Assignment of Management Strategies in Hospitality organisation

Subject :- APDS in Hospitality Management

Unit & Level:- H03 & BTEC Level 7
Made by :- Md.Habibur Rahman
Student ID:- 00207541
Session:- Sept.' 2009

Submitted to - Mr. Francis Offeh

Study on

“Al Maha Desert Resort and Spa”

- By “Emirates Hotels and Resorts”

 Index:

Table of Contents Page no.

1. Introduction 02

2. 03

3. 04

4. 05

5. Company Overview 087

6. 11

7. 12

8. 12

7. Objectives and Marketing strategy analysis 13

8. Findings and Strategy Formulation 15

10. Conclusion 18

11. References 18
Abstract
Hospitality is the single biggest service sector in the world.
80% of the service business industries are directly or indirectly depends on the
sector where a huge labour turnover is essential for it’s every days work and
activity.
Such a massive business sector; to continue and run a good hospitality business, it
is essential to consider different issues, factors and strategy involved in it which a
manager or business interpreter should always follow.
In this assignment my chosen hospitality organization is Al Maha Resort and Spa by
Emirates Hotels and Resorts which has Leisure, hotels and flight catering service in
Dubai, Australia, Seychelles and some other part of the world

Methodology:
Even though most of the data provided here based on secondary sources, I have
collected and used some of the primary data by personal visit to the company and
the hotel-resort (in between the year 2000-2009).
To identify strategy, financial reports and the key cultural forces; I had to use some
of the Journals and publications of the company and The Emirates group and it’s
hotel & resorts’ website, books and Magazines. ;

Introduction

Hospitality derives from the Latin word hospes>hostis, which originally meant to
have power.
The meaning of "host" can be literally read as "lord of strangers." hostire means
equalize or compensate.
Therefore, Hospitality is the relationship between a guest and a host, or the act or
practice or providing care and kindness for the reception and entertainment of
guests, visitors, or strangers, with liberality and goodwill.
According to the “dictionary.reference.com” Hospitality (noun) is the friendly
reception and treatment of guests or strangers. Or, it could be the quality or
disposition of receiving and treating guests and strangers in a warm, friendly,
generous way.

Hospitality Organisation :
Those companies who offer, provide, and directly deal hospitality services to the
guests are known as hospitality organizations. For example hotel, restaurant, bed
and breakfast, café, on-licensed outlet, clubs & pubs, contract/ travel caterer,
leisure/reception outlets, educational establishment, in-store catering, fast food
outlets etc

Task 1
Hospitality trends and Strategic issues

Hospitality trend
As we know that hospitality is one of biggest service sector in the world and there
are so many hospitality business in different size and nature. Certainly, it is a very
competitive market where a lot of regular and emerging trends are seen for good
businesses. Some of the trends mentioned here as below;

Environmental trends:- Some of the Hospitality companies trying to save electricity

i.e. McDonalds is generating electricity by using it’s waste which is a very
remarkable environmental trend for the time.
Many hospitality organizations are also recycling waste in complying with the
environmental groups. Most of the hospitality companies are trying to keep green
and healthy environment by plantation, gardening etc.
Al Maha Resort is a sanctuary resort which promotes country’s natural beauty.

Labour market trends- There are many trends in the recent hospitality labour
market like qualified staff recruitment, existing staff training, low cost labour hiring
etc. Some other hospitality companies applied cost cut policies by job specification
like Temporary, Seasonal and Permanent job and staff etc. Many hospitality
organizations are also collecting goods from countryside or direct from the producer
or producing themselves to compete with other competitors.
Al Maha Resort does a Niche marketing policy where expert labourers are chosen
from the market by following Emirates group recruitment policy.

Social Trends: Al Maha always provides Arabian hospitality and participate different
Arabian social activities i.e. waste collection from the desert, presenting Arabian
Bedouin culture, preserving Arabian birds and animals etc.
Some of the recent social trends are;
• Comply and co-ordination with local social activities,
 • Social, Cultural and religious factors considerations.
• Introducing service by good looking women to attract more customers etc.
Customer demand lifestyle:- Al Maha resort carefully maintains modern lifestyle
demands like healthy and hygienic food (green and organic food) and services at
it’s all service level and it has the sauna, gym and swimming pools for the guests
demand.

Demographics – To establish a hospitality organization, many companies justify

regional population, age and income groups, geographical location, natural
beauty, resources etc in a specific region/area. Al Maha Desert Resort &
Spa set within 225 square kilometre of protected desert reserve in Dubai,
UAE, the exclusive and remote Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa is the region's
first conservation-based resort, utterly mesmerising, totally unique
hospitable holiday place.

