Van der Valk, Industrial Orientation Report

For my education, International Hospitality Management, I have written a Industrial Orientation Report about Van der Valk Sneek. Below the assignment is shown, figures etc can be found in the pictures.

Executive summary

This Industrial Orientation Report is based on 40 hours of work carried out at Van der Valk Sneek.

Van der Valk Sneek is a medium-sized hotel/restaurant with additional rooms where meetings and conventions are held.

This report is designed to show the strengths and improvement points of the Company, which when used can lead to a better employee satisfaction.

This report is based on the theory provided by the following sources: interviews with the Company director, Jan Matser, and the head of the kitchen, Stefan Dijkstra, but also on several books, websites, lectures and workshops.

The following conclusions and improvements are drawn by the report:

• In a company like this the best legal form is a private-limited company, since the owner cannot provide an enormous amount of money in case of bankruptcy.
• Hotel Sneek does not have many different cultures, therefore it is remarked as token and the national culture is Dutch. The company culture is a market culture, since it is mainly focused on results, productivity, profitability and on the customer satisfaction mainly.
• Applying the HRM model to Hotel Sneek leads to parts of the model not being fully applicable: appraisal and training and development. No appraisal talks are held and there are no special trainings based on employee’s needs. The report concludes that that should change: annual appraisal talks should be held and trainings should be offered to the employee, to stimulate and motivate them, but also to provide them with the feeling of recognition.
• Next to that when comparing practice with the KHN terms and regulations, it showed gaps. Schedules are not provided on the time which is set by KHN, changes are not always communicated to and consulted with the employee. They also offend the rule of working hours, employees work too many hours, which in some cases is forbidden. The report therefore recommends that the Company should try to resolve this and keep an eye on the KHN terms and regulations, however in practice it sometimes is hard in the hospitality branch, with regards to busy periods, like the holiday season. Especially in these periods the working hours exceed and break times get forgotten.

Introduction

This report is based on 40 hours of work experience that is completed at hotel/restaurant Van der Valk Sneek, which is a medium-sized company located in Sneek. Van der Valk is a broad concept in the Netherlands, almost everyone recognizes it. The Van der Valk concern has been existing for a long time, as can be viewed in appendix A.

This report is a route map through the Company and will show its strengths and improvement points.

In 4 chapters many subjects are discussed.

• In the first chapter the vision/mission and the Company concept are discussed, which will give more clarity about the main focus point of Hotel Sneek and its restaurant. Next to that the organizational structure with written and unwritten rules are elaborated and shown. The legal aspects of the company are given and argued. The diversity within Van der Valk Sneek is described and subsequently the company culture is determined. Finally in the first chapter the technology used for decision making and the sustainability measurements are elaborated.
• In the second chapter the human resources is given a closer look and KHN terms and conditions related to examples from practice in the Company are compared and argued. Based on the theory and practice conclusions are drawn and improvement points are stated.
• The third chapter discusses the management and supervision of the author. An interview has been conducted and the managing of different cultures is compared with leadership theories.
• The fourth and last chapter describes the personal management of the author. It also states her motivation, linked to two different motivation theories. Last of all it elaborates on her performance appraisal and personal goals are composed.

1. Company Analysis

1. 1. Vision/Mission

After determining the environmental forces that will influence the Company, the director establishes the vision, mission and the strategy. This contains the future goals, short term goals and a strategy of how to perceive these goals.

The vision of Van der Valk Sneek is according to Matser: to let the family tradition of Van der Valk exist, which is letting every child have their own hotel/restaurant. Matser tries to accomplish this by developing new establishments for his children. Matser Beheer BV already designed Hotel Sneek, Emmeloord, Spier, Wolvega, Haarlem, Purmerend, Hattem/Zwolle, and soon Leeuwarden.

The mission of Hotel Sneek is to create a healthy company, which can be inherited by the children. Matser wants to establish this by trying to get rid of debts as soon as possible.

Other possible ways to generate a healthy company are:

• create the best possible quality products, for the cheapest rate, so more guests will visit your hotel/restaurant.
• With regards to the building it should be placed strategically, nearby an highway, easy to spot and recognize for guests.

Core values of Hotel Sneek are to provide guests with the best possible quality products, for the lowest rate, and to provide guests with a comparable and recognizable product within the Van der Valk concern. This to make Hotel Sneek attractive for the guests.

1. 2. Concept

Van der Valk Hotel Sneek is classified as an hotel/restaurant, with a bar and meeting rooms. This report will focus on the restaurant facility. The target groups of the concept are travelers, families and couples, who see the hotel/restaurant from the road and decide to pay a visit. Below the way the company concept is represented in the 7p marketing mix is elaborated.

The way the restaurant is represented in the vision/mission of Hotel Sneek is already discussed in the chapter above.

Products offered in the restaurant are food and beverages. There is a wide range of food and beverage choices, from a breakfast buffet to steak for dinner, from juices to strong liquors, almost everything is available.

