Case Study: The Brighton Hotel Group

Author's note:

In writing this case study, I began with scenario first developed by Peter Critten in an excellent case, "Torquay Hotels" published in S. McGoldrick, Cases in Human Resource Management, Pitman 1996. Brighton Hotels is a substantial elaboration of the original but grateful acknowledgement is due to Peter Critten whose "Torquay Hotels" set me off in a particular direction.

The Brighton Hotel Group (BHG) is a family-owned, seaside hotel chain with three major hotels in Brighton, the Excelsior-Regal in Eastbourne and two large hotels at Gatwick airport. The six hotels in the group offer 700 bedrooms and BHG employs 280 staff 50-60 in each hotel. Directly reporting to the Group Managing Director (MD) and Board are the General Managers (GMs) of the six hotels which run as semi-automonous divisions (profit centres). The Hotels buy-in the services of central support departments which offer maintenance, purchasing, sales, accounts, entertainments and personnel and training services to each hotel. There is a Group Human Resources Manager.BHG's objective is to have 'a full house all year round'. A key strategy for MD (Kelly Sorensen) is to ffer high class accommodation and facilities to 'generate revenue and business all year round, not just in summer '. Facilities in each hotel currently include an outdoor terrace and pool, two bars, a leisure club for guests and members, a conference suite of function rooms and at least two restaurants: one a high class ˆ la carte and table d' h™te service and the other a light meals and snacks restaurant. Eastbourne's Excelsior-Regal has a Scandinavian smorgaasbord (open self-service buffet) as its light meals and snacks restaurant.

The 'all year revenue and service' strategy has worked. There has been a 34% increase in gross profits over the last three years when some hotels on the south coast have declined and competition amongst the best has been fierce. Significant to the strategic improvement has been staff training and development. BHG secured the Investors in People award for its hotels three years ago. It must continue to show that it satisfies the four IIP principles of Commitment, Planning, Action and Evaluation. These have been demonstrated as follows.

  1. The MD and senior management team have reviewed their management approach and style. There is evidence that the senior management approach has changed from BHG being run by just the MD and Finance Director to 'a collective, more consensus, team oriented culture'. Responsibility under the business plan was delegated to each GM whose programme targets and critical success factors cover:

    • Quality and Standards of performance
    • Customer service excellence
    • Marketing and Sales
    • Maintenance and the fabric and ambiance of the hotel
    • Conditions of employment
    • Hygiene, Health and Safety

    The IIP process required attention to how management were involving employees and communicating how they saw where the organisation was going and the contribution employees were making to its success. The senior management team addressed this by cascading the business plan down to the General Managers who, working with their departmental heads, each produced a 'operational plan' for their hotel unit. Departmental Heads then produced their own departmental plans and these were communicated to all departmental staff. In addition, all staff received a copy of the business plan.

  2. Hotel GMs and department managers became locally responsible for designing and implementing all training. Each manager was to be a 'coach' to his or her staff. A Group Training Officer was appointed (reporting to the Group HR Manager) not so much to carry out the training but

    • to be a supporter and training facilitator for the managers of each hotel.
    • to co-ordinate the analysis of training needs
    • to produce a company-wide plan
    • to liaise with hotel and catering colleges about qualification courses
    • to coordinate a group-wide manager development programme for all levels of management.
    • to evaluate training activity and ensure that it was 'followed up' afterwards.

    She also helped to produce common training and learning materials for e.g. hygiene, food service, waiters and waitresses, room servicing, front desk roles and overal hotel quality standards. etc. These were first produced as paper-based manuals. They are now being converted to a Internet/WWW format so that managers and staff can use a browser to access the materials via the group Intranet (computer network).

    Training needs were linked with business objectives:

    • The GMs, as a group devised, and ran a Manager Improvement Programme for Heads of Department. This focused on standards of performance for meeting service quality objectives.
    • All managers were trained to carry out staff performance reviews (staff appraisal). This had substantial impact initially. Each Head of Department worked with his or her staff individually to agree standards of performance relating to service quality. Each member of staff described:

      • their job role and job descriptions have been drawn up
      • his or her key result areas and yardsticks of performance
      • ways in which he or she could improve on what was done

    • The aim was for staff to own the standards defined and these were driven by the perceived impact on the customer and business. Each had the opportunity to identify development needs and discuss these with the manager to be then followed up by action.

  3. A staff handbook was prepared as a guide to the employee benefits. This included the BHG codes of quality service and employee conduct. The Group Human Resources Manager, however, still feels that disciplinary procedures need revision. Several disciplinary problems have occurred recently (see below).

    Each new recruit is given a company and a departmental job induction organised by their Department.

    Approximately thirty programmes of job-related training take place annually. Staff in one hotel attend a relevant course in another hotel. Many courses are generic to BHG as a whole and are developed by managers supported by the Group Training Officer who reports to the Group HR Manager. Several courses are mandatory for all staff. These are run by departmental managers who have themselves received training as on-the-job trainers/coaches and instructors. The aim has been that

    • training becomes as routine as opening the restaurant on time.
    • commitment to training signals to all staff that excellence in performance, competence and learning is valued and necessary.

