Significance of Generic Managerial Skills Competency in the Frontline Office

Generic managerial skills of the frontline office are significant in determining the success of the hospitality industry. As mentioned by Kor and Mesko (2013), generic managerial skills competency includes communication, time management, organizational awareness, leadership and problem solving attitude. Effective generic managerial skills competency results in creating a good image in the eye of the customers by providing them effortless and seamless service. Spontaneity and promptness among the managers provides an opportunity for the employees of the frontline office to provide service without any compromise.

In Singapore, it can be said that the tourism industry will see a downfall that will have an impact on the luxury hotels of the country. Singapore Tourism Board is expected to grow from 0-2%. The hospitality industry of Singapore provides huge economy and employment for the country. The frontline office and staffs of the luxurious hotels highlights the epitome of excellence for the customers. Thus, it is important for the frontline office to have effective and adequate generic managerial skills competence in order to attract customers thereby, gaining competitive advantage (Jalocha et al. 2014).

The main issue encountered by the luxury hotels in Singapore is lack of generic managerial skills competency in the frontline office. As a result, the luxury hotels of Singapore are unable to ensure effective communication, time management, organizational awareness and effective leadership. This has brought turbulence in terms of the service provided to the customers, as the customers leave dissatisfied (Legrand, Chen and Sloan 2013). The individuals working in the frontline office lack adequate knowledge about the organization as well as effective leadership skills. In addition to, lack of effective communication and time management in the frontline office of the luxury hotels in Singapore. People oriented generic managerial skills are inadequately found among the individuals in the frontline office in the luxury hotels of Singapore. As a result, the luxury hotel industry of Singapore is threatened and is compromised in terms of effective service (Lee 2016).

The aim of the research is to analyze and evaluate the current generic managerial skills competence levels of the frontline office in luxury hotels in Singapore and to identify the essential level and value of the generic managerial competence required.

Sub-problem 1

Analyze and evaluate current generic managerial skills competence of frontline office staff in luxury hotels in Singapore.

Sub-problem 2

Identify the essential level and value of generic managerial competence required by luxury hotels in Singapore.

Issues in the Luxury Hotel Industry of Singapore

The objectives of the research are:

• To identify the levels of managerial proficiency for frontline office staff in luxury hotels in Singapore.
• To ascertain the competence inherent to each of the levels.
• To evaluate the importance of generic managerial skills competence.
• To assess the current level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore.
• To ascertain the demanded level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels, Singapore.
• To contrast the existing generic managerial skills competence to the required level by luxury hotels in Singapore
• To analyze existing and potential challenges adhered to the generic managerial skill-set.  

The research questions are:

• What are the levels of managerial proficiency for frontline office staf in luxury hotels in Singapore?
• What is the competence inherent to each of the levels?
• What is the significance of generic managerial skills competence?
• What is the current level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore?
• What is the demanded level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore?
• What are the differences between the existing generic managerial skills competence to the required level by luxury hotels in Singapore?
• What is the existing and potential challenges adhered to the generic managerial skill set?
• What are the suitable recommendations on effective improvement to the General Management of luxury hotels in Singapore?

Analyzing the generic managerial skills competency is important for the frontline office of the luxury hotels of Singapore, as this will provide an opportunity for the luxury hotels to attract customers and provide effective service. Improved generic managerial skills competency is important to the world, as it signifies blending cultures, business practices and experiences. In addition to better time management and organizational awareness in the frontline office will provide an opportunity for the luxury hotels of Singapore to provide better services to the customers. Thus, the selection and conduction of this research topic is justified, as this will allow the frontline office to analyze the potential gap in terms of communication, time management, organizational awareness and leadership thereby, finding ways to mitigate it for better service.

The overall structure of the dissertation is divided in five major chapters. The five chapters include introduction, literature review, research methodology, data analysis, conclusion and recommendation.

Chapter 1: Introduction

This chapter lays the overall foundation of the research, as in this chapter the researcher provides an overview about the research topic and highlights the research problem. Based on the identified problem, the research aim and objectives are highlighted along with stating the significance of conducting the research.

Chapter 2: Literature review

This chapter highlights the use of various theoretical concepts and frameworks in regards to the research topic thereby, providing an opportunity to develop deeper understanding about the research topic. In this chapter, the researcher analyses the various factors critically thereby, determining the most effective one.

Chapter 3: Research methodology

This chapter states the various methodological tools that are used while conducting a research. In addition to, the researcher mentions the particular research method used along with justifying the selection of the method.

Chapter 4: Data analysis

In this chapter, the researcher analyzes the data that has been collected by using appropriate data collection methods in accordance with the research aim and objectives.

Chapter 5: Conclusion and recommendation

In this chapter, the researcher deduces the conclusion by mentioning the gap that has been identified in the research along with potential reasons that gave rise to the gaps in the industry sector. Based on the identified gap, the researcher links the questions with the objectives and provides suitable recommendations.

In this chapter, it can be summarized that generic managerial skills competency in frontline office luxury hotels in Singapore, as this helps in attracting customers. Effective managerial skill competency helps in creating a good impression in the eye of the customers. As the frontline office of the luxury hotels of Singapore are failing to maintain and establish generic managerial skills competency in terms of communication, time management, leadership, problem solving attitude and organizational awareness, the service of the luxury hotels in Singapore are compromised.

Research Objectives and Questions

In this chapter, the independent and the dependent variable has been identified that helped in shaping up the entire research work. In addition to, the literature review has helped in identifying the potential gaps in the traditional and the contemporary management skills in the frontline staffs in the luxury hotels in Singapore. This chapter also presents a theoretical framework that sums up the overall idea and structure based on which the entire chapter has been completed. Various factors and concepts of generic managerial skills are discussed and analyzed critically to investigate its impact on the frontline staffs of luxury hotels in Singapore.

Efficient employees help in building great hospitality organizations, as the skills portrayed by the employees helps in providing effective service to the customers. As mentioned by Tricot and Sweller (2014), higher efficiency is achieved by highlighting the appropriate skills of the employees while providing service to the customers. Thus, the employees are expected to acquire and learn the skills in order to deliver the desired performance in the hospitality sector. However, as argued by Abayadeera and Watty (2014), displaying good and efficient performance consistently is challenging for the employees and this challenge is encountered by each of the employees during their work. Thus, it can be said that this challenge is related to the capability of the employee for enhancing their work.

