Chapter 1: Leading Human Resources The Practice of Human Resources Leadership The Importance of Human Resources Leadership The Challenge of Human Resources Leadership Leaders, Supervisors & Associates Characteristics of Leaders The Nature of Leadership Leadership Styles Developing Your Own Style Ethics The Supervisor as Mentor

The Practice of Human Resources Leadership Critical to all successful hospitality organizations. Work & the workplace are much more complex than they were years ago. Not only has legislation & compliance become more important but also so has: Equal opportunity, creating a positive work environment, technology, diversity, recruiting, selection, compensation & benefits, training & development, teambuilding, performance management, conflict management, safety & health, planning, organizing, decision-making, communication, motivating, & controlling!

The Practice of Human Resources Leadership Organizational effectiveness: intention to go beyond performing traditional HR functions to adding value through directly improving the performance of the business, done by adding: More value by effective talent management. Helping with change management. Influencing business strategy. Plus a host of other high-value-added activities that impact organizational effectiveness.

The Importance of Human Resources Leadership Corporations of excellence regard HR as their most valuable asset & competitive advantage. The HR director & the HR department are strategic business partners adding intrinsic value to the organization as a resource for all departments. HR is responsible for the efficient & effective operation of the human resources of the organization.

The Importance of Human Resources Leadership HR is all about attracting, selecting, recruiting, orienting, training, coaching, counseling, developing, disciplining, mentoring, evaluating the performance, & supporting & retaining the associates.

The Human Resources Department Lead by the director of HR. The HR director: An executive committee position. Carries with it the enormous responsibilities of running an efficient & effective HR department. A member of the ‘guidance team’ that run the organization – making all the important decisions. Sets the tone of how employee relations are conducted. Establishes a vision for the company’s human resources. Is the advocate for the employees at executive-level decision-making.

The Human Resources Department The HR department generally has a co-coordinator, who ensures that all employee & management inquiries are handled with courtesy & given to the appropriate HR manager. Many HR departments have an employment manager, who checks applications & does employment suitability interviews & reference checks.

The Challenge of Human Resources Leadership Finding & keeping great employees motivated. High turnover in the hospitality industry. The cost of high turnover.

Leadership Leadership begins with: Vision Mission Goals Instills a common purpose, self-esteem, & a sense of membership in the organization. Mission Mission statements describe the purpose of the organization & outline the kinds of activities performed for guests. Goals Are relevant to the mission, specific & clear, challenging yet achievable, made in collaboration with employees, & written down with the strategies & tactics of how to meet the goals.

Leaders & Associates Hotels & restaurants are dependent on large numbers of people to fill low-wage entry-level jobs that have little interest & no perceived future. Another level of hourly worker is the skilled or semiskilled: the front desk clerk, the cashier, the bartender, the cook, the waiter & waitress. These jobs are more appealing, the money is better, & there is sometimes a chance for advancement. Many employers assume that their employee will not stay long, & most of them do not.

Characteristics of Leaders Several studies have shown that effective leaders have 6 traits that distinguish them from nonleaders: Drive The desire to influence others Honesty Moral character Self-confidence Intelligence Relevant knowledge

Characteristics of Leaders Effective leaders are able to influence others to behave in a particular way. This is called power. There are 4 primary sources of power: 1. Legitimate power, which is derived from an individual’s position in an organization. 2. Reward power, which is derived from an individual’s control over rewards. 3. Coercive power, which is derived from an individual’s ability to threaten negative outcomes. 4. Expert power, which is derived from an individual’s personal charisma & the respect &/or admiration the individual inspires.

The Nature of Leadership A leader can be defined as: Someone who guides or influences the actions of his or her employees to reach certain goals. A person whom people follow voluntarily. Supervisors must direct the work of their people in a way that causes them to do it voluntarily. You have to get people to work for you willingly & to the best of their ability. That is what leadership is all about.

Seven Steps for a Foundation of Leadership Development Invest time, resources, & money needed to create a culture that supports leadership development. Identify & communicate differences between management skills & leadership abilities within a company. Develop quantifiable measurables that support leadership. Make leadership skills a focus of training. Implement ongoing programs that focus on leadership. Know that in the right culture leaders can be found at entry level. Recognize, reward, & celebrate leaders.

