International Foodservice and Sanitation Management Curricula to Enhance Student Skills

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Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 19:137–156, 2010Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 1936-8623 print/1936-8631 onlineDOI: 10.1080/19368620903455260

WHMM1936-86231936-8631Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, Vol. 19, No. 2, Nov 2009: pp. 0–0Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management

International Foodservice and Sanitation Management Curricula to Enhance

Student Skills

International Foodservice and Sanitation Management CurriculaJ. K. Leong and M. Hancer

JERROLD K. LEONG and MURAT HANCERSchool of Hotel and Restaurant Administration, Oklahoma State University,

Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA

Hospitality students hired by multinational hospitality corporationsmay need theoretical knowledge, skills, and abilities to be successfulin the global business setting. The perceived competencies for aninternational foodservice management and international sanita-tion management curriculum are presented. Principal componentanalysis was used to determine the international competencydimensions in foodservice management, sanitation management,and leadership. Sanitation protocol, international operations, andinternational leadership were areas of expertise needed to besuccessful in a global business environment. Regression analysisindicated that sanitation protocol had the most effect on knowl-edge of sanitation benchmarks, and leadership traits and interna-tional operations highly influenced knowledge of foodservicemanagement best practices.

KEYWORDS International foodservice management, sanitationmanagement, leadership

INTRODUCTION

Hospitality students hired by multinational hospitality corporations may needtheoretical knowledge, skills, and abilities related to sanitation, internationaloperations, and leadership competencies to be successful in the global busi-ness environment. International knowledge and theoretical applications are

Address correspondence to Jerrold K. Leong, PhD, FMP, School of Hotel and RestaurantAdministration, Oklahoma State University, 210 Human Environmental Sciences West, Stillwater,OK 74078, USA. E-mail: [email protected]

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138 J. K. Leong and M. Hancer

important tools needed by these individuals to perform effectively in theinternational business arena. A way to gain this knowledge is through new orexisting hospitality courses that have an international business and strategicmanagement emphasis. The proposed proficiency areas address the need toincreasing international skills and orientation of U.S. hospitality managementstudents. The need for a broad educational base is through the creation ofcourses in international sanitation management and international foodservicemanagement. These courses will enable the individual to understand the glo-bal business and corporate strategies used to remain competitive in a globalenvironment. The educational development of the U.S. hospitality profession-als will serve as a competitive advantage and is expected to be a source ofsustained competitive advantage for multinational enterprises.

CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

In order to have a practical and innovative hospitality education program,curriculum improvement is a continuous process that reflects the currenttrends in the hospitality sector. These trends are in the form of best prac-tices and guiding principles as to the knowledge, skills, and abilities relatedto foodservice, sanitation, and leadership competencies needed to enhanceemployee performance. The conceptual frame of reference in foodservicemanagement will be expanded as the individual applies the theoretical prin-ciples to resolving operational problems. The operational problems can beresolved over time, when the individual is equipped with the foodservicesanitation and strategic management principles. These principles will serveas a baseline working knowledge that may be applied in strategies to miti-gate the challenges and improve hospitality tangible products and improveservice quality extended to the hospitality operation’s clientele. The impor-tance of sanitation management as the operational foundation of any food-service operation relative is to improve cleanliness and reduce thepossibilities of a foodborne illness outbreak. The integrity of food safety inthe protection of foods in the foodservice establishment from intentionaland unintentional contamination is paramount to good business practicesand also impacts the welfare and health of the guest. Operational principlesand policies need to be communicated, mastered and practiced on a dailybasis to strengthen the competitive structure of the firm.

Sigala and Baum (2003) emphasized that universities are facing chal-lenges from the external business environment and must respond to thesechanges with effective curricula to prepare students for the future. More-over, the needed curriculum changes in response to the need for well-qualifiedprofessionals will weigh heavily on the four-year universities’ capabilities toprovide the needed educational competencies. However, Jones (2004)claimed that large parts of the hospitality curriculum have remained


International Foodservice and Sanitation Management Curricula 139

unchanged over the last 30 years. This statement may be true, but themajority of hospitality education programs tends to be innovative and willcontinue to change their curriculum to meet the needs of the multinationalhospitality enterprises. The relevant changes affecting curriculum develop-ment include balanced and integrated food and lodging learning modules,discussion of the challenges of global competition, improvements to computer-based learning in a technological environment, recognition of changes inthe socioeconomic environment, and the recognition of the diversity of thestudents. The hospitality curriculum may be expanded with the design of aCD-ROM teaching module that supports classroom discussion and labora-tory practices (Gillespie & Baum, 2000). Moreover, many universities haveundertaken cooperative roles with other countries in various forms to offerjoint programs leading to degrees in all disciplines from their home country.Therefore, teachers and curriculum designers must determine students’effective learning styles, how to design various assessment instruments toassess the students’ prior knowledge, skills and capabilities, and how togain a more thorough and effective understanding and appreciation ofstudents’ relevant living conditions and national cultures. The curriculumsubject is designed to improve the students’ know-how in pursuing knowledgein their respective disciplines. Developing subject-matter curricula and coursesis a complicated and time-consuming process, and requires a team approachand must be customized to the student’s needs (Kaplan & Shumakova, 1992).Additionally, the greatest challenge facing curriculum designers is oftenrethinking and adapting curriculum development models to fit the needs ofthe learner. When developing a new subject-matter curriculum and relatedinstructional PowerPoint slide material, there is a need to carefully considerthe learners’ prior knowledge and encourage student-to-student as well asstudent-to-teacher interactions to promote a collaborative learning environ-ment (Fosnot, 1996; Tsai, 2000). This learning environment and personalinteraction will encourage students to be empowered to learn, to be curious,resourceful, discover, and apply the theoretical constructs to potential oper-ational issues and come forth with a workable solution.

