Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes

Challenges to implement innovative ideas and practices: A case of ITC Welcome

Group’s Fortune Park Centre Point Jamshedpur (India)
Rumki Bandyopadhyay,
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WHATT
8,4
Challenges to implement
innovative ideas and practices
A case of ITC Welcome Group’s Fortune
490 Park Centre Point Jamshedpur (India)
Rumki Bandyopadhyay
Amity University Haryana, Gurgaon, India
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Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the key challenges related to innovation in the
hospitality industry specific to the ITC Welcome Group’s Fortune Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur. This
paper also presents possible solutions to these challenges.
Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on a semi-structured interview with the
General Manager, ITC Welcome Group’s Fortune Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur. The purpose was to
explore an open-ended strategic question: what are the key challenges in the implementation of
innovative ideas and practices in the hospitality industry? And what are the ways to improve the
innovation processes in the hospitality industry?
Findings – The paper provides valuable information on hotel management and operations and
outlines innovative solutions to key challenges in Fortune Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur.
Practical implications – The paper highlights the operative approaches to key challenges,
especially the tailor-made training and philosophy for overcoming workforce barriers.
Originality/value – The paper draws on practitioner perspectives and observations to explain how
Fortune Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur, secures operational success. This paper will be of interest to
practitioners, educators, researchers, industry leaders and students.
Keywords Innovation, Hospitality, Hotels, Culinary, Human capital, Challenges
Paper type Viewpoint

Introduction
The success of the hospitality industry worldwide depends on delivery of superior guest
experience and on balancing the equation between the increasing expectations of guests
and the existing provisions made to facilitate guest service excellence. Market volatility
is reflected in socio-economic changes, competition, products and services, technology,
cyber-crime attacks, demographics, sustainability, regulatory, economic and
stakeholder pressure, emerging markets, brand and human capital (McGuire, 2015;
Hiller, 2015; Deloitte, 2015).
The Indian hospitality industry is one of the fastest growing industries among
the service sectors in India. This sector contributed nearly US$187.9bn or 12.5 per
cent to the gross domestic product in 2014-2015 with 11.7 per cent compound annual
Worldwide Hospitality and
Tourism Themes
Vol. 8 No. 4, 2016
pp. 490-495
© Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1755-4217
The author would like to thank Mr Piyal Barua, General Manager at Fortune Park Centre Hotel,
DOI 10.1108/WHATT-04-2016-0017 Jamshedpur for his contribution to this viewpoint.
 growth rate over the period 2011-2012 to 2014-2015. Further, it is estimated that the Innovative
industry will generate 13.45 million jobs across sub-segments such as restaurants ideas and
(10.49 million jobs), hotels (2.3 million jobs) and travel agents/tour operators (0.66
million). Recent statistics show that investment is strong and that the industry
practices
attracted around US$8.48bn of foreign direct investment (Tourism & Hospitality
Industry in India, 2015).
This paper outlines the issues and challenges driving innovation in the Indian 491
hospitality industry with specific reference to the ITC Welcome Group’s Fortune Park
Centre Point, Jamshedpur. To examine the various challenges faced by this leading
hotel, the author sought to understand the issues relating to innovation at the Fortune
Hotel Centre Point, now a part of ITC-Welcomegroup’s Fortune Properties.
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About Fortune Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur

Fortune Hotel Centre Point now a part of the ITC-Welcomegroup’s Fortune Properties was
established in the year 1991:
Fortune Hotel Centre Point is the epitome of luxury and hospitality. Exquisite interiors, impeccable
service, fine cuisine and contemporary technology come together to create an experience that is
grand and intimate […].
The hotel has 45 rooms and suites spread over an acre of land. This was the first centrally air
conditioned hotel in Jharkhand. The hotel has catered for many senior officials, politicians,
ministers and sports starts including a visit by the Pakistani cricket team. (Fortune Park
Centre Point, 2016).