Authority & Leaders Formal authority is given to you by virtue of your position. Real Authority is given to you by having support of your employees. Formal leaders according to the organization chart are in charge. Informal leaders are in charge by having the support of their employees.

Leadership Styles: The most popular types of leadership styles today: Autocratic: Needs of employees comes second. Makes decisions without input from staff, gives orders & expects them to be obeyed. They believe that this is the only method employees will understand. Bureaucratic: “ By the Book”, relies on rules, regulations & procedures for decisions. Appropriate for when employees can be permitted no discretion in the decisions to be made.

Leadership Styles Continued: Democratic: Almost the reverse of the autocratic style. The supervisor wants to share & consult with the group in decision making. Informs employees about all matters concerning them. Laissez- faire: The hands off approach. The supervisor does as little leading as possible. Delegates all power & authority to employees. Limited application to the hospitality industry.

The Old Style Boss Method: command- obey, carrot-and-stick, reward & punishment, autocratic. Results: far more likely to increase problems than to lesson them.

Theory X Douglas McGregor People are counterproductive. Inborn dislike of work. Must be coerced, controlled, directed, threatened with punishment. People prefer to be led, avoid responsibility, lack ambition, & want security.

Theory Y Under the right conditions people accept & seek out responsibility. Imagination, ingenuity, & creativity to solving problems is widely distributed in the population. Modern industrial organizations use only a portion of the intellectual potential of the average human being. Douglas McGregor Argued that work is natural, people do not inherently dislike it. People will work at their own accord towards objectives. People become committed to objectives that fulfill inner personal needs.

Theory X vs. Theory Y Theory X fits the old-style hospitality manager. Theory Y is a revised view of human nature with emphasis on using the full range of workers’ talents, needs, & aspirations. A popular way of moving toward a Theory Y style of people management is to involve one’s workers in certain aspects of management, such as problem solving & decision making. The participative management style results when workers have a high degree of involvement in such management concerns as planning & decision making.

Situational Leadership - Kenneth Blanchard & Paul Hersey Two types of Leadership behaviors: Directed behavior - Tell employees exactly what you want done, how, when, & where. The focus is to get the job done, it is best to use when employees are learning a new aspect of their job. Supportive behavior - Show caring, & support to you employees. Praise, encourage, & involve them in decision making. This is best to use when a employee lacks commitment to do a job.

Combining Directive & Supportive Styles Directing Style: A lot of directed & few supportive behaviors. Coaching Style: A lot of both directive & supportive behaviors. Supporting Style: Highly supportive behaviors. Delegating Style: Low on both directive & supportive because responsibility is turned over to employees.

Transformational Leadership: Transactional leaders: motivate through appealing to workers self interest (rewards). Transformational leaders: act as a coach, lead by example, communicate, inspire, & provide workers with challenging jobs.

Empowerment A technique used by participative leaders to share decision-making authority with team members. Empowerment means giving employees more control over their decisions, resources, & work. When decision-making power is shared at all levels of the organization, employees feel a greater sense of ownership & responsibility.

Developing Your Own Style The best style of leadership, for you, is whatever works best in terms of these three basics: Your own personality. The workers you supervise. The situations you face. It should be a situational type of leadership, just as your management style must be a flex style that reacts to situations as they arise.

Developing Your Own Style What you need most in finding what works best is awareness of: Yourself & the feelings, desires, biases, abilities, power, & influence you bring to a situation; awareness of the special needs & traits of your various workers & awareness of the situation, the big picture, so you can recognize what is needed, conceptual skills & human skills.

Developing Your Own Style Leadership is also about change. Remember there is a six-step method of making changes: 1st, state the purpose. 2nd, involve others. 3rd, test the plan before you implement it company-wide. 4th, introduce the change. 5th, maintain & reinforce the change. 6th, follow up!

Ethics A set of moral principles or rules of conduct that provide guidelines for morally right behavior. Hall suggests 5 questions that you can use to help decide how ethical a certain decision is: 1. Is the decision legal? 2. Is the decision fair? 3. Does the decision hurt anyone? 4. Have I been honest with those affected? 5. Can I live with my decision?

The Supervisor as Mentor A mentor is a leader, an excellent role model, & a teacher. A supervisor often functions as a mentor to a worker by providing guidance & knowledge on learning the operation & moving up the career ladder. Being a mentor can provide feelings of pride & satisfaction because you have contributed to someone else’s career development. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc