THE EFFECT OF CUSTOMER AND EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP ON THE MANAGEMENT OF HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY BOTH PUBLICLY OWNED AND PRIVATELY OWNED ESTABLISHMENT. (A CASE STUDY OF ASABA DELTA STATE.)

ABSTRACT

The researcher examined the of customer and employee relationship on the management of Hospitality industry both privately owned and publicly owned establishment in Asaba Delta State. The objective is to determine whether cordial  relationship exist between customer and employees in Hospitality establishment, to this end, the researcher is interested in determining if there is significant relationship between customer and employer in the Hospitality industry. The method used in the study is a case study of both public and private hotels in Asaba Delta state. Data for the study were obtained through questionnaire administered on 90 randomly selected samples of employees and customers of the selected hotels being studied. Data obtained were analysed using sample percentage statistical method while the hypotheses were tested using x2 method. Results reveals that good customer – employee relationship enhances effective management of Hospitality industry. Secondly, customer and employees relationship is seriously impacted by inadequate employee training and lack of motivation. The study, therefore recommends that “on – the job” training of staff should be organized and also staff of hotels should be better paid and should be given reasonable incentives. The activities and styles of both publicly and privately owned hotels are different. How employees handle and treats their customers was examined and identified. The reasons of employee behaviors towards customers was discovered and observed in several ways,(1) Lack of employee training on the job of hospitality (ii) Lack of motivation and incentives. From the study, it was argued that private Hotels are more effective than public hotels because of godfatherism in the system in the public Hotel. The study also went further to show how customers are poorly served and attended to in most hotels. The study also revealed that if employee are properly trained and motivated in the hospitality establishment, the employee will be more effective to customer’s services. Then customers will repeat patronage to enhance the growth of hospitality industry globally.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0  BACKGROUND OF STUDY

The world Hospitality Industry has recently experienced a tremendous growth rate throughout the world. In fact Statistics have shown that Hospitality has today become one of ` the most promising and fastest growing industries in the service sector of the economy. More also Hospitality itself is as old as mankind and has been at the centre of the economy of Nations.

According to the Dictionary definition of customer, CUSTOMER is a patron: one who purchases or receives a product or service from a business or merchant, or intends to do so. A person, especially one engaging in some sort of interaction with others. There are five reasons why customers is always right before the employee.

  The phrase customers is always right was originally coined by Harry Gordon Selfridge in London in 1909, and is typically used by businesses.

1. To convince customers that they get good service
2. Convince the employees to give customers good service fortunately more business are abundantly these maxim ironically because it lead to bad customer service

The existence of any business is dependent on the patronage of the customers. In the hospitality industry a customer is a person who visits a hospitality firm to enjoy the services of the outfit such as food, drink, and in some cases accommodation. The services are rendered on payment of reasonable price charged by the firm. A customer takes the centre stage in management policy for successful operation of a hotel industry. It is on this background that customers retention is invariably a crucial management function as it is significantly related to survival of a business. Hence workable strategies must be designed to achieve this goal on regular basis.

Reicheld (1995:45) defined a customer as an individual or company that purchases a product or service. The term customer is used to refer to both consumer and organizational market. Consumer market is made up of those customers that buy products and services for further production or sale of other products and services. In effect, a customer supports an organization by offering his/her hard earned money in exchange for what an organization offers. Hospitality industry is the business where providing services such as catering and entertainment takes place, Apaokagi (2010). Reicheld, (1995) explained that customer retention is the activity that a selling crganization (a hospitality firm) undertakes in order to reduce customer defections.

Dictionary defines Employees as an individuals who provides labour to an establishment or other person.

Many employee may have the opportunity of direct contact with customers in the two different establishment both private and public hotels. For some it will be a regular aspect of their job, for other Hotels whether private or public. Technical skills and technique are very important but equally for perhaps more important are sincere caring attitudes and manner with the food served in an environment that has an atmosphere that makes the customer feel at ease, wanted and welcome.

     As competition and other environmental influences increase globally, it is obvious that there is growing emphases on quality improvement and error reduction in order to achieve customer satisfaction, retention and enhancing organizational value, (Iwarere, 2010) many companies and organizations have now acknowledges the critical importance of being customer-oriented and customer-driven in all their activities. Kotler [1997) asserts that as not enough to be product-driven or technology-driven, without bringing the power of customer into the centre of the business. So satisfy your customer or someone else will.

Management inadequacies resulting to bad consequences to employees during services to customers.

It makes employee unhappy, it give abrasive customers an unfair advantage, some customers are bad for business, it result in worse customer service, some customer are just plain wrong.