ESSAY 3: WHAT MOTIVATES CALLIE?
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WHAT MOTIVATES CALLIE?
What’s it like to be a 23-year-old single parent, working at a minimum level wage to support
yourself and your child? Meet Callie Michaels.
In high school, Callie learned that she was pregnant. The father did not want to take any
responsibility for the child, and for a time Callie considered giving up her baby, Olivia, for
adoption. But instead Callie decided to drop out of school, get a reliable job, and raise the baby
herself.
For almost seven years, Callie has worked the front desk at the Highland golf, Tennis and Ski
Resort. Her major duties include welcoming and registering guests. When Callie started, there
was always at least one other person on duty with her. At peak periods, at least four employees
provided front desk service. The employees worked well together, and they had become good
friends. In fact, several of the employees spent some of their personal time together. The front
desk was operational 24/7.
Over the last two years, however, the Highland, like most high-end resorts, started feeling the
effects of the depressed economy. Overbuilding in the vacation industry, together with increased
competition for tourism dollars, have decreased the resort’s profitability. A drop in corporatetravel business has added to the resort’s woes.
A year ago, the resort changed ownership. First, the new management felt it could improve
occupancy by increasing promotion and advertising expenditures. The expected increase in
business did not materialize, however. So more recently, the resort started offering substantial
discount packages for groups. While this strategy did increase the occupancy rate slightly, the
company still experienced a 9.8% decline in revenue per room. In the first six months of this
year, the resort’s occupancy rate was running at about 55%. This paled in comparison with the
average rate of 92% occupancy the resort used to see a decade ago. The continued decline in
revenue per available room and profit margins caused the new management to institute a costcutting drive.
Included in the attempt to restore profitability were such measures as eliminating and
consolidating various management and supervisory positions and curtailing merit increases. Two
years ago, there were twelve full- and six part-time people in front-end guest services. Currently,
only nine people are involved directly in front-end guest services, and two of them are part-time.
Callie has been fortunate enough to retain her job at the Highland, but several of Callie’s good
friends have been let go and have not been successful in finding other employment in the area.
When Callie first started, the Highland was considered an excellent employer. At that time, the
resort was owned by one of the countries larger hotel real-estate corporations. Mr. Thomas, the
previous general manager, had instituted a number of family-friendly measures for employees.
Among those measures were a full range of alternative work schedules, including flextime (a
system whereby employees choose their own work schedules within certain limits). For
employees with children, like Callie, the human resources (HR) department would find quality
child care and discount the cost by 10%. Employees such as Callie who work more than 30 hours
ESSAY 3: WHAT MOTIVATES CALLIE?
2
a week received health care benefits. Staying home with a sick child was no problem, given the
company’s flexible work policies.
As part of an overall reward system, the company also instituted an employee of the week,
month, and year program. Employees received "positive stroke" points based on customer
evaluations and feedback. Callie and others referred to these as their "report cards", and
employees willingly treated customers as "very special people" in hopes they would receive good
reports from customers. Each week, the top three-point recipients in each work area received
$25, $15, or $10 in resort credit, which could be used in any of the resort’s facilities, such as the
coffee shop, swimming pool snack bar, shop, or dining room. The monthly award winner in each
area received $50, and his or her photo was prominently displayed in the lobby wall.
Things were very different under the new owners. In addition to eliminating some positions, they
initiated a hiring freeze, meaning that the remaining employees had to work much harder. They
also discontinued the employee recognition program, but the last round of winners’ photos were
still prominently displayed for all to see.
Some guests, who were particularly impressed with Callie’s customer service, noticed the
employee recognition board. Upon leaving the resort, the guests asked Callie, "How come your
picture’s not on the board? You’ve been most helpful during our stay!"
"It should have been, but the new management doesn’t believe in those things," Callie said. As
their discussion continued, it became clear that Callie had lost her enthusiasm for her job.
"They’re not as flexible as the previous management, so I’ve had to put work ahead of my child,
Olivia. They’ve cut the childcare supplement, and several of my good friends have left. If
business doesn’t pick up, I’ll probably lose my job! I love most of the people who stay with us.
But I’m beginning to wonder if I should do something else."
QUESTIONS TO ANSWER AND DISCUSS IN YOUR ESSAY
1. What do employees such as Callie Michaels want from work?
2. Evaluate Highland Golf, Tennis and Ski Resort’s employee recognition program under
the previous ownership.
3. What are some actions that the current management of Highland Golf, Tennis and Ski
Resort can take to improve employee morale?
4. Discuss the various models of motivation theory that could be relevant to this incident.
5. Explain why Callie is no longer excited about her job and future.
6. If you were Callie Michaels, what would you do? Why?
