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Management Research Methods

(MBA010L100Y)

Dr. Lynn Lim

Assignment 2: Research Proposal

“Barriers to Career Progression for Female Managers in The Indian

Hospitality Industry”

Vaidehi Dandge

Student Id: DAN09295656

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Introduction and Context

According to Barrows (1999), Hospitality includes any and all business and devices which

primarily serve people outside of private room. “Hospitality includes food, lodging, recreation

and travel related services” (International CHRIE, 2004).Hospitality Industry is the world’s

largest employer (Reigel, 1998).

Broadly speaking the Leisure and the Hospitality super sectors are divided into two parts:

the arts, entertainment and recreation sector (sector 71)

the accommodation and food service sector (sector 72)

As per the World Travel & Tourism council (2009) it’s been estimated that the total employment

contribution of the sector 72 globally is expected to rise from 8.1%, 235,785,000 jobs or 1 in 12.3

jobs in 2010 to 9.2% of total employment, 303,019,000 jobs, or 1 in every 10.9 jobs by 2020.

(See Fig 1: Appendix D)

With the joined efforts of the Indian government and all the other stake holders including the

hotel owners, resort managers and the employees who work for this sector, Indian Hospitality has

emerged a promising industry all over the world. As per the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness

report (2009) given by the World Economic Forum, Indian Hospitality is ranked 11th in the Asia

Pacific region and 62nd overall. Though the Indian Hospitality has reached world class level, it

still could not create equal employment opportunities for female.

The past few decades has seen a rise in the female employment across the globe: 33% in 1960,

43% in 1980 and 45% in 1990. Female employment analysis by International Labour Office

(ILO, 2004) states that more women have started to work than ever before. In 2003, there was an

increase of 200 million females (40%) in the 2.8 billion workforce globally. A report by ILO

(2004) in 60 different countries says that women account to 20% to 40% of the management

positions. A study by Diaz & Umbriet (1995) shows that women represented 41% of management

jobs in 1995 compared to 19% in 1972. In spite of these figures been doubled from 1972 to 1995,

women are still under presented in management positions.

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Some facts about the female employment in the Indian Hospitality Industry were brought into

picture by the report presented by people 1st (2008).

The report states that:

59% of the workforce employed in Indian hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism is female

Only 6% of the hospitality industry company directors are women, compared to 12%

across other industries (One and All foundation, 2008)

Despite of the large female workforce working in this industry, the number of women

working at senior position is alarmingly low.

Studies by Wood and Kavanaugh (1994) and Clayton (1998) have revealed the under-

presentation of female managers, barriers to career advancement and gender discrimination. The

studies by Brownwell (1995) established the existence of the GLASS CEILING. According to the

U.S. Department of Labor (1991) glass ceiling can be defined as an artificial barrier based on

attitudinal or organisational bias that prevents women from advancing to the management

positions in corporations and organisations.

Though this topic has attracted a lot of studies in the European countries, a very little research

speaks about a similar situation in the Asian countries (Li and Leung, 2001). Similar facts exist in

different industries as well as different countries.

The purposes / objectives of the study are as follows:

To examine the significant factors that facilitate the female career advancement in the

Indian Hospitality Industry

Identify the significant differences between the male and female managerial styles

To examine if existence of the glass ceiling is a major barrier in the career advancement

for the female managers

Describe ways that recruiters can adopt to prepare the female managers for career

advancement

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The proposed research questions can therefore be put as follows:

To examine the significant factors that facilitate the female career advancement in the

Indian Hospitality Industry

o Are there significant gender differences that facilitate women’s career advancement

in the workplace?

o To identify if the Indian hospitality industry is gender biased? If yes, then do such

bias work towards or against the female career development?

o What are the benefits an organisation can reap by providing a cohesive and progress

fostering environment to the female managers?

Identify the significant differences between the male and the female managerial styles

o Is women leadership style completely different from their male counterparts?

o What are the factors which determine an effective and efficient female manager?

To examine if existence of the glass ceiling is a major barrier in the career advancement of

the women managers

o Do the Female Managers in the Indian hospitality industry face similar barriers as

the female managers in the Western countries?

o What are the barriers faced by these female managers during their entry into the

management?

o Are barriers same during the entry level and upward mobility?

Describe ways that recruiters can adopt to prepare the women managers for career

advancement

o What better training can recruiters provide to the female managers for better

leadership positions within their hotel?

o What can the recruiters do to reduce the barriers to female career advancement

within their respective hotels?

