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The Practice of HRM and SHRM in the Barbados Hotel

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Article in Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism · July 2008

DOI: 10.1080/15332840802157004

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 The Practice of HRM and SHRM in
the Barbados Hotel Sector
Philmore A. Alleyne
Dion Greenidge
Akhentoolove Corbin
Peter G. Alleyne
Dwayne Devonish

ABSTRACT. This paper investigates the relationship between the number

of human resource management (HRM) practices adopted and organiza-
tional demographics among hotels in Barbados, as well as determining the
extent to which strategic human management (SHRM) is practiced. A quan-
titative survey was administered to 46 hotels out of a population of 75 hotels.
The findings revealed that more than half the sampled hotels adopted more
than 14 HRM practices; that hotel size (by employee level), hotel room prices
and age of hotel were significantly related to the number of HRM practices

Philmore A. Alleyne is Lecturer in Accounting, Department of Management

Studies, University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, W.I. (E-mail:
philmore.alleyne@uwichill.edu.bb).
Dion Greenidge is Lecturer in Management, Department of Management Stud-
ies, University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, W.I. (E-mail:
dgreenidge@uwichill.edu.bb).
Akhentoolove Corbin is Temporary Lecturer in Management, Department of
Management Studies, University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados,
W.I. (E-mail: ecorbin@uwichill.edu.bb).
Peter G. Alleyne is Part-time Lecturer in Finance, Department of Management
Studies, University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, W.I. (E-mail:
brigadergen@yahoo.com).
Dwayne Devonish is Research Assistant, Department of Management Stud-
ies, University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, WL (E-mail:
ddevonish@uwichill.edu.bb).
Joumal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, Vol. 7(2), 2008
Available online at http://jhrht.haworthpress.com
© 2008 by The Haworth Press. All rights reserved.
doi: 10.1080/15332840802157004 219
220 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

adopted. AU hotels engaged in strategic planning and the majority had a HR

strategy formally endorsed and actively supported by the hotel's top man-
agement and that HRM strategies are integrated with business strategies and
HR strategies are deliberately integrated with each other. These findings
suggest that there is widespread adoption and a growing level of interest in
HRM, as well as considerable importance being attached to strategic HR
issues.

KEYWORDS. HRM, Strategic human resource management, hotels,

Barbados

INTRODUCTION
Employees are important to organizations, and can improve or retard
organizational performance (Huselid, 1995; Hoque, 2000). Employees
are deemed key to the survival and competitive nature of organiza-
tions, especially in light of the new economic environment of global-
ization and free trade where employees' qualities, attitudes, and behavior
in the workplace could affect the performance of organizations. In re-
cent years, the management of employees has been perceived as being
more critical to the success of tourism, since greater emphasis has been
placed on providing quality service. More specifically, the Barbados ho-
tel sector is critical to the continued existence and sustainability of the
tourism industry, which is the country's number one foreign exchange
earner. To this end, effective human resource management (HRM) prac-
tices are vital to the competitiveness of the industry and Barbados as a
whole.
Following the approaches of Baptiste and Bailey (2003) and Hoque
(2000), this exploratory study, conducted in the Barbadian hotel sector,
seeks to address the following: firstly, the relationship between hotel de-
mographics and the practice of HRM; secondly, the extent of the adoption
of HRM practices; andfinally,the extent to which strategic human resource
management (SHRM) has been adopted.
Whereas most studies have focused their attention on the role of HRM in
developed countries, this study goes a step further to investigate the practice
of HRM and SHRM in a small developing country in the Caribbean.
Organizations (e.g., hotels) in small island economies, faced with today's
changing business environment, must show an appreciation for the practice
of sound HRM and SHRM policies. Alleyne et al. (2006) contend that
 Philmore A. A Heyne etal. 221

there has been a scant body of research on HRM in the hotel sector in the
Caribbean; hence, this study makes a valuable contribution to the current
body of literature in this area. The study also provides HR practitioners and
academics with useful information regarding the adoption of HRM best
practices to improve performance and the integration of HR strategies with
overall business strategy as a means of achieving competitive advantage in
the Barbados hotel sector.
The structure of the paper is as follows. The first section reviews the
selected literature on HRM and SHRM and its impact on tourism. The
second section presents key features on the Barbados hotel sector and is
followed by the third section, which discusses the research methodology.
The findings are then presented and discussed in the fourth section. The
final section concludes the study.

