Case Study Analysis

The Ordinary Heroes of the Taj

By Rohit Deshpande & Anjali Raina

Introduction
Organizational Culture is a system of shared values, Beliefs and assumptions, which drives
the behavior of an employee in an organization. Every organization develops and maintains a
unique culture, which provides guidelines and boundaries for the behavior of the members of
the organization. A strong organization culture helps an organization stand out from the rest.
The Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai (The Taj Mumbai) stands out with its unique
organizational culture. The Taj is highly known for its customer-centric work environment.
They proved their utmost loyalty towards customer at the time of 26/11 attack. The staff
members kept the lives of guest above their own lives and remained calm and optimistic
under extreme pressure. The Taj Mumbai’s general manager – Karambir Singh Kang also
stated “If the hotel goes down, I will be the last man out.” Even a 24-year-old banquet
manager, Mallika Jagad, probably the youngest person, was still doing her job. All staff
members were engaged in saving lives of customers and as many as 11 employees laid their
lives while helping guests to escape. This shows their extreme dedication.

SWOT Analysis
Strengths:
The Taj Mumbai has an extreme customer centric culture, where employees are willing to do
almost anything for guests. The ultimate test – 26/11 attack – turn its employees into a band
of ordinary heroes.
The Taj has a reward system for employees that links customer delight to employee rewards,
namely – Special Thanks and Recognition System (STARS). This idea increased the customer
retention rate because employees felt that their contributions were valued.
Weakness:
High cost of maintenance due to its widespread operation i.e. operating 108 hotels in 12
countries. It can also be inferred from the instance stated in article – of an irate guest – the
employee did her best to mollify an angry guest, so that she would return to the Taj.
Opportunity:
Targeting tier-2 cities is an opportunity for the Taj. Not all hotels can expand to tier-2 cities,
the Taj has a highly loyal employee base which makes a unique proposition to expand and
gain more customers.
Threats:
Threat to the Taj is other high ended hotels, which have a large loyal customer base.
E.g. Oberoi, Radisson, etc.
Issue and Analysis:
According to my understanding, the main issue raised here is:
What prompted employees to put the lives of guest above their own?
The employees were highly dedicated due to the customer centric organization culture
adopted by the Taj. The main reason behind maintaining this culture are:
• Values – Driven Recruitment System
• Training Customer Ambassador
• Employee Reward System
The Taj hires most of its staff from smaller cities and towns because, as per article, that’s
where traditional Indian value lies; and the people from towns are likely to be loyal to the
company and customers. The recruiters mainly look for three traits: respect for elders,
cheerfulness and neediness.
The Taj training programs not only motivate employees, but they also create a favorable
organizational culture. The training provided to them is for 18 months, class room and on the
job operations training.
The reward system that the Taj follows increases the value of its employees. The STARS
reward system created an extraordinary service culture for its employees.

Submitted by:
Aanchal Mahajan
202022027