Human resources management and organizational practices

Human Resources

Given the hotels stated employee preferences, what recruiting sources would you suggest they use, and why?

First of all I would certainly use online resources rather than rely on print ads in the local "help wanted" sections. Many potential employees use Facebook, which claims that there are 400 million users; according to Jason Ferrara with Hotel Executive, half of Facebook users log in every single day, so Facebook is a good place to begin.

Ferrara explains that human resource professionals should: a) set a clear goal; b) "master one medium" (it could be a Facebook page, a blog or a Twitter account); c) manage your online reputation (and create a profile to highlight the "unique benefits" of working for your hotel; d) create a "user experience" (a place on your Facebook page where current and potential employees interact; e) highlight specific jobs; f) use videos and photos that get positive attention; and f) listen to "fans" of your page (Ferrara, 2010).

The Marriot Hotel company has created a virtual environment in order to attract top talent; it is called "My Marriot Hotel." Players manage a "virtual" hotel restaurant kitchen by purchasing all the equipment for the kitchen; they purchase the ingredients for the food they will prepare for customers; they create a budget, hire and train employees, and serve guests (Mystery Application). This game is similar to "Farmville" a wildly popular virtual game. "My Marriot Hotel" project awards users with points "for happy customers" and users lose points for poor service. There are millions of "gamers" online 24/7 and for Marriot, their game has attracted players in 120 countries -- all running their own kitchens. Users access "My Marriot Hotel" through Facebook or Twitter. This is clearly a very popular and helpful online way to attract potential talent; about one-third of the gamers playing "My Marriot Hotel" click on the "try it for real" button, which "pops them out onto the careers section" of the Marriot website (Mystery Application).

I would also use the HR recruitment ideas used by Doubletree Hotels: use your best employees to be part of the recruitment and hiring procedures. Interview the highest performers at Hotel Paris, find out what makes them successful (their competencies, positive attributes), and ask them, if they were looking to recruit a "great person for this position" that truly wants to work where people care about customers, so, what would they be looking for? (Rhodes, 2012).

Then, choose several of your best employees to determine the ten or so characteristics that management should be looking for in a new hire. Before advertising the positions available, create an "Interview Guide," a structured and "fair" process. Then create an interview team for Hotel Paris; there will be three interviews for prospective employees, one with an employee, one with the manager of the kitchen or the front desk, depending on what the job is for, and another for the HR person in charge of hiring. The three parties then get together, compare notes, discuss the strengths of each applicant, and hire the best.