Van der Valk is known for their schnitzels and applesauce with a cherry on top, these products are still offered and really popular. When ordering a schnitzels (17 euros), pommes frites, potatoes, 2 kind of vegetables and mayonnaise are served with it for free. This makes that the price of these products is not that expensive, but the quality is good, so value for money is definitely guaranteed. This is also a reason why it is still popular.

Discounts and promotions for Hotel Sneek can be found on the corporate website, but also on www.valkexclusief.nl. For people who just checked in a free beverage is served. Other promotions are e. g. a three-course menu for a set price, the guest can choose an entrée, main course and a dessert for 29, 95 euros per person. The only requirement is that the guest enrolls at the corporate website.

The process is broad, personnel will next to offer the regular services, related to food and beverage procedures, also help the guests with all their questions. In this way they create a very tight bond and a nice atmosphere for the guest. This process is often found pleasant and people tend to see Van der Valk as a good company for that. These services are offered in a luxury, but home feeling surrounding. This consists of couches alternated with chairs. The room is decorated with little statues of birds and pineapples in spring colors (pastels). The decoration gives more of a comfortable and cozy atmosphere. The temperature is not too hot, but also not too cold, pleasant. Next to that the music plays quietly on the background. In the vision/mission, chapter 1. 1, the location of the hotel was already stated. This also easy accessable for the suppliers. It is clearly stated where the hotel is and where they have to deposit their goods, this makes that the delivery process can go smoothly.

1. 3. Organizational structure

Mr. Matser and the author composed the organizational structure, that is given below, together.

Figure 1. 1: Organizational structure Van der Valk

The reason Housekeeping (HK) is linked to Front Office (FO) and the Director, is that Housekeeping is outsourced. The outsourced company is Jacquet & de Groot, which is located in Rotterdam. They operate in 28 Van der Valk establishments in Housekeeping. It is outsourced, since it is a real profession and it is timesaving according to Matser.

In the case of Hotel Sneek, one of the restaurant managers is also the HR manager, this saves hiring a new person for this function.

The receptionists do all the Front Office tasks, picking up the phone, helping the guests at the front desk, being a concierge for the guests etc.

The sales managers communicate to the directors of finance about loans and the financial situation of the company. The directors of finance make the balance and communicate the set loans to basic communications. Basic communications is outsourced, but they are the ones who arrange the labor contracts and all the guidelines related to that.

The job description for a kitchen help entails the function name itself, the skills required (e. g. basic cutting techniques) and what is expected of the new employee (e. g. can work well in teams and has experience of a certain amount of years in the kitchen).

At Hotel Sneek there are different levels of authority and the director decides everything. The different departments also do not have the same manager. According to Mintzberg (2009) this organizational structure is remarked as a bureaucracy.

Although Hotel Sneek employs 100 people, it also has characteristics of a family business. The director does loads of things himself, helping in the operative field, e. g. when a lamp is broken, he will repair it himself. Which you often do not see in a medium-sized company (figure 1. 2). Matser explains that this is related to the origin of Van der Valk, which started as a family business.

1. 4. Legal form

In the trade register of the Chamber of Commerce is stated that Van der Valk Sneek is a private limited company, see appendix B. Below details of Hotel Sneek are discussed and the advantages/disadvantages of a private limited company.

The exact address is Burgemeester Rasterhofflaan 1, 8606KZ Sneek. The date of incorporation is stated as 24/01/1964, although the company started in 2010. The last amendment of the articles of the association was 07/07/2010. Hotel Sneek is an hotel/restaurant with a café with 100 employees.

Hotel Sneek has 1500 shared capital, 386 are issued. The only shareholder is Matser Beheer BV. The current directors/representatives of Matser Beheer BV are JJM Matser Management BV (25%), HF Matser Management BV (25%), MC Matser Management BV (25%), ETM Matser Management BV (12, 5%) and Koss BV (12, 5%). Hotel Sneek does not have various organs, only the director.

Hotel Sneek is a flex BV, this is another name for a private limited company in the Netherlands. Until the first of October 2012 the director had to make an investment of 18000 euros. Nowadays this is lapsed, with an investment of 1 eurocent a company can be started. Next to that the director needs to be enrolled in the Chamber of Commerce and a legal declaration of establishment (Chamber of Commerce, n. d. ).

The board of commissioners is not mandatory in a private limited company, according to M. M. Mendel and W. J. Oostwouder (2013). The role of this organ is to supervise the policy of the board and the overall course of events in the company and the enterprise. Since the board of commissioners is not mandatory, Matser BV does not have one.

There are different types of shares within a private limited company. There are two which are used the most, according to Mendel and Oostwouder (2013): preference shares and priority shares. Preference shares have the right of dividend, but not necessary the right of voting and decision making. Priority shares also have the right of dividend, but they also obtain extra rights, e. g. veto right by changing the amendments. Matser BV only has normal shares on name. Dividend and one vote per share are characteristics of shares on name.

