A Preliminary Study Exploring Management Perspective of HRM Practices in Saudi Arabia MNC Hotels

Abstract

This study explores the importance of human resource management (HRM) practices used in Multinational corporation (MNC) hotels in Saudi Arabia. It also considers which HRM practices used in Saudi hotel corporations, management consider assists their staff in better undertaking their jobs. Currently there is a scarcity of research examining the HRM practices in the Saudi context. Further, this is the first study investigating these issues within the Saudi hotel setting. Interviews were conducted with twelve General Managers (GMs) and Human Resource Directors (HRDs) from four Saudi cities, of Makkah, Jeddah, Al Madinah and Riyadh. The results suggest that, despite the challenges facing HRM practices in Saudi Arabia, the practices used in the hotel sector are similar to those practices used in the international context, albeit after modifications to fit the Saudi context. However, the opposite to that was found to be the case for employee perceptions of HRM practices in Saudi.