Managerial competencies and exemplary leadership in the lodging industry

Abstract

In facing the rising demand for improved quality, reduced costs, and constant innovation, the need to continuously upgrade knowledge, skills, and abilities is essential for all leadership roles including those held by executives, managers, and supervisors (Kay & Russette, 2000; Mirabile, 1997; Okeiyi, Finley, & Postel, 1994; Sandwith, 1993; Tas, 1988; Tas, LaBreque, & Clayton, 1996). With management scholars racing to meet this demand, competency modeling has become one of the most frequently used techniques to help organizations profile jobs, select, as well as prepare the right person for the right leadership position (Katz, 1955; Sandwith, 1993).

Under the auspices of transformational leadership, Kouzes and Posner (1995) introduced the Exemplary Leadership model which aims at helping managers lead their organizations more effectively. The authors believe that the "great person" theory is not accurate since anyone can aspire to become an exemplary leader by following the five practices in their model (Goldsmith, 2007).

In general, the lodging industry has plenty to benefit from adopting competency models in identifying competencies necessary for current and aspiring leaders of lodging establishments. In today's global business environment, lodging companies that want to stay competitive must identify the competencies required for leadership not only for the present but also for the future.

The purpose of this explanatory (correlational) study was to examine the relationship among the Demographic Profile, Professional Profile, Organizational Profile, Managerial Competencies, and Exemplary Leadership practices of managers in the Lebanese lodging industry. The design was a non-experimental, quantitative, explanatory, correlational design, and has been conducted through an onsite survey to collect data. The survey included five parts: Demographic Profile, Professional Profile, Organizational Profile developed by the author, a modified version of the Managerial Competency survey by Koenigsfeld (2007), and the LPI survey by Kouzes and Posner (1987) (the latter two used with permission). The target population consisted of general managers and department managers of hotels in Lebanon. Two hundred and fifty two (252) managers completed the survey with a sample design that was considered a convenience sampling plan. The methods of data analysis included descriptive statistics, Pearson product moment correlation, factor analysis, and hierarchical (forward) regression analyses that tested the five research questions (which included forty sub-hypotheses). Finally, all scales were examined for reliability and validity.

Findings indicated that there exists a relationship among the Demographic Profile (nationality and age ); Professional Profile (studying hospitality management); Organizational Profile (size of the property, rating by the Lebanese government, and chain affiliation); Managerial Competencies ( Leadership, Technical: Administrative and External Governmental Influence, Technical: Front Desk, and Technical: Food and Beverage); and Exemplary Leadership practices of managers in the Lebanese lodging industry. Future research can explore the same relationship of managers in other industries in the country where different business environments exist as well as replication in other countries to further extend the body of knowledge of Leadership practices globally.