World Monitor Magazine, Economy WM_April 2019 web version (2) | Page 29

EXPERT OPINION
service sector from the point of view
of an owner investing in hotel business
here and now?
Experience has proved that vital
importance in solving this problem is
the right selection of managerial staff:
those professionals who can train
the team, and fill gaps in education
or lack of practical experience of line
employees and middle managers. It is
difficult to overestimate significance
of competent management. Moreover,
on-job training can yield astounding
results, especially since the concept
of hospitality is an integral part of our
culture. The effect of such trainings
can be achieved rather quickly, but for
a sustainable result there is a set of
additional measures which are required
to maintain and improve achieved
service level.
One of such mandatory measures is
to encourage employee engagement.
The results of numerous surveys and
studies conducted on this topic showed
that strategic programs for interaction
with employees are the basis for
redefining and improving the quality
of service, which in turn stimulates
customers´
loyalty,
subsequently
leading to increase of a market share.
Another effective tool to increase
employees interest in achieving
overall success for the company and,
consequently, improving the quality
of services provided, are motivational
programs.
Being one of the most dependent
and vulnerable sectors from the
perspective of human factor, hotel
industry is constantly searching for
new ways of staff motivation. From
classic tools in the form of bonus
plans and upsell programs to the
aforementioned strategic programs
for employee engagement and loyalty.
Last but not least, the important pillar
when working with staff to improve
quality of service is the presence of
service standards, a benchmark for
each of operational directions in a
hotel. While in international hotels the
situation with ensuring proper service
level in the context of shortage of
qualified personnel is facilitated by the
presence of clearly defined standard
operational procedures, for independent
Kazakhstani hotels this process is more
complicated due to the lack of uniformed
service standards. This surely affects
the quality of service, and as a result the
"experience" of guests. Is there a direct
dependency between service quality
in a hotel and commercial success of
its business? The answer is absolutely
positive. In the current market of fierce
competition, winners will be those who
acknowledge that people are key if not
to everything, but to a big proportion
of it.
1. 2018 Travel and Hospitality Industry
Outlook by Deloitte https://www2.deloitte.
com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/
consumer-business/us-cb-2018-travel-hos-
pitality-industry-outlook.pdf
2. World Tourism Organization, 2018 Year-
book of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of
Tourism Statisticsanddata files.
3. http://wdi.worldbank.org/table/6.14
World Development Indicators: Travel and
Tourismby World Bank.
supported by EUROBAK
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