The development of skills, knowledge, and abilities to be effective inthe international business sector is a continuous process (Smith, 1996; Westlake,2002). Interpersonal relationships between the faculty member and studentenhance the learning environment. Van Oord and Den Brok (2004) foundthat communications between the faculty and student was enhanced whenthe faculty members exhibited respect and care, interacted in a cooperativenature, and encouraging the student to think outside of the box in the appli-cation of theoretical principles. The other favorable attributes were helpful-ness, understanding, friendliness, and leadership competencies in theclassroom environment. Moreover, the student-faculty relationships werestrengthened with the understanding of cultural and gender differences inlearning styles and the student’s academic capabilities expatriates will


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support the multinational enterprises’ operational goals of transferring func-tional knowledge to new and seasoned indigenous workforce associates.The researcher D’Annunzio-Green (1997) contended that preparing the indi-vidual to work at all levels of management would enhance one’s careerdevelopment and promotion progression. The level of position successionis dependent upon the corporation’s concern to attract high quality graduatesto augment their labor pool. The notion of commitment on the part of theexpatriate working in an international environment provided many trainingand development opportunities (Asamoah, Healy, & Mayadas, 1997). Theattractive rewards, professional experiences, language training, and comfortableworking environments were advantages of overseas positions. The ability towork with other national cultures and develop an appreciation for differenttransformational and transactional leadership and management competenciesis an advantage (Horng, 2004).

The notion of knowledge management is important in an educationalenvironment. The utilization of existing knowledge to build theoreticalconstructs is encouraging. Knowledge retention is critical for consistency inthe decision making process and to compare and evaluate new knowledgeacquisition. The knowledge sharing of expertise and protocol willstrengthen the multinational enterprises’ organizational infrastructure andincrease market share (D’Annunzio-Green, 1997; Hassan, 2000; Sigala &Baum, 2003; Torbiorn, 1997; Osman-Gani, 2000). The application of knowl-edge in an academic and business environment brings realism and rele-vance to the particular issue. The human resource component is expectedto use their knowledge, skills, and ability to sustain personal growth. More-over, according to Torbiorn (1997) the staffing of international operationsmay come to involve more strategic concerns leading to the development ofsustained competitive business strategies. In addition, the knowledge transferwill involve change in corporate culture, ways of thinking, cooperation, andcoordination among corporate members. All managers are encouraged toparticipate in a self-evaluation process, which leads to continuous qualityimprovement, training, orientation, and being steadfast to maintaining thecompetitive position of the firm (Codrington, 2004; Enz & Siguaw, 2000;Nicholls, Rothstein, & Bourne, 2002; Selmer, 2002).

The competencies of individuals contemplating foreign assignments areexpected to have a strong sense of financial knowledge to make asignificant impact on the sustainability of their corporation’s market share,profitability, and creation of wealth for their stakeholders and to reduce theoperational risk of being in business (Kay & Moncarz, 2004). The research-ers Chew and Horwitz (2004) found that individuals with strong values andare principle driven usually prefer and thrive in a cohesive corporateculture, which encourages individual achievement and high organizationcommitment. This notion enhances the individuals’ motivation to work inan international environment that is highly integrated, has strong core


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values, high performance standards, fosters high job retention, and highemployee involvement. In summary, the competencies lead to effective taskachievement, teamwork, excellent customer service, leadership, and com-munication among individuals.

Proposed Sanitation and Foodservice Management Competency Model

The educational development of the student’s competency will empowerthem to seek theoretical knowledge and practical applications to the criti-cal issues confronting an international business enterprise. The globalbusiness environment is in need of dynamic individuals. The individuals’competency and professional experience will enable them to understandthe rationale for the formulation of corporate level strategies to improvethe firm’s competitive advantage. These competencies may enable theindividual to be open-minded to the new innovations and leadershipstyles that strengthens the team approach to task achievement. The per-sonal relationships that are built through team-building may result in thedevelopment of skills in showing understanding, empathy, and listening.The compassion shown to others may reduce the resistance to change,and to provide a work environment that is effective and conducive fororganizational development (planned change) and organizational effi-ciency. These competencies may be reflected as best practices thatempower the individual to act ethically, exhibit a passion, and have strongcommitment to the hospitality industry.