Understanding innovation in the hospitality industry

Innovation in a hospitality context is essentially about focusing on establishing and
satisfying customers. It drives service delivery, awareness, guest engagement and
brand differentiation in the hospitality industry (Innovation in Hospitality, 2015). The
changing pace of growth in the Indian hospitality industry has meant that innovative
ideas, products and services are needed to deliver economics of scale in operations
(Singh and Arora, 2014).To benchmark with innovative design concepts, lifestyle hotels
stand out among the progressive concepts in the emerging markets (Hotelier, 2015). No
matter how different the concept of the hotel, customer retention and satisfaction is the
biggest challenge in the hotel industry. Yet there are other challenges too and in recent
years, restaurant dining in India has been the subject of a service tax increase (12.36 to
14 per cent) applicable since June 1, 2015 (Chatterjee, 2015).
The key challenges faced by the Indian hospitality industry are broadly driven by:
• Innovation challenges: The operational environment, especially during check in and
departures, has been subject to innovation in recent years, but the wider use of
technology may be impeded by cross-cultural factors relating to region, the possible
need to provide translation services and other cultural norms that can impact on
positive guest experience. Some studies point to the difficulty associated with
innovating: “The high failure rate of innovations results in wasted time, money and
human resources” (Ottenbacher, 2008, p. 341 cited in Gyurácz-Németh et al., 2013).
Further, risk plays a critical factor in the industry as new strategies on innovation can
impact on guest readiness to accept change. For example, Hyatt hotels experienced
some guest resistance to its self-service kiosk initiative.
 WHATT • Funding-related challenges: HVS India concluded in its 2013 report that the main
8,4 challenge facing hotel owners in India relates to the high interest rates charged on
loans and the relatively high repayment costs. India’s rigidity in relation to lending
norms also creates a challenge for hotel owners in India and so it is possible to
conclude that there are fewer options available to hoteliers to raise funds economically
in India than might be the case in other emerging markets (Sanjeev et al., 2012).
492 • Development-related challenges: The rising prices of land in India mean that it is
critical to maximize space-related revenue. A further complication relates to the high
cost, time taken and complexity involved in obtaining operating licenses and multiple
government approvals related to hotel operation in India. This tends to contribute to
longer than the industry average timescales to achieve break-even point. It is
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interesting to note that India is viewed by many as a difficult place in which to do

business and this is reflected in an average ranking of 132 in a population of 185
countries on the relative ease of operating a business. The difficulties encountered by
businesses are due mainly to the licensing and regulatory norms in the country.
• Human capital challenges: A good supply of trained professionals is the priority for
sustained growth in India’s hospitality industry. Employee engagement and high
performance delivery are perceived as an impetus to consistent guest experiences.
However, because the industry is not especially attractive in terms of salaries and
terms and conditions the career attractiveness of this industry is lower than other
service industry options and this is a concern that needs to be addressed. (Kandhari
and Ladda, 2012; Thadani and Mobar, 2013; Jyoti, 2015).

In summary, the challenges faced relating to hotel operation in India include relatively
high land prices, the high cost of funding of projects, the complexity and cost of
obtaining operating licenses and various other approvals, complex decision-making
processes relating to development, a talent acquisition and management challenge, the
rate of technological change, branding and positioning challenges in relation to
emerging customer segments and customer management via social media (Sanjeev and
Jauhari, 2012). It is clear then than innovation is needed to address these and other
issues.

