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Soft
Skills: Core Competencies in the Hospitality Sector
--
Mary
Ipe
While
the Indian hospitality industry is witnessing a stupendous
growth, it is presently reeling with increased attrition
and manpower crunch. The hotel chains have started hospitality
education, setting up management institutes to cater to
their internal staffing requirements. The hospitality industry
perceives training as the key input to peak performance,
with soft skills as the major competency. Soft skills appear
to be the base for customer service—from recruiting
the right `fit' for the brand and property to providing
service in hotels. The article cites the experiences of
various hotel chains in India and concludes that the traveller
in the future will be tech-savvy and discerning. The challenge
for the industry is to combine hospitality training which
embodies high-tech inputs with a `high-touch' culture.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
Importance
of Soft Skills in IT Industry
-- Anuradha
Verma and Monica Bedi
The
pace of globalization, despite its critics around the world,
has increased rapidly in recent years. This reality raises
increasingly pressing management issues for multinationals
engaged in today's complex and rapidly changing environment.
Various studies and reports point to the gap in the skill
set of an individual vis-à-vis the expectations of
the industry. One of the key areas that are required to
enhance to fill that gap are `soft skills'. `Soft skills'
or `life skills' pertain to the skills required by any individual
related to the various aspects of his personality like communication
skills, time management, self-esteem, team work, leadership,
cross cultural sensitivity, and the like. The problematic
notion of skills and the current emphasis on `soft skills'
and the association with an IT industry-related discourse
concerning employability is discussed in this article.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
Interpersonal
Skills Through Emotional Intelligence: A Psychological Perspective
-- Suvarna
Sen
We
must become the way we visualize ourselves! The million-dollar
question is—how? The answer is a very simple one—by
introspection, by understanding our own selves, and, most
of all, by understanding and interacting with others—and
that is precisely what we refer to when we speak of interpersonal
skills. For rendering a healthy interpersonal relationship
and developing good interpersonal skills, it is essential
to have a well balanced emotional intelligence. It is only
when we experience in ourselves a proper harmony of emotional
intelligence that we can come out with good interpersonal
skills. It is wise, hence, to direct our anger towards problems
not people, to focus our energies on solutions not excuses
because not everything that is faced can be changed, but
nothing can be changed until it is faced. This paper attempts
to delve into aspects of interpersonal skills seen from
both psycho-social and cognitive angles, with a view to
highlight the interaction between emotional intelligence
and interpersonal skills.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
Cultural
Intelligence and Business Behavior
--
Teenna
Sawhney
In
this era of globalization, business negotiations around
the world have become mantras for successful deals. However,
the problem is that business people are sometimes not sure
on how to deal with people from other countries, cultures
or ethnic groups. It is here that the concept of cultural
intelligence comes into picture. In the present global marketplace,
cultural intelligence is an essential requirement of leaders
and managers. Organizations and individuals who understand
strategic value of cultural intelligence are able to effectively
leverage cultural differences for a competitive advantage
in their business. Cultural intelligence can be acquired
through long duration of study, observation and practice.
This article discusses various approaches, which will help
us in understanding the procedures to develop cultural intelligence
and to know as to how cultural differences affect business
behavior.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
Crisis
Management: Real Time Learning
--
Rajan
Mani
A
crisis by definition is something which happens unexpectedly
and thus an event which cannot often be handled by a normal
organizational process. This article relates to a sudden
and tragic incident in an academic institution and the manner
in which the organization addressed the various fall out
issues. The management learning emanating from the post
event analysis forms the crux of the article. An attempt
has also been made to understand the impact on the different
players in the crisis, including the author himself. The
Kubler-Ross model of coming to terms with a bereavement
has been taken as a framework to analyze the reactions of
different people who bore the impact of the crisis.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
Humor
Quotient in Soft Skills Training
--
D
G Kulkarni and A B Kalkundrikar
Soft
skills trainers adopt the most sophisticated training tools
and instruments. These instruments are well known to the
trainers, but less known to the trainees before their implementation.
Mental and psychological correlation of the trainers and
the trainees is important. Trainees may not appreciate complicated
instruments or tools of training. Today, the trainees look
at two important aspects: (1) The information that is obtained
easily; and (2) The type of trainer—whether they like
him or not? If the trainees have an affinity for the trainer,
then training becomes a rich experience, otherwise it becomes
stressful. Humor is one way to align oneself with the trainees
and develop a rapport. This paper throws light on the preferences
of the trainees in the field of soft skills.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
Stress
Management at IT Call Centers: A Case Study
--
P
Nagesh and M S Narasimha Murthy
Studies
indicate that eight out of 10 employers fail to manage work-related
stress. Health and safety executives identify six factors
that contribute to workplace stress as: demands of
the job, control over work, support from colleagues and
management, working relationships, clarity of role, and
organizational change (Management Services, 2004). The assessment
of value of workplace stress will indicate the strength
and the weakness of the organization. This paper analyses
the various factors that cause stress and to what degree.
The paper also suggests measures in the form of training
to enable organizations and individuals to manage stress
at workplaces in general and IT call centers in particular.
The paper is based on a study carried out in respect of
a few selected IT call centers.
©
2008 IUP . All Rights Reserved.
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