SELECTED LITERATURE REVIEW ON HRM

There has been considerable discussion about the differences between

Industrial Relations/Personnel Management (IR/PM) and Human Resource
Management (HRM) as distinctive approaches to the management of peo-
ple (Storey, 1992, 1995; Legge, 1995). Although there has been some
debate about the precise definition of HRM (Worsfold, 1999; Noon, 1992),
the differences between IR/PM and HRM are best summarised in Storey's
(1992) seminal work. Table 1, which was taken from Storey (1992, p. 35),
shows the main differences.
The literature has revealed various HR practices that are associated
with organizational outcomes (Erras, 2002; Guest & Hoque, 1994; Hoque,
2000). These practices include teamwork, self-managed and self-directed
teams, flexibility, sophisticated recruitment and selection, formal training
programs, quality teams, formal performance appraisals, internal promo-
tion opportunities, performance-related and incentive pay, profit sharing,
formal and regular communication, attitude surveys, and job security
(Erras, 2002). HRM practices have been argued to positively influence
customer-oriented behaviors, commitment and satisfaction among employ-
ees (e.g.. Browning, 2006) as well as organizational performance (e.g..
Hoque, 2000).
SHRM has been defined as "the pattern of planned human resource
deployments and activities intended to enable an organization to achieve
its goals" (Wright & McMahan, 1992, p. 298). Moreover, Guest (1989,
p. 48) contended that SHRM ensures that "human resources management
222 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

TABLE 1. Storey's Twenty-seven (27) Points of Difference

Dimension Personnel and IR HRM

Beliefs and assumptions

1 Contract Careful delineation of written Aim to go 'beyond contract'
contracts
2 Rules Importance of devising clear 'Can-do' outlook; impatience
rules/mutuality with 'rule'
3 Guide to management Procedures 'Business-need'
action
4 Behaviour referent Norms/custom and practice Values/mission
5 Managerial task Monitoring Nurturing
vis-à-vis labour
6 Nature of relations Pluralist Unitarist
7 Confliot Institutionalised De-emphasised
Strategic aspects
8 Key relations Labour management Customer
9 Initiatives Piecemeal Integrated
10 Corporate plan Marginal to Central to
11 Speed of decision Slow Fast
Line Management
12 Management role Transactionat Transformational leadership
13 Key managers Personnel/I R specialists General/business/line
managers
14 Communication Indirect Direct
15 Standardisation High (e.g., 'parity' an issue Low (e.g. 'parity' not seen as
relevant)
16 Prized management Negotiation Facilitation
skills
Key levers
17 Selection Separate, marginal task Integrated, key task
18 Pay Job evaluation (fixed grades) Performance-related
19 Conditions Separately negotiated Harmonisation
20 Labour management Collective bargaining Towards individual contracts
contracts
21 Thrust of relations with Regularised through facilities Marginalised (with exception of
stewards and training some bargaining for change
models)
22 Job categories and Many Few
grades
23 Communication Restricted flow Increased flow
24 Job design Division of labour Teamwork
25 Conflict handling Reach temporary truces Manage climate and culture
26 Training and Controlled access to courses Learning companies
development
27 Foci of attention for Personnel procedures Wide ranging cultural, structural
interventions and personnel strategies

Source. Storey (1992; p. 35); Beardwell and Holden (1997, p. 21).

 Philmore A. Alleyne et al. 223

is fully ititegrated into strategic planning; that HRM policies cohere both
across policy areas and across hierarchies." Baptiste and Bailey (2003),
drawing from Storey (1992), showed that SHRM is being practiced when:
(1) HRM strategy is determined by the organizational business strategy;
(2) HRM strategy is consistent with other functional strategies; (3) top
HR managers participate in business strategy formulation; (4) HR strategy
considers all levels of staff; and (5) the HRM function seeks to ensure
that organizational culture, structure and members' quality, motivation
and commitment contribute to the achievement of organizational goals.
Tliere are two main schools of thought of SHRM, namely the 'best prac-
tice' school and the 'best fit' or contingency school. The 'best practice'
school argues that any organization can adopt a set of best practices in the
approach to managing people to improve performance (Boxall & Purcell,
2000). Pfeffer (1998) has identified these seven best practices as employ-
ment security, selection hiring, self-managed teams or teamwork, high
pay contingent on company performance, extensive training, reduction of
status differences, and sharing information.
In contrast, contingency theorists argue for extemal and intemal fit
(Schüler and Jackson, 1987). Extemal fit refers to an integration of the HR
strategies with overall business strategy. Thus, it is proposed that aligned
HR strategies will perform best. Intemal fit refers to the "synergistic bene-
fits resulting from the introduction of HRM as an institutionally supported
package of practices that cohere with and mutually reinforce each other"
(Hoque, 1999, p. 422; Guest, 1995). To date, support has varied for exter-
nal and intemal fit (Huselid, 1995; Hoque, 2000). For example, Huselid
(1995) and Alleyne et al. (2006) found limited support for intemal fit and
extemal fit. However, Hoque (2000) found strong support for intemal and
extemal fit in the UK.
In countries across the globe, there has been mixed reviews of HRM
approaches in the hotel industry. Price (1994) and Lucas (1995) have been
harshly critical of the United Kingdom (UK) hotel industry, which they
viewed as having poor working conditions, high staff tumover, and a lack of
basic professionalism in personnel practice. However, several studies such
as Buick and Muthu ( 1997) in Scotland and Anastassova and Purcell ( 1995)
in Bulgaria have argued that there have been some attempts to introduce
teamworking, career structures and a consultative management style in
these hotels. Hoque (2000) found that in the UK, there was considerable
importance attached to strategic HR issues and a growing level of interest
in HRM. In addition, he also found that larger hotels were more inclined
to take on board the need to improve and develop HR policy and practices.
224 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