In a private limited company the company can be held liable for debts or obligations. The director is not, the company is an independent entity. In case of a big company like this, this is the best option, since the director usually does not have the amount of money to pay big debts/obligations over e. g. 100. 000 euro.

1. 5. Written/Unwritten rules

When starting to work at a company, there are certain rules the employee needs to have knowledge of and behave according. These rules are also called the written and unwritten rules of a business.

1. 5. 1. Written rules

Written rules applied are provided to the staff members by email. They are stated in the labor contract (appendix C) and in the code of conduct (appendix D). Everything regards to sickness, breaks and clothes etc. is stated in the Code of Conduct. The expectations of the directors are that the employee has read these files and knows them by heart before their first work day, so in all situations the person knows how to behave towards guests and other staff members. There is not a special test to check if the staff member read the files, but when it comes to certain situations and handling those, it will become clear.

1. 5. 2. Unwritten rules

Unwritten rules are the rules that are not stated in the code of conduct or in the labor agreement. However they have influence on both parties, employee and employer. Examples at Hotel Sneek are always smiling towards the guests, come in time, greet all guests at the door, help each other when needed (voluntarily) and to not steal from the director. These are not stated in the files named above, but are necessary for a good cooperation between both parties. When not obeying these rules a warning is given, but in the worst case the employee is fired, when e. g. stealing from the company.

1. 6. Diversity description

The team at Hotel Sneek is not diverse in quantity of different cultures other than Dutch. Only one person is from another country, but was raised here in the Netherlands. Sometimes there are interns from a school in Germany, but that are the few people who do not speak Dutch. Therefor the nationality is Dutch.

Within this nationality, there are also sub-cultures. As Shore et al. (2009, p. 117-124) stated these sub-cultures are based on region, age, gender and education. Most people are from Friesland, but some have moved here, e. g. from Noord-Brabant. In age a bigger distinction can be made, the general age is between 20 and 35, but there are exemptions. The youngest employee is the director’s son, who is currently 14 years old, it is allowed to employ a 14 year old in the Netherlands, but it comes with many restrictions (KHN, 2014). The oldest person working is the kitchen chef of 50 years old. There is a division in gender, approximately 55% is male and 45% is female. Most employees are students at the intermediate vocational education or are planning to start an higher professional education. This comes of the fact that most employees are in their twenties.

The team within Hotel Sneek entails only one member with a different background/identity, in addition almost everyone within the team is Dutch. Next to that they approximately have the same age, for this reason this team can be rankes as token, according to West (1996).

Team diversity has different impacts, advantages and disadvantages on a team and its functioning. Most people are from the Netherlands, so communication is not a problem, it runs smoothly between the employees, since everyone can understand each other. A party for employees is organized once a year, this can be attended by current employees and ex-employees. Other than the party, also small trips are arranged, e. g. bowling. This creates a bond between everyone, which causes the trust and productivity to raise. In case of stress the employees will help each other voluntarily, a nice atmosphere is maintained.

Between the different ages there is not a certain hierarchy, this hierarchy is acquired by knowledge and skills. Everyone learns from each other. Although the older individuals find it harder to listen to the younger individuals, which in this case sometimes have more knowledge of the company. That makes it difficult to work together on some points, e. g. when a new employee of approximately 40 got hired, he found it hard to listen to a 25 year old woman. This caused a little friction between the two individuals.

1. 7 Company Culture

According to the Cameron & Quinn competing values framework (Cameron, Quinn, Thakor & DeGraff, 2014) there are four main Company cultures: clan, adhocracy, hierarchy and the market culture.

Hotel Sneek is very result orientated and has a competitive nature. Therefore they focus on results, productivity, profitability and on the customer satisfaction mainly. They want to be the best in their branch, gain as many and loyal guests. Rewards are not based on performance, at the end of the month the staff receives their paycheck with the amount of worked hours and the salary owned by working this amount of hours. No extras or bonuses.

The solidarity at Hotel Sneek is high, employees think and operate in nearly the same way, e. g. when teaching a new employee the information and skills will be taught in the same way as it was to the person teaching the new employee. This makes that the process will be repeated and passed on in the same way. The sociability normally is high, but unfortunately some employees cannot work well together. Next to that when someone is cranky, the group gets influenced, this causes a low sociability on certain points.

This all makes that the focus point is not creating cohesion and a family, but mostly working towards high productivity and profitability. As a result the dominant culture of Hotel Sneek is the market culture. Since the market culture focusses on the changing needs of the guests and it fosters flexibility by always altering to the needs, it is an adaptive culture.