Global trend- People visit different places in the world for many reasons. For
example business, meeting, holiday and leisure, gambling, sex etc.
The Emirates group has globally established its hotels and resorts in some tourist
favourite places i.e. Australia, Dubai, Seychelles the Caribbean Island etc especially
aimed to focus sanctuary of the country. Al Maha resort, Dubai and spa is one of
them.
Management trends and impacts. Usually, Al Maha has a very good-qualified
management system inside and outside the co. The management departments are
directed by excellent leadership, HR policy, finance, account, Media and some other
departments.
According to The Travel Daily News on Monday March 29, 2010, Benchmark
Hospitality International, the leading privately held hospitality management
company in the United States, which operates 30 award-winning hotels, resorts, and
conference centres nationwide, announces its annual "Top Ten Meeting Trends" as
observed by its properties in 2010.

Trend #1 - Cautiously Optimistic regular management strategy review meeting

Trend #2 - Risk cancellation and other penalties consideration,
Trend #3 - Extreme Price Sensitivity for Hotels with Aggressive Package Pricing.
Trend #4 - Budget review and social function contents
Trend #5 - Being Green as Federal & State Government and Education business
requirement.
Trend #6 –Development Plan for service facility like Teambuilding, the Spa and the
Golf Course
Trend #7 –Interrnet technology Maximizing
Trend #8 - Price negotiate
Trend #9 - Health-conscious Food & Beverage Options Scrutinized. Buffets for All
Trend #10-Isolation with Social Media and the Meetings Industry i.e. Twitter, Linked
In, Trip Advisor and
Face book Friends.
Analytical trends– Now-a –days, leading hospitality companies sensitively
consider GDP & GNP, disposable income, population, their age group, educational,
social status etc of the country for their business purpose as these factors are linked
with the business.
Technological and Techniques trends: Most of the hospitality providers are now
connected with social networking systems like Twitter, face book, internet, hi-tech
facilities etc especially for advertisement. Magazine, News article, leaflets are some
of the usual techniques etc.
Lot of the hospitality companies facilitate new technology like Sauna, messaging
therapy, swimming pools, gym, Internet access, kids corner which creates a
marginal competitive edge form others.
The Microsoft (www.microsoft.com/hospitalitytrends) has recognized 5 hottest
hospitality tech trends are as bellows;
1. No more "20 questions" at check-in
2. TVs that deliver music, movies—and much more
3. Find yourself (and pay for lunch)
4. Back-office systems that are actually on speaking terms
5. Self-healing hotel technology
Long term overview:- According to the long term business policy big hospitality
companies always try to provide better service in a very competitive price to
achieve customer satisfaction and goodwill, to hold market share and position. It is
not enough only to hire a salesperson and say: "Get out there and sell" these days.
In each particular hospitality business, we need to work to do a better job
communicating, developing, training, motivating, planning, organizing, directing
and controlling. This applies to both people and process which is a holistic approach
of the business.
Holistic approach

Holistic means dealing with or treating the whole of something or someone and not
just a part (like Healthy eating in the school environment) is a holistic approach
(www.dictionary.reference.com)

The holistic approach provides a comprehensive and integrated approach according

to the principal of holism in terms of to the study of tourism. The basic tenets for
holistic approach include all key characteristics of tourism: movement of persons,
transportation, stay and activities at destination. Determinants of demand and
supply and the associated underpinning factors should be taken into account. A
holistic approach involves all elements of tourism, whether regarded as an industry
or an academic field of investigation.( www.hotelmule.com )
Assess and evaluate solutions : This is kind of issues where hospitality business
managers need to assess, evaluate and review their existing strategy whether it is
running in proper direction with the aim of the business; so to recognize mistake or
failure early and can introduce an appropriate solutions.
Leadership
Leadership is not a person or position, is the art to of influencing and directing
people in such a way that will win their obedience, confidence, respect and loyal
cooperation in achieving common objectives. It is an organizational role involves to
establishing a clear vision, sharing (communicating) the vision with others,
providing the information, knowledge, and methods to realize that vision,
coordinating and balancing the conflicting interests of all members or stakeholders.
Out of many leadership models, famous leadership models are Ohio Model, Stogdill,
R.M. (1974) Model, Fielder’s Contingency Model etc.
John Adair, of University of Surrey & Sandhurst, described three levels of leadership
 Team

Strategy

Operation

Diagram : John Adair’s Leadership levels

• Team leadership (control of a single team)

• Operational leadership (control of a number of teams which make up a
complete operation)
• Strategic Leadership (control of the entire business/ organisation)

