Introduction

What Is A Hotel? A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging, usually on a short-term basis. It is an establishment that provides lodging along with meals and other services for travelers and other paying guests. Hotels may be classed as transient, residential, or resort hotels. With the growth of suburban centers and the increase of travel by automobile, a form of transient hotel, called a motel, became popular. In the 1990s, the extended-stay hotel for guests who need a room for at least five nights was developed, especially for business travelers who preferred more apartment-like accommodations for longer stays.

Concept Of A Hotel The word hotel is of ancient origin. It is derived from the Latin word hospital and an old French Osterie. In the 18th century the term referred either to a very large private residence, to a public government office or residence, or a hospital. The concept of Hotel has remained elusive in the sense that there is no live and evolving entity, the earliest form being the English inn or the Indian Dharamshala or Sarai. In modern usage, a hotel is an institution, an establishment or building providing lodging, food and other related services to the transient traveling public and paying guest on commercial basis at stipulated charges. The hotel is primarily a public service institution operated for profit. In the modern trends Hospitality can be associated with four qualities: It is conferred by a host on a guest, away from home It is interactive, involving the coming together of a provider and receiver It comprises a blend of tangible and intangible factors The host provides for the guests security and psychological and physiological comforts These four attributes, if put to practice; deliver the desired feeling of at home.

History Of The Hotel Industry In India While the railways were always the lifeline of the masses as well as the classes during and after the Indian independence, at that point of time, international travel was a sojourn by a steamer, till the birth of Indian aviation in 1933, when the aviation department of Tata Sons was set up. As people set out to travel, both domestic and inbound, accommodation was as good as non-existent, and unavailable. But over half a century the landscape mirrored the change experienced by the world, and the reverberations altered the landscape to the next century. 1940s And Before Unraveling the industry's origin, in its rudimentary form, it was an insipid combination of boarding and lodging, and perhaps food. Exceptions to the post-independence appearance of home-grown brands are two of hospitality's biggest institutions - Indian Hotels Company Limited owned - Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces and the East India Hotels owned - Oberoi Hotels. Ironically, the aforementioned discriminatory policy gave birth to the Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces set up by Jamsetji Tata, who was denied entry into one of the city's hotels(exclusive Green's Hotel ) because of his Hindustani antecedents. He built what would change the history of Indian hospitality at the Gateway in Mumbai, eponymous with luxury and style, and open to all his brethren. The 1950s And 60s Impoverishment, destruction of the cottage industry, rampant famines, and illiteracy - the relics of partition and the curse of colonization loomed over the task of nation building, bringing in cohesion of 560 semi-independent princely states. Given this bleak scenario, the socialist state had more than tourism on its mind, and rightly so in hindsight, with the country's infrastructure vulnerabilities exposed in the wars. Tourism was considered an elitist activity, a folly admitted in the tenth year plan. The initial five-year plans, formulated by the planning commission, concentrated on building India's industries and rebuilding rural India. But Nehru's vision of tourism was futuristic, taking the onus of development and setting up Vigyan Bhavan (infrastructure) for MICE tourism, concurrently with the Ashok Hotel (hotels) in Delhi. This led to a critical development with India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC).

But the geopolitical situation in the 60's was terse, with two wars having a debilitating effect on the economy, and the problem of scarcity compounded by rising fuel prices. However, the latter part of the 60's saw the green revolution propelling the nation towards self-sufficiency. The silver lining on the somber cloud was Goa's inclusion in India after the war with the Portuguese, a state which would soon attract the great unwashed during the decade of decadence. The 1970's And The 80's This period saw a gentle push by the government. Approximately 18 crore went to ITDC for hotel expansions and constructions, clearly pointing out its critical role for building necessary infrastructure, for much part of the history of independent India, until the foray of private players into the industry. In 1975, ITC entered the fray with the Chola Sheraton in Chennai, and eventually entered into a marketing alliance with Starwood, a relationship that stood rock solid for its length. The 90's And The Current Decade The changing hospitality landscape saw the eventuality that was to be with the government shouldering operational responsibilities in a highly competitive environment - the disinvestment of ITDC's thirtythree hotels through outright sale or lease. The government rightly identified its role as a facilitator, pointing out an impending role change for ITDC. The private sector was seeing an influx of franchising; a phenomenon emerging as a viable option for standalone hotel chains and operators to leverage their partners marketing database while enjoying the convenience of a well-accepted international brand name. The 10th five-year plan (2002-2007) allocated 2900 crore as tourism outlay for the period, while the barriers to growth were the usual suspects of lack of consensus and priority, with little investment. But the private sector has been quick to uptake the growth potential, with hotels moving towards asset light policies and towards management contracts. A special breed of investors is emerging, focusing primarily on hotel development, hoping to make a killing given the high inflationary rates and escalating land and construction costs. If one were to go by the special report on Hotels in India by HVS International in 2004, Assessing Trends and Opportunities, there might still be hope. The report noted that the available rooms of all approved and unapproved hotels were estimated to be close to 90,000. And taking into account an estimated demand growth of approximately 18 per cent over the next few years, another 65,000-80,000 rooms will need to be added, across the country, in the next five years. It speaks of a great growth story, compared to Western markets where templates of growth are stale with disuse in oversaturated markets.

PEST Analysis
Organizations operate within an environment. There are many variables that operate within an organizational environment that have a direct or indirect influence on their strategy. A successful organization is one which understands and which can anticipate and take advantage of changes within their environment. The organization's marketing environment is made up from: 1. 2. 3. The internal environment e.g. staff (or internal customers) The microenvironment e.g. our external customers, agents and distributors, suppliers, The macro-environment e.g. Political (and legal) forces, Economic forces, Socio-

our competitors, etc. cultural forces, and Technological forces. These are known as PEST factors. Pest is an acronym for political, economic, social and technological factors of the macro-environment. The purpose of carrying out a PEST analysis is to analyze the external environment in which the organizations operate and to identify how these factors influence the organizations marketing decisions. Philip Kotler claims that a PEST analysis is a useful strategic tool for understanding market growth or decline, business position, potential and direction for operations. There are many factors that affect the hotel industry despite of which the hotels in India are establishing its brand name and seeking an opportunity for the benefit for their operations which will eventually provide them better returns. The various Political, Economic, Socio-cultural and Technological factors having a positive or a negative impact on the hotel industry are explained below:

Political Environment The political factors refer to all the legal and regulatory conditions that are imposed on the hotel industry. It includes employment laws, laws governing consumer protection, environmental regulations, industry-specific regulations, competitive regulations, inter-country relationships/attitudes, war, terrorism, political trends, governmental leadership, taxes, and government structures. The political

arena has a huge influence upon the regulation of businesses, and the spending power of consumers and other businesses. The current political situation of hotel industry in India is given below: The State Government of India has proposed to spend almost Rs. 1 crore for the

promotion of tourism industry. As hotel and tourism industries are inter-related it will also impact positively on hotel industry. Luxury tax and service tax on accommodation is levied by the central government.

Tariff includes luxury tax. For example, if a room for a nights stay comes up to Rs. 5000, it includes luxury tax but the service tax is added separately to the bill which is 12.36%. The tax levied on the restaurant and food and drink i.e. VAT is levied by the state government which is 12.5%. But this year i.e. in 2007, the escalation in tariffs is expected to be between 5-10%

against the over 20% increase seen over the last 3 years. Some markets like Bangalore and Delhi could see a marginal or no increase in tariffs this year. Thats because 5 star hotels in some markets are already seeing a plateau of growth whereas occupancies in some markets have begun to see some dip. Industry experts say 5 star tariffs have started pinching even corporate clients who are now reducing their lengths of stay. For instance people visiting Bangalore and Mumbai are now staying on an average for a day and a half as against two or two and a half days. The luxury tax has been retained at 6% and 4% only, in spite of pressure from finance

department to increase it. 50% of profit, earned by convention center is exempted from income tax for a period of

three years. 50% of foreign earning by hotel is also exempted from income tax. Tax benefits are also given to the financial institutions lending to hotel companies. The

incentive to finance hotel projects is likely to boost investment as projects would now cost around 30-40 per cent less. The hotel industry is heavily taxed. Expenditure tax, luxury tax and sales tax inflate the

hotel bill by over 30%. Effective tax in the South East Asian countries works out to only 4-5%. As these taxes are the domain of the state government, the rates vary accordingly.

Terrorism has been a major factor in the reduction of tourism which has also affected

the hotel industry. The bomb attacks in states like Kashmir, Mumbai and Delhi, have reduced tourism in such places. Riots in states like Gujarat also causes a fall in the number of tourists in such places and causes a bad market for the hotel industry. Economic Environment the people. The hotel industry in India is targeting investment of Rs.25000 crores in the next 3-4 In the countries like India wherein the people are having more disposable income, the

hotel industry is standing to gain a larger share of the pie of the expenses of the expenses made by

years. But such large-scale investment can only be possible if the government helps remove the hurdles to this. Easy bank loan for holidays and active promotion by the travel companies which are

felling growth in this sector. The economic liberalization of the early 90s led to a boom in the hotel industry,

especially in 1994. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is entering Indian shores and foreign institutional

investors (FIIs) are increasing their exposure to India. All these positive signals spell more business travelers and better times for the hotel industry. These units will be allowed to import capital goods under the EPCG scheme at zero

duty, the minimum amount of imports being capped at Rs10mn. The difference in currency has always been a great problem in this industry. The hotel

industry depends on tourists and travelers from foreign countries, with the variation in currency there is a great problem for customers as the price would fluctuate every time the value of the currency would increase or decrease. The hotels are a major source of foreign income as well as economic development for a

developing country; this industry is also a major source of income and employment.

Employment: At present, about 6.8 million persons are directly employed by hotel

industry. This is about 2.1% of the total work force of the country. In addition, the industry provides indirect employment to about 25 million persons. Though they are providing employment to a massive number of people but retaining them in the organization has been seen as a major threat in hotel industry.

Social Environment Socio-cultural environment influences consumers purchase and consumption behavior. So this

where the hotels must tap the rich heritage culture of India and benefit from it in the form of attracting new customers and retaining the old ones. The hotel markets its business with the help of the local festivals and long trusted & cherished

Indian culture like Ayurveda in Kerala, Beaches in Goa and traditional melas. Consuming beef is considered as a taboo for Hindus. Similarly, India being the place of domicile

for 24 crore Muslims ranking 2nd only to Indonesia in the world is highly influenced by the Islamic culture and Pork is considered as a taboo for Muslims. But, Beef is a part of the daily food for the foreign tourists. Hence, the hotelier has to cater the needs of various people from both Occidental and Oriental culture. Consumer Tastes & Preferences: Since India is a land of extremes, there are people from various

religions and castes and hence their preferences & taste also vary. In todays society, most people want to achieve the highest possible standard of living and as such, consumers are becoming even more demanding as standard of living rises. Hotels also have to keep in mind the demand by various groups. For e.g. A Jain would be satisfied with the service only if he is served Jain food and it should be kept in mind that the customers next to him are also Jain or at least vegetarian. Changing Lifestyle: Lifestyles are becoming less predictable, more fragmented, and we have

more active but riskier lives. People are working most of the time & due to this changing lifestyle, changing habits, they prefer going on a short trip to reduce the level of stress. Earlier people used to go on a vacation only during the summertime & at the most twice. But now it is observed that people go for a trip to Matheran or Lonavala often to reduce the level of stress & spend some quality time

with their family or friends. Thus this in boosting the domestic travel & the hotels industry is benefited the most. Consumer Beliefs: Most hotels generate large quantities of solid waste including bottles and

food packaging, Kitchen and garden waste, old furniture and equipment and potentially hazardous wastes such as asbestos and solvents. The solution is to recycle and reuse waste materials wherever possible, and by safely disposing of residual wastes. The Orchid Hotel in Mumbai, India, provides a particularly good example of innovative recycling and waste disposal. Virtually all in-room products are reusable or recyclable; paper usage is kept to a minimum. Many tourists feel good knowing that they have spent a low-impact holiday and used the services of environment conscious operators. The feel-good factor is not limited to tourists it can also extend to employees. In fact, good environmental stewardship has been found to reduce employee turnover, and motivate employees to become environment-conscious citizens. Many hotels are even trying to position themselves as eco friendly hotels. Hotel Maurya Sheraton and Towers is the first hotel in India to be awarded the Golden Peacock Environment Management Award for 2001 by the World Environment Foundation. It won this award again in 2004.

Technological Environment In earlier days, it was said that in order to succeed, all a hotel needed was a scenic location and good cuisine. But in todays competitive environment, a mistake as trivial as not taking down a customers order can prove disastrous. As the hospitality industry started looking for ways to improve efficiencies, efforts and investments in the field of information technology intensified. One of the first deployments of IT began at the front desk when receptionists began checking the name of the customer and then allotted a room to him. Big hotels also started putting in place accounting systems and back office software to improve processes. The industry has moved from the traditional transaction-based processes such as check-in and reservations to features that are built and designed specifically for the customer. Services like providing wireless Internet access to guests will only increase in the future. Technology affecting hotel industries are: Technology has revolutionaries the booking system in hotels. One of the major source of

booking is Global Distribution System (GDS) where the travel operator can book for various hotels

though it. Also, hotels provide online booking systems where the hotelier tries to personalize the booking and minimize the customer interaction. The hotel is now equipped with all the modern facilities which adds to the service offering. System allocation is the key to any hotels success. The frontline service provider should be able to satisfy customers demands. E.g.: - Hotels provide LCD, Laptop & conference facilities. The availability of sufficient parking is the basic requirement for accrediting with the STAR

category. But the cost of property is soaring like the rising sea. The introduction of elevated parking is a blessing as its more convenient & cost effective to the hotelier. Wireless Technologies: One of the best examples of the use of wireless technologies is the hotel

industry. Major hotels are betting on wireless services as a new lure for business travelers who rely on high-speed Internet connectivity and wireless services to conduct day-to-day business. Initially, wireless technology in big hotels was traditionally confined to the guest room, the business centre or conference rooms. Hotels have started looking at using wireless Internet services throughout the hotel. Another significant use of this technology is seen in wireless-equipped handheld phones called digitally enhanced cordless phones, which serve the purpose of tracking a person anywhere in the hotel premises. This phone is especially useful for mobile staff who can attend to a complaint immediately. CRM: Customer Relationship Management is also being adopted in a big way by almost all the

big hotel chains in India. At present, every major hotel chain in India is investing in comprehensive systems that store complete profiles of their customers. The moment a guest checks in, he fills a form indicating his various preferences. If he is a regular client, the hotel immediately knows of his preferences and serves him accordingly. Every hotel has a major chunk of its revenue coming from its regular clientele. The hotel industry has recognized this and has deployed customer information systems (CIS) to service the customer in a better way. The same CIS can be accessed through any of the groups properties. A CIS enables the hotel to keep a record of the exact profile of the customer and keep a tab on his preferences during his subsequent visits. CIS creates guest-centric processes that are essential for CRM. And since it focuses on preferences, requests and problems of different customers, it is a boon to the hotel management. Earlier, data management systems contained only static information, which was used only to enhance efficiency of the hotel staff. But today, with the help of analytical tools, we can provide consistent service quality. CRM and software tools for front line staff have enhanced successful one-to-one relationships.

Internet: This is one of the technologies that every company is using in this world. It

can help a company either to gain advantage over its competitors. Companies are using Internet for advertising their services. Through this, they are able to reach thousands of people at long distances. Hotels have their own web sites, which can be used for getting information about rooms, services offered by them & also for online reservation. Customer is also benefited as he can get the prices of different rooms & different hotels and accordingly make a choice. But the sad part of the story is that Websites of most hotels serve only as information outlets, and almost no bookings take place through the Web. One obvious reason is security, which makes customers reluctant to reveal their credit card details on the Web. Hence, Proper security systems are a must to avoid fraud in non face-to-face transaction. Thus several forces are driving the service sector today. The four important environmental variables are forcing rapid changes in the hotel industry. People have started thinking differently & marketers have to understand the new definition of customer & their perception in context of these variables.

SWOT Analysis
"SWOT" is a simple acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. SWOT analysis consists of the following two activities: 1. 2. An assessment of the organizations internal Strengths and Weaknesses and An assessment of the Opportunities and Threats posed by its external environment SWOT analysis provides a framework for visioning by helping the planners to identify and prioritize the organizations Goals and to further identify the strategies of achieving them. Every business with global prospects in the multi dimensional, volatile atmosphere has to formulate its strategies taking into consideration the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The hotel industry also has to undertake smart and innovative moves to woo its clientele who expect best possible service at competitive rates. Strengths Rich Cultural Heritage: The major strength of the Indian hotel industry lies in Indias rich culture heritage. With a historical backdrop of 5,000 years, India is one big package of diverse cultures and traditions that never fail to captivate the imagination of the visitor. Hyatt has proved this point correct by manifesting the rich culture of our land, in terms of the food, ambiance, people, equipments, etc. this has given an edge over and above its competitors and has attracted more customers and also helped in retaining the older ones. This fact is also visible from the stores in the hotel selling ethnic wears and other such stores replicating the Indian culture. Demand Supply Mismatch: The demand-supply gap of the rooms is also proving a positive sign for the hotel industry in the country. The Indian hotel industry is currently facing a mismatch between the demand and supply of rooms leading to higher room rates and occupancy levels. All these factors are extremely beneficial to the Indian hotel industry. Thus, there has been a continuous rise in the number of hotels which has led to a stiff competition in the market and providing a wide range of options to the guests to choose from.

With such a derivation in the demand supply gap in the availability of the rooms, The Hyatt has played a smart move by placing two hotels in the city of Mumbai, i.e. one at Santa Cruz and the other in Andheri. Both these locations have their own merits as mentioned in the project. Hyatt offers a variety of rooms to choose from which gives its customers a choice which would suit their pocket as well.

Weaknesses Capital-Intensive: This industry is rather very capital-intensive. It involves huge expenditure for the building of humongous structure, employees and latest technology required for its smooth functioning. Hyatt is also no exception to this. The two hotels that it has erected in the city are made glass and the interiors are also constructed with expensive marble, which further inflates the cost of the entire structure. This requires immense capital and the payback period of the capital invested is also longer which generally, pulls back the investors to help the industry grow. Lack Of Adequate Man Power: In India, the entire service sector is growing rapidly, contributing nearly 52 per cent to the GDP growth. The average employee to room ratio is 1.8 in hotels in India, across all the categories, except in the three-star category, where the ratio drops to 1.5 per room. As new rooms are being added, the manpower requirement of the hotel industry is also increasing. It is further reported that jobs in accommodation and food services as a whole are expected to increase by 17 percent between 2004 and 2014. There is a high demand for Indian hotel managers and staff in the international hotel industry, particularly in the Middle East. The manpower shortage is also being felt in Europe (including the UK), the US, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, etc. They like to hire Indian hotel and restaurant managers because of their high level of education and experience in the industry. It's estimated that around 20% hotel management graduates go to foreign countries. The shortage of manpower, especially of skilled staff, is a key reason for the hike in salaries. According to the HR heads of various hotels in India, only 20 % fresh hotel management graduates choose to work in hotels, with a major chunk opting for airlines and BPOs. This choice is generally due to long an erratic working hours that professionals have to put in as a part of hotel industry.

Non-Availability Of Land: Considering the ever increasing population of India, there is lack of availability of land to build hotels. Also, any hotel should be located in an area which gives an exotic view from the guests rooms to give a good start of the day. In this case, the Grand Hyatt of Mumbai lacks a good location due to the non-availability of land. The hotel is located the dharavi slums of Andheri (east). Long Gestation Period: The overall period to construct and commence the operations of the hotel takes a relatively long period. The aspiration for the future prospects of the hotel diminishes till the project is completed as the trends, economy, competitors strategies, customers expectations keep changing constantly. Poor Infrastructure And Cleanliness: India is currently spending a miniscule amount vis--vis its needs, on infrastructure. In 2003, the total capital spending on electricity, roads, airports, seaports and telecom was US$150 billion in China (10.6 % of GDP), compared with US$21 billion in India (3.5 % of GDP). However, over the past 2-3 years, the government has realized the importance of infrastructure and has focused on improving it.

Opportunities Government Help: The Incredible India campaign is a product of the realization to promote tourism. The focus on infrastructure, modernization of airports, open sky policy, development of new tourist destinations and circuits, more fund allocation towards tourism are some of the initiatives taken by the government to promote tourism. The hotel industry in India can grab this opportunity to cater to the tourist. The hotel industry can use the boom in tourism, privatization of airlines, tie ups with international hotel chains, increase in disposable incomes and boost in tax concessions as opportunities to expand its scope. The hospitality industry is expanding with exciting career prospects, both local and international. It comprises a variety of interconnected sectors, including hotels, recreational activities (theme parks, cruises and the like), and food services. Its champagne time for India's hotel industry, thanks to a booming economy and the resulting surge in business. The robust demand for accommodation has led to higher room tariffs and is attracting foreign investment.

According to the 2002 estimates of the World Tourism Organization (WTO), international tourist inflow in India by 2020 would be 10 million, which means the tourist influx has to grow at a CAGR of 6.5 % for the next 14 years. This makes the country one of the fastest growing tourist destinations in the world, second only to China. According to Government estimates, India needs about 80,000 rooms in all categories over the next two or three years at an estimated cost of about US$ 8 - 9 billion. Several major international hotel chains are seeking to set up shop in India. The Hilton and the Hyatt group have already tied up with local giants East India Hotels and Asian Hotels.

Threats Competition Among Countries: The hotel industry is very sensitive to disturbances in the country; competition from other Asian countries whose official currencies have fallen drastically, high service & luxury taxes may render India as an unviable destination and lack of trained entrepreneurs pose as threats to the Indian hotel industry. Reliance On Foreign Tourism: Dependency on foreign tourism can be a double-edged sword as travel decisions are based on global patterns and disruptive events that happen elsewhere can have serious impact on the performance of the hotel sector. Events such as 9/11, the SARS outbreak, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have severely impacted the tourism industry in the past and the threat remains. Global hospitality majors like the Four Seasons, Shangri-La and Aman Resorts are all making their entry into the Indian market. They are not the only ones who are turning their attention to India. The Hilton Group is deciding on a comeback and has tied up with the Oberoi Group, besides others. This will increase the competition for the existing Indian hotel majors. Competition Among Hotels: A threat for Hyatt group of hotels is this competition from its various rivals. Its Hyatt competitors such as Washington, D.C.-based Marriott International Inc. are building high-end facilities, but they're enlarging their potential customer base by extending their brand to other segments, such as the mid-priced Courtyard by Marriott and lower-priced Fairfield Inn. Marriott International is the most formidable competitor of Hyatt Hotels. It is also doing everything to push its efficiency. Marriott is pushing all its efforts to compete in all the segments of the hotel market. Apart from Marriott, its other competitors are ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton and Leela.

Industry Structure
In the early days, hotels were grouped together based on their range of services and facilities however this is an inexact science as the distinction between availability and quality was often blurred. This led to the need for an accurate classification system within the hotel industry and hence various rating systems have been suggested and implemented which consider not only the hotel facilities but also their quality assessment and conformity with certain minimum standards. The advantage of such segmentations is that customers can easily recognize the codes and ranking systems developed and hence can expect certain accommodation standards regardless of the location of the property. The classification of the hotel industry can be done on the following broad basis:

Hotel Industry

Based On the Star Rating System

Based On Brand Segments

Based On Business Type

Based On Quality Levels

I. Based On Star Rating System The criteria for awarding stars are divided over mandatory standards and voluntary standards. The voluntary standards are valued by points. The first star is the basis. Every additional star means that a

hotel offers more facilities and services. These extra facilities and services differ per hotel and also depend on the type of hotel, eg a business or family hotel. A business that does not meet the criteria of a 1-star hotel may not carry the name hotel. 1. One Star Hotel Hotels in this classification are likely to be small and independently owned with a simple and standard interior design. There will most likely be a family atmosphere and the services may be provided by the owner or family on an informal basis. There will be a limited range of services and fairly simple meals will be served. It is also possible that one meal of the day, usually lunch, may not be served. Some or all bedrooms may not have en suite bath/shower rooms however every 10 bathrooms must have one common bathroom. However hospitable service, cleanliness, maintenance and comfort should be of an acceptable standard. In terms of the facilities offered all rooms will at least have a bed with matching bedding, a table with chairs, a cupboard, heating, and a sink with hot and cold running water and soap. It is possible to lock the room and there is a window and a bedside lamp. 2. Two Star Hotel In this classification hotels will typically be small to medium sized and offer more extensive facilities than at the one star level. Some business hotels come into the two star classification and guests can expect comfortable, well equipped, overnight accommodation, usually with an en-suite bath/shower room. Reception and other staff will aim for a more professional presentation than at the one star level, and offer a wider range of straightforward services, including food and drink. Such a hotel is functionally decorated and the facilities offered may include a colour television in at least half of the rooms, a telephone with direct line, a guest safe, breakfast in the room, good parking facilities or shoe polish facility. 3. Three Star Hotel At this level, the hotel is a comfortably decorated middle class hotel with a separate reception area. Such hotels hotels are usually of a size to support higher staffing levels, and a significantly greater quality and range of facilities than at the lower star classifications. The reception and the other public rooms are more spacious and the restaurant will normally also cater for non-residents. All bedrooms will have fully en suite bath and shower rooms and offer a good standard of comfort and equipment, such as a hair

dryer, direct dial telephone and toiletries in the bathroom. Room service can be expected and additional facilities such as valet parking, relaxation centres and recreation facilities may also be available. 4. Four Star Hotel Expectations at this level include a degree of luxury as well as quality in the furnishings, decor and equipment, in every area of the hotel. Bedrooms will also usually offer more space than at the lower star levels, and well designed, coordinated furnishings and decor. The en-suite bathrooms will have both a bath and a fixed shower. There will be a high enough ratio of staff to guests to provide services like porterage, 24-hour room service, laundry and dry-cleaning. The restaurant will demonstrate a serious approach to its cuisine. This comfortably decorated hotel will also provide for facilities such as internet connectivity, safety vaults, individually adjusted air conditioning, conference rooms and a swimming pool. 5. Five Star Hotel This category of hotels calls for spacious and luxurious accommodation throughout the hotel, matching the best international standards. The interior design should impress with its quality and attention to detail, comfort and elegance. Furnishings should be immaculate. Services should be formal, well supervised and flawless in attention to guests' needs, without being intrusive. The restaurant will demonstrate a high level of technical skill, producing dishes to the highest international standards. Staff will be knowledgeable, helpful, well versed in all aspects of customer care, combining efficiency with courtesy. Additional amenities may include private parking spaces, beauty salons, shuttle services, gymnasiums, shopping areas and ballrooms.

II. Based On Brand Segments 1. Economy Brand The economy brand has been developed for the budget traveler in which the market segment does not rely on producing luxury accommodations but rather focuses on producing quality rooms at a low price. The customer in this market segment is not requesting exclusive services or accommodations but is looking for a low rate. Hoteliers experience low costs per room because they are not offering certain amenities such as complimentary continental breakfast, wireless internet, or a fitness center. This

accommodation is appropriate for the traveler whose stay will be for a short period of time, and is not in need of many amenities or additional services. Example: Travelodge, Red Roof Inn 2. Midscale Market The midscale market provides travelers with quality accommodations and amenities while paying a reasonable price. The rooms are most often have interior corridors and are spacious. This market offers many complimentary amenities and services such as breakfast, Internet access, food and beverage accommodations, and access to business and fitness centers. This particular market segment is the most prevalent as these brands best serve the common needs of consumers, but is still not too pricy. In addition, it is more available for franchisees to build and develop because costs of construction often are at a reasonable level, which can be covered by the room revenue of this market level. Example: Holiday Inn, Hampton Inn 3. Extended Stay Market The extended stay market is a new market segment that has experienced large growth over the past few years. Each major hospitality organization has released a brand that features guest rooms for the purpose of extended stay. These guest rooms usually comprise of bedroom, sitting area, and kitchenette or bar. Extended stay brands are further being developed to provide a home-like atmosphere for travelers looking to stay for an extended period of time and who are in need of more suitable accommodations. These properties are more prominent in destination markets where customers spend at least 10-12 nights. Example: Residence Inn by Marriott, Spring Hill Suites 4. Upscale Market The upscale market segment generally includes hotels that provide full service and rooms which contain more ergonomic furniture and modern design. The room rates are much higher than that of the economy and midscale brands as this market segment offers more in terms of services. Some services, such as food and beverage or Internet access, are not usually found to be complimentary; however they are higher in quality than that of the midscale segment. Travelers that are looking to stay in more attractive

accommodations with higher levels of service and plenty of amenities are sure to choose an upscale hotel. Example: Marriott International, Hilton Hotels 5. Luxury Market This market includes hotels that are luxurious and feature the best accommodations in the lodging industry. The guest rooms are designed to be very spacious and comfortable with a modern upscale design. All hotels are full service and have amenities and accommodations that are quite lavish. Services found in this market level that are not found in others are concierge services, spa, recreational activities, and entertainment. This segment is intended for travelers willing to pay premium prices for first-class accommodations and service. Example: Ritz Carlton, Four Seasons

III. Based On Business Type 1. Limited Service Such a hotel has no on premise restaurants and it provides only limited guest services. It does have nicely appointed rooms and good quality amenities however the overall range of facilities is limited though some special services may be available. The hotel can be expected to be clean, comfortable and functional. Example: Holiday Inn Express, Country Inns & Suites 2. Midscale These chains are characterized by nicely appointed rooms, limited but good quality amenities and some special services may be available. They have an on-property full-service restaurant and more complete guest services and facilities such as meeting rooms and party halls. They have also have swimming pools, one or more restaurants and lounges. Example: Hilton Garden Inn, Holiday Inn Select

3. Upscale Such hotels may include suite chains or resorts. They range from upscale to luxury/luxury deluxe. The bottom range hotels have well integrated dcor, quality furnishings and a high staff-to-guest ratio. The top range has elegant, distinctive, high quality dcor as well as a full range of first class amenities and customized services. They may also feature luxurious accommodations, numerous amenities, several upscale restaurants, beautifully appointed grounds and gardens and the highest standards of service and comfort. Example: Bottom Range includes Marriott Hotels, Hilton Hotels Top Range includes Ritz Carlton, Le Meridien 4. Casinos These include hotels that focus on gaming. The lower end of the spectrum works to attract high volume middle class markets while luxury casinos cater to wealthy clientele and high rollers. Example: Bellagio, Caesars Palace Hotel 5. Resorts Resorts are hotels located in a desirable vacation spot such as beachfront, lakeside, mountainsides or on a golf course. They offer fine dining, exceptional service, activities unavailable at most other properties and many amenities. Resorts may be otherwise indistinguishable from midscale, upscale or casino brands. Example: Fairmont Hotels, Park Shore Resort IV. Based On Quality Levels There are ten quality levels which are categorized based on the quality of guest accommodations and the extent of hotel facilities. Every hotel falls into one of the following categories: A) Deluxe Super Deluxe Deluxe Moderate Deluxe

B) First Class C) Tourist Superior Tourist Class Tourist Class Moderate Tourist Class Superior First Class First Class Limited Service First Class Moderate First Class

These classifications hold the following significance: Super Deluxe: An exclusive and expensive luxury hotel, often palatial, offering the highest standards of service, accommodations and facilities. They have elegant and luxurious public rooms and the hotel is a prestige address. Establishments in this category are among the worlds top hotels. Deluxe: It is a property offering many of the same features as a Superior Deluxe except in some cases a small no. of minimum rated accommodations may be of inferior grade. It is slightly less grand and offers more reasonable rates then the superior deluxe properties yet in many instances may be just as satisfactory. It is safe to recommend this hotel to most discriminating clients. Moderate Deluxe: Such a hotel may be a well established name in the hotel industry which is depending heavily upon past reputation. In some other cases some accommodations or public spaces may not be upto deluxe standards. The hotel may be heavily marketing to clients especially business clients with as one having fine accommodation offering deluxe standards in comfort but lacking in atmosphere or personal service. It may however be overpriced as compared to the service expectation fulfilled. It should be recommended with caution to fussy clients expecting full deluxe facilities and much pampering. Superior First Class: This is an above average hotel which may be an exceptionally well maintained older hotel, more often a superior modern hotel specifically designed for the first class market with some outstanding features. The accommodations and public areas are expected to be tastefully furnished

and very comfortable and it may be recommended to the average client and in most cases it will also satisfy the discriminating ones. First Class: This is an average, comfortable hotel with standardized rooms, amenities and public spaces. It is usually dependable but nothing special. It may have a superior executive wing and it may be safely recommended to average clients not expecting deluxe faculties or special services. Limited Service First Class: A property offering full first class quality accommodations but limited public areas, food service and facilities. Usually moderate in size the hotel often utilizes a residential scale and architecture. Many offer complimentary breakfast in a small informal restaurant and it is geared to the individual business/pleasure traveler. Moderate First Class: It is basically a first class establishment, slightly below average. It generally has comfortable, simple accommodations and public areas though not always kept upto standards. It may be lacking in some features for example a restaurant. Some of the rooms or public areas may tend to be small and functional. It is usually suited for cost-conscious clients but should not be recommended to the fussy ones. Superior Tourist Class: Primarily a budget property with mostly well kept, functional accommodations some up to the First Class standards. Their public rooms may be limited or non-existent. Often just a place to sleep, it may have charming or intimate features. It may be of good value and will satisfy clients on a budget. Tourist Class: It is strictly a budget operation with some facilities or features of the Superior Tourist class but usually no or very few First Class accommodations. They should not be recommended to discriminating clients. Moderate Tourist Class: It is a low budget operation, often quite old and may not be well kept. It is usually used in a pinch if no other options are available however clients should always be warned as to what to expect.

Informal Classifications of Hotels Hotels are also classified on an informal basis as it is better understood by the common man however these classifications are not very accurate and nor do they consider the various hotel attributes or quality levels. There can be many such informal classifications on the basis of various criteria specifically on size and quality. As per the present market standards hotels can be classified into Small, Medium and Large Hotels based on the no. of rooms they have. Those hotels with less then 180 rooms are considered to be Small hotels, those with 180-450 rooms can be considered as Medium sized hotels and those with over 450 rooms are considered at Large Hotels, however it can be pointed out that certain differences do exist in this context of classification in different countries. Hotels are also classified based on their price structure as Expensive, Moderate and Budget Hotels. Hotels can also be broadly classified depending on if they are National or International hotels and the expectations from such hotels generally tend to vary because of the brand equity they carry. In International hotels, people expect a cosmopolitan atmosphere wherein the hotel maintains International standards of services while in the case of National hotels differences persist especially in the smaller and less accessible places however today the bigger National hotels tend more and more to be cast from a common mould, no matter where they are situated. Another general classification of hotels is based on whether they are part of a Chain of hotels or a Stand Alone hotel. A hotel chain is is a collection or grouping of hotels under one recognizable brand operated by a management company. Such a company can add as many holdings as it wishes in different locations of the nation or world (depending on whether it is a national or an international chain of hotels). These holdings fall under the same brand name however they may fall under different segments or star ratings and may also be different in nature such as commercial, residential, resort or heritage hotels. Here the customers expect a certain level of service to be maintained across all the hotels of that chain. A stand alone hotel is one which does not have more then one or two holdings and hence it may not be as well known as a hotel which is part of a Chain, to people who reside in a different location from where the hotel is.

Categorizing the Grand Hyatt The Grand Hyatt can be categorized on the basis of the above mentioned classifications. It falls into various categories depending on the systems of classification used. In terms of the Star Rating system the Hyatt is a 5 Star hotel as it meets and exceeds all the minimum standards required for an establishment to be a 5 Star hotel. If we consider brand segments the Grand Hyatt falls into two categories, the Extended Stay Market and the Luxury Market. It is part of the extended stay market because the hotel provides for apartment accommodations for guests who wish to stay for a longer period of time and it is also part of the luxury market due to the vast variety of facilities and amenities it provides. The hotels which are part of the Hyatt chain are usually considered to be part of the Upscale market segment however in India it is one of the top hotels and hence can be considered to be part of the Luxury segment. If classified according to its business type the Hyatt will once again fall into the Upscale segment. In terms of segmentation by quality levels the Hyatt shows exemplary quality in all its departments and hence falls under the Super Deluxe segment. As per the informal classifications mentioned the Hyatt is a large hotel as it has over 450 rooms, its price structure can be considered to be expensive and it is an part of an International Chain of hotels and hence the expectations from the hotel are also much higher then what one would expect from a stand alone hotel.

Characteristics Of The Hotel Industry

The following points represent the main characteristics of the hotel industry: It is a service oriented industry. It is a labour intensive industry requiring a high degree of specialized and skilled labour. There are a few limiting services of the service sector that are colloquially known as the 4 Is. They are explained below:Intangibility Since services are performances or actions rather than objects, they cannot be seen, felt, tasted or touched in the same manner as tangible goods can be. Thus as services cannot be readily displayed or communicated; it becomes difficult for the customer to assess the level of quality that has been provided to him. Although this is a restricting characteristic of the service industry, the Hotel sector in particular can overcome this factor through a concept popularly known as Tangibilizing the Intangibles. This means that the hotel can communicate the quality of the services through their physical evidence and tangible cues. The Grand Hyatt is named so owing to its gigantic proportions. It is set on a piece of 10 acres of land. Thus the Grand Hyatt has ample opportunity to display its tangibles, which can in turn reflect top-notch quality. Both the interiors as well as the exteriors of the grand Hyatt are done very tastefully. The interiors have been designed by Chhadha, Seimbieda and Remedios of Long Beach, California. Apart from the architecture of the Hotel, even the tiniest of details right from the lighting, to the flooring, to the cutlery, to the quality of the brochures all reflect the quality of the services being offered to the customer. At The Grand Hyatt each one of these tiny details is paid close attention to and thus affirms the customer of the high standards of the Grand Hyatt.

Inseparability This characteristic of services reflects the property of simultaneous production and consumption. Unlike goods that are sold off the shelves and then consumed, services are most often produced and consumed at the same time. This means that the customer is present while the service is being produced and thus views and sometimes even takes part in the production process. This implies that the hotel has to be very careful in rendering any services since the customer will be present at that time and will form an opinion

immediately. For example, at The Grand Hyatt, they have taken this inseparability a step further by making all the kitchens of the various restaurants open and free to public viewing, a concept known as show kitchens. At Celini, for instance, all the ingredients such as the tomatoes, onions, and chilli are placed attractively in large bowls so that not only can the customers judge the quality but also that it adds to the dcor of the restaurant. An investment into a Molteni stove has also been made at the Grand Hyatt. Such stoves are the only ones to be found in the whole of India and cost as much as 70% more than the average rate of hotel kitchen stoves. Such an investment makes sense simply because the show kitchen puts so much emphasis on the transparency of activity which has typically been back of the house. Thus, customers at Celini quite literally consume the service at the same place as it is produced so much so that they can virtually see the size of the onions being used in their dish, the degree of the flame on the stove, and the spatula used to stir the food! Therefore it is evident that the hotel has to take a lot of care about the way in which the services are produced as the customers will in most times be present at that very moment and any default on the part of the hotel can translate into dissatisfaction for the customers. What this necessitates is a need for specialized training since the quality and the customer satisfaction will be highly dependant on what happens in real time, including actions of employees and the interactions between employers and customers. For example, if on being asked a query, the employee feels the need to cross check with another employee and say a debate ensues between the two of them then the customer may feel that the service provider has been inefficient. Inconsistency Since services are performances, performed by humans, no two service experiences will be alike. It is difficult to standardize services since the performance of the employees may differ from day to day. Also, the same service may be rendered by different employees owing to the rotations in shift which may cause a customer to have different service experiences. The heterogeneity also arises since no two customers are alike; each one has unique demands, and unique expectations. Thus it can be seen that such a characteristic of services stems from the human factor attached to the service sector. It is for this reason that a customer, who may have had an extremely pleasurable stay at a hotel in the past, may not enjoy the same way the next time. A case in point is with respect to the Grand Hyatt. We called the Grand Hyatt to enquire whether they had a midnight buffet offer. At the first instance, the person at the other end did not really have the answers to our questions and we were made to hold twice during the conversation while she confirmed

the details. However, the second time we called the Hotel regarding the same query, we were met with an extremely efficient receptionist who knew all the details about the buffet in spite of the information not being related to his department and then put us on hold only to confirm the prices. It can be seen from this example that within one day, we had two diametrically opposite experiences, one failing to satisfy us and the other delighting us. Quality actually depends on various factors that cannot always be controlled by the service supplier, such as the ability of the customer to articulate his needs and desires, the ability of the personnel to satisfy those needs, etc. Therefore the service provider cannot always be 100% sure that the service delivered is in a manner consistent with what was planned and promoted. Of the two variables mentioned, the ability of the personnel to satisfy customers needs falls comparatively more within the control of the service provider by way of training and the motivation given to the employee. Obviously a well equipped and happy employee can serve a client better than one who is unaware of details and/or is unhappy with the job, who might then exhibit that unhappiness through nonchalance towards the customer. Inventory Inventory arises from the perishable nature of services. Perishability refers to the fact that services cannot be saved, stored, resold or returned. A primary issue that marketers face in relation to service perishability is the inability to inventory. A seat in a restaurant or a room in a hotel that is not used cannot be reclaimed at a later date. For example, if the hotel has plenty of free rooms in the month of June, such rooms cannot be inventoried such that at a later date, maybe December, when the demand tends to peak; the previously empty rooms can be utilized to meet the rise in demand. Services cannot be inventoried, since they are performed in real time. And time periods during which service delivery capacity sits idle represents revenue-earning potential that is lost forever. Periods of peak demand cannot be prepared for in advance by producing and storing services, nor can they be made up for at that point. A service opportunity occurs at a point in time, and when it is gone, it is gone forever. Thus demand forecasting techniques and creative planning for capacity utilization become very important decisions. So, what is done is that hotels tend to overbook the rooms so as to offset any cancellations that could be made so as to avoid a loss in revenue due to unsold rooms. Although the Grand Hyatt largely caters to a corporate clientele and thus the vagaries of seasonal demand are leveled off, it still faces the issue of inventory since it cannot provide those rooms, which were initially free, to corporate executives when the hotel booking goes full.

Service Triangle
The services triangle is a strategic framework which reinforces the importance of people in a service industry in order to keep the promises of the firm has made and to build strong customer relationships. The triangle speaks of three interlinked groups of people which hold equal importance in the delivery of a service and hence they are represented by the vertices of an equilateral triangle. In the hotel industry, these three groups are represented by the Hotel Management, the Employees or the Service Providers and lastly the Hotel Guests.

Hotel Management

Employees/ Service Providers

Hotel Guests

In order for a service to be delivered successfully different types of marketing take place among the three groups and it is the effort of all three marketing strategies that a service provider can fulfill his promise of service delivery to the customer. The following are the different types of marketing as represented by the Services Marketing Triangle.

External Marketing An external marketing function refers to any information that is communicated to the customer before the service is delivered. In case of the Hotels, external marketing means the promotional activities and advertisements done by the hotel via newspapers, travel magazines, television, personal selling, etc. Thus, in external marketing, the hotel makes promises to the guests to deliver the best possible services and fulfill customer expectations. In case of the Hyatt, it is their brand name which speaks for itself and symbolizes quality service. Hence their reputation is such that their brand name becomes a promise to the customers and they expect quality services from the hotel chain. Internal Marketing Every employee represents his service provider and hence his attitude towards his work and the customers reflects the quality of the organizations service. Especially in the case of the hotel industry it is very important to keep the employees in satisfied and happy since they are the ones who are in direct contact with the customers and hence are the actual service agents for the hotel. Their mental state will be reflected in the way they behave with the customers and hence their passion for their work translates into better service for the customers. Internal marketing is a tool which should be used by hotels to develop the skills of employees so that they can successfully interact with and serve the customers thus enabling them to keep the promises made by the hotel via their external marketing. Such internal marketing activities of the hotel management include recruiting, training, motivating, rewarding and empowering the employees. Interactive Marketing Interactive marketing takes place between the employees of a service organization and its customers. It comprises of a series of service encounters which are also called moments of truth. In simple words it is any episode wherein a customer comes into contact with any aspect of the company, however remote, and thereby has an opportunity to form an impression. Interactive marketing means delivering the services to the customers as promised by the company. It is the implementation of marketing policy of the company. While delivering the service the hotel staff has to see that they are delivering the service as promised by the hotels and satisfy the expectations of the customers which make them keep coming back.

Product
The marketing mix is the combination of marketing activities that an organisation engages in so as to best meet the needs of its targeted market. The elements of the marketing mix are the basic, tactical components of a marketing plan.Each component of the marketing mix contributes significantly to the shape and the outcome of the final marketing plan. This final mix can be altered by varying the contribution of each of the elements. So for a high profile brand, a marketer could increase the focus on promotion and desensitize the weight given to price. Traditionally the marketing mix consisted of just 4 Ps, which are listed below: 1. Product 2. Price 3. Place 4. Promotion. Getting the mix of these elements right enables the organization to meet its marketing objectives and to satisfy the requirements of customers. In addition to the traditional four Ps it is now customary to add some more Ps to the mix to give the Seven Ps. The additional Ps have been added because today marketing is far more customer oriented than ever before, and because the service sector of the economy has come to dominate economic activity in the country. Thus the modern marketing mix is comprised of the following ingredients: 1. Product 2. Price 3. Place 4. Promotion 5. People 6. Process 7. Physical evidence 8. Productivity and quality With the view point of marketing the hotels ammenities, it can be seen that there is no rigid demarcation when it comes to the elements. The Ps overlap each other, however the centrifugal force

remains the customer. The combination of core and peripheral services, the creative promotion techniques, the pricing strategies that help the hotel to maintain commercial viability, the efficient hotel personnel instrumental in minimizing the gap between the services promised and services offered, and the education and training programme for the personnel are important decision-making areas which gravitate attention to the formation of a sound mix for the hotel industry. The Product Just as businesses exist to sell products, hotels exist to sell services. Being a focal part of the service industry the main product of this industry is embodied in services rendered to the customers. The hotel industry provides a fair combination of core and peripheral services. It is right to mention that in almost all the hotels of the same category by and large the core services are identical and therefore the peripheral services demand a close attention and provide a powerful avenue for differentiation. Thus, the more innovative the peripheral services, the more attractive the product mix. This makes it essential for hotels to assign due weightage to the formulation of an optimal product mix in which peripheral services prove to be the point of differentiation. . While formulating the product mix for the hotel services, it is essential that restaurant and cafeteria management, housekeeping, room service, recreational facilities etc are given due importance.

The Grand Hyatt, Mumbai

Product Classification In planning the marketing offering , the service provider must address five product levels. Each level adds more customer value, and the five constitue a customer value hierarchy. The five levels are elaborated below:Core Benefit This is the fundamental product level. It reperesents the actual service that the customer is buying. It is not the tangible, physical product but the benefit that it valuable to the customer and what the customer is actually paying for. The core benefit provided by the hotel industry is ACCOMODATION. The basic role of the Grand Hyatt is to provide the basic facilities of rest and sleep. ACCOMODATION AT THE GRAND HYATT: The Grand Hyatt is quite aptly named! Going by its epic proportions it is indeed as Grand as grand gets. The following list demonstrates the accomodation provided by the Grand Hyatt: 547 Rooms and Suites 147 Apartments (for visits of a longer duration) *** A double-storeyed Exclusive Grand Club Accomodation 12 Grand Executive Suites 12 Veranda Suites 4 Diplomatic Suites 7 Grand Suites 3 Presidential Suites. In addition, the Grand Hyatt offers specially designed rooms for the physically handicapped. *** The Grand Hyatt provides service apartments as a part of its offering for longer than usual visits. These 147 fully furnished apartments are spacious, fresh and contemporary in design and offer the customer a comfortable and stylish place that they can call home. These air-conditioned, fully equipped, open plan apartments are available in flexible configurations of studio, one, two and three bedrooms as can be seen from the diagrammatic representation given below:

147 APARTMENTS

1 bhk (22)

2 bhk (3) Type 9

Studio Apts. (112)

3 bhk (10) Type 3R & 4R

Type 1

Type 1B

Type 1C

* Note the Illustrations of the Floor plans

Basic This is the level product of

Product second the

classification. The basic product is the embodiment of the core benefits that the service provider offers to the customer. Thus, the marketer has to turn the core benefits into a basic product. Since the basic product is a representation of the core benefits, a basic product should entail no more than a bed,

bathroom, a closet and towels. However, The Grand Hyatt is a five-star hotel and thus the core benefits will be more composite in nature, therefore the basic product has to be up-scaled to include more amenities. The following is a list of the basic products offered with respect to the accomodation: King sized bed Closet Oversized work desk Marble bath 24-hour room service Cable/satellite TV channels Dual line phones Crib upon request Individual air conditioning control Morning newspaper Speakerphone Voicemail Robes 25 inch TV 24-hour concierge Mineral water Slippers, Guest toiletries 700+ car park The aforementioned list pertains to the basic facilities with regards to the various classes of rooms (suites and executive class). Since The Grand Hyatt provides serviced apartments there will be a few additions to the basic products. The following represents the additional services: All apartments are fitted with an open plan, western-style kitchen with top of the line All apartments are equipped with household items such as crockery, glassware, Daily housekeeping services refrigerator, cook top, oven, microwave, washing machine, exhaust hood and dishwasher cookware and silverware

Flat screen color television with cable TV channels Direct In Dialing (DID) for each apartment 24-hour Reception Desk and message service Dedicated Concierge Round-the-clock security and maintenance

The following is a list of the basic products with respect to the dining requirements of the customers. It must be noted that we have treated all the restaurants of the Hyatt as a basic offering as they serve the basic necessity of eating. Moreover, with regards to the international appeal of the various restaurants, it must be pointed out that the Hyatt is after all an international chain and serves an international clientele. Therefore having specialty restaurants to serve the diverse palettes will fall under the purview of a basic product irrespective of the prolific variety. M M is the hotels principal Western restaurant with a culinary objective to offer select vegetables, best cuts of prime meats, seafood and poultry from select locations around the world, using traditional cooking methods. Celini Celini, Grand Hyatt Mumbai's authentic Italian restaurant, embraces traditional Italian recipes and presents them with a modern approach. Exuding an understated elegance, Celini's interiors are contemporary and simple using interesting textures of natural wood, stone, matte finished steel and sand blasted glass.

