Submission #5 - Project Synopsis (Final)

1. Introduction
The current context marked by globalization, and the increasing recognition of interrelations has imposed new rules of conduct: the prosperity of nations is based on the competitiveness of international markets, and that of enterprises, on the integration in the worldwide value chains (Ioncica, Tala, Brindusoiu, & Ioncica, 2007).

Due to the wave of growth in the hospitality industry, business travel has reached almost $1.2 trillion around the world in 2015 and is projected to continue through 2017. This portrays a tough competition with the rise of new brands and new hospitality concepts emerging. (Harkey, 2017) Therefore, working in a hospitality such as hotel is becoming intense and competitive .

Due to such stiff competition in the industry, it is important for hoteliers to retain their employees. Thus, this report explores how different individuals, specifically in the context of The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore, can create a better working environment through taking initiatives, and leading outside their scope of their authority (Manion, J. 2012).

2. Problem Identification
In every organisation, program or setting, things such as, “Our director only gives lip service to diversity”, “I have responsibilities but no real power”, or even “I have great ideas but they do not devote the funding” are often heard (Crossbear, Goode, McCullough, Wiler, & Graybill, 2016).

In the Ritz Carlton, likewise in many other hotel organization, not all leaders who have authority make the right decisions all the time and in fact, those with great ideas might not even be the leaders. This raises opportunities for different individuals to lead without a leadership role. Therefore, this study aims to explore how employees should bring forth themselves when voicing out to an authority.

In every workplace, there is bound to be some form of seniority, or a hierarchy. As such, people tend to avoid contributing or initiating during times when not given a leadership role, some to the extent of just doing what is told.

3. Objective of Study
According to Jose (2015), hotels face high turnover rates, possibly due to the unhealthy work environment. However, they may not have the courage to approach their manager because they lack the authority and may feel inferior during such circumstances.

Through exploring this topic, it would allow associates to understand what some of the dos and don’ts when they wish to speak to someone of higher authority. Additionally, it aims to bring out the confidence in each associate, allowing them to initiate and speak up to their superiors (Cohen, A. R., & Bradford, D. L. 2005).

4. Potential Solutions
Through this study, several potential solutions were explored to address the issue of employees who are unable to express their opinions. In addition, the solution will also address the issue on how an associate can get their point across to a higher authority without appearing too rude or trying to steal the limelight (Weaver, P., & Guandique, R. 2012).

To better illustrate the solution, one must first understand the problem statement. Following which, listing out certain dos & don’ts on how to approach the issue of employees not being initiative to express their opinion due to lack of authority. The following table would illustrate the different Do’s and Don’ts for the situation:

Do’s	Don’ts
Speak in a proper tone	Raise your voice
Think before speaking	Get overly emotional
Be specific and concise	Beat around the bush
Focus on the objectives	Interrupt abruptly
Time your concerns appropriately	Take things into your own hands
Come up with solution in mind	Demand for actions to be taken
Focus on positives (hamburger approach)	Emphasize on “You”
Watch your body language (maintain eye contract, sit up approach	Push the blame

5. Research Methods
To further understand the communication problem, primary and secondary research has been conducted to comprehend the problem better.

For the primary research, an interview was conducted at The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. The objective of this research aimed to collect opinions from Ritz Carlton’s staff to understand the problem better.

The interviewees were:

- Mr Gangatheran Kunjiraman, Manager on Duty at the Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. Mr Gangatheran have been in The Ritz Carlton for over 20 years, and was promoted to the Manager on Duty since January 2010.

- Ms Felicia Ho, front desk officer at The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. Ms Felicia is a young polytechnic graduate who had just joined the company last year.

Getting someone with vast experience would provide better understanding of the situation in different scenarios. On the contrary, interviewing someone from the millennial generation would provide a different perspective. Both interviewees gave very insightful information regarding their views of the issue.

For the secondary research, the research was based on the context of a hotel, about how an associate should portray themselves when they are about to approach and speak to their management. Journal articles, research articles and educational websites were explored as well amid the secondary research.