The proposed sanitation and foodservice management competencymodel presented in Figure 1 illustrates the relationship between understanding

FIGURE 1 Proposed sanitation and foodservice competency model.

Knowledge ofSanitation

Benchmarks

Knowledge ofFoodservice

Management BestPractices

Sanitation Management CompetenciesFoodservice Management Competencies

H2

H1



and applying the theoretical concepts and knowledge of best practices. Theapplied competencies may improve foodservice administrative practices, foodhandling, and food safety practices in a conventional food production sys-tem. In the left side of the model, the sanitation standards and foodservicemanagement competencies are conveyed to the individuals in the context ofexisting operational problems and theoretical applications for its resolution.The right side of the model shows understanding of sanitation benchmarksand foodservice management best practices.

The knowledge of sanitation benchmarks, practices, and foodservicemanagement best practices may enable hospitality employees to provide alevel of superior quality service that exceeds the customer’s expectation.This added knowledge of the sanitation standards, the employee’s perfor-mance is expected to improve customer satisfaction. In turn, customer satis-faction is translated into increase guest retention and loyalty to a specificU.S. hospitality firm. Customer loyalty may be expressed as (a) attitudinalloyalty and (b) behavioral loyalty, which may lead to increased economicgrowth of the U.S. firm, exhibited by increases in market share, food andbeverage revenues, higher operating profits, and the creation of wealth forthe stakeholders.

Proposed Sanitation Management Course Content

The theoretical sanitation management concepts presented in this standalone undergraduate course will provide the fundamental managerialskills, protocol, and best practices in safeguarding and protecting thefood supply from cross-contamination. In addition, the course will providestrategies to train foodservice employees to handle food properly in theevent of a biosecurity threat, which may occur while working in a U.S.corporation located in a global business community. The food safetystandards, specific best practices and protocol, food protection issues,food inspection procedures, and managerial guiding principles will beused to design the sanitation management curriculum. The domesticfood safety principles learned may be adapted and dovetailed with thesanitation codes of a particular country or continent. This understandingmay strengthen personal commitment to protect food in the foodserviceestablishments or food manufacturing firms who market their productsfor indigenous in-country consumption and for exporting to neighboringcountries. The sanitation course will emphasize the application of HazardAnalysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles, Food and DrugAdministration model food codes, sanitation management benchmarks,sanitation training of employees, sanitary applications to safeguardfoods, protocol to protect and safeguard the food supply, food biosecu-rity issues, foodborne pathogens, international sanitation standards, andsanitary preventive measures. In addition, theoretical concept courses in



food science and food microbiology will be developed to add breadth tothe student understanding of the composition and quality of foods.

Proposed Foodservice Management Course Content

The proposed undergraduate course leading to a baccalaureate degree inhospitality administration will provide an understanding of the environmentalforces (political, legal, ecological, social, ethical, technological, and eco-nomic) that control a global business environment. One must be knowledge-able of the structure of multinational corporations and its corporate cultureand founder’s philosophy. The student, who learned knowledge, skills, andabilities related to foodservice management, will work effectively with othermembers of an international division of a domestic firm. For example, an indi-vidual who understands the McDonald’s Corporation’s domestic operationalprotocol will experience a smooth transition when assigned to the interna-tional country. Individuals working in the U.S. business sector are expected tobe sensitive to national cultures when given a foreign assignment. The courseobjective is to provide the most current protocol, best practices, and guidingprinciples for individuals seeking assignments with an international multina-tional enterprise. International business protocol, structure of multinationalcorporations, national cultures, international strategies, global strategic alliances,leadership of cross-cultural workforce, competitive methods, entry strategies,supply chain management, service quality, systems approach, benchmarksand best practices in operations, franchising, management contracts, totalquality, and communication processes will be the basis for the internationalfoodservice management curriculum.

Hypotheses

The research was based on the premise that the student’s perceptions forthe needed international course competency levels will affect the need tounderstand sanitation benchmarks and foodservice management best prac-tices. It is expected that a positive effect may occur on the necessity ofhaving the appropriate international sanitation and foodservice manage-ment skills, knowledge, and abilities to be successful in a global businessenvironment.

H1: There is positive relationship between the student’s perceptions ofinternational sanitation management knowledge, skills, and abili-ties, and knowledge of sanitation benchmarks.

H2: There is a positive relationship between the students’ perceptionsof international foodservice management competencies, andknowledge of foodservice management best practices.



