Edinburgh Napier University

  The aim of this paper is to explore the nature of critical licensed house management skills within Bass Taverns. In particular, it focuses on the extent to which these are viewed as being concerned with 'soft' (behavioural) or 'hard' (technical) aspects of management. The focus of the research is on the 'shared understanding' of the importance of licensed house managerial skills. It is concerned with the identification of coherence and tensions in the criticality of certain managerial skills as perceived by the company's senior and licensed house managers. It presents the findings of surveys conducted at both senior and licensed house manager levels within the company to establish the extent to which interhierarchical consistency exists in the areas of critical skills/competences and whether these are seen as being specific to the organization or considered as generic. The research reports a general harmony regarding the nature of the skills required by licensed house managers and evidence of a focus on people-oriented skills, which are seen as being particularly important for achieving business success. Licensed house managers rated the critical skills as 'generic' rather than 'specific' to the taverns context, drawing attention to the need for the organization to address the manner in which these skills are developed.