6. Benefits
6.1. Initiative to speak
The objective of this topic is to encourage and allow people to voice out their opinion or suggestion in their workplace, even when they do not have authority or a leadership position. In any organization, it would be beneficial for them to be able to gather feedback and ideas from any associate regardless of their standing within the company. Thus, it is important for people to speak out without fearing judgement and criticism.

6.2. Sense of Community
By taking initiative to speak up to anyone in the company regardless of authority or position, this would help increase the communication between frontline employees and the management. In addition, associates would feel inclusive within the company, narrowing the gap between the associates and the management. Thus, allowing associate to have a sense of belonging, as they would feel that they are part of the changes within the hotel.

6.3. Lower Turnover Rate
With employee involvement in hotel changes or development, employees tend to experience job satisfaction in the organization. Therefore, greater job satisfaction would lead to lower employee turnover rate, which greatly benefits the hotel.

7. Concluding Thoughts
A good employer should listen to employees’ advice, and employees should not be afraid to speak up if they have a better idea or solution. Having an agreement would prevent any dissatisfaction, and thus, enhancing the relationship. In conclusion, every staff in the hotel plays an equally crucial role in maintaining hotel standards and meeting its mission and vision.

8. References
Cohen, A. R., & Bradford, D. L. (2005). Influence without authority. The Leadership Quarterly, (Vol. 2).

Goode, T. D., Crossbear, S., Mccullough, M., Wiler, N., & Graybill, E. (2016). Understanding Your Role with and Without Formal Authority, 1–15.

Harkey. (2017, March 03). Great Expectations: How Changing Consumer Expectations Are Impacting the Hospitality Industry.

Ioncica, M., Tala, M., Brindusoiu, C., & Ioncica, D. (2007). The Factors of Competitiveness in the Hospitality Industry and The Competitive Strategy of Firms, (6), 213–218.

Jose, V. (2015). Hospitality Industry with focus on Hotel in the state of Kerala. [online] pp.11 12.

Manion, J. (2012). Building a Healthy Workplace? Start with the Foundation of. Med-Surge Matters, 21(2), 4–6.

Weaver, P., & Guandique, R. (2012). Leadership without authority. PM Network, 26(3), 20–22.

Submission #4 - Project Synopsis (Draft Two)

1. Introduction
The current context marked by globalization, and the increasing recognition of interrelations has imposed new rules of conduct: the prosperity of nations is based on the competitiveness of international markets, and that of enterprises, on the integration in the worldwide value chains (Maria, I., Madalina, T., Catalina, B., & Diana, I., 2007).

Climbing up the ladders within the tourism industry, one of the most competitive industry to work in today, this is an industry in which the structure of supply is extremely volatile, and the solid and consistent part is the demand.

Relating it to the hotel sector, specifically The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore, we explore how different individuals can lead outside their authority. Being confident and speaking from a place of strength will go a long way in convincing others to follow you, whether you have direct authority over them.

2. Problem Identification
In every organisation, program or setting, we often hear things such as, “Our director only gives lip service to diversity”, “I have responsibilities but no real power”, or even “I have great ideas but they do not devote the funding” (Goode, T. D., Crossbear, S., McCullough, M., Wiler, N., & Graybill, E. 2016).

Not all leaders who have authority make the right decisions and in fact, those with great ideas might not even be the leader. This comes to a point where different individuals should lead without a leadership role. In every workplace, there is bound to be some form of seniority, or a hierarchy. As such, people tend to avoid contributing or initiating during times when not given a leadership role, some to the extent of just doing what is told.

Thus, problem identified is, should every employee have the freedom of speech to suggest and initiate their ideas in front of their superior or higher management.

3. Objective of Study
Hotels face high turnover rates, possibly because most of the associates leave the company as they are usually unhappy working there. However, they may not have the courage to speak up about their unhappiness to their manager because they may feel that they do not hold any authority and they may feel inferior when trying to talk to someone of higher authority.

