THE ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY PERFORMANCE IN NIGERIA (CASE STUDY CONCORD HOTEL OWERRI IMO STATE AND NIKE LAKE RESORT ENUGU STATE)

ABSTRACT

This research is based on the role of human resource management in the hospitality industry with focus on its performance in south eastern Nigeria. The major problem that prompted this research is streamlined into ineffective and inefficient human resource management in the hospitality industry. The objective of the study was to identify the best way of using human  resource  management  in  the  hospitality  industry  to  ensure effective and efficient performance. The research adopted indebt survey method for data collection. Chi-square was used for data analysis. In the cause of the work, the researcher identified that the lapses in the hospitality can be said to have been caused by many factors amongst which are lack of industrial relation, motivational incentives, poor remuneration etc. Conclusively, the researcher based on the findings of the study made recommendations which include establishment of functional human resources management department. Furthermore there is need to employ skillful manager that knows the nitty-gritty of personnel policy should be formulated which will incorporate job security for workers opportunity for growth and development of every work to help to achieve self actualization.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1    BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The subject matter of the research focuses on the roles of human resources management in the hospitality industry performance. Managing human resources in the hospitality industry presents special challenges, including highly diverse employee backgrounds and roles, or ever-present focus on guest services, and organizational structures that often diverge from generic corporate models. Human resource management in the Hospitality Industry provides the definitive guide to successfully employing people in a hospitality organization.

Human Resources Dilemmas faced by Managers in the Hospitality

Industry, include the under listed:

1.      Understanding the needs of a broad employee group, from hourly workers with tip credit eligibility questions to high level accountants ensuring Sar banes-oxley compliance.

2.      How  hospitality  managers  who  must  act  as  one-person  HR department can make effective decision and understand the consequences to themselves, their workers and employers.

3.      Working with Labour Unions in the hospitality industry using the labour-related legislation that affects the industry.

4.      Managing employees in a global hospitality enterprise.

Effective human resource management is pivotal in any business or non-business organization where people are grouped collectively for the purpose of achieving organizational goals and objectives.  It is true that some people adhere to the fact that finance is the life wire of any organization but without human resource, finance cannot combine other factors of production  to achieve the desired goal of the organization. Human resource is so important and should be seen as invaluable assets of a firm as asserts by Agbato (1980:27) that a company‟s most important resource is human resources.  The human resource is the personnel and personnel department who staff the firm with the desired workers or managers.  Their importance cannot be over-emphasized. Any company‟s success,  on  the  final  analysis,  depends  mostly  on  the  quality  of  the people who work for it, that is personnel or human resource.   This, of course, includes workers and managers at all levels in the organization from top to bottom.  It is a common business fact that a financed firm or even the best equipped plant will not function properly or make good profit if its workers and managers are incompetent.

This, then, is the reason why the human resource must be well managed in any type of organizational set up.

It is however, regrettable that although most managers recognize the value of company personnel, only very few of such managers put value  or  high  premium  on  the  firm  or  company‟s human  assets.  To

illustrate this assumption, take an example of a company whose balance sheet lists a typewriter saw as an asset.

Today, as the business world progresses, it is being gradually recognized that the personnel department has a distinct role to play. Its traditional functions include recruitment of new employees, training, development and appraisal of employees, motivation, industrial relations (Labour Union, organization, Collective bargaining, development in labour relations), services and advisory relationship.

The hospitality industry cannot succeed without organizational performance of her human resources.  It is truism according   to Efuk (1993:243) organization effectiveness, the capacity of an organization to adopt,  maintain  itself,  survive,  and  grow  in  the  face  of  changing conditions, depends to a considerable degree upon how effectively its work-force can be managed and utilized.  This is so because the human resource of an organization which comprises all individuals, regardless of their role and status, who are engaged in any of the organizational activities are its most important and valuable assets.  Industries generally and business organizations in particular have been slow to realize and accept that their personnel are usually more important than machines. This is why the history of Labour Unions is replete with stories of conflict between  management  and  employment.  But  the  growth  of  powerful labour unions and scarcity of qualified personnel have jointly forced management to change their attitude by showing that they are interested

in each employee as an individual and   by developing the spirit of co- operation.

The specialized responsibilities for employee relations are now generally recognized as primary staff function performed by the personnel manager who is the specialist in charge of the personnel department.

