Facilities Management and Operations in Hospitality and Tourism Industry

Question 1: Potential Benefits of FM in Hospitality and Tourism Industry

Question 1

Facilities management (FM) can be summarised as “creating an environment that is conducive to carrying out the organisation’s primary operations, taking an integrated view of the services infrastructure, and using this to deliver customer satisfaction and best value through support for and enhancement of the core business”  (Atkin & Brooks, 2005, p. 3

Within the context of operating hospitality and tourism businesses:

a) What, therefore, are the potential benefits of FM? Briefly discuss four of them.   

a) FM embraces both “hard” and “soft” aspects. Briefly explain what is meant by each of these terms, citing two examples of each. 

Question 2

“Outsourcing” is one particular type of contracting-out, namely “the process by which a user employs a separate company (the supplier), under a contract, to perform a function, which had previously been carried out in-house; and transfers to that supplier assets, including people and management responsibility” (Barrett & Baldry, 2003, p. 146).

Within the context of a private sports club that is considering outsourcing its cleaning and foodservice functions:

a) What would be the key considerations in deciding whether to outsource these functions or retain them in-house? Briefly discuss four examples of such considerations. 

b) If it were decided to outsource these functions, briefly discuss four examples of potential challenges for the club and how these might be overcome. 

Question 3

Within the context of a large city hotel having decided to outsource its linen and laundry function, briefly discuss what is involved in the three main stages of any such outsourcing process.

Question 4

Within the context of a large and busy restaurant operation, briefly discuss five examples of how new technologies are impacting upon building operation and management.

Question 5

Within the context of a major conference and exhibition centre, briefly discuss five examples of key safety and security considerations that apply in such an operation.

Question 6

Maintenance can be defined as “the effort in connection with different technical and administrative actions to keep a physical asset in, or restore it to, a condition where it can perform a required function” (British Standards Institution, 1993, cited in Chan et al, 2001, p. 494).

Within the context of operating an event venue:

a) Why is regular and effective maintenance especially important? Briefly discuss four reasons. (10marks)

b) Identify, and briefly discuss, four types of maintenance, citing one example of each. 

Question 7

Energy efficiency is now a major issue for all types of business.

Within the context of hospitality and tourism operations:

a) Briefly discuss four examples of modern technologies that are helping to reduce energy consumption. 

b) Briefly discuss how staff training and guest education can also contribute to improved energy efficiency. 

Question 8

“While the term ‘green’ in business originally related to environmental issues, it has evolved to embrace all aspects of sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR). To be properly ‘green’, a company now needs to incorporate sustainable thinking in its decision-making at all levels throughout the organisation”

(International Tourism Partnership, 2009).

Within the context of a resort hotel in a sensitive location, briefly discuss four examples of how such thinking can be incorporated into its everyday operation.