David Bart General Manager of the Plaza Inn - Case Study

INTEGRATIVE CASE 7.0

THE PLAZA INN

The Plaza Inn

OVERVIEW

David Bart, General Manager of the Plaza Inn, received a letter from the hotel association of which the Plaza Inn was a member. The letter stated that the hotel’s service levels did not measure up and that the front desk and reservations, two critical departments, received the worst ratings among all of the association’s properties. Unless the management of the Plaza Inn could submit a plan for guest service improvement and pass the next inspection scheduled in six months, its membership would be rescinded. In fact, at the Plaza Inn, the inability to efficiently expedite phone calls and respond to guest needs was troubling to Bart, not only from a guest service perspective, but also from the standpoint of lost revenue.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS TO ASSIGN

1. What structural change is indicated at the Plaza Inn? Explain clearly why. Justify your answer.

2. How could the Plaza Inn develop a collaborative strategy? Develop a specific plan.

3. How could technology help solve the problems at the front desk? Explain what you propose very specifically and clearly. Please do not give round-about general answers.

4. What changes in culture are needed at the Plaza Inn? Be specific and refer to chapter 10 information for this question.

You should not approach this case with a “read once and type your answers from the case” view. In fact, just the opposite...each sentence that you type should have a connection to the course concepts relevant to your case. Your answers should clearly integrate the course concepts. This is the minimum requirement for getting a passing