Marriott International is a diversified American multinational organization that deals with the hospitality business. It possesses a broad portfolio of different types of hotels and lodging facilities. J. Willard Marriott founded the organization and Bill Marriott as Executive Chairman is leading the firm together with Arne Sorenson as the Chief Executive Officer. In the world, the organization is recognized as the third-largest chain of hotels. Additionally, it owns thirty brands together with 7,003 properties in over 130 territories and nations. Considering the fact that it manages such a large network, the organization is a significant area of interest. And in this paper, it will be analyzed from a managerial and leadership perspective (Marriott, 2019).

First of all, in this paper, classical management theories will be explained and then human relation theories will be described. Then, it will be determined which theory is implemented within Marriott. Moving on, the management and leadership at Marriott will be explained in terms of their skills and abilities. Lastly, it will be explained what type of changes should be administered in Marriott for enhancing the performance of management and leadership. Overall, the main theme of this paper is to explore how employees are managed and retained by managers in Marriott.

Classical Management Theory

In general, the theory of classical management is concerned with the development of several levels of employees for improving productivity. Although some aspects and elements of the theory such as keeping personal problems out of the organizational work and designing strategies for task completions, help a firm in focusing on a specific and important task, it is not effective in recognizing the differences that are possessed by employees (ukessays, 2019).

At each and every level, workers are supposed to conduct operations and perform tasks in accordance with the specific procedures which are created for maximizing productivity. Additionally, this theory focuses more on the organization’s impersonal side. In accordance with this theory, it is important for both managers and employees to not involve personal interactions and friendliness with the firm. Rules have to be followed precisely and retention or rejection of employees has to be associated with the skills possessed by employees (Ehiobuche & Tu, 2012).

Human Relations Theory

The theory of human relations is also referred to as the theory of behavioral management and it emphasizes more on employees working in a workplace than processes, procedures, and rules. Rather than directives coming from the management, communication is provided by the theory of human relations between managers and employees, which enables them to interact with others for facilitating the process of decision making. And instead of offering quotas and requiring some specific procedures, employees are offered emotional and motivational tactics for increasing productivity within the organization. It can be said that the objective of this theory is concerned with developing productive and fulfilled workers who can benefit the firm (Bratton & Gold, 2017).

X and Y Theory by McGregor

In accordance with McGregor, Theory X is implemented within an organization when managers view their employees as tools and objects for producing inputs. Meanwhile, Theory Y is implemented within a firm if mangers consider employees important and tend to motivate them. In Marriott, theory Y is implemented because managers care for their employees and implement different programs and strategies to improve their satisfaction (Bass, 2015).

Application of Theory to Marriott International

The theory of human relations is implemented and practiced within Marriott International. The management at the organization can be explained in terms of “Hierarchy of Needs” as proposed by Maslow.

Physiological: The physical needs of the workers at Marriott International are considered quite significant and the management attempts to offer exceptional benefits, wage, food, and shelter to employees according to their posts.

Safety: Within the organization, it is supposed that employees can be made more productive by offering them job security which they cannot acquire from other firms. In addition to it, when it comes to safety, each and every employee is offered the same security to maintain a balanced environment (marriott, 2019).

Social: At Marriott International, interpersonal relations are considered significant because they can play an important role in increasing employee engagement and creating a healthy workplace culture. Other than just valuing social interactions, cooperation among employees is considered important and such behavior is rewarded by the firm as well. The management sector is always connected with the employees to ensure that communication is efficient among employees (Sadri & Bowen, 2010).

Self-Esteem: The management considers it important that employees acquire new skills and concepts other than the concepts they already know. Some specific techniques such as cross-training and job enrichment are utilized by the management for ensuring that duties appear more rewarding to employees. Employees are enabled here to participate in the decking making processes of the organization (marriott, 2019).

