Innovative Web-based Survey Allows Detailed Analysis

Timothy Hinkin, Ph.D. and J. Bruce Tracey, Ph.D.

Exit interviews and careful selection may be two of the keys to reducing the expenses of turnover. An analysis by two Cornell University researchers of the many steps involved in turnover found that the cost of each step affects different hotels in different ways.

The study, "Costs of Employee Turnover: When the Devil Is in the Details," was conducted in an effort to determine and reduce the costs of turnover. The study is available at no charge from The Cornell University Center for Hospitality Research (www.chr.cornell.edu).

For their study, professors J. Bruce Tracey, Ph.D. and Timothy Hinkin, Ph.D. divided the costs of turnover into five categories, which are pre-departure, recruitment, selection, orientation and training, and productivity loss. "Several studies have found that productivity loss is the biggest cost of turnover," noted Tracey, "Most of the damage to productivity is caused by the inexperience of new employees."

Tracey and Hinkin wanted to go beyond that knowledge to find clues to reduce the cost in each area of turnover. In the course of that analysis they saw that exit interviews and careful selection processes reduced costs for some hotels.

Using detailed information on turnover from a sample of hotels, Tracey and Hinkin compared turnover costs from their responding hotels according to several factors, for example, high-complexity jobs versus low-complexity jobs, chain hotels versus independent hotels, and large properties versus small properties.

In the course of making those comparisons, Tracey and Hinkin found that hotels that spend a higher percentage of their turnover costs on pre-departure activities, specifically exit interviews, had a relatively lower cost of turnover. Likewise, they discovered that hotels that involve a wider group of supervisors and peers in the selection process saw relatively lower turnover expenses.

Looking specifically at the relative cost of selecting new employees, Tracey and Hinkin made an unexpected finding. They found that selection costs for low-complexity jobs absorb a higher percentage of total turnover costs than do the selection costs for high-turnover positions. They believe that the source of this relatively high expense comes from the difficulty of developing a pool of qualified candidates for low-complexity positions.

Meet and interact with Dr. Tracey and Dr. Hinkin, active members of the executive education faculty at the School of Hotel Administration, when they both present sessions in the Professional Development Program (http://hotelschool.cornell.edu/industry/executive/pdp) and when Dr. Tracey presents in the General Managers Program ( http://hotelschool.cornell.edu/industry/executive/gmp).

Two New Affiliates Extend The Center's Media Reach

The Cornell University Center for Hospitality Research announces the addition of two new corporate affiliates of the Center, Caribbean Hotel Restaurant Buyer's Guide and Cruise Industry News.

One of the chief purposes of Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research is to spread knowledge throughout the hospitality industry by sharing the studies of Cornell University researchers. The two new corporate friends of the Center will be instrumental in that effort. "Many of our corporate friends provide essential media support to help share our research findings with the industry," noted Cathy Enz, Ph.D., associate dean for industry research and affairs at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration. "Caribbean Buyer's Guide and Cruise Industry News will make it possible for a new audience of hospitality managers to learn about our research findings."

The Caribbean Hotel and Restaurant Buyer's Guide is a trade publication for Caribbean Hotels, Restaurants and Property Developments. The magazine features suppliers of products and services to the tourism industry. This publication circulates to over 10,000 managers and leaders in the Caribbean hospitality market. For more information, please visit www.caribbeanbuyersguide.com.

Cruise Industry News covers the world with four publications: Cruise Industry News newsletter - providing the insider's business news; Cruise Industry News Quarterly magazine - #1 in industry reporting; Cruise Industry News executive guide - continuously updated directory listing of management teams; and the Cruise Industry News annual report - a comprehensive 440-page publication, tracking the industry since 1992 and forecasting through 2015. These four publications reach over 10,000 in the industry. For more information, please visit www.cruiseindustrynews.com.

The sixth annual Labor and Employment Law Roundtable, sponsored by Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research, will be held May 17 - 18, 2007, at the Statler Hotel, Cornell School of Hotel Administration. The Roundtable, chaired by Associate Professor and Center Academic Director, David Sherwyn, JD, will be attended by over 20 lawyers from various sectors of the hospitality industry. For more information about this event, please visit:
http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu/chr/news/roundtables.html.

The Center is also a co-sponsor of the Cornell Reception at ALIS to be held on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. at The Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel. The event is also sponsored by Hilton Hotels Corporation; McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP; Holliday, Fenoglio Fowler, LLP; and Wells Fargo. To learn more about this reception, or to participate as a corporate sponsor, please contact Joe Strodel, Jr. at 607-255-4646 or js343@cornell.edu

Produced by Human Resource Executive ® Conferences in collaboration with Cornell's School of Hotel Administration and ILR School, this will be the premier event for human resource management, employment law and labor relations in the hospitality industry.

Cornell Center for Hospitality Research newsletter subscribers receive a $450 discount using promotional code HHCORNELL.