findings of research carried out into the selection and training practices of organisations in the tourism and hospitality industries as they apply to workers called upon to perform emotional labor. The skill with which this type of labour is performed impacts on perceptions of service quality. The social interaction of a service exchange, in which the performance of emotional labor plays an integral part, is one factor used by customers as an indication of service quality.
Henceforth, the personality of service providers may contribute also to perceptions of service quality. The delivery of quality service commences with the selection of suitable employees and the provision of appropriate training. The academic and practitioner tourism and hospitality literature contains a number of recommendations about the manner in which employee selection should be carried out. The need for the training of employees is also widely acknowledged. However, little explicit attention is paid to the selection and training of employees to perform emotional labor. Many workers in the tourism and hospitality industries can be classified as frontline service workers. Their jobs, which involve direct customer contact, are at the very heart of many tourism and hospitality enterprises. The service person must deliberately involve his or her feelings in the situation. He or she may not particularly feel like being cordial and becoming a one-minute friend to the next customer who approaches, but that is indeed what frontline work entails. In other words, service workers must manage their own emotions and emotional display to create a favorable atmosphere in which the interpersonal transaction takes place. In recent years this process of emotion management has become known as emotional labor, but emotion management is still largely unrecognized in day-to-day work environments. Given the negative effects associated with the performance of emotional labour, it is imperative that service workers are helped to cope with the demands associated with the performance of such labour, so that their well-being is not affected and subsequent interactions with customers are not tarnished. As a consequence, employers should be mindful of the ability of their employees to perform emotional labour effectively. Thus, in the selection of staff, consideration should be given to personality and other characteristics that seem to be important predictors of effectiveness in emotional labour jobs which focuses on emotion management is also beneficial for those working in service-oriented environments.
The importance of the effective performance of emotional labor is demonstrated in relation to perceptions of service quality. While there is an increasing demand for workers who can provide consistently high-quality service for the customer, what constitutes service quality eludes conclusive definition. Thus, it is crucial to realize better service quality as it is unique to services: intangibility, heterogeneity and inseparability of production and consumption and thus, the primary task of hotel workers who provide high quality service is not to produce material goods, but to produce speech, action, and emotion that symbolise one's willingness to do for the client or customer. This is consistent that the social interaction of an exchange and the physical environment in which it occurs are used by consumers as service quality cues. Traits associated with Extraversion include being sociable and gregarious; those associated with Emotional Stability or Neuroticism include being embarrassed, worried and insecure. Agreeableness is associated with courtesy, flexibility and cooperativeness; and Conscientiousness is reflected by carefulness and being responsible. Culture is associated with traits such as being imaginative, original and curious, which are also attributes associated with positive attitudes towards learning. The traits associated with Extraversion, such as being sociable and gregarious have been shown to lead to effective performance for managers and sales personnel. The quality of service can be enhanced by the selection of individuals who have the necessary personal characteristics.
It should be said that while it seems plausible to suggest a relationship between personality and service effectiveness, there is so far limited research that has examined the topic. It sometimes seems to be assumed that providers are positively disposed towards providing service. While it has been acknowledged that sound human resource management practices in respect to the selection and training of service workers will contribute to the effective performance of emotional labor and hence, customer perceptions of service quality, there seems some question about how well such practices are used in the tourism and hospitality industry. The argument that on one hand, hospitality industries rightly proclaims itself as a people industry, dependent on the capability and enthusiasm of its front-line staff in order to deliver quality products and services with consistency. At the same time, these same front-line staff is among the poorest remunerated members of the workforce, operating hours and conditions that would be unacceptable within other industrial sectors. Then, the hotel industry often laments the low skills base of much of its workforce, nevertheless, in order to provide excellent service, high levels of communication and interpersonal skills are required from many of hotel staff and workers, who are the public face of their companies respectively.
However, in the hotel industry, there is a growing awareness of the need to carefully select employees, as customer relations skills; particularly of front-office staff are vital. Indeed, companies are recognizing the need to carefully screen applicants, with more consideration being given to the personality of potential employees, in recognition of the emotional demands on those with front-line jobs. Moreover, other work in areas like tourism and hospitality suggests that better labour relations must be a significant factor influencing customer perceptions and service quality. While there is wide and developing appreciation of the importance of selection and training processes in such areas, there is little evidence about the extent to which such processes explicitly address issues of emotional labor. There is evidence that employee personality is an important factor in effective service provision in areas such as hospitality and tourism, but there is little direct evidence about the interaction between employee personality, effective performance of emotional labor and approaches to selection and training.
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