Soma Soma, the Indian restaurant at Grand Hyatt Mumbai, offers authentic regional and tandoor grilled cuisine. The tandoor show-kitchen is the restaurant's central feature where you can see skilled chefs preparing the food.

Grand Caf The Grand Caf, the all day dining restaurant at The Grand Hyatt Mumbai offers Indian and international cuisine in a casual and lively ambience. This caf is ideal for a light meal of deliciously fresh ingredients.

China House The China House was launched recently in May 2007 and is designed to exude the warmth of a typical Chinese home. China House offers casual dining with a modern approach. The cuisine which is imaginative yet simple emphasizes on home-style Sichuan cuisine, but also features signature Chinese delicacies. Expected Product At the third level is the expected product. At this level, the marketer fashions the product according to a set of attributes that customers normall expect. Hotel guests normally expect the following: Hygiene - Hygiene is a very basic expectation of the hotel guests. Since a hotel is constantly inhabited by people it becomes very essential for the hotel to make sure that it maintains a sense of utmost hygiene when it comes to services such as food, linen, restrooms, and additional facilities like the swimming pool, gymnasium etc. Quality - This is one of the most important factors in rendering services. The customers expect nothing less than top notch quality in all facets; right from the kind of linen, to the kind of pillow, to the mattress, to the napkins, to the room freshener used, to the cutlery used etc. The list is exhaustive. Since the customers are present during all the service encounters, and since they are also paying through their nose, they tend to keep a very discerning eye on the surroundings. They seek high quality with every service encounter and may kick up a fuss if they feel that the hotel has not lived up to its claim of high quality. In fact, a majority of the customer grievances are a result of lapse in quality. Ambience - This refers to the mood or the atmosphere that is exuded as a result of the setting, the dcor, the lighting etc. The customers obviously expect that the hotel they stay in radiates a warm yet luxurious ambience.

The Grand Hyatt, being a five star up-scale hotel has obviously taken much care and consideration to tailor make their services in accordance with the customers expectations. Thus most of the expectations have already been conditioned into the basic products offered by The Grand Hyatt. Augmented Product At the fourth level, the service provider prepares an augmented product that exceeds the customers expectations. Services that fall under this category are generally the additional services, over and above the basic product, that are offered to the customers. They serve as the main point of differentiation. By and large, the core and basic products offered by most of the hotels across the industry tend to be the same. Therefore, the hotels use this product level to make their package more attractive than the competitors. The Grand Hyatt uses the following additional facilities to leverage itself. Given below is the list of augmented products that are specific to the hotel rooms. They appertain to, and are in respect of, the basic need of accommodation. Tea/coffee making facilities Fruit Safe large enough to store and charge laptops Hairdryer Minibar Video on demand Data port Technology concierge Phone in bathroom High-speed Internet access Complimentary chocolate box Bottle of wine Self contained work desk Kitchenette In room fax machine Printer Copier

DVD Player In room safe Private Concierge 3 / 4 Phone lines

The following is a list of the common augmented products provided by the Grand Hyatt. They are available to all the guests irrespective of the type of room they occupy or the nature of their visit to the hotel i.e. as a guest or a visitor. Dedicated swimming pool Baby-sitting service Convenient access to the complex's 24-hour Business Centre for private meeting Grand Ballroom- 30,000 square feet of conference and meeting space - amongst the Convenient access to Club Oasis - Fitness Centre and Spa Gourmet Store within the complex for homemade jams, chutneys and sauces, a variety Catering and home delivery from Grand Hyatt Mumbai's restaurants Beauty Salon Tennis Courts Grand Hyatt Plaza A Multilevel shopping plaza featuring over 50 boutiques of Indian

rooms, secretarial services, translation facilities and laptop rentals largest and most sophisticated facilities in the city.

of cheese, cold cuts, olives and wine as well as freshly baked breads, cakes, tortes and cookies

and international brands. Over and above the list mentioned above, we have classified the Lounges and Bars as augmented products. This is because the hotel, in order to satisfy the basic needs of accommodation and dining, already has 547 rooms and suites as well as 5 restaurants. Thus the lounges and Bars serve as additional and extra facilities that the hotel provides to the guests. The following is a list of the Lounges and Bars of the Grand Hyatt: M Bar

The M Bar with Mumbais most extensive Martini list offers the city a choice of more that 40 different kinds of Martinis making it the perfect haven for a Martini lover. The Bar The Bar is centrally located at the lobby level, adjacent to all the restaurants making it an ideal place to sit back and unwind with pre and post dinner drinks. Potential Product The potential product includes all the possible augmentations and transformations the product may undergo in the future. Here is where companies can seek new ways to satisfy customers and distinguish their offering. Now at the Grand Hyatt, potentiality will correspond to the up-gradation of their technology and equipment as and when there is advancement in the technology. Also the company could make use of benchmarking practices so as to emulate the service offerings of the best hotels in the world. One of the most potential augmentations that can be made is to use technology and digitalize as many operations as possible such as touch screens, check-in kiosks, blue tooth enabled bathtubs and airconditioners( to adjust water and room temperatures before arrival of the guest) etc. Product Mix A product mix or product assortment is a set of all the products and services offered by the service provider. A product mix consists of various product lines , which refer to the kind or the variety of services offered. A product mix has a certain length, width and depth. The width of a product mix refers to how many different product lines the company has. The length of a product mix refers to how many services or products fall within a single product line. The depth of a product mix refers to how many variants are offered of each product in the line. And finally, the consistency of a product mix refers to how closely related the product lines are in terms of end use, production requirements, distribution channels etc. Shown below is a diagrammatic Grand Hyatt product mix of the Grand Hyatt. The representation of the

Accommodation

Dining

Recreation & Health

Hotel Facilities

Rooms Grand King Grand Queen Grand Twin

M Swimming Pool Celini

24 Hours room Service

24 Hour Concierge Club Oasis (Fitness Centre & Spa)

Apartments Studio Apts 1 BHK 2 BHK 3 BHK Grand Caf Grand Club Accommodations Club King Club Queen Club Twin Suites Grand Exec. Suites Veranda Suites M Bar China House Soma

700+ Car Park

Gourmet Store

Technology Concierge

Beauty Salon

High Speed Internet Service

Baby Sitting Service Tennis Courts 24 Hour Business Centre

Grand Hyatt Plaza Grand (Shopping Ballroom Centre The Bar Product Grand Product lining is the marketing strategy of offering for sale several related products. A Line: Suites Diplomatic Suites line can comprise related products of various sizes, types, colours, qualities, or prices. Thus the Hyatt Presidential Suites has various product lines. The Accomodation product line comprises of the different kinds of rooms they have, which may be different in size, price or type however their basic purpose is to provide a place

to stay. The Dining line comprises of all the restaurants at the Grand Hyatt and hence they are related as the basic purpose of the products in this line is to serve food. The Health and Recreation line comprises of those facilites which provide entertainment or are related to the guests well being. Finally the Hotel Facilities line is a list of all the additional services the hotel provides along with the aforementioned ones. Line Consistency: This refers to how closely the products that make up one line are. We can see above that the products in the various lines are consistent and closely related given that their basic purpose remains the same. Line Depth: This refers to the no. of product variants in a line. Thus we can see that in the Accomodation line, the number of variants are 15 and hence this is the Line Depth. Product Width: The number of different product lines which a company has is known as the product width. In this case the Grand Hyatts product mix has a width of 4 i.e. it has 4 different product lines. Product Length: The total number of products sold by a company, in all its lines, is called Product Length. In this case the Grand Hyatt has a product length of 36 or in other words the sells a total of 36 different products. Positioning In a highly competitive environment, theres a risk that customers will perceive little real difference between competing alternatives and so make their choices based on price. Positioning strategy is concerned with creating and maintaining distinctive differences that will be noticed and valued by those customers with whom the firm would most like to develop a long-term relationship. Successful positioning requires managers to understand both their target customers preferences and the characteristics of their competitors offerings. A hotel should design its products and services in such a manner that it matches up to the kind of image it desires to portray to the market. In this case, Grand Hyatt, Mumbai, positions itself as a business class hotel. All the amenities and services provided are suitable for the business class. The hotel provides office space, wherein the guest can make use of computers, printers, and scanners and can do their work peacefully. They also have the facility for their guests to hire laptops. This kind of facility is not provided by many hotels.

Grand Hyatt provides its guests with one of the largest ballrooms in India and multiple conference rooms. Since it is a business class hotel, the kind of facilities it provides revolves round it. The hotel does not have a nightclub but has a lounge. Unlike, other 5 star hotels like J.W. Marriot which portray a Bollywood image, the Grand Hyatt believes in serving mainly the corporate class. With their newly launched Chinese restaurant, China House, which welcomes many celebrities, it has helped the Grand Hyatt to become a part of the social world. The celebrities visiting the hotel are treated just like any other guests visiting the hotel. There is not much media attention, people bothering them for their photographs or autographs, etc. are few reasons why they prefer coming to Grand Hyatt. One might think that it is restrictive only to the business class people but it has helped the high profile celebrities visiting the hotel to be left alone and peaceful.

Price

Price can be considered as the assigned numerical monetary value of a service. It is a tool that matches the supply and demand. Price influences the demand for a product, which in turn determines volume sales. Therefore, setting an appropriate price is one of the most critical factors in demand and revenue management. Like other organizations, hotels also need to make critical pricing decisions. The existence and prosperity of hotels are substantially influenced by the quality of pricing decisions. To be able to have an effective pricing strategy there are a few important factors to be kept in mind, which can be termed at the Cs of pricing. Each of them is crucial in deciding the final price in a service sector. The first determinant of price is the Cost. The approach to pricing could be based on total cost or direct cost. The hotel pricing structure firstly needs to be structured such that it covers its costs such as the land and building costs which in India is 60% of the total cost of the entire hotel project. The land rates in Mumbai being exorbitant force hotels to up their prices making it extremely tough for a budget or economy segment hotel to sustain its low prices for long. Along with this the hotel overheads also add to the costs, these being the costs of electricity, furnishings, equipment, salaries, taxes etc. The second important factor is the Customer. Pricing must be adjusted such that the customer feels that he has received value for what he has paid. The services and amenities provided must justify the costs. Hence the hotel must decide its pricing structure keeping in mind the customers perceived value, which is a mix of the tangible and intangible benefits the customer gets from the brand. This strategy is called Perceived Value Pricing and its application is important in the hotel industry to ensure customer satisfaction. The pricing of the hotel industry takes into consideration various facilities provided to the customers. Sometimes the customer may have the option of eliminating certain amenities he does not use from the package provided, however largely the customer pays for amenities such as the room space, the furnishing, bathroom fittings and toiletries, entertainment and convenience products such as telephones, televisions, music and video players as well as hair dryers, ironing equipment, tea and coffee making facilities and stationary. Additional costs would include the hotel facilities used such at the beauty salon, gymnasiums, conference rooms, restaurants etc. The third price determinant is Competition. In the 5 star hotel segment that the Grand Hyatt is a part of, there is stiff competition from Indian as well as international hotel chains. Various hotels offer services of international standards and hence competitors prices must be considered while determining the price structure. In case the hotel is over priced the customers may feel that they are not getting enough value

for the amount they are paying and hence may switch to a competing brand which is providing similar facilities at lower prices. If the hotel is priced much lower than the customers expectations, this may also be detrimental to the hotels image as the upscale customers may perceive it to be a lower ranking hotel and hence it may not live up to the 5 star hotel image. Hence in this case we can see that the strategies of Competitive Pricing and pricing for Image building, both come into play and are important for the Hyatt to consider while formulating its price structure. The next price determinant is the Channel Margin such as the payments made to the distributors of the hotel product. The distributors for a hotel could be tour operators and travel agents and they may be paid a commission or margin on every booking they obtain for the hotel or alternatively they may be given discounted rates which are sometimes also passed on to the customer. Hence these extra costs must be borne by the hotel and hence they must be included while formulating the price structure. Finally the Company decides the pricing. In this case it is the hotels internal goals which determine pricing. In the hotel industry pricing is always based on a profit motive and hence hotels tend to keep large profit margins which determine the final price. 5-star hotels like the Grand Hyatt have a profit percentage which is as high as 200% - 250%. Along with the aforementioned determinants of price there are certain other factors which affect the final price in hotels. They are as follows: Tax Structure: There are various taxes applicable in the Hotel Industry. Taxes such as Luxury Tax, Government Service Tax and Value Added Tax form the tax structure in the Hotel billing process. Luxury Tax and Government Service Tax are collected by the Central Government and are applicable only on accommodation price. VAT is a type of Sales Tax which is applicable on food and drink items, is collected by the State Government. The accommodation prices mentioned in the tariff card of 5-star hotels include only luxury tax. Government Service tax of 12.36% is added during the billing process. Similarly for the food and drink items, VAT of 12.5% is added during the billing process. Currency: The currency one makes payments in affects the total price that will be paid by a customer. Hoteliers have always followed a dual tariff system allowed them to quote room rates in both US dollars the universally accepted currency and Indian rupees. NRIs and foreign guests were charged dollar

tariffs, which was pegged 10-15% higher than the rupee tariff paid by Indians. The higher tariff structure is significant; given that majority (over 60%) of guests at five-star hotels are foreigners. On their part, hotel companies get duty concessions while importing equipment and motor cars under the export promotion capital goods (EPCG) scheme against its foreign exchange earnings. However now with the weakening of the dollar against the rupee hoteliers feel there is more value for money earned in rupees and hence have decided to price their services in rupees. Foreign customers are, however, free to settle their bills in an international currency. This system has officially come into effect in 2007. Hyatt however realized the benefits of converting to the single tariff system in 2000 itself and since they have quoted their prices in Indian rupees only. This means that the fluctuating value of the rupee vis-vis the dollar will affect the final prices paid by a customer. Discounts: Hotels provide discounts to their customers which may be a part of their promotional strategy or in order to maintain good customer relationships with frequent customers. Though many hotels follow promotional pricing wherein they give seasonal discounts or make allowances for special events the Hyatt does not follow this pricing strategy. This is because Hyatt is already an established name in the hotel industry and they have a very good brand image and hence they do not need to resort to such methods of promotion. Also most of their clientele is from the corporate sector and hence the demand for the hotel rooms is evenly spread out throughout the year and there is no specific season wherein the hotels demand dips to such a large extent that the hotel may need to draw customers using promotional pricing methods. Hyatt does give discounts by way of various packages however these are usually in order to maintain good customer relationships as opposed to a promotional measure. They are as follows: Corporate Packages: The Hyatt ties up with corporate houses which give them bulk bookings and in return the hotel provides them with a discounted price. In this system the Hyatt has six month contracts with corporate houses wherein the corporate promises to book 600 room nights within that time frame and in return the hotel provides them with discounts on the going rate for the days when the corporates book the hotel rooms. Certain rooms in the hotel are always reserved for such corporate bookings so that these business travelers can get accommodation even at a short notice.

Government Packages: The hotel also provides packages for government officials who would want to make bulk bookings for large delegations. These rates are also discounted rates however they vary according to the time of the year. Airport Official Packages: The hotel also gives discounted rates to frequent customers who may be part of the Airport Authority of India. These include pilots, cabin crew or other airport officials. Hence only bulk discounts are applicable in case of the Grand Hyatt and it does not subscribe to giving discounts on bookings made well in advance or discounts on accommodation packages which include meal plans or the use of other facilities. Dynamic Pricing in Hotels A unique characteristic of the hotel sector is that the hotel pricing strategy is very variable, dependant on a lot of external factors and hence is very time based i.e. it varies according to the season, month or even day of the week. This unique pricing of the hotel industry is a strategy called Dynamic Pricing. There is a need for dynamic price adjustments as the demand for a hotel room is not constant. Demand forecasts are seldom precise but provide the decision-maker with an approximate set of inputs that are used in the planning process. Due to the immense fluctuation in demand hotel pricing is beset with many problems. Managing volatile demand around a fixed capacity of the highly perishable service supply is identified as one of the principal characteristics of the hotel business. Strategic decisions are expected to be made to generate a profitable mix of bookings and room-occupancy through the production and distribution of appropriately priced products which match the needs and requirements of identified market segments. The essence of dynamic pricing is that there is a dynamic adjustment of prices to the customers which includes two aspects, Price Dispersion and Price Discrimination. The price dispersion factor is very temporal in the hotel sector i.e. a given hotel varies its price for its services over time based on the time of sale and supply-demand situation. In the current scenario hotels have upped their prices by 12%-15% owing to the high demands which cannot be fulfilled by the no. of rooms available in the market.

However many hotels are beginning to witness a slowdown in their growth and hence are now resorting to the readjustment of their prices especially for corporates. As Anirban Sengupta, Director-Marketing, Grand Hyatt, said, Corporates who have smaller demands are getting into variable prices, when the demand is up prices are obviously high but when demand is low they can get better prices. The other aspect, Price Discrimination is also applied where different customers are charged different prices for the same product. The Grand Hyatt discriminates its prices for senior citizens, corporates and government and airport officials. Often price differentiation is obtained through product differentiation, the latter being achieved by adding attributes or facilities or by generalizing existing attributes. By differentiating their products, hotels can increase the suitability of their products customize offers to the requirements of specific consumers or market segments. With this view the hotel provides rooms which are differentiated on the basis the various amenities provided and the charges vary according to the type of room a customer opts for. Based on the above two factors, the Grand Hyatt has now moved towards a Rate of Day system wherein the rates depend on the day of the week and month and the demand and supply situation at that time. There are no seasonal changes taking place anymore as the largely corporate clientele does not show a more seasonal demand. As of now, the Grand Hyatt determines the rate for a room for the day the guest books it and then this rate is multiplied into the no. of days the guest will be staying, however they are considering moving to a system wherein the rate for every single day will differ and hence the guest will have to pay the total of the different rates for the different days that he stays at the hotel. This only goes to show that the pricing of the Grand Hyatt is becoming more and more sensitive to the demand situations for each day. It is due to this dynamic pricing of the Grand Hyatt that it is difficult to state the prices of the different rooms however a general price for different rooms for a regular customer who cannot avail of any special discounts are as follows:

Room Type

Rate

Grand Queen Grand King Grand Twin Club Queen Club King Club Twin Verandah Suite Grand Executive Suite Diplomatic Suite Grand Suite Presidential Suite Rs. 27,500 Rs. 36,000 Rs. 51,000 Rs. 67,000 Rs. 1,10,000 Rs. 22,000 Rs. 19,000

Yield Management in Hotels Yield Management (sometimes also referred to as Revenue Management) is an umbrella term for asset of strategies that enable capacity-constrained service industries such as the Hotel Sector, selling services of a perishable nature, to realize optimum revenue from their operations. The underlying concept of yield management is to make available the right service, to the right customer, at the right time, at the right price. Application Areas of Yield Management The following serve as criteria to determine in which industries yield management can be applied successfully and we can see that the hotel sector fulfills all the criteria, hence this concept is very apt for such a sector. The product is perishable to a great extent Perishability of the product in this context means that customers do not attach any value to the service being offered after a specified period of time, in the case of hotels the unsold rooms on a particular day are worthless to anyone.

 The capacity is limited No matter how much the owners of the hotel would like to increase the capacity of the hotel during times of peak demand, the capacity is fixed and cannot be altered without a significant time lag and investment. Market Segmentation is achievable This implies that it is possible to segment customers on the basis of the time and the price at which they are ready to buy these services. Products & Services can be sold in advance The customers to these products/services are such that they are willing to alter their purchase behavior, book or purchase these products/services in advance thereby giving sufficient scope to try and match price to the current demand. High fixed costs and low variable costs Typically industries where this concept is applied, have a high fixed cost, but relatively low variable cost of operation. Thus, any incremental revenue goes more or less to the bottom line. Therefore we can see that the most critical challenge facing the hotel industry is predicting potential capacity, and developing a pricing strategy that will encourage maximum capacity and revenue. However benefits of such magnitude have been seen by hotels that have implemented yield management on account of the latters ability to maximize revenues by selling the offerings at the maximum price that the market and customer can bear. Besides, this concept helps hotels in determining the cut-off line between the number of offerings to be sold at a discount price and at the full value. Price in the discounted category is adjusted on the basis of forecasted demand levels. This technique thereby limits exposure to market share erosion or revenue dilution by managing revenues optimally. The core principle is that if the capacity is likely to go empty, then it should be sold at a discount, but dont sell it at a discount if someone later will buy it at a higher price. Yield Management Process Market Segment Identification: The first and foremost step for a hotel is the identification of the various market segments for the hotel room, followed by implementation of a differential pricing scheme. It is further observed that customers in the business class segment are less sensitive to higher prices as opposed to those in the vacation segment. An RM system helps hotels create additional pricepoints by building physical and logical fences around the different market segments, as shown in the table below.

CHARACTERISTICS Physical Fences View Size Temporal Logical Fences Length of Stay

HIGHER PRICE

LOWER PRICE

Pool view, ocean view, hill view Bigger room with more facilities and gadgets Weekday bookings

Non-scenic view Smaller rooms with fewer facilities Weekend bookings

Short stay. Often one or two days Cancellations and rescheduling are allowed at a low penalty Bookings are made very close to date of check-in Are rewarded loyalty privileges either as free services or free stay vouchers Corporate business customers booking frequently

Longer stay. One night revenue can spoil three nights revenue when demand irs high High penalty for cancellation and schedule changes Bookings are made quite early

Flexibility Time of Purchase

Privileges Size of Business Provided Point of Sale

No privileges Self funding vacationers booking rarely

Physical delivery and confirmations By email or phone

Demand Forecasting: The next step in an RM process is forecasting demand and pricing of the different market segments. Pricing and demand are inter-related and need to be coordinated. In the hotel industry, demand for a room is cyclic in nature (day of a week, months of a year) and follows a trend (demand growth due to economic growth). Allocation: The next important step in a RM process is the allocation of inventory (hotel rooms) among different market segments. The ratio of discounted versus full priced rooms is not fixed during the reservation period; rather, it is tweaked appropriately as the date of stay approaches. The opportunity cost of selling a discounted room instead of a full priced one has to be measured in order to make the best decision. Thus, when a customer approaches the hotel for a discounted price, the manager needs to evaluate this scenario with the expected revenue from another customer who might come at a later date, willing to pay a higher price for the same room. These decisions are usually made by using past data and applying statistical know-how.

Over-Booking: Overbooking is the practice of intentionally selling more rooms than are available in order to offset the effect of cancellations and no-shows. Studies estimate that although a hotel is fully booked, about 5-8% of the rooms are vacant on any given date. Poor overbooking decisions can prove to be very expensive for the hotel. In the short run, it is only a loss of room revenue, but over the longterm, casualties may include decreased customer loyalty, loss of hotel reputation, etc. As part of ongoing changes in the industry, companies throughout the entire hospitality spectrum are placing a strong emphasis on implementing major operational changes. Beyond recognizing that meaningful cost reductions must be achieved without compromising safety, capacity and service levels, they are also looking at reducing costs by increasing flexibility and improving asset utilization.