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Literature Review

Indian Hospitality is rooted far back in the Indian traditions. Indian Hospitality rests in the saying

“Atithi Devo Bhavah” which means that GUEST IS GOD.

According to report of the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India (2004) the hotel industry in

India has bloomed and blossomed tremendously in the last few years. The hotel and the tourism

industry are interlinked. The substantial increase in the Indian Tourism Industry gave a helping

hand to the Indian Hospitality industry to gear up. The other driving forces which helped the

Industry to boom were the low cost airlines, thriving economy and last but not the least the

increase in the foreign business across India.

Hospitality industry is an industry which requires skilled labours like the chef, sou chef etc. A

career in this industry needs to be well planned. The workforce in this industry needs to have

formal qualification like a degree in Hotel Management if they wish to be promoted in future.

As discussed by Akrivos, Ladkin and Reklitis (2007) workforce needs to have proper career

development plans and strategies. But the studies by Barr (2006), Chon (2005) and Robinson and

Barron (2007) reveals that the hospitality industry overall faces a worldwide shortage of such

trained workers. The hotel industry demands and nurtures a tradition a 24-hour, seven days a

week service to its customers. This attracts service oriented individuals which have structured

career pathways with flexible work environment. This truly attracts talented career orientated

females into the industry.

According to a study by Fernandez (1993), women received more undergraduate degrees that

men: 1989 it was 53% compared to 42% in 1970. Also with the increased number of the female

workforce, more and more female are getting enrolled in to higher education which is a better and

a quicker route to top positions in management. The number of women enrolling into hospitality

and tourism management has also increased.

According to U.S Census Bureau (2005) the percentage of female enrolment into business

management has increased to 9.1% to 50% from 1971 to 2002. An enrolment report by Texas

Tech University Nutrition, Hospitality and Retailing (NHR) Department states that out of the 47

hospitality graduates who enrolled in the 2005, 30 were females. Inspite of these increasing

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numbers of female graduates with all the required managerial qualification, we find very less

female managers in the Hospitality Industry. And if we find any they really have to strive hard to

maintain the same.

As in a family, the workplace is also male dominated. There are several theories related to male

career development. But these theories do not match with a women’s career development

(Schrieber, 1998). A career development model identified by Super (1953) speaks about growth,

exploration, establishment, maintenance and disengagement. But this model does not fit a

women’s career as women keep moving in and out of workplace (Bierema & Opengart, 2002)

due to issues like pregnancy and maternity leaves. According to Bierema (1998) as women are

socially expected to carry family responsibilities and to be caregivers, the theories related to

women career development can be multiple related i.e. able to arrange different work schedules.

Since the number of females choosing a career is the hospitality industry is increasing, there

status in the industry of a great concern. It was revealed by Diaz and Umbriet (1995) that 41% of

the hospitality managers were females. The studies by researchers have revealed a number of

factors that act as barriers to female career advancement. The most important of which are glass

ceiling (Flanders, 1994), gender discrimination and sexual harassment (Wood and Kavanaugh,

1994) and work and family conflicts (Mallon and Cassell, 1999).

Glass Ceiling

GLASS CEILING was a term used by Flanders (1994) to sum up the problems faced by the

working women at all levels who knew their directions to success but were stopped by a

transparent invisible barrier. This barrier is placed in front of them only because they are females.

Different researchers have their own studies about this GLASS CEILING. A research by Shinew

and Arnold (1998) about the gender inequality in leisure service agencies concluded that the

female mid managers were given very less opportunities to move up in the management

hierarchy.

Schwartz (cited in Bily and Manoochehri, 1995) illustrated the glass ceiling as a part of the

management pyramid. (See Fig 2: Appendix D).The numbers in the mid of the pyramid represent

the managers in each section of the hotel. The numbers to the right indicate the female managers

working in that section. The base of the pyramid accounts for the entry level managers and this

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section is shared by female’s equally .i.e. 50%. But these numbers drop to 3% when it comes to

represent the senior management positions. Studies by Weber (1998) identified that the main

limitations for female career in the hospitality industry are: old boy’s network, lack of

assertiveness, male bias and stereotyping, family and work conflict, insufficient career planning

and unhelpful bosses.

Chi-Ching (1992) discussed about the OLD BOY’S NETWORK, were in only the men occupy

the senior management position. Female managers cannot socialise in this network beyond work

and create a mentor support for themselves.

