Tourism and Hospitality Management Assignment Sample
INTRODUCTION
Communication is an essential element that assists organizations in maintaining the overall efficiency thereby improving the position and performance. Moreover, it creates a positive environment within the organization that helps in delivering good services to customers as well. In the present report, the discussion concerning the significance of communication in the tourism and hospitality sector has been analyzed. In this context, a discussion on the ways of communication used by InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) has been incorporated reflecting the communication ways of an international hotel chain organization. However, the improvement that the firm has faced in the context of branding, culture and heritage has been discussed along with the potentiality of the company in managing different customers with the use of English language.
CHAPTER 1: Importance of communication in hospitality and tourism sector
In the hospitality and tourism industry, customers are considered to be the most important stakeholder who helps companies to develop and grow themselves thereby maintaining effective communication. As per the words of Alexei’s and Jiang (2019), excellent and transparent communication skill can effectively increase the experience level of the customers thereby making them understand that the companies are valuing their feedback and listening to them. In addition, it can be stated that both non-verbal and verbal communication has been found to play a vital role reflecting the ability to satisfy employees and clients. This denotes that communication drives the overall success of a company within the tourism and hospitality industry thereby connecting with the customers.
On the contrary, Amin and Piranhas (2019) stated that communication within the chosen sector helps in improving the internal culture of an organization as with sound communication system, employees enjoy the benefit of understanding the strategies and purpose of organizations, thereby performing the same way. This, in turn, also improves the ability of the employees in delivering high customer executive service thereby increasing customer loyalty and engagement that increases the strategic performance of the firm along with the corporate position. Therefore, it can be stated that maintaining a suitable communication system is of high importance for companies in the discussed sector.
CHAPTER 2: Role of IHG in communicating with the potential customers with its services
IHG is a UK-based international hospitality company with its headquarters in Denham. The company has been operating for more than 200 years thereby delivering sound services to the customers in the market (Ihgplc, 2022). As emerged from the company’s annual report, the firm has been found to highly work on the communication system that benefits both the customers as well as employees reflecting both the internal and external environment. In this context, it has been observed that the organization has been maintaining regular communication with the employees with the use of constant messaging and phone calls along with virtual team meetings conducted over digital platforms (Ihgplc, 2020). In the Covid-19 pandemic, the use of digital platforms extensively increased reflecting the situation of majority of employees working from home. This has effectively strengthened the communication system within the company that has enabled the company to provide better services to its customers.
Upon further knowledge, it came within the purview that with the development of the mobile application, the company had made it easy for the customers to connect with the company regarding any issues faced. In this regard, the customers have been provided with the benefits of cancelling their bookings, and even pay later after making any bookings (Ihgplc, 2020). It can be said that the introduction of the application has been a major breakthrough of the company that improved the communication system between the organization and the customers.
On the other hand, the company has been also found to use the advantages of big data analytics and implement the same thereby communicating with the customers through emails (Kitchens et al. 2018). In this case, the use of “Cohorts” which is the “household-based segmentation system, by the company has been found (Hospitalitynet.org, 2022). This system has made it possible for the company to understand the choice and preference of the customers and helped them in improving the communication with the potential customers with the help of email messages. The company has been found to incorporate information that matches the criteria of the customers and influences them to connect with the company.
Furthermore, it has been found that the company also provides customers with feedback forms that they can fill thereby reflecting any of their queries or grievances (Ihgplc, 2022). Moreover, the employees of the company are noticed to contact the customers through telephone, email and messages. On the other hand, even for the bookings, the customers are provided with the facility of calling the customer executive service of the organization and book their appointments. Moreover, the website of the company is open for all which the company uses as a communication tool with the customers in the market reflecting the new offers, launches, operations and performance. In this context, it can be stated that with the use of modern technologies and traditional methods, the discussed company has maintained a clear and transparent communication with its potential customers in the market.
Concerning this discussion, it can be stated that the services delivered by the company to its customers have been found to improve the engagement of the customers. Moreover, the online mobile application has helped the company in a significant way in maintaining a proper communication thereby interacting them through the applications developed.
CHAPTER 3: IHG’s role in dealing with customers reflecting the use of English language
IHG or the InterContinental Hotel Group plc is a British multinational corporation currently headquartered at Denham region of Buckinghamshire in England, UK. Therefore, having a total international approach, the company is found to be beneficial from the usage of English as their primary language for further expanding their business across different nationalities. According to the words of Bury and Oka (2017), English language is found to have additional advantage and importance within the travel and tourism industry as the results highlight the majority of respondents asserting the notion of English as an important factor for the hospitality organisations.