Through exploring such a topic, it would allow associates to understand what some of the dos and don’ts are when they wish to speak to someone of higher authority. Additionally, it aims to bring out the confidence in each associate, and allow them to initiate and speak up to someone of higher authority (Cohen, A. R., & Bradford, D. L. 2005).

4. Potential Solutions
Through this project, potential solutions will be explored to tackle the interpersonal communication problem. The solution will address the issue on how an associate can get their point across to a higher authority, without appearing too rude or trying to steal the limelight (Weaver, P., & Guandique, R. 2012). To better illustrate the solution to an associate, an educational video would be created.

The content of the video would include the problem statement, as well as a list of dos & don’ts on how to approach this interpersonal communication problem. Some example of dos, would include things such as “being specific and concise”, or “watch your body language”. On the other hand, some don’ts include “do not beat around the bush”, “do not get overly emotional”. By creating this video, it should educate an associate who would face this problem.

5. Proposed Research Methods
To further understand the communication problem, primary and secondary research will be conducted to comprehend the problem better.

For the primary research, an interview will be conducted at The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. The objective of this research aims to collect opinions from Ritz Carlton’s staff to understand the problem better. Through the interviews, the different point of view – from an associate, as well as the management – could be gathered. Interviews will be conducted with a young front desk officer who is a recent graduate, and an experienced manager on duty who holds authority in front desk operations.

The interviewees are as proposed:

Mr Gangatheran Kunjiraman, Manager on Duty at the Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. Mr Gangatheran have been in The Ritz Carlton for over 20 years, and was promoted to the Manager on Duty since January 2010.

Ms Felicia Ho, front desk officer at The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. Ms Felicia is a young polytechnic graduate who had just joined the company last year.

Getting someone with vast experience would provide understanding of the situation in different scenarios. On the contrary, interviewing someone from the millennial generation would provide another different view, in terms of generation of ideas.

For the secondary research, the research would be based on the context of a hotel, about how an associate should portray themselves when they are about to approach and speak to their management. Journal articles, research articles and educational websites will be explored as well amid the secondary research.

6. Benefits
6.1. Initiative to speak
The main aim of this topic is to encourage and allow people to voice out their opinion or suggestion in their workplace, even when they do not have authority or a leadership position. Not all leaders give brilliant ideas, and good ideas might come from someone who is not a leader. Thus, it is important for people to speak out without having fear of judgement and criticism.

6.2. Sense of Community
By practicing freedom of speech by anyone in the company in regardless to authority or position, they would help to increase the communication between frontline employees and the management. This would allow the associate to feel more inclusive within the company, narrowing the gap between the associates and the management. This would allow each associate to have a sense of belonging, as they would feel that they are part of the changes within the hotel.

6.3. Lower Turnover Rate
With employee involvement in hotel changes or development, employees tend to experience job satisfaction in the organization. Therefore, greater job satisfaction would lead to lower employee turnover rate, which greatly benefits the hotel.

7. Concluding Thoughts
A good employer should listen to employees’ advice, and employees should not be afraid to speak out if they have a better idea or solution. Having an agreement would prevent any dissatisfaction, and thus, enhances the relationship. In conclusion, every staff in the hotel plays an equally crucial role in maintaining hotel standards and meeting its mission and vision.

REFERENCES
Cohen, A. R., & Bradford, D. L. (2005). Influence Without Authority. The Leadership Quarterly, (Vol. 2).

Goode, T. D., Crossbear, S., Mccullough, M., Wiler, N., & Graybill, E. (2016). Understanding Your Role with and Without Formal Authority, 1–15.

Maria, I., Madalina, T., Catalina, B., & Diana, I. (2007). The Factors of Competitiveness in the Hospitality Industry and The Competitive Strategy of Firms, (6), 213–218.

Weaver, P., & Guandique, R. (2012). Leadership Without Authority. PM Network, 26(3), 20–22.