  4. The MD and the Group HR Manager recognise some inconsistency is occurring when it comes to the staff appraisal system. Junior staff waiters, porters, room cleaning staff etc. are less able and confident when it comes to reviewing performance and defining aspirations and needs. Department Heads find it hard to discuss appraisal matters with junior, seasonal and casual staff. Many are starting to gloss over the staff appraisal process with these staff who are not committed in the long term. Some managers feel that these appraisal discussions were a waste of time a view echoed by some staff on the receiving end.

  5. The senior management team want evidence that the HRM approach is working to support 'business goals and targets' and that training meets objectives and offers value for money. They want to see the culture of excellence, quality and performance in individual and team results across the company. Senior managers recognise that systems, whilst in place, are only partial in their success. Departmental managers were beginning to feel the strain of too many courses, the constant talk of training, training and training and pressure to evaluate performance by form filling and writing reports.

  6. Full employment along the coast means that there are staff shortages at junior and middle levels. It is more and more difficult to get and keep good seasonal and casual staff. Some hotels were having to accept applicants who, 18 months ago, would not have been employed because their experience and competencies did not match the full job requirements. The Group Human Resources Manager feels that an improved approach to flexible working, flexible rewards and contracts of employment is needed.

    Several department manager vacancies are outstanding. Leavers are going for jobs in other hotel chains offering career advancement not available internally. A particular job the Food and Beverage Manager - at the Excelsior-Regal in Eastbourne has been vacant for five months. One set of candidates has been seen but all were rejected. The Group Human Resources Manager felt that the Excelsior-Regals General Manager and those colleagues participating in the selection process were confused and uncertain about the job role and qualities they wanted in a replacement. The Group HR Manager has worked with the Excelsior GM to draw up a new job description (Appendix 1). The Excelsior-Regals GM will be away in the USA for the next three months and will not be able to attend the interviews. She has however sent the Group Human Resources Manager a list of questions (Appendix 2) which, she feels, interview panel members should ask all candidates.

  7. On disciplinary matters, several cases have convinced the Group HR Manager that there is a need to review disciplinary arrangements and boost the skills of managers in handling such problems.

    The first case concerned an assistant cook at the Provencal Hotel, Brighton. A kitchen porter with 8 years service and a reputation as a sky-larker (practical joking) was fooling about in the kitchen. He bumped into the assistant cook who fell with a pan of borsch (Russian soup). The cook suffered burns to legs and arms and was off sick for many weeks. This resulted in an official Health and Safety report which criticised the Head Chef for permitting such behaviour and not properly exercising supervisory control. After long discussion between BHG insurers and her solicitors, the assistant cook received £8000 personal injury compensation.

    The kitchen porter had resigned but the Provencals General Manager dismissed the Head Chef who then made a claim to an Employment Tribunal for unfair dismissal. The Group HR Manager recommended that an out-of-court settlement because there was no record of staff appraisal feedback or prior disciplinary warning to the Head Chef about his supervisory control in the kitchen. The out-of-court settlement was for £15,000.

    The second case relates to Bharat Jain - whose job involved giving IT support for PCs and network servicing to the Brighton city hotels. His work was of good standard. A few weeks ago, Bharat took one of the Front Desk Managers into his confidence, saying that he found it easy to hack into the BHGs accounting and wages system getting salary information from both work and from home. The manager was unsure whether this was just fantasy talk but he contacted to the Group Training Officer (a friend). They thought that if challenged, Bharat would say I was just joking. Soon after, the Front Desk Manager was talking to a guest, when the Hotel Excelsiors General Manager passed through the Front Hall. Bharat then attracted the Front Desk Managers attention and said

    You know what I was saying, well he's being paid a fortune!

    The Front Desk Manager and Training Officer then met with the Group HR Manager and the IT Manager (Bharats boss). It was felt that Bharats claim needed to be taken seriously even though evidence was lacking. They informed the Finance Director (the IT managers boss) who thought that salary data could have been leaked by someone from the finance section rather than Bharat hacking with intent. He agreed that if the information had been hacked the priority was to plug the hole in the system. He was keen that Bharat should be given an official disciplinary warning about his behaviour. The Group HR Manager felt that this was too precipitate. It was agreed that the Finance Director and IT Manager should talk to Bharat, to advise him of the serious view being taken of his claims and ask him to show how the information had been accessed or obtain reassurance that it had not.

    At the Finance Director and IT Managers meeting with Bharat, he denied his claim saying it was just banter to gain attention. He complained about being harshly accused. For the next month he was off sick absence backed by a medical certificate stating work-related stress. He then resigned and made an application to an employment tribunal saying that he had been forced to resign due to the humiliating and bullying accusations of the Finance Director. The Group IT Managers IT system security review could not establish that Bharat had hacked into the system.

Brighton Torquay Hotels Group

Appendix 1:
Job Description: Food & Beverage Manager, Excelsior-Regal Hotel: Eastbourne

Appendix 2
The Excelsior General Manager's List of questions
for the Food, Beverage and Banqueting Manager Selection Panel

© Chris Jarvis, 21 May 2001