Self-Actualization: With the presence of self-actualization, more interest will be exhibited by employees in both personal growth and development. This fact is considered important by the managerial authorities of the organization. And they focus on the encouragement of a work environment where self-actualization needs can be fulfilled by workers (Qadri, Ahsan, & Hashmi, 2016).

Leadership and Marriott International

In general, leadership style is considered quite significant in contemporary organizations. And the three factors which depict the leadership style include the organizational environment, subordinate characteristics, and characteristics of leaders. Hence, leadership styles can be classified according to the power and capability of the leader as laissez-faire, autocratic, and democratic. The autocratic style of leadership is exhibited by leaders who possess the sole authority to make decisions. Meanwhile, a democratic or participative style of leadership indicates that the authority of employees to make decisions is dispensed by the leaders. And the laissez-faire style of leadership offers more authority to workers to make decisions.

In the competitive circumstances of trade at present, effectual leadership is considered significant and hospitality business is no exception. It can be said that management at Marriott International is recognized with unique personal and professional characteristics. And leaders at the organization understand the requirements and needs of both customers and employees. Furthermore, they have the ability to resolve issues and motivating employees in even tough situations.

The prosperous style of leadership which is implemented at the organization is a perception which is offered by its originators. The contemporary Marriott International depicts a thorough and extensive journey of satisfaction which was provided to the current leaders from the previous ones. At Marriott International, leadership is generally represented as a hands-on style. It imparts control, stress, and intervention of operations and interactions among the workers. This “being there” or “hands-on” style is considered quite a common leadership style at the organization as it can be more effective than other styles for acquiring the job satisfaction of employees. However, it cannot be recognized as the style which is preferred at the organization. Leadership can be further improved.

Management and Leadership of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

Following is the management style which is adopted by the management within Marriot International:

Human Relations Theory of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

In the perspective of some managers, employees are not meant to interact with others and it hinders their performance and restricts them from performing to their best. Meanwhile, according to some managers, if employees are satisfied with their job and interact with others, they are able to be more innovative and also deliver more effective outcomes. Managers holding this perspective utilize the theory of human relations and they emphasize on the development of employees in a distinctive and innovative manner (Business, 2019).

For instance, they hold different activities and processes which can enhance the skills and talents of employees. At Marriott International, managers consider the growth of employees very important in order to enhance their talent, different programs and activities are held which can improve the skills of workers. Additionally, in order to enhance the satisfaction of employees, managers offer rewards to workers which play an important role in improving their satisfaction and increasing their engagement to the firm.

The human relations theory is quite different from the classical management theory in the way how employees are managed and how they are consulted. The former theory is practiced within the organization and that is what improves the performance of employees in a manner that benefits the organization (Bratton & Gold, 2017).

Leadership Theory of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

As explained above, a leadership style is generally considered important in each and every organization. There are usually three factors which help in determining the style of leadership and these factors include characteristics of leaders, organizational environment, and subordinate characteristics. There are different types of leadership styles which include transformative leadership, democratic leadership, servant leadership, and autocratic leadership. Each and every style of leadership is considered important and effective in its own context. For instance, some organizations are able to benefit from the autocratic leadership while some are able to benefit from the transformational leadership style.

At present, effectual leadership is implemented within Marriott International which helps the organization in ensuring that it achieves success in the market. This leadership style is referred to as democratic leadership and it helps in increasing the innovation of employees and ensuring that they are engaged within the workplace. Although this leadership style is being effective within the organization, it doesn’t mean that it cannot be further improved.

At Marriott, democratic leadership is practiced as the leader possess self-awareness and an emphatic personality. With the use of this particular style, employees are communicated with in an effective manner and different initiatives are implemented for enhancing the skills and abilities of employees (verywellmind, 2019).

Organizational Structure of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

With the dimensions of leadership and management including self-awareness, personality, problem-solving capability, and experience, the profitability and structure of the organization can be benefitted in a positive manner. For instance, by ensuring that employees have wisdom, experience, and expertise for completing job tasks, organizational readiness is ensured by leaders and managers.