Lack of effective management of human resources is a constraint facing Nigeria as a developing country. The limitation is not only restricted to  one  sector  of  the  economy,  the  hospitality  industry  as  a  service oriented business suffer more in terms of the adverse effect. The cumulative effect and evidential impact could be cited for low service delivery and the dearth of excellent services in the hospitality industry. According to Onwuchekwa (1995:7) personnel management has become very important in the achievement of the objectives of any business organization. It  helps the  business  firm to  maintain an effective work force.  The  personnel  manager  understands  the  expectations  of  the workers and society in human resources development.  So, through the activities of personnel management, the organization, the individual, and society can satisfy their objectives.

The role of personnel management has significantly changed in modern times. At first the dominant role was to satisfy top management in procuring and maintaining a workforce that would be instrumental in organizational productivity. As acknowledge by Flippo, 1985 in Onwuchekwa  (1999:7)  the  manager  understands  the  necessity  for

ascertaining and accommodating the needs of human beings who constitute   the   workforce.   He   or   she   constantly   searches   for   the programme which would support the accomplishments of both organizational and individual objectives.

Nwachukwu (1990:175), observed that human resource of an organization is its most important asset. The success or failure of the enterprise depends on the people who must work there. Failure by an entrepreneur to recognize this, may lead to many unsavory results.

The entrepreneur must recognize that the selection of employees is one of his most important tasks.   The hospitality sector of the Nigerian economy is very wide within the tourism industry. As asserted by Okoli (2001:1`2) on the component of tourism drawing from the experience of Thomas and Thomas (1992:14), identified the most important tourism product  as  transport,  stay  and  attraction.  Included  in  the  modes  of transport are land, water and air while attraction component of tourism involves climate, nature, shopping facilities and leisure. Examples of tourism attraction facilities in Nigeria and elsewhere are the National War Museum,  Umuahia  (Abia  State),  Ogbunike  Cave  (Anambra  State), Yankari National Park (Bauchi), Oguta Lake Hotel and Zoological Garden Nekede (Imo State) and Argungo Fishing Festival (Kebbi State), among others.

On stay as a component, hospitality business takes care of it as the lodging of a tourist in hostels, motels, guest house etc, the food and

beverages served, how they are served, when and the manner constitute tourism attractions. These functions are done by human resources.

Inyanga and Ifegbo (2006:98) supported the view of Okoli that hospitality sector is part of the tourism industry and stresses on the essence of hospitality and tourism. Rest has its own place in life. God created the day for work and night for rest and created official and unofficial hours and also provided for rest. But does man really rest?  How many of us actually take time out to rest and visit places of our interest when we tend to work during leave periods?    Rest is what repairs the body mentally, physically and otherwise. A person gets enough rest is bound  to  be  more  productive  (Agibe,  2006:5).  This  is  where  tourism comes in as a brain box towards the growth of every man on earth. From the words of Bassey (2006:22), tourism markets have the potential to enhance lives in a sustainable framework through providing wealth creation, choice, innovation and competition. The travel and tourism industry contains these four elements that enables it become a dynamic market force for sustainability in the future. It has the capacity to increase exports, bring in capital investment, boost economics (GDP) and create employment.

Following these opportunities of the sectors, the federal, state and local  government  and  some  private  business  entrepreneurs  invested much resource in tourism in Nigeria. The extent to which the benefits realized  as  equated  to  the  investments  made  is  still  another  subject

matter. What is important is that for tourism business to be highly developed and promoted in Nigeria, the sector operators have to be well equipped with component human resources.

1.2    STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The industry is plagued by many challenges that have hindered effectiveness and efficiency.  One of these is inability of management in hospitality business to carry out effective and efficient human resources management. Be it as it may, the hospitality industry requires good reception, courtesy etc.

However, these are lacking due to poor human resource management.  The core of the problems facing hospitality industry can be traced to poor recruitment exercise based on unprofessional procedure of hiring   workers   e.g   recruitment  based   on   god-fatherism,   nepotism, ethnicity, poor remuneration of workers promote high rate of labour turnover.  The  industry  is  therefore  not  attractive  to  highly  qualified workers due to inadequate motivational incentives.

Some of the hotels see no need for training and manpower development despite the fact that most of their workers have low level of education, semi-illiterate and poor skill in hospitality business.

Lack of good industrial relations is something that always transfers aggression from workers to customers.