Tbe relationsbip between size and HRM bas received considerable atten-
tion. For example, in a study done in tbe UK, Hoque (1999b) found larger
boteis (usually foreign owned) were more likely to adopt SHRM and HRM
practices tban smaller boteis. Overall, Hoque found tbat a majority of bo-
tels bad adopted SHRM and HRM practices. Tbus, Hoque (2000, p. 74)
argued tbat "it seems tbat as managers bave accepted tbe importance of
service quality, tbey are also take on board tbe need to find new ways of
employing tbeir staff."
Baptiste and Bailey (2003) sougbt to determine tbe status of strategic
buman resource management among organizations in Trinidad and Tobago
(T&T). Tbey found tbat SHRM was practiced in a majority of large orga-
nizations, but tbat tbere is room for improvement in tbe quality of SHRM
being practiced. Tbey also found tbat organizations in T&T tbat compete
internationally are more likely tban otbers to adopt SHRM and tbat Pub-
lic Service Organizations are not adopting SHRM. An interesting finding
was tbe fact tbat a number of tbe organizations practicing SHRM in T&T
are unionized, given tbat "contemporary buman resource management and
traditional industrial relations appear on tbe surface to be pbilosopbically
opposed: one is collaborative and tbe otber adversarial" (Baptiste & Bailey,
2003, p. 8). Tbis raises tbe unitarist/pluralist debate in wbicb it is argued
tbat HRM was developed on a pbilosopbical base of unitarism wbere con-
flict is considered abnormal witb employer and employee sbaring similar
goals; and wbere pluralism is seen as tbe basis for trade union strengtb,
as conflict between different interest groups (employer and employee) is
accepted as natural and necessary (Beardwell & Holden, 1997).

KEY CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BARBADOS

HOTEL SECTOR

Barbados is a small island in tbe Eastern Caribbean witb a population

of over 265,000 in 2006. Tourism accounts for as mucb as 70% of foreign
excbange earnings. Furtber, tourism employs 13% of tbe island's labor
force and in 2000 it contributed 11.3% to tbe island's gross domestic
product (ILO, 2000). In tbe year 2003, tbere were approximately 1.1 million
visitors to tbe island (BTI, 2004).
Tbe main players in tbe Barbadian botel sector include tbe Barbados
Workers' Union (BWU) and tbe Barbados Hotel and Tourism Associa-
tion (BHTA). Tbe BWU, tbe largest and oldest union in tbe country, is a
general workers' organization, representing organizations in tbe different
sectors, including boteis. ILO (2000, p. 9) reported tbat out oftbe 135,500
 Philmore A, Alleyne et al. 225

employees in Barbados, 36% were unionized. More specifically, hotels and

hotel based restaurants accounted for over 60% of the workforce of 13,000
in the sector and 40% (3,500) is organized by the BWU, reflecting that
27% of the workforce in this sector was unionized (Alleyne et al., 2005).
BHTA represents the employers of 72 enterprises in the hotel and tourism
industry (ILO, 2000). There is a collective agreement between the BHTA
and the BWU, which covers hours of work, basic pay, service charge,
grievance and disciplinary procedures, to name a few. Little is known about
the HR aspect in the Barbados hotel sector. To date, empirical research has
only been done on HRM and performance in the Barbados hotel sector by
Alleyne et al. (2005, 2006).

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This study used a quantitative survey to understand the approach to

managing people through HRM and SHRM in the Barbados hotel sector.
The questionnaires were sent by post to all hotels (75) in Barbados, with the
target respondent being the human resource manager, general manager, or
deputy general manager between June and August 2003'. This is consistent
with most empirical studies on HRM and SHRM, which have relied on
managerial responses regarding the extent of adoption of SHRM and HRM
(e.g., Gilbert & Guerrier, 1997; Hoque, 2000; Watson & D'annunzio-
Green, 1996).

Questionnaire Design
The questionnaire was adapted from previous research on HRM and
SHRM (Hoque, 2000; Baptiste & Bailey, 2003). Baptiste and Bailey's
(2003) study focused on a variety of organizations in T&T, while the
present study focused on the hotel sector in Barbados. Baptiste and Bailey
(2003) tested for the demographics and extent of SHRM, and the quality
of SHRM being practiced in T&T. This approach is somewhat similar to
Hoque's (2000) study of hotels in the United Kingdom.