Place
From the customers perspective, the location of the hotel plays a very important role. This is so, because if the hotel is conveniently located near the city than it effectively saves time. Location is a critical consideration because it affects the ability to draw customers. It is important for the location to be such that it provides visibility, accessibility, convenience and attractiveness to the customers. Aesthetics of the area, safety and other factors should be taken into consideration. While selecting the location of a hotel one must keep two things in mind, i.e. whether the hotel is of commercial importance or is it a resort. The former must be located strategically near the highways, airports, railway stations or ports or near such places where the connectivity is favorable and convenient. The major clients for such hotels are the, businessmen, top executives, aircraft crew etc. For e.g. The Grand Hyatt, has become a landmark of the city, built on 10 acres of prime land in the centre of Mumbai (Bombay) and located 10 minutes from the domestic airport and 20 minutes from the international airport. Grand Hyatt Mumbai is only five minutes from Bandra-Kurla, Mumbai's newly developed business district, and just 45 minutes away from the southern and northern ends of the city.

The later type of location deals with customers who are interested in taking a vacation. For them it must be seen that the location of such hotels should be in a quite and peaceful area. Getting to The Grand Hyatt is hassle free. There are a variety of options that customers can opt for in order to arrive at the Grand Hyatt. The following points highlight the options that are available: By Air Mumbai is a most important international doorway to India with international flights from major countries of the world. Air India and many other global air carriers operate regular flights to and via the city. Indian Airlines connects Mumbai with nearly all tourist destinations of India. Private sector airlines also offer air-links with many key centres of the country. The Mumbai airport has two wings, i.e. the Chhatrapati Shivaji international Airport and Santacruz domestic airport. The Grand Hyatt is located 10 minutes from the domestic airport and 20 minutes from the international airport. Thus the Grand Hyatt enjoys proximity to both the wings and can gain both domestic and international customers. By Rail Mumbai is the control center of the Central and Western Railways. The train services unite Mumbai with all the main cities like Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Calcutta, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Chennai, Nagpur and Thiruvananthapuram. The Bandra Kurla railway station is just about 5 minutes away from the Grand Hyatt. By Road Good motorable roads connect Mumbai with all major tourist centres. National Highways across the length and breadth of the country are great ways to go for the self-drive decision and head to Mumbai. The Grand Hyatt is located on the Western Express Highway. Hence road proves to be the most flexible and wide-ranging option at the disposal of the clients. By Sea Damania Shipping Ltd. runs a regular ferry service between Mumbai, Ratnagiri and Goa. Besides, this most important port city of India is well connected with all the major ports of the world. The port from

the hotel is round about 45 minutes apart, which when compared with the options may not prove to be the best of all, but certainly can be useful in terms of catering to customers on cruises. Distribution The concept of a distribution channel is relatively simple, but in practice can be extremely complicated, especially for large organizations. The role of distribution is to help customers find information about products and to make purchasing easy. Intermediaries, for example travel agents and tour operators, help customers to choose hotels and travel products. They normally receive a commission from the hotel that receives the booking. Major hotels with thousands of bedrooms to fill, in hundreds of locations, need to use a wide range of distribution channels to reach all their potential customers. The distribution chain denotes the methods by which a product or service is delivered from producers to the ultimate users. The middlemen are the link, and if the link is strong, the service generating organizations find it convenient to increase the occupancy ratio. The middlemen are wholesalers buying hotel rooms in bulk and then selling the same to the retailers known as the travel agents. The travel agents buy the services at the request of their clients and provide a convenient network of sales outlets which cater to their needs. Here we find three systems for distributing the services, e.g. two-level, onelevel and zero-level. The three-tier distribution system is required to be managed properly so that the users expectations are fulfilled and the promised services reach the ultimate users in the right way. It is in this context that the hotel management requires world class professional excellence which would simplify the distribution process and maintain cost effectiveness. Channel I: Direct-To-Customer In the first channel, the hotel organization and customers communicate directly with no intermediaries. This is called direct marketing. It is also known as Zero-Level distribution system owing to the fact that it does not have any intermediaries. Principals use a combination of direct distribution methods, primarily online reservations, and marketing communications activity to reach potential customers. Direct marketing is particularly effective when targeting repeat customers. Since there are no intermediaries taking a commission, this channel can be the most cost-effective. Fortunately for hoteliers, the predominant distribution channel for hotels remains direct contact with the property via telephone, fax or e-mail, or e-booking through the hotels own website such as www.hyatt.com. This ecommerce enabled booking is gaining a lot of importance in the booking systems of hotels. Clearly,

hoteliers have an interest in promoting the internet channel, as it is far cheaper, especially direct booking on the hotels own site. A WTO report on E-commerce estimated that the cost of direct reservations by traditional means (i.e. fax, telephone, e-mail, etc.) could be as much as 300% higher than processing the same reservation on the companys own website.

Hotels

Direct distribution methods

Customers

Channel II: Tour Operator As An Intermediary Tour operator is a wholesaler in the travel and tourism industry. A tour operator negotiates bulk allocations of seats from charter airlines and bulk accommodation from hotels, and then develops a packaged product, which is marketed to consumers directly. The tour operator does not charge a commission; instead he agrees upon discounted prices with the different hotels involved, and makes profit by charging the customer an inclusive price for the holiday package. In fact, some of the operators mark up the price by as high as 33% and only pay 50%-60% of the normal room price to the hotelier who is lodging their clients.

Hotels

Tour Operators

Customers

Channel III: Travel Agent As An Intermediary In distribution, travel agents perform the role of a retailer stocking a range of hotel and travel products. Information about the products and prices is stored in database and manual directories, and is provided via brochures. The travel agent advises customers on all aspects of travel. Agents make bookings, collect payments, provide tickets and accommodation vouchers, and over time develop a close relationship with regular customers. In leisure and most business markets, the travel agent does not

charge the customer for this service; instead, the hotel pays the travel agent a commission. A room booked through a travel agent and the GDS (global distribution system) typically costs the hotel 15% of the reservations total. Travel agents nowadays operate through both brick and mortar as well as through their own websites. Most travel agents make use of the GDS technology. Global Distribution Systems (GDS) allow travelers to select hotels and make reservations from remote locations, for any date in the future and receive instant confirmations at the same time. Some of the third party websites that the Grand Hyatt uses are www.expedia.com and www.travelocity.com. Whereas some of the travel agents are TourClub, Flexi Tours Pvt. Ltd., and Indian Holiday. Now, Hotel internet distribution is basically divided into two sub-channels the proprietary sites of chains and individual hotels on the one hand (which fall under the direct distribution method), and the third party web-based travel intermediaries, on the other. Hotels and chains, however, are fundamentally dissatisfied with the role of net-based travel intermediaries, which like their traditional counterparts cost the hoteliers money in commissions and spreads. Hence, they are making every effort to attract customers to their proprietary websites.

Hotels

Tour Agents

Customers

Promotion
It is very essential for any business to promote or market its product to its potential customers to create an awareness of the product and its quality. In the hotel business, the prospective guests should be aware of the quality and the types of products and services that are offered by the hotel. For this purpose, the focus must be on innovative measures of promotion. There are a number of techniques of promoting the product like advertising, publicity, sales promotion, personal selling, word-of-mouth promotion and telemarketing. The success and the popularity of the hotel depends on the effectiveness of these techniques. Advertisements Advertisement is a paid form of non personal presentation and promotion of ideas, and services by an identified sponsor, in this case the hotel. This form of communication helps in informing, sensitizing and persuading the prospect or user. The hotel industry significantly makes use of print media, broadcast media, telecast media and other types of media. In the print media, the hotel is in a position to attract the prospect by displaying attractive scenes, landscapes, comforts, costs etc. Though is it static in nature, it is relatively economical. Advertisements in different newspapers and magazines are usually made keeping in mind the target market or audience. The broadcast media can also be used for advertising the hotel services but the reach is comparatively lesser than the other forms of media. In practice, the hotels generally make use of broadcast media to advertise special packages and discounts. In such a case the advertising agency should select a suitable time to air the ads such that the ads can reach as large an audience as possible.

The telecast media is the most sensible choice but the most expensive form of media. There is ample scope for audio-visual exposure making way for sensitizing the prospect. Vivid imagery can be made use of such as the hotel location, the swimming pool, the restaurant, personal care centers, the shopping complex, and the convention hall, so as to ensure a firm position in the minds of the customers.

Thus it can be observed that of all the forms of media, the print media is the most effective media for hotel advertisements. This is mainly due to the fact that the hotel gets an opportunity to present facts and figures, as well as images which may be very much instrumental in convincing and persuading the prospects. Also, since print media serves as a relatively non perishable media and can be referred back to. The following list represents the kinds of media employed by the Grand Hyatt: Business Publications: The Grand Hyatt often places advertisements in Business

publications such as Outlook, Business World etc. to serve as reminders to the corporate executives. Tourist Publications: The Grand Hyatt also places ads, to attract tourists, in tourist

publications such as TravTalk, Times Food Guide, Mumbai City Guide, Travel Guide Mumbai etc. Directories like The Yellow Pages. Direct mail to tour operators and corporate clients. Although media like T.V., radio, etc. are rarely used by the Hotel industry, The hotel

industry can leverage itself through lifestyle, travel and living, and entertainment shows such as programs that feature on the Discovery Travel and Living channel, NDTV Nightout, After Hours, etc. OOH (Out of Home) advertising is catching on in a big way in India and hotels have

begun to make use of such a form. This type of media works well in urban areas where the average person is more out of home rather than indoors. People tend to be more receptive to ads when they are whiling away their time waiting in queues at the cinemas, shopping malls, outside elevators or stuck in traffic. Despite the investment, it reaps great dividends for the hotel since OOH seeks to involve the prospect rather than plainly tell him something that he is likely to forget. The Grand Hyatt makes use of such media largely at airports where people are on the lookout for hotels to stay in. The Grand Hyatt has many private luxury cars such as Camrys, Corollas and other

tourist vehicles such as buses with the hotel name and logo emblazoned on them. This can serve as an effective form of vehicular advertising.

Another technique of advertising is via the internet. All the hotels have their own

websites which provide detailed information regarding accommodation, restaurants, lounges, spas and other facilities that they provide. The Grand Hyatt too has its own exclusive websites with all the details mentioned. Infact the website allows for picture galleries to be exhibited as well as video tours of the hotel. Also, apart from their own websites, hotels tie- up with online travel websites to place advertisements.

http://www.grandhyattmumbai.com

http://www.mumbai.grand.hyatt.com

The

Grand Hyatt recently launched an oriental restaurant- China House. The Grand Hyatt used all the possible mediums to advertise the launch. They made use of telecast media by featuring the advertisement of the launch of China House In the advertisement, a Chinese dish was shown and below that the punch line, if you have seen this earlier, might be in China. Advertisements were given in the newspapers like Economic Times, Times of India, Mumbai Mirror (celebrity hangout section), Bombay Times, and After Hours etc. The Grand Hyatt even made use of Opinion leaders such as Anupama Verma, Rajat Kapoor, Chayya Momaya and the likes to publicly praise the restaurant for its food and service thus recommending it to the people. Billboards, hoardings were put up at strategic locations all over Mumbai to create an awareness of the opening of the new restaurant. Also, integrated marketing communication was used by them. All their advertisements whether featured on television or newspapers or magazines focused on the authentic Chinese food served by them which guaranteed that such food was never served in India before. If anyone had tried or seen a similar dish earlier it must have been in China. Thus all the mediums were integrated inasmuch as they communicated the same idea- the authenticity of the cuisine. Publicity

While publicizing, the hotel plays a significant role by managing the media personnel for publishing news items related to the hotel. Public relations cover a wide range of activities. It is the art and science of planning and implementing a two way communication and understanding between the hotel and the potential users of the service. In the hotel industry we find public relations more instrumental in informing the clients the outstanding merits of different services offered. The vast majority of hoteliers welcome publicity not only because it is free but they know that people are more likely buy a magazine or a newspaper and read the hotel related articles, news and editorials, rather than advertisements (unless they are looking for a product or interested in booking a holiday or a restaurant or a convention hall or a wedding hall). Through such articles and editorials and testaments, the services of the hotel are presented in such a way that the prospects are motivated to avail of those. A hotel receives publicity when there is a change in important posts, when particulars of certain important conferences or exhibitions are printed, when celebrities and well-known people stay at the hotel. Also, a lot of events such as sponsored walks, sponsored rallies, fashion designing events, sponsored beauty contest etc are held at hotels which garner the hotels press coverage. A lot of launch parties take place at the Grand Hyatt which serve as massive publicity and even more so when it involves high profile guests whose testimonials adorn the page 3 circuit the following day. For Example, recently The Grand Hyatt ballroom was the chosen venue for the Movie magazine re-launch, which saw a slice of tinsel-town descend on Grand Hyatt. In a similar fashion, the razzle-dazzle of tinsel town filled the air as the eleven Bollywood stars of Nikhil Advani's movie 'Salaam-e-Ishq' walked the ramp in style at the film's music launch at the Grand Hyatt. The Grand Hyatt Ballroom will be conducting the launch of the famous and much-awaited German Volkswagen on the 9th of September, which will definitely be an event that will garner a huge amount of media attention. Sales Promotion Sales promotion is a key ingredient of the marketing campaign. It consists of the incentives mostly short term, designed to stimulate quicker or greater purchase of the services offered by the hotel. These facts make it clear that sales promotion is complementary to advertising. Sales promotion and advertising objectives do not conflict but reinforce one another.

Repeated advertising and competitive market conditions are the two important reasons for the growing significance of sales promotion in the hotel industry. The techniques of sales promotion are directed at the tour operator, travel agents and guests or clients. Tools of Sales Promotion The following tools of sales promotion are used for promoting the hotel business. Brochure: It is a device to stimulate guests and motivate them to visit a hotel and avail of the benefits offered by the management of the hotel It is a detailed publication helping hotel companies in promoting their business. The guests, clients get detailed information from the brochure such as the facilities offered, tariffs and rates, visual aid, contact details etc. Attraction leaflets: Attraction leaflets serve the purpose of giving information about specific areas or facilities offered by the hotel. This is exclusively meant for presenting a view of the spas, different theme parks, business centres, restaurants, and other exotic and outstanding points of attraction in the hotel, etc Direct Mail Materials: The Grand Hyatt sends direct mail to the tour operators and tour agents it has tie ups with to make them aware of any schemes or packages that have been enforced by the hotel and would serve the clientele being roped in by the operators and/or agents. It also sends mail to the frequent and recurring customers regarding any promotional schemes; any launches any parties or packages, restaurant offers, and shopping plaza offerings that the concerned customer would be interested in. Also, apart from the hotel sending such direct mail, even the individual shops at the Shopping Plaza send direct mail to their clientele and thus in turn promote the Grand Hyatt. Display Materials: In order to maintain a top of mind recall, it is essential for hotels to place POP displays at all strategic locations where potential customers may be found such as the tour operator and agents offices, tourist spots, airports, railway and bus stations. Materials to be displayed at sensitive points can be posters, brochures, exhibits etc. Special Offers and Packages: This kind of a sales promotion technique is mostly used when there is a slump in the demand for hotel rooms such as during the monsoon periods. The hotel offers various special offers and packages to the guests directly or through the travel operators or agents. The Grand

Hyatt has special packages for the GOI (Government of India) officials, the AAI (The Airport Authority of India) officials. The Grand Hyatt also has corporate packages (660 nights for 6 months at a discounted rate). Aside from these packages, the Grand Hyatt also holds promotions. For example, the Hyatt held an exclusive Valentine's Dining Experience with a chauffer driven BMW pick up from the guests doorstep, a candle light dinner on an exclusive table for two under the star lit sky and a bottle of Dom Perigon Rose and Grand Cru Bordeaux, as well as a special gift hamper of chocolates, flowers, perfumes and a fine wine. The Grand Hyatt also had a Parsi Community Promotion Food festival which they introduced by way of sending fliers and direct mail to 150 select customers from their database as well as by running a radio contest. We wee told that this promotion worked very well as it increased the coverage by 20%. Merchandising: Is a technique used by the Hyatt wherein they sell luxury lifestyle and personal care products through their online store. This endeavour has been named as Hyatt at Home. Thus the Hyatt aims to percolate into the homes of their guests so as to establish a close relationship with them such that the clients may in future feel at home in any of the Hyatt hotels since they already are accustomed to the products. This serves as an effective tool to ensure top of mind recall. The products such as the bed, room furnishings, bath products, signature collections, fitness equipment etc. may be purchased through their online store.

http://www.hyattathome.com

Frequency Programs: The Grand Hyatt has an exclusive frequency program in place for its recurring customers. The Gold Passport is Hyatts worldwide guest loyalty program which is designed to enhance a members travel experience by offering exclusive benefits, privileges and free travel awards at every Hyatt hotel worldwide. There is no membership fee. All Hyatt Gold Passport members enjoy complimentary benefits that include a choice of Gold Passport points or airline miles on every stay. Members have a choice between Gold Passport points or airline miles on every stay. When choosing points, members will receive five points for every eligible US dollar or equivalent charged to their room at Hyatt hotels and resorts worldwide. In addition, those members choosing points for their stay will earn an additional 300 points when they fly with any of Hyatts airline partners in conjunction with their stay. Hyatt runs a joint program with Sahara Airlines (Star and Skies Promotion) wherein a customer flying Sahara enjoys a special tariff at a Hyatt property. Qualified members also have the option to convert their Gold Passport points to airline bonus miles with participating airline partners at a ratio of three Gold Passport points to one airline bonus mile/credit. Word-of-mouth Promotion: Word-of-mouth promotion is very much instrumental in sensitizing the prospects. In the hotel industry, it is much more significant that the satisfaction of users is given top priority. The word-of-mouth promoters are those who are satisfied with the services of hotels and thus

motivate the potential prospects to avail of the services of the hotel. One cannot deny the fact that one bad meal would often do more damage by word-of-mouth than fifty good meals. Guests take a good meal for granted but don't forget to narrate to their friends and relatives about a bad meal or the bitter experiences of menu-fatigue. This shows that word-of-mouth publicity can have more negative effects and therefore the hotels and hotel companies need to assign due weightage to this component of the promotion mix. That is not to say that good service goes unnoticed. There will be a degree of positive publicity too, but the propensity of negative publicity is greater and thus more damaging. The unsatisfied guests are free to complain to the hotel management but they often don't. They are closemouthed and stiff-lipped till they make an exit. Thereafter, they start narrating their bitter experiences to their friends and relatives. It is against this background that high-level functions, refined behaviour and world class services by the hotel personnel carry some meaning since they pave the way for recommendation. Thus the Grand Hyatt makes use of a plethora of promotional tools however they use only those tools that ensure a certain return on investment and reap greater benefits in the long run over and above the costs incurred for that particular promotional tool. Brand Management Brand management is the application of marketing techniques to a specific product, product line, or brand. It seeks to increase the product's perceived value to the customer and thereby increase brand franchise and brand equity. Marketers see a brand as an implied promise that the level of quality people have come to expect from a brand will continue with present and future purchases of the same product. In hospitality industry, it is a major responsibility to manage the hotels brand image and provide services to the guests that the brand promises to deliver. The brand of a hotel comprises of the services offered, the quality of the services, the kind of employees/staff, etc. All these factors keep the guests coming back to the hotel. Customers look for predictable and standardized services by hotels no matter which corner of the world they are in. Due to the economic boom and seamlessness that has been created by globalization, people are on the move constantly and are always looking for superior places to stay in. Thus projecting a

single brand makes sense in the global market. For example, The Hyatt is an established international chain reputed for its high quality of service. The Hyatt has around 735 hotels and resorts spread across 44 countries. It has hotels all across the world from Bali , to Beijing, from Berlin , to Bombay. The company's affiliates own, operate, manage and franchise Hyatt branded hotels and resorts under the Park Hyatt, Grand Hyatt, Hyatt Regency, Hyatt Resorts, Hyatt, Hyatt Place and Hyatt Summerfield Suites brands. The Hyatt has united all its hotels, and resorts under one umbrella brand and has used integrated marketing communication tools to convey their superiority to the customers. Having a chain of hotels is considered to be an advantage due to the loyalty that could be developed among customers who travel a lot. The guest is already assured of good service because of the image of Hyatt. Therefore, Grand Hyatt, Mumbai, did not feel the need to work on building its brand image. The existing image of the Hyatt helped this hotel to carve a place in the market. This does not imply that the Grand Hyatt sat on its laurels and did nothing to localize its brand. The Hyatt does undertake brand management at a necessary and prescribed level through advertising, promotion, and continuous improvements and innovations in its operations, and efforts to localize its services to suit the local flavor. To quote a manager at the Grand Hyatt Mumbai, he said that we do not believe in brand image but believe in brand experiences. Its the quality of service offered which results in positive word of mouth. For instance, if one guest experiences superlative service at Grand Hyatt, there is a large possibility of that guest sharing his/her experience with friends and relatives. Thus the main aim of the Grand Hyatts brand management is to focus on providing superior services, introducing TQM principles and providing the best service the first time and every time rather than focusing on superfluous advertising and promotions alone.

People
The people aspect of the service sector refers to all those human actors who play a part in the service delivery and are responsible for performing the service act by providing cues to the customer regarding the nature of the service itself. This service dimension also includes those at the receiving end of the service experience i.e. the customers. Since the service sector is very customer focused, their role in the

process of service delivery is not only limited to consumption of the products & services but they also impact the delivery process owing to the fact that they are integral parts of the real time service experience. One of the unique characteristics of the service sector is the inseparability aspect wherein both production and consumption of the service takes place simultaneously. It is due to this characteristic of services that the producer which is represented by the service providers or employees and the consumers i.e. the customers are both integral aspects of the service delivery process and the interaction between them is what impacts the degree of success in delivering a satisfactory experience to the customer. One arm of the Services Marketing Triangle represents the interaction between the employees and the customers which is known as Interactive Marketing and it is via this aspect of the services marketing process that the service provider can keep its promises made to the customers. Hence the importance of the people aspect in services is reinforced and therefore it is imperative that a service marketer understands the types of people involved in the process and how best to satisfy them in order to achieve successful results. The first step in understanding the people dimension of services is to segment them in order to understand their characteristics which will then be used by the service marketer to target them appropriately bringing about effective results. The people aspect of the service sector can be divided into two broad categories: Internal Customers & External Customers. Internal Customers The internal customers of a hotel refer to the employees of the hotel and it includes employees at all levels of the hierarchy. They are an integral part of the service marketing triangle as they are the ones who represent the service provider and interact with the customers. Encounters between the employees and the customers lead to the formation of various customer perceptions and hence it is important to try and ensure that the employees are equipped enough to provide the customers with a pleasant service experience. From the customers perception the employees of a hotel represent the service, the organization, the brand and they are the marketers of the same. In many cases the contact employee is the service and

hence he becomes the offering. Hence investing in an employee is like directly investing in the service itself. Employees are made competent enough to be able to deliver services as promised by the hotel, by using various human resource practices and this process can be termed as Internal Marketing which is carried out by the hotel management. As part of the internal marketing process the employees are recruited, trained, motivated and empowered all with the view of making them better service providers and representatives of the hotel. The Internal Marketing aspect of the Service Triangle is especially important in the case of the hospitality industry as unlike other industries, here the employees are the main assets of the hotel. Although the world is becoming increasingly automated, this is one industry wherein one cannot replace the human element and hence it is important that the human resources of the hotel are well managed. In the hotel business one cannot afford to have dissatisfied employees coming to work as their job requires them to be pleasant and hospitable to all the guests and since their emotional state would be reflected in the way they treat their customers it is important that the employees actually feel happy with what they are doing in order to be able to reflect that happiness in their daily work. Internal Marketing at the Hyatt At the Hyatt, an important part of their mission is to ensure that their employees are equipped and empowered to fully serve their customers. An emphasis is placed on instilling values in each employee through their various training and empowering programs so that they may grow into customer driven and result orientated team players. In order to manage a 1500 strong workforce, the Hyatt as defined its hierarchy and structured its various departments such that every person knows his job profile, what is expected of him and the extent of power that he has in order to make decisions. For this it is also important that the right people are recruited who are capable of being the face of Hyatt and who are able to represent all that Hyatt stands for. To ensure the correct recruitment of its employees the Hyatt carries out their recruitment process at various levels. The process is as follows: Hyatt carries out Campus Recruitments usually at Hotel Management schools where the students are made to undergo personal interviews which may be technical in nature depending on the job profile.

Their people skills as well as technical knowledge are tested and where the job may require it they also check their computer knowledge and speed of use. This is important because all of the Hyatts information including bookings, customer preferences, billing and payments etc is stored on information systems and hence it is important that the employees are computer savvy in order to be comfortable with such a system. These interview rounds may extend to even 5-6 interviews depending on the applications. After students are short listed they are made to take part in a Group Discussion, and on selection after this round the candidate is made to sit through an interview with the Head of Department in which the candidate will potentially work. The H.O.D will be able to determine if the candidate is suited for the job and has the required skills. The final selection is done by the General Manager of the hotel. He is usually involved in case the candidate is applying for a higher position. Positions higher up in the hierarchy are usually filled via promotions of existing employees or by recruiting people with work experience behind them.

