Case+Study+Number+2

Mark Williams is a professional in the hospitality industry who has worked at the operations level in several hotels and clubs and has extensive experience as a human resources consultant. His ongoing industry involvement prompted him to participate in the hospitality industry conference held in Nashville, Tennessee. Mr. Williams’ stay at the hotel during the convention was characterized by frustration, confusion, and poor guest service. The incident that spoiled his visit at the hotel occurred within the first few hours of his arrival in the early evening. Mr. Williams’ plan was to share a two- bedroom suite with Mr. Thompson so that they could have a space to work together during free hours. Mr. Williams was the first of the pair to arrive at the hotel. He checked in at the front desk, received his room assignment, and told the reservations agent that Mr. Thompson would be checking in within the next few hours. Mr. Williams then had his luggage sent up to his room went to an educational seminar on the other side of the hotel. Minutes later, the other gentleman checked in at the front desk and found his way to the suite he was to be sharing with Mr. Williams. Upon entry, he decided that he was not satisfied with the bedroom that he had given, as it had a sleep sofa instead of an actual bed. He immediately called the front desk to arrange for a room change. He left a note fro mR. Williams explaining that he was moving them to a different suite and that the front desk would have the new room number. The front desk immediately sent a bellman who escorted Mr. Thompson to a larger suite that satisfied his needs. After settling into his new room, Mr. Thompson went to the lobby bar to meet a colleague. One hour later, Mr. Williams returned to the original room, found the note from Mr. Thompson, and called the front desk to get the new room number. As Mr. Williams was not registered in the new room the front desk clerk would not give out the number, but instead connected him to the new room. He received a busy signal. Over the course of the next hour, Mr. Williams continued to attempt to call Mr. Thompson, yet the line remained busy. Eventually, Mr. Williams felt that the room that he was calling might be the room he was currently in, so he called the front desk to straighten out the misunderstanding. The front desk clerk told him that the room he was in was classified as unoccupied, and that she could not give him the other gentlemen’s new number because the computer was down. She then instructed Mr. Williams to remain in his room until the computer came back on-line and then she would call him to straighten out the situation. While waiting in his room for the return call, a stranger opened Mr. Williams’ door and walked into the room. Each person was shocked by the encounter, and the stranger’s shock quickly turned into anger. A confrontation erupted and Mr. Williams was forced to calm the stranger and explain the complicated situation. After convincing the stranger that a simple mistake had been made due to computer problems, Mr. Williams called the front desk to report that someone had been assigned to this room, and a bellman was immediately sent to move the stranger to a different room. One hour later, Mr. Williams received a call from the front deck informing him to Mr. Thomspon’s room number. As it was very late, planning to sleep in his original room, however, he felt that he should not be billed for the other night’s stay due to the hotel’s mishandling of his transfer to the other suite. The clerk initially resisted his request and then agreed that the cost of the room would be credited to his account in the morning. The next morning, Mr. Williams moved his luggage to the other room and went to the front desk to confirm that his bill for one night’s stay had been credited. The clerk at the front desk informed Mr. Williams that she had no record of a credit on his bill and directed him to speak with the manager on duty. Mr. Williams explained the entire situation to the manager on duty, who was both sceptical about the content of the story and reluctant to credit the bill. After 20 minutes of conversation, the manager agreed to credit Mr. Williams’ account. Only at this point could Mr. Williams put the incident behind him and with peace of mind begin to focus his attention on attending the conference. v  ** The Shared Suite ** Mark Williams is a professional in the hospitality industry who has worked at the operations level in several hotels and clubs and has extensive experience as a human resources consultant. His ongoing industry involvement prompted him to participate in the hospitality industry conference held in Nashville, Tennessee. Mr. Williams’ stay at the hotel during the convention was characterized by frustration, confusion, and poor guest service. The incident that spoiled his visit at the hotel occurred within the first few hours of his arrival in the early evening. Mr. Williams’ plan was to share a two-bedroom suite with Mr. Thompson so that they could have a space to work together during free hours. Mr. Williams was the first of the pair to arrive at the hotel. He checked in at the front desk, received his room assignment, and told the reservations agent that Mr. Thompson would be checking in within the next few hours. Mr. Williams then had his luggage sent up to his room went to an educational seminar on the other side of the hotel. Minutes later, the other gentleman checked in at the front desk and found his way to the suite he was to be sharing with Mr. Williams. Upon entry, he decided that he was not satisfied with the bedroom that he had given, as it had a sleep sofa instead of an actual bed. He immediately called the front desk to arrange for a room change. He left a note fro mR. Williams explaining that he was moving them to a different suite and that the front desk would have the new room number. The front desk immediately sent a bellman who escorted Mr. Thompson to a larger suite that satisfied his needs. After settling into his new room, Mr. Thompson went to the lobby bar to meet a colleague. One hour later, Mr. Williams returned to the original room, found the note from Mr. Thompson, and called the front desk to get the new room number. As Mr. Williams was not registered in the new room the front desk clerk would not give out the number, but instead connected him to the new room. He received a busy signal. Over the course of the next hour, Mr. Williams continued to attempt to call Mr. Thompson, yet the line remained busy. Eventually, Mr. Williams felt that the room that he was calling might be the room he was currently in, so he called the front desk to straighten out the misunderstanding. The front desk clerk told him that the room he was in was classified as unoccupied, and that she could not give him the other gentlemen’s new number because the computer was down. She then instructed Mr. Williams to remain in his room until the computer came back on-line and then she would call him to straighten out the situation. While waiting in his room for the return call, a stranger opened Mr. Williams’ door and walked into the room. Each person was shocked by the encounter, and the stranger’s shock quickly turned into anger. A confrontation erupted and Mr. Williams was forced to calm the stranger and explain the complicated situation. After convincing the stranger that a simple mistake had been made due to computer problems, Mr. Williams called the front desk to report that someone had been assigned to this room, and a bellman was immediately sent to move the stranger to a different room. One hour later, Mr. Williams received a call from the front seck informing him to Mr. Thomspon’s room number. As it was very late, planning to sleep in his original room, however, he felt that he should not be billed for the other night’s stay due to the hotel’s mishandling of his transfer to the other suite. The clerk initially resisted his request and then agreed that the cost of the room would be credited to his account in the morning. The next morning, Mr. Williams moved his luggage to the other room and went to the front desk to confirm that his bill for one night’s stay had been credited. The clerk at the front desk informed Mr. Williams that she had no record of a credit on his bill and directed him to speak with the manager on duty. Mr. Williams explained the entire situation to the manager on duty, who was both sceptical about the content of the story and reluctant to credit the bill. After 20 minutes of conversation, the manager agreed to credit Mr. Williams’ account. Only at this point could Mr. Williams put the incident behind him and with peace of mind begin to focus his attention on attending the conference. v 1. What was the primary cause of this situation? 2. How was it further complicated? Why? 3. What could have been done to prevent the occurrence of any of this?
 * The Shared Suite **
 * 1) What was the primary cause of this situation?
 * 2) How was it further complicated? Why?
 * 3) What could have been done to prevent the occurrence of any of this?
 * 4) How would you have handled the situation?