Strategic Management Within Total Quality Service

Introduction

Organizations undergo developmental phases from the time of inauguration to maturity. Managing the progress steps is critical in the growth of companies. Adopting principles and tools of strategic management is essential for organizations since they provide an opportunity for effective milestone forecasting and planning while influencing leadership development. When firms are affected by physical, financial, and environmental challenges, they employ strategic development to streamline their operations and mitigate possible issues. Additionally, planning, analysis, assessment, and monitoring of activities and operational frameworks that lead to the attainment of goals and objectives are expectations of a progressive strategic plan (Bagheri, 2016). Therefore, implementing emerging technologies, digital innovations, and customer satisfaction systems is, arguably, one of the principles of achieving a strategic management plan. Hospitality is a competitive sector given the investments and systems automation that are adopted within the operations. Although the industry experiences high competition under digital innovations, the quality and sustainability of service are under-utilized, hence the need to implement effective strategic planning to streamline focus and growth.

Tools and Principles of Strategic Management

Planning is an imperative foundation in the strategic administration of organizations. Businesses that demonstrate quality and competency of service usually employ strategic management systems within their operations. The process provides a blueprint that defines simple, manageable, attainable, and realistic milestones under a guided timeframe for an organization to realize within an implementation cycle. Bagheri (2016) maintains that to achieve forecasted indicators, a firm must utilize various strategic management principles and tools. Strategic management approaches are imperative when providing effective service, quality, and value positioning.

Traditionally, strategic management approaches have been exploited when indicating the setup in which proposed goals can be achieved through planning and prioritization of tasks. Bagheri (2016) establishes a transformative model, namely, new public management (NPM), so that the application of strategic planning can fit within the expectations of modern corporations (p. 431). In the quest to attain quality and competitive advantage, Bagheri (2016) avers that organizations operationalize strategic planning and management tools within their industries for ease of work and to attain competitive advantage. Therefore, the digital development provides an attempt to synchronize the NPM and the stakeholders’ expectation in various operations of a firm. Implementing strategic approaches that focus on planning and prioritization enhances value, quality, and competitive advantage.

Achieving values and quality within an organization requires a consolidated strategic focus. The NPM strategy configures the utilization of value chain and stakeholder analyses to set up operational standards on which a firm can gain competitive advantage. Notably, using empirical examinations helps an organization to underpin environmental requirements when manufacturing. Therefore, to ensure that strategic planning milestones are achieved and to attain competitive edge, company executives employ frameworks such as human resources planning, enterprise resources management systems, and digital technology (Bagheri, 2016). Furthermore, organizations develop and implement modern frameworks to manage both the perceived and achieved value and quality by stakeholders. Achieving value and quality positioning requires executing progressive strategic management systems for growth.

Balanced Scorecard

 Balanced scorecard is a strategic management toolkit that helps to transform organizations in readiness to accomplish set milestones. Bagheri (2016) elucidates that the approach provides a perspective relating to customers, internal operational processes, and financial tracking systems, which are significant to quality and value positioning. As company attempts to accomplish its mission and objectives, it leverages on challenges likely to occur through management tools to achieve growth.

Kaizen

The foundation of the Kaizen approach is to achieve quality and value within the applications of employees in the workplace. The strategy is based on continuous activities meant to develop a strong team spirit and incremental improvements in scheduled tasks. The gradual developmental changes unified in the philosophy of Kaizen can inscribe quality and value in operations and products, leading to customer satisfaction (Bagheri, 2016). This strategic management tool is essential in developing a platform for attaining quality and value for products and services.

Six Sigma Frameworks

Organizations in the service sector focus on attaining sustainability through quality and value systems. Thus, to ensure that environmental standards are met, companies implement safe sourcing systems, distribution mechanisms, and simplified product development phases that enhance quality and conserve the environment. Lean supply chains are adopted as platforms that stimulate supply chain processes to deliver quality products to the end user in a cost-effective manner (Bagheri, 2016, p. 431). The Six-Sigma model prioritizes on swift operations, such as value identification and sequencing that enhance waste elimination. Therefore, this strategic management tool is among the main drivers of change and quality positioning and should be applied to realize progress and competitive advantage.

Assessment and Performance Management

Goal-oriented organizations schedule assessment of their processes to establish quality and performance levels. Measuring organizational activities or operations is vital in maintaining quality and value. Jones, Hillier, and Comfort (2016) argue that evaluations support companies to achieve better efficiency and sustainability. Performance management is a critical aspect of strategic planning approaches since it inspires standards within company operations as builders towards quality and value. In addition, Scroggins (2015) notes that staff motivational techniques, such as promotions, challenging work environment, and compensation packages, influence an organization’s performance. Therefore, assessment of standards of employees, suppliers, and other stakeholder is an essential initiative in achieving the operational goals of a company.

