Partners in productivity?
Tourism Business Magazine
March 2007
A recent study on the accommodation sector says that while most employers feel they do a good job in managing their business and communicating with staff, employees usually tend to feel the opposite. And they often feel undervalued in terms of their potential role in improving service levels. By SIMON MILNE.
Service lies at the heart of the New Zealand tourism industry and at its attempts to improve its performance. We all know examples of how good service can set otherwise similar businesses apart from each other – leading one to survive while the other ‘goes under’.
Improved service levels have been shown to be dependent on the development and retention of a happy, well-trained, workforce. Experts tell us that if employees are satisfied with their work, and feel that they are part of a team focusing on common goals, then productivity, yield and profit will almost inevitably improve – along with the overall service experience received by the customer.
To most readers of this column this will no doubt seem like commonsense. Yet the critical question that faces the New Zealand tourism industry is how much this ‘commonsense’ is actually being applied in the day to day running of the businesses (both small and large) that are so vital to this sector and the national economy.
Recent work commissioned by the New Zealand Department of Labour sheds some interesting light on the issue of productivity and the employer-employee relationships that underlie it.
The Department has undertaken research into the impact of new technologies on labour use in the accommodation sector, and has also funded a study on productivity trends in the food and beverage services sector. The latter work contrasts employer perspectives with those of employees. The main findings make for interesting reading:
- Both workers and employers agree that productivity is about much more than revenue:cost ratios – it is often seen to be about less tangible dimensions such as quality of service and visitor experience.
- Employers feel that staff satisfaction and reducing staff turnover are the two most significant factors in improving productivity.
- While most employers feel they do a good job in managing their business and communicating with staff, employees usually tend to feel the opposite – often feeling undervalued in terms of their potential role in improving service levels.
- Most employers feel that tourism and hospitality represents a good career option – in contrast employees tend to see the industry in less glowing terms and most are looking to move on as soon as other opportunities present themselves.
The research highlights that good management and effective communication are necessary to facilitate understanding between employers and employees.
Employees often have the ‘coalface’ knowledge that enables them to suggest effective ways to improve service levels and productivity. This begs the question of the reader: when was the last time you asked your employees for www.tourismbusinessmag.co.nz 45 their thoughts on how service could be improved?; if you have no employees, when was the last time you asked your customers directly about their service experience?
Perhaps the most positive finding to emerge from these studies is the fact that, while they might not recognise it, both employers and employees appear to share a common focus in terms of productivity – providing quality service and experiences to the customer. This represents common ground upon which future productivity partnerships can be established.
See www.dol.govt.nz/futureofwork/ for a full report on the impact of technology on labour force requirements in the accommodation sector. The report on Food and Beverage service sector productivity will be available in March through www.dol.govt.nz/workplaceproductivity