Effective leaders hire, interview, and train new talents with the use of their wisdom. In addition to it, by providing them with development and training courses, they ensure that the organization is able to benefit from talented workers. With the style of management and leadership, workflow is analyzed by the organization for establishing clear procedures and policies. Operational metrics are also analyzed for ensuring the levels of production for creating desired outcomes. With the analysis of work environment for ensuring quality, different methodologies are also implemented by the firm (Yukl, 2012).

Therefore, it can be said that organizational structure and functions are related directly to the leadership and management style adopted within the organization. If the right styles are implemented within the firm and are aligned with the structure of the organization, maximum profits and sales can be achieved by the management. For instance, in Marriott, jobs and responsibilities are defined closely and employees have to fulfill their responsibilities without any type of delay. However, it doesn’t mean that flexibility is not offered to workers and they cannot make decisions.

Within Marriot, employees in each department are directed to take orders and instructions from the manager of that department. Similarly, the general manager has authority over the department managers. If this structure is combined with autocratic leadership then it will not benefit the employees and they will not be satisfied with the organization. In fact, they will feel more pressurized and will be unable to achieve the goals they are expected to do so. Thus, in order to make this hierarchy of authority more effective, democratic leadership style is practiced which promotes the innovation of employees and provides them with the authority they need to make decisions (Nanjundeswaraswamy & Swamy, 2014).

This also plays an important role in establishing an innovative culture within the organization. Hence, both managers and leaders keep the organizational culture nurturing and innovative. Although managers are key to the development of effective communication within the workplace, leaders and how they behave are considered more important (Mello, 2014).

Internal and External Factors influencing Management Styles

Management styles are the methods and procedures in which managers approach employees and handle different organizational processes and operations. Although these styles are generally considered by the managers and the leaders, there are some internal factors as well which influence the management styles adopted by the organizations. For instance, if human resource style is practiced by managers within Marriott, this style is influenced by several internal factors. These internal factors include:

Internal Factors of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

Mission: One of the most important internal factors which influence the style of management and its structure within an organization, and Marriott in this case, is its mission. In general, a mission can be explained as the objective of the organization to why it exists and what does it really want to achieve in the future. For instance, if the mission of a firm is concerned with long-term objectives and requires employee satisfaction, it will take a human resource approach towards employees.

In contrast, if a firm wants to achieve success in a short amount of time, the management will adopt a classical management style and it will make the employees work and accomplish their tasks regardless of their conditions and circumstances.

Leadership Style: Another important factor which influences the style of management is leadership style. For instance, great leaders not only direct but also inspire and if a leader requires his employees to be motivated all the time and willing to advance their skills, the management will automatically adopt a style which can effectively nurture their skills and talent. Therefore, it wouldn't be wrong to say that an autocratic leadership style might cause the management to choose a hard style and strict structure which doesn't offer employees the necessary flexibility to make decisions by themselves without depending on the manager.

Employee Engagement and Communication: With respect to technology, communication and engagement are important within an organization related to service industry. The nature of service industry requires organizations to focus on soft skills more than hard skills in the contemporary world because although hard skills are possessed by employees, soft skills are not common. They have to be acquired with practice and time. If communication is considered important within a firm then the management will adopt a style which considers it important and can further improve employee communication. For instance, transformative leadership style is quite effective in the establishment of employee engagement and communication. Thus, it can be implemented to ensure employee engagement (indiatimes, 2019).

Therefore, it can be said that both employee engagement and communication have a part in determining the style and structure of management.

Building Relationships: Just as communication is important in ensuring success, building innovative relationships with employees is considered very important. In order to develop such relationships, transformative leadership style can be adopted by the leader to enhance the innovation of employees and improving workplace culture.