According to Singh, Thambusamy and Ramly (2014), generic skills are defined as the skills that are required by every one for managing the surrounding environment. The use of generic skills enables the individuals to use their technical skills more effectively. However, as criticized by Webb and Chaffer (2016), there is no systematic approach of acquiring and learning generic skills that are important for the employees at workplace. However, having generic skills is vitally significant, as it enables an individual to perform the job effectively thereby, fulfilling the final goal. Different terms such as soft skills, key skills, essential skills, basic skills, competency skills, common skills and transferable skills are used to refer to generic skills. However, different country use different terms for referring to generic skills. For instance, in some countries, generic skills are strictly related to employment while in other countries generic skills are used for social relevance.

Country	Term used
Denmark	Process independent qualifications
United Kingdom	Common skills, core skills and key skills
United States of America	Workplace know how, basic skills, necessary skills
Germany	Key qualifications
Canada	Employability skills
France	Transferable skills
Switzerland	Trans-disciplinary skills
Singapore	Critical enabling skills

Though the terms for referring to generic skills differ from country to country, the set of skills are more or less similar. Each individual requires the set of generic skills in order to act promptly and provide effective service to the customers. As mentioned by Kyllonen (2013), soft skills highlight the personal traits that help in improving the interaction, communication and performance of doing a job. Thus, it can be said that having adequate generic skills is important for the employees to have for appropriate career growth and advancement.

Structure of the Dissertation

The generic skills those are required for the frontline employees of the hospitality sector are effective communication skills, interpersonal skills, the ability to manage stress, self-management skills, time management, problem solving skills, decision making ability, leadership skills, team work, cognitive skills and customers service. Considering the range of skills and abilities that form generic skills, it can be said that generic skills can be applied across all industries including hospitality. The constantly changing nature of the hospitality industry makes it significant for the employees to have the aforementioned skills to provide effective service to the customers (Carvalho and Rabechini Junior 2015).

As mentioned by Gade and Chari (2013), effective communication skills is important at workplace and among the individuals, as this ensures clear flow of information thereby, mitigating scopes of misunderstanding and hampering the flow of the work. Also, effective communication provides an opportunity for both the parties to explain each other clearly without keeping anything hidden that might cause issues later on. At workplace, the generic skill of being able to solve problems promptly and take decision is essential, as this highlights work efficiency. Both problem-solving and decision making ability highlight the critical thinking ability of the individuals that are important at workplace in order to handle emergency situations. In addition to, having problem-solving skills enables the employees to be prepared for unforeseen events and handle the situation without failing. However, as criticized by Deepa and Seth (2013), ability to handle stress is also one of the key generic skills that individuals need to have in order to save them from getting influenced by stress and take lose the ability to handle situation by taking appropriate stress.

The workplace is s diversified place with individuals from different background and distinctive attitudes and behaviors. The individuals need to have the skills of working with others coherently and in a friendly manner by supporting each other. Thus, the ability to work as a team is essential at workplace, as this highlights the ability of the employees of being cooperative and using each other’s strength for achieving the best for the organization (Hurrell, Scholarios and Thompson 2013).

In order to run an organization successfully, it is important to have people with the skills to handle, organize and manage a organization. There are three types of managerial levels that are typically found in an organization and those are top level management, mid level management and low level management (Chamorro-Premuzic and Furnham 2014). It is important for the individuals associated with management to posses the ability to do things successfully and efficiently.

Theoretical Framework

The Board of Directors, president, vice-president and the Chief executive officer (CEO) forms the top level management of the business organizations. According to Thornton and Byham (2013), the top level managers need to be competent enough to oversee and control the entire organization in terms of operations and administration. However, as criticized by Argyris (2017), the top level managers should also be competent and have the skills of developing company goals, policies and strategic plans along with taking required decisions. Thus, it can be said that the top level managers are absolutely crucial in mobilizing the external resources. Taking into account the responsibility of the designated post, the top level managers are accountable to the general public and both internal and external stakeholders.

The branch managers, general managers and the department managers comprises of the mid level managers. As the mid level managers fall under the top level managers, they are answerable and accountable to the top managerial level of their department’s function. As commented by Deal et al. (2013), the mid level managers give more time towards directional function and organizational development. Thus, the mid level managers need to be competent enough to execute organizational plans by ensuring compliance with the company policies as well as the objectives set by the top management. This includes defining and discussing relevant information and policies with both top and low management along with motivating and guiding the low level managers for working towards better performance. However, as criticized by Howlett and Ramesh (2016), the mid level managers need to have the ability to design and implement effective group and intergroup work along with defining performance indicators and monitoring them continuously. Another key competence the mid level managers need to have is the ability to identify problems and finding ways to resolve them.

The foremen, section heads, supervisors, first in-line managers and executives form the low level management. According to Bunaiasu, Vladutescu and Strunga (2014), the low level managers emphasize on direction and control within a business organization. The low level managers need to have the competence of identifying the strength of the individual and allocating task accordingly followed by supervising and guiding the employees in daily activities thereby, achieving goals successfully. However, as argued by Capece and Bazzica (2013), the low level managers should also have the ability to ensure both quantity and quality followed by making suitable recommendations and up channeling the problems of the employees. The low level managers also need to have the competency of basic supervision, motivation, career planning, staff supervision and providing feedback on their performance.

Considering the significance of the generic skills in the hospitality sector, countries such as South Africa, UK, United States of America and Australia has developed framework for ensuring efficient and effective generic skills. This provides an opportunity for the hospitality organizations in the developed countries to provide effective service to the customers in order to ensure satisfy tem thereby, marking their presence in the market and sustain in the competitive market.

Australia is termed as the leader in initiatives and leaders when it comes to address generic skills. Numerous government funded research projects investigated the concept of generic skills prior the revision of the Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) in 2011. This revision was made in order to make scope for the inclusion of the generic learning outcomes in the developing the process of qualification. The graduate attributes or generic learning outcomes are defined as non-discipline and transferable skills that are specific and needs to be achieved by a graduate by learning the skills practically. The graduates have to apply the learning through application in study, life context and work (Bunney, Sharplin and Howtt 2015).