Background (Demographics)
The first section of the questionnaire requested respondents to give
details about their hotel such as the business structure, number of years in
business, age of the hotel, size of hotel's staff (number of full time and part
time employees), presence of a union, number of rooms, the ownership of
the hotel (foreign versus local), the price of a standard room per night in
226 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

winter and summer, and the qualifications and job positions. In addition, the
respondents were asked to give their age, nationality, job title, and gender.
Human Resource Management Practices (Best-Practice)
The second section of the questionnaire asked about the same range
of specific human resource practices that Hoque (2000) covered in his
study; these included terms and conditions of employment, recruitment
and selection, training, job design, quality management, communication
and consultation, and pay systems (Table 3 shows the full list of questions
asked in each area). Hoque (2000) provided a list of 21 HRM practices as
best HRM practices. Respondents were asked to state whether or not these
21 HRM practices were adopted in their hotels. The approach used in this
study is similar to that of Hoque (2000), Becker and Huselid (1998), Fey
et al. (2000) and Michie and Sheehan-Quinn (2001). Based on the these
studies, we assume that these practices are equally important and effective
in the implementation of the HRM function, and no one practice (or set
of practices) would be deemed superior to all others (Hoque, 2000). The
study does not seek to determine which is the best combination of HRM
practices. Future research can seek to determine the best combination of
HRM practices that should be utilized.
The Extent ofthe Practice of SHRM (Best-Fit)
The third section looked at the extent of the practice of SHRM, similar to
Hoque (2000) and Baptiste and Bailey (2003). Four questions were asked
to determine the extent of SHRM being practiced in Barbados. These
questions were as follows:
a. Does your hotel engage in strategic planning?
b. Is there an HR strategy formally endorsed and actively supported by
the hotel's top management?
c. Are the human resource management strategies of your hotel integrated
with the business strategy? (External fit)
d. Are your HR practices deliberately integrated with each other? (Inter-
nal fit)

FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

Characteristics (Demographics) ofthe Sample
Table 2 shows the population and the sample of hotels in Barbados bro-
ken down by size. Forty-six useable responses were received, achieving
 Philmore A. Alleyne et al. 227

a response rate of 61.3%. Table 2 shows that the respondents were reason-
ably representative of the Barbados hotel sector as a whole.
It is interesting to consider some of the further features of the sample:

a) The number of employees employed in the organizations covered

by the survey totaled 5,271, of which 4,935 (94%) were perma-
nent and 336 (6%) were part-time, showing a very small level
of part-time workers. The median size of hotels by number of
employees was 80, with a mean of 115, and ranging from a min-
imum of 4 to a maximum of 700 employees. The Kolomogorov-
Smimov test for normality confirmed the marked skewness of the
distribution.
b) The sample covered 3,688 rooms. The room size ranged from
a minimum of 13 to a maximum of 340 rooms with a mean of
80 rooms. This suggests that the number of rooms in the hotel
sample is skewed.
c) Of the sample of 46 hotels, 24 (52.2%) were Barbadian owned and
22 (47.8%) were foreign owned. This reflected that the sample
was almost evenly distributed in terms of local versus foreign
ownership.
d) Forty respondents (87%) were private limited companies, 3
(6.5%) were partnerships or sole traders, while 3 (6.5%) were
public limited companies.
e) Within the respondents, all were members of the Barbados Hotel
and Tourism Association (BHTA). This suggested that the BHTA
has strong support by its membership. The BHTA acts as the
industry representative in negotiating with the union and also
discussing benefits with Government.

TABLE 2. Profile of Hotels in the Survey

Room size Total hotel population No. of respondents Respondents (% of population)

<25 18 8 44.4%
25-49 15 10 66.7%
50-64 8 5 62.5%
65-99 16 12 75.0%
100-199 16 9 56.2%
200+ 2 2 100.0%
Total 75 46 61.3%

Source: Barbados Tourism Association, 2003.

228 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

f) Thirty-six hotels (78.3%) recognized the union, which was in-

dicative of the strength, density, and recognition of the union as
the bargaining force in the hotel sector.
g) The standard room price in the summer ranged from US$35 to
US$833 per room with a mean of US$239.13 (Standard devi-
ation of US$190.26 and median of US$142.50). The standard
room price in the winter ranged from US$45 to US$1,365
per room with a mean of US$419.09 (Standard deviation of
US$356.42 and median of US$240). This suggests that the
sample comprised hotels of varying price ranges, from the lowest
to highest. "This also suggests that hotel prices in the sample are
skewed.