Leadership is required at all levels of an organisation, and teamwork is required to

bind the teams together. (Leadership: Theory and Practice by Peter G. Northouse, ; Ethics, the
heart of leadership by Joanne B. Ciulla)
Some others leadership in hospitality are;
Autocratic Leadership: Autocratic leader have the authority to make decisions
alone. There is close supervision by the leader. But the leadership styles has
negative impact as well i.e. creative employees and team players cannot make
decision unless authorize by autocratic leader where it leads to de-motivation,
alienation of staffs in their workplace.
Democratic Leadership: This kind of leadership encourages decision making from
different perspectives through listening team’s ideas, studied them and consultant
with others. Employees and workers get motivation and involvement because of
sharing their ideas with the leadership to make any decision.
Laissez-Faire Leadership: Laissez-Faire means ‘let do’ where leaders don’t need
to give continuous feedback or supervision as the employees are highly
experienced and need little supervision to obtain the expected outcome.
Paternalistic Leadership: This type of Leader acts as a ‘father figure’.
Paternalistic leadership is an approach based on intentionally or unintentionally.
Most of the leaders sometimes act in paternalistic ways, and make decisions on
behalf of followers that work out well, and it's also a reality that leaders sometimes
are in a position that allows them to have information and expertise that others in
he organization may lack.
Delegation
“Delegation is a person or group of persons officially elected or appointed to
represent another or others.”(www.thefreedictionary.com/delegation)
Delegation (or deputation) is the assignment of authority and responsibility to
another person (normally from a manager to a subordinate) to carry out specific
activities. However the person who delegated the work remains accountable for the
outcome of the delegated work. Delegation empowers a subordinate to make
decisions, i.e. it is a shift of decision-making authority from one organizational level
to a lower one..
According to John Adair model in Al Maha the Team and Operational leadership style
are playing more role than strategic leadership where the group is mainly doing this
job. It has a democratic leadership where staffs skills are recognized, promoted and
awarded by the co. There is a good combination of all other leadership in Emirates
Group i.e. Autocratic, Laissez-Faire etc. For marketing purpose the group regularly
send its’ delegation to all over the world where it has corporate offices.
Time management means to manage time by a range of skills, tools, and
techniques when accomplishing specific tasks, projects or goals. This includes a
wide range of activities i.e. planning, allocating, setting goals, delegation, analysis
of time spent, monitoring, organizing, scheduling, and prioritizing in the hospitality.
Initially time management in hospitality referred to business or work activities, as
well as personal activities.

Project management in hospitality is the discipline of planning, organizing, and

managing resources to bring about the successful completion of specific project
goals and objectives. It is sometimes conflated with program management, group
related and interdependent projects.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/projectmanagement)

The future Project by Emirates Hotels and Resorts is Cap Ternay Resort & Spa
Located in Seychelles which is schedule to open by 2012.

Key Performance Indicator (KPI) or performance indicator is a measure of

performances which is commonly used to help an organization define and evaluate
how successful it is, typically in terms of making progress towards its long-term
organizational goals. KPIs may be monitored using Business Intelligence techniques
to assess the present state of the business and to assist in prescribing a course of
action. KPIs are frequently used to "value" difficult to measure activities such as the
benefits of leadership development, engagement, service, and satisfaction as well
as global and personal relation improvement, motivation, salary/ bonus, increments,
education and maternity services for family, medical services, house/
accommodation, schools, canteen, transportation service etc. KPIs are typically tied
to an organization's strategy using concepts or techniques such as the Balanced
Scorecard.

{Key Performance Indicator (KPI), www.bestpracticeforum.org/key-performance-

indicators.aspx}

Benchmark Index is a health check that highlights a business's strengths and

indicates weaknesses. Undertaken on a regular basis, it provides key information,
enabling a business to monitor how it is developing. The Index is based on the
national scheme which has been adapted to the tourism, hospitality and leisure
industry. These measurements - called Key Performance Indicators - enable
businesses to compare their performance in ten key sectors
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS DATA DESCRIPTION
Profitability Pre-tax profit / total sales revenue
Investment Pre-tax profit / total assets
Labour productivity - Measure A Total sales revenue : total wage cost
Labour productivity - Measure B Total wage cost / total sales revenue
Innovation Capital spend / total assets
Revenue development Revenue from new markets / total sales revenue
Value added Pre-tax profit / total wage cost
Supplier performance Value of reject deliveries from suppliers / purchases
Staff turnover Total leavers during year / number of employees
Complaints Value of refunds / total sales revenue
Energy consumption Energy costs / total sales revenue
With the above information some times we may need additional information to measure KPI of our Hospitality
organization - namely

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS DATA DESCRIPTION

Average number of visitors per
day
Average spend per day
Average spend per visitor
Total number of visitors / Numbers of days open in year
Total sales revenue / Number of days open in year
Total sales revenue / Total number of visitors

