Award Date

Spring 2011

Degree Type

Professional Paper

Degree Name

Master of Science in Hotel Administration

Department

Hotel Administration

First Committee Member

Robert Woods, Chair

Number of Pages

31

Abstract

Statement of Objective:

This paper will not try to solve a specific problem, but will serve to provide a more exploratory look at how employee empowerment impacts on front desk operations. First, this paper will examine the existing empowerment practices used in hotels and how it works in the real business world. Secondly, the paper will discuss the impacts of empowerment in terms of increased productivity, employee retention (satisfaction), and service recovery.

Justification:

Examples of empowering employees can easily be viewed at hotel front desks in the hospitality industry since the front desk is the first and last contact of a guests’ stay at a hotel. It is especially critical in the case of Mega-resort properties such as the Venetian/Palazzo and Wynn/Encore in Las Vegas that front desk services must be efficient and fast paced since they have almost 7000rooms and almost always have long lines waiting for front desk services. If front desk agents were to need to see a manager for every guest complaint or problem, entire procedures would be delayed and guests would have a very negative view of front desk operations and services. Indeed, employee empowerment is a well- known tool for retaining employees, boosting operation productivity and recovering customer services. Improper use of empowerment can also impact negatively on such things as employees’ poor decision making and management’s fear of giving up control. However, employee empowerment has more positive impacts on the front desk operations and this paper will suggest how to overcome those negative aspects by showing the best practices used in hotel operations.

Keywords

Consumer satisfaction; Customer services; Employee empowerment; Hotel front desk personnel; Hotels; Resorts

Disciplines

Gaming and Casino Operations Management | Hospitality Administration and Management | Human Resources Management

File Format

pdf

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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