Work-Life Balance at John Keells Hotels PLC





Introduction

John Keells Hotels PLC (JKH) is one of Sri Lanka’s largest hotel chain operators. JKH currently operates 15 Four and Five Star city and resort hotels in Sri Lanka and the Maldives (Financial Times, 2021). JKH which was incorporated in the year 1979 has an employee cadre of approximately 2,530 employees. This report analyses the impact of work-life balance (WLB) on employee performance at JKH.


WLB impact on employee performance at JKH

WLB is defined by De Seram and Gnanapala as ‘the ability of an employee to meet both organizational and work commitments’ (2019, p.2). Analysing WLB at JKH is critical given its positive association with employee performance, and the importance of employee performance in ensuring high service quality and customer satisfaction, which are essential factors for success and longevity in the tourism and hospitality industry (Jayawardena et al., 2013). Further, ensuring high WLB quality is important in order to ensure a highly motivated, satisfied, and loyal workforce (Mohanty and Mohanty, 2014). Key dimensions of WLB which influence employee performance are job content, personal factors, and family factors (De Seram and Gnanapala, 2019).


Figure 1: WLB impact on employee performance at JK



Source: De Seram and Gnanapala (2019)

Key elements in the job content dimension of WLB include long working hours, working on weekends, training and development, and reward and recognition. Key elements in the personal factors dimension of WLB include personal development such as improving professional and academic skills, enhancing health and fitness, and expanding social network, whilst key elements in the family factors dimension of WLB includes participation in family functions and gatherings, fulfilling childcare and other family responsibilities, and maintaining excellent relationship with spouse, children, parents, and other family members (De Seram and Gnanapala, 2019). Research findings indicate that overall WLB has a robust positive statistically significant correlation with employee performance at JKH (De Seram and Gnanapala, 2019). In terms of the three dimensions of WLB, the job content dimension has the most significant impact on employee performance, followed by the family factors dimension, and the personal factors dimension. Further, survey findings indicate that quality of WLB is moderate at JKH (De Seram and Gnanapala, 2019).


Conclusion

Findings from the analysis of WLB impact on employee performance at JKH reveals a robust positive association between these two variables. Given this positive association, the human resource department at JKH should focus on implementing strategies to enhance the current moderate WLB quality at JKH. In this regard, JKH management and human resources department should focus on addressing elements in the job contents dimension of WLB, as this dimension is the main determinant of work-life quality.


References

De Seram, D.S. & Gnanapala, W.K.A.C. (2019) The impact of work-life balance on employee performance in the hotel industry of Sri Lanka. [online] Available at: file:///C:/Users/Adrian/AppData/Local/Temp/Tourism0001.pdf [Accessed: 20 April 2021].

Financial Times, (2021). John Keells Holdings PLC [online] Available at: https://markets.ft.com/data/equities/tearsheet/profile?s=KHL.N0000:CSE [Accessed: 15 April 2021].

Jayawardena, A.A.K.K., De Silva, S. & Athauda, A.M.T.P. (2013) Business strategy, market orientation, and industry of ancient cities in Sri Lanka. Tropical Agricultural Research, 24(3), pp. 228-237.

Mohanty, K. & Mohanty, S. (2014) An empirical study on the employee perception on work-life balance in hotel industry with special reference to Odisha. Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Management, 2(2), pp. 65-81.

 


Comments

  1. Ruwan HerathApril 22, 2021 at 9:45 PM

    Work-life balance refers to the level of prioritization between personal and professional activities in an individual's life and the level to which activities related to their job are present in the home. The ideal work-life balance is open to discussion. Stress is a common feature of a poor work-life balance & this will impact on productivity as well.

    For better work-life balance for your employees:
    1. Offer flexible and remote working.
    2. Encourage managers to focus on productivity rather than hours.
    3. Encourage breaks.
    4. Regularly review workloads.
    5. Lead by example.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sevani EreporuwaMay 2, 2021 at 3:25 AM

    Work-life balance is an issue of great importance that has to be addressed by the organizations at the earliest. Work-life balance is supported by two concepts, namely achievement, and happiness. Someone must have both. This is the reason why those who are considered successful do not feel as happy or unhappy as they should be (Bataineh, 2019)

    ReplyDelete

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