Essay on Carnival Cruise Line

The cruise sphere suffered from the massive development in the past 20 years. Since 1980, possession augmented approximately 600 per cent, from one and a half million to over ten million passengers internationally. As the cruise industry has developed, it has also consolidated. Several organizations have gone bankrupt. In 2000, three organizations, reflecting only four label names, ceased operations. In 2001, more three organizations reflecting six labels went under. Simultaneously, the biggest organizations – Carnival Corporation, Star Cruises, P&O Princess and Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited,  – have augmented through the purchase of some other lines. These four organizations control practically 90% of all berths on ships. Carnival Corporation that owns six labels, is the biggest one. It controls one-third of berths. It obtained net earnings of a billion each in the past 24 months, with the gross revenues of $3.5 billion (Carnival). The cruise industry’s development has conveyed a requirement for more employees.

In such hospitality-focused industry, the employees are actually the secret behind the success, directly accountable for creating fun, unforgettable vacations for the tourists every day. This is no easy: it requires exceptional human beings who are wonderful warmth ambassadors – capable to adapt and grow with the constantly altering requirements of a dynamic and thrilling cruise sphere. And this paper is meant to analyze the organization’s recruitment process and human resource management.

Carnival Cruise Lines

Carnival Cruise Lines is the globe’s biggest cruise line. Established in 1972, the company is the finest cruise line for the families. Carnival Cruise Lines offers the most pioneering and complex programs for kids, and Carnival Cruise has twenty-two vessels in the fleet counting the second biggest cruise ship in the globe, which means the chances for jobs in all departments are never-ending.

Carnival is one of the most money-making cruise lines in the globe. The organization also owns:

• Holland America Cruise Line;
• Windstar Cruises;
• Costa Cruises;
• Cunard Line;
• Seabourn Cruise Line (Carnival)

Carnival Cruise Lines initiated the concept of having activities accessible on one vessel that would entertain individuals of all ages at the same time. In the last tendency, the idea for lots of marketers today is to discover ways to endorse the vessels as being entirely family oriented to bring young families onboard and to augment general ticket sales made from having the kids on the vessel.

As a service sphere, cruise businesses rely on the capability to attract and preserve high quality personnel. Engaging, training and maintaining the finest possible personnel are usually the things that differentiate one business from the competition. Successful human resource management is crucial for businesses in attracting, managing, recruiting, evolving, retaining and even letting go personnel. To accommodate the legions of loyal tourists, the organization hires thousands of employees. As of June 2009, Carnival’s personnel estimated approximately 3,500 shore workers, based out of the company’s corporate headquarters in Miami, and 28,000 shipboard employees (Carnival).

Human resource management:

Strengths:

• Diverse workforce;
• Employs assistance from 100 nations;
• Nice retention rate – workers stay for eight years generally;
• Camp Carnival;
• Have supervisors to control vessels for ecological pollutions and human rights infringements;
• Enthusiastic stuff;
• Vacation protection plan;
• Vacation guarantee;
• Lots of awards obtained.

Weaknesses:

• The ocmpany has been sited repeatedly by the US Maritime Union for exploiting workers (Carnival);
• Lawsuit in 1996 asserted a female had been assaulted on one of company’s vessels;
• More than a hundred of these claims were asserted before 1995.

The Data Required for the Informed Human Resource Decisions

The travel sphere is becoming more and more competitive. The sphere is challenged by an increasing demand for customer orientation, growing global competition, volatile markets in the insecure climate, altering clientele demands towards individualization and crucial potential in dissimilar market segments (Hobson, 1993). The initial stage of the cruise business is long over. Over the last twenty years, the companies have changed the model and structure to meet harsh troubles in the global tourism market.

Therefore, in this unstable business climate, only that cruise company will succeed that will alter to correspond to the competitive opportunities and threats to correspond to the requirements of a novel travel market, and will bring elasticity, creativity, modernism, professionalism and strength of mind into the operations (Hobson, 1993).

