Course Title: Applied Hospitality Management Project 1

Part A: Course Overview

Course ID: 012913

Course Title: Applied Hospitality Management Project 1

Credit Points: 12


Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

BUSM1706

City Campus

Undergraduate

630H Management

Face-to-Face

Sem 1 2006

Course Coordinator: Margaret Melrose

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925 1531

Course Coordinator Email: margaret.melrose@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: Building 108, Level 16, Room 63


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

Passed all Co-operative Year  Course Requirements


Course Description

BUSM 1706 is a one semester course involving the thorough examination of a particular aspect of an operating hospitality business with a view, in second semester in BUSM 1707, to making verifiable improvements to the business.This is done by either introducing a new procedure or facility or upgrading an existing one. In doing so, the student’s understanding of the various methods and approaches used to analyse the operation will also be further enhanced.

Hospitality is an industry with many types of organisations providing a variety of facilities, products and services. Many are small to medium-sized operations while others are large multi-department businesses. The course will show how the approaches to analysis need to be adapted to suit these varying types and standards of organisations. During the earlier parts of the program students will have studied management and marketing theory and the practices and procedures used in many types of hospitality operation. In this course, students will adopt an approach from a manager’s viewpoint and gather information that will eventually be used to put these procedures and management and marketing theories into practice. In doing this, account will also need to be taken of the social and ethical issues that arise and the operational constraints of the particular operation.

The initial phase involves gaining an in-depth knowledge of the business under review, how it is currently functioning and the environment in which it operates. It will also include an analysis of the markets that the organisation seeks to serve. An aspect of the business is then analysed in sufficient depth to enable identification of the issues and the data is recorded. This will later be used to resolve the aspect being reviewed in a manner that is practical, achievable and viable.


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

Building on the knowledge and skills developed in courses studied previously.

Identify and gathering appropriate data


On the completion of this course, the following student abilities will be developed:

- Understand the nature and breadth of hospitality research

- Identify sources of data relevant to hospitality issues and challenges

- Design and implement appropriate research methodologies

- Execute data analysis

- Present research results in an appropriate format

- Demonstrate an understanding of some of the ethical implications of hospitality research

- Demonstrate practical creativity in the examination and resolution of issues.


Overview of Learning Activities

Investigate potential areas of improvement in one or more operating hospitality establishments.

Evaluate them to determine which would be of most benefit to the establishment and best suit the requirements of the course.

Identify and describe research techniques appropriate for a small-medium sized hospitality industry project.

Document research data in a usable format.

Develop writing skills.


Overview of Learning Resources

All of the information required to satisfactorily complete this course will be provided during scheduled meeting times. Regular attendance at scheduled appointment times is strongly recommended. There are no prescribed texts but there are numerous books and internet sites dealing with research that may be used to to build on information provided.


Overview of Assessment

Write Chapters 1& 2 of the report showing the project objective, the rationale for undertaking it, a description of the establishment and the proposed research strategy.

Write Chapter 3 of the report setting-out the collected research data.

The assessment will be based primarily on the detail in the research strategy and the amount and quality of the collected data. More details of the assessment criteria will be provided and explained during the first student meeting