The study by Li and Leung (2001) discusses the factors contributing the Glass ceiling effect. The

calculations in their research conclude that these factors are gender stereotyping, sexual

discrimination, network access, work – family conflict, mentor support and family support. The

major percentage of 54.9 is distributed among: work – family conflict, network access and family

support

Gender Discrimination

Studies by Woods and Kavanaugh (1994) revealed that more than 80% of the workforce:

collectively male and female; feel that gender discrimination is an ongoing problem at

workplaces. In a survey conducted by Woods and Kavanaugh (1994) 58% participants were

females. Through the studies it was also revealed that most of the female managers quit the

hospitality industry because of gender discrimination and sexual harassment. Many studies also

reveal the gender- based pay differences. A study by Diaz and Umbreit (1994) identified that an

increased employment of the females in the hospitality industry demonstrates that the industry is

trying to become sex-neutral.

Research Plan and Methodology

There are mainly two methods, by large in practice. They are Quantitative and Qualitative

Research Methods. The mixture of both of these types is called a Mixed approach.

Qualitative Research Method: This method usually emphasis on words rather than quantification

in the collection and analysis of the data. As a research strategy it is inductive, constructionist and

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interpretivist (Bryman & Bell, 2003). The data collection is in the form of in depth interviews,

including participant’s observations, focus groups and semi-structured interviews.

Quantitative Research Method: This method of research is described as entailing the collection

of numerical data and as exhibiting a view of the relationship between the theory and the research

as deductive and having an objective conception of social reality (Bryman & Bell, 2003). The

data collection is in form of structured questionnaire. The questions are designed in such a way

that each answer is given a numerical value and then the data is tabulated as statistics. The

questions are close ended or are multiple choices.

As it would be impractical for me to survey all the staff of the selected hotel in Mumbai because

of the time constraints and budget, I would go ahead with a Mixed Methodology which will have

both qualitative and quantitative analysis. The necessary data would be collected in the form of

structure questionnaire and personal interviews. Probability sampling technique would then be

used. This technique is associated with survey based research. Probability sampling would help

be to decide a proper sample size which would in turn answer the research questions or meet the

research objectives. The important aspect of Probability sampling is that it represents population

as said by Saunders, Lewis and Thornill (2003). Probability sampling can further be divided into

5 main techniques: a) Simple Random, b) Systematic, c) Stratified Random, d) Cluster, e) Multi-

stage.

As this research mainly focuses on the female managers within the Indian Hospitality Industry,

the samples would be mainly divided on the gender bases. Stratified sampling technique thus

divides the sample into sub-sets with common characteristics. So Stratified Random technique

gives representative sampling results. After dividing the samples, survey and interviews will be

conducted within these groups.

The hotel that I have planned to collect the data from is:

Sahara Hospitality Ltd. (Sahara Star), Domestic Airport, Mumbai: Having spoken to

Mr. Rajen Kanitkar, General Manager (HR), Sahara Hospitality Ltd., Mumbai and having been

granted the consent to conduct the survey among the employees (569 on the payroll) and also

personal interviews with atleast 6 managers representing different strata. Survey will be

conducted online through survey monkey (N = 250) whereas the interviews (N =6) would be

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conducted personally and recorded over the phone. The main reason for choosing this hotel is

because it is a part of a very large organisation known as Sahara Group and the staffs which are

presently working were not necessarily selected for the same company. Also the managers that I

intend to interview have come from different work backgrounds and have moved up the ladder of

hierarchy with their own interpersonal skills.

Within the hotel, the possible divisions are as follows:

Hierarchy : Entry Level, Executive/Supervisory Level, Mid

Management, Senior Management

Gender : Male and Female

Major Department : Front Office (Front desk and Housekeeping)

Food and Beverage (Service and Production)

(See Appendix C for Hierarchy in Sahara Star)

The primary data required will be collected in the form of structured interviews and

questionnaires. The structured interviews would be interviewer administered. Although this

research demands collection of primary data, a lot of secondary data in the form of academic

journals will be selected. Few of the academic journal articles are been used for the purpose of

this proposal but a lot many will be used to complete the final dissertation.

The data collected will then be processed through the statistical analysis software, SPSS version

18.0. The variables such as gender discrimination, class of hierarchy, network access, years of

experience, mentor support and work-family conflict will be considered. A linear relationship

between these variables will be elaborated with Co-relation test. The main aim of this test is

check if the strata’s share something in common or if a relationship can be established.

