RAMADA’S PERSONAL BEST 1
Case Study Assignment:
Ramada Demonstrates Its Personal Best
XXXXXXX
School of Business, Liberty University
Author Note
XXXXXXX
I have no known conflict of interest to disclose.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to
XXXXXXX. Email: XXXXXXX
RAMADA’S PERSONAL BEST 2
Build the Management-research Question Hierarchy for Ramada.
Schindler (2022) defines the management-research question hierarchy as the “Process of
sequential question formulation that leads a manager or researcher from management dilemma to
measurement questions” (p. 49). Ramada’s dilemma is declining customer satisfaction rates. The
symptoms are focused mainly on the employees and the many different franchisees. Ramada
must figure out a way to eliminate the negative symptoms and restore the faith of its customers.
The D.K. Shifflet research described in the case study focuses on three critical areas of
Ramada’s operations: hiring new employees, training employees, and motivating employees.
Ramada hopes to find the best people to work in their properties, train the most efficient
employees, and provide the right amount of motivation to employees so they will create a
positive guest experience. “We wanted to learn and borrow from the best so we started with
Disney” (Schindler, 2022, p. XX). Additionally, Southwest Airlines was looked at for its high
customer satisfaction ratings. Ramada used these company’s business models to improve its
own.
Ramada needed to determine what would allow them to choose the best action. To
accomplish this, the company conducted research with current employees and franchise owners.
The study revealed “boring” training that did not correctly motivate employees to provide the
high-quality customer service levels Ramada was seeking. Ramada decided to revamp the hiring
process and the training program. By hiring the right people from the beginning, Ramada
ensured the new training program would help provide the skills needed to increase customer
satisfaction.
RAMADA’S PERSONAL BEST 3
Apply the Research Process Model to the Ramada Research Initiative.
Explain the Role and Process Exploration in Ramada’s Research.
Ramada used several research companies to explore the cause of decreasing customer
satisfaction. During the research, it was discovered that current hiring, training, and motivation
efforts were the cause of inefficient employees. Diem Vo et al. (2022) state, “Work motivation is
considered an essential catalyst for the success of organizations, as it promotes employees’
effective performance” (para 1). These findings pointed out a flaw in Ramada’s current system
that must be corrected.
What Role Did Secondary Data Play in the Exploration Phase of the Research?
The primary data in this case study is the current employee programs utilized by Ramada.
The secondary data in this study will be the employee involvement in the company’s programs.
This secondary data should be considered as important as the primary program data. Ramada can
use secondary data to determine how well the programs are working since they directly involve
the employees and rely on employee buy-in to be successful.
What Steps in the Process Model Can You Match to the Ramada Research?
Ramada met all the criteria of the management-research question hierarchy. The
company identified a problem, determined how to correct it, figured out a course of action,
sought alternatives, gathered the necessary information, and developed a plausible solution. The
post-research results determined that the initiative was a success, and Ramada’s positive ratings
increased by over thirty percent while negative ratings decreased by twenty-four percent.
What Research Process Decisions Were Made?
“Research with employees revealed the current training approach was boring and
ineffective” (Schindler, 2022, para 6). According to Gendron (2022), “Attracting, developing,
RAMADA’S PERSONAL BEST 4
and retaining high-performing employees is at the core of successful companies” (para 1).
Ramada decided to revamp its employee hiring process, training, and incentives. Xuecheng et al.
(2022) describe employee retention as vital for long-term advantage and organizational success.
Changing how the company hires and trains its employees will undoubtedly lead to higher hire
retention rates and increased customer satisfaction.
What Sampling Methodology Was Used?
Ramada used face-to-face employee input to gain insight into what employees wanted in
a new training program. The company spent six months visiting all properties to gather as much
information as possible from current franchise owners and employees. The Ramada
representatives created a relaxed environment for employees during their visits, and this helped
to create a comfortable setting for employees to share their opinions about programs.
Describe the Research Design and Discuss its Strengths and Weaknesses.
One of Ramada’s research strengths was the input the company could gather from
employees related to current training programs and incentives. To get this insight, Ramada
collected data, measured the data, and then created the Personal Best program. This new program
completely updated the hiring and training processes and developed a new motivation tool for
employee retention. There was not a specific weakness in the process of Ramada’s research that
was readily identifiable.
What Role Did Property Owners/Managers Play in the Research Design?
Since all Ramada properties are independently owned, the employee processes were
inconsistent across the board. Although they shared some similarities, many owners did not have
the same dedication to increasing customer satisfaction that Ramada sought. Ramada needed a
way to create buy-in among all the franchise owners and standardize the customer experience.
RAMADA’S PERSONAL BEST 5
Why did Ramada Choose to Conduct the Research in a Nontraditional, Party-like
Atmosphere? What are Some Advantages and Disadvantages of Such an Approach?
The party-like atmosphere Ramada created when engaging with current owners and
employees made sharing one’s true feelings about the company more comfortable. This allowed
Ramada to gain valuable insight into how to make positive changes in its training programs. The
only real disadvantage that can be seen is the cost of facilitating face-to-face meetings with
employees at all 900 locations. The costs can be justified, however, by the success Ramada
experienced after the new programs were implemented.
How are the Research Findings Reflected in the Ultimate Management Decisions?
The findings are reflected in the significant increase in higher customer satisfaction
scores and the decrease in low customer satisfaction scores. By hiring more efficient employees,
training them better, and motivating employees to work harder and buy into the company goals,
Ramada created brand loyalty. Kato (2021) describes how brand competitiveness shifts from
functional to emotional value. Having employees motivated to make a positive customer
experience ultimately creates more brand loyalty. Spending millions to change internal processes
was an intelligent decision for Ramada and its desire to retain hard-working employees.
RAMADA’S PERSONAL BEST 6
References
Diem Vo,BT.BT., Tuliao,BK.BV., & Chen,BC.BW. (2022). Work motivation: The roles of individual
needs and social conditions.BBehavioral Sciences,B12(2),
49.Bhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8869198/
Gendron,BB. (2022, March 30).BHow the lack of training affects your organization. The Training
Associates. RetrievedBSeptemberB22, 2024, fromBhttps://thetrainingassociates.com/lack-
training-affects-organization/
Kato,BT. (n.d.). Brand loyalty explained by concept recall: recognizing the significance of the
brand concept compared to features.BSpringer Nature,B9(3), 185-
198.Bhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8188946/
Schindler,BP.BS. (2022).BBusiness research methodsB(14thBed.). McGraw Hill LLC.
Xeucheng,BW., Iqbal,BQ., & Saina,BB. (2022). Factors affecting employee’s retention: Integration
of situational leadership with social exchange theory.Bfrontiers in
Psychology,B13.Bhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9309793/