Findings
This paper is based on an interview with a senior management professional at a leading
hotel chain, Mr Piyal Barua, General Manager, Fortune Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur.
The aim was to understand the key challenges related to innovation in the hospitality
industry. The interview also sought to explore possible solutions to such challenges.
During the semi-structured interview, Mr Barua emphasized that though innovation
is the need of the hour, it is difficult to implement. For example, it is a complex task to
make staff at the hotel aware of the preferences of many different guests in order to
satisfy them at every level of service and thereby enrich their experience at the hotel.
This on-going challenge actually impedes innovation because of the complex
operational procedures at a hotel in this category. Mr Barua did however feel that better
communications could be achieved using a unified system for email and mobile phone
messaging and that this could be an effective tool in creating a personalized service
experience that is responsive to requests and concerns logged by guests at the hotel.
Commenting on the need for an innovation drive, Mr Barua said that innovation is a
 process and it begins with an idea for improving and/or enhancing the service level of Innovative
operations, responding to customer needs and supporting growth in both top line ideas and
revenue and bottom line profitability. If an innovative idea is to be implemented, it must practices
additionally allow for stability in other operational requirements such as building
maintenance, while at the same time, enable the operation to keep pace with changing
markets. He further concluded that there are multiple forces that drive innovation in the
hospitality industry, and sometimes incremental innovation is difficult to implement in 493
a competitive marketplace. This observation is supported by the fact that there are a
number of studies that point to accelerating competition in the Indian hospitality
industry (Sanjeev, 2007).
Another aspect of innovation mentioned during the interview relates to culinary
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management. In the competitive world of fine dining, the Indian hospitality industry
is gaining an international reputation for excellence (Khosla, 2013). For example,
ITC Hotels was the first luxury chain to introduce India’s “slow food” cooking
concept. The chain serves delicacies originating from various regions of the country.
The chain also showcases international cuisine such as new styles originating from
England (www.itcportal.com/businesses/hotels.aspx ry). The Fortune Park Centre
Point, Jamshedpur strives to charm its customers by accepting customer
perspectives on innovative change in this category of hotel. The hotel invested in an
idea of to redefine a snack menu – this met a need – even though the concept does not
fit well with guest engagement associated with world-class experience. Guests at the
hotel can experience different world cuisines at its “Zodiac” restaurant or wood-fired
vegarian pizzas on the rooftop restaurant “Little Italy”. The hotel always tries to
keep in mind the customer preferences and choices – balancing between needs and
expectations and culinary innovations will only be introduced if it is felt that
customers will accept a contemporary menu option.
Another key aspect that was emphasized by Mr Barua is the importance of
innovation in the organization’s culture. In his view, the climate of innovation plays a
pivotal role in the current and future success of the Indian hospitality industry and good
manager-employee relationships help to ensure adaptability and readiness for change
that is focused on delighting the guest. There is a paucity of studies in the context of the
Indian hospitality industry and so the interview afforded an opportunity to explore the
impact of the culture of Innovation. A prominent example drawn from Four Seasons
Hotels and Resorts relates to its innovative program “BlueWater”. This encourages
some 35,000 employees – from bartenders to cooks to shape ideas, pilot and refine them
with the aim of facilitating a flawless guest experience (Gaulin, 2014). Fortune Park
Centre Point, Jamshedpur strives to achieve excellence in customer satisfaction by
encouraging a culture of innovation among all employees. Mr Barua believes that it is
important to foster innovation from both employee and managerial perspectives and
that in so doing, it is possible to gain a competitive advantage among the luxury hotel
chains in India. In view of this, he encourages employees to come up with new ideas that
could potentially add value. This means that employees are encouraged to share their
ideas and implementation is linked to reward and recognition that appreciates the
efforts made and fosters a culture of innovation, focused on customer excellence. This
kind of initiative tends to promote employee satisfaction and a culture of incremental
improvement throughout the hotel (Horng et al., 2016).
 WHATT Mr Barua felt that resistance to new ideas would likely create an uncomfortable
8,4 climate among employees and that this might impede innovation. He observed that
traditional beliefs and assumptions tend to overshadow new initiatives and that in this
context, employees might be reluctant to share their ideas with managers. The Fortune
Park Centre Point, Jamshedpur has adapted a “no-ridicule” philosophy so that
employees feel involved and know that they can communicate their thoughts and ideas
494 as an integral part of their own career development. A variety of communication
channels and encouragement from senior management helps to ensure that ideas are
shared openly in relation to every aspect of the hotel’s operation. A study conducted by
Gong (2008) observed that employees from diverse backgrounds can generate a rich
array of ideas and that this helps to stimulate the process of innovation, enhancing
self-confidence among employees in the knowledge that their ideas are valued.
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Summary
This viewpoint identifies some of the factors affecting innovation in hotels including barriers
to innovation. It is clear that innovation is important in the quest for a sustainable
business – especially in hotels and a number of relatively straightforward measures can be
taken to foster a culture of innovation. For example, a unified messaging system (emails and
text messages) can facilitate greater responsiveness and innovative culinary approaches
may lead to less food waste. To secure these advantages, employee involvement is important
and employees must be viewed and regarded as catalysts of innovation rather than just
employees.

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Corresponding author
Rumki Bandyopadhyay can be contacted at: rumki.banerji@gmail.com

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