Al Maha Resorts and Spa

The deep tapestry in Ancient and Modern life in Arabia

Company Overview
Name : Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa (by Emirates
Group)
Established : Year 1999
Type : Sanctuary Resort (Hospitality)
Total accommodation : 42- luxurious suite
Business Location : Dubai, UAE
Group Chairman and Chief Executive: Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al Maktoum
Vice President Emirates Hotels & Resorts :Tony Williams
)
Other main Group Member : Emirates Airlines, DNATA Travel, Emirates in
flight catering, Arabian
Adventure (Leisure), Emirates Leisure Retail (ELR), 7he
Sevens(Sports & Club Facilities) and a total of 50 business
sectors.
Employee : : About 140 (Group staff 48000 plus)
Investment in Resort property : Over Dhs. 10 million
Group turn over :
Awards : Al Maha Resort & Spa has been acclaimed 11 international awards since
1999. This praise has not only been in acknowledgement of facilities and dedication
to standards of service, but also in recognition of leadership position in architecture,
sustainable design, and contributions to the preservation of regional heritage and of
course the enormous contributions to conservation.
Vision : Al Maha resorts is a sanctuary resort by Emirates hotels and Resorts, an
ambitious concept, where unrivalled exclusivity in service and luxury is combined
with unique and truly breathtaking locations.
Emirates Hotels & Resorts believes there is delicate balance to be made between
growth and preservation. Protecting country’s natural environment is without
question essential, and is central to the vision of Emirates Hotels & Resorts
worldwide. Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa, located within the Dubai Desert
Conservation Reserve(DDCR) is testament to this.
The Co. vision is to continue building on reputation as the provider of the most
unique and rewarding experiences available for today's sophisticated world
traveller. Emirates Hotels & Resorts looks forward to welcoming guests where
luxury meets location.
Mission :
Al Maha hotel and resort by Emirates Hotels and resorts has a clear and specific
mission to preserve and focus on the natural beauty of the country or a place where
holiday lovers will enjoy tranquilly environment, full relaxation of the body and mind
by excellent service from coming out of the busy-robotic city life.
Strategic issues
Strategy refers to a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. (Oxford
English Dictionary -2nd Edition.)
And Issue a subject or problem which people are thinking and talking about
(Cambridge English Dictionary ,3rd Edition)

Strategic issues are the Issues different than common strategic issue which
considered by a good hospitality business Manager to get a better result. Some of
the main issues are ;
Operations: Al Maha Dubai has started it’s operation in 1999 and through its’
excellence management the resort has bought its’ service to a international
standard within this short period of time. Even though the operations are conducted
by the resort management body but The Emirates group always supervise it
carefully.
Outbound Logistics: The company has a separate media centre by which it
does marketing advertisements all over the world. The group franchisee Emirates
Airlines, Emirates Holidays sometimes offers good packages for the Resort guests
on stay as well as their baggage allowances.
 Two (2) most common Marketing & Sales techniques are;
1. Mapping out sales plan and preparing and revising sales forecast. aligning
expense budget with forecast and sales plan (Know company’s competition and
direct competitors, research and qualify multiple price policy, Sell aggressively) and
2. Practical approaches to opportunities in the market(choosing the easy deals
or sales, make high-quality business contacts and make them work for the
company, Set realistic growth plans).
(Effective Sales Management: Short And Long-Term Planning, Forecasting, And Expense Budgeting
(part 1 Of 2) By John J Hogan www.hospitalitynet.org/news/longtermoverviewofhospitality)
Environmental Issues
In their book The Management of Hotel Operation (pg-6) Peter Jones and Andrew
Lockwood identified some of the major environmental forces which has an indirect
impact on the Hotel organizations are as follows;
The Legal environments continue to become more and more complex like VAT
regulations.
The Market factors depend with some of the specific factors in the hotel industry
environment –namely relation between provider and consumer, market conditions
and level of industry concentration.
Regarding to the Financial environment the main financial matters may affect
business objectives or investment decision i.e. Interest rates, Exchange rates,
Taxations etc.
The Political relation is closely related with economic and Legal matters.
Technology has made a considerable impact in the recent years and will continue
to do so with the increase use of computer and IT facility controlled equipment.
Socio cultural aspect are primarily related with the consumer and changing their
attitude, life style as well as work forces.

The Hotel
Business
Model : The Influence of Stake Holders and external
nvironment
Bob Brotherton analysis PEST in his book “The International Hospitality Industry :
Structure, characteristics and issues”

General Variable Local/ International International Markets

Envi general Population
orn Level
men
t
Political Provision of Legislation toward Legislation effective on
stable tourism provision and operation
Political movements/trips of Hospitality; safe
environm Attitude and environment, currency
ent Legislation towards exchange, restrictions,
foreign travel travel visa / entry
requirements. Attitudes
and policies to foreign
investments. Attitudes
and Legislation relates
national and
international transport
operators.
Economic Level and Propensity to take trips Economic attractiveness of
al types of away for home : destination for leisure
economic business or leisure and business purpose
develop amount of income i.e. relative cost levels,
ment. devoted to including cost of travel.
Distributi consumption in
on of leisure tourism or
income hospitality.
Social Social Propensity to travel Appeal of national hotels and
customs home of abroad international markets
and Accommodation attracted
habits preference when
travelling
Technolo Transport Public transport Available of international
gical facilities infrastructures, transport facilities
and Level of Car (Airports, Seaports etc.)
services ownership

PESTEL analysis on Al Maha Resort and Spa

Political
Al Maha resort and spa is geographically located in Middle of the gulf where the
social and religious issues quite relaxed by the Govt comparative to other gulf
countries. It has a very stable government without any political crisis. As a result it
became the perfect place for tourist, visitors and business event organizers to visit
stay and organize events. Dubai Hotels are classed as ‘business’ or ‘leisure’ hotels
and there are almost two separate markets for ‘luxury’ and ‘budget’ hotels. Al Maha
resort is in Luxury category.
Environmental and Social
Al Maha Resort and Spa aim to respect the environment and always strive to offset
any costs to it in the most efficient ways it can. From the very beginning, Al Maha
has been instrumental in creating the conservation reserve within which it is set
and continue dedication to that cause on an ongoing basis, with a proportion co
profits going directly to the DDCR (Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve).

