Case study: Improving Individual Learning at The Courtyard Hotel You have recently been appointed to the position of HRD manager at The Courtyard Hotel in Tokyo. The hotel has been experiencing falling bed occupancy rates and fewer bookings for conferences, weddings and other similar events. While some of these business problems may stem from the difficult economic environment many organizations are facing, others relate more to the Courtyards current HRD practices. For example, the number of customer complaints regarding the level of service from staff in a number of areas has been growing (including complaints about the knowledge and skills of the reception desk staff and the general organization and management of various wedding and conference events). The level of turnover among the more experienced staff in the hotel has also increased recently, much to the concern of management. One of your initial tasks is to evaluate the effectiveness of the hotels current approach to HRD and, particularly, how it facilitates learning on the part of all employees. The employees and department managers you have spoken with are critical of the opportunities currently available for staff to enhance their own learning in the workplace. From these informal discussions with employees and department managers, it appears that: the hotel management have not previously invested in employees learning and development to any significant extent; employee turnover may, in part, be explained by the lack of opportunities for individual learning; and the only training or learning activity that employees are expected to attend is the two-hour induction programme upon their appointment. In general, opportunities for individual learning are not currently provided in a planned or systematic manner and do not draw upon the full range of possible formal and informal learning activities. Apart from induction, the only other opportunities for individual learning provided are: financial support for staff willing to undertake formal qualifications in hotel management; and some short ad-hoc half-day courses on customer service skills, event management, and food and beverage operations. These training courses are generally delivered in a classroom setting where an outside trainer presents the training content largely in a one-way, noninteractive manner using a PowerPoint presentation. There is no evidence of any discussions with the employees regarding the objectives of this training or of any follow-up with employees after the training to determine the extent to which they are practicing and applying what they have learned.

b. Describe the weaknesses of the hotels current approach to HRD with respect to its individual learning and development activities.

c. What suggestions could you make about how the underlying principles of both social learning and adult learning theories might be used to improve the effectiveness of individual learning?

d. What are the potential issues in the orientation program used in the hotel, considering the common design elements of an effective orientation program?

e. How might the four steps in Kolbs learning cycle be useful to the hotel in improving its approach to individual learning?

f. Discuss the importance of evaluating the training program for employees at The Courtyard Hotel.