crisis management plan

Crisis

Likelihood

Impact

Rationale

Pandemic diseases such as covid-19

unlikely

catastrophic

I provided this ranking because pandemics such as covid-19 will close the operations of the intercontinental group hotel globally until the pandemic has been dealt with. The pandemic will also result in major losses in terms of revenue due to a lack of operations. These kinds of diseases will also result in major losses for the global hotel chain because the organization will be forced to pay its employees, premises, and tax in several countries without any revenue source due to the closure of the hotel chains ( Alonso et al., 2020). These kinds of diseases will also increase expenses for these organizations compared to low revenue generation. The reason being that the government will require them to implement a measure that will control the spread of the diseases; a good example is covid-19 testing of the hotels' workforce after a certain period which will increase the cost significantly. Pandemic diseases will also affect intercontinental group hotel staff where most of the workforce will be laid off from work, affecting their livelihood source.

Cybersecurity

occasional

critical

Cybersecurity has become a major concern that is affecting different organizations in the world. Intercontinental hotel group is also one of the organizations which are affected by cyber-attacks. These will force the intercontinental hotel groups to invest and focus on preventing data theft and identity theft. An example of how cybersecurity has become a major crisis in the hotel business is Marriott International, where there was a data breach on November 20th, 2018. The result of the attack is that the personal information of more than four hundred million customers was exposed, including the contact information of the customers, passport numbers, travel information, and payment information ( Panai, 2018). Data security breaches will negatively affect the intercontinental hotel group because customers who value their privacy will lose trust in the organization. The loss of trust will damage the brand image and be costly to the intercontinental hotel due to lawsuits due to its failure to protect its clients' information ( Berezina et al., 2012). In addition, liability claims due to fraudsters using information that has been obtained as a result of data breaches will result in significant losses for the intercontinental hotel group.

Foodborne illnesses

seldom

catastrophic

The reason for this ranking is that food safety is one of the biggest crises that the intercontinental hotel group has to prevent at all costs. Some of the diseases resulting from poor food handling include salmonella, campylobacter from contaminated chicken, and Escherichia coli. In addition, one of the most common infections that cause illness is Norovirus, which results in vomiting and diarrhea. This virus is a major concern because it spreads when it comes into contact with an infected person or contaminated surface. These viruses can result in significant expenses of intercontinental group hotels where the hotels can be shut down for extensive cleaning and sanitation depending on its severity. In addition, foodborne illnesses will damage the intercontinental hotel brand and result in losses for the organization due to claims, compensations, and lawsuits. Therefore, hotel continental needs to train its staff in food handling, sanitation, and health safety food procedures to address the issue of foodborne diseases. In addition, food vendors' quality controls should also be established to ensure that the food provided is as safe as possible.

Guest behavior

frequent

negligible

Guests of the intercontinental hotel groups are the main reason why the global hotel chain is running. Without guests and travelers, the intercontinental hotel group will incur losses of a significant amount, resulting in its closure due to lack of revenue. However, guest behavior can cause one of the biggest crises that the global hotel chain deals with directly and indirectly. One such way is through lawsuits from persons injured or the guests' damages to the guestroom. A good example is that of Plim Plaza, which was sued for six million dollars. The lawsuit resulted from Legionella bacteria, which was found present in water samples collected from different locations in the hotel by an investigation carried out by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The bacteria caused the death of one person, and five others fell sick.

Physical crime

likely

moderate

Over the past few years, there has been a recent increase in physical crimes in hotel organizations worldwide. The intercontinental hotel groups face an increase in physical crimes ranging from professional burglaries that use social engineering techniques to temporary drug laps in the hotel rooms ( Leung et al., 2018). Organized crimes in global hotels have also been on the rise. This has forced the intercontinental hotel to review its security awareness programs. The poor continental hotels have become easily accessible and less protected at night, resulting in increased gun violence.

Fires

likely

catastrophic

Hotel fires have the potential of escalating too fast, resulting in huge amounts of damage both on human life and property. Dealing with fires in the hotel is not easy because people are sleeping and are in their most vulnerable state. It is made worse because most hotel customers are not familiar with the hotel surroundings making it hard for them to escape. One of the most common places where fires start is in hotel kitchens due to the cooking equipment (Hu, 2016). In the kitchen, the fires result from frying medium, faulty or unsupervised equipment, and human error. Careless smoking is the other cause of fires. A study carried out between 2018 and 2019 determined that eight percent of fires in hotels were due to careless cigarette smoking. The other cause of fires in hotels is electric appliances which include lamps, hairdryers, and kettles. This electrical equipment can cause fires if not properly used by the hotel guests and staff. Therefore it is important for hotel intercontinental to have a fire safety plan and fire safety equipment. Fire detection systems should also be regularly maintained and tested to ensure that they are effectively working when there will be a fire outbreak.

Courtesy transportation

unlikely

negligible

Courtesy transportation of hotel guests has been on the rise in the hospitality industry over the past few years, resulting in it becoming a necessity, especially for the intercontinental hotels operating near airports. However, these vehicles and drivers present a whole variety of risks. These risks include accidents that might result in injuries to the customer being carried to the hotel. Such accidents will make the hotel intercontinental liable to the injuries of these persons. Accidents involving other vehicles or passerby might result in lawsuits which will result in the global food chain losing millions of dollars in lawsuits and compensations

Staff

seldom

negligible

Employees of hotels are a critical risk to the intercontinental hotel group. This is because some of the employees of these hotels might be working to harm the hotel's reputation as revenge for an incident that happened to them. This can be seen where an employee of the hotel intentionally destroys the hotel's property or does something that can put the hotel in legal trouble. These employees also work with gangs involved in hotel kidnappings or selling illegal drugs in the hotel premises. The kidnappings and availability of drugs in the hotels will damage the hotel's brand name, resulting in people avoiding these global chain hotels. The result of this is that the hotel will lose revenue and close down. These employees might also be involved in property theft which has become a major concern in the hotel industry over the past few years. Even though towels and knives being stolen cannot be considered, they add up over the year, resulting in major losses, especially in intercontinental hotels with a large chain.

Credit card fraud

likely

moderate

Credit card fraud has been increasing in the hospitality industry because criminals are finding new ways to steal credit card information and use them in hotels. Research carried out in the united states of America found out that up to fifty percent of credit card frauds reported taking place in hotels. The rise has been in the increase because of the hotels allowing digitally-enabled check-in via hotel apps. The fraud tasters use the stolen credit card information to log into the customer's account and book a hotel room with a card on file or using loyalty points which the customer has accrued from the hotel. The digital check-ins have made it possible for the fraudsters to check in to the hotel by completely bypassing the front desk, making it nearly impossible for the credit card holder's identity to be verified. In addition, the hotels offering booking reservations have made it possible for the fraudsters to test the credit cards if they are active before using the credit cards in perpetrating credit card frauds in other digital sites.

Sexual harassment of women

likely

moderate

Sexual harassment of women in hotels has become a part of everyday life. Although it has become normalized, it is terrible, and it is one of the major issues affecting the hotel industry. Young women who are employees of these hotels have reported that they have been sexually assaulted on several occasions when performing their duties, such as cleaning the guest rooms (Kensbock et al., 2015). The increased number of sexual harassment cases is the presence of alcohol where customers are often intoxicated, resulting in them misbehaving. The other reason is that most hotels have a sexualized environment that encourages the customers to treat employees as sex objects rather than workers. Therefore, the intercontinental hotel group should ensure that the sexual harassment of employees is prevented or minimized.