Job Title and Qualifications

It was found that a wide variety of titles are applied to human resource
management jobs. Twenty (43.5%) of the respondents had the term "hu-
man resources" in their job title. It was found that the HRM function
was entrusted to other persons: 23.9% were General Managers/Managing
Directors, 8.7% were finance or accounting specialists, 8.7% were As-
sistant Managers, 6.5% were Operations Managers, 6.5% were Secre-
tary/coordinators, and 2.2% were Reservation Supervisors. It can be in-
ferred from these titles that different hotels arrange jobs out of various
mixtures of HRM and administrative work, a point made by Baptiste
and Bailey (2003). This finding suggests that these organizations may
have adopted an approach in which the structure and practice of HRM is
devolved and decentralized to the line management function, as opposed to
a model in which the HRM function is centralized with highly trained HR
professionals supporting the line operations. This could also be a function
of the costs associated with employing qualified HR professionals, and
there is the danger of employing ill-equipped persons to be responsible for
HRM functions (Coke, 1995).
It was also found that 89.1% of the hotel sector personnel specialists
held qualifications ranging from Diplomas to MBAs. The remaining 10.9%
had secondary education with at least 5 "O" level certificates. The HR
practitioners or persons responsible for HR issues showed a high formal
qualification rate, with at least 8.7% holding Masters Degrees and 41.3%
holding Bachelors degrees, representing 50% of the respondents.
 Philmore A. Alleyne et al. 229

Adoption of HRM Practices

Table 3 shows the HRM practices adopted by the respondent hotels. The
mean number of HR practices adopted by the sample was 13.63. Sixteen of
the 21 HRM practices were adopted by more than 50% of the respondent

TABLE 3. HRM Practices Adopted

% Yes

Terms and conditions

Harmonized terms and conditions between management and 89.13
non-management staff
Single status for all staff 45.65
Internal promotion the norm for appointments above the basic levels 80.43
No compulsory redundancy 26.09
Recruitment and selection
Trainability as a major selection criteria 91,30
Use of psychological tests as the norm for the selection of all staff 17.39
Deliberate use of realistic job previews during recruitment and selection 84.78
A formal system for communicating the values and systems in the company to 78.26
new staff
Training
Deliberate development of a learning organization 80.43
An explicit policy requiring all staff to spend a specified minimum period 43.48
annually in formaltraining
Job design
Flexible job descriptions that are not linked to one specific task 69.56
Deliberate design of jobs to make full use of workers' skills and abilities (i.e. use 63.04
of job enrichment and/or autonomous work groups)
Work organized around teamworking for the majority of staff 89.13
Staff involvement in setting performance targets 63.04
Quality issues
Production/service staff responsible for their own quality 56.52
A majority of workers currently involved in quality circles or quality improvement 47.83
teams
Communication and consultation
Regular use of attitude surveys to obtain the views of staff 58.69
A system of regular, planned team briefing or cascade of information from 78.26
senior management to the lower grades/shop floor during which work stops
All staff are informed about the market position, competitive pressures and 86.96
establishment and company performances as a matter of course
Pay systems
A merit element in the pay of staff at all levels 47.83
Formal appraisal of all staff on a regular basis at least annually 65.22

Notes: No. of valid cases (n = 46).

230 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

hotels. Less popular HRM practices (that is, those adopted by less than
50% of the respondents) included single status for all staff, no compulsory
redundancy, use of psychological tests as the norm for the selection of all
staff, an explicit policy requiring all staff to spend a specified minimum
period annually in formal training, a majority of workers currently involved
in quality circles or quality improvement teams, and a merit element in the
pay of staff at all levels.

Terms and Conditions

In the area of terms and conditions, two out of the four practices listed
were adopted by a majority of the sample. These practices included "har-
monized terms and conditions between management and non-managerial
staff" (89.1%) and "intemal promotions as the norm for appointments
above the basic levels" (80.4%) were most frequently utilized. This find-
ing may suggest that hotels are more concemed with maintaining faimess
and satisfaction in the workplace.

Recruitment and Selection

With respect to recruitment and selection, three out of the four practices
listed were used by more than half of the respondents. These practices
included "trainability as a major selection criteria" (91.3%), "deliberate
use of realistic job previews" (84.8%), and "a formal system for communi-
cation the values and systems in the company to new staff' (78.3%). This
finding shows that most hotels are pursuing key recruitment and selection
strategies to ensure better person-job fit. However, it was noticeable that
psychological tests for selection purposes were used by a relatively small
proportion of the sample. The use of psychological tests ensures a scien-
tific and objective means of choosing the right candidate for the job. The
use of psychological tests in combination with interviews and other tradi-
tional recruitment practices may help to secure motivated and committed
workers.