On the contrary, words of Rahim (2011) states that tourism and hospitality courses are found to promote the learning and reading of English language as an essential beneficiary competence for future job prospects. Therefore, IHG has also emerged to significantly recruit the employees having an increased communicative competence for emphasising on the usage and importance of English within their business. Furthermore, development, designing and delivering effective and relevant courses of English language are also found to be imperative while preparing and training for future hospitality and tourism professionals (Ruzibayevna et al. 2019). Furthermore, the concerned organisation IHG is also found to incorporate the world’s largest hotel loyalty program through guaranteeing best in class services and customer support through maintaining English as their primary language across 6000 properties over 100 countries (Ihg, 2022a).
Moreover, English learning hospitality and tourism sector students were found to significantly highlight that confidence levels, communicative competence along with English learning and English speaking factors were perceived among the most important factors by the same (Bury and Oka, 2017). Furthermore, focusing on the customer centric services being provided by IHG, they have made the cancellation process through a “worldwide reservations office” that can effectively track and modify or cancel reservations as per the requests of customers (Ihg, 2022b). Therefore, it highlights the importance of the English language across the majority of their business locations across different countries.
In addition to that, the organisation of IHG is also found to provide exclusive “Rewards membership” towards their customers for providing heartfelt care with locally infused designing and added facilities of wine hour for the customers (Ihg, 2022b). Moreover, any kind of issues related to billing, quality or service concerns are found to be significantly dealt over with the usage of English across its locations over the globe.
CHAPTER 4: Improvement in the IHG’s culture, heritage and branding with communication
The organization of IHG hotel and resorts are found to be following an effective method to provide them as a responsible business that continually evolves into efficient operations and focusing on the wider aspects of the society through their cultural competencies and heritage built. The organization was found to be supported by a set of values within their employees that are essential for the customers as well as for IHG. The values and culture depicted by IHG towards their customers are doing the right thing, showing care and affection levels towards their customers and aiming higher for better services (Ihgplc, 2022a). Moreover, the firm’s guiding values are also associated with working together as a culturally diverse team with celebrating the effective differences in the employee level.
The organisation is currently found to be spread across 100 different countries and their colleagues represent the multiple nationalities and differences in religion, culture, race, sexuality, backgrounds or beliefs in sparking innovation among the IHG for succeeding as a global business. According to the words of Bindabel (2020), incorporation of cultural differences within organisations further helps in improving innovation levels among cross-cultural employees through effective communication channels. Therefore, it can be essential in the improvement of innovative ideas and practises to be further implemented by IHG towards their customers. Furthermore, their commitment for providing a “diversity, equity & inclusion” (DE&I) has been found as their major purpose for providing “True Hospitality for Good” (Ihgplc, 2022a). Moreover, it helps the firm to assess their purpose, process of working together and the effective ways of business growth.
In addition to that, their major strategy has emerged to be cultural and perseverance of heritage through scaling expert cross-cultural employees for providing unique and exceptional experience towards their guests and providing essential returns as profitability for the organisation (Ihgplc, 2022b). Their cultural competency levels are found to be associated with retention and further attraction of prospective customers in embracing opportunities towards providing a positive impact on the world. Furthermore, the association of “PATH” or “PanAsian for True Hospitality” can be found to promote and celebrate the cultures and ideas within the IHG for further inclusion and redevelopment of a culturally diverse workforce within the organisation.
Cultural communication refers to the usage of language and other means of communication associated with having adequate commitment levels for particular set communities for the usage of symbolic resources (Lifintsev and Wellbrock, 2019). Furthermore, the usage of both verbal and non-verbal methods is found to be an essential factor for further interpretation of rules and regulations. Primarily, the scope for their communication channels towards their employees is found to be through the usage of internal communication channels and a dedicated website to be followed by all employees of the firm. In addition to that, the company was also found to use cohorts like household based segmentation process in better understanding a valuable customer base through understanding the past purchasing behaviour, demographics or overall channel behaviours. Furthermore, it essentially helps the firm to grow closer towards the customers through understanding their desires, requirements and needs (Ihgplc, 2022b). In addition to that, it shall also help IHG to regain and retain the lifetime valuation of customer growth through communication and promotions.
CONCLUSIONS
The study concludes that maintenance of communication is of high importance for companies especially in the sectors of hospitality and tourism. In this context, it has been found that with effective communication system; the guest experiences are improved that enables a company in improving its strategic position in the market. Concerning IHG, the company has been found to provide services to the customers through emails, phone calls, and mobile applications. This has exceptionally supported the firm in maintaining clear communication with the customers thereupon increasing their engagement and loyalty.
The current study has emerged to incorporate the role of IHG in dealing with their customers via usage of English language. Moreover, the firm’s communication strategy has been incorporated along with the importance of English across the majority of the countries the firm is serviceable in. The effective cross cultural communication has emerged to be followed by the company through a dedicated website with internal communication. Moreover, they are also found to incorporate household based segmentation for understanding the customer valuation levels which is done through external communication.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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Ihgplc, 2020, Annual Report and Form 20-F 2020, Available at https://development.ihg.com/-/media/ihg/annualreports/2020report/pdf/ar-report-2020/ihg_2020ar.pdf [Accessed on 14/02/22]
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