RESORT MANAGEMENT

SYLLABUS
Spring 2004
Friday 3:00 -5:50 p.m.
Room: TBA

Instructor: Shayla B. Sharp

Office: Cascades Hall
Office Hours: By appointment
Email: Shayla.sharp@oregonstate.edu

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course provides an overview of resort management and operations. The scope of
these industries will be discussed along with the principles of successful marketing,
management, and development of a resort. This course will introduce students to the
operations of modern day resorts, including ski, golf, and gaming resorts. This will
include a review of the history of the growth of resorts in the United States, expansion of
resorts world wide, and their operations and characteristics. Students will gain exposure
to the wide range and high level of services and activities expected by resort guests and
offered by today’s resorts.

The course will address management topics through a combination of lectures, guest
speakers, writing assignments, and student-led discussions. Students will be responsible
for having read the assigned material before coming to class.

It will be necessary to use the World Wide Web (WWW) and Blackboard for this course.
Some assignments and instructor communications will be given via the web and email. It
will be necessary for all students to have access to the WWW, have an ONID account,
and email to successfully complete this class. For those students who want to access the
Web and email via their own home computers, it will be necessary to acquire an on-line
account which can provide the most recent versions of Netscape or Explorer. Instructions
for logging onto ONID are provided on the last page of this syllabus.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of the course you should:

1. Describe the history, growth, and development of resorts and the gaming industry.
2. Describe key marketing and financial aspects of resorts and the gaming industry.
3. Identify the demographic characteristics of resort and casino patrons.
4. Describe the process of resort planning and development, and the basic elements of
a resort complex.
5.. Summarize current developments in casino gaming, resorts, and the future trends.
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6. Identify the various social, economic, and cultural concerns related to the resort and
gaming industry.
7. Identify key recreational activities and facilities common to resorts.
8. Identify and describe key components of the organizational structure, supervising
personnel, wage and salary administration, guest relations, and security.
9. Describe Oregon’s Land Use laws pertaining to casino permitting on non-reservation
lands.

REQUIRED TEXT

Hasimoto, K., Kline, S., and G. Fenich. 1998. Casino Management: Past, Present, and
Future. (2nd Edition). Dubuque: Kendall & Hunt.

Mill, R.C. 2001. Resorts: Management and Operation. New York: Wiley & Sons.

COURSE OUTLINE

1. Introduction
A. The History and Characteristics of Resorts
B. The Resort Concept
C. The Development of Gaming
D. Resorts in the 21st Century – a comparison

2. Resort Planning and Development

A. Investment Consideration
B. The Role of Planning and Management
C. Planning, Facilities, Grounds Maintenance
D. Planning and the Leisure concept
E. Food and Beverage planning

3. Recreational Activities
A. Golf
B. Tennis
C. Snow sports
D. Water sports
E. Spa and Health Club Facilities
F. Recreational Infrastructure and Nature
G. Theme Resorts

4. Managing the Resort

A. Personnel organization and Human Relations
B. Wage and Salary Administration
C. Employee Productivity
D. Labor force (hiring, retention, turnover)
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E. Policy in Gaming, Resort Operation, and Human Relations

5. Customer Service
A. Guest Relations
B. Guest Activities and Services
C. Housekeeping
D. The Reservations Department
E. The Host Concept

6. Security and Safety

A. Rules and protection in Casino management planning
B. Guest Safety
C. Surveillance
D. Human Resource Training
E. Interpreting the behavior of gamblers
F. Social aspects of Casino development (neighborhood crime, organized
corruption, political corruption)

7. Marketing the Resort Experience

A. Comps and Credit
B. Resort Marketing and Sales Promotion
C. Market Segmentation and potential guest markets
D. Advertising, Promotion, and Publicity
E. The Casino concept in relation to other Resort services

8. The Economic, Environmental, and Social Impact of Resort Development and

Gaming
A. Planning for community cohesiveness
B. Historical challenges and problems of resort development
C. Determining the Economic Impact of the Resort and Gaming Industry
D. Social and Cultural Aspects of Gaming

9. Future Trends in Resort Development, Management, and Planning

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING

This course meets once a week for two hours and fifty minutes. You are expected to
attend class, participate in discussions (in class and on Blackboard), come to class
prepared, and turn in class assignments on time. If you are experiencing problems with
the course, its content, the readings, or teaching style, you are strongly encouraged to
raise your concerns immediately with the instructor.

