Determine the challenges involved in managing a restaurant operation that are specific to your state or local municipality, as well as how you would address those challenges.

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Most states regulate their health departments by city or county. Search for health department regulations for food service facilities that are closely related to the location where you reside. Focus on possible challenges to the restaurant industry, such as health department regulations and requirements, social concerns, competitive issues, and / or demographic and geographic issues.

Write a four to five (4-5) page paper in which you:

  1. Determine the challenges involved in managing a restaurant operation that are specific to your state or local municipality, as well as how you would address those challenges.
  2. Determine the impact of computerization on food service and lodging operations in your state, particularly in the areas of reservations, accounting, personnel management, and the recording of sales transactions. Consider the quality of technology infrastructure in your state and the degree of technology usage by potential customers visiting or using these services within your state.
  3. Analyze the interdependence of food service, lodging, and meeting segments of the hospitality industry and make two recommendations for how the synergy between the three could be improved, using examples from your state to illustrate your case.
  4. Consider how these segments can improve their relationships between one another and how they can combine their services in order to be more marketable in your home state.
  5. Determine the likely consequences of the introduction of gaming entertainment into your state, or if your state already allows gaming, the impact of significant economic expansion of the segment upon other segments of the hospitality industry.
  6. Use at least three quality references. Note: Wikipedia and similar websites do not quality as academic resources.
  1. Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
    1. Typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
    2. Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
    3. Include a reference page. Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

  • Analyze the basic procedures involved in managing a restaurant operation.
  • Determine the impact of computerization on food service and lodging operations, particularly in the areas of reservations, accounting, personnel management, and the recording of sales transactions.
  • Analyze the interdependence of the food service, lodging, and meetings segments of the hospitality industry.
  • Discuss the nature of and the various activities related to gaming entertainment.
  • Use technology and information resources to research issues in hospitality and tourism management.
  • Write clearly and concisely about hospitality and tourism management using proper writing mechanics.

What if technology made marketing obsolete, what if technology enabled all 4 P’s of the marketing mix to happen with very little intervention from us marketing folks?

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What if technology made marketing obsolete, what if technology enabled all 4 P’s of the marketing mix to happen with very little intervention from us marketing folks? We are not at that point today, but marketing technology is moving us closer to that point.  We already have the technology to support monetary transactions (price) at any time or place.  Services like Boku a mobile phone becomes a cash register, enabling users to tap a purchase that is charged to their mobile bill, no credit card or bank account involved.  A similar service connects your mobile purchase right to your credit card Phoneswipe.  SIM cards can even be used to transfer funds without a mobile device.  In fact this technology in combination with cell phones is used by Givedirectly to send funds directly to individuals in Kenya and Uganda while keeping their marketing costs extremely low. Goodventures is a new foundation that just matched Give Directly’s campaign with a $5million dollar match of funds.

In combination with price (place) is also no longer a physical entity.  We can purchase items at GAP while driving down the New Jersey Turnpike, okay that is my example.  But the same goes for nonprofit’s.  While riding on Amtrak I read an article in their branded magazine Amtrak Arrive, and immediately decided to donate to the cause, Oklahoma Humane Society.  So at any place, anytime a nonprofit now has the ability to send a message and receive a response.  Social media like Facebook and Twitter have made this possible as conduits of direct-feed information, real-time information and taking word-of-mouth (promotion) to a whole new level.  One last marketing-mix P to mention is Product.  When it comes to nonprofit’s most offer products in the form of a service, providing aid, support, learning a skill, caring for animals, children, homeless (vulnerable populations), or encouraging a change in behavior such as quitting smoking.  One organization we mentioned in a previous conference is Blackbaud which manages to deliver solutions for all aspects of the marketing-mix.

The internet has allowed people to come together in many ways, one pertaining to nonprofit’s it the ability to volunteer.  No when the mood strikes you to help out it is easier than ever to find a nonprofit that is looking for your help!  One such site is Volunteer Match it provides the opportunities to find volunteer situations at some of those very nonprofit’s you found locally in the first conference.

What about those databases used in marketing, how is that data gathered?  Here is an excellent Wall Street Journal article about data Gathering that data for databases.  If you are not in the mood to volunteer, perhaps you are in the mood to donate money to a charitable organization. And now the decision to support or even create a charitable source is easier than ever thanks to crowdfunding.  The technology that has enabled target audiences and the general public to support a cause, makes donating funds an efficient and easy process.  Here is additional information on this subject that you should know about Market research and crowdfunding.

I could not resist ending this Topic on the discussion of social media and how it has affected one aspect that students might find meaningful, college admissions, this is a very interesting discussion of that subject Social media and college admissions.

