Kikuoka Luxembourg SA, hotel management, golf operations, organizational culture, Accor group, siloed operations, HR policies, family business, European management, Japanese corporate culture
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Abstract
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Abstract
In-depth analysis of Kikuoka Luxembourg SA's organizational structure, highlighting the siloed operations between hotel and golf departments and the need for coherence and a common culture.
Extract
[...] Transversal analysis and potential strategic improvements 4.1. Staffing Contradictions and Morale Between the hotel entity and the golf entity, the existing differences in HR policies contribute to widening important organizational differences in terms of organizational culture. Hotel staff work flexible hours, while golf staff are forced to compensate for overtime in low season. This makes golf staff feel a sense of injustice, even though they work under the same legal entity. At the same time, the use of temporary agency workers during the peak season undermines the consistency of client service, leading to negative reactions and tensions with the service standards recommended by Accor. [...]
[...] 2.4 Golf Department The golf director is the CEO's spouse, who prioritizes building a prestigious golfing experience, often investing in high-end facilities or reducing membership fees to stay competitive, sometimes at the expense of profitability. Luxembourg's small size and multiple golf courses lead to pricing pressures. 2.5 Organizational Structure There are two main departments: 1. Hotel and restaurant (accor-run) 2. Golf Operations (run by the Golf director) The legal entity is Kikuoka Luxembourg S.A., one single corporate body, but with siloed operations (distinct accounting, HR, marketing systems). [...]
[...] Each function operated independently, with little to no coordination between them. The functional division at Kikuoka was exacerbated by the fact that each department had distinct priorities and objectives, with no real common strategy. Kikuoka Luxembourg SA operated under a fragmented organizational structure, where the hotel and golf course functioned almost independently. The two main departments-the Mercure Luxembourg Kikuoka Golf & Spa hotel and the Kikuoka Country Club (golf sector)-were each managed by a distinct director, with dedicated teams and separate hierarchies (appendix 2). [...]
[...] While we have described possibilities of pooling for support functions, possibilities of optimizing planning (appendix in order to gain efficiency in the allocation of resources, particularly for the hotel when we are in low season or even the possibility of promoting coordination practices allowing for gains in efficiency. There would be a strong interest for the organization to work more on objectives aimed at efficiency, control of its environment and especially growth. The company seems to be caught in a vice: between the disinvestment of its shareholders, the lack of strategic vision of its CEO, the organizational culture differences, as well as its current losses favored by the lack of vision. 3.2.3. [...]
[...] Because of these power imbalances, tensions existed regularly. This was also due to conflicting objectives between actors: - between Accor and shareholders: Accor was primarily a sales incentive and this was not in line with the profit-oriented objectives of shareholders; - also, the relationship between the CEO and the golf manager was also problematic. Familial ties can overshadow rational decision-making, maintaining a prestige-oriented golf operation despite significant financial shortfalls. 3.3.2.2. Power dynamics and divergent cultures In addition, it is possible to question the conjuncture of these elements related to powers and the dynamics related to the culture of leaders. [...]