METHODOLOGY

Research Instrument

The survey was designed to identify the student’s competencies needed inthe hospitality industry. Their responses may show the importance ofacquiring these valuable competencies, which would impact their futuresuccess and career development with a multinational firm. The survey seeksto target the international managerial core job competency and proficienciesthat an individual is expected to have prior to accepting a foreign assign-ment. The survey was divided into two parts. Part one of the survey askedthe students to what extent they agreed or disagreed with the statementspertaining to the international sanitation core competencies. The sanitationcompetencies are HACCP, sanitation benchmarks, sanitation codes, training,applications, protection, foodborne pathogens, international sanitation stan-dards, sanitary controls, and preventive measures. The context of the food-service sanitation statements was derived from the Food and DrugAdministration model food codes, ServSafe industry standards set forth bythe National Restaurant Association (2004), and the researchers’ professionalfoodservice management experiences. The frame of reference for the ques-tions was derived from a domestic perspective applied to the internationalfoodservice arena. The desired sanitation competencies would be applica-tions that would protect the food supply from contamination and enhanceguest safety. The best practices and guiding principles inherent in a foodserviceenvironment must be learned and mastered by the foodservice employee.The willingness to embrace these acceptable food handling practices willreduce the risk of foodborne illness or cross-contamination of food products.The employee that seeks to continually use these food safety practices willbe assured of not faltering in a sanitation criticality. Part two of the surveyinquired about the international foodservice management core competenciesneeded by individuals entering the international hospitality arena. The food-service management competencies are strategies, sensitivity, mentoring,communications, operational principles, competitive methods, supply chainmanagement, systems approach, service quality, and leadership. Thecontext of the management statements were derived from previous researchauthored by Enz and Siguaw, 2000, Torbion, 1997, D’Annunzio-Green,1997, and Chew and Horwitz, 2004. The management competencies wereadapted to reflect the desired competencies, knowledge, skills, and abilitiesof a hospitality manager. The strategic management process of developingstrategies to enhance the competitive advantage of the firm is a long-termprocess. Individuals that achieve success are able to embrace the notion ofbecoming an effective leader. The ability to lead subordinates through mentor-ing and communications will result in effective goal attainment. The abilityto work effectively in a global business environment will facilitate alignmentof human capital and capital assets and achieve the stature of high performing


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teams. The responses to the questions were based on a 5-point Likert-typescale. The Likert scale was 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) to provideinsight into the anticipated educational needs of those hospitality educationstudents, who may contemplate a career in the global environment. Aconservative estimate of approximately 5% of students in a hospitality educa-tion program will work in the international sector during their professionalcareer. The hospitality education students are required to complete profes-sional internships with hospitality firms prior to their graduation from theirhospitality education program. These students are exposed to the firm’sbusiness activities that have international properties, licensing and franchis-ing agreements, and management contracts to operate a variety of hospital-ity lodging and foodservice operations. The internship experience assiststhe students in identifying the managerial competencies that are needed tobe successful in their professional careers. Perhaps the previous hospitalityadministration courses, class discussions, and internship experience mayhave helped the students to identify and develop those competencies priorto graduation. The perceived needed core competencies identified by therespondents in the survey may be useful when redesigning the curriculumto reflect the subject matter necessary to provide the theoretical conceptsand practical experiences for the forthcoming hospitality professional.

Sampling and Data Collection

The population for this study was hospitality education undergraduates andgraduate students majoring in hotel and restaurant administration. Theundergraduate students in the introduction to the hospitality industry, costcontrol course, basic food preparation, procurement, and capstone courseswere asked to participate in the study. A total of 188 survey instrumentswere collected and usable. The students’ demographic profile was notincluded in this study.

Data Analysis

In this study, frequencies were performed for all sanitation and foodservicemanagement competencies. The mean rating and standard deviation wasused to rank respondents’ perception of the competencies needed to besuccessful in a global business environment. In regard to reliability, Cronbach’salpha was used to measure the reliability of the survey questions related tothe attributes of international sanitation and foodservice management.Factor analysis, employing principal component analysis with varimax rota-tion was performed to reduce the sanitation and foodservice variables intomeaningful dimensions. The new dimensions or factors were used toexplain the maximum amount of variance from the original group of variables.The resulting factors were used in a multiple linear regression analysis to



evaluate the effect of sanitation protocol, international operations, andleader’s relationship on (a) knowing sanitation benchmarks, and (b) knowingfoodservice management best practices.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Sanitation and Foodservice Management Expertise

The mean and standard deviation for each statement is presented in Table 1.The results indicated the student’s agreement with the belief that thosesuccessful international managers may have these professional competencies.With regard to the foodservice management skills, the important dimensionswith corresponding mean values are: (a) successful communication process(4.26), (b) international leadership principles (4.18), (c) sensitive to nationalcultures (4.12), (d) international service quality protocol (4.10), (e) knowl-edge of competitive strategies (4.09), (f) mentoring and directing employees(4.07), (g) international competitive methods (4.04), (h) internationaloperational principles (4.03), (i) international supply chain management(3.96), and (j) systems approach to designing products (3.86). With respectto the sanitation management skills, the important dimension with corre-sponding mean value are: (a) employee training in sanitary practices (4.25),