Training Employees After recruiting the employees it is necessary to train them and constantly & consistently find ways to enhance their development. It is only accurate training that will equip the employees to deal with the customers in an appropriate manner and help enhance their service experience.

In order to train their employees correctly and ensure that their employees get maximum benefits from each training session conducted the Hyatt carries out a Training Need analysis wherein two major training areas are covered: External Training External training is considered as a vital part of the development and personal growth of an employee. At the Hyatt employees are identified based on criteria such as their current position, quality of work and succession progress, and are then made to undergo external training as determined by the Hyatt Human Resources department. External training is conducted in two ways: Cross Exposure: As an international hotel, employees at the Hyatt receive the opportunity to be cross exposed to its sister properties within the country or overseas. This is a means for employees to share best practices with others and also gain a better understanding of what type of work their position requires. Such training exposes them to different kinds of guests and hence they learn how to deal with different types of people and their requests. They learn about complaint handling, consultancy and order taking through this method. External Courses: External Courses are also viewed as an important tool for their employees to expand their knowledge. These training courses are specifically identified for the participants job roles in order to enhance the quality of their performance. Through such courses the employee is taught how to be empathetic, courteous and competent. His communication skills are also polished and he is made to understand the functioning of the hotel.

In-house Training

The In House training provided plays an integral part of the development of all their Service Professionals. It is through this that their employees are groomed into being dedicated and motivated individuals who are customer focused. Such in-house training is imparted in two ways: General Orientation: At the Hyatt a great emphasis is placed on the first few days of any new employee at work. Hence they hold a General Orientation for three days which is an opportunity to help new employees understand Hyatts vision, philosophy, the hotels organization and the hotels expectations of its employees. They are also given information on the various services and amenities provided by the hotel, the order taking and payment methods, the service delivery processes to be followed, the complaint handling methods and how to use the information technology systems in order to maintain databases of information. This vision will help them move more confidently through the first few challenging weeks and help them make decisions which directly impact the guest. Departmental Orientation: A Departmental Orientation is conducted upon the completion of the General Orientation. Each employee is given a one on one training session by the individual Departmental Trainers covering the basic information within the department such as rosters, working hours, attendance, introduction to work colleagues as well as guest related issues such as complaint handling, consultancy and hospitality. On the Job Training: This training is also conducted by individual Departmental Trainers and covers all the tasks written in each employees job description. On The Job Training is where each employee learns about the departments role, procedures and policies as well as job functions. Each employee is given a copy of a Task list and each task comes with its own task breakdown for easy reference. Coaching during this period is important to ensure that all employees are able to perform their roles effectively. It is also during this period that employees gain first hand experience on working with hotel guests. Cross Training: Employees at the Hyatt will also have the opportunity to be cross exposed to other departments within the hotel. This is a means for employees to expand their knowledge and understand the roles of the various departments. This is a useful practice when the hotel is short staffed or during the holiday season when the occupancy rate is high, so that employees can also deal with managing the work of their colleagues and the customer is not inconvenienced or dissatisfied in any way.

The training procedure also has a special concentration on training employees in how to handle complaints. They are empowered to take certain decisions if customer complaints arise and they are given information regarding service recovery methods. Motivation In order to make the employees put in their best and excel in their work they must be constantly motivated by the organization they belong to. Since the service sector is a people oriented sector it becomes a priority for the organization to keep their employees happy as it is only then that they will extend committed and competent services to the customers. Keeping this in mind the Hyatt takes various measures to motivate their employees with a view to making working at the Hyatt a pleasurable experience. In the past decade the employee turnover rate in the hospitality sector averaged at 90% which had a staggering effect on the guest services provided and the business expenses of obtaining employees. The Hyatt management realized that a simple reduction in 25% of turnover could save the company thousands of dollars and hence they started taking exit interviews at their Hyatt branches in Mumbai which reflected the cause of turnover to be non-competitive salaries, poor managers and working hours. Hence in order to solve these issues and reduce the turnover by 60% they have now taken the following measures: Offer a competitive salary which is determined by the current average cost of living in Mumbai Provide flexible working hours and annual vacations for the employees to get adequate mental They also provide a Hyatt Medical Plan which is designed to provide Hyatt associates with the

with additional compensation for hours worked overtime. and physical rest thus enabling them to perform better. opportunity to obtain comprehensive and quality health care services at a reasonable cost utilizing a large network of doctors, hospitals and specialists. They along with their families can also save money on prescription drugs through the Hyatt. Set up flexible spending accounts for employees where employees can set aside pre-tax money to pay for certain medical, dental and vision costs not covered by insurance. The dependent care flexible spending account may be used for eligible child-care and elder-care expenses.

 4%.

Provide a Hyatt Vision Plan which is designed for associates and their eligible dependents or At Hyatt, each employee has the opportunity to build for their future through the Retirement

domestic partner with the opportunity to obtain quality vision care. Savings Plan. As an associate of the company, Hyatt matches employees 401k contributions up to The Hyatt Life Insurance Program is intended to provide employees beneficiary with As a Hyatt associate, paid time off is earned to allow associates time away from work for

additional financial support should they die while actively employed by the company. vacation and holidays or to use at time of illness. The length of service determines the amount earned by a Hyatt associate with the company. After completing 1 year of service, Hyatt associates are eligible for 12 complimentary room nights per year! This benefit is available to all full time associates and part time associates on a prorated basis. In addition, discounted room rates are available to associates immediate family members. Hyatt encourages all associates to focus on balancing work and family life. To help, Hyatt offers Ceridian Life Balance. This free confidential assistance program can help with all issues of daily living-anytime! Ceridian Life Balances wide array of services include: Everyday Issues Emotional Well-Being Financial Legal Addiction and Recovery Parenting and Childcare Education

Along with various benefits provided to the employees at the Hyatt, the hotel also tries to concentrate on making the work environment pleasant. The hotels main aim is to attract and retain a workforce that is comfortable working in a luxury hospitality environment ,and which is motivated to provide a level of service, which is excellent, innovative and customer-driven, and reflects the local cultures where they do business. In order to do this they are trying to be a listening company which provides a fair and ethical work environment. They have also established a mandatory training program called Workplace

Values where they undergo awareness and sensitivity training helping them develop efficient management practices. The hotel also allows the employees to be an entrepreneur within their departments and encourages them to look for ways to enhance the customer's experience. By treating their employees as in-house guests they have managed to create a sense of employee loyalty and pride which also reflects in their behavior with guests. In order to be an employer and hospitality company of choice the Hyatt has taken initiatives which fall into 5 key categories: Commitment, Accountability, Training, Measurement and Communication. They have also undertaken various social welfare programs to contribute to their employees personal fulfillment. The Hyatt employee policy also states that it is their endeavor to equip and empower their employees to develop careers and not jobs. Since it is only their employees commitment that sets them apart from their competitors and provides guests with a memorable service experience they have created programs which help their employees increase their participation at all management levels thus boosting their selfconfidence and giving them a platform to showcase their talent. The hotel gives the employees various chances for advancement via promotions and they also help their employees set up their own freestanding companies within the corporation such as party catering and event management firms. The Hyatt also aims to motivate its employees through their various recognition and award programs by giving annual awards such as the Years of Service Recognition award, the FIRST Employee award and the P.R. Olympians award. Employee empowerment at the Hyatt is facilitated through methods such as job rotation, job enrichment and job enlargement. External Customers As a service marketer it is imperative to understand ones target market, as communicating the hotels marketing message to the general public is a waste of time, money and effort. The general public is too large a mass, its description too vague and its needs to varied for any marketer to satisfy. Unless one is selling a universal product catering to universal tastes, one cant really afford to reach the general public. In the case of the hotel industry it is futile and expensive to try and reach the general public

through mass media and hence marketers use market segmentation and profiling to reach specific customer segments that have a need, interest and ability to buy their hotel products. Apart from the marketing of the hotel services it is important to understand the different types of users availing the services with diverse aims and objectives so as to improve the service delivery, reduce the service gaps as well as understand and satisfy customer expectations. Fortunately, people within the general public have a natural tendency to form smaller groups that share a common interest and need. People form groups according to gender, age, income, occupation, These education, religion, race and nationality. Market segmentation is the process of dividing a heterogeneous general public into to many smaller homogeneous specific publics or customer segments. customer segments can be profiled for the purpose of designing a product to satisfy specific needs. Customer segment profiles help marketers design a message and mix of media to communicate directly with specific types of customers. There is a broad consensus that segmentation is the starting point for developing effective marketing strategies because trying to target all customers is not cost effective and hence concentrating a hotels marketing resources on key markets leads to a more focused and cost effective marketing strategy. The segmentation variables form building blocks in developing target market profiles of customer expectations and the primary segmentation variable used by virtually all hotel and lodging companies is the purpose of travel. Hotel users can be classified based on this primary variable as follows: The Business Traveler The business traveler is the archetypal corporate executive, and frequent flier who opts to stay in a hotel during a business trip. Such a type of customer looks for superior functional and process benefits. The business traveler serves as a very essential segment to be tapped by the service marketer as he can, if satisfied and delighted appropriately, be converted into a loyal and frequent customer and provide the service marketer with assured repeated visits. The average business traveler tends not to be very price conscious, more so if the corporate that he is a part of foots the bill. This segment offers better realizations as they demand relatively lesser discounts on room rents (about 10-15%), use more augmented facilities such as PCs, fax, internet, voicemail , dual phone lines, conference halls, board rooms etc. The F&B revenues from this segment are also generally greater owing to the business travelers busy schedules, their tendency to fix business appointments over lunch and their

unwillingness to experiment with food in a new city. The main implication for the service provider is to simplify check-in and check-out facilities, keep a record of customer preferences and blend comfort and an easy access to business amenities, allowing the customer to meet business obligations and at the same time be able to unwind in a relaxed atmosphere. The Luxury Traveler The luxury traveler is the traveler who has the time and money on his hands to splurge on a 5 star hotel. The luxury traveler seeks a qualitative experience and demands a personalized service. He is very brand conscious and is not price concious. He is prepared to spend in order to obtain lavish treatment. Such customers need to be handled with infinite care and their every desire should be fulfilled. Although the service provider has to try hard to please a luxury traveler, it takes the slightest measure of slackness to disappoint such a customer. An aggrieved customer can spell disaster for the service provider. The main implication for the service provider is that he has to provide an exemplary service to this segment of customers; services should be tailormade for the luxury traveler and must be of superlative and premium quality. Some examples of premium services include providing the customers with private butlers, highly trained concierge, a hotel BMW service etc. The Leisure Traveler The leisure traveler is one who has come on a holiday and has opted to stay in a 5 star hotel. He may or may not fall into the bracket of a luxury traveler and therefore a seperate classification has been made for him. He may be a domestic traveler or an international traveler. Usually leisure travelers are part of a package run by a tour operator. The margins offered by leisure travelers tend to be lower because of two reasons. Firstly, they tend to seek higher discounts (about 25%) and more so if they are a part of a package deal. And secondly, they also provide lesser F&B revenues. This can be attributed to the fact that the leisure traveler is mostly a tourist who uses the hotel for mainly boarding and lodging purposes and spends most of the day sightseeing and discovering the city. As a result of this, meals are generally eaten outside the hotel. The business offered by this segment is highly seasonal and tends to peak in the September to May period. The main implication for the service marketer is that he must provide all the amenities to the leisure traveler, be as assisiting and helpful as possible since he is an infrequent visitor and may not know the city very well and be very hospitable so as to encourage a repeat visit.

Special Travelers This is a class of people comprising of government officials, politicians on official visits, or celebrities such as movie stars or sports persons. They require special accommodation arrangements when they are staying in the hotel. They have to be given the best possible services and the security must be maintained tightly. The expectations of this class of people is also very high as they are seasoned travelers who are usually well traveled and have lived at various good hotels. To have such clients staying at the hotel is also beneficial for the hotel as it gets a lot of publicity. These customers may be provided with discounted rates if they are traveling with a large entourage such as the cast and crew of a movie and the payments are usually made by the event organizers. Such people may also stay at the hotel in case they are attending an event being hosted at the hotel venue itself and in such a case the hotel must make arrangements for invitees, media persons and throngs of fans visiting the hotel. Apart from the purpose of travel users of the hotel industry can also be classified based on various other variables which are as follows: Geographic Segmentation: The Federation of Hotels and Restaurant Association of India

has divided the country into four geographical regions (north, east, west and south). Within each of these zones areas are further classified according to their population density, levels of industrialization, climate and various other geographic factors. Based on these factors hotels also provide appropriate services and amenities. For example the Hilton Hotels customize their hotels and lobbies according to the location. The kind of cuisine served in the restaurants of hotels also depend on their geographic location. Another example is of the Marriott whose differentiates its services based on location, the services it provides to the guests of the luxury and leisure class in Goa differs from the services provided to the business class guests who come to their hotels in the cities. Another differentiation hotels show is in the terms of its amenities. In the northern regions hotels usually have heating systems set up centrally or individually in the rooms however such systems are not usually set up in the western region of the country where the winters are not as harsh. Also hotel employees are trained specially to deal with different kinds of guests expected based on the geographic location of the hotel. Ones nationality is a universally recognized method of categorizing visitors in international tourism marketing. The special needs and wants of consumers

from particular regions can be researched and products can be specifically developed to satisfy those needs and wants. Demographic Segmentation: Demographics is the study of population characteristics, and

to a large extent relies on data collected by governments during censuses. One of the key influences in changing the demand for tourism products is the change in birth and survival rates, which alters the age structure of populations. Marketers are keenly interested in the growth of the ratio of the older people. This grey market is creating new leisure and tourism opportunities for hotel companies, while the relative declining youth market creates difficult challenges for companies targeting younger people. Demographic variables include age, gender, family size and structure, ethnic origin, religion, nationality and socio- economic class. Age: This is an important criteria for segmentation of the hotel customer base. Based on the various age groups that the hotel usually caters to it must design its amenities such that they satisfy the expectations of the customers and provide for the necessary comforts. For example hotels that target young adults could provide for amenities such as swimming pools, pubs or bars on the hotel premises or a gaming room along with designing activities such as trekking excursions, adventure sports, sightseeing packages to places that young people would like to visit etc. Along with this the language and images used in its communication and advertising should reflect the young target market. Similarly hotels that target the older or more mature customer base should focus on comfort, special arrangements to be made for easy movement for the elderly, provide food that will appeal to the palatte of the older generation or undertake activites such as excursions with cultural/historic sightseeing, trips to places of religious importance or arrange for musical programs or dance shows which can be enjoyed by the more mature audience. The language and images used in the hotels marketing communication can be made simple yet elegant which conveys the message of a comfortable and peaceful stay. Likewise for a hotel that has a large number of young families visiting it, it can provide for play areas for children, game rooms, movie screenings, special childrens meals and excursion packages etc. Gender: Hotels do not usually segment their customers based on their gender however it is useful information for any business as special amenities could be provided targeting a specific gender. Hotel

shops selling clothes and accessories could make use of information they have on the gender segmentation in order to stock the right kinds of products and the hotel can set up beauty salons or gymnasiums with schemes targeting a specific gender. Hotel bars and pubs also use gender segmentation to introduce special offers targeting women. Socio-economic class: Hotel companies may not state explicitly which socio- economic class they target, but this is implicit in their marketing strategies. Their interiors and other facilities speak for themselves. Their amenities and products are suitably priced such that people from a certain socioeconomic class can are targeted. Family size and structure: The hotel facilities that individuals and couples without children find acceptable are often not suitable for families with several children and vice versa. When hotels are targeting big size families then they should make arrangement for a wider range of leisure and sporting facilities, child care, evening meals, late night kitchen hours and medical facilities. Ethnic origin, religion and nationality: Ethnic origin, religion and nationality are important demographic variables that are closely linked to each other and to culture. One consequence of these cultural influences is very different attitudes to food and what constitutes acceptable food items and hence hotels must keep this in mind while deciding on the cuisines they will serve or the type of food preparation they undertake. Psychographic Segmentation: This type of segmentation is based on the customers social

class, lifestyle and personality. Usually different hotels cater to customers from a particular strata of society however this classification is very often linked to the customers socio-economic status. If a person is used to a luxurious lifestyle he will invariably opt for a higher end hotel which provides a wide array of amenities and services while those living a more simple lifestyle would be satisfied if provided the basic amenities and comforts. A customers lifestyle reflects the expectations he will have of the services and facilities provided by the hotel. For instance if a person is used to leading a lifestyle where fitness plays an important role he may opt for a hotel which provides facilities such as a gymnasium, spa and swimming pool.

Behavioral Segmentation The behavioral segmentation of customers depends upon factors such as most wanted benefits, usage rates, loyalty, readiness to buy and attitudes toward the product. For instance every customer wants quality, service and economy however it is the customers behavioral profile that helps a marketer decide which of these three service attributes he should stress on in order to capture the customers attention. In this way the service marketer must understand which of the benefits offered priorities are for the target customer and use that to effectively target the customer segment. Different approaches must be used for a non-user, ex-user, first time user and regular user and this can be decided after studying the behavioral characteristics of the customer base. The service marketer must understand that the customer expectations vary according to their usage rates, for example, a heavy or frequent user may want to see different things in the hotels marketing offer as compared to what they offer to the rest of the regular customers. They may feel the need to be given special treatment or to be provided with privilege customer offers and prices. Also in terms of usage of hotel facilities, if the customer does not feel the need to make use of any of the additional facilities provided by the hotel in their package, then he would rather opt for a hotel wherein he would not have to pay for these additional amenities. Hence these factors must be kept in mind by a service marketer while designing hotel packages and determining which services should be included in the various schemes. For instance, a leisure traveler may usually eat outside the hotel while touring the city and hence he may not prefer to go to a hotel wherein he has to pay for his meals along with the room rates as part of the package. Customer loyalty is another factor that a service marketer must keep in mind while trying to segment hotel users. It is a difficult task for any marketer to convert a user who frequents another hotel and is a regular customer there, into trying out the hotel he is promoting. This is because when users have a good experience in a particular hotel they usually tend to stay at the same hotel again based on their previous satisfactory experiences. Lastly it is the customers attitude towards the service or brand which plays an important role in determining his views regarding the hotel and the service experience. For example if a customer has the attitude that an international hotel chain provides better services as compared to an Indian chain of hotels, he may tend to opt for such an hotel instead.

Consumer Buying Behavior The consumer buying process is generally regarded as being similar in services to the purchase of other products and services. The consumer moves through number of stages leading up to purchase of the product. Before selecting a hotel from the various options available, the customer goes through different mindsets and situations which play a significant role in changing their decisions or going for it. The stages in the model can be explained as under: Stage 1: Awareness At this stage, the customer has a number of inhibitors such as lack of time availability, other alternatives, which can cause postponement of decision or terminate the search process. Here, there is a limited knowledge about the service. The guest before making a firm decision about choosing a hotel is not aware about the different kinds of services offered by that particular hotel. He/she probably does not have the time to do research on the services offered by a hotel. Stage 2: Search And Comprehension In this stage, the buyer obtains more information to assess the benefits a service might offer. This could involve the evaluation of a number of alternatives which might meet the requirements of the consumer. In order to make a right decision, to make the stay in a hotel memorable, the customer does a little research work on the various hotels located in the same location where the customer needs to be.

Stage 3: Attitude Development The attitude development depends on the nature of stimuli received in the previous stage. It also depends on whether the purchase is expensive and risk laden or routine and not risky, consulting others, verifying the information, drawing on previous experiences will either reinforce and existing attitude or bring a change on the part of the buyer. Considering Grand Hyatt as an example, it hotel does not believe in brand image but it definitely believes in brand experience. The experience at the hotel makes the guests coming back to it. These guests, who have a good experience at Hyatt, spread a good word about the hotel and its service. This in turn, helps in influencing other people who are looking for a hotel to visit.

Stage 4: Evaluation Of Alternatives The prospective customer will make more detailed analysis and comparisons between competing offerings, rank the alternatives and will move to preferences. The ranking will be based on analysis and a set of choice criteria such as price, recommendation, convenience, convention, etc. during this stage. The customer will choose a hotel which best suits his requirements, offers services at a lower price, is located near to the area of work, etc. Stage 5: Purchase The consumer will buy the service offering subject to time and financial constraints. The latter two factors could still precipitate a withdrawal from purchase at this late stage. The consumer will make the final decision of staying in a particular hotel according to his/her preferences after the above four stages. Stage 6: Adoption And Post-Purchase Behaviour If the experience of service consumed is satisfactory, the consumer will repurchase the service. It is possible that a consumer will have misgivings about the purchase as it did not meet expectations because alternatives to such a service appear more attractive in comparison. After having made the decision and staying in the hotel, the customer is concerned that the choice made was right.

Physical Evidence
The physical evidence in the service industry represents that environment in which the service is delivered i.e. where the service provider and the customers interact. It is considered as all those tangible representations which give customers a cue about the quality of services and create an immediate perceptual image in the customers minds. When customers evaluate intangible products such as a service, which is generally produced and consumed simultaneously, the consumer is in the factory often experiencing the total service within the firms physical facility. In such cases the factory may infact have a strong impact on the customers perceptions of the service experience. The physical evidence or servicescape in this context encompasses the appearance and impression of the service organizations overall products and services. In some cases it may provide a first impression before the customers may have a chance to interact with the service employees and therefore they will be used by customers to guide their beliefs, attitude and expectations of a service provider. Since the hospitality industry provides a high degree of intangible product levels like services, consumers are likely to use tangible aspects like appearances to make judgments and evaluations. Servicescapes, in this case, are not only an important component of a customers impression formation, but also an important source of evidence in the overall evaluation of the servicescape itself and the service organization in general. Particularly in the hotel division of the hospitality industry, guests interact with the physical environment more than with the service agent. That is, consumers interact with the servicescape prior to experiencing the service in an exchange with a service agent. Hence, it is various environmental cues and physical components that help individuals form a holistic picture of the overall servicescape. Such cues include the atmospherics, physical design, dcor elements and various graphic design elements. The elements of the servicescape of the Grand Hyatt can be grouped together to form a comprehensive image, the various dimensions being the Exterior Design, Interior Design, Other Tangibles and Sensory Cues. Each one contributes to developing the individuals perception of the hotel and hence the hotel has been designed with care by renowned architects and designers from the United States of America.

Sensory Cues Sensory cues refers to distance receptors which allow the customers to gather information without making contact with a person or object and allows him to examine and experience objects that are at some distance. Such sensory cues are of three types: Visual Cues Colour: This is one of the obvious visual cues in a servicescape. It is a strong visual component of a physical setting, particularly in an interior setting. Research has shown that different colors stimulate varying personal moods and emotions. Keeping this in mind, the Grand Hyatt has maintained a colour scheme consisting mostly of muted colours such as shades of beige, brown and cream. This is not visually jarring and it maintains an aura of sophistication, class and extravagance,while being understated at the same time This reflects the hotels personality perfectly as it caters to a mostly corporate crowd where the setting cannot afford to be loud or garish. Lighting: The type of lighting in an environment directly influences an individuals perception of the definition and quality of the space, form, color, texture as well as enclosure and it is suggested that environments in which the lighting is designed to harmonize with furniture and accessories are perceived as more pleasant than environments in which lighting does not harmonize with other elements of the room. With this view, the lighting at the Grand Hyatt is soft and subtle, well adjusted depending on the mood of the area, it is strategically placed and well camouflaged to blend in with the dcor however it still managed to be effective and in no area of the hotel does one feel a lack of adequate lighting. This is especially important since the guests of the hotel have the convenience of sitting anywhere on the premises with their work without facing the problem of poor lighting. Space and Function: The furnishings in a servicescape link the space with its occupants and convey the personality of the servicescape through form, line, color, texture, and scale. The furniture placement may convey a sense of enclosure, define spatial movement, function as walls, and communicate visible or invisible boundaries. Recognizable changes in ceiling heights affect spatial perception more than a similar change in room width or length. High ceilings convey feelings of spaciousness, whereas low ceilings are associated with coziness and intimacy. All of these elements help individuals form a mental

picture prior to affective response and judgments toward a specific servicescape. In terms of its space the Grand Hyatt defines majestic. With a spacious lobby, halls and landscape the hotel makes one feel like royalty. True to its name the hotel is very grand enormous in size with large interior spaces marked by high ceilings and minimalist dcor. The entire ground level is open with the lobby and restaurants occupying different parts of the floor without having walls to separate them. Although the restaurants appear seamless, they are each distinct in its dcor and setting. Auditory Cues In a servicescape, guests take note of music and noise as auditory components of their evaluations. Music can be used as an effective tool to minimize the negative consequences of waiting in any service operation however noise and loudness of sound have usually been perceived as irritating and annoying. The sound must be a balance of loud and constant sound in order to create a pleasant sound environment. At the Hyatt music is generally played in the background in the public spaces which is a combination of traditional vocal jazz, instrumental jazz, European new age, soul and classical music. They have contracted with Muzak, a music programming company for centralized song lists and they transmit the songs to the Hyatt hotels via satellite. Muzak has programmed the Hyatt hotels to play songs that match the flavor of the hotels location. Olfactory Cues Similar to music, scent should be evaluated with other environmental cues when examining the impact of a servicescape on customer behavior. It is imperative that a centrally air-conditioned hotel like the Hyatt maintain a fresh atmosphere which does not end up feeling musty or damp. For this the Hyatt ensures adequate circulation of air and the presence of de-humidifiers which helps maintain good air quality. Exterior Design The exterior design of a hotel is what the guests see at first and it helps them form their first impressions of the hotel. The Grand Hyatt true to its name is rather grand looking and its massive size is aweinspiring. Its sheer size is over-whelming and the hotel can be spotted from a distance.