External Factors of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

Other than being internal factors, there are some external factors which influence the style and structure of management as well. These factors are as follow:

Political and Social: Some of the most common external factors which can influence not only the management but also the leadership style include political and social factors. There can be some circumstances which can limit the movement of management within a firm in such a manner that employees and other processes are affected directly.

Technology: Technology can also be an important factor in influencing the style of management and its structure. For instance, considering the fact that management in terms of technology is being analyzed, if costs of technology are increased, it can cause the organization to change the management style in terms of operations and processes.

If there is innovations in technologies and new methods of completing tasks have to be adopted, the management will have to focus more on the learning and development of employees as workers will have to be trained and hone their skills which they can utilize to keep up with the innovation and perform the processes in a better manner (Werner & DeSimone, 2011).

Although technologies such as social media can help management in connecting with their customers, there are some technologies such as Air Bnb which can negatively influence a business associated with hospitality. In this case, the leader has to be efficient in defending against the issue and building effective strategies to resolve it. Similarly with the advancement in technology, new opportunities are presented which can be taken for improving the performance of employees. For instance, in Marriott, this opportunity is utilized for enhancing the innovation and skills of employees.

Hard and Soft Skills of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

In general, “hard” is referred to as firm and solid; firmly opened; impenetrable; and unyielding to pressure. This word also suggests certainty and strength. Meanwhile, “soft” is simplified as easily penetrated; changed or divided; and yielding easily to pressure. Weakness is suggested by this word. Soft management skills refer to skills which are acquired with time and efforts and they cannot be given a shape. Meanwhile, the hard skills are the ones which can be manifested practically. In recent years, researchers have begun to focus more on soft skills and have emphasized on their importance in the service industry (Indeed, 2019).

Hard skills are generally utilized as group skills which are specific to only a functional area while soft skills include transferable and interpersonal skills which are not technical. There are some specific hard skills and soft skills which are possessed by managers and leaders in Marriott. They are as follow:

Managers of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

Soft Skills for General Manager: These managers utilize a transactional style of communication, they plan tactics, work towards compliance of employees, demonstrate a significant talent in supervision, show empathy, they have good listening skills, and communicate well with the team.

Hard Skills: These managers possess the hard skills of writing P&L reports, managing IT equipment, producing a budget, and scheduling projects.

Soft Skills for Restaurant Manager: These managers also utilize a transaction style of communication, they plan tactics, ensure that customer satisfaction is achieved, they motivate their staff, communicate with them daily, and mentor the staff.

Hard Skills: They possess all the hard skills related to taking stock, possessing IT skills, scheduling projects, and making budgets.

Leaders of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

Soft Skills: The soft skills possessed by a leader include a broad perspective, must develop new ideas, challenge the status quo, base power on personal experience and influence, demonstrate effective skills is persuading others, work towards commitment of employees, plan strategy, and use a style of transformational communication (Indeed, 2019).

Hard Skills: Hard skills are all the talents and abilities that he needs to plan and fulfill his responsibilities and these skills vary with the nature of the organization and its operations (Sheehan, Garavan, & Carbery, 2014).

Importance of Soft Skills of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

The service industry deals directly with customers and that is one of the most important reasons why soft skills are considered equally important as hard skills. Among the soft skills, communication skills and work ethics are considered the most important. For an employee, both work ethics and communication skills play an important role in improving their performance. Considering the fact Marriott International manages both restaurants and hotels, it is critical for the staff and employees to develop effective communication skills to interact with workers. They should know how they are supposed to converse and interact with customers in such a manner that they are satisfied.

Managerial Hard Skills versus Leadership Soft Skills

Following are the differences between hard managerial skills and leadership soft skills:

Manager	Leader
Possesses a short-range perspective	Possesses a long-range perspective
Imitates others	Develops himself
Accepts the status quo	Challenges it
Bases power on authority or position	Bases power and effect on personal influence
Skills in supervision	Skills in persuasion
Plans tactics	Plans strategies

These are the primary differences and in order to develop soft skills, there are different strategies and practices which can be implemented by managers.