TABLE 1 Mean and Standard Deviation for Foodservice and Sanitation Management Principles

Educational dimensions N Mean SD SE Mean

Foodservice managementSuccessful communication process 188 4.2660 .93849 .06845International leadership principles 188 4.1809 .84604 .06170Sensitive to national cultures 188 4.1277 .83036 .06056International service quality protocol 188 4.1011 .86858 .06335Knowledge of competitive strategies. 188 4.0904 .88197 06432Mentoring and directing employees 188 4.0745 .83684 .06103International competitive methods 188 4.0479 .82918 .06047International operational principles 188 4.0372 .84884 .06191International supply chain management 188 3.9628 .82973 .06051Systems approach to designing products 188 3.8670 .87042 .06348

Cronbach’s alpha for the above items: .9087Sanitation management

Employee training in sanitary practices 188 4.2553 .87675 .06394Application of sanitary principles 188 4.2021 .88457 .06451Knowledge of sanitation codes 188 4.1809 .85859 .06262Protecting and safeguarding foods 188 4.1436 .93398 .06812Knowledge of HACCP principles 188 4.1383 .83507 .06090Foodborne pathogens in food products 188 4.0904 .86359 .06298Controls to preserve food quality 188 4.0798 .85219 .06215International sanitation standards 188 4.0426 .80659 .05883International sanitation benchmarks 188 4.0000 .79437 .05794International sanitary preventive measures 188 3.9681 .86466 .06306

Cronbach’s alpha for the above items: .9091



(b) applications of sanitary principles (4.20), (c) knowledge of sanitationcodes (4.18), (d) protecting and safeguarding foods (4.18), (e) knowledge ofHACCP principles (4.13), (f) foodborne pathogens in food products (4.09), (g)controls to preserve food quality (4.07), (h) international sanitation standards(4.04), (i) international sanitation benchmarks (4.00), and (j) internationalsanitary preventive measures (3.96). The responses were derived based on a5-point Likert scale that independently rated their level of disagreement andagreement with each of the competencies needed to be successful, competi-tive, and retained in the international business arena. The mean values indi-cate their level of agreement to the competency areas in the foodservice andsanitation management courses. The global perspective offers additionalframes of reference for companies to adopt to be competitive in a host coun-try and working with the indigenous workforce. For example, joint ventureswith a host country’s firm to promote processed fresh foods or produce itemsto satisfy the needs of the local population. This strategic business allianceforges a partnership that utilizes the infrastructure, technology, economies ofscale, and economies of scope of the two business entities. The notion ofnativization is beneficial to the hospitality or manufacturing firm, whichallows the local business professionals to work within the managerial func-tions. The main goal of the nativization process is to eventually train anddevelop the skills, knowledge, and abilities of the host country’s indigenousworkforce to assume the managerial and business responsibilities of the firm.The firm’s assets and managerial responsibilities becomes that of the hostcountry. The benefit of this arrangement is that the foreign firm is allowed tooperate for a specified period in a tax-free environment, for example,Bermuda has been a tax havens for some of the Fortune 100 companies(Shenkar & Luo, 2004), generating profits, supporting the expatriates, anddeveloping possible merger and acquisition business alliances in the future.

Factor Analysis

The principal component analysis was used to determine the underlyinggrouped dimensions of needed theoretical principles to enable a student tobe successful in the international business sector. The two dimensions,namely, (a) knowledge of competitive strategies and (b) international sani-tation benchmarks were excluded from the principal component analysis.They were designated as the two dependent variables for the multipleregression analysis. In order to identify the underlying dimensions, factorswere formed based on the latent root criterion—Eigenvalue > 1.0, totalvariance explained, scree plot, and varimax (orthogonal)—rotated compo-nent matrix were determined using the SPSS 11.0 software. The scree testcriterion was used to show the latent roots (eigenvalues) criterion of greaterthan one (1.0) for the factors. The Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity was applied totest for intercorrelation, and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling



adequacy was used to ascertain that the variables were grouped properly.The chi-square was (1988.364), significant at p < .000, which showed a sig-nificant correlation among some of the variables, and the KMO value was0.902, greater than 0.50, indicating the data was suitable for factor analysis.Table 2 shows the factor loading that groups the dimensions into threefactors, which are further defined in Table 3.

Table 3 shows the three new factors: (a) Sanitation Protocol, (b) Inter-national Operations, and (c) Leader’s Relationships, which were derivedwith eigenvalues of 8.073, 2.123, and 1.182 respectively, (eigenvalues equalto or greater than one were extracted), and accounted for 63.211 percent ofthe total explained variance. The reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) for Factors 1through 3 were 0.9072, 0.8560, and 0.8444, respectively.

The individual dimensions and composite factors shown in Table 3 arethe student’s perceived competencies needed by potential hospitalityprofessionals in order to be successful in the global environment. Thus, thenew course curricula may include the principles related to sanitation protocolin a sanitation management course. The students will be equipped with theprevailing best practices to protect and safeguard the food supply. The prin-ciples of international operations and leadership may be incorporated intoan undergraduate capstone course that emphasizes domestic and interna-tional strategic management principles.

