Positive relationships at work are important to success in the hospitality and service industries, in the view of participants in the Positive Relationships at Work Roundtable, held in June at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration (SHA). The roundtable highlighted the value of positive relationships, which can be a source of individual and collective growth and learning. The roundtable was sponsored by the Cornell Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) and the Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor and Employment Relations (CIHLER).
More than thirty academic representatives, including business school professors and doctoral students from around the United States, attended the roundtable, which had the following goals: provide and receive developmental feedback on research in progress related to positive relationships at work; build connections with others with shared interests in positive relationships at work; and foster a sustainable community of scholars interested in positive relationships at work.
Connections, belonging, and shared beliefs were key discussion points. Participants identified the conditions, contexts, and behaviors that enable the creation and maintenance of human connections in the workplace, including organizational identity, justice, mentoring, and compassion. Participants pointed out that positive relationships engender feelings of inclusion, mutual obligation, and reciprocity that foster actions which are important to the hospitality industry, such as interpersonal helping and innovative behaviors that encourage customer satisfaction. Workers who feel that their relationships with colleagues and customers are meaningful and supportive are more likely to be satisfied with their work organizations, exhibit extra discretionary effort towards their work, and be less likely to exit.
Furthermore, participants particularly highlighted the importance of organizational culture in the creation and maintenance of positive relationships at work. They suggested that affection, caring, and compassion are possible even in highly competitive organizations and industries, particularly when top management teams are committed to fostering a culture that values and rewards positive interpersonal connection.
The roundtable was chaired by SHA Professors Stephanie J. Creary, Jamie Perry, and Kristina Workman. Professor Creary is an assistant professor of strategy who co-founded the Positive Relationships at Work (PRW) Microcommunity, an international community of scholars dedicated to the research, practice, and teaching of positive relationships at work, which she co-led from 2011 through 2016. The majority of roundtable attendees were also PRW members, including Professor Workman, who is an assistant professor of management and organizational behavior. Professor Perry is an assistant professor of human resources management.
Said Professor Creary: “SHA was the ideal host for this event, given our emphasis and expertise in hospitality, service, and community-building, all of which require positive relationships. Aside from many rigorous discussions and engaging debates that resulted in new ideas on how to create and sustain positive relationships at work, we received positive feedback from our colleagues and guests on SHA’s generosity and hospitality throughout the event, including that of the impeccable service staff at the Statler Hotel.”
