Reference no: EM132959562

AN INCIDENT IN HOTEL MANAGEMENT

Force Majeure

How to attract more customers from companies in the local business park was the topic of this month's meeting of departmental managers. The group was confident of its ability to deliver, so they adopted and widely advertised a quality guarantee for local businesses. "If anything goes wrong, the room rate is on us!"

An out-of-town representative of Allied Manufacturing, a nearby industry, has been in the hotel for two nights. There was no hot water last night or the morning of the third day. The guest mentions this to the guest-service agent as he goes through the check-out procedure. "I think I'll take advantage of your quality guarantee."

"Yes sir; please wait while I get the manager."

It was almost 15 minutes before the hotel manager appeared. "Good morning. The agent has told me about your request, and I would like to comply. There's no hot water because the boiler is down. It's an act of God, a force majeure, so, as I have told other guests, the situation isn't covered by our guarantee."

Questions:

Q1. Was there a management failure here; if so, what?

Q2. What is the hotel's immediate response (or action) to the incident?

Q3. What further, long-run action should management take, if any?