Additional Post #2 - Service Recovery Letter [Late]

Dear Mr Bennert,

Greetings from Marina Bay Sands! Allow me to first express my deepest gratitude for choosing us as your preferred accommodation choice for your holiday. We are glad that you found our hotel comfortable and clean, and we hope that you have had an enjoyable time in Singapore!

We are truly regretful to hear about the service that was rendered to your family last January. We understand the frustration and disappointment you have towards the matter. I am sure it was stressful for you and your family as all plans have been made in advance.

With regards to the breakfast booking, we have reviewed the matter with Agoda. We have also spoken to both the Front Office and F&B manager regarding this matter and have advised our colleagues on how to better handle e-bookings made through third party websites.

As for the difficulties you experience when accessing the roof top pool, we have feedback your concerns to the relevant departments. We understand that the pool is the main feature of our hotel and all guest should enjoy a hassle-free experience. We are continuously looking for ways to improve and implement new initiatives  to make this possible.

Naturally, we are concerned with the inconveniences that you experienced, but please be assured that it will not happen again. Do let me know when you are intending to next visit us so that I could personally assist you with your reservations.

Thank you once again for your feedback and patronage. We sincerely hope to regain your trust and we look forward to welcoming you again at MBS!

Warm regards,

Daniel Mitchigen

General Manager

Marina Bay Sands

Additional Post #1 - Building My Personal Brand [Late]

I am not one to judge, or praise myself. I'd rather let my actions do the talking. Many a times, how others perceive me ultimately depends on how I project myself across. My personal branding is affected by a wide array of factors and I identify non-verbal communication as one of the key factors. Even without speaking, there is a possibility that observers could have already formed an impression of me.

It is widely known and accepted that non-verbal communication greatly impacts the communication process among individuals. While the intended message is meant to be communicated verbally through words, non-verbal cues could either emphasise or dilute the quality of the message. If the body language portrayed by the individual who is attempting to convey a message is incongruent with the message, it could potentially affect the credibility of the message.

I have been exposed to public speaking on many occasions, with different audiences. There were times when I felt unsure to what I was supposed to do as I was not used to it. As embarrassing as it was, it made me aware of just how I much I had to improve, in terms of my communication skills. At this juncture, I continuously strive to limit my fidgeting and focus my gestures into more meaningful ones that would aid my presentation.

Meanwhile, my pro-activeness could sometimes translate into exaggerated and over-the-top gestures that could be the subject of scrutiny. I have been told that as I get too excited during speeches, I tend to clap subconsciously. As I learnt more about communication, I come across tips that could help me improve, such as how to be more convincing and how small and appropriate touches helps in persuading others.

As I progress in the hospitality industry, I have to make conscious efforts to improve on my non-verbal communication as I keep in mind the huge impact it has in interpersonal interactions. Fortunately for me, I will never run out of things to learn and the hospitality industry offers me constant opportunities to practice.

Submission #3 - Project Synopsis (Draft One)

Introduction

The current context marked by globalization and the increasing recognition of interrelations has imposed new rules of conduct: the prosperity of nations is based on competitiveness on international markets, and that of enterprises, on the integration in the worldwide value chains (Maria, I., Madalina, T., Catalina, B., & Diana, I., 2007).

Climbing up the ladders as one of the most competitive industry to work in nowadays, tourism is a sector in which the structure of supply is extremely volatile and the solid and consistent part is the demand.

Regarding the hotel organisation, specifically The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore, we explore how different individuals can lead outside their authority. Being confident and speaking from a place of strength will go a long way in convincing others to follow you, whether you have direct authority over them.

Problem Identification

In every organisation, program or setting, we often hear things like “Our director only gives lip service to diversity”, “I have responsibilities but no real power”, or even “I have great ideas but they don’t devote the funding”. 