The four broad generic learning outcomes of the Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) that needs to be included in all qualifications from level one (certificate one) to level ten (doctoral degree) are fundamental skills, people skills, thinking skills and personal skills. The fundamental skills include literacy and numeracy, people skills include effective communication and the ability to work with others, thinking skills include learning, problem solving and decision making and personal skills include integrity and self-direction (Norton, Norton and Cakitaki 2016).

Late 1980 saw the rise of the idea of generic skills in the United States of America. This idea was developed in the United States of America when the USA Department of Labor became aware and concerned that the young people are leaving school without having adequate competence to find a good job for them. In order to determine the demand of the workplace, the American Society for Training and Development conducted an investigation with the aim of analyzing the ability of the current and future workforce to meet the workplace demands. Research has found 16 skills that are extremely crucial for the employers to find within the employees so that the workplace demand can be met. The sixteen skills are leadership, learning, organizational effectiveness, reading, team work, writing, negotiation, computation, interpersonal skills, speaking, career and personal development, listening, goal setting, problem solving, motivation, creativity and self-esteem (Cappelli 2015).

Considering the significance of the aforementioned skills that the employers look for in the employees, the USA Department of Labor founded the Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS). The aim of finding this organization was to help the employers find employees with necessary and adequate skills. The skills identified by SCANS were designated as “workplace know-how” and the skills were technology, effective resource allocation, system, information and interpersonal skills (De Guzman and Choi 2013). Further, SCANS identified the three foundation skills that were embedded in the five skills. Those are basic skills that included listening, writing, reading, speaking and mathematics, personal qualities that includes integrity, self-esteem, self responsibility, social and self-management and higher order thinking skills that includes problem solving skills, decision making skills, creative thinking and ability to reason and think (Kibirige and DePalo 2017). Thus, having the aforementioned skills enables the hospitality business organization provide effective as well as efficient service to the customers by solving their issues, understanding them and explaining to the customers that visit the hotel.

The criteria and standard set by SCANS acted as benchmark for other international, national, state, local and regional hospitality business organizations. However, recently, in the United States of America, the employers emphasized on the job-specific skill development rather than emphasizing on the non-generic skill development.

In the United Kingdom, the five core skills that are important for the employees to have and the employees for are personal skills, effective communication skills, ability to work with others, numeracy and information. The UK National Council for Vocational Qualifications considers the generic skills transferable to other areas and context. However, on the contrary, in spite of transferable, the generic skills are independent of any specific discipline, subject and occupation (Stephenson and Yorke 2013). In addition to, in the UK, the National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education (NCIHE) recognized four skills that are considered as the key to the future success of the graduates in terms of the job they intend to do upon completion of studies. NCIHE has stated firmly that the key skills identified by them are not only significant for professional use but also in their personal life. As a result, the aim of the Committee was to include the key skills in the HE curricula so that the individuals graduate with the required and the desired skills.

In accordance with the requirement, Key Skills Qualifications were offered in England, Northern Ireland and Wales and the Core Skills Qualifications offered in Scotland. The core skills offered in Scotland are similar to the key skills offered in Wales, England and Northern Ireland but the only difference is that the key skill in terms of enhancing individual learning and performance were not included in the course offered in Scotland (Brown and Carasso 2013).

In South Africa, the Education White Paper 3: A Program for Transformation of Higher Education in 1997 focused on the significance of generic skills. 1998 saw the incorporation of the idea of critical –field educational and training outcomes in their course. The South African Qualifications Authority Act 58 of 1995 recognized 7 critical outcomes that are essential for all the graduates to learn (Lombard, Grobbelaar and Pruis 2014). The seven critical skills include effective communication, problem solving ability, ability to work with others or team work, use of science and technology, managing individuals efficiently, effective organization and evaluation of required information and having better understanding of the surrounding world. Both South African Qualification Authority and Higher Education South Africa aimed towards investigating the characteristics that is considered important by the employers and expect the graduates to have when they look for employment (Herbst 2014).

Taking into account the various generic skills framework followed by different countries, the key attributes of the generic skills framework are listed below:

• Oral communication
• Written communication
• Self-management
• Problem-solving ability
• Learning and adaptability
• Analytical and conceptual
• Interpersonal skills
• Leadership and teamwork
• Effective management of information

Change is the only constant thing and the landscape of the modern workplace is changing at a fast pace that has lead to the development of modern or contemporary management skills that differs from the traditional management skills in order to overcome the challenges in the modern business environment. As mentioned by Griffin (2013), the aim of the traditional management skills was to conduct business and earn profit whereas the aim of contemporary management skills is to ensure that the business organizations remain flexible and fluent globally. In traditional management, the business organizations had hierarchical organizational structure whereas in contemporary management the business organizations have flexible and adaptable organizational structure. As a result, the contemporary management skills are open to changes and seek new opportunities.  

According to the above figure, it can be seen that traditional management skills were short-term, extrinsic or demanding from outside, explicit, problem-solving and tangible and intangible assets. On the other hand, the contemporary or modern management skills are long-term, intrinsic, implicit, opportunity identifying and seeking, pull management and social and psychological capital (Ma and Tsui 2015). Thus, it can be said that traditional management skills were process and results driven whereas contemporary management skills are collaborative and mindful thereby, emphasizing on innovation and empowerment.

“Halo” effect is a widely discussed topic as this effect is described as an error in the thought process thereby, making specific inferences regarding an individual, thing or a method in terms of a general characteristics or a single trait. As a result, the effect gives rise to biasness in the future analysis. As mentioned by Rosenzweig (2014), halo effect in management occurs often thereby, affecting the performance analysis of the employees, the business and the management in general. Due to halo effect, success of one aspect of the business can be incorrectly generalized or the good characteristic of a manager can be assumed complete effectiveness of that manager. However, as criticized by Holoien and Fiske (2013), halo effect also leads to incorrect blame to a failure on a specific trait of a business, employee or a manager that was considered great once. For instance, halo effect forces us to think as the cause of the performance that actually is the result of a performance. In contemporary management, halo effect has an adverse impact on the performance appraisal of the subordinates or the employees, as the managers might fail to understand and determine the capacity of the individuals just by judging their physical appearances.

