SERVICE MARKETING MANAGEMENT

ASSIGNMENT 2
Arnav Apte
155
Div. B.

Q1) Explore the concept of ‘Emotional Labor’ in the context of frontline employees of the
organization featured in the case. As a prospective frontline employee how would you react
to situations in the case?
A1) Emotional labor is the process of managing feelings and expressions to fulfill the emotional
requirements of a job. This is extremely relevant in the case of a front-line employee. In this case
we can observe how the receptionist is always asked to “keep smiling” all the time as she is the
FLE. Being in a restaurant business, being welcoming and a nice host is pivotal. We can see that
she also gets negative reactions from customers when one of them is made to wait for an hour.
Despite encountering all of this she is expected to “keep smiling” all the time as that is the
requirement of her job. She is also required not to let her personal problems show on her face
during work hours as it would negatively impact the business.
As an employee in a restaurant or in the hospitality industry the concept of “emotional labor” is
truly relevant. As a prospective employee, one would need to put on a smiling face and always
have a helping attitude as it is what the job demands from the person. Any negative reaction by
the customers would need to be treated professionally as per the protocols. All this should be
done while keeping a “smiling” face and having a helpful attitude. All the actions of FLEs can
have a major impact on the business as they are the face of the business in front of the customers.
Q2) What are the sources of conflict for frontline employees of the organization featured in
the case? As a manager, how would you address these issues?
A2) There are several sources of conflict for FLE which can be identified in the given case.
Some of them could even lead to service failures.
In the beginning, the employee is required to learn on the job. There is no training provided to
her. This could have led to several service failures.
Also, the FLEs are expected to take in all the complaints or remarks of the guests without being
able to even justify themselves. This can cause mental stress.
Lastly, the employees do not talk about the unfair practices adopted by the manager or captain
for actions like taking all the tip (USD) to themselves and not putting it in for the team.
Some of the ways I would address these issues would be:
1) Putting in place a training program for the employees along with a nesting stage to help
them get settled in their job.
2) Putting in place SOPs to deal with customers when they give negative feedback
3) Setting clear rules for distribution of tips and making the distribution visible to every
employee
4) Focusing on team building activities to encourage everyone to work together