1. 8. Technological Audit

The only Management Information System used in the kitchen department is the POS (Point-of-Sale Technology). The Untill 3. 0 system is used at Hotel Sneek. The waiters fill in the orders in the menu, then the receipts is printed in the kitchen, next the chefs can arrange and make them. The POS in every room is combined with a cashier terminal. With this terminal a check can be settled immediately (Kasavana, 2011). A cash drawer is not used at the company, the waiters carry a purse with money all the time. At the end of their shift they print their end of the shift report, which shows what amount of money they have to withdraw to the machine.

At the end of the day an overall shift report is printed. In this way the total sales and revenues can be viewed. In this way the managers can view how many guests have visited the restaurant during the day. With this knowledge they can predict and make decisions for the coming days. How many people should be scheduled for the day and how many food/beverages need to be ordered can be determined now. The schedule that previously was made maybe needs adaption because of the end of the shift report shown.

Next to a touch screen computer where the orders can be established in, they also make use of handheld terminals (little wireless order entries). According to Untill (n. d. ) they create a competitive advantage in this way, the orders can be arranged quickly after the order has been put into the handheld system. Long waiting times are not applicable anymore.

1. 9. Environment/Sustainability

As a lot of hospitality oriented companies, Van der Valk owns a Green Key certificate. Green Key is an international brand for sustainable companies. There are three different statuses of Green Key: Bronze, Silver and Gold (Green Key, n. d. ). Van der Valk owns a Gold certificate, just like Stenden (Van der Valk, n. d. ). According to Green Key (n. d. ) this means that the company applied loads of optional measurements, instead of only the 26 mandatory options. Companies receive a gold status when applying 33 or more optional measurements. Below a few of the measurements Van der Valk implemented are shown and how they are coherent with the 3P’s of sustainability, planet, people and profit is discussed.

1. 9. 1. Springheads

A sustainable measurement Van der Valk applied are placing springheads. When building Van der Valk, two big springheads were placed underneath the hotel. In the summer they pump cold water to the hotel, to cool down the building. In the winter they also pump water out of the ground, but the water already has been heated during the summer, in this way the hotel is heated (Van der Valk, n. d. ).

Applying this to the 3P’s there is shown that the springhead have good and bad sides. It saves energy, since the water is heated during the summer, this is good for planet. On the other hand, creating the springheads costs energy, which is not good for planet. For this reason on long terms it is better for planet, since water is heated by natural sources. Building the springheads costs a lot, this is not good for profit, but it will redeem itself during the years, since the water is heated by natural sources.

1. 9. 2. Swill

Leftovers are reused at Hotel Sneek. They safe them in a swill, also known as a big container. The biomass from the container is carried to a bioenergy company. With this biomass bioenergy is produced (Van der Valk, n. d. ). The bioenergy returns to the hotel, where it serves for the purposes as biological power for electrics. This makes it even better for the planet, since the company uses the biological power itself next to the fact that the leftovers are being reused. On the other hand it is not good for profit, since it costs extra money obtaining a swill and having it cleared by a special company. However as time passes it will gain the company money, since the company uses their own produced bioenergy and not normal energy that is produced by nuclear companies.

2. HRM

2. 1. HRM model

Based on the HRM model given below, the different elements are putted into perspective of Hotel Sneek.

Workforce planning: A manager makes a schedule for his/her own department. This ensures them with knowledge of the schedule and employees can immediately go to the managers when changes occur. How many employees are needed for a certain day gets forecasted by the Management Information System, which is elaborated in chapter 1. 8.

Recruitment and selection: The HR manager makes job descriptions and decides which skills are needed for the function. When applying for a job, the manager selects the right people for an interview. In this interview different situations are questioned and the cv is discussed. On the basis of this talk the person is hired or not. Second talks do not appear often according to Van der Schaaf, HR manager.

Onboarding: The author got introduced to the staff members she would directly be working with and to the managers that would direct and guide her. The other staff members, from other departments, she had to get to know by herself. The company’s rules and regulations are explained to the employee on their first workday, also where to get the employee meals and how to request them is explained. The basics of e. g. guest procedures are also shown. When the employee has questions, these can always be asked to other employees or to the manager directly.

Employee performance: Feedback is always given directly to the staff members, when something occurs. In this way the employees can immediately adapt and learn. The staff overall is skilled and knows what to do, this ensures a healthy and nice working environment, but also a good communication between the team members. When something goes wrong, the employee is responsible.

Working conditions, legal issues, ergonomics, health & safety: working conditions are captured in the labor contract (appendix C) of each employee. The managers try to follow these rules as much as possible, but it is not always possible, which is explained in 2. 1. The way the employees should act is enclosed in an email with the code of conduct (appendix D). The staff should read this before starting their first working day, as explained in 1. 5. 1. To assure health and safety Hotel Sneek provides an online HACCP course, which employees are restricted to take. In this way everyone knows how to handle food and beverages in a safe way, for the guest and themselves and the employees will get a certificate when completing the course.