It has the largest valuable underground water reservoir within the resort is saved,
with the help of an associated Emirates company, Linen craft. Based in Dubai they
collect and process 80 percent of the resort laundry requirements, using modern
energy-saving equipment, and water-light laundry processes.
Product suppliers provide its requirements free of all unnecessary packaging. Both
mechanical and kitchen oils as, well as organic wastes, are gathered and disposed
of daily by recycling contractors. Moreover, all glass, plastics and cans are recycled,
as well as paper and packaging materials.

The Company sponsor a member of staff solely dedicated to our recycling efforts,
and they coordinate all its requirements with researched, certified, and contracted
specialists.

To be noted is that year-on-year (2009 to 2009) Emirates has been able to reduce
its water and electricity in staff homes by over 15%.

Technological: Al Maha resort and spa, Dubai using latest technology like: Front
office department using Opera and Agents are using Galileo software, Room service
department and all restaurants using for food selling by Infrasys Software, Service
express outlet using opera software, Security department using modern Technology
like CC camera, Smoke detector, metal detector, explosion detector etc

Economical/ Financial: Al Maha has a separate Finance and Accounting department

who is responsible for all financial matters. Basically, the department works in
association with emirates Group which having a very good-sound economical
condition.( Group turnover US$ 12 billion Appx.)

Legal
Al Maha Resort and Spa has registered with the Licensing Agency in according to
the legislation of the country in 1999 and all other Emirates hotels worldwide are
also maintain the same govt. legislation of the place. In the hotel, the restaurants
with bar has the permission to extend opening hours up to late night from the govt.
to meet the customer demand of the resort.

A ban on smoking in all enclosed public places came into force all over UAE in 2008.
Al Maha has separate smoking and non smoking rooms.The recent outbreak of the
Swine Flue [ H1N1 virus] would have been provided for the free check-up of the
incoming guests.

Competitor & Collaborator: Dubai is a huge competitive hospitality market where

lot of other hotels and resorts brand working in parallel with Al Maha resorts. It is a
member of “The Leading small hotels of the world” , Leading SPAS and Emirates
Hotels and Resorts.

Procurement: Al Maha develops partner like relationship with its suppliers. It give
specification suppliers for their required raw materials and suppliers are dedicated
to supply those. These relationships ensure cost minimizations and quality.

Fraud management and control –Al Maha have implemented technology and
security features to safeguard the privacy of customer personal information. It
accepts major credit and debit cards, changes different currency and it has the Fake
notes & card tracking modern technology. The whole common areas in the resort
are monitored by surveillance camera and security of the resort is excellent.
HR and management Issues : Al Maha has a separate department for HR and
recruitment which recruits highly qualified staff and train them regularly.
Especially the recruitment is done by the Group’s conducted selection procedure.
Staffs are chosen from the local and international labour market advertising through
the company website as well as newspaper publication. The company does specific
agreement of its terms and conditions while new staff recruitment.

The Group is very sincere about the staffs skill gap and shortage and the
responsible department monitor and access staffs regularly for training. The resort
pays good salary and competitive benefits to all of it’s staffs and the wages paid
through banks and in a monthly basis.

Jorg Schaffler, The senior guide says “Each field guide undergoes intensive training-
the learning of environment, the ecology, wildlife and Bedouin lore followed by a
period of skills training, including health and safety practises, first aids off-road
driving and guest relations practises.”

Al Maha Services and activities

Al Maha resort and spa always dedicates a luxurious posh service where
satisfaction is guaranteed. The unique Arabian hospitality and service with luxury is
a real value for money. VIP welcome, room equipments for business travellers,
Business service on call, extended checkout time up to 4:00 pm, Priority for
extended stay, Special cheque cashing privilege, preferential handling of
reservation, wide specious rooms, new furniture, excellent decorations, most
expensive carpets, glassy shining floors, enchanting smell of perfume, 24 hour
service by beautiful hosts, fast and award winning service which could rarely found
other competitive luxuries 5 star hotels or resorts in all over hotel brands. Some of
the resort facilities are ;

• Library(Reading room, Common Internet facility)

• Lounge (Reception, Resort offices, Travel- Tour office, waiting or sitting
arrangements, Concierge, shopping store)
• Media Centre
• Business centres (with all latest IT facilities.)
• Bar
• Majlis (Meeting Room)
• Spa
• Gym and swimming pool

Tour co. in the Lounge offers some out of resort leisure activities according to their
service charges; such as Wildlife drives in desert, Arabian horse riding through the
desert landscape, natural walks in amateur biologists and botanists areas, thrilling
adventure, a four-wheel drive Desert Safari, discover the natural splendour of the
Arabian Desert by camel riding, Get up close and personal with these magnificent
hunting birds Falcons, bailey dances, body arts by Henna, Bar-B-Queue dinner in
dessert, sauna bath, sunbath in the sea shore, city tours etc.