This is an example of modern architecture, this six storied structure comprises largely of glass and stone and the prominent colors are cream and brown. Another prominent aspect of the hotel is its signage. This is placed appropriately above the structure and the bright red and black Hyatt logo can be recognized from a distance. They have a gate on the main road which has another prominent sign which is written very simply and in a clear manner. This informs people about the direction in which they must proceed as the actual premises are at some distance from the main road. This road leading up to the Grand Hyatt is well maintained and clean, with security personnel positioned there to direct people towards the hotel. They have also invested in growing trees along this road to make it look attractive. On reaching the hotel gates, one is struck by its enormous wrought iron gates which have security personnel standing there for initial security. From the gates the driveway leads up to the main entrances. This driveway is well lit with ground lights and plants on either side. The main entrance of the hotel is impressive with multiple glass doors across the entire side of the hotel. There are security personnel standing there to perform security checks and this is where one must give his car to the valet personnel. Metal detectors are placed outside the gates to check every guest and the cars are also checked with special equipment. There are ash-trays strategically placed outside the hotel entrances and there is a small podium where the security personnel make announcements for the car drivers. Outside the entrance one can also see several hotel cars which can be booked by guests and all these cars are luxury cars of different sizes to cater to the needs of all the guests. All these cars have the Grand Hyatt logo on them. The security personnel, valet personnel and car drivers were all seen wearing smart uniforms and it was evident that care was taken regarding their personal presentation. The exterior lighting gives the hotel a glow in the darkness as there are special floodlights and spotlights which are positioned to accentuate the hotels magnificence. It is also practical as it makes it easy for guests and drivers to see the surrounding areas at night.

The hotel has paid detailed attention to its landscaping, which has been designed with care to give the hotel a spacious and attractive look. These features of the hotel are not very visible from the front entrance and one has to explore the hotel to see this view. Since the hotel is built such that there is a piece of land which forms a sort of a courtyard in the centre of the hotel, and it is this area which is beautifully landscaped, one can see this view from the hotel rooms or if one explores the hotel from the inside. Some of these features are: Bodies of water: The Grand Hyatt had a number of water bodies as part of their landscaping. Such bodies include ponds, fountains and unique water features such as waterfalls and cascading water structures. These water bodies reflect the hotels structure and the clear blue waters lend the area a cool and soothing feeling. The water is clean and refilled regularly in these man-made water structures and their waterfalls can also be seen from within the hotel through glass windows which make the hotel seem bigger then its already large size. Flora: The Grant Hyatt has different kinds of plants and trees everywhere on the premises. From the driveway to the courtyard one will see a variety of plants such as palm trees, potted plants, flowers such as lilies and roses and large beds of well maintained grass and well trimmed bushes. There is a mix of exotic and native plants and even their beauty is heightened by appropriate external lighting. There is a stone pathway designed between the beds of grass which run across the hotels courtyard. The hotel is also helping to maintain greenery in the areas surrounding the hotel so that the drive up to the hotel is also more pleasant. Furnishings: There is some external furniture in the form of benches placed in the courtyard where the guests can sit and enjoy the outdoors. The hotel has a large swimming pool which the guest have access to. It is clean, well maintained and safe to use. There are strict diving instructions mentioned along the pool and for the safety of the guests there are also floats located around the pool. There are plants surrounding the pool and white deck chairs which umbrella shades are placed around it, on a spacious sun deck, for people who wish to soak in the sun. There is also a changing area near the pool for those who wish to use it and the hotel also provides towels and robes there. A snack bar completes the area and makes it an idyllic locale for an afternoon spent outdoors.

Other recreational facilities which make up the hotel exterior are their tennis lawns, jogging track and childrens playground complete with swings, slides and other such structures. Interior Design The interior architecture and dcor of the hotel plays an important role in influencing the guests impression of the hotel. Since the guest actually lives within those interior for the duration of his stay in the hotel, every aspect of the interior design will affect the guest and modify his impression of the hotel. The interiors of hotels can be viewed in two parts, the public spaces and the private spaces. Public spaces are areas which are open to all the guests such as the lobby, restaurants, gymnasium, beauty salon, hotel shops etc. It is one of the guests primary sources of evaluation of the entire service organization. Generally it is suggested that the overall design and layout of the hotel lobby must provide guest circulation from the entrance to the front desk to the elevators in a logical and convenient fashion. Also the visual impact and functionality of such spaces must be balanced. Parts of the private settings are the hotel guestrooms which have a greater influence on the guests overall experience as opposed to public settings. This is because the guest spends maximum time in these settings and is what he primarily pays for. Hotels such as Hyatt tend to adopt a home-like style in order to provide a harmonious and comfortable environment. Ultimately a guest room is a space where the guest wants to rest and relax and hence hotels must understand the function or purpose of the environment from the consumers point of view and adopt the right color combinations, music and dcor to create a pleasant servicescape. Public Spaces Lobby: The lobby is gigantic, with extremely clean and gleaming floors. The design is contemporary and there are many unusual works of art which adorn this area. Abstract art representing our culture and religious symbols is also seen. There is a reception desk and a travel desk situated in the lobby, both of which are neat and functional. There are computers and stationary at the desks and hotel brochures are displayed at the desks. The hotel also has a row of telephones in the lobby from where guests can make calls. Couches and chairs are also placed in the lobby for people who are waiting in that area and potted plants are placed on the sides of the lobby.

Public Restrooms: The restrooms in the lobby area can be used by any of the hotel guests. There are two sets of restrooms and they are all clean and hygienic. There is an attendant who is present there at all times, who constantly cleans the restroom and ensures that it is well stocked with the necessary items. The soap and napkin dispensers are placed in accessible areas, they are refilled constantly and the dustbins are extremely clean as they are emptied within minutes. The restrooms walls have large mirrors placed on them and there are ash trays placed outside every restroom. Restaurants: Every restaurant has its own distinct dcor to suit the cuisine served there. The colors, art work and setting all reflect the type of restaurant it is. All the restaurants have comfortable seating, with good table arrangements i.e. there are tables provided for groups consisting of different number of people and the place settings are impeccable. The cutlery and crockery used is of fine quality and the napkins are freshly washed. All the restaurants have show kitchens for which even the kitchens have been kept clean and attractive and the restaurants are decorated with show vegetables, fruits and other ingredients. An interesting thing that the Hyatt does it that it orders its seating depending on the type of restaurant it is. The coffee shop is meant for lounging and is a place where people can sit for long hours and hence the seating consists of large arm chairs which are very comfortable to be able to sit in it for long hours while at the restaurants they prefer to turn the tables faster and hence the seating is not as comfortable as the coffee shop and one would feel the need to get up after sitting there for a while. The food presentation at the Hyatt is also done tastefully as it adds to the quality of the meal experience. Ballrooms and Conference Rooms: These are large spaces which are usually empty and can be converted into different forms depending on the function. The areas are carpeted and have a good sound system installed. The ballroom at the Grand Hyatt is the largest in India and it is the only one wherein it is possible to drive cars right into the room and hence it very suitable for auto exhibitions. The conference rooms can be arranged in different styles depending on the requirements however usually stationary, bottled water, microphones and projector screens are provided to aid the proceedings of the conference.

Gymnasium, Spa and Beauty Salon: These areas have state-of-art equipment and while the gymnasium provides lockers, shower areas and stream and sauna facilities, the spa has various private massage beds and a Jacuzzi. The beauty salon has equipment used for the various treatments it offers and its dcor matches that of a European lounge. These equipments are of high quality and even the products that they use such as hair colour, shampoos, gels etc are all of good quality. Shopping Plaza and Gourmet Store: The Grand Hyatt boasts of a large shopping plaza which houses a hoard of domestic and international brands. The stores range from electronics stores to clothing stores and the gourmet store has a variety of gourmet delicacies such as a spread of cheeses, meats, breads, cakes and it also serves an array of teas, coffees and smoothies. Business Centre: The 24 hour business centre at the Hyatt consists of cubicles where the guests can work. They are provided with computers, printers, telephones and a fax machine. Also stationary is provided to them. Private Spaces The private spaces in the hotel are usually the different kinds of rooms. This is a space where the guest spends most of his time in and the physical evidence present in this area affects customer perception tremendously. Some examples of physical evidence in the private space are as follows: The rooms are well appointed and board of a modern dcor featuring sycamore wood paneling and golden jaisalmer stone complements. The rooms feature large comfortable beds, a work-desk, marble baths and plenty of closet space. Electronics: Electronics in the room include the air-conditioning, the television, iron, hairdryer and a tea and coffee making machine. They must be working properly and safe to use. Any instructions regarding their use are usually provided in a manual or on a sticker. Linen: The linen comprises of the bedding such as the sheets, pillow cases, blankets and even the towels, robes and napkins. They are clean and freshly washed and ironed. The bedding is changed when requested however fresh towels are placed in the rooms by housekeeping everyday.

Toiletries: The hotel provides complimentary toiletries such as soap, shampoo, conditioner and cream which are specially packed for the Hyatt however the hotel does not do any branding through the items. They are good quality items and are replaced when used. Safety Equipment: Within the room there is a safe present which can be locked with a unique digital code and it provides some safe-keeping for the guests valuables. The hotel room door is also locked electronically and can be accessed using a magnetic access card. Along with the aforementioned articles certain other factors have also been looked into. For instance, the light panels are in accessible locations, there are bedside lamps and tables on either side of the bed. A mini bar is provided to the guests from which they can buy drinks or snack items. Telephones, remote controls, hangers, dvd players, fruit, slippers, alarm clocks etc are some of the other tangibles present in the room depending of the type of the room. Other Tangibles The hotel consists of various other tangibles which cannot be accounted for in this list, however certain important tangibles are: Uniforms: The staff is well dressed in clean, smart uniforms and every person at a particular

designation has a particular dress code he must follow. Elevators: The elevators are large and have good sized and easy to read panels where along

with the floor number, the types of rooms on the floor are mentioned. There is also an emergency telephone in the elevator. Printed Material: The printed material at the Hyatt consists of brochures and pamphlets

which are printed in high colour and on high quality paper, the menus are clear and easy to read, the hotel stationary is simple and functional and it bears the Hyatt branding on it. The hotel also prints room service menus and directories which are present in every room which are simple, functional and clear.

Food Packing: When a guest wishes to pack food and take it away from the restaurants, the

packing is done very carefully. The liquid containers are sealed carefully while other food items are covered in foil and cling wrap before being stored in individual boxes or containers. Website: The hotels website also acts as physical evidence for the hotel and hence it has

been designed carefully. It is comprehensive, easy to navigate, informative and it shows images and descriptions of the Hyatt along with taking customer feedback and enquiries. Billing Statements: The billing statements are printed and they are clear and concise and

hence very easy to understand. Parking: The parking lot is massive and has space for 700+ cars. The parking space need not

be accessed by the guests directly as the valet personnel usually do the needful, however the guests cars are kept safe and free from any harm while the hotel is responsible for it.

Process
The service process is an essential element of the augmented marketing mix and a vital point of the value chain. It is best viewed as something that the customer participates in at different points in time. The process invloves the actual procedures, mechanisms, and flow of activities by which the service is delivered. The process may be defined as ways of undertaking transactions, supplying information and providing services in a way which is acceptable to the customer yet effective to the organization. Therefore, in order to design a process , it is essential for the service provide to have a thorough understanding of the customers and their needs and wants. Blue Printing Service Blue Print is a visual portrayal of a service plan. The process of blueprinting involves describing, in small detail, the various stages of delivery of a service. In fact it is unlikely that an effective service can be designed without the use of a blue print for the simple reason that the blue print describes the customer activities, the parallel activities and all the interactions by and with the customers. The blue print can act as an effective tool to identify potential problems and benefits. It can also indicate the scope for improvement that the service design can accommodate. In the hotel sector, a service blueprint is used to establish all the various elements involved during the customers visit to the hotel. From the moment the customer arrives to the moment the he leaves, all the actions that the customer or the employees carry out are depicted in the blue print. Service Mapping Service Mapping is a technique which is used to portray an existing service situation and provides a useful tool to assess and identify service evidence opportunities. The process of the service delivery, the role of customers and employees, the visible and invisible elements of the service are simultaneously displayed in the service map. In the context of the hotel industry, a service map shows how the service process and structure are mapped graphically for visual portrayal. The service map may be read from left to right to understand the actions or steps that must be performed by either the customer or the employees, or it may be read vertically to understand the structural relationships that exist.

Actions Arrive at Hotel Check In Give bags to bellboy Go to room Receive Bags Sleep & Rest Order food & eat Recreation & Health Check Out

Approximate Time 10 - 20 mins < 3 min 1 2 mins 3 5 mins 0 mins Subjective Subjective Subjective 6 10 mins

Critical Incidence No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes

Onstage Participant Chauffeur Receptionist Bell boy --Bell boy --Waiter/Restaurant Personnel Respective Delivery Personnel Receptionist

Backstage Participant Reservation Personnel Back office Personnel Bell boy --Bell boy --Chefs --Back office personnel

Process During An Hotel Stay In a hotel stay the general process is as we can see in the diagram above. The guest arrives at the hotel and is given a pick up facility by the hotel. He checks in at the reception and is then aided by a bell boy who takes the guests bags up to the room. The guest finished his check in procedure, takes his room keys and goes upto the room. In the meanwhile his bags are waiting for him at the room. The guest then has the option to rest, shower or use any of the modes of entertainment provided by the hotel. He may order food, for which he can either order through room service or he may go to the restaurant. The guest may take an appointment at the other hotel facilities such as the beauty salon, gymnasium, spa etc. At the end of his stay, the guest clears his outstanding bill amounts and checks out of the hotel.

Zone Of Tolerance

One of the attributes of services is that it is inconsistent in nature and owning to this attribute, there may be slight variations in the service provided. The extent to which customers are willing to accept this variation is called Zone of Tolerance. If the service drops below the minimum acceptable level then the customer is dissatisfied and if the performance exceeds the expectations the customer is delighted. In a hotel like the Grand Hyatt, people have very high expectations since such a hotel is known for its exceptional service, and hence they are less prone to accepting anything that is below their expectations. Hence we can say that the customers Zone of Tolerance in case of the Grand Hyatt is extremely low. Due to this the hotel must constantly be on their toes and provide good quality service at all times since they know that their scope for making mistakes is not very large. To determine the zone of tolerance, the approximate times and critical times various processes take is an important consideration. We have mentioned the approximate times the Hyatt takes to complete different processes, if they exceed this time then the customers will be unhappy. For example, the check-in procedure takes less than three minutes which is very quick. Even if due to some reason the time is extended to 6-7 minutes the customer may not mind however anything above that will dissatisfy the customer. Similarly, while ordering food a customer wont mind a delivery period of 20 minutes which may be tolerated for upto half hour in case of a special dish. However anything above this time is considered to be a service failure. Hence if the hotels service is beyond the customers zone of tolerance then a service delivery failure takes place. Service Mapping Lines A service map shows the service process and the structure visually. The horizontal lines on the blueprint can be read vertically to understand the structural relationships that exist between the actions of the customers and the employees. There are three important lines that can be seen in a service map. They are as follows: Line of Interaction: This is the line that distinguishes the actions of the customer and front office staff in a service encounter. The roles of the employee and the customer vary with the situation however the general role of the Front Line staff encompasses the following: Sell guestrooms; register guests and design guestrooms Coordinate guest services Provide information

Maintain accurate room statistics, and room key inventories Maintain guest account statements and complete proper financial settlements Receive and process reservation requests for future overnight accommodations. Answers and distributes calls to the appropriate extensions, whether guest, employee, or Places wake-up calls Bell Attendants: Ensure baggage service between the lobby area and guestrooms Door Attendants: Ensure baggage service and traffic control at hotel entrance(s) Valet Parking Attendants: Ensure parking services for guests automobiles Transportation Personnel: Ensure transportation services for guests from and to the hotel Concierge: Assists guests by making restaurant reservations, arranging for transportation, and Clean and presse the propertys linens, towels, and guest clothing (if equipped to do so, free Coordinates emergency communications Serve food and beverages Conduct security checks

management extensions

getting tickets for theater, sporting, or any other special events of charge or for a pre-determined fee)

Front office organization chart & Hierarchy Line of

Visibility: The line of visibility distinguishes the front office and the back office. Aforementioned

are some of the services provided by the front office and the services provided by the back office staff is as follows: Maintain guest account statements and complete proper financial settlements Maintain recycled and non-recycled inventory items Communicate the status of guestrooms to the Front Office Department Monitor automated systems Pay outstanding invoices Distribute unpaid statements Collect amounts owed Processes payroll Accumulate operating data Compile financial reports Make bank deposits Secures cash loans Performs other control and processing functions Monitor supervision equipment Responsible for external & internal recruitment Calculate employees' salaries, compensation, and tax withholding Administrate employees' paperwork, monitors attendance Maintain good relations with Labor Unions Ensure employees' safety and working conditions

Line of Internal Interaction: This line divides the front line employees and the operational staff support. These interactions normally occur beyond the sight of the customers. The operational staff usually manages the hotels database, call centres they have across the world, maintain property structures and grounds etc. They are instrumental in supplementing the front office staff and helping them complete their duties.

Service Encounter Interaction or interactive marketing forms an integral part of the Services Marketing Triangle wherein the promises made by way of external marketing are actually kept or delivered. Although the term interaction does purport the connotation of a dialogue between the service provider and the customers, interaction does not only include a customers experience with the employees of a company. In fact, it includes each and every experience that the customer goes through with every facet of the business be it the ambience, the dcor, the environment, the equipment, the people etc. Therefore, this aspect of interactive marketing is known as a Service Encounter or Moments of Truth. Typically service encounters comprise both critical and non critical events. Critical events are defined as being an interaction that has a highly satisfactory or highly dissatisfactory outcome hence contributing to the overall perception of the encounter. That means that those service encounters that make the customer either excessively happy or excessively unhappy are known as Critical Incidents. On the other hand, those service encounters that do not have a lasting impact on the customers are termed as Non- Critical Incidents. Now in order to explain the possible critical and non critical incidents, we have shown below an extensive service encounter of a customer who was staying at the Grand Hyatt.

The Airport pick-up with a complementary bottle of water is smooth & easy; the ride is less then half an hour in a nice and clean Toyota corolla. Arrival at the Grand Hyatt is very friendly & organized (extra safety check at the gate, plus points!!), luggage is only seen later in the room again, so no need to worry about that. Check-in is a bit too simple for this kind of hotel. Arriving at the room, the door handle needs a strong hand to open, or maybe some oil. The first impression of the room (GRAND TWIN) is very simple. Quality of the finishing looks a bit cheap & fragile. A quick round through the room confirms the cheap part as the clothes cabinet door seems to be stuck and the fragile part as the toiletries box cover is on one side broken.

Luggage coming in, bellboy explains the room. Further checking the room, the television is good, 69 channels according to the manual. There is a Minibar facility if you are willing to pay the price (soft drinks, can, 100 rupees, and 2.25USD). Don't forget to ask to unlock your Minibar, mine was locked and that's seemed to be a common policy. There is complimentary water in the room. As a business traveler connecting your laptop to the Internet is important, and this shouldn't cost too much of your time (& money). I must say I am impressed. Although there is no wi-fi, there is a cable for Internet and a port for dial-up available (both very conveniently located), and you can still use the phone at the same time (finally some hotel that understands it!). There are two power outlets for different plugs, makes the need for a travel-adapter disappear, great arrangement! Connecting to the broadband is not free of charge, charging by hour, day, week or month, prices are a bit steep. The toilet has eco-buttons, one for a short flush and one for a full flush, and although I am not that kind of an eco friendly guy, I like this. Had a look through the service directory, couldn't find any information on the restaurants in the hotel, disappointing. Better have a discovery walk in/around the hotel. I somehow end up in the attached shopping mall, which is DESERTED, several un-interested shop owners looking desperately at me to come in. There are several Indian souvenir shops, and expensive designer goodies. Continue my private tour, take another staircase to one level higher and end up in the garden area in the middle of the hotel, beautiful, but the walls are coming at you. There is also a smaller swimming pool, I think meant for the people who stay at the residences. Walking around a bit and ending up in the gym & fitness, looks impressive. Swimming pool is located outside and also almost deserted, I think people would find this place (gym & pool) difficult to find. In the surrounding of the hotel, there is nothing on walking distance (e.g. small shops, restaurants),

some office buildings & residential premises. No chance to go for a quick do as the locals do kind of thing, always need some transportation. Downtown Mumbai is a reasonable trip away. To summarize my first impression, it is a nice hotel in the wrong environment, very simple (but complete) rooms, general facilities look good. There is really NOTHING to do around the hotel. So if you want to have some boring, quiet days or are only visiting for business and need good facilities this is the right spot. Give it a miss if you go for a holiday trip.

The aforementioned review, suggests a detailed description of all the service encounters faced by the guest. The guest described in detail, his interaction with the service personnel, the equipment of the hotel and the physical environment of the hotel. Certain encounters seemed very critical to the guests satisfaction, while others did not evoke very strong emotions. The customer was very happy by certain encounters such as the additional security, the internet facilities available in the room wherein there is a cable for Internet and a port for dial-up available very conveniently located. He was also very impressed by the arrangement of two power outlets for different plugs, obliterating the need for a travel-adapter. However, the guest was also very unhappy by certain arrangements such as the cheap quality of the finishing of the rooms and the fact that the hotel is so located that there is nothing that is walking distance. All these encounters may be termed as critical as they either made the customer excessively happy or unhappy. The rest of the encounters did not affect the guest so much so to elicit any major reactions from him. Examples of these would be the complimentary water bottle, good television, a mini-bar facility. ]

Productivity & Quality

Service Quality Service quality is the extent to which a service meets customers needs or expectations. Service quality can thus be defined as the difference between a customers expectations of service and the perceived service. If expectations are greater than the actual performance, then perceived quality is less than satisfactory and hence customer dissatisfaction occurs. Over the years service researchers have suggested that customers judge the quality of services based on their perceptions of the technical outcome provided, the process delivery, and the quality of the physical surroundings where the service is delivered. Dimensions Of Quality Increasingly quality is becoming a more important element in determining the value of a service as it provides a basis for customers to distinguish between competing service providers. It is therefore important that the service organisations are aware of the customers expectations of quality. There is a plethora of service quality measurement tools in the industry. However, the SERVQUAL model is the most widely used measure of service quality. Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry, the founders of this tool, identified ten categories that were labelled service quality determinants and were defined as reliability, responsiveness, competence, access, courtesy, communication, credibility, security, understanding the customer and tangibles. However further research proved that some of the variables overlapped each other and thus the model was revised. In this modified model the ten original categories were combined to cover five broad dimensions of service quality. These five categories are popularly known as the RATER model: Reliability, Assurance, Tangibility, Empathy, and Responsiveness. Reliability Reliability is defined as the ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately. Reliability means that the company delivers on its promises- promises about delivery, service provision, problem resolution and pricing. Customers prefer to do business with companies that keep their promises. All companies need to be aware of customer expectations of reliability. Companies that do not

provide the core service that customers think they are buying, fail their customers in the most direct way. In order to be reliable the objectives need to be as follows: To keep promises. Sincerely solve the problems. To perform the service right the first time. To honor time commitments. Error-free records. The Grand Hyatt is considered to be a reliable choice for a large number of business executives. Obviously the main aim of the hotel is to conform to all the services it promises and to achieve that conformity in the first go, so as to keep its clientele happy and ensure that keep coming back to the Hyatt. Since time is of the essence for most of its customers, The Grand Hyatt makes sure that all of the promises are delivered in record time and to exact specifications of the customers. A special effort is made to keep the statements or reports as error free as possible, which is why they have computer generated master and individual bills. The customers have the option of checking all the individual bills at the time of signing so that the master bill is accurate. Also, the level and quality of service is the same throughout the day at any time be it 10a.m or 3a.m. At the Grand Hyatt, the employees work in two shifts i.e. day and night shifts. Thus the employees are not over worked or tired at any given point of time and so the service delivered is of the same standard thus making it a reliable option for the customers. Assurance Assurance is the knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to inspire trust and confidence. Assurance may be defined using variables such as competence, courtesy, credibility and security.

