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CHAPTER ONE

1.0                                                   INTRODUCTION 

 

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 

The motivation of employees, whether professional, skilled or unskilled, is a major issue in all service organizations. For the hotel industry, employee motivation is a major issue. It is a challenge for the management of the hotel industry to motivate employees to stay on the job and to offer the efficient and good service which customers expect (Cheng, 1995). One of a human resource manager’s functions is related to ensuring employees’ workplace motivation. Human resource management’s function is to assist the general manager in keeping the employees satisfied with their jobs. If employees are not satisfied, they will not perform to expected tasks. Workplace dissatisfaction and poor performance usually lead to low employee turnover in the hospitality industry, particularly in developed countries. According to a Hotel and Catering Training Company in the United Kingdom, turnover is the United Kingdom was estimated to have cost the hotel and catering industry 430 million pounds a year, and turnover was higher among men than women (Lucas, 1995). The Hong Kong Hotels Association found in its 1994-1995 annual survey that 41.26 percent of the employees in 63 hotels changed jobs or resigned.

Yu (1999) reported that in order to reduce labor turnover and retain productive employees, management has to improve working conditions and keep the employees properly motivated. Human resource managers need to understand the motivational processes and human needs in different cultures.

To understand employees’ needs, managers should understand key theories that help them learn the basic needs of people. Maslow’s theory is one of many theories that pointed out the basic sorts of needs. They are Physiological needs, Security needs, Belongingness needs, Esteem needs, and Self-actualization needs. The lower level needs must be satisfied before the next higher level. Another theory, Hertzberg’s is based on two distinct sets of factors: hygiene factors such as pay, organizations, policies, working environment and motivating factors such as recognition, promotion, achievement and the intrinsic nature of the work.

Moreover, managers can learn what kind of motivation factors should be provided to employees from many research papers. For example, the study of Dr. Kovach during forty years concluded that good wages ranked the first through the fifth of the ten items of motivational factors (Kovach, 1987). The study of seven Caribbean Hotels, Las Vegas Casino Hotels and 278 hotels located in United States and Canada supported Kovach’s research that good pay is the first priority for employees (Charles and Marshall, 1992). However, from the study of 1,245 employees of the Hong Kong hotels concluded that an opportunity for advancement is the first factor but good pay is the third one (Siu, Tsang and Wong, 1997). So, when managers understand employees’ needs and provide the suitable motivational approach, employees will match their goals with the organizations’ goals. As a result, not only employees will get benefits but also the whole organization will be more successful.

Those in Hospitality industry derive their own satisfaction from the nature of their job, car loan, rewards, interaction, training exercise and other benefits they receive from the organization. Motivation has a lot to do on workers emotion, when an individual is not motivated he cannot put in his best. Motivation they say activates human energy. It is a force which leads people to satisfy their important needs. All human behaviour is directed towards a goal. Individual values and goals differ from organizational goals and values. These values help personnel make judgment and decisions on matters affecting them. Personnel in organization have a number of responsibilities. They are responsible to the organization for doing what they are paid to do which is hiring new workers and administering basic resources like pay and benefits and also responsible for meeting their own needs and protecting their own values.

According to Eli Ginzberg (1982) in his human Economy, workers want to earn enough from their work to meet the needs of their families and to enjoy a rising standard of living. Secondly, they want reasonable assurance that if their performance is satisfactory they can look forward to holding their jobs and to the special benefit which will accrue to them by virtue of their long term with the organizations. They want their job to provide the satisfaction that comes from the meaningful activities of the management. Finally, workers expect that those who supervise and direct them will not infringe on their rights as human beings and as citizens.

Furthermore, Koontz et al (1982) define motivation in a general term applying to the entire class of desired needs, wishes and similar force. We can look at motivation as involving a chain reaction on wants or goals sought which gives rise to tension, then causing action towards achieving goals, and finally satisfying wants. We can easily note that many physiological needs are stimulated by environmental factor. The smell of food may make one hungry, a high thermometer reading may make us suddenly feeling hot or the sight of a cold drink may cause an overwhelming thirst, who for example, has not had certain physiological needs accentuated by an attractive

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Udoh E.U. (1999) says that management has a major influence on our perception and needs. The promotion of a colleague may kindle one’s desire for a higher position. A challenging problem may want our desire to accomplish something by solving it. Personnel manager like other categories of workers every where are basically the same. They want more money, training exercise, more motivation accordingly. Even in the Hospitality industry, benefits that management can use in motivating personnel managers include, medical facilities, pension, gratuity plans, vacation leave with pay, and sick benefit with pay, housing subsidy, and transport allowance. If these are the needs and wants of personnel managers everywhere in the Hospitality industry, what type of benefit do managers in the sector provide to satisfy the yearning of their manpower. From the situation of things in the country, we can see that these fringe benefits are being denied to personnel mangers in most hospitality companies in Nigeria. We don‟t need anyone to convince us that productivity of personnel managers in such hospitality companies is one of the lowest in the sector.

However, the basic focus of this study centers on the role of management in motivating personnel managers in the Hospitality industry. Also the study has to look into things that makes recruiting officers in the Hospitality industry feel satisfied in their work as well as the things management in the Hospitality industry have to do to make sure that their personnel derive satisfaction from their work to boost their productivity, using Landmark Hotel Enugu, as a case study.

 

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Due to the high turnover and high absenteeism within the hospitality industry service, managers now realize the importance of employee motivation to retain quality staffing. When employees maintain a high level of motivation, quality services will result.

The purpose of this study was to assess the motivational factors of employees at the Landmark Hotel Enugu. The hotel was known to offer consistent quality services, low turnover and satisfied employees.

The efforts of managers in motivating personnel manager or human resource managers in most of the hospitality institutions does not seem to yield expected result, but managers in these hospitality companies often consider their immediate corporate financial position to the detriment of effective motivation of the personnel workers and the role played by personnel, forces managers always to take consolation on aggregate return rather than individual rate of returns thereby, getting the wrong evaluation and faulty picture of the impact of the role of personnel managers in motivation. This degree of laxity and limitation constitute the problem of this study which necessitates this research.

 

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The objectives of this study are:

1. To determine how managers contributes to the motivation of personnel managers and their satisfaction in the hospitality

sector.

2. To determine the effectiveness of personnel workers in the Hospitality industry
3. To look into some motivation mix, that is, the set of controllable variables that managers in the hospitality companies can use to influence their personnel workers and recommend appropriate motivation mix that will make the staff experience job satisfaction that will enhance performance and quality of service rendered to customers.
4. To determine the effectiveness and impact of motivation on employee’s productivity in the hospitality company.

 

1.4 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This work will be of significant to Land Mark Hotel because motivation of workers is a necessity to improving productivity. Hence, this work reveals motivational strategies that can be adopted by Land Mark Hotel in particular and Hospitality in general for more productivity.

Also, it will be of help to other organizations since motivation of workers is paramount to the success of every organization.

Another benefit of the study is that when there is increase in productivity, government generate more revenue since increase in productivity means increase in taxes.

 

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 

1. Are their any room for personnel management in your hospitality company?
2. Are workers in your hospitality company motivated on their work?
3. Does your hospitality company management have concern on workers‟ job

satisfaction?

4. What are the things management use to motivate personnel managers in your hospitality company?
5. Are there problems arising in your hospitality company concerning workers‟ motivation?
6. Did you think that motivation have an impact on worker’s

productivity in your hospitality company?

7. Does the management respond to the workers problems

positively?