Not all leaders who have authority make the right decisions and in fact, those with great ideas might not even be the leader. This comes to a point where different individuals should lead without a leadership role. In every workplace, there is bound to be seniority, a hierarchy. People tend to avoid contributing or initiating during times when not given a leadership role, some to the extent of just doing what is told.

Objective of Study

The hotel faces high turnover rates and most of the associates leave the company as they are usually unhappy working there. However, they may not have the courage to speak up about their unhappiness to their manager because they may feel that they do not hold any authorities and they might feel inferior when trying to talk to someone of a higher authority. 

By exploring such study, it would allow associates to understand what some of the dos and don’ts are when they would want to speak up to someone with a higher authority. Additionally, bringing out the confidence in each associate and allow them to initiate and speak up to someone of a higher authority.

By doing so, they would help to increase the communication between frontline employees as well as the management and it would allow the associate to feel more inclusive within the company, narrowing the gap between the associates and the management. This would allow each associate to have a sense of belonging as they would feel that they are being part of the changes within the hotel. 

Furthermore, making the associated feels more comfortable would then potentially increase the satisfactory level of the associates in the hotel. With greater work satisfaction, there would be higher chance that the employee will not quit their job easily. Thus, lowering the turnover rate in hotels.

Potential Solutions

Through this project, potential solutions will be explored to tackle the interpersonal communication problem. The solution will address the issue on how to get can an associate get their point across to an authority without appearing too rude or trying to steal the limelight.  To create an easier visibility to an associate of the solution, an educational video would be created. 

In the content of the video, it would include the problem statement as well as a list of Do & Don’t on how to approach this interpersonal communication problem. Some example of Do’s would include things like “being specific and concise” or “watch your body language”. While some Don’ts like “Do not beat around the bush”, “Do not get overly emotional”. By creation video, it should educate an associate who faces this problem.

Proposed Research Methods

To further understand the communication problem, primary and secondary research will be conducted to comprehend the problem better.  

For primary research, an interview will be conducted at The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. The objective of this research aims to collect opinions from Ritz Carlton staff to understand the problem better. Through the interview, the different point of view as an associate as well as a management’s point of view could be gathered. An interview will be conducted with a young front desk officer who just graduated and an experience manager on duty who has the authority in the Front desk operations.  

The interviewees are as proposed:  

Mr. Gangatheran Kunjiraman, Manager on Duty at the Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. Mr. Gangatheran has been in The Ritz-Carlton for over 20 years and was promoted to the Manager on Duty since January 2010. 

Ms. Felicia Ho, Front desk officer at The Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore. Ms. Felicia is a young polytechnic graduate who just joins the company last year. 

Getting someone with vast experience would understand the situation in a different scenario. On the contrary, interviewing someone in the millennial generation would be able to provide another different view in terms of generation of ideas. 

Whereas for the secondary research, the focus on the research would be in a hotel context on how an associate should portray themselves when they are about to approach and speak to their management. Journal articles, research articles, and educational websites will be explored as well amid the secondary research.

Benefits

Initiative to speak

The key benefit of this topic is to encourage and allow people to voice out their opinion or suggestion in their workplace even when they do not have authority or leadership position. Not all leaders give brilliant ideas and good ideas might come from someone who is not a leader. Thus, it is important for people to speak out without having fear of judgment and criticism.

Sense of Community

In a healthy organization, everyone is free to speak out their suggestions or giving individual feedback to their employer or leader. By doing so, employees would feel satisfied to be in the organization as they experienced a sense of belonging. Hence, both employee and employer would share the same goals and strive towards it.

Lower Turnover Rate

With employee involvement in the hotel changes or development, employees tend to feel job satisfaction in the organization. Therefore, greater job satisfaction would lead to lower employee turnover rate which greatly benefits the hotel.

Concluding Thoughts

A good employer should listen to employees’ advice and employees should not be afraid to speak out if they have a better idea or solution. Having an agreement would prevent any dissatisfaction thus, enhance the relationship. In conclusion, every staff in the hotel is equally crucial to ensure hotel standard and meeting its mission and vision.