Improvement in Soft Skills

Following are some of the processes which can be undertaken by managers at Marriott for enhancing their soft skills:

Programs: Implementing different programs which are aimed at improving communication skills are one of the most common methods of developing skills and practicing it. In addition to just undertaking a program, benchmarking or another method of evaluating skills can be utilized and progress can be noted.

PDP: Similar to the above, personal development plans can be created and it is can be ensured that the goals are SMART which means that they are time-specific, realistic, attainable, specific, and measurable. It can help managers in improving their soft skills and keep the track of how much they are improving with time (Marriott, 2019).

Benchmarks: Benchmarks can also be utilized as a tool for monitoring progress. It can be integrated with the above activities to keep the track of progress and understand whether managers are successful in improving within a specific time limit or not (Ibn-Homaid & Al-Sulaihi, 2016).

Change Management of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

People-Centered and Structural Change of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

A people-centered change changes the performance, skills, behaviors, and attitudes of employees in an organization. Some changing people-centered procedures include interacting, leading, motivating, and communicating within a group. This focus might entail changing how issues are resolved, the way skills are acquired by employees, and even the manner in which employees perceive their organization. Meanwhile, a structural change involves the hierarchy of authority, management systems, administrative procedures, and structural characteristics. A structural change can be as simple as prohibiting smoking. For structural change, autocratic leadership is required because it enforces strict rules which need to be followed by employees. Meanwhile, democratic leadership is more suitable for a people-centered change because in this change, communication with stakeholders is necessary and sometimes, guidance has to be delivered as well. Below is how a people-centered change can be facilitated with Kotter’s 8 step model and Fisher’s change model.

Change Management Tools of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

In Marriott, Kotter’s 8 step model and Fisher’s change model have been utilized for implementing the change of technology which is a structural change and focusing on innovation of employee which is a people-centered change. The latter one explains that eight stages are followed by people during a change which include denial and anxiety, happiness, fear, threat, disillusionment and guilt, hostility and depression, gradual acceptance, and moving forward. Meanwhile, the former one explains that steps have to be followed for implementing an effective change. These steps include creating an urgency, forming an effective coalition, creating a vision for change, communicating the vision, removing the hurdles, creating short-term objectives, building on change, and anchoring the change.

As explained above, these tools of change management have been implemented within Marriott for introducing a new technology and implementing new activities for building the skills and talents of employees. Before the implementation of these tools, hands-on leadership style was utilized by the leaders and it had to be changed to democratic leadership in order to make these tools effective in implementing a change. Once the leadership style was changed, the steps of these models were followed and effective results were achieved (Hayes, 2018).

Development of Leadership Skills

In the past, the focus on leadership skills was not as significant as it is in the current period. However, as focus was shifted to the perspective of employees and how their innovation or talent can be improved, different factors were analyzed and one of these factors was leadership. In addition to just analyzing leadership, a direct relationship has been determined between leadership and employee development and engagement. Therefore, in the current decade, the focus on leadership has been significant in the service industry and it is emphasized that effective leadership can lead to success.

Conclusion of Classical Management Theory and Marriott International

Overall, it can be said that Marriott International is a diversified American multinational organization that deals with hospitality business.The theory of human relations is implemented and practiced within Marriott International. The management at the organization can be explained in terms of “Hierarchy of Needs” as proposed by Maslow.With the dimensions of leadership and management including self-awareness, personality, problem-solving capability, and experience, the profitability and structure of the organization can be benefitted in a positive manner. The management style is affected by employee engagement, mission, leadership style, and technology. Soft skills are considered important for managers at Marriot and different methods such as PDP and SMART objectives can be utilized for improving them. Meanwhile, change management tools discussed in the paper require democratic leadership style. Thus, it should be adopted in Marriott for improving the leadership style.

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