Nevertheless, there are a few human resource troubles, which plague the cruise sphere counting high demand for personnel flexibility, low wages, extreme personnel turnover, and lack of skill. There is even a disparity of tourism learning with sphere requirements, as a consequence of which experiences from the cruise sphere are much appreciated by other spheres and experiences from other sectors are helpful for cruise sphere. Lots of qualified workers leave the sphere and lots of qualified tourism college former students do not enter the sector, leading to the complete waste of sources and skills. Predicting skills that will be required in recent future, under circumstances of sector instability and susceptibility is a trouble. Multi-skilling, novel emerging spheres in tourism are increasing the demand for elasticity in existing skill-sets of human resources.

Furthermore, in the cruise sector there is a global, and sometimes overlapping, demand for competencies and knowledge. For example, knowledge of products, cruise services, destinations and attractions. Advanced knowledge and competencies may comprise foreign languages, product design and evolvement. Sustainability-oriented cruise sphere evolvement requires lots of HRD tactics aimed at the sphere stuff, multitude community and tourists, and strengthened by notions and approaches of sustainability. The sustainability based employment culture, operational practices and professional ethics are fundamental to sustainability in the cruise sphere.

Within the issued researches of human recourse management in the tourism sphere, two consistent troubles that feature in the reports comprise skill lack at technical and senior degrees and poor personnel planning (Baum, 1993). All the troubles may be overcome by well-organized and skilled manpower. For large enterprises, like Carnival Cruise Lines, human resource matters and the factors influencing the work are often highly linked to the personnel and thus distinguishing the role of continuing evolvement of the personnel resource to accomplish strategic aims become crucial. A re-investment in the personnel with the help of on-going training is highly recommended.

Organization’s Recruitment Process

Carnival values the diversity as every team member brings an exceptional spirit and flavor to the fleet. More than 39,000 devoted members of Carnival hail from a hundred various nations and at any time, upwards of seventy nationalities are present on every Carnival ship. The personnel members prefer to stay and work at sea due to the chances for traveling, meeting many interesting people, improving the professional skills and gaining a nice living.

The used to hire officers, crew and personnel with the help of the approved network of employment companies, also regarded  as manning agencies. These agencies interview potential employees on the company’s behalf and are based mainly in Romania, Thailand, Italy, Peru, India, South Africa, Croatia, Indonesia,  and the Philippines. The company recruits qualified workers from more than one hundred nations. Today Carnival Cruise Lines does not provide a printable job application. When a person decides which job is the finest match for his or her education and skills, he or she should visit the Carnival Cruise site and click the “Fun Jobs” link at the bottom of a homepage (Carnival). If the lists job openings, he or she should follow the application process. Full-time or part-time jobs may differ depending on the place.

The company performs well by using direct or indirect links to employment data within the website. In summary, it performs well in the e-recruiting approach category, with some overlap into the content category. However, the cruise lines are not utilizing the sites to the fullest potential. It may send the image that the company is not organized well enough to accept applications online, or vie email. The organization performs poorly in the content category. Whilst job lists and descriptions were provided, no other data, for the majority of the cruise lines, was provided.  For instance, working on a vessel is most probably unlike many other jobs, yet Carnival did not provide any description of what a typical day at work might be like. If anyone is to apply for a job on a vessel, they should be made aware of the ins and outs of job on a liner. It is understandable that payment data not be posted on the Internet sites as it may differ by individual. Still, even small indication of what the payment could be, would be helpful. Potential job applicants, particularly those completely new to the cruise sphere, will have no idea where payment may begin. The same may be said of the other benefits.

Technology changes quickly and organizations continue to adapt to it. A result of that is that the cruise lines could alter the make-up of the career Internet sites. Carnival is not taking full advantage of the internet recruiting abilities that are available to the company. They need to evolve better Internet recruiting approaches if they are to compete with other organizations that are within the cruise sphere, and in other spheres. With the cruise sphere increasing so quickly, it is vital that they do everything they can to hire new skilled workers. Internet recruiting is but one part of the recruitment procedure, however it is usually the initial contact a potential worker may have with the company.

Human Resource Policies and Practices

The company’s jobs will fall under one of some categories – departments counting the Personal Care Department, Deck and Engineering Department, Activity/Entertainment Department, Service and Hospitality Department and Office Positions. To become a team member, an applicant should be sociable, friendly, and enjoy working with families and kids. He or she should enjoy journey and have no problem with spending extensive periods of time at sea. An applicant should be at least 18-21 years old, exceed a background check, and depending on the status, a bachelor’s degree or even higher may be needed. For instance, jobs in Carnival’s engineering department will require an extensive amount of education and experience.