Moreover, case studies addressing needed competencies shown inTable 3 may be an insightful learning methodology to include when

TABLE 2 Factor Analyses of Needed Theoretical International Management Principles

Educational dimensions Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3

Sensitive to national cultures .312 .129 .791Mentoring and directing employees .135 .296 .758Successful communication process .246 .254 .775International operational principles .282 .585 .262International competitive methods .253 .803 .171International supply chain management .210 .821 .244Systems approach to designing products .104 .692 .272International service quality protocol .147 .568 .559International leadership principles .200 .445 .580Knowledge of HACCP principles .535 .289 .236Knowledge of sanitation codes .718 .137 .176Employee training in sanitary practices .771 3.838E-02 .321Application of sanitary principles .829 6.478E-02 .267Protecting and safeguarding foods .804 .110 .259Foodborne pathogens in food products .736 .172 9.226E-02International sanitation standards .613 .412 1.287E-02Controls to preserve food quality .727 .261 .153International sanitary preventive measures .623 .344 2.999E-02

Note. Principal component analysis rotation method: Varimax with Kaiser normalization rotation converged in five iterations.



revisiting revisions to existing curriculum and to develop new curricula toenhance the hospitality student’s knowledge base. The important elementsrelated to international sanitation protocol will enable individuals to designand create new food products within the sanitary codes of the country oforigin. The knowledge of production regulations and parameters will allowthe developed food products to be exported to other consuming countries.There are General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade, World Trade Agree-ments, and World Trade Organizations that countries must obey and abideby when importing or exporting need food commodities for their constitu-ents. The internationalization of strategic management principles will pro-vide a broad overview of the global environment and the businessparadigm that successful corporations must face and overcome in order tobe competitive and viable in the marketplace. The notion of internationaloperational effectiveness is supported with stringent best practices relatedto sound corporate, business, and functional strategies for corporations tobe the pacesetter. The knowledge of the international procurement processto source products though the international supply chain may be a compet-itive advantage for the hospitality firm. The notion of the leader’s sensitivityto national cultures is paramount for the business leader’s relationship withemployees of the host country. Moreover, the business leader must be

TABLE 3 Factor Analyses of Needed Theoretical International Management Principles

Educational dimensions Eigenvalues Loadings Communality

Factor 1: Sanitation protocol 8.073Knowledge of HACCP principles .535 .698Knowledge of sanitation codes .718 .737Employee training in sanitary practices .771 .769Application of sanitary principles .829 .782Protecting and safeguarding foods .804 .872Foodborne pathogens in food products .736 .746International sanitation standards .613 .651Controls to preserve food quality .727 .726International sanitary preventive measures .623 .748

Factor 2: International operations 2.123International operational principles .585 .721International competitive methods .803 .688International supply chain management .821 .688Systems approach to design products .692 .758International service quality protocol .568 .754

Factor 3: Leader’s relationships 1.182Sensitive to national cultures .791 .689Mentoring and directing employees .758 .700Successful communication process .775 .881

International leadership principles .580 .716

Factors Fl F2 F3 TotalPercentage of variance explained 44.84 11.796 6.56 63.211Cronbach’s alpha .9072 .8560 .8444



willing to communicate and mentor their respective employees encourageshigh individual and team performance.

Regression Analysis

A multiple linear regression analysis was used to assess the impact of sanitationmanagement and foodservice management competencies on foodservicemanagement best practices and sanitation benchmarks. As mentioned earlier,the two dependent variables were sanitation benchmarks and foodservicemanagement best practices. The operational aspects of the foodservicemanagement best practices is to design the organizational structure to dothe following: control of inventory, understand supply chain application,maintain an effective human resource cadre, demonstrate effective commu-nication to internal and external guests, negotiate with suppliers, knowoperational protocol, understand marketing strategies, demonstrate superiorleadership skills, provide optimal service quality, and formulate businessand corporate level strategies to remain competitive. The operational aspectof sanitation management is to adhere and abide by the sanitation bench-marks as they apply to a food production environment. These aspectsinclude the following: training of employees to follow ServSafe sanitationprinciples when handling food products, using the knowledge related foodsafety to protect the guest from foodborne illnesses, following the policyand procedures of outlined in the sanitation codes, exercising food protectionmeasures, following preventive measure procedures, following the protocoloutline in a hazard analysis and critical control point food safety program,and exercise control to preserve food quality. The dependent variables are:(a) knowledge of sanitation benchmarks, and (b) knowledge of foodservicemanagement best practices. The independent variables are: (a) sanitationprotocol (Factor 1); (b) international operations (Factor 2); and (c) leader’srelationships (Factor 3). The regression analysis provides insight as to whichindependent variable has the most influence on the understanding of food-service management best practices and international sanitation benchmarksin the business environment. The dimensions in the independent variablesmay be included into a new or existing course to enrich the learning processand motivate the student to seek through further research, as to how thesecompetencies can be applied to resolving operational dilemmas.