Competence: Refers to the possession of the required skill and knowledge by the

employees to perform. At the Grand Hyatt, this competence is assured since The Hyatt recruits its employees only from the best hotel management institutes of the country. Over and above this, they are also given an extensive training to polish their skills and to groom them to perfection. Courtesy: Refers to the politeness, respect, consideration and friendliness of the

contact personnel. An imperative requirement of the Services Industry is courtesy. Courtesy plays a very important role since the perceived quality of the service rendered depends largely on the type of interaction between the service provider and the customers. Customers who are treated politely and graciously tend to come out of the service factory with a good feeling rather than those who have experienced apathetic and rude employees. At the Grand Hyatt, we found the staff to be extremely polite in their demeanor. From personal experience, both on actual visits as well as on the phone, we noted the courtesy and the hospitability they extended to us. Credibility: Involves the trustworthiness, believability, and honesty of the service

provider. At Grand Hyatt, the guests are assured of excellent service because of the brand name and brand equity that the Hyatt has garnered over the years. The Hyatt hotels are found all over the world and thus customers would not be hesitant about the quality or the standard of the hotel as it enjoys a sound reputation. Security: It requires infusing a feeling of personal safety and security within the

premises of the hotel and the freedom from risk or danger and loss of personal belongings. Generally, customers while visiting a hotel carry cash, jewelry and other baggage. The customer expects the hotel room to be safe and secure. When they go out for the days work they should not be concerned about the safety of their belongings. The Grand Hyatt recognizes the need for such security. Infact, the Hyatt has outsourced the security competency to a reputed company called G4 securities. The Grand Hyatt has a tight security procedure in place at the entry-level. All the people who enter the hotel are made to pass through a metal detector, and their bags are checked by the security personnel. There are specially appointed female security personnel to check the ladies bags. Also, there are security personnel at the upper room levels of the Hyatt. There are multiple fire extinguishers at every floor and are strategically placed with hose reels long enough to cover the entire radius of the floor. There are smoke detectors all over the hotel and inbuilt over head water sprinklers. There are also conveniently placed emergency telephones at every floor with a direct connection to the operator. Also, on every floor there are emergency lights, which during a high alert

start blinking in order to lead the guests to the nearest emergency exit. On high alert days, or during V.I.P stays, the security is beefed up considerably. All cars are checked physically as well as with metal detectors. The Persons are also made to walk through such detectors, are frisked and their bags are checked. Once again, specially appointed female security personnel to check and frisk the ladies. Moreover, at such times The Hyatt releases three sniffer dogs. One dog is positioned at the car park, the other at the entrance, and one is made to patrol the lobbies and the grounds. As far as the belongings of the customers go, the Hyatt has installed safes and lockers within the rooms for the guests to leave their valuables. Tangibles Tangibles represent the physical evidence of the service. The tangibility spectrum of a service is a very critical aspect of service quality since it tangibilizes the otherwise intangible service and thus gives the customer an opportunity to assess the quality of the service delivered. The following parameters can be used to explain the tangibles of the hotel: Appearance of physical facilities: The physical facilities include the exteriors and the

interiors of the hotel. In keeping with its name, the Grand Hyatt is Grand in every respect. Right from the gargantuan wrought-iron gates, to the expansive driveway, to the very structure of the hotel; everything reflects the essence of the Grand Hyatt- Grandeur! The interiors of the hotel too convey the message intrinsically but effectively. The lobbies and hallways are humungous and the design is contemporary. The physical facilities of the Grand Hyatt reflect the high standards of the hotel since everything is top-notch and conveys a message of luxury, quality, opulence and affluence. Obviously, when the customer interacts with the physical facilities of the Grand Hyatt, he is certain about the level of quality and the value for money he will be receiving. Equipment: Any equipment that typically helps to provide any service to the customer

be it the gymnasium equipment, spa equipment, kitchen equipment, cutlery and crockery, televisions, or phones all depict the quality and the image of the hotel. Now, the Grand Hyatt, being a 5 star hotel, uses state-of-the-art and high end equipment. The customers directly use the equipment of the hotel and thus are in a position to analyze and interpret the quality of such equipment and equate it to that of the hotel. Thus equipment becomes a very important determinant of quality.

Personnel: The personnel are the most vital assets of the hotel since interaction with

them is on a personal note and can greatly influence the perceived value of the customers. Thus hotels tend to make a sizeable investment in their personnel in terms of recruiting, selecting, training, and grooming. At the Grand Hyatt, the staff are impeccably attired which communicates the formal business-like positioning that the Grand Hyatt aims for. Also the uniforms are designed in a sophisticated and attractive manner keeping in mind the high standards of the hotel. The personnel are well groomed, speak confidently and politely, are courteous and wear an easy smile. All this adds to the quality of the hotel since interactions with such kind of personnel are enriching and pleasant. Written material: The written material refers to any type of written communication

offered by the hotel to the customers, such as brochures, leaflets, pamphlets, menu cards, directories, confirmation letters, placards, direct mail, feedback forms etc. The quality of paper, the quality of printing, the font, the colour schemes used, the templates, the designs, and the clarity of the content all contribute to the perceived quality of the customers. The Grand Hyatt uses only the finest quality of stationery, and designs. The colour combinations used are sophisticated and classy, all of which convey a richness of feel and high quality to the customer. Empathy Empathy is defined as the caring, individualized attention the hotel provides to their customers. The essence of empathy is to convey to the customers that the hotel understands the needs, desires and/or the problems of the customers. The Grand Hyatt uses the following counts to evaluate its empathy quotient: Access: A primary measure of empathy is the approachability and ease of contact

provided to the customer. At the Grand Hyatt, access points are very conveniently located for the customers. There are telephones in every room, on every floor and the lobbies have telephone booths aplenty. From our personal experience, we found that staff members will be chanced upon every 20 steps to assist customers. Communication: Empathy involves listening to the customers and acknowledging

their comments. Listen and Empathize are the two main components of the service recovery strategy of the Grand Hyatt. All employees at the Grand Hyatt are explicitly told to listen to any

customer complaints or comments with an empathetic ear and demonstrate concern and understanding. Understanding the Customer: KYC or know your customer is an important mantra for most service marketers today. The Grand Hyatt makes a special effort to know and document its customers preferences. All the Hyatts across the world operate on a Single Image Inventory System wherein all the customers likes and dislikes and preferences are documented for access to all the Hyatt hotels across the Globe. The Central hub used by the Hyatt, known as Indro, records all the information related to the customers for future reference, so that the customers next visit is flawless. Responsiveness Responsiveness is the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service to them. Responsiveness is communicated by the length of time the customers have to wait for assistance or attention to problems. At the Grand Hyatt, the response time is very quick. This is largely owing to the empowerment given to the employees that they dont feel the need to pass the query on from one person to another but can just answer the customer then and there. For instance, when we called the front desk for information regarding the buffet, the person at the front desk had all the relevant information and thus his response was immediate. Also, from our personal experience we found that a staff member is present every 20 steps to tend to customer queries (owing to the seamlessness of the lobby). The Grand Hyatt has taken the answer within 3 rings mantra to a higher level to delight the customers by answering the calls on the first ring itself thereby sharply reducing the waiting time. From another personal experience, when we went to the Celini, we received prompt service. Infact, we also noticed that the waiters were so attentive that no sooner did we finish our last sips of coffee did they come and ask for refills. However, the most apt example of promptness would be the direct-to-front desk telephones the Grand Hyatt has at all floors. These phones have a direct connection to the reception. So all the customers have to do is pick up the phone and they will be directly connected, without having to dial extension numbers. This mode of responsiveness enables the customer to get instantaneous service.

Understanding Quality Management In 1985, Parasuram, Zeithaml and Berry developed a model of service quality. Their model claims that the customer evaluates service quality experience as the outcome of the gap between expected and perceived quality. The model identifies the gaps that can lead to an unsuccessful service delivery. Service Gaps

The focus Gaps is the

central of the model

customer gap, which is the difference between the customer expectations and perceptions. Companies need to close this gap in order to satisfy customers and build long term relationships with them. To close this all-important customer gap, the model suggests that four other gaps, the provider gaps, need to be closed. Provider Gap 1: Gap 1 is the difference between customer expectations of service and the company understanding of those expectations. The primary reason for this gap is an inadequate marketing

research orientation. That means that either the company has made an inadequate use of the market research or has done insufficient market research. For example, hotels may have to face this problem due to long gestation periods. Now the Grand Hyatt does not have this provider gap for the simple reason that is has very carefully charted out its target customers and has designed all the services and facilities to suit them. The target market of the Grad Hyatt is the business class. Thus you have the convenient location, the services designed to suit all tenures of stay, the positioning strategies etc. In fact most customer reviews support this claim; such as the one mentioned below:

This hotel is fantastic. I was here on business and it really was a pleasure staying here. The gym/pool/steam rooms etc are well worth using and the restaurants serve excellent food. It also has a substantial wine list in the bar (which for those of you used to traveling in India, this is sometimes a rarity).Overall I was very impressed with the look of the hotel and the quality of service. I am back in Mumbai in a week and have booked back into this hotel. Source: http://www.tripadvisor.com

Provider Gap 2: Gap 2 arises due to the company not having the right service quality designs and standards. This gap arises due to the difficulty in translating the customers expectations into service quality specifications. Now generally, companies set operation standards and designs so as to achieve greater productivity or efficiency. However, such a practise would leave ample scope for Gap 2 to seep in. Thus in order to close such a gap, companies must formulate customer driven standards and designs so that the service design corresponds to customers expectations. At the Grand Hyatt, we found through research of customer reviews that certain aspects of this gap do exist at the hotel. One such service design fault was in the case of the cancellation and refund procedure. A customer, who had a reservation on the 19th of April 2007, cancelled it a day before. He had prepaid his entire stay. The Grand Hyatt had promised a refund within 10 days. However, the customer was left battling for a refund of $1,500 even a month after the promised date. This case shows the poor service design in terms of the refund procedure.

Another service design failure we noticed was in the case of advancing the reservation. A customer had to unfortunately bear the brunt of poor service design when he moved his reservation back by a couple of days. They were told that they would be charged for the room night they weren't going to be using anyway. When the customer returned to the U.K he found that he had been charged twice for the room. Poor service design is also reflected in the physical evidence of the hotel. Some of the reviews suggested inappropriate physical settings at the Grand Hyatt. For example, one customer thought that the pool was pitiful for such a large hotel as it was 4 feet at the deepest point. Sometimes it may even so happen that the equipment of the hotel may be dysfunctional such as jammed locks, broken switches, toilet flushes that dont work, etc. The above cases reveal poor service designs and specification which can ruin the hotels image in the minds of the customers. In fact, some of the customers were so vehement in their reviews that they swore never to stay at the Grand Hyatt because of the trouble they faced. Provider Gap 3: Sometimes it may so happen that the company may convert the customers

expectations into well-designed services along with an appropriate set of standards but may falter when it comes to the actual service delivery. This poor service delivery is largely due to poor employee performance which can be traced back to the HR practices of the company. The hotel industry in particular falls easy victim to such a gap. The employees of a hotel ultimately deliver the service to the customers. No matter how well designed the service may be, the actual delivery solely depends on the employee. We came across numerous instances of such poor delivery. However it is important to note that instances of poor delivery arise due to the human tendency to err and every such poor delivery will not result in a lost customer unless and until such errors are huge or repetitive. One case of poor delivery was a personal experience. We were at the Celini at night and had ordered soft drinks. The waiter asked us if we would like ice and we said that we would. However, when the drinks were brought to the table, there was no ice. Of course we did bring this to the notice of the waiter who immediately apologized and remedied the situation.

From an analysis of the customer reviews we found that this is the most prevalent gap at the Grand Hyatt due to the inconsistency nature of services. Poor deliveries faced by the customers ranged from not receiving the newspapers on all the days of the stay, slow service at the restaurants, to unsmiling staff members. Another personal encounter we had was at Soma. We ordered drinks, soups, starters and the main course. However, the waiter ended up serving all the dishes at the same time without demarcating the meal courses. Also, a personal experience we had of poor delivery was on the telephone with the staff. When we asked them for certain information; they did not know of it and were very abrupt when we prodded a little further. All the instances of poor delivery thus mentioned point to the deficiency of the hotel staff. In order to close this gap it is essential for the Hyatt to improve their HR practices such as imparting a more holistic form of training, putting the employees through simulations, establishing a rewards system, a competitive compensation, recognition, empowerment etc. Provider Gap 4: This gap illustrates the difference between the service delivery and the service providers external communications such as through its advertising, sales force, promotions etc. Promises made by the company tend to escalate the customers expectations which serve as the standard against which they asses service quality. The discrepancy between actual and promised service therefore has an adverse effect on the customer gap. Many hotels tend to over-promise through glorified website declarations of their services, or through flowery brochures, or highly biased intermediaries. For example, the restaurants at many hotels tend to glam up the menu with inclusions of exotic seasonal food. However, such items will obviously not be available all the year around. Therefore, customers, who may want to have a particular dish, will have to be told that the dish cannot be made. This is a classic example of over-promise made by many restaurants. However, at the Grand Hyatt, it is a personal view that all the facilities and services advertised and promised are available at the hotel. In fact, we combed their website and populated a list of all the

amenities and services they advertise, and cross checked their validity during our personal visits to the Grand Hyatt. Thus we can safely say that at the Grand Hyatt, performance is matched aptly to the promises made. Customers rarely have complaints of feeling short-changed or taken for a ride. Moreover, considering the brand name and repute that the Hyatt hotels have all over the world, it becomes even more essential for them to deliver all that they promise and continue to strive for excellence. The main aim of the GAPS model of service quality is to try to close the customer gap. The key to close this customer gap is to close the provider gaps. To the extent that one or more provider gaps exist, customers perceive service quality shortfalls. This model thus serves as a framework for service providers to manage and improve service quality.

Flower of Services
The total scope of a customers service experience consists of a core product or benefit along with various supplementary services accompanying it. The supplementary services can be of various types depending on the industry however their purpose is to add value to the core benefit. This value addition on the organizations part gives them a competitive advantage and acts as the differentiating factor for the firms services. These supplementary services augment the core and act as either enhancers or facilitators to the firms main benefit. Along with bringing about value addition for the customer, the extent of the supplementary services is also considered by the company while pricing their product, training employees and promoting their core product. Potentially there can be dozens of supplementary services that a firm can offer along with its core product however there are certain services which are usually common to all industries. These common services are organized into eight clusters which is visually represented by the petals surrounding the centre of a flower. This representation is called the Flower of Services. It is understood that in a well maintained organization, all the eight petals are well formed i.e. they provide all the services represented by the petals and maintain high service quality while in a poorly maintained organization some of the petals may be missing or deformed. In such a case, the overall impression of the organizations services is affected and hence they must take measures to improve the quality of their unsatisfactory services. It is not necessary that every organization must have all eight petals formed and this is subject to the nature of the product being offered. In the hotel industry, which is a people-processing service involving high contact with the external customers it becomes imperative for all the supplementary services to be offered. Specifically speaking of the Grand Hyatt, the customers perceived image of the hotel causes them to expect a high level of services to be offered. The hotel needs to add value to their core product to justify the prices they ask for and to maintain a competitive advantage over its various competitors. Hence we can see that for the Grand Hyatt, the entire flower of services would be represented by all eight petals which are fresh and well-formed.

Information In order to make a service customer friendly, it is imperative that the firm provide relevant information regarding the service to the customers. The customers need to made aware of the distinct services of the hotel industry by giving them information through various available resources. New customers and prospects are especially information hungry while existing customers may have to assisted from time to time by giving them information which is both timely and accurate, as incorrect information to customers may annoy or inconvinience the customers. Also the information provided should be systematic and easy to understand by the customer otherwise he may misinterpret it which may result in problems. The customers expectations of the hotel services are also largely dependant on the information provided to them and they make their decisions regarding the use of a particular service based on it. In some cases it is vital on the hotels part to disemminate information as it may be required by law, it may simplify the service experience for the customer or in order to market the service and create awareness regarding the hotel benefits offered. Some of the information elements which a hotel may provide are as follows: Services Offered: This is the basic product information which is provided regarding the restaurants, types of rooms and additonal facilities available. Directions to Service Site: Such directions usually consist of information on road, rail and air connectivity. They mention their relative position and distances from various important points in the city and provide road maps for the benefit of the guests. Schedules and Service Hours: This consists of information on restaurant timings, booking schedules, check-out and check-in timings, spa appointments, club timings etc. Prices: This is vital information which has to be provided to the guests. This includes the price breakup, taxes charged, additional charges included as well as a mention on the amenities which are inclusive of the price paid so that the customer is rightly informed of everything that he is paying for.

Instructions on product usage: Such information may be out of concern for the guests and they are provided with instructions on usage of gym equipment, electronics in the room such as telephones and televisions, rules regarding the use of the pool and the use of safety equipment. This information may also contain warnings regarding the use of certain equipment. Reminders: Reminders are sent to the customers regarding any appointments they may have set up at the hotel beauty salon and spa, any travel arrangements they may have booked in advance and wake up calls are also given to their guests. Notification and Documentation: This consists of the notification of hotel reservations provided to the guests and they must be informed of any changes in the same. Hotel documentation also consists of receipts provided, reservation confirmations sent and summaries of all the hotel amenities used. The various modes in which the Grand Hyatt provides information to the guests is as follows: Website: Grand Hyatt has its own official websites known as www.grandhyattmumbai.com and www.mumbai.grand.hyatt.com All the necessary information regardintg the Hyatt hotel chain is available on this website. Customers can gain information on the hotels various rooms and their descriptions, restaurants and cuisines offered, amenities provided, price structures as well as view photographs of the hotel or take a virtual tour of the hotel online. Customers can also get an insight into the company's overview, profile, history, achievements, specialities and other FAQs. They can also post their views and complaints regarding hyatt on this website which will help the company to modify and improve their services in order to serve their customers better. The website should be updated regularly to include the latest offers, promotions and packages available. The information should be detailed and attractively presented so as to make sure that the visitor visits again. Advertisements and Direct Mail: The hotel comes out with advertisements giving out information regarding their restaurants, promotional packages and other special events. This is to informative in nature and is used often to draw new customers to the hotel and update existing users about the hotels few features. Direct mail may also be sent for this purpose to their existing customer base or to potential users from the target market.

Brochures: The hotel brochures and other printed material consists of information on the hotel and its amenities. These are provided to all the customers visit their service factory and they are also made available by mail when requested. These brochures are made available at accessible locations such as the hotel reception, hotel rooms and other public areas. Such printed material is designed attractively and consists of pictorial representations to ensure maximum recall. Telephone: This is one of the most convienient modes of providing information. The front desk provides the customers with any information they require or they may transfer the calls to the relevant information providers. The operators at the Grand Hyatt are well informed, usually accurate and they ensure that timely information is provided. Information regarding bookings, amenities, prices and service hours are commonly provided on the telephone. This information via the telephone is available to in-house guests as well as external customers. Agents: The Grand Hyatt also makes sure that its various agents who undertake reservations on the hotels behalf are provided with accurate information which they may pass on to the customers. Such agents include tour operatiors, travel agents and online reservation providers. Various innovative methods of providing information to the guests on the hotel premises are via various directories made available in the rooms these give information regarding schedules and timings, use of products and equipments and hotel facilites. The hotel television also airs a channel created especially for the hotel which constantly gives the guests information regarding the hotel and its services. Help numbers and contact persons are also mentioned. The room phones directly connect to information desks located in the hotel lobby and on each floor where the customer will be provided with information. Hotel menus also provide the customers with information regarding the food and beverages available and in a way is an information provider. There are informative signs placed in the hotel giving directions and instructions.

Order Taking Hotels need to maintain efficient order-taking procedures which are quick, accurate and simple. The idea is to simplify the process for the customer so that minimum effort is taken on his part. Today hotel order-taking makes use of technology and hence time and effort is minimized for both the customer and the hotel employees. In case of the hotel industry, their are various kinds of order taking which come into play. This includes restaurant order-taking, hotel reservations and order taking at the various other hotel facilities. Order taking procedures at the restaurants or other facilities is relatively simple as the customers can place the order only when they are on the service site. The guest looks at the menu card or any tariff cards available and places his order with the employee. The employee then provides the service (food, treatment, gymnasium booking) by recording the order and fulfilling the same. Based on the order placed , the billing is then done and presented to the guest. Such orders can be placed in the different facilities of the hotel i.e. the different restaurants, gymnasium, parlour etc or even via room service. Food orders can be brought up to the room or bookings for appointments can be made over the phone by connecting to the concerned department. The reservations process, however is more elaborare. This requires the customers to provide certain documents on reservation and such reservations may have to be made in advance. The various ways in which hotels take reservation orders are as follows: Website: The hotel has put in place an online reservation system wherein the guests can visit the hotel website and reserve their rooms. They are first asked for information on the dates of their stay, the number of adults and children and the number of rooms after which they can check the availability of rooms on those dates. Also the rates for the different kinds of rooms available during that period will be shown. Once the guest can see which rooms are available and the total cost he will incurr during his stay, he can choose the type of room he wished to book. On making this choice, he will then be directed to a page wherein he must provide his room preferences, airline information, personal details and credit card information. After this the guest can confirm his reservation and a reservation notification will be emailed to the guest which he may print out and keep for reference.

Telephone: Guests can also reserve hotel rooms over the phone, by calling up the hotel and providing their details. These details are stored in the computers database and the customer must only undergo the check-in procedure on arrival at the hotel. Agents: When booking via agents the hotel is not directly involved in the order taking prcess. The agent completes the formalities and sends an intimation to the hotel. The confirmation of reservation is provided to the guests via the agent itself and this confirmation letter can be carried by them to the hotel which can be checked on arrival. Hotel Reception: Most of the reservations process takes place at the hotel reception when the guest enters the hotel premises. The entire order-taking process from checking the availability of rooms to booking it is conducted for a Walk In customer i.e. a guest who does not have a prior reservation. If a guest has made a prior reservation, he must still check in at the reception, complete the formalities and provide his personal information before receiving the room key. The Grand Hyatt has made it very simple for their guests to check into the hotel. All their information is taken while reserving the rooms and when the guests check into the hotel, their information is verified and the room keys are given to the guests. This entire process takes less then 3 minutes and it is performed efficiently and accurately. From our personal experience we saw that, the receptionist at the front desk was approached by a foreigner who had landed from abroad to check into the hotel at 1:00 am. She was extremely polite, efficient and competent as she completed the entire check in process in less than three minutes. She requested the guest for his passport, credit card and business card and verified his details on her database. Finding everything in place she handed over his room keys to him after making him sign on a pre-filled form. He did not have to manually fill out any forms. The guest then asked her if she could arrange a drop off, to go the airport, for him the next day. She directed him towards the travel conciearge while making arrangements for a bell boy to take the guests luggage up to the room. In general the reservation and check in process requires certain documents to be filled, which is done by the hotel employees and are verified when the guest arrives to reduce the delivery time. Assuming that a guest calls the hotel and asks for a reservation, the following key steps will be taken by the hotel:

Room Reservation: This works with the background of a Density Chart. A density chart displays the room availability on a calendar. Based on the room position and availability, a reservation is made for the said dates. The most important information to be taken on this form is the arrival sate & time, departure date & time, the type of room & no. of rooms and the guest name & address. This information is used to update the Density Chart to give latest info about the room availability. The rest of the information becomes important at the time of guest check-in for proper charging of room rent etc. A reservation is either confirmed or provisionally taken in case rooms are not available. The same is informed by a letter if sufficient time is available, otherwise by e-mail or over phone or by telefax.

Check In Verification: This is a contractual agreement binding the guest to comply with the terms and conditions mentioned therein. Every guest has to sign this after reading the information mentioned in it. The date & time of arrival and departure; no. of persons, type of room, plan, rate, address, nationality are the most important information that has to be filled and signed by the guest.