Task 2
Information for decision makers in the organization
Information means groups of Data that represent the qualitative or quantitative
attributes of a variable or set of variables. Raw data refers to a collection
of numbers, characters, images or other outputs from devices that collect
information to convert physical quantities into symbols, that are unprocessed.
Information are 2 types according to the character;
i) Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human
behaviour and the reasons that govern such behaviour. For example Age group,
income group, gender group, quantity etc.
ii) Quantitative is numeric, Quantitative methods can be used to verify, which of
such hypotheses are true
a) Discrete data-i.e., no. of brother, no. of cars parked
b) Continuous data. Height, mass, length
Quantitative data often used in tabular or graphical form.
The main sources of qualitative and quantitative include are official or government
sources and un-official or general business sources. Some other sources i.e. people
within/ outside the organization, internal information systems, publish media,
commissioned research etc.
According to nature data is 2 kinds;
i) Primary data are those collected by the investigator itself initiative. It has no
numerical value e.g. favourite colour/food, place, types of car. Primary data is
collected by in various way i.e., Questionnaire, observation (Participant and non-
participant-ponch1993), direct interview (instructive, structural, in-depth, open
ended, close ended), e-mail, textual survey, focus group etc.
ii) Secondary data is the data collected by someone other than the user.
Secondary data sources i.e.
·Paper-based sources – books, journals, periodicals, abstracts, indexes, directories,
research reports, conference papers, market reports, annual reports, internal
records of organisations, newspapers and magazines etc.
Electronic sources– CD-ROMs, Television, on-line databases, Internet, videos and
broadcasts.
Govt. publications, information centres, Trade associations, Private research
publishers, Stock broking firms, Large company market reports, Local authorities,
Professional bodies, Academic institutions.
Queue square analysis
It is the shortest and easiest way of collecting data. But on the contrary it is
vulnerable, it is not generally represented and information is quite debatable. For
example Suporman’s analysis/ corrective co-efficient of condolence, SPSS-
statistical package for special scientist etc.

Survey- is aimed to collect information so that pattern trend can be identified. It is

a most widely used data collecting method but it’s info could be huge, lengthy
process (takes more time), sometimes it can have inaccuracy.

The impact of IT:

The impact of IT use in hotel and hospitality sector is massive now a days. People
are now more busy with their work and want to be connected with their family,
friends and business all the time. Therefore, Al Maha introduced all modern IT
facility in the resort for the guest so that they can feel as they are living in their own
home.

Decision making in Al Maha resort and spa :

The Management of the resort decide new service policy and monitor and control
it’s implement. If any policy goes wrong, it become unsuccessful and affects
operational performance. All staffs of Al Maha must have knowledge of the co policy
and maintain organizational values, service quality all the time. They should also
know the personal, professional and multi-cultural behaviour and issues of the guest
and must not join any conflict with the guest. All supervisor and Managers should
have problem solving attitude as well.

Task 3
Objectives of Al Maha Resort and Spa
i) A long-term business plan by providing best service in a competitive price
ii) Focus on sanctuary/ natural beauty of the country/place
iii) To gain more goodwill for the business.
iv) To hold major Market shares

Environmental scanning of Al Maha Resort & spa

2) SWOT Analysis
Strengths
 Huge & specious rooms
 Superior service, decoration and
products.
 Situated in the quiet desert place
with no sounds of vehicle, Machinery
or city life.
 A Range Restaurants with different
international cosines.
 Excellent Gym, Swimming pool and
SPA facilities
 Easy access from Australia, Europe or
America continent.
 Excellent infrastructure system of the
country.
 One of the safest, quiet and peaceful
location in the world.
 Westernized facilities and tourism,
leisure and amusement activities.
Opportunities
 To be the market leader in similar
service field.
 Can capitalize the strong brand
image of the Group.
 The location could be a big
advantage in winter time of the
country to pursue business from
diplomatic missions through nature
and eco-tourism.
 Arabian adventures, nature & nights,
featuring food & beverage, Arabian
hospitality could be new experience
and attractive attraction for holiday
lovers.
 Political stability could be the biggest
benefit to grow the hotels and resorts
business.
DIFFERENT MARKETING STRATEGIES
Porter’s five forces Strategy in Al Maha
Weaknesses
 Far from the city and shopping
malls
 Can not accommodate big group
of 200 or more
 Inadequate facilities for larger
events.
 Sand and dust sometimes have
the affect on the resort place.
 Better for a big family like 4-6 or
more
 Summer day time is very hot
outside.
 More dependency on air
conditioning system.
Threats
 Competitors low price offer
 Current economical recession may
continue long and could bring less
customers.
 Out of the city and dwellers life
( branded and non branded) within
the 2 Km vicinity
 Recessional affect could make
huge labour job cut which could
hamper current service quality.
 Sand storm
 Niche marketing may reduce
customer outcome in future.
 If staff demand and expense
ignored by management; service
may go below standard and
gradually, it may loose customer.
 Threats of
New Entrants