Appraisal: Normally companies have an annual performance talk with the employees, at Hotel Sneek this is not applicable. Problems and issues can be addressed to the managers and they will solve it, but there are no special talk held for this. This makes that there is a possibility of the managers forgetting the problems addressed. Also when the personnel want to develop themselves or receive trainings, there is not really a possibility other than arranging this by themselves. The company does not provide this. This makes that improvement within the company is little. Next to that if an employee would like to quit, they have to send an email or tell it directly to the managers.

Transfer and succession: Transfers and successions are not common within Hotel Sneek. The author herself was one of the few stories. She transferred from being a waitress into a kitchen help, because she requested this by herself. Usually people just quit and start a job at another company, stories about successions or transfers to other Van der Valk establishments are rare therefor.

Training and development: Trainings are not offered. Although there is a possibility of following the Van der Valk education system. This education operates like normal hospitality studies that combine work and learning, but this education is focused on the procedures within the Van der Valk concern. In this way the student can work in all the Van der Valk establishments. The study is open to everyone who rounded off high school. There are 20 different studies within the Van der Valk range, which cost between 75 euros for an E-Learning or 1400 euros tuition (per year) for the full education. (Van der Valk Opleidingen, n. d. ).

Pay and benefit: The employees is paid on a monthly base. They receive their pay slip and their period survey per email. A few days after obtaining this, their loan is paid. Example of benefits within the company are that employees can stay at different settlements of Van der Valk on a discount of 50%.

Based on the description of the HRM model applied to Hotel Sneek there are certain improvement points. If the company wants the staff to stay for a longer time, they should offer personified trainings, based on the employee’s needs. In this way the staff member can improve and stays satisfied.

Another improvement point should be to have annual appraisal talks with the staff. In this way the employees feel recognized and feel free to express their feelings and needs. This saves people leaving because of certain occurred situations, which were not solved and which leaded to the employee not feeling recognized. It can also appear that an employee does not feel like the job fits them and in this way a transfer or succession is possible or can be addressed, since employees not always come up with these ideas themselves.

2. 2. KHN Terms and Conditions

When comparing 5 topics of the KHN Terms and Conditions of Employment (2014) to practice, there are some gaps. According to rule 3. 1 (KHN, 2014) the employer should provide the work roster two weeks in advance, the author received hers a few days in advance for one week. This was during the two weeks of Christmas and New Year’s. It is not always possible to give a schedule two weeks in advance, but at least one week should be reasonable and doable.

This leads to rule 3. 2 (KHN, 2014) the employer should consult the employees when changing the roster. When putting this into practice, the employer did not do this. The author had to find out herself that the roster was changed and she was scheduled on other times or different days. Normally changes to the schedule happen often and frequently, but this should definitely be consulted with the employee before changing it. Now the employees have to find it out themselves, which leads to miscommunication. For example when employees think they are planned on a Thursday but have been rescheduled to Friday, and have not noticed this change.

According to rule 4. 20 (KHN, 2014), holiday allowance is 8% of the salary and should be paid in June of each year. The holiday allowance at Hotel Sneek is also 8%, but was already paid in January. This is actually a good thing, since the personnel receives their holiday payments earlier.

In schedule I of the working times of KHN (2014), at duties and age categories is shown that employees aged 16 or 17 can work 9 hours maximal per day, including over-time. During the holiday this rule was offended multiple times, the author (17 years old) worked multiple days of more than 10 hours sometimes. The overtime was paid, but it is not according to the rules to let her work more than 9 hours. The holiday season is a busy season, but working conditions should not be violated during this period or any other period. Next to not being able to work, more than 9 hours per shift, a 17 year old cannot work till over 23 o’clock according to the schedule. This rule was not violated and the author was send home on appropriate times. The employer also considered the traveling home when sending someone home earlier or later.

3. Management

3. 1. The Kitchen Chef

There is only one kitchen chef employed at Hotel Sneek (HRM model, pg. 18 ). Mr. Dijkstra got inspired by his in-laws to become a chef. He does not mind working in the weekend and holidays. This is why he became a chef. No special education is completed for this. He accomplished a diverse range of courses and one year of the chef school, but according to him experience makes a good chef. Although he has loads of experience, being a chef sometimes remains hard. He faces new challenges and problems every once in a while.

Mr. Dijkstra sometimes works 7 times a week, but he would not like to have another chef next to him. Unless this person has the same mentality as him. He sometimes finds himself too relaxed and too strict. Different situations acquire different approaches, this is something he would like to improve. In the most circumstances he sees himself as a good manager.

According to Mr. Dijkstra a good manager requires different characteristics. A good manager should support his people, but also help himself, employees should not do everything. Next to that a manager should coach and be an inspiration for the employees. When hard decisions need to be taken, he should be able to make them, but has to remain calm all the time.

The answer of Mr. Dijkstra to the fact that everyone employed at Hotel Sneek is Dutch, was that it is coincidence and he does not mind it. An enrichment would be a mix of cultures, where every individual can learn from each other. The fact that everyone speaks Dutch is a benefit, it is easy to understand everyone and to communicate together. The mix between young and old makes that young learns from old and the other way around.