The halo effect is an essential consideration in group dynamics but needs to be avoided in order to make proper judgment. Halo effect in contemporary management needs to be avoided in order to be conscious while making judgment, giving first impression another chance and being coherent (Glen, Pech and Byrom 2013).

Efficient employees help in building great hospitality organizations. According to Jauhari and Bharwani (2017), the efficiency of the employees is determined by judging the appropriateness of the skills of the employees during their service. As a result, it is important for the employees in the hospitality industry to acquire the generic skills for delivering the best performance. Displaying good performance consistently is a challenge that is encountered by the employees in the hospitality industry thereby, hampering the customer service provided by both frontline and back staffs in the hotels. However, as argued by Wang and Tsai (2014), the generic skills are generally situational and individual specific thereby, making vocational skills easier to achieve than generic skills. Thus, it is important for the management of the hospitality industry to train the employees for acquiring the important skills for their daily life. Thus, it can be said that the application of generic skills is significant in all industries including the hospitality industry.

The hospitality industry is undergoing continuous change due to adaption of unique and innovative working procedures along with the intervention of advanced technology. This is due to the increased competition among the various hotel brands for attracting customers in order to sustain in the competitive market. The employees are under tremendous pressure to perform their best due to issues such as minimized rates of the rooms and maximized overheads. The management of the hotels put the employees under tremendous pressure in order to satisfy the customers for repetitive business. As mentioned by Ruetzler er al. (2014), hospitality industry is such as industry where service and product are simultaneously important in order to decide the quality of the service. Thus, overall experience of the customers during their stay in the hospital results in customer satisfaction. According to Sisson and Adams (2013), the level of customer satisfaction is greatly linked with the behavior they receive from the employees during their stay. However, as argued by Shariff, Kayat and Abidin (2014), profitability is considered as the byproduct of customer satisfaction that is essential for the employees of the hospitality industry to acquire for effective service.

Considering the wide range of generic skills, it is mentioned by Hertzman, Moreo and Wiener (2015) that happy employees are crucial for ensuring happy customers. However, as argued by Kokt and Strydom (2014), the managers need to look beyond the attitudes of the employees and work towards ensuring that the employees feel beloved and a part of the team. This allows the management to ensure happy and satisfied employees thereby, ensuring customer satisfaction. As commented by Wood (2013), generic soft skill such as communication is crucial in the hospitality sector, as this determines clear flow of information as well as allows the employees to understand and explain to the customers effectively and vice versa. However, as criticized by Wolfe, Phillips and Asperin (2014), it is the approach that determines the success of communication from both customers and employees point of view. However, it can be said that high quality human resource facilities are lacking in the hospitality sector. This can be mitigated by performing excellently and displaying appropriate skills while providing service to the customers. Interpersonal communication is a generic skill that is absolutely crucial in the service industry, as this provides an opportunity to establish a strong, emotional and positive bond between the employees of the hospitality industry and the customers. For instance, the customer that has encountered an emotionally intelligent experience with the employees results in establishing satisfied and loyal customer. This is because emotional intelligence helps in creating bond between the hotel and the customers. However, interpersonal tension at work is a reason for higher employee turnover rate and decreased employee satisfaction. However, as argued by Boone et al. (2013), customer satisfaction is hampered by the duration of time they have to wait thereby, suggesting that the generic skill of time management is more important is ensuring customer satisfaction.

According to Pizam, Okumus and Hutchinson (2013), the successful development of generic skills of the employees can be achieved by continuous mentoring and guidance. However, as argued by Jiang and Alexakis (2017), the successful development of generic soft skills is dependent on effective leadership and not only on effective training and monitoring. Also, factors like awareness, self-study, stress; real-world application also determines the success of the generic soft skills.

Thus, in this chapter, it can be summarized that generic managerial skills are important for the hospitality industry, as this helps in building great hospitality organizations by developing efficient employees. Successful implementation of generic managerial skills provides an opportunity for the employees to display their efficiency by highlighting appropriate skills while providing service to the customers. As the hospitality industry is a customer centric business organization, unable to satisfy the customers impose severe downfall for the hospitality organizations. Inconsistent display of good and efficient performance from the employees results in customer dissatisfaction thereby, making it difficult for the hospitality organizations to attract customers and survive in the competitive market. 

The previous chapter is followed by this chapter in which the different methodological tools are defined and discussed. This chapter describes in detail the different methodological tools that can be used while commencing with the work. Followed by this, the researcher provides suitable grounds of selecting the particular research methodologies by making sure that the quality of the work is maintained. In addition to, the researcher highlights the potential issues encountered by them while proceeding with the work. This chapter also discusses the potential ethical considerations that are crucial and needs to be followed in order to complete the research successfully.

In accordance with the research topic, positivism philosophy, deductive approach, descriptive design and interview and survey research strategy has been used. Taking in account the aforementioned research methodologies, non-probability sampling technique has been used. By using snowball non-probability sampling technique, the researcher has selected 50 middle management employees of the front line office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore for surveying followed by developing interview questions based on the survey analysis for 5 General Managers. In addition to, the researcher has selected the researcher has used primary data collection process along with both qualitative and quantitative data analysis technique for this research. The use of the aforementioned research methodologies has been justified by the researcher in the later section of this chapter.

Positivism, interpretivism and pragmatism are the three types of research philosophies that are present while commencing with research work. As mentioned by Neuman (2013), positivism philosophy is dependent on quantifiable observations thereby, allowing the use of statistical analysis. On the other hand, interpretivism philosophy highlights the idea of considering the perspectives and ideas of other individuals in the same topic. However, the both positivism and interpretivism philosophy forms pragmatism philosophy and has the characteristics of both the philosophies.

Positivism philosophy has been used for this research because this enabled the researcher to analyze the data using statistics. As a result, using positivism philosophy enabled the researcher to determine the generic managerial skills competency of front line office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore thereby, evaluating their significance for the success of the luxury hotels.