Class assignments will be based on material presented in class. I will not accept hand-
written assignments. I place great weight on the quality of written assignments, therefore
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they need to be organized, clearly written, and reflective of original and critical thought.
Please see comments under Course Policy regarding written assignments.

Cell Phones are to be turned off during class (contact the Instructor if you have special
circumstances regarding the necessity of use during class).

Grading
Grades are based on the following components:

Blackboard Discussion Assignments: 3 @ 10 points each.

Synthesis Papers: 2 @ 20 points each.
Resort Evaluation Project: 1 @ 20 points
Final exam 1 @ 30 points
Total 100 points

Final Grades are based on the following point system:

A = 93, A- = 90, B+ = 87, B = 83, B- = 80, C+ = 77, C = 73, C- = 70, D+ = 67, D = 63,
D- = 60, F = below 60.

Synthesis paper and Resort Evaluation Project requirements:

 Typed, double-spaced, with 1" margins all around. Standard 12-point font
 Stapled; not paper-clipped, no binders
 Nearly free of grammar and spelling errors (have someone proof-read it)
 Student's name clearly displayed on the top of the paper
 Original in content; written in your own words
 Sources identified with citations for borrowed ideas, quotes, and statistics
 Be concise and complete

Blackboard Discussion Assignments (3 @ 10 points each): These assignments require

that you use your ONID e-mail account to access the course via “blackboard.” If you
have not used your account, you can activate it at: http://www.onid.orst.edu/

In the left hand column, click on “Sign up for ONID” and follow the instructions. Your gap
number is usually your social security number, and you will have to create a password that
you can remember. It may take up to 2 days to create your ONID account, so plan ahead!
You are expected to participate in discussion forums. These are described in more detail in
the “assignments” link on the website. Once you have the assignment, you will need to click
on the “Discussion Board” link. These activities will require some thought, so please do not
wait until the due date to post your comments. You comments/reactions will be posted to the
discussion board prior to class time on the due dates. To post your response to the discussion
board, create a “new thread.” You will also be required to respond to someone else’s
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comments. Your responses/questions/comments should be constructive to the discussion and

should not reflect personal attacks on each other’s ideas. In addition to the required forums,
you are encouraged to create your own discussions by posting ideas, questions, or thoughts to
the discussion board.

Synthesis Papers (2 @ 20 Points each): Assignment to be handed out in class.

Resort Evaluation Project (1 @ 20 points): Assignment to be discussed in class.

Final Exam (1 @ 30 points): Exam format and final examination date to be discussed.

Course Policy

Late assignments will only be accepted from students who have legitimate excuses.

Extra credit will not be allowed in this course.

You are expected to do all required reading and participate in all course requirements.

Plagiarism and cheating will not be tolerated in this course. Engaging in such
behaviors will result in a failing course grade. You are to do ALL of your own work.
Plagiarism is defined as representing (and using) another person's ideas, writings, and
work as one's own.

Note: "Students with documented disabilities who may need accommodations, who have
any emergency medical information the instructor should know, or who need special
arrangements in the event of evacuation, should make an appointment with the instructor
as early as possible, no later than the first week of the term. In order to arrange alternative
testing the student should make the request at least one week in advance of the test.
Students seeking accommodations should be registered with the Office of Services for
Students with disabilities."

Missed Class: Due to some unforeseen circumstances that arise from time-to-time you
may miss a class. It is the student's responsibility to find out what material was covered
during the class session from other students and/or the instructor.

Writing: The Writing Center provides students with free consulting service for their
writing assignments. The Center is located at 123 Waldo Hall. The service operates from
Monday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. You can make an
appointment to discuss your writing with a peer writing assistant (737-5640). Another
option available through the Center is to use email to get online answers to brief writing
questions at writingQ@mail.orst.edu.
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Student Conduct: “The goal of Oregon State University is to provide students with the
knowledge, skill and wisdom they need to contribute to society. Our rules are formulated
to guarantee each student's freedom to learn and to protect the fundamental rights of
others. People must treat each other with dignity and respect in order for scholarship to
thrive. Behaviors that are disruptive to teaching and learning will not be tolerated, and
will be referred to the Student Conduct Program for disciplinary action. Behaviors that
create a hostile, offensive or intimidating environment based on gender, race, ethnicity,
color, religion, age, disability, marital status or sexual orientation will be referred to the
Affirmative Action Office.” See Academic Regulations on OSU homepage.