When defining the Style of Leadership (Hersey & Blanchard, 2008), the Situational Leadership model needs to be reviewed (next page). Mr. Dijkstra views his staff as independent persons, who have high capabilities. This is shown by him not giving many instructions, giving his people the freedom to figure it out by themselves. When help is needed, he will provide them with instructions and explain. This is also possible, since most of the staff is highly skilled and the communication is good. The staff eventually does not need tasks anymore, but will start doing things themselves, when it the restaurant is quiet. In conclusion Mr. Dijkstra has a delegating leadership style.

The line in the model shows the empowerment of the manager towards his employees. Empowerment is giving the staff freedom to decide on their own (independence), trying to motivate them in this way, getting the best out of them. Empowerment is not really needed at the kitchen department of Hotel Sneek. The employees are motivated to do things on their own, they are highly skilled and sometimes do chores out of themselves. Since they do not need that much motivation anymore, the empowerment is low.

3. 2 Managing Diversity

The diversity described in chapter 1. 6 needs to be managed. Below the management of Mr. Dijkstra handling the diversity is put into perspective with different theories.

3. 2. 1. Kluckhohn & Stordtbeck

The Kluckhohn & Strodtbeck Value Orientations and leadership theory (1961) is based on six different values which determine how a person handles people from other cultures and how that person deals with certain situations.

Human nature – Mr. Dijkstra has as determined in 3. 1 a delegating leadership style. He trusts his people and sees their potential. Next to that he shares his decision making and he gives less supervision. This makes that his human nature view is determined as good.

Relationship to nature – the chef gives clear instructions to his staff members, sometimes even checklists when loads of chores need to be completed. He sees his people as accepting control and executing orders, which makes that his employee to work environment relationship is determined as subjugation.

Relationship to each other – Mr. Dijkstra considers the employees as individuals, from whom individual competencies are appreciated. Independence is given individuals and everyone performs mostly on their own, everyone has their own tasks. This supervisor behavior and characteristics is seen as individualistic.

Human activity – When coming to work the chef believes that you should focus on the tasks, rather than on each other and personal situations, “Live to Work”. Goals are achieved by hard working he believes. Appreciation is given to those who performed well. This is most suitable for the variable doing.

Time orientation – Goals are not just set for the present at Hotel Sneek, but also for the future. The supervisor does loads of time planning and forecasting, to achieve the goals as good as possible, long-term planning is done. These characteristics are most applicable to being future oriented.

Physical space – The doors to the personal room from the manager is mostly open, supplies can be taken from the room whenever needed. The door is transparent and there is not many personal space left. Sharing is done in this way and openness is created. This can be determined as the variable public.

3. 2. 2. Cultural and emotional intelligence

Cultural and emotional intelligence are closely related (Earley & Ang, 2003). However there are differences. Cultural intelligence is the ability to sense values, beliefs, attitudes and body language from people from different cultures. Emotional intelligence is the ability to sense someone’s wants, needs and emotions.

According to Earley & Mosakowski (2004) there are six different profiles related to cultural and emotional intelligence and most managers fit at least one.

Mr. Dijkstra does not have to manage different cultures then Dutch. Within the Dutch culture there are multiple provinces present, which is stated in chapter 1. 6. The chef does not know much about other cultures he says, but when it comes to communicating with different cultures he just dives into it and sees how it goes, he does not research the cultures in advance. His confidence in communicating makes that he succeeds in communication with different cultures. This fits the ambassador leadership style the most. Since he succeeds almost naturally in communicating with different cultures, almost like he senses their needs and values, he also fits the natural leadership style. Finally this shows that he has a high cultural and emotional intelligence.

4. Personal Management

4. 1. Motivation

Every person has different needs/rewards that stimulate them to go to work. It can be personal motivators or stimuli related to others.

In my case there are also different motivators. What motivates me to come to work is obvious the base salary, but also my colleagues. There is a pleasant atmosphere which stimulates me to work hard and which shows I am part of the team. As the time passes I get more responsibility, this also motivates me to go to work, but also to perform more and more.

My supervisor motivates me by giving me the responsibility to make own decisions and perform on my own, but also providing me with the information when needed. This stimulates, because I know I will gain more independence when performing well.

4. 1. 1. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Relating these stimuli to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1970), this connects to different levels of the pyramid, described on the next page.

According to Maslow (1970) the lower levels need to be fulfilled before higher levels can be activated. The base salary fits into the physiological needs. The colleagues connect to love and the responsibilities to esteem. Safety is also fulfilled, since there is a safe work and healthy environment. This shows that I am connected to different levels, but I did not reach the highest level yet. I do not think I will reach the highest level within this company, since there is not much room for self-improvement, as explained in chapter 2. 1.