Training
In terms of training, only one of the two listed practices was adopted
by a majority of the respondents. This practice was "the deliberate de-
velopment of a leaming organization" (80.43%). A leaming organization
involves the development of creative and critical thinking among employ-
ees in an effort to drive productivity in the organization. This movement
 Philmore A. Alleyne et al. 231

to a learning organization suggests that a majority of hotels might be em-

ploying the necessary processes that encourage continuous learning and
development (personal mastery). However, less than half of the sample
indicated that there was "an explicit policy requiring all staff to spend a
specified minimum period annually in formal training" (43.48%).

Job Design
With respect to job design, all of the practices listed were adopted by
a majority of the hotels. These practices include "fiexible job descriptions
that are not linked to one specific task" (69.56%), "deliberate design of
jobs to make full use of workers' skills and abilities (i.e., use of job en-
richment and/or autonomous work groups)" (63.04%), "work organized
around teamworking for the majority of staff" (89.1 %), and 'staff involve-
ment in setting performance targets" (63.04%). These findings reflect that
hotels are subscribing to a flexible and team-based culture in its work
design. This can certainly augur well for the delivery of service quality.

Quality Issues
With respect to quality issues, only one out of two practices listed was
adopted by more than a half of the respondents. This practice was based on
"production/service staff responsible for their own quality" (56.2%). This
finding shows the hotels are allowing workers to be more autonomous
regarding issues affecting quality.

Communication and Consultation

All three practices under communication and consultation were adopted
by a majority of the hotels. These practices included the use of employee
attitude surveys (58.69%), regular, planned team briefings (78.26%), and
communicating to staff about market position, competitive pressures, and
company performances (86.96%). This finding shows that hotels are aware
of the importance of communication as a HRM tool for motivating staff
and securing commitment.

Pay Systems
Under pay systems, a majority of the hotels (65.22%) reported that they
employed a "formal appraisal of staff on a regular basis at least annually."
However, less than half of the hotels (47.83%) utilized a "merit element
in the pay of the staff at all levels." This latter finding would suggest that
232 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

productivity is not driven by pay-for-performance systems. However, the

emphasis on the drivers of productivity is outside the scope of this paper
and thus future research should undertake this task.

HRM versus Non-HRM Split and Statistical Tests

Using Hoque's (2000) methodology and the mean number of HR prac-
tices adopted (M = 13.63) (i.e., approximately 14), the hotels were split
between "HRM hotels' (hotels with 14 or more HRM practices) and 'Non-
HRM hotels" (those with 13 or fewer HRM practices) to determine the
effects of size (by employee level and room size), union presence, age
(number of years in operation), standard room price, and ownership of the
hotel (foreign versus locally owned) on the number of HRM practices em-
ployed using Pearson Chi square tests. Spearman's rank order correlation
test was used after a Kolomogorov-Smimov analysis, which reported that
variables measured deviated significantly from a normal distribution (all
ps > 0.05), indicating that the normality assumption was violated.

Hotel Size (by Number of Employees and Rooms) and Adoption

of HRM Practices
Table 4 showed that hotels with 100 or more employees were more likely
to adopt a greater number of HRM practices. Overall, 56.5% of the hotels
adopted more than 14 HRM practices. The Pearson Chi-square results
indicated that the number of HRM practices adopted was significantly
different among hotels of different sizes by employee level (x^ = 8.250,
n = 46, p = 0.016). In further examining the size of hotels by employee
level (as a continuous variable), correlation analysis, via Spearman's rho,
showed that the number of HRM practices employed was significantly and

TABLE 4. Adoption of HRM Practices by Hotel Size in Staff

<50 50-99 100 or more

employees employees employees Total /^ p

HRM practices 8.250 .016

<14 HRM practices 10(76.9%) 4(30.8%) 6(30.0%) 20(43.5%)
14 + H R M practices 3(23.1%) 9(69.2%) 14(70.0%) 26(56.5%)
Total 13(100.0%) 13(100.0%) 20(100.0%) 46(100.0%)

Wofes: No. of valid cases (n = 46).

 Philmore A. A Heyne et al. 233

TABLE 5. Correlation Analyses

1. HRM practices 1
2. No. of rooms .223 1
3. Total no. of employees .455" .805** 1
4. Age of the hotel -.369* -.061 -.070 1
5. Standard room price for winter .430** .343* .679*' -.171 1
6. Standard room price for winter .467** .376** .692** -.256 939

