Smith Students Find Real-Time Solutions for Marriott Hotels in China

A group of Smith School students from Zurich recently had the opportunity to tackle one of the most pressing problems facing organizations in China today.

An outgrowth of China's blistering economic growth has been a challenge in recruiting and retaining skilled workers. Multinational organizations in particular are often caught up in bidding wars where the prevailing attitude among professionals and skilled laborers is that the company offering the biggest paycheck holds their loyalty – at least for the moment.

In this intense climate, the problem for Marriott International Hotels was clear: How to better attract and retain skilled and semi-skilled labor in an overheated labor market.

Using a creative fusion of supply chain concepts, world cultures and integrative thinking, students and Smith faculty advisor Sandy Boyson met with Marriott management in Shanghai to embark on a dynamic "living case" that effectively addressed the total end-to-end process of recruiting, training and retaining labor in China. A class of 22 participants in the Smith-GSBA Global Executive MBA program worked for two weeks intensively on data collection and analysis before making a final presentation to Andrew Houghton, general manager of JW Marriott Shanghai. Along the way they had unprecedented access to employees and company information - an extraordinary level of engagement – as well as the full support of JW Marriott management. It also didn't hurt that the hotel they were staying in at Tomorrow Square was in fact the JW Marriott – as the hotel has been a strong Smith School partner in delivering the school's programs in Shanghai!

"It was cross-cultural supply chain research in real time, interviewing in the afternoon the employees who served us breakfast in the morning, said Boyson, research professor and co-director of the Smith School's Supply Chain Management Center. "The amount of access and transparency was enormous. For example, we took tours of the facilities that started with the basement and ended with attendance at a gala opening that brought to life the acute need for skilled workers. We saw for ourselves how labor was transported in for the event from the countryside." Boyson acted as lead faculty advisor on the case with Andrew Shogun from Berkley's Haas Business School. Boyson and Shogun served as the co-instructors for the GSBA-Smith Global EMBA course in Shanghai.

Students found the blend of cultures and business disciplines both appealing and challenging. "The project allowed us to work with the relatively new idea of extending the concept of supply chain management onto the ‘supply of labor,'" said Helmer Schweizer, head of professional services for CIBA Vision AG and a Smith-GSBA Global EMBA program participant. "This was very challenging, but also rewarding."

Some of the participants' recommendations impressed both Boyson and Houghton with their insight and creativity such as the suggestion to create a Marriott Parent Club to better engage, involve and secure the loyalty of employees' parents. This idea reflected a cultural sensitivity to Asian Confucian traditions of honoring one's parents as the center of the household.

"It took a long time to get a handle on understanding what drives and motivates Chinese when it comes to job decisions and their perceptions about the hospitality industry and its image," commented Schweizer.

The project's end result was declared worthwhile from Marriott.

"Our Marriott International HR office in Maryland was ‘amazed' at the outcome and very impressed by the quality of the work by the students. Having business leaders from around the world look at our industry problem as a whole and give us such a diverse range of solutions was a great benefit," said Houghton. "Observing the different methodologies that financial institutions use when approaching a problem and analyzing it from a theoretical viewpoint offered a refreshing change in perspective."

"Marriott learned there were other critical levers that could be used to accomplish their strategic objectives, such as creating stronger financial incentives for the employee who is taking care of parents," said Boyson.

Enthusiasm was shared by participant Sanjay Singh, a manager with Hirslanden Hospital Group. "It was a great experience to work on the JW Marriott living case in fast-growing Shanghai," he said. "I learned a lot about hospitality management and handling of staff with a different culture. The support by JW Marriott's management was brilliant."

Angela Toda, Director of International Marketing and Public Relations