4. 1. 2. Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory

According to Herzberg, Mausner & Snyderman (2010) there is a distinguish made in hygiene factors and motivators. Hygiene factors are factors whose absence causes motivation, but whose presence has no particular effect. Hygiene factors therefor rated as dissatisfaction. Examples of hygiene factors are salaries, policies, security, working conditions and benefits/rewards.

Motivators are factors whose presence motivates. The absence does not cause any dissatisfaction, but does also not motivate. Motivators are for this reason remarked as satisfaction. Examples of motivators are responsibility, challenging, stimuli, recognition and growth.

Relating this to my motivation to go to work most of the named examples of hygiene factors are present, except for benefits/rewards. Since there is no benefit/reward possible it does not motivate, it dissatisfy. Motivators that are presence are the responsibility, challenging, recognition and stimuli. Growth is missing, since there is no possibility to grow to a higher function in the kitchen at Hotel Sneek, no extra sous-chef or chef is needed. However this does not cause dissatisfaction, it is just a data.

4. 2. Performance appraisal

When discussing the filled in form 3 with my supervisor I gained new insights into my behavior in certain situations.

My attitude was positive overall. I scored a 5 of the 6 points. When I came to work I was motivated and I almost always had a smile on my face, Mr. Dijkstra stated. However sometimes in busy situations I got so focused that the smile disappeared a bit, although my positive attitude remained. I am always motivated to do new chores, however some are more stimulating than others. For instance I had to clean the ice cream truck. The truck had not been emptied for days and ice cream still lying in it. This was very smelly and a really dirty job. I completed it, but the smile disappeared during this chore unfortunately. Afterwards it came back again.

According to Mr. Dijkstra I was representative, 5 of the 6 points. I always came to work with my hair tied up neatly and wearing the right kitchen attire. However the apron was not always super clean, this due to the fact that I had to work multiple days in a row sometimes, which made washing the apron impossible.

My communicative skills are worth 6 points. When writing emails and talking to colleagues Mr. Dijkstra thinks I am very professional. When I was asking questions, they were relevant and clear. He likes this and is very satisfied with my communication overall.

Mr. Dijkstra thinks I am independent (5 of the 6 points), but when learning new things he sees me struggling to explore it on my own first. This also comes of the fact that I am a perfectionist, I immediately want to do everything right and do not like to make mistakes.

That leads to a 4 out of the 6 points on my initiative. When wanting to do everything perfect, I am not always doing things without consulting them first with the chef. This also due to the fact that I do not have much experience in the kitchen department other than the Stenden Hotel.

The quality of my delivered work however was well (5 of the 6 points). He thinks this comes of the fact that when I know how to prepare certain dishes, I get into a flow and the outcome is well. I do not present the dish until I am fully satisfied with it.

Last but not least handling the guests was worth 6 out of 6 points. Mr. Dijkstra thinks this comes from my previous experience in the restaurant of Hotel Sneek, my communication skills and of the fact that I like to work with guests. This makes it easy for me to approach guests in a friendly way and helping them with their needs.

Discussing this feedback leads to me setting professional goals for myself, in a SMART way (Bell, 2004).

My first goal is that I want to work on the quality delivered of the dishes I present. I want to achieve me preparing 5 certain dishes in a perfect way, that nothing is missing and the presentation is nearly the same every time. The evidence would be that the presentation is always correct and professional, which can be seen by the kitchen chef, restaurant managers and the guests. The resources and knowledge is available for me to achieve this goal, when not knowing certain pieces of the dish for sure I can consult my colleagues. In the end I will not need to consult them anymore and the quality will be perfect. The goal is realistic, although quality never can be 100% perfect, due to products not being fully perfect all the time. This goal is related to the presentation and that is possible to perform that in a constant way. The time set for this is 1 month, that is realistic, since it are 5 dishes.

The second goal is to be less perfectionistic, in a way of not asking too many questions anymore, taking more initiative, daring to do more. It would be measurable by that I ask less questions when given a task and I try to do more on my own first, before consulting my colleagues. It is achievable for me, I can do this, but it requires me to let loose of my perfectionism, eventually maybe making more mistakes. It is realistic and it will help me in my future career when I show my employees that making mistakes is not a bad thing, that you learn from it. This goal will take longer, since it requires me to change my mindset a bit, so the time set is 6 months.

4. 3. Personal note

The Industrial Orientation Report was a big report to write, many hours went into it. Most of the chapters could only be written after the lectures/workshops, which made it difficult to start in the beginning. You had to wait until the information was provided. Next to that some of the chapter were explained in a difficult way, which caused a little delay, since you had to fully understand what was asked of you to write. The process of writing the report went little slow, but became faster as the hand-in date came closer. I am glad the consultation hours were provided, so you could immediately ask your questions when you had them. An advice based on this is to describe the chapters in a more clear way and provide more information about the concept, since only 4 p’s were findable on BlackBoard.