TIME Plan

Gantt chart (See Appendix B) represents the time plan for the research project. It indicates the

time for each activity. The chart commences from February 2011 and ends in May 2011. The

research will start by reading the required literature and finalising the main objectives of this

research. During the entire process a guided feedback will be taken from the assigned supervisor.

The action plan has been distributed across the Gantt chart.

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Resources

To attain successful data collection and completion of this research, I need some resources. The most important

of which is finance. The estimated cost has been tabulated:

Resource Cost

Print out and Binding expenses £50

Telephone Cost £100

Contingency Funds £200

Total £350

As I propose to conduct telephonic interviews, I would just be spending my resources on the

phone calls to India. The estimated cost for the International calls is £100.

Limitations

Every research has limitations but a definite goal to achieve. Although the data collected from

this hotel represents an important step in research among the hotel managers in India, the study is

limited due to sample size and time limit. The research focuses only on the hotel in Mumbai. Also

within Mumbai I intend to collect data from just one 5 star hotel which decreases the sample size

though the Hotel is massive. This would not give me a bigger picture as to what exactly are the

barriers to the Female Progression in the Indian Hospitality Industry.

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Bibliography

Akrivos, C., Ladkin, A. and Reklitis, P. (2007) ‘Hotel Managers’ Career Strategies for Success.’

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 107 - 119

Barrow, C.W and Bosselman, R.H. (1999) Hospitality Management Education. New York: The

Haworth Hospitality Press

Brownnell, J. (1995) ‘Personality and Career Development : A study of Gender Differences.’

Cornell Hotel & Restaurant Administration Quarterly, Vol.25, No. 2, pp. 36 – 43

Bryman, A. and Bell, E. (2003) Business Research Methods. Oxford : Oxford University Press,

pp 68, 279, 480

Bierema, L.L. (1998) Women’s Career Advancement across the Lifespan: Insights and Strategies

for Women, Organisations and Adult Educators. New Directions for Adult and Continuing

Education. San Francisco: Jossey – Bass, pp. 80

Bierema, L.L. and Opengart, R. (2002) Emotions in Women’s Career Development: A merging

of literatures. Paper presented at 2002 AHRD Conference: Women and Career Development,

Honolulu.

Chi-Ching,E.Y. (1992) ‘Perceptions of external barriers and the career success of female

managers in Singapore.’ Journal of Social Psychology, Vol. 132, No. 5, pp. 127 - 142

Clayton, H., Odera, Emenheiser, D. and Reynolds, J. (1998) ‘The relationship of Job Satisfaction

and Family Life: Female Managers in Health Care Foodservice.’ Marriage and Family Review,

Vol. 28, No. 1/2, pp. 167 - 85

Diaz, P.E. and Umbreit, W.T. (1995) ‘Women Leaders: A New Beginning.’ Hospitality Research

Journal, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 47 – 57

Dunlop, J.E. and Velkoff, V.A. (1999) Women of the World – Women and the Economy of India.

[Online] [Accessed on 22nd November 2010] http://www.census.gov/ipc/prod/wid-9802.pdf

Fernandez, J.P. and Barr, M (1993) The Diversity Advantage: How American business can out –

perform Japanese and European companies in the Global Marketplace. NY: Macmillan, Inc.

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Flander,M.L (1994) Breakthrough , Paul Chapman Publishing, London, pp. 1-11

India Brand Equity Foundation (2010) Tourism and Hospitality. [Online] [Accessed on 22nd

November 2010] http://www.ibef.org/industry/tourismhospitality.aspx

International CHRIE (2004) Guide to college programs in Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary. 8th

ed.

International Labour Office(ILO)(2004) More women entering the Global work force than ever

before, but job equality, poverty reduction remain elusive. [Online] [Accessed on 24th November

2010]http://www.ilo.org/global/About_the_ILO/Media_and_public_information/Press_releases/

lang--en/WCMS_005243/index.htm

Kasavana, M.L. and Brooks, R.M. (2001) Managing Front Office Operations, 6th ed., Michigan,

USA: Educational Institute of American Hotel and Lodging Association

Li, L. and Leung. R.W. (2001) ‘Female Managers in Asian Hotels: Profile and Career

Challenges.’ International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol. 13, No. 4, pp

189 – 196

Malon, M. and Cassell, C. (1999) ‘What do women want? The perceived Development needs of

Women Manager.’ The Journal of Management Development, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 137 - 152

