Management and Leadership (Coursework - Report) Essay

Management and Leadership (Coursework - Report) - Essay Example An institution’s success largely depends on how decisions are made and the structure that govern employee relationship and customer service (Simon 2006, pp.44). The company has maintains high standards by employing a very capable management team. They include the Chairman of the chain, Bill Marriot; The Chief Executive Officer; Arne Sorenson; the President and Chief Operating officer, Hurve Humler and the Chief Financial Officer, Peter Cole (Ritz-Carlton 2010). The company however achieved its high position in global hospitality under the leadership of President Horst Schulze. Schulze introduced focus on both the data-driven and personal sides of hospitality. The hotel chain has accomplished a lot since its inception and is the only company in the world to have won the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Awards twice both in 1992 and 1998 (Bono & Heijden 2011, pp.221). It has placed in top positions in various notable hospitality surveys such as the Zagat Survey. Mis sion and Goals The motto of the Ritz-Carlton hotel is â€Å"Ladies and Gentlemen serving Ladies and Gentlemen†. This motto describes the general operations of the company and defines its corporate strategy. Since its inception, the company’s goal has been to provide exemplary service to their consumers while ensuring that elegance and luxury is of high quality. The company is dedicated to ensuring that their consumers feel like loyalty from the moment the step through the doors till the moment they depart. Customer Relations According to Storey, Emberson and Reade (2005, pp.248), customer responsiveness largely depends on the management model used and can make or break a company. The Ritz-Carlton group has ensured that their customer service if exemplary and worthy to compete in the global hospitality market. The previous president Horst Schulze instituted certain quality service control that catapulted the hotel chain into the top. Apart from the three levels of servi ce employed to make guests feel welcome, employees in the company are given the authority to handle any complaints from customers on the spot and can spend $2000 in the process as necessitated (Bono & Heijden 2011, pp.223). The employees can also request immediate aid from other employees. Furthermore, the employees are also required to gain feedback from the customers within a twenty minute period on the progress of problem resolution. Analysis of the Corporate Strategy of the Ritz-Carlton Hofstede demonstrated that there are several dimensions of culture that determine the operations of a company. The dimensions define how a company interacts both with its employees and its consumers. The first dimension is whether a company is means oriented or goal oriented (Hofstede 1980, pp.74). The Ritz-Carlton company is goal oriented such that the structure commencing from its credo to internal operations are all geared to providing the exemplary customer service and maintaining the Ritz-Ca rlton mystique. The second dimension is whether a company is internal driven or externally driven (Bono & Heijden 2011, pp.212). In an internally driven company, employees perceive that honesty and business ethics are vital and that they better understand what the customer needs. In an externally driven system however, emphasis is on meeting the requirements and needs of the customer (Aaker 2007, pp.59). The Ritz is an externally dri