Reference list

Bell, A. (2004). Ten steps to SMART objectives. Viewed 25 March 2016. Retrieved from http://www.natpact.nhs.uk/uploads/Ten%20Steps%20to%20SMART%20objectives.pdf%3E

Cameron, K. S., Quinn, R. E., DeGraff, J. & Thakor, A. V. (2014). Competing Values Leadership (2nd ed. ). Cheltham, UK: Edward Elgar.

Chamber of Commerce. (n. d. ). Rechtsvormen: Kiezen voor de juiste Rechtsvorm. Viewed 13/03/2016. Retrieved from http://www.kvk.nl/download/Rechtsvormen_01_KvK_Factsheet201511_tcm109-365627.pdf.

European Commission. (2003). SME definition. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/business-friendly-environment/sme-definition/index_en.htm

Earley, P. C. & Ang, S. (2003). Cultural intelligence: individual interactions across cultures. Stanford, CA: Stanford Business Books.

Earley, P. C. & Mosakowski, E. (2004). Cultural intelligence. Harvard Business Review, 82, 139-146. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2004/10/cultural-intelligence

Green Key. (n. d. ). Wat is Green Key. Viewed 13 February 2016. Retrieved from http://www.greenkey.nl/watisgreenkey

Goble, F. G. (1970). The Third Force:the Psychology of Abraham Maslow.New York: USA, Grossman.

Hersey, P., Blanchard, K. H. & Johnsen, D. E., (2008), Management of organizational behavior: leading human resources(9thed. ). London, UK: Pearson Education.

Herzberg, F., Mausner, B. & Snyderman, B. B. (2010). The Motivation to Work(11thed. ).New Brunswick, US: Transaction Publishers.

HRM&O team Stenden Hotel Management School Leeuwarden. (2015). Lecture1: Stenden Hotel [PowerPoint slides]. Viewed 01 March 2016. Retrieved from https://elo.stenden.com/bbcswebdav/pid-3270343-dt-content-rid-2838254_6/courses/IHOMRSRC1516/HRM%20%26%20O%20intro%20%2B%20guestlecture%20STENDEN%20HOTEL%202015%20-%202016%20BB.pdf

Kasavana, M. L., (2011). Managing Technology in the Hospitality Industry(6thed. ). Michigan, USA: American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute.

Kluckhohn, F. R. & Strodtbeck, F. L. (1961). Variations in value orientations. Evanston, IL: Row, Peterson.

Koninklijke Horeca Nederland & AWVN, (2014 May). KHN Terms and Conditions of Employment Retrieved from: https://www.khn.nl/khn-terms-and-conditions-of-employment

Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and Personality(2nded. ). New York, USA: Harper & Row.

Mendel, M. M. & Oostwouder, W. J. (2013). Hoofdzaken NV en BV(5th ed. ). The Netherlands: Kluwer.

Mintzberg, H. (2009). Structure in fives: designing effective organizations(2nded. ). Harlow, UK: Pearson Education.

Shore, L. M., Chung-Herrera, B. G., Dean, M. A., Ehrhart, K. H., Jung, D. I., Randel, A. E. & Singh, G. (2009). Human Resource Management Review. Diversity in Organizations: Where are we now and where are we going?, 26, 117-124. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/

The Center for Leadership Studies. Situational Leadership model [Image]. Viewed 21/03/2016. Retrieved from https://situational.com/the-cls-difference/situational-leadership-what-we-do/

Untill. (n. d. ). Kassasystemen. Viewed 21 March 2016. Retrieved http://www.untill.nl/oplossingen/kassa-systemen/

Van der Valk. (n. d. ). Bio-Energie. Viewed 13 February 2016. Retrieved from http://www.hotelvoordetoekomst.nl/bio-energie/

Van der Valk. (n. d. ). Energievoorziening. Viewed 13 February 2016. Retrieved from http://www.hotelvoordetoekomst.nl/energievoorziening/

Van der Valk. (n. d. ). Green Key. Viewed 13 February 2016. Retrieved from http://www.hotelsneek.nl/greenkey/

Van der Valk. (n. d. ). Verlichting. Viewed 13 February 2016. Retrieved from http://www.hotelvoordetoekomst.nl/verlichting/

Van der Valk. (n. d. ). Van der Valk: De bewogen geschiedenis van een Nederlandse horecafamilie(pg. 50-54). The Netherlands, Leiden: Krikke Special Books.

Van der Valk. (n. d. ). Van der Valk: De bewogen geschiedenis van een Nederlandse horecafamilie(pg. 183). The Netherlands, Leiden: Krikke Special Books.

Van der Valk Opleidingen. (n. d. ). Opleidingen. Viewed 28 March 2016. Retrieved from http://www.vandervalkopleidingen.nl/opleidingen

West, M. A. (1996). Handbook of work group psychology(1sted. ). Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons LTD.

---

Photo gallery