Michael P. Sciarini

Food service leadership: could Attila run a restaurant.

Abstract As food-service operators address the challenges of labor issues, governmental regulations, litigation, and debt structuring, only the most capable and qualified leaders will be truly successful

Hotel General Managers

General managers of large hotels believe the hotel business has changed the GMs career track—with a fading importance for F&B management.

Hotel General Managers Focused on the Core Business

A survey of 77 general managers in large hotels (over 500 rooms) in the United States shows that the general manager is primarily focused on basic business considerations, most particularly revenue measures. The study also indicates that the career track to reach general manager has changed as a result of what appears to be a flattening of the hotel organization (fewer middle managers) and the diminishing importance of food and beverage management. Asked what topics should be added to hospitality-education programs, the respondents suggested that personnel-related topics (e.g., human-resources management, leadership) should be emphasized, along with the more general need for additional hands-on learning. The study also unearthed an intriguing undercurrent of distrust for currently popular management theories. The GMs in this study reported a dim view of the effectiveness of total quality management, even though they consider it important that GMs master TQM-related techniques, such as benchmarking and empowerment.

Performance Appraisals in Hotels Widespread and Valuable

A study of general managers of 389 United States hotels found that 87 percent of the respondents conducted regular performance appraisals for all of their employees. This percentage is similar to that found in other industries. The most frequent interval for performance appraisals by lodging managers is once per year, also echoing the findings for other industries. Most managers used more than one type of appraisal and used their appraisals for more than one purpose. Nearly half used a management-by-objectives approach for their appraisals (49 percent), followed by behaviorally anchored rating scales (41 percent), narrative essays (37 percent), and graphic rating scales (28 percent). One negative note is that nearly 15 percent of the managers do not follow their appraisals with feedback sessions to review those appraisals. The most frequent application of performance appraisals was for compensation decisions (86 percent), followed by assessing whether objectives had been met (78 percent), establishing training needs (73 percent), and determining promotions (65 percent). Three-fifths of the sample reported that performance appraisals were important to the success of their operation.

Diversity programs in chain

Abstract A human-resources strategy that embraces diversity will likely assist a food-service chain in maintaining a workplace that attracts and keeps a variety of employees. A limited study of 16 companies, however, indicates that diversity management may not be a high priority.

Prescreening of Hospitality School Graduates: A Study of Hospitality Recruiter Decision Strategies

To identify the decision making strategies and factors hospitality recruiters utilize when making prescreening decisions, the Hospitality Recruiting Questionnaire (HRQ) was administered to a sample of hospitality recruiters. Policy capturing was used to compare the recruiters’ perceived versus actual prescreening decision factor usage. Significant differences were found for 5 of the 10 decision factors considered. Hospitality recruiters were most concerned with a candidates willingness to relocate, work experiences, and extracurricular involvement when making prescreening decisions.

IPA and DSI: Enhancing the Usefulness of Student Evaluation of Teaching Data

Abstract The effective use of student evaluations has been problematic due to the inability in most formats to factor in the importance of rated attributes. The utilization of two new concepts in data analysis — derived importance and determination of significant issues — can enhance the analysis process. This article demonstrates how the two methods are used and discusses the different results obtained by using each method.

Food-Servce Leadership

This article reports on essential leadership qualities of commercial food-service-industry leaders based on survey responses from 51 of the top 1 00 such leaders in the United States. The essential leadership foundations identified are: vision, communication, trust, and perseverance. Those four main qualities were dissected into morespecific characteristics, and respondents agreed on the importance of: credibility, responsibility, dependability, accountability, self-confidence, emotional stamina, and decisiveness. Other factors that emerged include commitment to and understanding of the industry; strong personal values; flexibility; willingness to empower employees; inquisitiveness; a knowledge of the basics of technical areas; and enthusiasm, intensity, and desire. A thorough literature review and bibliography are provided.

HB @ MSU: When and why?

Abstract The need to better understand the process of student academic and career decision making is evident given that the number of colleges offering degree programs in hospitality management in the United States has increased substantially in recent decades. To address this need, a survey which provided measures of criteria and timing of academic and career choices was administered to a sample of 414 students at Michigan State University. The results indicated that most students selected the university before solidifying their career orientation or academic program decision. These findings underscore the importance of understanding when and why students choose hospitality management programs as limited recruiting and admissions resources are allocated in the midst of competitive and economically uncertain circumstances.