Ministry of Tourism, Government of India (2004) ‘Guest is God’ [Online] [Accessed on 24th

November 2010] http://www.incredibleindia.org/newsite/atithidevobhava.htm

Rees,D. (2004) Women in the Boardroom. A bird’s eye view. A change agenda. [Online]

[Accessed on 22nd Novemvber 2010] http://www.cipd.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/5CA22125-06A8-

48AA-8D5D-7A5AAE6F529C/0/3052cawmnbrdrm.pdf

People’s 1st (2008) Women 1st fact sheet. [Online] [Accesses on 22nd November 2010]

http://www.people1st.co.uk/webfiles/Business%20Solutions/Women%201st/

Women_1st_fact_sheet.pdf

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Reigel, C.D. (1998) ‘An Introduction to Career Opportunities in Hospitality and Tourism.’ In A

Guide to College Programs in Hospitality and Tourism, 5th Ed., NY: John Wiley and Sons,

pp. 3 – 13

Saunders, M., Lewis, P. and Thornhill, A. (2003) Research Methods for Business Students, 3rd

ed., England : Pearson Education, pp. 150 - 181

Schwartz, F.N. (1992) Breaking with Tradition: Women and Work; the New facts of Life, Warner

Books, pp. 155

Shinew, K.J. and Arnold, M.L. (1998) ‘Gender equality in leisure services field.’ Journal of

Leisure Research, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 177 - 91

Super, D. (1953) A theory of Vocational Development. American Psychologist, 8th ed., pp.

185 – 190

U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics (2003) Small Business Notes [Online] [Accessed on 27th

November 2010] http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/businesses/leisure.html

Woods, R. and Kavanaugh, R. (1994) ‘Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment as

experienced by Hospitality Managers.’ Cornell Hotel & Restaurant Administration Quarterly,

Vol. 23, No. 2, pp. 16 - 22

World Economic Forum (2009) Travel and Tourism Competiveness Report 2009. [Online]

[Accessed on 22nd November 2010]

http://www.weforum.org/en/initiatives/gcp/TravelandTourismReport/index.htm

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APPENDIX A1

Dear Participants,

I am undertaking a Dissertation as part of my Masters programme at the School of Business and

Social Science at Roehampton University. My project entitles as “Barriers to Carrier Progression

of the Female Managers in the Indian Hospitality Industry”.

The project aims to understand the problems faced by the female managers while progressing in

the management hierarchy by addressing the key issues like glass ceiling, gender discrimination,

work-life balance and leadership styles.

Any information given in the same regards will be kept confidential.

Enclosed with this letter is the short questionnaire to fill out. The completed questionnaire can be

mailed to me at dandgev@roehampton.ac.uk or handed in person.

My success depends upon your co-operation and support.

Thanking you.

Vaidehi Dandge

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(MBA 2009-2010 – University of Roehampton)

APPENDIX A2

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All the responses will be used in strict confidentiality. I appreciate your application and co-

operation.

Please answer all the questions by marking the appropriate box.

1. Male Female

2. Which department of the hotel do you work in?

Front Office Administration

Finance Security

Human Resource House – Keeping

Food & Beverage Production Food & Beverage Service

3. At which level do you work in the hotels hierarchy?

Entry level Supervisory / Executive Level

Mid Management Senior Management

4. When you were last considered for an appraisal? _______________

5. Would you describe the suggestion given to you for your career development during your

appraisal as

Excellent Good Satisfactory Fair Poor

6. Have you ever undertaken any form of equality and diversity training?

Yes No

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Please indicate your level of agreement to the following statements.

Highly

Agree Agree Neutral Disagree

Strongly

Disagree

Females face significant obstacles to career

advancement in the hospitality industry

Female managers treat male and female

employees differently

The representation of women on

departmental committees is fair

Women are encouraged to network with

other men both within and outside the

department

Male employees in the hospitality industry

respond differently to the female managers

than the male managers

Factors contributing career development are

different for male and female managers

Factors that constraint career advancement

are different for male and female managers

Please enter any comments you may want us to know about the gender discrimination practices

within the organisation?

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_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

If there are any issues or concerns not yet dealt with by the organisation please mention them

here:

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Thanks for your participation

APPENDIX D

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Fig 1: Graph representing the employment growth in Hospitality Industry (1994 – 2004)

Fig 2: Management Pyramid

3%

Women

11% Women

26% Women

50% Women

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