The general attendant effect of poor human resource management leads to low patronage, low sales, when the sale volume is low there will be decline in sales revenue and consequently this will lead to business failure in the hospitality industry.

1.3    OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The aim of this study is basically to help manager finds out the best way of using human resources management in the hospitality industry for effective and efficient performance in South Eastern Nigeria.

The following specific objectives will also be pursued:

i.    To ascertain modern ways for employment.

ii.     To   investigate   techniques   for   good   training   and   manpower development.

iii.    To examine the method for wages and salary administration. iv.    To identify problems affecting hospitality industry.

v.    To create peaceful steps for industrial relations.

1.4    RESEARCH QUESTION

The basic research questions for the study are enumerated below:

i.     What are the best ways for effective and efficient human resources management in the hospitality industry?

ii.    What are the modern procedures for employment?

iii.     What are the problems affecting human resources management in hospitality industry?

iv.    What   are   the   techniques   for   good   training   and   manpower development?

v.    What are the method for wages and salary administration?

vi.    What are most peaceful steps for industrial relations?

1.5    HYPOTHESES

Ho1     –        Employment functions of personnel management depends on step by step approach

H1        –        Employment functions of personnel management does not depends on step by step approach.

Ho2  –         Training and manpower development contribute to effective human resource management.

H2        –        Training and manpower development does not contribute to effective human resources management.

Ho3:           Effective  wages  and  salaries  administration  can  enhance higher productivity by workers

H3:             Effective   wages   and   salaries   cannot   enhance   higher productivity.

Ho4:           Peaceful  working  atmosphere  depends  on  good  industrial relations.

H4:             Peaceful working atmosphere has no relationships with good industrial relations

Ho5:           Motivation is necessary for effective performance

H5:             Motivation is not necessary for effective performance.

Ho6:           Internal  and  external  forces  are  the  problems  of  human resources management

H6:             Internal and External forces are not the problems of human resources management.

1.6    SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study will be of immense value to stakeholders in the hospitality industry in various ways:

i.     It will provide useful information to the management for decision making in human reosurces management.

ii.    It will reduce inefficiency and promote higher productivity

iii.    The study will provide information on how to recruit skillful personnel iv.    The  entire  workforce  of  the  hotels  will  find  this  study  very illuminating in understanding the organization of human resource

management policy.

v.    The study will help to promote industrial peace and harmony

vi.    The information found in the research work will serve as reference materials for students in higher institutions of learning.

1.7    SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The  scope  of  the  study  is  on  the  role  of  Human  Resources

Management   as   hospitality   industry   performance.   Concorde   Hotel

Limited, Imo State and Nike Resort Limited Abakpa, Enugu State were the unit of analysis.

However, it is mainly a case study finding, could be used for the generalization of human resource management in the hospitality industry performance in the South Eastern Nigeria.

1.8    LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The limitations of the study include inadequate time for the research due to much course work; financial limitation is another problem.

1.9    DEFINITION OF TERMS

Some of the terms used within the context of the study are defined below for purposes of clarity and avoidance of ambiguity.

Board of Inquiry:        Boards of Inquiry are used in cases where both conciliation and arbitration are considered inappropriate and where public interest is involved (Inyang and Akpama 2002:221).

Conciliator:       Is  one  appointed  by  the  Minister  for  Labour  and Productivity or by the State chief Labour Officer to inquire into the causes and circumstances of a dispute between employers and employees (Ituen

1993:45).

Efficiency:     Within the context of the study, efficiency means using minimum input to achieve maximum output.

Hospitality:  Friendly welcome and entertainment of guests or strangers, which usually includes offering them food and drink (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)

Industrial  Arbitration  Panel:     Is the  panel established by law.  IAP handles disputes referred to it by the Minister within (14 days) when such disputes are not resolved of conciliation stage.

Motivation:        Motivation is defined as the willingness or propensity of individuals to act in a certain way Efuk (1995:234)

Performance appraisal:   Performance is the periodic evaluation or measurement of the performance or contribution of the employees within a particular period (unquote)

Personnel Management:    Personnel   management   is   that   part   of management   that   is   concerned   with   the   maintenance   of   human relationship and ensuring the physical well-being of employees so that they give maximum contribution to efficient working” Inyang and Akpama (2002:4).

Voluntary Machinery:     it is process where employers and employees settle dispute by themselves without the involvement of third party.

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