Michelle Williams recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management and has been hired as the front desk manager in a medium-sized hotel located in New York City. The hotel’s clientele is truly international and so is its staff, which originates from more than twenty different nations. Many of the employees speak more than one language, often at work. Michelle is from the midwestern United States and has had little experience in managing and motivating a multicultural work group. Indeed, she knows little or nothing about many of the cultures she is surrounded by. One challenge put to Michelle when she was hired was to give a “lift” to the staff and try to create more of a team atmosphere. Currently, the employees at the front desk operate as a bunch of individuals, with little sense of teamwork. It seems as though the differences in culture are preventing the group from getting closer. As a result, the atmosphere at the front desk is cool and functional, rather than warm and friendly. In addition, Michelle must contend with a number of employee problems if the department is going to function properly. For example, Maria, who originally comes from Spain, is excellent with customers but often comes to work late. Even when confronted by past supervisors about her lateness, Maria failed to see this as a real problem. Bjorn is a Norwegian hospitality student working part time is the hotel. Although Bjorn is always on time and works very efficiently, his demeanour with the customers is lacking. Oftentimes, guests and co-workers perceive him as being aloof or standoffish. Bjorn rarely smiles at guests. Finally, Peng from Hong Kong is very diligent about his work and gives 100 percent to any task he is given. Unfortunately, Peng has some difficulty speaking English and has little confidence in his speaking ability. As a result, he tends to rush through interactions with guests and limits his conversations, saying only what he must to complete the task. Questions: If you were in Michelle’s place as the new front desk manager, what methods would you use to answer the following? a. How will you address each of the work-related problems and motivate Maria, Bjorn, and Peng? b. How will you facilitate a greater understanding of differences in national culture among the team members at the front desk? c. Decide on how to build a sense of teamwork with multicultural group.
Michelle Williams recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in hospitality
management and has been hired as the front desk manager in a medium-sized hotel
located in New York City. The hotel’s clientele is truly international and so is its staff,
which originates from more than twenty different nations.
Many of the employees speak more than one language, often at work. Michelle is
from the midwestern United States and has had little experience in managing and
motivating a multicultural work group. Indeed, she knows little or nothing about
many of the cultures she is surrounded by.
One challenge put to Michelle when she was hired was to give a “lift” to the staff and
try to create more of a team atmosphere. Currently, the employees at the front desk
operate as a bunch of individuals, with little sense of teamwork. It seems as though
the differences in culture are preventing the group from getting closer. As a result, the
atmosphere at the front desk is cool and functional, rather than warm and friendly.
In addition, Michelle must contend with a number of employee problems if the
department is going to function properly. For example, Maria, who originally comes
from Spain, is excellent with customers but often comes to work late. Even when
confronted by past supervisors about her lateness, Maria failed to see this as a real
problem. Bjorn is a Norwegian hospitality student working part time is the hotel.
Although Bjorn is always on time and works very efficiently, his demeanour with the
customers is lacking. Oftentimes, guests and co-workers perceive him as being aloof
or standoffish. Bjorn rarely smiles at guests. Finally, Peng from Hong Kong is very
diligent about his work and gives 100 percent to any task he is given. Unfortunately,
Peng has some difficulty speaking English and has little confidence in his speaking
ability. As a result, he tends to rush through interactions with guests and limits his
conversations, saying only what he must to complete the task.
Questions:
If you were in Michelle’s place as the new front desk manager, what methods would
you use to answer the following?
a. How will you address each of the work-related problems and motivate Maria,
Bjorn, and Peng?
b. How will you facilitate a greater understanding of differences in national culture
among the team members at the front desk?
c. Decide on how to build a sense of teamwork with multicultural group.
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