Deductive and inductive are the two types of approaches used while proceeding with the research work. As the name suggests, deductive approach enables the researcher to refer the made observations to previously formed theories and concepts thereby, supporting and arguing own findings. On the other hand, for inductive approach, the researcher has to formulate new theories and concepts based on the observations they have made. As a result, the focus of the researcher shifts from achieving research aim to development of theories (Mackey and Gass 2015).

Deductive approach has been applied by researcher, as the concept of the approach justified its suitability. The use of deductive approach provided an opportunity for the researcher to refer to already existing information and data, theories and concepts in terms of generic managerial skills. The use of this approach resulted in discussing generic managerial skills around the world along with explaining its significance in the frontline office in hospitality industry (Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault 2015).

Explanatory, descriptive and exploratory are the only three types of research design that can be used while proceeding with the research. According to Lewis (2015), the idea of exploratory research design sheds light on the concept of exploring the probable issues of the specific study. As a result, the researcher is able to define the problem of the research based on which research aim and objectives are developed along with justifying the significance of conducting the study. On the other hand, explanatory research design is defined as the design that explains the reason of the probable issues identified in the study. However, the descriptive design highlights the dual nature and traits of explanatory and exploratory research design. Thus, descriptive research design is most commonly used, as the researcher is able to identify and explain the probable reasons (Vaioleti 2016).

As mentioned in the above section, due to the dual nature and characteristics of descriptive design, it has been used by the researcher. The use of the descriptive design allowed the researcher to identify the probable issues in the frontline office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore and its impact on the business and their reputation. In addition to, the researcher is also able to mention and describe the reasons of the probable issues that is identified in the frontline office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore (Silverman 2016).

Case study, interview, action research and survey are the four types of strategies that are applied while commencing with the research work. Each of the research strategy have distinctive characteristics that helps the researcher to select the particular type based on the study type and aim. The concept of action research strategy is based on the future predictions of the phenomenon present in the research thereby, not providing sufficient data, as future is considered. On the other hand, for case study research, it is based on the past data and information in respect to the research topic. As a result, the researcher is able to refer to similar cases that mentions and highlights similar situations (Flick 2015). For interview, the researcher is able to communicate and interact with the participants personally for gathering sufficient information regarding their study whereas for survey the researcher is able to gather data from selected participants from an entire population (Smith 2015).

Both interview and survey research strategy has been opted by the researcher. The use of survey research strategy provided an opportunity for the researcher to analyze the impact of generic managerial skills of frontline office and the exact issues faced in Luxury Hotels in Singapore from the middle management. On the other hand, interviewing the General Managers helped the researcher to gather the opinions from the top experts in the hospitality industry (Bauer 2014).

The different kinds of sampling techniques include random probability and non-probability sampling technique. The random probability sampling technique is further classified into cluster sampling, simple sampling, stratified sampling and systematic sampling. On the other hand, the non-probability sampling technique branches out to convenience sampling, snowball sampling, judgmental sampling, quota sampling and consecutive sampling (Ledford and Gast 2018). For random probability sampling technique, all the individuals within a particular population have equal chances of participation in the data collection process whereas for non-probability sampling technique, it researcher selects the individuals for data collection process (Gale et al. 2013). Snowball is a type of non-probability sampling technique in which the researcher selects some participants at the initial stage that further selects potential participants. This method is selected when the researcher finds it difficult to find appropriate participants for data collection.

Snowball is a type of non-probability sampling technique that has been used by the researcher for this study. This is because the researcher found it difficult to find appropriate participants for investigating impact of generic managerial skills for frontline office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore. By using snowball non-probability sampling technique, the researcher has selected 50 middle management employees of the front line office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore for surveying followed by developing interview questions based on the survey analysis for 5 General Managers. (Reynolds et al. 2014).

Data collection process is one of the crucial processes while conducting a study, as this process helps the researcher to gather relevant data and information in terms of the research topic. Primary and secondary data collection processes are the only two methods of collecting data for gathering information for the data (Novikov and Novikov 2013). Secondary data collection process highlights collection of data from secondary resources or the sources where the researcher is not physically involved in the data collection process. On the other hand, the primary data collection method involves the collection of data from a particular population selected by the researcher. The researcher selects the population based on their suitability for the research topic (Fletcher 2017).  

Taking into consideration the information provided above, it can be said that the selection of primary data collection method is rationalized. This is because of the research strategy and the sampling technique selected by the researcher. Secondly, the selection of primary data collection process is justified, as this enabled the researcher to collect recent, raw and updated data from the middle management employees as well as the General Managers as they are considered as the top experts who can provide in-depth knowledge about the generic managerial skills in frontline office for Luxury Hotels in Singapore (Walliman 2017).

Qualitative and quantitative are the two types of data analysis process that can be used wile analyzing collected data for the research. For the quantitative data analysis method, the data is analyzed by considering the numbers, as the numbers represents whether the respondents agree or disagree to the given options. On the other hand, the qualitative data analysis emphasizes on maintaining the quality of the collected data by describing it in detail and referring it to relevant information from secondary resources (McCusker and Gunaydin 2015).

For this research, both qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques has been used by the researcher, as this helped in gathering deeper and better understanding about the significance of generic managerial skills for frontline office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore. The researcher has used sequential hybrid method while analyzing the data. As a result, the researcher has surveyed the middle management employees and analyzed the data followed by development of interview questions based on survey data analysis (Mukhopadhyay and Gupta 2014).

However, the researcher has faced some issues while accessing information and data for this study. As only survey research strategy has been used with close-ended questions, this restricted the employees of the front line office of Luxury hotels in Singapore to answer from the given options. As a result, the employees were not able to provide their true perspective but had to answer from the given options that compromised with the work. In addition to, the use of interview research strategy made the data collection process and analyzing more time-consuming. Also, the use of both survey and interview research strategy resulted in complexity of the study.

In order to complete a research successfully, it is important for the researcher to abide by the ethical considerations of the research strictly. One of the most important ethics in research is data confidentiality. It is against the ethics of the research to disclose the identity of the participants as well as the data shared by them without their individual consent. Some of the countries have also formulated legal policies in order to ensure data confidentiality (Isaacs 2014). In addition to, forcing the individuals to be a part of the data collection process of the research is also against the research ethics. The researcher has to make sure that the individuals take part in the data collection process willingly and not forcibly. One of the ways of ensuring willing participation of the participation is signing the consent form before engaging them in data collection process (Daudt, Van Mossel and Scott 2013).

