C14T1P3 - Motivational Factors and The Hospitality Industry

LEAD-IN
1. Is it difficult to work in the hospitality industry?

challenging
satisfy customers' needs regardless of their requirements
2. What are some major challenges you think people

working in this industry may encounter?
● Customer service
● Covid-19 pandemic: job security => adaptability
● Working conditions: night shifts/ holidays/ weekends
3. What are some considerations people have when

deciding on a job?
- salary:
play a/ an + Adj + role + in + X
Money plays a vital role in our life.
satisfy basic needs/ meet our basic demands
- favourable working environment:
+ professional working environment
+ Friendly/ supportive co-workers
+ Supportive employers
- opportunities to climb the career ladder/ good career
prospects (triển vọng nghề nghiệp)
4. What are some of the motivational factors that can

inspire and keep workers’ loyalty for an organization?
good pay rate
promotion opportunities
bonuses/ benefits/ compensation
Facilities
rewards/ travel benefits
5. Is it important for employees to be constantly

motivated at work?
Yes.
enhance/ improve working productivity/ working
performance
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27-40 which are based on
Reading Passage 3 below.
Motivational factors and the hospitality industry
A critical ingredient in the success of hotels is developing and maintaining superior

performance from their employees. How is that accomplished? What Human
Resource Management (HRM) practices should organizations invest in to acquire
and retain great employees?
Some hotels aim to provide superior working conditions for their employees. The
idea originated from workplaces – usually in the non-service sector – that
emphasized fun and enjoyment as part of work-life balance. By contrast, the
service sector, and more specifically hotels, has traditionally not extended these
practices to address basic employee needs, such as good working conditions.
Pfeffer (1994) emphasizes that in order to succeed in a global business

environment, organizations must make investment in Human Resource
Management (HRM) to allow them to acquire employees who possess better skills
and capabilities than their competitors. This investment will be to their competitive
advantage. Despite this recognition of the importance of employee development,
the hospitality industry has historically been dominated by underdeveloped HR
practices (Lucas, 2002).
Lucas also points out that ‘the substance of HRM practices does not appear to be
designed to foster constructive relations with employees or to represent a
managerial approach that enables developing and drawing out the full potential of
people, even though employees may be broadly satisfied with many aspects of
their work’ (Lucas, 2002). In addition, or maybe as a result, high employee
turnover has been a recurring problem throughout the hospitality industry. Among
the many cited reasons are low compensation, inadequate benefits, poor working
conditions and compromised employee morale and attitudes (Maroudas et al.,
2008).
Ng and Sorensen (2008) demonstrated that when managers provide recognition to
employees, motivate employees to work together, and remove obstacles preventing
effective performance, employees feel more obligated to stay with the company.
This was succinctly summarized by Michel et al. (2013): ‘[P]roviding support to
employees gives them the confidence to perform their jobs better and the
motivation to stay with the organization.’ Hospitality organizations can therefore
enhance employee motivation and retention through the development and
improvement of their working conditions. These conditions are inherently linked to
the working environment.
While it seems likely that employees’ reactions to their job characteristics could be
affected by a predisposition to view their work environment negatively, no
evidence exists to support this hypothesis (Spector et al., 2000). However, given
the opportunity, many people will find something to complain about in relation to
their workplace (Poulston, 2009). There is a strong link between the perceptions of
employees and particular factors of their work environment that are separate from
the work itself, including company policies, salary and vacations.
Such conditions are particularly troubling for the luxury hotel market, where high-
quality service, requiring a sophisticated approach to HRM, is recognized as a
critical source of competitive advantage (Maroudas et al., 2008). In a real sense,
the services of hotel employees represent their industry (Schneider and Bowen,
1993). This representation has commonly been limited to guest experiences. This
suggests that there has been a dichotomy between the guest environment provided
in luxury hotels and the working conditions of their employees.
It is therefore essential for hotel management to develop HRM practices that

enable them to inspire and retain competent employees. This requires an
understanding of what motivates employees at different levels of management and
different stages of their careers (Enz and Siguaw, 2000). This implies that it is
beneficial for hotel managers to understand what practices are most favorable to
increase employee satisfaction and retention.
Herzberg (1966) proposes that people have two major types of needs, the first
being extrinsic motivation factors relating to the context in which work is
performed, rather than the work itself. These include working conditions and job
security. When these factors are unfavorable, job dissatisfaction may result.
Significantly, though, just fulfilling these needs does not result in satisfaction, but
only in the reduction of dissatisfaction (Maroudas et al., 2008).
Employees also have intrinsic motivation needs or motivators, which include such
factors as achievement and recognition. Unlike extrinsic factors, motivator factors
may ideally result in job satisfaction (Maroudas et al., 2008). Herzberg’s (1966)
theory discusses the need for a ‘balance’ of these two types of needs.
The impact of fun as a motivating factor at work has also been explored. For
example, Tews, Michel and Stafford (2013) (36-40) conducted a study focusing
on staff from a chain of themed restaurants in the United States. It was found that
fun activities had a favorable impact on performance and manager support for fun
had a favorable impact in reducing turnover. Their findings support the view that
fun may indeed have a beneficial effect, but the framing of that fun must be
carefully aligned with both organizational goals and employee characteristics.
‘Managers must learn how to achieve the delicate balance of allowing employees
the freedom to enjoy themselves at work while simultaneously high levels of
performance’ (Tews et al., 2013).
Deery (2008) has recommended several actions that can be adopted at the
organizational level to retain good staff as well as assist in balancing work and
family life. Those particularly appropriate to the hospitality industry include
allowing adequate breaks during the working day, staff functions that involve
families, and providing health and well-being opportunities.
Questions 27-31
Look at the following statements (Questions 27-31) and the list of researchers
below.
Match each statement with the correct researcher, A-F.
Write the correct letter, A-F, in boxes 27-31 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
27 Hotel managers need to know what would encourage good staff to remain.
28 The actions of managers may make staff feel they shouldn’t move to a
different employer.
29 Little is done in the hospitality industry to help workers improve their skills.
30 Staff are less likely to change jobs if cooperation is encouraged.
31 Dissatisfaction with pay is not the only reason why hospitality workers change
jobs.
List of Researchers
A Pfeffer
B Lucas
C Maroudas et al.
D Ng and Sorensen
E Enz and Siguaw
F Deery
Questions 32-35
Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage
3?
In boxes 32-35 on your answer sheet, write

YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
32 One reason for high staff turnover in the hospitality industry is poor morale.
33 Research has shown that staff have a tendency to dislike their workplace.
34 An improvement in working conditions and job security makes staff satisfied
with their jobs.
35 Staff should be allowed to choose when they take breaks during the working
day.
Questions 36-40
Complete the summary below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet.
Fun at work
Tews, Michel and Stafford carried out research on staff in an American chain of
36 (nplural) ………………………. They discovered that activities designed for
staff to have fun improved their 37 (N)………………………, and that
management involvement led to lower staff 38 (N) ………………………….. .
They also found that the activities needed to fit with both the company’s 39 (n)
………………………….. and the 40 (N)…………………………. of the staff. A
balance was required between a degree of freedom and maintaining work
standards.

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LEAD-IN

1. Is it difficult to work in the hospitality industry?

2. What are some major challenges you think people

3. What are some considerations people have when

4. What are some of the motivational factors that can

5. Is it important for employees to be constantly

A critical ingredient in the success of hotels is developing and maintaining superior

Pfeffer (1994) emphasizes that in order to succeed in a global business

It is therefore essential for hotel management to develop HRM practices that

In boxes 32-35 on your answer sheet, write

Complete the summary below.

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