In addition, the development of standards and industry best practices is a significant part of strategic management. Common practices such as leadership, planning, people management, information, and process administration have been used as benchmarks for quality and comparative advantage. Industries such as hospitality are expected to employ standardization metrics in managing quality and value due to the nature of activities they undertake. Observing standards and industry best practices is a substantial prospect of strategic planning and can be attained through periodic exercise and process assessment as a performance management approach.

Stakeholder Mapping

Stakeholders within an organization can influence operations to achieve or hinder the creation of value and quality. Managing stakeholders’ needs is an important strategic planning principle since it has a direct correlation with cost and value positioning. Bagheri (2016) outlines stakeholder mapping as an important tool that helps to evaluate and manage investors’ networks. The framework assists to classify stakeholders based on their interest, such as political, social, and economic, for secure processing and management. Bagheri (2016) elucidates that while developing guidelines for stakeholder engagement with the organization, value chain analysis is significant in adapting quality procedures and management (p. 433). The framework can also be employed in the hospitality industry to manage material sourcing and supplier trends among other aspects. Appreciating the relative position of stakeholders is essential in the delivery of quality and total value for firms.

Organizational Culture

Theoretical Foundation

            The theory of strategic management is attributed to various positive developments in and growth of organizations. For example, human motivation theory predicts an individual’s perception of work. The theory is classified into several subcategories, such as incentive-based, intrinsic motivation, humanistic, and arousal-based. The incentive model demonstrates employee inclinations to rewards. Workers who are adequately rewarded are motivated both intrinsically and extrinsically based on the instruments used. Hence, rewarding employees is an important practice to ensure quality within a sector (Scroggins, 2015). The arousal theory is linked to the business and performance systems of an organization. Although Scroggins (2015) argues that the model cannot be used to demonstrate job satisfaction and commitment, he illustrates that it is appropriate when approached from a perspective of stress reduction. The model is relevant in the hospitality industry, where most services and operational procedures are repetitive and can be a source of workplace stress due to limited challenge. Human motivational theories are critical in strategic management since they influence the quality of operations, leading to value and customer satisfaction.

The implementation of quality in the workplace, especially in the hospitality sector, requires the fulfillment of stakeholders’ needs. Scroggins (2015) posits that value and quality are determined by human theories of motivations and behavioral traits, which are based on an individual’s cognitive assessment (p. 25). The author highlights Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as essential for firms in establishing quality standpoints. The theory illustrates the needs of stakeholders through a bottom-up approach and states that higher needs can only be attained after the lower ones. To increase workers’ performance as per Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, companies must ensure that their employees achieve self-actualization through positive workplace policies and procedures. Thus, strategic management plans should consider the way stakeholders’ desires and employees’ needs would be met to encourage growth and gain competitive advantage.

Strategic management is centered on the basic tenets of handling partnership interests. According to Jones et al. (2016), stakeholder theory demonstrates the interest of entities involved in company operations, such as shareholders, customers, suppliers, employees, and society. Therefore, while managing contracting interests, it is significant that quality approaches are used to attain sustainability. For instance, to maintain prominence within operations, an organization needs to ensure that the quality of materials and the entire value chain conforms to the set standards. Stakeholder theory can be integrated to manage sustainability approaches for quality of service in the hospitality sector. Arguably, organizations that invest in stakeholder management and generate discourses on possible distractors, such as inter and intra political and environmental issues, realize quality and sustainability.  

Leadership as a Tool of Strategic Management

Various comparative analyses, empirical studies, and theoretical foundations reveal that leadership is an effective driver for change and growth. Attaining strategic quality service goals relies on effective leadership styles employed by organizational management teams (Slavik, Putnova, & Cebakova, 2015). Notably, multinational corporations also strive to achieve inspired workforce and motivated employees through intellectual stimulation, fair industry practices, and team management. Hence, to create value and vision across a multidisciplinary spectrum of employee, suppliers, customers, and stockholders, effective and responsive guidance is expected. Therefore, leadership and quality in business are correlated elements that influence positive growth in firms. 