Whilst lots of jobs on Carnival Cruise Lines demand a degree, several do not. Several instances comprise bartender, retail salesperson, housekeeping and crewmember. Aerobics instructors, massage therapists, spa employees require no bachelor’s degree, but the jobs require a training and certification.

Entry-level employees with the company usually begin in crew or clientele service associate jobs. Entry-level assignments comprise cleaning and maintaining vessel areas, assisting clients, processing food and drink orders, or completing some other crucial jobs at sea. Professional workers usually work in maintenance, ship’s crew, entertainment careers or hospitality management. Professional assignments differ depending on the job title, vessel assignment, and department of employment.

To work on board people are required to have a passport. Also with an exception of Canadians, non-American citizens need to have a visa. All workers have to undergo an approved and existing Carnival Cruise Lines medical check and documentation. Additionally, the workers need an official employment letter taken from Carnival. To work on board employees should be at least 21 years of age.

When arriving into the USA, workers should pass through Customs and Immigration at which they must present the passport, visas and Carnival’s official employment letter. All non-American Carnival workers need to have I-95 form to visit any American port; this must be accessible every time people leave the ship. American citizens are required to complete a background check. All Carnival workers will complete an extensive company defined medical check prior to joining the stuff. When the medical check is finished and approved by the corporate therapeutic department, workers will be cleared to journey. Medical papers will be applicable for 24 months.

Carnival Cruises Lines is an extremely “couple friendly” line, and endeavors to permit couples to work on one cruiser whenever achievable. For the initial contract it may be difficult to keep couples together on the vessel as all contracts are completed at various times. Carnival prefers to review workers as individuals before committing to recruiting them as couples. When couples completed the initial contract, Carnival will do its best to put them together for the future contracts. All Carnival Cruise Lines workers have to be fluent in English. Any other languages spoken by personnel are certainly a benefit to the organization. Following the successful conclusion of employees’ initial contract, discounted rates are accessible to workers and their family members. Also member of the entertainment workers are provided with some guest area privileges, for instance, the gym/spa, lounges, bars, clubs and most of the Lido deck area. The workers are paid U.S. dollars on the bi-weekly base from the paymaster on board. Should workers have spare time, they can work for one of the concessions aboard ship, for instance, art auctioneers and super shopper.

The disadvantage to working on a line is that usually the work is very hard, the hours are long and a person can not go home after the shift. Also, since people are living in overcrowded quarters they should make an attempt to get along with the colleagues. One more drawback to working on a cruise line is that job contracts run usually six months. This means that a worker will be away from friends and family members for half a year.

Carnival’s Compensation Policy

Carnival Cruise employees enjoy the job advantages of compensated job training, competitive payment scales and flexible scheduling for the cruise ship sphere. Qualified company’s associates usually obtain benefits, like paid vacation days, health insurance variations, 401(k) retirement plans, and extra employment bonuses. The payment varies depending on the job, vessel and qualification. This data is not provided on the site. However, it is well-known that employees have a vacation guarantee, vacation protection plan and many various wards.

Some of the most attractive advantages of working for the company comprise getting to sail around the globe whilst making friends and learning about other cultures. Other perks count: free food, accommodations, and travel expenses, medical and dental insurance, cruise travel privileges for a worker and his or her family. If a person starts the online Carnival job application, he could start earning the competitive salary and also the comprehensive benefits package he looks for.

Conclusion

The cruise sphere is a constantly developing sphere. Every New Year brings additional challengers to the open sea. With all these liners covering the same destinations and waters, the hunt for market fracture depends on what the organization suggests to the client on board to assist them in making a decision which vessel to book for the vacation. These tendencies comprise the desire of clients to be in control of the cruise route, the quest for novel destinations globally, and the capability for families of all ages to enjoy voyage together. To remain a successful organization Carnival Cruise should do everything possible to retain the finest and qualified workers. Also, it is highly recommended to utilize Internet technology to provide more employment data for the job candidates.