Another significant research ethics is restriction of data manipulation. It is against the ethics of the research to manipulate and present the data for achieving the research aim and objectives the researcher has to present the original and authentic data in the research and support with required information. Additionally, ethical consideration of the research enforces the researcher to collect data from authentic resources and use the information only for academic purposes and not commercial purposes (Alvesson and Skolddberg 2017).

Thus, in this section, in can be summarized the use of the selected research methodologies is justified and made sure that the significance of generic managerial skills competency for the front line office in Luxury Hotels in Singapore is essential. Having competent generic skills provides an opportunity for the business organizations to handle the customers better thereby, ensuring customer satisfaction. As a result, the luxury hotels in Singapore are able to build strong customer base that returns to the hotels in future when they visit the destination. In addition to, the use of the specific methodologies in this chapter helped in maintaining data quality, credibility and reliability by gathering appropriate data and information. 

This chapter comprises of the analysis of the data that is collected by surveying and interviewing the employees at the managerial employees of the Luxury Hotels of Singapore. The aim of the analysis is to prove that generic managerial skills competency is important for the front line staffs of Luxury Hotels of Singapore.

The demographic factors are necessary for the survey, as it helps in segregating the population that has been taken up for the thesis to be completed. For this research study, the population of the hospitality industry has been taken in to consideration. It can be seen that most number of participants in the study are between the age group of 20-25 years and equal gender has participated in the research process as well. Most of the participants for the study are of the Asian ethnicity who have a Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Sciences in the Singapore region. The participants have been working in the hospitality industry for a period of 1-2 years and have a monthly income of 2500-3000 SGD$. Most of the participants have been working in the luxury hotel segment for a period of 6-12 months.  Additionally they have been working in the luxury hotel segment as a front office manager for a period of 6-12 months as well.

The sample population that has been considered for this study has helped in focussing more on the luxury hotel segment so that the study can be concluded in a concise manner. This will also allow the study to be conducted based on the participants who are also working as a front line manager so that the topic can be narrowed down.  

Most of the participant of the study has stated that they are familiar with the term generic, critical enabling and employability skills. The knowledge helps them in working within the luxury hotel segment as a front office manager as well. These terms are also necessary for working together as a team with other employees within the organization.

It can be seen from analysing the data that the generic skills of the participants help them in collecting the information that is present in the organization so that it can be analysed and organized in a proper manner. The information of the organization needs to be analysed so that the operations of the place can be managed in a proper manner.

The participants were surveyed on how much emphasis they give on the generic skills within the work place. It was seen that most of the middle management employees have stated that they possess the right amount of knowledge regarding the generic skills that should be applied within the organization. This helps them in solving the problems that arises within the work place.

The survey was also conducted on whether the assessment of skills are present within the organization to which the participants have stated that they agree to the fact that skills assessment is done within the luxury hotel organizations. This helps in managing the problems that may arise in any situation within the organization due to internal or external conflicts so that the functioning does not get hampered.

1= Strongly Agree, 2= Agree, 3= Neutral, 4= Disagree and 5= Strongly Disagree

The survey was also conducted to understand the capacity that the participants have in analysing and synthesizing the information that has been collected by them in the organization. It can be seen that most of the participants were neutral to the fact regarding the capacity that they have in analysing and synthesizing the data that has been collected.

The participants were also asked question regarding their ability in applying the knowledge in the real-world. It was seen that most of the participants have given a mixed reaction where some have agreed to the fact and some chose to remain neutral. This shows that some of the participants are practical and apply the knowledge within the organization to mitigate the problems that may arise.

The survey also threw light on the time and planning management that is present among the employees. It can be seen that most of the middle management employees who were the participants of the survey have agreed to the fact that they have the ability to plan for any situation as well as manage the time.

The survey also provided insight regarding the basic technical knowledge that the participants need to have within the work place. It can be seen that most of the participants have strongly agreed to the fact that they need to have the basic technical knowledge that will allow the employees in working efficiently within the luxury hotel organization.

The participants were also asked whether they have the skill to communicate with others in written and oral format. This is due to the fact that the generic skills are also inclusive of this characteristic. It can be seen that most of the participants were neutral to this fact, as they do not have any idea whether generic skills help them in communicating in a proper manner.  

The participants were surveyed whether they have the elementary computing skills that are necessary for managing the luxury hotel organizations. It was seen that most of the participants have given a mixed answer, as some have agreed strongly and some have disagreed. Therefore it can be stated that participants belonging to some luxury hotel chains have the computing skills whereas in other organization, they find it difficult to implement it.

The survey was also conducted to get an insight regarding the research skills that are required by the middle management employees to operate in the luxury hotel organization. It can be seen that most of the employees have agreed to the fact that research skills are needed so that they can manage the front office of the luxury hotels in a proper manner.

The survey was also conducted to understand the capacity to learn among the participants. It can be seen that most of the middle management employees have agreed strongly to the fact that they have the capacity to learn the new things that are present within the organization. This helps them in constantly staying connected with the new things that are present within the luxury hotels.

The participants were also asked regarding the skills that they have with respect to managing the information that is being passed on to them. It was seen that most of the survey participants have disagreed to the fact that they have no skills related to managing the information, which may hamper the quality that is required to be present in the luxury hotels.

Q1) Do you consider generic managerial skills a significant tool for success in the hospitality industry?

General Manager 1: “Yes, I think the generic managerial skills are absolutely crucial for the success in the hospitality industry. It is essential for the employees to have the ability handle their surrounding environment successfully.”

General Manager 2: “For me, it is important for all the employees to have generic skills to handle the customers with varied demand and expectations. But my only fear is that there is no particular method of acquiring the skills.”

General Manager 3: “I have been in this industry for the past 10 years and I have seen hotels develop generic skills as their strengths. I personally solved several issues of the customers by using the generic skills.”

General Manager 4: “Generic skills are one of the most significant factors that determine the success of the hospitality industry. It differs from country-to-country but the ultimate aim is to provide excellent service to the customers.”

