Mark R. Testa

Leadership dyads in the cruise industry: the impact of cultural congruency.

Abstract Multiculturalism continues to permeate the management literature as an imperative issue in todays workplace. The cruise industry is highly diverse, with leaders often interacting with subordinates whose national origin is different from their own. Past research suggests that differences in national culture may significantly impact the process of leadership evaluation and subsequently how subordinates respond to their leaders. The purpose of this investigation was to determine if such a process takes place in the cruise industry. Using a diverse sample of cruise line managers (n=367), a comparison of congruent and incongruent leaders/subordinate dyads was conducted. Multivariate analysis of variance was used to determine how cultural congruence impacted perceived leadership style (consideration and initiating structure), trust, satisfaction and commitment to the leader. The results indicate that subordinates in congruent dyads evaluated their leaders significantly higher on consideration behaviors, and reported higher levels of trust and satisfaction with their leader, than those in the incongruent group. These findings suggest that national culture systematically impacts how subordinates within the studied sample evaluate, and subsequently feel about their leaders. The results are discussed and recommendations are made for leaders within the cruise environment.

A Systems Approach to Service Quality Tools for Hospitality Leaders

Rather than take the usually futile approach of repeatedly addressing the symptoms of service problems, managers should dig deeper until they reach the root causes of those problems. Even better is to enlist employees’ participation in determining the causes. To that end, managers could apply the time-tested approaches from total quality management and systems thinking, including the “5 Whys” (repeatedly asking why until the cause is revealed) and process flowcharting (creating a timeline of the service process). The process of listing hot spots and touch points can help work groups see where problems exist (hot spots) and identify chances to impress guests with excellent service (touch points). Managers can also use an employee-tools grid, which lists specific steps that can be taken to improve service in any of the following five categories: (1) define and communicate issues, (2) train and educate employees, (3) improve processes, (4) evaluate results and provide feedback, and (5) celebrate successes.

Cultural similarity and service leadership: a look at the cruise industry

Cultural diversity continues to be a pressing issue in managing service quality, particularly in the cruise industry. As a result of recent growth, many cruise lines recruit from as many as 100 different nations. The result is a truly multicultural environment in which supervisors and subordinates may maintain very different national and ethnic cultures. This study sampled 313 high customer contact cruise line managers and assessed whether similarity in national culture between service leaders and subordinates impacted perceived leadership style, goal clarity and organizational satisfaction. It was determined that employees who reported to managers from the same country reported higher levels of consideration behaviors on the part of their manager and higher overall organizational satisfaction. Based on these findings, recommendations are made for managing within the diverse service environment.

Demographic and cultural predictors of international service worker job satisfaction

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of demographic and cultural characteristics on the job satisfaction level of international service workers.Design/methodology/approach – The data in this study resulted from a survey of 1,128 service workers from 82 different countries. The employees were recruited from 14 ships of a major cruise line. Multivariant regression analysis was performed to determine the independent effect of four demographic factors and traditional culture on job satisfaction.Findings – The results suggest that work environment, cultural background and demographic characteristics combine in various ways to impact on service‐worker job satisfaction. The findings are discussed in the context of extant research.Research limitations/implications – The limitation of this paper is that the sample drawn from a single industry.Practical implications – Job satisfaction in the context of international service workers is a complex issue that may require investigation within the...

A model for organization‐based 360 degree leadership assessment

Success in the new economy is more dependent on successful relationships with internal and external stakeholders than ever before. The “business ecosystem” has created webs of interdependent relationships between organizations and their employees, suppliers, customers, and business partners. These relationships not only impact how firms add value to customers and create competitive advantage, but various internal processes as well. Unfortunately, these relationships often fail to capture their full potential due to misalignment between the organization and its stakeholders. This article presents a practical guide for organization‐based 360 degree leadership assessment, which should help organizations to identify gaps or “blind spots” with internal and external stakeholders. Borrowing from the multi‐rater feedback literature, a discussion of the steps in using the organization’s leadership as the focal point is provided. Self‐assessment on a series of organizational leadership dimensions is proposed, which...

Service Leader Interaction Behaviors: Comparing Employee and Manager Perspectives

A key dynamic in satisfying customers is effective leadership of customer contact employees. In spite of decades of leadership study, little research has investigated effective leadership interaction behaviors specific to the service environment. The purpose of this investigation is to compare positive and negative interaction behaviors as reported by both managers and employees. Using the Critical Incident Technique (CIT), 305 positive and 234 negative incidents of service leader interaction behavior were collected from 120 managers and 231 employees drawn from73 service organizations. Using Yukl’s (2002) framework of leadership behaviors, the incidents were categorized to identify the most relevant behaviors for the service environment. The findings revealed 14 positive and 16 negative specific subcategories of interaction behavior, with significant disparities in perceptions between employees and managers. The implications of these findings are discussed and hypotheses are provided to guide future inquiry.

From Satisfied to Memorable: An Empirical Study of Service and Experience Dimensions on Guest Outcomes in the Hospitality Industry

ABSTRACT Central to the experience economy paradigm is the notion that services and experiences are distinct economic offerings; yet, little work has been done to investigate the assumption. This study examined experience economy dimensions (entertainment, esthetics, escapism, and education) alongside service quality dimensions (technical and expressive) on three outcome variables (satisfaction, service quality, and memorable experience) in the hospitality and tourism industry context. Findings provide empirical support for the progression of value posited in past research and reveal that experience and service dimensions indeed differ in their impact on guest outcomes. Significant differences across four types of offerings—dining, lodging, events, and attractions—are discussed within the context of extant literature.

Predictors of service effort: an investigation of cruise line service workers.

ABSTRACT Improving service quality will continue to be a vital goal for hospitality and tourism organizations in the new millennium. As service worker performance directly impacts customers evaluation of quality, further investigation of methods of improving performance are necessary. Service effort is a construct that has received little attention in the literature, but may be a significant factor in linking employee attitudes and customer perceptions of service quality. This exploratory study tested three popular managerial constructs to determine the extent to which they predict service effort. Using data from 331 service workers from two cruise line operations organizations, motivation, organizational commitment and job satisfaction were regressed against service effort. Results indicate that organizational commitment was the greatest predictor of service effort, followed by motivation. One dimension of job satisfaction (satisfaction with company), failed to yield a significant relationship with service effort, while satisfaction with supervisor yielded a slightly negative coefficient. Implications for hospitality and tourism managers and organizations are discussed.