In the

case guest

happens to be a foreign national then it is imperitive that he fill out the C form, a copy of which is normally sent to the police station. The information has to be noted from the Passport of the guest.

Billing

At the end of the stay, all guests have to check out of their rooms and settle their accounts with the hotel. For individual clients, this will normally entail asking reception or cashiers (in larger properties) for their final account or bill. In commercial properties, many firms have special accounts with the hotel and the guest merely has to check the particulars of the bill and sign the document. Payment is then handled directly between the firm and hotels accounts department. The summation of the daily totals of bills paid and accounts settled becomes the hotels daily banking summary, the sales turnover attributable to a particular days business. The bills provided must be accurate, legible and complete. Each and every transaction which is charged must be clearly mentioned with the corresponding price. Since hotels use technology to generate bills, all the bills are computerized and the hotel maintains a copy while providing the guest with a copy for reference. It is important that the bills are generated in a timely manner as it is dissatisfying for a guest to wait for his bill and it must be systematically presented in a pre-determined format. The taxes levied must also be mentioned properly so the customer knows the amount that he is paying over is usage. Generally hotels have individual bills and master bills. Individual bills are bills of different sections of the hotel that the customer has used, be it the restaurant, coffee shop, spa, bar, etc. These bills may be paid on the spot or added to the room acocunt. In such a case the master bill which is the summation of all these individual bills will consist of these charges along with the room charges. It is this bill that is submitted to the cutomer at the time of checkout. The general format of a hotel bill is:

Payment

In order to make the payment process easy for customers the Grand Hyatt accepts various modes of payments. This facilitates convenient payment and can take place in the following ways: Credit and Debit card: These cards can be used to pay hotel bills at the hotel desk as well as to make bookings with agents and via the internet. Hyatt provides only the credit card option when it comes to online booking. Cash: Cash is accepted only at the hotel desk. Bookings through agents cannot be done by paying in cash. Foreign Currency: As hyatt serves a lot of international customers payments through foreign currency as an option is also provided. This option is very useful for international customers as they do not need to convert their money before paying the hotel bill. Hyatt also provides an guests with the option of paying through travellers checks. All the above modes of payment are applicable while paying for accomodation or the master bill however if the guests pay for individual bills at the restaurants, shops or other recreational facilities then only the option of credit and debit card or cash payments applicable. Consultation The basic difference between information and consultancy is that, information is a unidirectional method of communication from the service provider to the customer whereas in consultancy, a detailed discussion about the product is possible. Under consultancy the customer extracts only the information which can be used by him, so the content of information provided under consultancy differs from customer to customer. All the sources via which direct communication between the service provider and the customer is possible, consultancy can take place. The various ways in which the user can consult with the service provider are as follows: Hotel employees: This is the most important and the most used option for service consultancy. The customer is inside the service factory and hence here he can physically check out the hotel premises and ask all sorts of questions to the service providers before buying the service. Various options can be

provided to the customer at this stage according to his needs and the customer can choose the best one with the help of the hotel officials. At the Hyatt all the employees are trained and empowered enough to be able to entertain any queries the customers may have and if the query is beyond of the scope of their work they must refer the customer to the appropriate person. Examples of consultation at the Grand Hyatt may be consultation regarding which spa treatment may be the most beneficial for a person, how to use different equipments at the gymnasium, what items on the menu are considered to be good or what kinds of tourist places one can visit in the city and how to reach there. Telephone: Here the customer can gain that information which he is unable to find in the broucheres or on the website. This is an excellent consultancy option as the customer does not have to physically visit the hotel premises to receive the information. Usually the staff at the front desk who handle the telephones are competent enough to answer all general regarding the hotel. They are well informed and usually there is no need for them to transfer the line to someone else. However in the event that the question is regarding something they do not have information about they transfer the calls to the concerned person who will then carry on the consultation. Agents: Agents can also act as a consultancy source for hotels. This may include agents that the hotel has appointed or other private operating agents. Agents are very useful as they are situated in many different places and they act as hotel desks not located inside the hotel but located in an area which is reachable by the customer. Private agents provide both good and bad reviews and information about the hotel so in this case the consultation may or may not work in favour of the hotel. However problems may occur if the agent is not well informed and if he passed on wrong information to the customer which may deter him from visiting the hotel or may create a negetive impression of the hotel in the mind of the customer. Internet: If the customer sends his queries across through the internet and the customer and hotel representative engage in a dialouge via email correspondance then such sort of a discussion can also be termed as consultancy.

During our visit to the Grand Hyatt we tried to test some of the employees by asking them questions regarding various aspects of the hotel and most of the employees seemed to know the answers to the questions. We went upto the travel concierge and told him that his website was not working (even though it was working well) and that we were going through it to try and make a booking and he resonded by telling us that it is working perfectly well and he gave us the exact links of the hotel website including an alternate link to the website. In another instance we asked a waiter at the restaurant Celeni about the modes of payment that the hotel accepts and he informed us that the restaurants accept only cash in Indian rupees or card payments however the reception also accepts travellers cheques and foreign currency. However in another instance the hotel receptionist failed to give us correct information the instant we asked her. On asking her where we would be served coffee she pointed towards the coffee shop (which was closed as it shuts at 1:00 am) and when we told her that it is closed, she was not too sure about if we would be served coffee elsewhere and hence she went to the actual coffee shop to confirm and then came back and directed us towards Celini which converted into a coffee shop most mid-night. Hospitality Although hospitality is a supplementary service, for the hotel industry it becomes part of the core product. The very essense of the hotel industry is hospitality. Since in a hotel the customers are physically present through out the entire service delivery, a hospitable envrionment must be created to make them feel comfortable. The hospitality aspect also largely depends on the hotel employees. A hotel may have the best possible equipment and amenities however the warmth and consideration the hotel provides to its customers by treating them like guests is possible only through their employees. Hence to serve this purpose all the Hyatt employees are trained to treat the guests politely, with consideration, and courtesy. Although examples of the hotel extending its hospitality can be seen throughout the hotel some examples are: The hotel gives its guests a complimentary welcome drink when they come to check in to the

the hotel.

Guests are provided with pick-up and drop off services to and from the airport when they

arrive into the city. They are sent luxury cars to the airport which also carry refreshments for the guests drive back to the hotel. They provide the guests with morning newspapers, complimentary bottled water and fruit, There are waiting areas in the lobby, restrooms in the public areas of the hotel amd employees Every employee starting with the security personnel will always come forward to greet the complimenatary toiletries and so on. at every twenty steps to offer assitance. guests with a cheerful greeting and offer to direct or escort the guests to the direction they are headed. Safe Keeping Safe keeping is an attribute that customers expect from service sites. It is the companys assurance to the customer that their personal possessions will be kept in a safe manner. In the hotel industry since the guest enters the hotel with a large number of personal belongings this petal becomes important for the hotel to maintain satisfactory service quality. Safe keeping is a responsibility for the hotel and hence security is an issue of concern for hotels. Some of the safe-keeping attributes of the Grand Hyatt are: Child Care: The Grand Hyatt provides babysitting services for the children of their guests and hence they must ensure that the childrens safety is maintained while they are left in the hotels care. Parking: Since the hotel has valet parking, they must ensure that when they park the cars and keep them in the parking lots, the cars must be kept safe so that they are not stolen or damaged. If the car keys are left with the hotel employees they must also be kept safely by the staff. Luggage-Handling: It is the hotel bell boys duty to take the luggage upto the guest rooms. He must take care that while handling the luggage nothing is accidently lost, stolen or damaged. Storage Space: Every hotel room provides guests with storage space in the form of cupboards and drawers. The hotel must assure the customer that in their absence no one will open the storage areas and tamper with the guests personal belongings. This should be kept in mind especially since the house

keeping staff enters the room usually when the guests are not in the room and they tend to have a master key to the rooms. Safety Vaults: At the Hyatt every room is provided with a safety vault in which the guest can keep any valuable possessions of his. He can lock the vault with his own unique password combination and hence in this way only he can open the box. In this way hotels provide guests with a safe place to store their valuables. Luggage Deposit: There are cases when a guest may have to check out of his room but his flight may not leave until much later. In such a case if the guest is without a room he may leave his luggage with the employees at the reception desk who must keep it safely until it is handed over to the guest. Security Personnel: Security personnel are stationed at the Hyatt to ensure that all the customers and their belongings are as safe as possible. Door Locks: The rooms at the Hyatt have electronic locks and thus can be opened by access cards which make use of the magnetic swipe card technology. The doors and locks are sturdy and it shows that the hotel has taken maximum preventive measures to ensure that the guests belongings remain as safe as possible. Package Delivery: Guests may receive packages or mail at the hotel desk and it is imperitive that the hotel keep these packages safe until they can hand it over to the guests. Exceptions Although hotels have routine procedures and practices that they follow, sometimes they come across the situation wherein they may have to deviate from the routine to accomodate their guests and adhere to any special requests they make. In such cases, the deviations they make are known as exceptions. It also reflects the hotels flexibility and ability to deal with out of the ordinary circumstances. The employees at the Grand Hyatt are empowered enough to make certain exceptions on their own however for requests which are beyond their span of control they must consult a superior who can make the decision. Sometimes the hotel anticipates certain demands that the guests makes in advance and

hence contingency plans are set in place and the employees are informed of the same so that they can follow the guidelines and deliver prompt service. Some examples of exceptions made at the Grand Hyatt are: Special rooms are designed for those who are physically handicapped to facilitate their easy

movement. If a guest asks for certain food items to be prepared in a particular way the chefs usually oblige

them or even prepare things that are not on the menu if it is possible. If a guest arrives at the hotel before the check in time of 2:00 p.m. and if the room is available

then an exception is made and the guest is allowed to access the room earlier. dogs. The hotel has a no pets allowed policy however they tend to make exceptions for Seeing Eye

Service Recovery and Complaint Handling

Simply put, service recovery is putting a smile on a customers face after having made a mistake. Its solving a customers problem or complaint and sending him out the door feeling as if hes just done business with the greatest company on earth. It is bringing a customer back from the brink of defection. Service recovery is the step that should follow a mistake. A company must apologize, take responsibility for the error or the inconvenience, and give the customer something of value as compensation, something that says, We value you as a customer and want you to continue to do business with us. What product or service can a company give that will cost little or nothing but that has value in the eyes of the customers? A hotel can upgrade a disgruntled guest to a suite or in a worst case scenario offer a complimentary nights stay in the hotel. A restaurant can give offer a complimentary meal for two, or an appetizer or desert! While advertising is aimed at the masses; service recovery is aimed at the individual. Put another way, advertising will bring a customer to a companys doorsteponce. It is the customer experience that will keeping bringing him back. That experience must include service recovery. Why? Because every companyno matter how excellent their products or employeesoccasionally makes a mistake. A company that claims to have never made a mistake in serving a customer is a company that is in sheer denial. When a company effectively practices service recovery, it creates a customer who will be so satisfied that he/she will tell anyone who will listen about the wonderful service the company provided him/her. Nothing is as powerful as a personal recommendation from a satisfied customer. Service recovery solving a customers problem and sending him away singing praisescreates word-of-mouth advertising that is 10 times more powerful than advertisingand 20 times cheaper. With service recovery, a company can turn an angry customer, who will bad mouth the company to everyone and anyone who will listen, into a loyal customer who will spread the word about the wonderful service and who will return to the company time and time again.

An essential prerequisite for service recovery is to hire good people and treat them well; investing time and money to train and coach them in the art of customer service, since after all it is these employees who will interact with the customer directly. They empower their employees, giving them the authority to bend and break the rules, to use their common sense, to take care of the customer. Such companies understand that empowerment is the backbone of service recovery. Employees must have the authority to do whatever it takes, on the spot, to take care of a customer to that customers satisfactionnot to the satisfaction of the company. Most executives believe their employees are empowered. And most employees would agreeas long as they follow the policies and procedures set forth by the company. What this means is that there really is no empowerment. Empowerment is a difficult concept for many bureaucrats to introduce. They would much rather institute policies and procedures that eliminate the need for employees to make decisions about how to serve the customer. What they dont realize is that those policies and procedures prevent employees from doing their jobs well and providing the type of service that will keep customers coming back to do business with the company. At The Grand Hyatt The Grand Hyatt understands that it is more cost-effective to regain the trust of an unsatisfied customer than to spend on advertising looking for new ones. They now train their employees to implement service recovery. Each employee has to undergo a training program to handle the complaints of the customers. They are taught how to apologize, show empathy and do what they can to fix the problem. The Grand Hyatt has a system in place as regards to how to handle a disgruntled guest. For the convenience and quick recall for the employees this system has been contracted into a term called LEARN. L LISTEN E EMPATHISE A APOLOGISE R REACT

N NOTIFY One of the most important service recovery strategies is that employees at the hotel welcome and encourage complaints. Many a time, one comes across employees who are stiff necked about receiving complaints, however at the Grand Hyatt, employees are taught to receive complaints with equal cheer and see such complaints as modes of improvement. It is for this reason that they have their own service recovery mechanism in place termed as LEARN. This term denotes that it is very essential for the employees to LISTEN patiently to the guests requests as well as their complaints. In case the guest is rude or abusive it still remains the duty of the employee to listen to their complaints. As per the protocol the next step the employee should take is to EMPATHISE with the guests. This means that the employee should put himself/herself in the guests shoes and exhibit compassion. The next logical step would be to APOLOGISE. Irrespective of whether the fault lies in the service provider or not, it is imperative that the employee apologizes to the guest. Depending on the level of empowerment, the employee must REACT appropriately so as to immediately redress the issue and regain customer faith. Customers who complain want quick responses. Thus the hotel must be equipped to act quickly. Every such complaint or service failure that occurs should be NOTIFIED to a superior not only in the instance of the issue falling out of the Span of Control of the particular employee but also so as to maintain a record of such service failures. All the Hyatts across the world operate on a Single Image Inventory System wherein all the customers likes and dislikes and preferences are documented for access to all the Hyatt hotels across the Globe. Such records can be used as points of reference by the service provider so as to eliminate the possibility of a recurrence. Thus in effect, the Grand Hyatt successfully learns from its recovery experiences and from lost customers through documentation. It is evident from the aforementioned system that due importance is given to recovering discontented guests. They believe it is very essential to handle the complaints and win back the guests, because thanks to the prolific options at hand, today's hotel guests are "far more demanding and far less loyal"

than those in the past. There's far more competition. If a customer cant get what he/she wants in Hotel A, he can walk across the street to Hotel B." For those guests who have already left the hotel dissatisfied, the hotel makes it a point to send an apology mail or letter or call or send flowers to the guests if he is in town. They have also established portals where customers can log onto their website and post their comments about their experience at the hotel. This becomes crucial in showing guests that the Hyatt welcomes complaints, simply because the complaining procedure is simplified using technology.

At

the

Grand Hyatt there have been several instances of service failures varying in intensity, and the subsequent service recoveries. There was a case of a guest having ordered a cup of coffee only to receive a lukewarm cup. This obviously qualified as a service failure since a cup of coffee is expected to be served piping hot. When the guest brought this failure to the notice of the waiter, he listened to the complaint, apologized for the negligence and being empowered as he was, he quickly replaced the coffee and even made it complementary. Thus can be noticed the level of empowerment given to the employee and the need he felt to give a complimentary coffee to the guest. Now obviously, the waiter present at that time would be the best judge of the intensity of the situation and the level of

discontentment of the guest. So, it is essential to give that amount of empowerment to the waiter so that he can decide for himself. Also, what can be noticed here is that the compensation delivered matched the level of dissatisfaction of the guest. He was dissatisfied with the coffee and so the waiter compensated him with another coffee rather than overcompensating him (which may have insulted him) or undercompensating him (which may have infuriated him further). So the treatment received by the guest was of outcome fairness. Another service failure that occurred was when a business executive was working on a presentation that he had to make at lunch to his colleagues. A waiter happened to spill watermelon juice on his laptop and his business suit too. Since the damage done was beyond the span of control of the waiter he immediately apologized and reported the matter to the Assistant Director who apologized once again and then lead the guest to a hotel room. He then sent his business suit for express laundry, gave him a choice of alternative suits to chose from and then allowed him to use the room to freshen up for his impending meeting. The room was given to him complimentary for the whole day. Moreover, since he had made a reservation for a lunch meeting, his reservation was extended and his lunch meeting was made complimentary. As for his laptop, the Asst. Director sent it to the Internal Information Systems personnel who on surveying the damage, realized that nothing could be done for the laptop. However, the guest was not so perturbed by the laptop since it was his companys property. Also since he was satisfied with the way the hotel had handled the issue, he did not feel the need to kick up a fuss regarding the laptop which was easily replaceable for him. Although this particular service recovery came at a cost to the hotel, it turned out to be beneficial at the end. The guest in question was a head honcho of a large corporate and since he was impressed by the service recovery strategy he decided to establish a long term business partnership with the Grand Hyatt and contracted a corporate booking with the Hyatt for 500 room nights on a half yearly basis. Here again can be seen the deftness with which the entire situation was handled. Within minutes the guest was escorted to a room and the situation was remedied to his satisfaction. Also, the outcome was fair to the guest considering the level of damage that was done. Interactive fairness was also present as the guest was treated politely and with genuine care and empathy. Another case in point is of a group of students who were at the restaurant at the Hyatt celebrating a friends birthday. Prior to the reservation, one of the guests had given a cake to the waiter and clearly

instructed him to bring it lit to the table at the end of the meal. Meanwhile, the service was very slow. He table had ordered a naan, but it was brought too well done, so they told the waiter to replace it. However, even the replaced naan was just as bad! The meal on the whole was below standard the service was very slow. To top it off, at the end of the meal, instead of bringing the cake as instructed, the waiter brought the cake in the box as was given to him initially. The waiter also did not serve the desert plates to each guest but instead stacked all of them at the end of the table. The guests had to pass the plates down the table. Such shoddy service disappointed the guests and dampened the celebration as well. The customer was a voicer and did not take the matter lying down. Instead she went home and placed a call to the restaurant and asked to be put through to the in-charge of the restaurant. She was then put through to the manager who heard her out and was infinitely polite as well as apologetic. He requested her to visit the restaurant again and even gave her his personal number and asked her to contact him whenever she re-visited the restaurant so that he could personally attend to her. Not only did he stop at that but he went a step further. In an attempt to make up for the spoilt birthday , the next day the manager sent across two large birthday cakes and two bouquets in the name of the birthday girl as well as the complainant. Needless to say, the complainant was delighted with the special effort. The Hyatt thus succeeded in winning back the customer. What can be seen here is the apt fairness with which the complaint was handled. The customer received outcome fairness not only through an apology but a token of appreciation for having brought the issue to notice. Also, the customer received procedural fairness since the procedure for lodging the complaint was as easy as a simple phone call. Lastly, the customer also received interactive fairness as the manager was very polite and expressed a heart felt apology. Although the general approach towards service recovery seems to point toward a 100% recovery of displeased guests; that is a best-case scenario. Such a 100% recovery largely depends on the nature and intensity of the service failure, the type of complainers (passive, voicer, irate, activist) and the extent of the compensation. The following case represents an irrational guest and the consequent inadequate service recovery. A guest at the Hyatt Plaza complained to the staff that the air conditioner was not functioning, so they immediately repaired it. However, being the Activist complainer that she was, she was not satisfied

with that and went ahead and placed a call to the manager and complained to him about the airconditioning. The manager then apologized to her and promised her that he would personally take care of her on her next visit. She was not sated with a mere apology. Around this time was when the Grand Hyatts famous China House was launched. At that time China House, was going with packed houses at night and was open to only the celebrities and the crme de la crme of Mumbai. This customer however demanded a dinner for two at China House. The manager knowing that the demand was unreasonable apologized to her and offered instead a complimentary lunch. She refused to accept the lunch and cantered on for a dinner. The manger did not have an option but to accede to her demands, but offered the dinner at a later date when China House would be open to reservations. That also did not satisfy her and she later called the manager to ask for passes to an event that was being conducted at the Grand Hyatt. In fact, at the time we interviewed the Director, we were told that they have had this on & off demanding affair with her for the past 4 months. What can be noticed from this case is that a service recovery becomes a very fragile and sensitive issue when the complainer is either of the irate or activist variety. Although the persons in charge were quick to apologize and redress the issue, the customer felt short-changed and kept harassing the manager for a higher degree of compensation with every phone call. In such a case all the hotel can do is apologize to the customer and provide her with a service recovery fairness in terms of outcome, procedure as well as interaction. However, if the customer is insatiable and is far too demanding; the Hotel has little else it can do but to forego that customer.

Service Guarantee
A service guarantee is a particular type of service recovery tool. It is an assurance of the quality of or length of use to be expected from the services offered often with a promise of reimbursement. Considering that services are intangible in nature, it was earlier considered not essential for services. However, today that perception has changed today and service providers are largely opting for service guaranteeing. Service Guarantee At The Grand Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee- Hyatt offers its Best Rate Guarantee when customers book on

Hyatt.com. With no booking fees, they can book any Hyatt brand and get the best rate available anywhere online. They guarantee that if the customer finds a lower, published rate on another site, they will not only match it, but also discount it by 20% for the entire stay. Hyatt's Reservation Guarantee- When booked on Hyatt.com and prepaid with a

credit card, Hyatt will have a room reserved for the customer upon arrival. If incase, there is no room available the Grand Hyatt will provide the customer, at no cost to the customer: A free night at a comparable hotel Free transportation to and from that hotel One free telephone call home to advise your family where you can be reached. Guarantee of reservation bed type preference- This benefit is

reserved for Hyatt Gold Passport Platinum and Diamond members only and is available at Hyatt Hotels & Resorts worldwide. They will be guaranteed the bed type (i.e. king, queen, double etc.) for the room type selected at the time of reservation. If the hotel is unable to honor the bed type at check-in, members will receive 5,000 Hyatt Gold Passport bonus points and their room will be changed the next day for the requested bed type. Guarantee of reservation of non-smoking room preference

This guarantee is offered to all guests of Hyatt Hotels & Resorts worldwide. The non-smoking guarantee is based on availability at time of reservation. If a guest requests a non-smoking room at time of reservation and a hotel is unable to honor the request at time of check-in, the guests will be

offered their choice of either 5000 Hyatt Gold Passport bonus points or USD$50 food and beverage credit.

Benchmarking
Benchmarking is a process used in strategic management in which organizations evaluate various aspects of their processes in relation to best practices usually within their own sector. This then allows organizations to develop plans on how to adopt such best practice, usually with the aim of increasing some aspect of performance. Benchmarking may be a one-off event, but it is often treated as a continuous process in which organizations continually seek to challenge their practices. Benchmarking opens organizations to new methods, ideas and tools to improve their effectiveness. It helps crack through resistance to change by demonstrating other methods than the one currently employed and demonstrating that they work, because they are being used by others. Since the Grand Hyatt did not reveal any of their benchmarking practices, we are enumerating below some of the best practices employed by world-class hotels across the world which we think the Hyatt would benefit from if they used them. Service Recovery at the Ritz Carlton- the Ritz Carlton welcomes and encourage complaints like

no other hotel in the industry. At the Ritz Carlton hotels, all employees carry service recovery forms called instant actions forms with them at all times so that they can immediately record service failures and actions to address them. Each employee owns the complaint that he /she receives and is responsible for seeing that service recovery occurs. Also, every employee is given an allowance of around $2000 to solve customer complaints and recover the service. Although this amount of money is rarely needed, knowing that they have it encourages employees to be responsive without any fear of retribution. Satisfaction Guarantee at Hampton Inn- Although the Grand Hyatt does have certain

guarantee programs in place, they are very preference-oriented. For example, their guarantee on preference of bed type etc. However, the Hampton Inn has a very admirable service guarantee program called the Satisfaction Guarantee wherein they guarantee quality accommodations,

friendly and efficient service and clean comfortable surroundings. Their program stipulates that the customer need not pay if he is not completely satisfied. Fingerprint recognition to replace magnetic keys- The magnetic hotel room key, one of the lodging industry's most popular but controversial creations, is losing some of its attraction. 83 percent of hotels have electronic locks, and a majority of these use magnet swipe-card technology. They are cheap - plastic keys cost about Rs.10 each. They are also a snap to use - just swipe the card through the reader and you are in your room. And they are without question more efficient than the old-fashioned, easy-to-lose metal keys. But they also have a bad reputation among some business travelers. For several years, rumors have circulated on the Internet about privacy concerns with magnetic cards since they contain credit card information. This is causing a lot of concern to the travelers and therefore we suggest that The Hyatt , follows in the footsteps of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and tries to employ finger print recognition systems which are safer from all points of view.