Effects of Perceived Sanitation Competencies on Sanitation Benchmarks

A linear regression analysis was used to assess the impact of perceivedsanitation competencies on sanitation benchmarks. The factors previouslydeveloped from the international sanitation areas were used as the independent



variables in the regression. The summary results of the effects of theperceived competencies on international sanitation benchmarks are pre-sented in Table 4. The multiple correlation coefficient (R) of the interna-tional competency areas on sanitation benchmarks was 0.590, whichindicates that there was a moderate correlation between the factors of sanita-tion protocol, international operations and leader’s relationship on sanitationbenchmarks. The coefficient of determination, R2 for sanitation benchmarkswas 0.348, which indicated that approximately 35% of the total variation ofthe sanitation benchmarks variable was explained by the three internationalcompetency factors. The F-ratio for the sanitation benchmarks was 32.693(p = .0001), which indicates that the regression model was meaningfullyexplaining the data.

The standardized regression coefficient (beta) was used to show whichfactors played an important role in explaining the impact of internationalcompetency areas on sanitation benchmarks. The regression results indi-cated that the three factors significantly contributed to the understanding ofinternational sanitation benchmarks. Sanitation Protocol (β = .426), Interna-tional Operations (β = .316), and Leader’s Relationships (β = .257) were themost meaningful variables in order of magnitude; thus, H1: There is positiverelationship between the student’s perceptions of international sanitationmanagement knowledge, skills, and abilities and knowledge of sanitationbenchmarks is supported. From a curriculum perspective, the findingsrelated to knowledge of sanitation benchmarks indicates that there is acasual relationship between maintain high sanitary standards may mitigateand control the onset of a foodborne illness that directly affects the well-being of the foodservice establishment’s guests. The student’s reliance onsanitation knowledge and the proper use of these guiding principles willsafeguard the food supply and ensure the following the correct foodproduction procedures when preparing the various food groups for guestconsumption. The ability to expand the understanding of how to handlefood groups properly will reduce the incidence of foodborne illnesses. With

TABLE 4 Regression Analysis Summary for Sanitation Benchmarks and FoodserviceManagement Best Practices

Dependent variables

Knowledge of sanitation benchmarksa

Knowledge of foodservice management best practicesb

b p b p

Independent variablesSanitation protocol .426 .001* .207 .001*International operations .316 .001* .459 .001*Leader’s relationship .257 .001* .529 .001*

aR2 = .34 (N = 188, *p < .05).bR2 = .53 (N = 188, *p < .05).



respect to curriculum improvement, existing courses in food preparationmay continuously emphasize proper food handling techniques in the class-room and laboratory environment to reinforce the student’s baseline knowl-edge and practical applications.

With respect to a business perspective, the results indicated that under-standing of sanitation benchmarks was directly attributed to the individual’sknowledge of sanitation protocol. If the manager and their respectiveemployees understood HACCP principles, followed sanitation codes andstandards, were aware of foodborne pathogens, trained their employees tosafeguard and protect the food supply, and implemented controls andpreventive measures, then complete understanding of the sanitation bench-marks would be achieved. Furthermore, the proactive attitude and the abilityto safeguard foods from all forms of foodborne pathogens would protectthe guest from any foodborne illness outbreaks. The welfare of the guest isforemost and the strict protocol and best practices must comply with inter-national sanitation codes and procedures. Lastly, the sanitary conditionsrelated to food production must be consistently improved to implementnew changes and guidelines to protect food quality prior to being served totheir guests.

Effects of Perceived Foodservice Competencies on Foodservice Management Best Practices

A linear regression analysis was used to assess the impact of perceivedfoodservice competencies on foodservice management best practices. Thefactors previously developed from the international foodservice managementareas were used as the independent variables in the regression. Thesummary results of the effects of the perceived competencies on foodservicemanagement best practices are presented in Table 4. The multiple correla-tion coefficient (R) of the international foodservice management competen-cies on foodservice management best practices was 0.730, which indicatesthat there was a strong correlation between the factors of sanitation protocol,international operations and leader’s relationship on foodservice manage-ment best practices. The coefficient of determination R2 for foodservicemanagement best practices was 0.533, which indicated that approximately53% of the total variation of the foodservice management best practices vari-able was explained by the three desirable international competency factors.The F-ratio for the sanitation benchmarks was 70.092 (p = .0001), whichindicates that the regression model was meaningfully explaining the data.