Note: 1 = HRM practices; 2 = No. of rooms; 3 = Total no. of employees; 4 = Age of the hotel; 5 =
Standard room price for winter; 6 = Standard room price for summer; *p < 0.05; **p < 0.01

positively correlated with size of hotel (by employee level) (rho = 0.455,
n = 46, p < 0.01) (See Table 5). This indicated that larger hotels, by
employee size, adopted a higher number of HRM practices, compared to
smaller hotels.
In terms of room size, a correlation analysis, via Spearman's rho, was
conducted to determine the relationship between the number of HRM
practices and the size of hotel by number of rooms. There was no significant
association between room size and number of HRM practices adopted (rho
= 0.233, n = 46, p > 0.05) (see Table 5).
Employee level, as a proxy measure of size, seems to influence the num-
ber of HRM practices adopted, compared to hotel size as determined by
number of rooms. Thisfindingwould suggest that the number of rooms may
be independent of HRM practices adopted, since HRM is more concemed
with the size of the workforce rather than the physical size of the organi-
zation itself. These findings are also consistent with both Hoque's (1999a,
2000) and Price's (1994) studies that more sophisticated HR practices are
to be found in larger hotels. One explanation for this finding can rest on
the assumption that larger hotels are faced with the challenge of managing
a larger workforce and may see the need to make heavier investments in
their HR functions. On the other hand, the strategic focus of smaller hotels
may be more concemed with cost reduction and flexibility than with the
development of human resources functions (see Hoque, 1999a).
Age of Hotel and Adoption of HRM Practices
Table 5 showed that a significant and negative relationship existed be-
tween the age of the hotel (number of years in operation) and the adoption
of HRM practices (rho = -0.369, n = 46, p < 0.05), indicating that the
234 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

newer hotels (i.e., hotels operating for a shorter period of time) adopted a
higher number of HRM practices than the older hotels (i.e., those hotels
operating for a longer period of time). This finding suggests that there is
the possibility that older hotels are more traditional in their management
style, and because of their "age" they may be less likely to change from
this style of management to a more contemporary HRM approach, which
involves a wide adoption of HRM practices. In contrast, it appears that
newer hotels (i.e, those hotels operating for a short period of time) are
more likely to have less developed corporate cultures and are more recep-
tive to creative ideas and concepts related to the practice of human resource
management. Future research, using qualitative methodologies, may need
to fully explore the relationship between years in operation and the practice
of HRM.

Standard Room Price for Summer and Winter and Adoption

of HRM Practices
Table 5 reported that there was a significant, positive relationship be-
tween the number of HRM practices adopted and standard room price for
both winter (rho = 0.430, n = 46, p < 0.01), and summer (rho = 0.467,
n = 46, p < 0.01). Thus, higher standard room prices in both winter and
summer are associated with a larger number of HRM practices adopted.
This finding may suggest that more expensive hotels (e.g., those in the five
star category) adopt a higher number of HRM practices, compared to less
expensive hotels. Hotels in higher grades may see it necessary to invest in
the adoption of HRM practices because they may recognize that there is a
need to integrate HRM practices into their overall business strategy, as a
source of service quality and competitive advantage, and a justification for
costing.

Union Presence and Adoption of HRM Practices

Table 6 showed the relationship between number of HRM practices
adopted and union presence, via a Pearson Chi square analysis. Of the 36
hotels that indicated that there was a union present, 22 hotels (61%) had
14 or more HRM practices. Of the 10 hotels that indicated that there was
no union present, 60% had fewer than 14 HRM practices. This finding
was not statistically significant (x^ = 1.419, n = 46, p = 0.234), indicat-
ing that HRM practices are utilized across hotels in both unionized and
nonunionized environments. Baptiste and Bailey (2003) had argued that
HRM and traditional IR are philosophically opposed to each other. The
 Philmore A. Alleyne et al. 235

TABLE 6. Adoption of HRM Practices by Union Presence

Union presence Non-union presence Total x^ p

HRM practices 1.419 .234

<14 HRM practices 14(38.9%) 6(60.0%) 20(43.5%)
14 + H R M practices 22(61.1%) 4(40.0%) 26(56.5%)
Total 36(100.0%) 10(100.0%) 46(100.0%)

Notesr. No. of valid cases (n = 46).

current finding of this study conflicts with the view that a greater num-
ber of HRM practices are likely to be found in a unionized environment
(see CuUey et al., 1999, p. I l l for evidence that this is the case in the
UK). The implementation of a greater number of HRM practices in a
unionized environment may rest more on managerial attitudes and other
factors (rather than on union presence) to embrace HRM, within unionized
and nonunionized environments (McMahan & Lawler, III, 1995). Future
studies can compare the actual HRM practices used within unionized and
non-unionized organizations.

Hotel Ownership and Adoption of HRM Practices

Table 7 shows that 54% of the 24 Barbadian owned hotels adopted more
than 14 HRM practices, compared with 59% of the 22 foreign-owned
hotels. Pearson Chi-square results indicated that there is no significant
association between ownership of hotel and the adoption of HRM practices
(X^ = 0.113, n = 46, p = 0.736). These findings suggest that there was
no difference between foreign owned hotels and Barbadian owned hotels
on the adoption of HRM practices. This may imply that the perceived

TABLE 7. Adoption of HRM Practices by Ownership

Foreign owned Barbadian owned Total x^ P

HRM practices .113 .736

<14 HRM practices 9(40.9%) 11(45.8%) 20(43.5%)
14 + H R M practices 13(59.1%) 13(54.2%) 26(56.5%)
Total 22(100.0%) 24(100.0%) 46(100.0%)

Wofes: No. of valid cases (n = 46).

