Abstract
Purpose: The aim of this study is to explore effective communication strategies for Spanish-speaking and Haitian-Creole-speaking employees in hotel companies. Design/methodology/approach: A case study approach was employed. Three employee, focus group interviews and semi-structured interviews with 12 managers were conducted in a resort hotel in Orlando to elicit critical factors related to effective communication strategies with Spanish-speaking and Haitian-Creole-speaking employees. Findings: It was found that the case study company mainly communicated with its employees through daily meetings, daily written information (e.g. hot sheets), wall postings, e-mails, and periodic monthly/quarterly meetings. It was found that bilingual employees often worked as unpaid translators and assisted their colleagues. Spanish and Haitian-Creole-speaking employees felt that not being proficient in English hindered their promotion opportunities. Differences were observed among English, Spanish, and Haitian-Creole-speaking employees in terms of style of communication. Some native-speaking employees seemed to refrain from communicating with non-English-speaking employees unless they communicated in English. Haitian-Creole-speaking employees spoke to other employees about only work-related issues. Originality/value: This is one of the first studies looking into communication strategies and challenges for Spanish and Haitian-Creole-speaking employees in hotel companies.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 335-353 |
Number of pages | 19 |
Journal | Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes |
Volume | 3 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Aug 2011 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Communication
- Cross-cultural
- Haitian-Creole
- Hospitality
- Spanish language
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Development
- Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Management
- Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law