The standardized regression coefficient β was used to show which factorsplayed an important role in explaining the impact of international compe-tencies on foodservice management best practices. The regression resultsindicated that three factors significantly contributed to the understanding offoodservice management best practices. Leader’s Relationships (β = .529),



International Operations (β = .459), and Sanitation Protocol (β = .207) werethe most meaningful variables in order of magnitude, thus, H2: There is apositive relationship between the students’ perceptions of internationalfoodservice management competencies and knowledge of foodservice man-agement best practices is supported. From an academic perspective, the facultymember may emphasize the importance of leader’s relationship and interna-tional operations in classroom discussions. The development of a friendlylearning environment may foster a positive reciprocal learning relationshipbetween the faculty member and students. The faculty member’s ability toengage the student and provide learning through computer-based instruc-tion and case study method will amplify the importance of theory and itspractical application to operational dilemmas. This mentoring process mayencourage the student to enhance their curiosity and motivate them toheighten their learning of these competencies, which will enhance their jobperformance level. From a business perspective, the results may indicatethat understanding and knowledge of foodservice management best prac-tices was directly attributed to the individual’s leadership competencies andknowledge of international operations. If the foodservice manager woulduses a systems approach when incorporating sanitation and foodserviceoperational principles into their corporate structure, then effective best prac-tices and guiding principles can then be formulated to be successful in aglobal business arena. Moreover, leaders and their constituents must beopen to new business protocol that will enable them to earn the respect andtrust of those business partners in the international business sector.

CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS

The study identified the sanitation and foodservice management competenciesneeded by individuals desiring to work in the international hospitality busi-ness sector. Sanitation protocol and leadership competencies were shown tohave the most significant effect on sanitation benchmarks and foodservicemanagement best practices, respectively. From an academic perspective, thefindings relative to sanitation benchmarks are most logical. An implication isthat these findings should be incorporated into a periodic course revision toreflect the current trends and applied principles to enhance student aware-ness and knowledge of best practices in sanitation management. From a busi-ness perspective, the application of prevailing sanitary best practices andguiding principles may protect the guest’s health and welfare. The implicationis that business leaders and their constituents must have a working knowl-edge of the use of HACCP in protecting and safeguarding the food supplyand use proper food production techniques and temperatures when prepar-ing entrées for their guests. The notion of going beyond the “reasonable care”rule must prevail in this regard. Critical limits and potential hazards that



threaten the condition and quality of food must be consistently monitored andcorrection actions must be taken. Moreover, management and staff alike mustembrace ethical practices and abiding to the sanitations codes and procedures.If a critical incident occurs, management and their constituents should beready to take the appropriate action to safeguard the food supply and the well-being of their guests. Lastly, management must implement a continuous qualityimprovement program relative to sanitation management must be supportedto upgrade the skills, knowledge, and abilities of all hospitality personnel toimprove productivity and performance levels.

Similarly, the findings relative to the effectiveness of foodservice man-agement best practices is dependent on leadership qualities and commit-ment to following international operation’s protocol is paramount tocorporate success. The sustained competitive strategies used when conductingbusiness in a global environment is premised on the vision and creativity ofthe chief executive officer of the hospitality corporation. The ability toarticulate their mission and vision of the firm to their constituents is a tre-mendous task. Furthermore, the competencies related to the understandingof competitive strategies may be incorporated into a foodservice strategicmanagement course to enable the students to utilize these principles on aninternational basis. The implication is that leadership is everyone’s responsi-bility in order to co-align scarce resources, human capital, financialresources, materials, equipment, and inventories to accomplish the mission ofthe hospitality firm. The competitive strategy to sustain the firm’s position in theindustry is no small task. This monumental task takes the persistence and dedi-cation of committed individuals and self-regulated teams to meet the competi-tive issues facing the firm in a highly professional manner. Furthermore, animplication is that management may use proven operational protocol unique tothe specific international sector, which may enhance the present and futuresuccess and sustainability of the firm’s competitive advantage.

In summary, the proposed international sanitation and foodservicemanagement competencies should be contemplated when revising existinghospitality education curriculum. These competencies may be useful tostudents, who may be contemplating a foreign assignment with an interna-tional hospitality firm during their professional career. The implication isthat the faculty members are mentors that will empower their students tobroaden their educational capabilities and reach their fullest academicpotential and use their knowledge when seeking professional excellence.

LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH

This study contains several limitations. First, a convenient sample of hospitalitystudents was implemented. The rationale for using students as potentialrespondents was to determine the student’s perceptions relative to the



needed competencies prior to accepting a foreign assignment. Second, thecapturing of the demographic profile of the respondents was not imple-mented in the study. A future research endeavor may include surveying theinternational hospitality general managers in the foodservice and lodgingindustry relative to their perceptions of the desired sanitation and foodser-vice management competencies needed by new employees. This wouldprovide additional insight as to the core competencies needed by thesepotential expatriate employees. Moreover, the ability to survey hospitalitycorporations relative to the international competencies that they desirewhen recruiting potential expatriates would be helpful. Lastly, a researchinitiative may focus on identifying those hospitality education programs thatoffer international strategic management and international hospitalitybusiness curricula to their hospitality education students.

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International Foodservice and Sanitation Management Curricula to Enhance Student Skills

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