Level 4 Extended Diploma in Hospitality Management

This Extended Diploma is designed to provide a broad understanding and application of hospitality management to equip learners who are keen to take up employment in the hospitality industry.  Those who are keen to further their education can progress on to either the Higher Diploma or gain entry and acceptance into Year 2 of a Bachelor degree in Hospitality Management.

Overall Programme Outcomes

On completion of this programme, learners will be able to:

• Develop a range of knowledge and understanding, skills and techniques, personal qualities and attributes essential for successful performance in working life
• Develop the individual’s ability to make an immediate contribution to employment in the hospitality management industry through effective use and combination of the knowledge and skills gained in different parts of the programme
• Provide opportunities for specialist study relevant to individual vocations and contexts
• Progress to an undergraduate degree or further professional qualification in hospitality management or a related area.

Assessments

Assessments are based wholly on course work and assignments submitted by learners

Entry Requirement

• Completion of a level 3 qualification or equivalent.
• Applicants may be admitted on evidence to show they are able to fulfill and benefit from the objectives of the programme and achieve the standards required.

Programme Structure

The Level 4 Extended Diploma in Business Administration accrues 120 credits over 8 modules.  Each module carries 15 credits and are in:

• Module 1- Principles of Rooms Division Operations Management.
• Module 2 – Principles of Food Safety Management.
• Module 3 – Principles of Financial Performance Management.
• Module 4 – Front Office Resource Management.
• Module 5 – Contemporary Hospitality Industry.
• Module 6 – Customer Service in Hospitality Organisations.
• Module 7 – Managing Physical Resources.
• Module 8 – Managing the Sales of Hospitality Services.

Module 1 – Principles of Rooms Division Operations Management

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand services provided by the rooms division in diverse contexts.
• Understand the impact of contemporary management issues on the effective management and business performance in the front of house area.
• Understand the factors that contribute to effective management and business performance in the accommodation service function.
• Understand how to apply techniques to maximise and measure occupancy and rooms revenue.

Module content includes:

(i)         Services provided by the rooms division in diverse contexts

• What is rooms division?
• Rooms division options.
• Hotel ratings.
• Types of hotel accommodation.
• Accommodation services staff.
• Front office staff.

(ii)          Managing front office

• The importance of front office.
• Planning and management of the front office.
• Key operational issues for the front office area.
• Good customer service.

(iii)         Managing accommodation services

• The importance of property interiors.
• Planning and management of accommodation service functions.
• The management and business performance of accommodation service functions.
• The impact of legislation.

(iv)         Managing Occupancy

• Techniques to maximise occupancy.
• Measurement of occupancy and rooms revenue.
• Related statistics of occupancy and room revenue.

Module 2 – Principles of Food Safety Management

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand how food business operators can ensure compliance with food safety legislation.
• Understand the operational requirements needed to ensure food safety
• Understand how to establish food safety management procedures
• Understand the controls required for food safety
• Understand how to maintain food safety management procedures

Module content includes:

• Food safety legislation.
• Design and layout.
• Cleaning, disinfection and pests.
• Food safety, cleaning and storage.
• Pest control.
• Temperature control legislation.
• Documented food safety management systems.
• How to design a food safety management system.
• Seven principles of hazard analysis.
• Food hygiene training.
• Management quality control.

Module 3 – Principles of Financial Performance Management

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand financial reporting systems and processes.
• Understand the use of capital and revenue budgets in a hospitality operation.
• Understand how to manage cash flow.
• Understand how to prepare financial cases for development projects.

Module content includes:

• Departmental accounting.
• Introduction to the use of financial information.
• Profit and loss account and balance sheet.
• Budgetary control.
• Budgeted profit and loss accounts.
• Break-even analysis.
• Interpreting the profit and loss account from the trial balance.
• Preparation of final accounts from the trial balance.
• Analysing financial statements .
• Raising finance.

Module 4 – Front Office Resource Management

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand how to control resources in the front office area.
• Manage physical resources in the front office area.
• Understand how to manage the deployment of human resources in the front office area.

Module content includes:

• Physical resources required for the front office.
• Importance of working within agreed budgets.
• Key financial records and documents.
• Choosing suppliers.
• Environmental impact of physical resources used in the front office area.
• Monitoring the use of physical resources.
• Advantages of using computerised systems.
• The main roles performed by the front office.
• Factors that influence human resource requirements.
• Monitoring human resources requirements.
• Categories of staff and seasonal variations.
• Methods to deploy staff.

Module 5 – Contemporary Hospitality Industry

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand the current structure of the hospitality industry.
• Understand recent developments in the hospitality industry.
• Explore the changing role of hospitality staff in different contexts.
• Explore potential trends and developments in hospitality provision and management.