Leadership plays a critical role in modeling change within an organization. It creates a culture of planning and future forecasting, which lead to better strategic decisions. Slavik, Putnova, and Cebakova (2015) illustrate that organizational performance is an incumbent responsibility of effective leadership (p. 1160). Jabbar and Hussein (2017) aver that strategic leadership inspires stakeholders to consolidate synergies that translate forecasted mission and objectives into reality (p.100). As an important part of strategic planning, Jabbar and Hussein (2017) posit that progressive leadership builds an operational platform for an organization to manage its business, attain growth, and achieve competitive advantage (p.100). For instance, performance attributes, such as strategic vision and mission statements, objectives, goals, and operational milestones are executed through effective approaches. Hence, leadership in one of the critical factors that enhances quality and value for companies.

The role of leadership in strategic management moves beyond the development of operational alternatives for change and growth. The perspectives of Jabbar and Hussein (2017) in management concur with Molina-Azorín et al. (2015) who assert that irrespective of how deliberate the operational projections are, without effective leadership style, they fail to achieve significant growth and development (p. 42). Moreover, Jabbar and Hussein (2017) demonstrate that leaders should provide impetus to activities while building morale and team spirit for employees (p.101). Total quality management within the hospitality sector considers various standardization models, such as ISO 9001 certification, to inscribe quality within the operational process that lead to customer satisfaction (Molina-Azorín et al., 2015, p. 42). The quality management system (QMS) in the hospitality sector promotes operational standards that enhance effectiveness and efficiency for customers. The development and implementation of such recognized operation standardization platforms play an important role in creating quality and value within a firm.

Various theories of leadership provide different representations on how quality and value prospects influence company’s performances. Slavik, Putnova, and Cebakova (2015) explain that theoretical models on effective leadership that focuses on developing organizational behaviors should be change-driven, inspiring, and based on intellectual stimulation of employees. The theoretical traits of transformational and transactional leadership have been regarded as main drivers of value and quality performance. According to Slavik, Putnova, and Cebakova (2015), transactional leadership should apply fundamental models of rewards and management to achieve control of both followers and workers (p. 1160). However, the efforts to gain control can be useful in enhancing quality and value within operations. Conversely, the transformational theory of leadership provides a better guiding principle from the transactional style. The progressive transformational trait is based on charisma, while inducing intrinsic motivation to the followers (Slavik, Putnova, & Cebakova, 2015, p.1160). Therefore, the transformational theory of leadership provides better approaches to organizational development and quality management.

Conclusion

As organizations conduct their business, the levels of competition increases leading executives to make decision that enhance productivity. It is worth noting that industry regulators also develop principles and monitoring frameworks as check and balances that guide operations. It is important that the governing values and strategic directions are provided to consolidate the focus of company operations in line with the vision of the stockholders. Strategic management practice is necessary as a guide to firm’s procedures by providing simple, manageable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound milestones for growth and developments. Additionally, quality and value positioning for companies require conceited efforts integrated between company executives and employees. Strategic planning ensures a consolidation of synergies between management team and workers while mainstreaming efficiency and effectiveness of operations for sustainability. However, to achieve milestones set within the strategic planning systems, effective leadership is critical. Therefore, organizational leadership should implement effective approaches that will enhance a positive culture and fulfill the needs of stakeholders for purposes of gaining competitive advantage.

Final comment: Make sure each of the aspects of strategic management discussed in this paper is tied to hospitality. You need to provide specific examples of how each of those strategic management aspects can be useful in the hospitality sector.

 

References

Bagheri, J. (2016). Overlaps between human resources’ strategic planning and strategic management tools in public organizations. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 230, 430-438. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2016.09.054

Jabbar, A., & Hussein, A. (2017). The role of leadership in strategic management. International Journal of Research-Granthaalayah, 5(5), 99-106.  doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.583890.

Jones, P., Hillier, D., & Comfort, D. (2016). Sustainability in the hospitality industry: Some personal reflections on corporate challenges and research agendas. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 28(1), 1-35, doi: 10.1108/IJCHM1020120180

Molina-Azorín, J. F., Tarí, J. J., Pereira-Moliner, J., López-Gamero, M. D., & Pertusa-Ortega, E. M. (2015). The effects of quality and environmental management on competitive advantage: A mixed methods study in the hotel industry. Tourism Management, 50, 41-54. doi: 10.1016/j.tourman.2015.01.008

Scroggins, R. (2015). Strategic management theories. Global Journal of Computer Science and Technology. 15(1), 24-31. Retrieved from https://computerresearch.org/index.php/computer/article/download/1240/1227

Slavik, J., Putnova, A., & Cebakova, A. (2015). Leadership as a tool of strategic management. Procedia Economics and Finance, 26, 1159-1163. doi: 10.1016/S2212-5671(15)00946-6