General Manager 5: “Without generic skills competency, it is impossible for the hospitality industry to survive. With the distinctive nature of the customers that visit hotels, the employees must have the ability to handle their surroundings.”

Q2) What do generic skills mean to you?

General Manager 1: “For me, generic skills mean the ability to handle the surrounding environment. Traits such as effective communication, problem-solving nature, decision-making ability are some of the generic skills that make hospitality industry successful.”

General Manager 2: “In the hospitality industry, generic skills mean the ability to communicate effectively, solve problems, make decisions and provide the best that they want. As the hospitality industry is a customer driven sector, having generic managerial skills help in ensuring customer satisfaction and loyalty.”

General Manager 3: “For me, generic skills in this sector are more about the employees rather than the customers. This is because for me it is the employees that represent the company to the customers and happy employees make happy customers.”

General Manager 4: “During my experience in the hospitality industry, I have seen efficient employees making successful hotels. I feel the ability to work under pressure of satisfying the employees are a generic skill for me because we have immense pressure of delivering the best to the customers and make them satisfied and happy.”

General Manager 5: “I consider effective communication, problem solving attitude, ability to take decision and ability to work under pressure as the generic skills that are crucial for the hospitality industry.”  

Q3) What are the key generic managerial skills front line employees of luxury hotels of Singapore must have?

General Manager 1: “The employees represent hotel to the customers and thus I feel polite and warm nature are key generic skills that front line employees of Luxury Hotel of Singapore must have. But I feel that having generic skills is both situational and individual specific.”

General Manager 2: “Being a frontline employee, the key generic skill that the employees must have is the ability to communicate effectively. For me, first impression is the last impression. The ability to communicate effectively makes the customers satisfied and happy and the employees can also make the customers feel warmth and significant.”

General Manager 3: “The employees in the hospitality industry work under tremendous pressure for satisfying the customers. Considering the distinctive nature of the individual employees, I feel flexibility and adaptability are the key generic skills for the employees in the Luxury Hotels in Singapore.”

General Manager 4: “In hospitality industry, both service and product goes simultaneously. So for me, employability skills, ability to act promptly, time management and flexibility are the key generic skills that the frontline employees must have.”  

General Manager 5: “For me, I think the generic managerial skills that the front line managers should have are leadership, flexibility, quick learning ability, being creative and ability to work as a team.”

Q4) What is current problem in terms of generic managerial skills the front line staffs of luxury hotels of Singapore are facing?

General Manager 1: “The main I feel is ability to adapt to new situations as the customers visiting the hotel come with distinctive requirements and demands.”

General Manager 2: “I have seen the staffs facing problems in terms of making appropriate decision while attending the customers.”

General Manager 3: “Lack of leadership skills is one of the main issues that the frontline staffs of the hotels are facing. The managers tend to follow rather than developing new ways.”

General Manager 4: “Team working is a major issue that the front line staffs are facing, as hospitality workplace is having employees from different cultural and religious background and distinctive preferences.”

General Manager 5: “Lack of effective communication is a major problem in terms of generic managerial skills the front line employees are facing. As a result, the service to the customers are being hampered and compromised.”

Q5) What are steps taken to mitigate the issues in terms of generic managerial skills?

General Manager 1: “Continuous guidance is necessary for the staffs in order to make them flexible followed by making them adaptable to emergency situations.”

General Manager 2: “I feel allowing the staffs to work alongside the senior managers is another method of solving the issue of decision-making.”

General Manager 3: “It is important for the frontline managers to show their creativity by letting go of their fear. This will help in bringing out the true leadership skills within them.”

General Manager 4: “Regular sessions in terms of team meeting are the only way I can think of in order to develop team working ability.”  

General Manager 5: “Increasing communication among each other is the best possible way of developing effective communication for the front line employees. Once the employees develop enough confidence about communicating with each other, it will surely reflect on their communication with the customers.”

From this section, it can be summarized that generic managerial skills competency is of utmost significance for the front line employees of luxury hotel in Singapore. This is because the generic skills provides an upper hand to the staffs and the managers for handling the customers tactfully and appropriately thereby, providing ensuring customer satisfaction.   

By surveying the middle management employees and interviewing the general managers, it can be said that generic managerial skills are of utmost significance for the hospitality industry. Having adequate generic managerial skills competence ensures that the employees of the Luxury Hotel in Singapore are being able to serve the best to the customers and survive the competitive advantage. Both the general managers and the middle management employees have shared their experience and viewpoints that justifies significance of generic managerial skills that is mentioned in the above section.

As mentioned in the literature review section by Tricot and Sweller (2014), the employees are able to provide excellent customer service by displaying appropriate skills. The data analysis also supports that the employees are key in representing the company to the employees. This finding from the literature review is also supported by the data gathered from the survey and interview from the middle management employees and general managers. The primary data suggests that having generic managerial skills is important for in the hospitality industry. The above information is true because hospitality industry is a customer centric business sector that requires effortless service from the employees for achieving satisfaction and loyalty. In addition to, having generic competence skills allows the employees to handle situations promptly, rise up to the customer’s expectation by delivering the best.

Griffin (2013) mentions the change of management skills in the past and in the present. The traditional management skills emphasized more on gaining profit that was short-term and failed to get suitable results. On the other hand, contemporary management skills are long-term and emphasize on the customer demands and needs thereby, giving success to the organizations in the hospitality industry. From the above conducted literature review, it can be said that efficient employees help in establishing great hospitality organizations. The first impression is the last impression and being the front line employees, they have a huge impact on the customers that visit the hotel. The approach and way the front line employees use for interacting with the customers in terms of effective communication, ability solve-problems, make decision, being flexible and adaptable, creativity and team work determines the success of the hospitality industry. This has been mentioned by different authors in the literature review such as Ruetzler er al. (2014), Wiener (2015), Kokt and Strydom (2014) and Wolfe, Phillips and Asperin (2014). This finding of the literature review is also supported by the findings of the interview and survey where both the middle management employees and the general managers agree that the frontline staffs needs to have generic managerial skills such as effective communication, ability solve-problems, make decision, being flexible and adaptable, creativity and team work. Having the aforementioned qualities for the front line employees help in ensuring excellent service to the customers in terms of greetings, approach, care, affection and warmth. This results in higher level of customer satisfaction and loyalty that is of utmost significance in the hospitality industry, as it is entirely customer centric. 