236 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

TABLE 8. HRM Strategy in the Hotels

Questions Yes No
Does your hotel engage In strategic planning? 46 (100.0%) 0 (0.0%)
Is there an HR strategy formally endorsed and actively 30 (65.2%) 16(34.8%)
supported by the hotel's top management?
Are the human resource management strategies of your 38(82.6%) 8(17.4%)
hotel integrated with business strategy?
Are your HR practices deliberately integrated with each 37(80.4%) 9(19.6%)
other?

Notes: No. of valid cases (n = 46).

adoption of "good" HRM practices is well diffused across the Barbadian

hotel sector, with respect to ownership of hotels.
The Extent of the Practice of SHRM
All of the respondents reported that their hotels engaged in strategic
planning (Table 8). Thirty hotels (65.2%) reported that top management
formally endorsed and actively supported the HR strategy. This suggests
that the majority of the hotels' top hierarchy has the responsibility for
HR policymaking. Thirty-eight hotels (82.6%) reported that their HRM
strategies were integrated with the business strategy. In addition, thirty-
seven hotels (80.4%) claimed that the HR practices of their hotels were
deliberately integrated with each other, as part of an overall synergistic,
mutually supporting configuration. These results seem to suggest that the
majority of respondents in the sample perceived that their hotel is practicing
strategic human resource management (SHRM). These results also support
the findings of Baptiste and Bailey (2003) in Trinidad and Tobago, and that
of Hoque (2000) in the United Kingdom. Additionally, it would suggest that
these respondents perceived the HR strategies of their hotels are integrated
with their overall business strategy. Thus, there seems to be a focus towards
SHRM. However, a limitation may exist whereby due to self-reporting bias,
respondents may be more inclined to show a favourable picture about the
strategic focus of their HRM functions.

CONCLUSION
Management of hotels in Barbados perceived that they were generally
practicing organized HRM and SHRM. The findings revealed that all the
 Philmore A. Alleyne étal. 237

hotels in the sample engaged in strategic planning, and that the majority of
the hotels had a HR strategy formally endorsed and actively supported by
the hotel's top management. The majority also reported that HRM strategies
are integrated with business strategies and HR strategies are deliberately
integrated with each other. This suggests that there is a well-developed
business strategy and organized approach to HRM at the strategic level.
These findings also show that there is a significant level of interest in HRM
and that a majority of the hotels assign a considerable level of strategic
importance to HR issues.
The findings revealed that hotel size (by employee level), hotel room
prices (for winter and summer), and age of hotel were significantly related
to the number of HRM practices adopted. However, hotel ownership and
hotel size (by number of rooms) were not significantly related to the number
of HRM practices adopted. The study also provided evidence that union
presence did not influence the adoption of HRM practices, which was
consistent with that of Baptiste and Bailey (2003), but differed from that
of Culley et al. (1999) in the United Kingdom. Since this study focused on
the number of practices similar to Hoque (2000), future research should
seek to examine the relationship of the type of HRM practice and union
presence.
A widespread adoption of HRM practices within the Barbados hotel
sector was also found. However, larger hotels 'appear to have taken on
board the need to improve and develop HR policy practice' (Hoque, 2000,
p. 66). An important finding was that there was minimal adoption of spe-
cific human resource practices that are likely to facilitate organizational
leaming, service quality, and competitiveness such as: an explicit policy
requiring all staff to spend a specified minimum period annually in for-
mal training, quality circles or quality improvement teams, and merit pay
systems at all levels. These findings have implications for the continued
improvement of quality service and organizational development, increased
employee participation and commitment, higher levels of job satisfaction,
and enhanced organizational performance, which are critical elements for
achieving competitive advantage.
The research also found that less than 50% of the respondents held
professional positions that were exclusively related to the practice of HRM.
The absence of a formal HRM position in the organization could contribute
to hotels not fully adopting HRM practices in the hotel sector. Hotels must
ensure that their HRM structures are formalized. Formal HRM systems
require dedicated and skilled HRM practitioners who possess the necessary
knowledge and skills in HRM issues and practices in the organization.
238 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN HOSPITALITY & TOURISM

Future research should adopt a qualitative methodology to further ex-

plore and understand how HRM practices are implemented in the hotel
sector. In addition, future research could explore perceptions of SHRM
practices and HRM "best practices" by measuring the perceptions of all
levels of staff within hotels in Barbados. Future studies should also seek to
determine the best combination of HRM practices that could be adopted
to enhance organizational performance.

NOTE

1. These job positions were selected based on Hoque's (2000) study.

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