Module content includes:

(i)           Current structure

• Scale and scope: size of outlet, type of ownership, sectors, services, contract; turnover and purchasing power.
• Diversity: products and services (for example, food, drink, accommodation, conference and banqueting, leisure facilities; levels of service, customer base and future trends).
• Organisational structure: operational areas (for example, food preparation, food and beverage services, accommodation services, front of house services, conference and banqueting; management functions and professional attitude).
• Structures: hierarchy, number of employees, by age/gender, roles (for example, management, supervisor, craft/operative), responsibilities (for example, junior staff and senior managers), specific procedures/practices, team leaders, supervisors, career and employment opportunities.

(ii)          Recent developments

• Operational issues: including standard operating procedures, food safety, service requirements/needs, levels of productivity, employee expectations, recruitment and retention, learning and development, flexible working, workforce competency, transferable competencies, socio-cultural issues, benchmarking and outsourcing services (for example, human resources, finance and security) and e-commerce.
• Managerial issues: including key players in the hospitality industry, international aspects, the impact of market forces, performance management, branding/re-branding, responding to niche markets, effective implementation of food safety management systems, environmental issues, security, policy development, project management, relationships with education/training providers and media issues.
• Legislation and regulation: influence and impact of national and European legislation and compliance with legislation (for example, food hygiene/safety, formal and practical food safety training).

Customer issues: customer focus and culture, quality improvement, Kitemarking.

(iii)         Changing role

• Roles: craft, operational, supervisory, management, characteristics, impact of changes on stakeholders (for example, organisation, employees and customers).
• Contexts: including international, national, franchised, owner manager, and organisational change.

(iv)         Potential trends and developments

• Trends: including boutique hotels, pub ownership, food and fashion trends, entrepreneurial opportunities, assessment centres, succession planning, work patterns and work-life balance, employee needs, market saturation, globalization, technology applications, use of foreign language and the learning culture.
• Developments: including competitors and competing sectors, hospitality portfolio management, the learning culture, reversal of existing trends, political stability, responding to external events/influences; public/private partnerships, application of forecasting techniques and measuring success.

Module 6 – Customer Service in Hospitality Organisations

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand customer service policies within business and service contexts.
• Understand how communication impacts on the promotion of a customer-focused culture.
• Understand how hospitality services to meet customer requirements and expectations can be identified.
• Understand how improvements to customer services can be implemented.

Module content includes:

• Why customer service matters.
• Defining good customer service.
• Mission statements and customer service policies.
• The benefits of training and developing staff.
• Benefits and limitations of communication methods.
• What makes good communication?
• Improving communications.
• The importance of effective communication.
• The customer service cycle.
• Customer satisfaction.
• Customer service provision.
• Evaluating customer services.
• Staff training.
• Findings solutions and solving problems.
• Dealing with customer issues/complaints.

Module 7 – Managing Physical Resources

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Identify and explain the effective and efficient use of physical resources within your own area of responsibility and in line with the organisation’s policies and procedures.
• Understand and explain the procedures for the maintenance and safe use of physical resources.
• Describe the procedures in relation to security of resources in line with an organisation’s policy.
• Identify opportunities for the development of services in and the management of physical resources.
• Identify and describe the techniques used for monitoring and evaluating the efficient use of physical resources.
• Describe how to contrast and compare the selection of existing and new physical resources.
• Understand the importance of staffing as a physical resource.

Module content includes:

• Induction and defining “managing physical resources”.
• Maintenance of physical resources.
• Security of physical resources.
• Reviewing and improving policies and procedures.
• Identifying techniques to evaluate the use of physical resources.
• Service specifications and service level agreements.
• Comparing services.
• Evaluating the management of physical resources.

Module 8 – Managing  the sales of hospitality services

Upon completion of this unit, learners will be able to:

• Understand methods of monitoring sales team performance.
• Understand how to improve the selling skills of employees in the hospitality sector.
• Understand how to improve sales within hospitality businesses.

Module content includes:

• Sales performance in the hospitality industry.
• Identifying the hospitality industry and the role of sales.
• Measuring and monitoring performance.
• Positioning strategy and research.
• The planning process.
• Identifying marketing and sales approaches and activities.
• SWOT analysis.
• Sales and marketing action plan.
• Roles and responsibilities of sales personnel.
• The hospitality sales cycle and categorising a sales team.
• The sale and marketing function.
• The hospitality cycle and promoting products / services.
• The skills and attributes of sales personnel.
• Obtaining customer feedback.
• Developing product knowledge and sales skills.
• Identifying buyer behaviour patterns.
• Competitiveness and up selling.
• In-house sales techniques.