Conclusion and recommendations

Conclusion

From the above study, it can be concluded that generic managerial skill competence is of utmost significance for the frontline employees in Luxury Hotel in Singapore. The presence of generic managerial skills among the front line staffs of Luxury Hotel in Singapore helps in providing the best service to the customers. As known, the hospitality industry is a customer centric business sector thereby, making customers the pillar of the business profit and expansion. All the hospitality organizations aim towards providing the best customer service in order to attract, satisfy and retain them. It is in the shoulder of the employees to provide the best customer service experience thereby, retaining them.

While conducting the study, the main issue identified in terms of the generic managerial skills is lack of effective communication, leadership qualities, creativity, adaptability and flexibility, problem solving attitude, decision making ability and ability to work as a team. Taking into account the working nature of the hospitality industry, coordination and team work by communicating effectively is significant. Absence of the above-mentioned qualities hampers the work culture and effort of the employees while attending and providing service to the employees. Even the survey and interview results highlight the significance of generic managerial skills for the front line staffs of Luxury Hotel in Singapore. The employees are the face of the organization and represent it in front of the customers. Thus, having happy employees help in making the customers happy and satisfied.

In addition to, effective communication, problem-solving attitude and ability to take decision, flexibility and adaptability provides an opportunity for the employees of the hospitality industry give their best to the customers. Also, having these crucial generic managerial skill qualities enable the hospitality organizations to attend the customers with great care, affection and warmth. Thus, it can be concluded that having generic managerial skills provides an opportunity for the hospitality organizations to achieve the best in terms of customer satisfaction thereby, surviving the tough and intense market of competition. 

Objective 1: To identify the levels of managerial proficiency for frontline office staff in luxury hotels in Singapore.

Objective 1 is linked with section 2.3 in the literature review that talks us through the different managerial levels and competence required in the hospitality industry. The generic skills for each of the level of the management differ according to their position. In addition to survey question section B are competence related that highlights the skills and abilities the frontline employees need to have in luxury hotel in Singapore.

Objective 2: To ascertain the competence inherent to each of the levels

Objective 2 is linked with section 2.3 in the literature review. This section highlights the distinctive competence that is required at different levels of the management. This is divided based on the position of each of the employees in the managerial hierarchy. This is also linked with section B of the survey questionnaire that is related to competence.

Objective 3: To evaluate the importance of generic managerial skills competence

Objective 3 is linked with section 2.2 of the literature review. This section explains and discusses the concept of generic managerial skills competence followed by explaining the importance of it in the hospitality industry. In addition to, the interview question 1, 2 and 3 also supports the information found in the literature review in terms of generic managerial skills and its significance for the frontline staffs of luxury hotels in Singapore.

Objective 4: To assess the current level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore

Objective 4 is linked with section 2.7 in the literature review. This section discusses and explains the various generic managerial skills that are required competence for the hospitality industry in luxury hotel in Singapore. From the information provided in this section, it can be said clearly that ensuring customer happiness and satisfaction is possible by fulfilling the competence skills efficiently. Also, interview questions 1 and 3 also justify the significance of managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore.

Objective 5: To ascertain the demanded level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels, Singapore

Objective 5 is linked with literature review section 2.7. This section sheds light on the significance of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore thereby, ascertaining the demanded level of generic managerial skills in luxury hotels in Singapore. This explains the significance of generic managerial skills from the perspectives of the employees, as they are the ones representing the organization in front of the employees.

Objective 6: To contrast the existing generic managerial skills competence to the required level by luxury hotels in Singapore

Objective 6 is linked with literature review section 2.5. This section sheds light on the traditional and the contemporary management skills that are required for the luxury hotels in Singapore. The information provided in this section explains the aim of the traditional management skills whereas the modern and current managerial skills are developed for long-term and based on pull management.

Objective 7: To analyze existing and potential challenges adhered to the generic managerial skill-set

Objective 7 is linked with literature review section 2.2. Along with explaining the concept of generic managerial skills, this section also sheds light on the potential challenges employees face in attaining the skills perfectly. Additionally, interview question 4 also sheds light on the potential issues employees face in terms of generic managerial skills followed by suitable recommendations.

Based on the identified issues in terms of the generic managerial skills competence, the suitable recommendations are listed below:

Regular meetings

Ensuring regular meetings will help in keeping track of the each other’s roles and responsibilities followed by prohibiting negative approach and cohesion of work responsibilities. In addition to, the employees will be able to share their issues in terms of the generic skills and mitigate them accordingly.

Engaging in group activities

Engaging in group activities will facilitate in developing effective communication among the employees working in the hospitality industry. Efficient working in the hospitality industry requires great deal of coordination that can be developed by working as a team and can be developed by engaging the employees in group activities that requires communication for assuring success.

Promoting creativity

The management needs to encourage the staffs to bring out their ideas for working without hindrances. The management need to assure the employees that they are free to share their ideas and creativity without any fear and obligation.

Continuous monitoring

In order to ensure that the employees are performing their generic managerial skills to the perfection, it is essential for the higher authority to keep an eye on the employees continuously. In this way, it will be easier to understand where the employees are lagging and needs improvement thereby, developing plans and strategies of helping them adequately.

Facilitating independent working

Ensuring independent working without any fear will help the employees bring out their leadership skills without any fear of being restricted. This will enable the employees to be flexible and adaptable thereby, acting to sudden situation promptly.

This study is conducted on the middle management employees and the general managers that have been working in the hospitality industry for 1-2 years with a monthly income of 2500-3000 SGD$. The middle management employees and the general managers are generally of Asian ethnicity followed with a Bachelor’s Degree in Hospitality Sciences. Hence, future study can be conducted by taking into account the executive level employees of different educational and ethnic background. In addition to, as this study only emphasizes on the Luxury Hotel in Singapore, future study can be conducted by taking into account small, medium and large organizations in the hospitality industry and how significant generic managerial skill competency is for the employees working there.  

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