Bargaining Rivalry Among Bargaining

Power of Competing Firms in Power of
Suppliers Industry Buyers

Threats of
Substitute
Products

Model : Porter’s Five Forces Model of Competition

i) Threats of New Entrants

Dubai is a very favorite place for tourism and hospitality business. It is highly
competitive market where a lot of hotels and hospitality business doing their
operations. Al Maha always monitor and consider new business entrants threats for
the business in their management policies.

ii) Threats of Substitute Products-

Several times it is found some similar substitutes product by other competitive
company. Al Maha has the policy to make competitive edge of their own products to
retain and attract new customers.

iii) Bargaining power of Suppliers-

Al Maha products are chosen and collected from the competitive market by open
tender quotations from the suppliers. Some of the product who have very less
competitors can hike a high price by the suppliers.

iv) Bargaining power of Buyers

Al Maha has a lot of choice of room and service selection option where customers
can compare and use their bargaining power. The products and services are placed
to guest with quality and competitive price.

v) Rivalry among competitive firms in the industry

Emirates hotels and resorts is a big group of Company where Al Maha and other
hotels in the group have some rivalry competition in their sales and marketing
policy which makes each company become more active.

THE ANSOFF MATRIX

The business writer Igor Ansoff matrix shows how safe or risky various marketing
objectives are and can be used by a business to judge the likelihood of success
while expand its marketing strategy.
 : Ansoff Marketing Model:

According to Ansoff marketing Matrix, generally, in time of existing product

development or new market penetration to an existing market; risks are
comparative lower than to develop an existing product or diversification of a new
product to a new market.

MARKET PENETRATION – This means competing with existing hotel businesses in

the market. The strategy carries the least risk of failure and probably the lowest
level of reward. Marketing expenditure does not have to be high so this is a
strategy that can suit small businesses seeking new market opportunities.

NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT – This is developing new products to add to

existing markets. Namely, Al Maha resort has introduced a Timeless spa which has
the possibility of high rewards. Marketing expenditure will need to be high to
establish the new product. However, it will benefit from carrying an existing brand
or reputation.

ENTERING NEW MARKETS – This is using an existing product to enter a new

market, perhaps finding or suggesting a new use for a product, or repositioning a
product i.e. changing its image or characteristics so that it appeals to a wider
market segment

DIVERSIFICATION – Introduce new products into new markets can be expensive

and dangerous. The risk of entering untried markets can be minimised through
good market research but cannot be eliminated altogether. Al Maha resort is a
luxurious category resort which follows a niche marketing policy of diversification
for more than a decayed.

THE BOSTON MATRIX

If a business was looking to make a decision about a marketing strategy it would
need to know the current strengths and weaknesses of all its products. The Boston
matrix was developed by management consultants in Boston, USA. It is used to plot
the percentage of the market enjoyed by each product in a business’s portfolio
against the type of market that it is in.

High Market Share Low Market Share

High Market Growth Stars Problem children
Low Market Growth Cash cows Dogs

It allows businesses to see:

> Which products are achieving their potential

> Which products may need to be helped with extra advertising or marketing
expenditure

> Which may need to be dropped altogether

Porter’s Generic strategy

Cost Leadership

Focus Differentiation

According to the above mentioned Porter’s generic strategy Al Maha resorts

and spa has a very good focus on Local sanctuary (natural beauty of desert) which
has differentiated them from other competitive resort in UAE hospitality market.
Price may think to be bit higher but in compare to other European, American or
Australian resort, it is reasonable.
Strategy findings and formulation
The location of any business is very important and Al Maha resort has placed in an
excellent location in the desert of Dubai, UAE. Though, it has very skilled and
experienced management who are using some of the good strategy; I like to
recommend few of the time worthy strategy for it’s better business result
depending on the current hospitality business trend.
Planning: No business could run without a good planning. As we know that Al Maha
resort follows a long-term business strategy, it needs to plan well in advance and
apply short term strategy according to seasonality, event or situation, what would it
be if the strategy fail, what would be the alternative plan
Implementation:
To implementation any strategy, there is a financial factors related which Al Maha
managers should carefully consider i.e. how much money needed, how and from
where it will be collected, what would be the return etc.
Logistics- The managers of responsible departments of Al Maha decides it’s inbound
and outbound logistics. But the evaluation of quality and performance of the resort
is discussed quarterly in the board meeting of the Emirates group where the
decision and it’s amendments have been taken.