Vocabulary

Technology – the branch of knowledge that deals with the creation and use of technical means and their interrelation with life, society, and the environment, drawing upon such subjects as industrial arts, engineering, applied science, and pure science. The application of tools and methods: the study, development, and application of devices, machines, and techniques for manufacturing and productive processes.

Database – a comprehensive collection of related data organized for convenient access, generally in a computer.

Market research – the gathering and studying of data relating to consumer preferences, purchasing power, etc., especially prior to introducing a product on the market. Also includes focus groups, interviews, data analysis, and surveys. Research can be qualitative (behavioral – attitudes and beliefs about an organization) and quantitative (numerical – using quantifiable information that can be mathematically manipulated to predict future results or quantities).

Social media – forms of electronic communication through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content.

Electronic data capture -Use of point of sale terminal (or a specialized software for online transactions) for submitting and validating credit card transactions to a merchant account provider, or some other credit card transaction processor.Digital mapping – a method of preparing maps in which the data is stored in a computer for ease of access and updating spatial solutions.

Content marketing – Content marketing is a marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action. Basically, content marketing is the art of communicating with your customers and prospects without selling. It is non-interruption marketing. Instead of pitching your products or services, you are delivering information that makes your buyer more intelligent. The essence of this content strategy is the belief that if we, as businesses, deliver consistent, ongoing valuable information to buyers, they ultimately reward us with their business and loyalty. Content Marketing Institute

Respond

1. Please provide us with one example of how a nonprofit (your choice) might use Snapchat.

https://www.snapchat.com/

2. Go back to the lecture and visit volunteermatch.  Share with us an example of a volunteering opportunity near you that interests you.  After all, marketers have to try out their ideas to make sure they work!

3.  Is there a technology that works best for you? And why?  Is it social media?  Is it traditional direct mail?  Is it visiting a website?  In other words, work it backwards, assume your chosen nonprofit is trying to reach you.

Why are you conducting this questionnaire? (Inform them of who you are.)2. Who is the target audience?

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This assignment will assess the following competency: 6. Construct primary research tools

Directions:This learning activity asks for two parts: that you create a cover letter and a questionnaire, which you will distribute to collect primary data to answer your specific research question(s). This satisfies the proposal requirement that you conduct primary research. You will include your findings in your final paper and in your professional oral presentation.

For example, perhaps you are proposing to your boss that your company create an on-site daycare center. You would then want to create a questionnaire to distribute to your co-workers to gather data to further your proposal.

As the text discussed, you need to carefully construct your questions so they are valid and reliable to ensure proper data results. When constructing your questionnaire, remember to include instructions for the participant on how to correctly complete and return the survey (e.g., email, mail, in person, etc.). The questionnaire should include a minimum of 10 questions.

Along with the questionnaire, complete a cover letter addressed to your instructor answering the following questions:1. Why are you conducting this questionnaire? (Inform them of who you are.)2. Who is the target audience? (Why are you asking them for information?)3. What data are you looking to gather?4. Why did you choose to organize your questionnaire in the format you used (open-ended, close-ended questions, etc.)?

Analyze the costs and benefits of each quality improvement or accreditation-related program by stakeholder group (e.g., patient, provider, and third-party payer).

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Quality Improvement in the Health Care Organization Accreditation

The mandate for improving the way in which health care is delivered was stimulated by the public outcry over the estimated 98,000 deaths because of medical errors each year, according to the Institute of Medicine in 1999. Since then, health care organizations have sought means by which the public can be reassured that they were meeting quality and safety standards. Accreditation agencies (e.g., The Joint Commission) and quality awards provide a means for the public to evaluate where the agency is meeting minimum standards.

You have been assigned by your manager to determine which accrediting agencies or quality improvement programs your hospital will utilize in its upcoming revenue cycle. Your hospital is a magnet hospital in a large urban area that provides multilayered services. You have previously used The Joint Commission for your accreditation but feel that you might be better served by using another accrediting body. You have three months in which to gather data and present the information to your manager.

Complete the following for this assignment:

  • Choose 3 quality improvement or accreditation-related programs to consider in replacing The Joint Commission for your organization, and briefly describe them. Your agency accepts Medicare and Medicaid payments; therefore, you will need to explore, as background, the conditions of participation for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). This is important information because you will need to compare your list of accrediting agencies and quality improvement programs with the conditions of participation to see if they meet the criteria.
  • Analyze the costs and benefits of each quality improvement or accreditation-related program by stakeholder group (e.g., patient, provider, and third-party payer).
  • Rank your quality improvement or accreditation-related program suggestions with rationale.