SMART Strategy
Specific-The aim of the business should be more specific to its’ management, such
as;
• Will it focus on the sanctuary or business profit
• Who will be the targeted customer, is it national or international
• What will be the strategy for low season or new entrants
• Is it cost effective
Measurable-
Is the strategy implementable, how much benefit will it bring, how much money
might it cost or time may it take etc
Achievable-
Unachievable strategy will cost a huge loss of money and time. If Al Maha target a
15% of market turnover for the next year, what steps it need to follow and how it
will achieved should be planed properly.
Realistic-
Whenever any strategy taken by Al Maha management, it must be planed and
implemented in a realistic way.
Time bound- Every strategy of the resort should be limited by a time scale and
evaluated within the specific time. Otherwise the co. could not compete with others
and subsequently loose it’s market.

Other strategies in Al Maha Resort and Spa:

Skywards Member programme

Skywards Mile for every US$1 spent on Airlines fare and during eligible stays on
both room rates (excluding service charges and taxes) and incidentals including
food, beverages, telephone calls and laundry charged to the hotel bill, at
participating hotels and resorts. This includes Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa and
Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa.

Meetings:

All department staff of Al Maha resort and spa must attend these meeting and they
happen at least once a year. In these meeting, they discuss the budget, department
goals, and Co. aims and evaluate achievements. The benefits of the meeting are
that everyone knows what’s going on, improve financial knowledge, discuss the
problems, are being involved in the running of the hotel, and makes them happy.

The supervisory department meeting takes place every month unless certain
departmental of the hotel say they have to have them more recently. It is essential
to understand objectives for next month and so that previous months objectives are
met. The heads of departments and the supervisors agrees objectives of the
department.

Operational Meetings happen every morning Sunday to Thursday at hast past nine
by a supervisor or manager with all departmental staff. This is so everyone is aware
of the day’s events and activities coming up in the week and any dodgy customer
comments. This over views of the weekly events and what is happening. It is
performed with a verbal communication and is very important to run every events
and activity of the resort smoothly.

Reports and Review

Customer comments are reviewed by the Resort Management about the

customers’ fillings and comments towards Al Maha if they were satisfied while
staying in. This information comes to head office, analysed and then tell the staff in
the meeting verbally at how well they are doing. It remarks poor areas of the
service so it can be eliminated.

The weekly bulletin printed and published by the Media department of Emirates
group regarding it’s members activity. Any relevant points that affect the
departmental performance will be discussed at the briefing in verbal
communications. The company information is included on it.
Financial Report published weekly and printed, goes on notice board and is sent
from head office. This shows how the hotel and departments are doing in their
budget. Each month the figures are sent to all staff with a comment from general
manager. IT is used to maintain financial awareness of the staff. It identifies
shortfalls of finances so that immediate action can be taken.

Changes of any product by the head office for rooms, facilities, spa and other part
within the resort are displayed on the notice boards. All staffs need to be aware of it
so they may familiar with it, otherwise staffs could face trouble

to provide proper service.

Personnel Information like moves, leaves, and new staffs are usually printed off
and displayed on notice boards in every month. The flow of information could help
staffs become confident and provide better service.

Productivity, Quality Control

Ten years ago, the history of Emirates and Al Maha marked the beginning and
Emirates' active role in preserving the many examples of wildlife, flora and fauna
that are being threatened by fast-paced industrial development. Al Maha serves it’s
prestigious guests by addressing their needs and set their environment in such a way
that customers always leave with a sense of satisfaction. Resembling an ancient
Bedouin encampment this secluded, internationally-awarded hideaway resort offers
personal and seductive experiences of the region's history and hospitality, in
absolute comfort.

• Review and evaluate of service regularly

• Price review and seasonality consideration
• Quality and performance boosting activity in staffs, workers promotion,
benefit, holidays and salary increase
• Widening marketing and advertisement strategy
• Offering special souvenir, loyalty points, special offer, low discounts,
corporate business deal etc
• Unnecessary expenditure reduction
• Conflict Resolution and Problem Solving:
Conclusion After a thorough analyse of “Al Maha Resort and Spa”, we could draw
this conclude that the company has been doing a satisfactory hospitality business in
the Gulf region. Service Quality and performance management is an important
aspect at Al Maha. All staffs are enjoying democratic environment. However,
Managers are effectively guiding their staffs as well as training them to provide best
service to the guest. The Co. has modern information technology systems and tools
all over. Even though some of the strategic weaknesses are seen that can be
removed by applying appropriate strategy that I have formulated here.

Reference:
1. http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4042741.search?
query=long+term+overview+of+hospitality
2. http://www.scribd.com/doc/6327744/Types-of-Leadership-Styles
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/future_trends/p!eFggma
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TYPE=ANNUALREPORT
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14. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hospitality