The HRP was established within the environment department as an agency with executive roles. The organization later formed an independent charity agency which had the Historic Royal Palaces Enterprises Ltd which was bestowed the trading activities of the organization. The enterprise is run by trustees and a board of directors, who are the greatest shareholders to the HRP. Together, these officials have been able to come up with ways of ensuring that the tourists get the best from their visits and at the same time, making sure that the palaces are well taken care of, to preserve the history for all who come to see it.
History of the Historic Royal Palace
The Historical Royal Palaces was founded in 1998 within the Environmental Department as the Government’s Executive Agency. There existed five palaces within the HRP, these include the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Kew Palace, Banqueting House and Kensington Palace. The abovementioned palaces were all under the Environmental Department up to 1995 where it was transferred to the Heritage department, now known as the Department for Culture, Media and Sports (HRP, 2017). The Historic Royal palaces opened their doors to the public in the 19th
century in order to care, conserve, and present to the public of the unoccupied Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Kew Palace, Banqueting House, Kensington Palace and Kew Palace. State Apartments, and Queen Charlotte’s Cottage, and Great Pagoda. As an independent Charity Agency, the HRP funds itself using its self-generated income as opposed to other agencies which largely depend on the public and the government for funding (Sonková 2014 p.31).
Methods used by the Historic Royal Palaces to improve its Sustainability
Organizational sustainability can be described as the ability of an organization to demonstrate its relevance. It is worth noting that such organizations are self-reliant, committed, and always engaged on endless planning. Historic Royal Palaces is known for how it strives to remain of the best destinations in this competitive business world. HRP has been instrumental in ensuring that the management is up to task for the best delivery of services, by establishing a good work culture among employees, for instance, no employee should use their cellphones while working (Roberts, 2010 p.269). Additionally, Historic Royal Palaces is keen on the issue of environmental conservation. It goes without saying that the organisation ensures that all its interiors, buildings, natural landscapes, designed historic landscapes, habitats, and species are accorded a valuable future. In addition to this, the organization has ensured that the amount of energy used in the palace is minimized as much as possible. The waste management of the Palaces has been so far effective, with an average of about 83% of recycled waste in the palaces (Sustainability Report, pp 8).
Historic Royal Palaces Mission and Strategic Objectives
The Historic Royal Palaces has a well spelt out mission statement and a number of principles behind the mission statement. The organisation’s objectives are also well defined and with this, they give the HRP sense of direction. The Historic Royal Palaces’ mission is to assist every individual explore the real story behind how monarchs and people have made the society look as it looks (Springdal 2008, p.597). The Charity Agency operates through five major strategic objectives to achieve its mission. The fundamental objective of the Historic Royal Palaces is to ensure the palaces are taken care of in a proper way, mainly for the purpose of conservation of history. Secondly, the HRP aims at completely changing the way visitors view the story. This organization aims at ensuring that the visitors are told the story, while at the same time, giving them a chance to discover new things on their own. Additionally, HRP aims at impacting the world positively. This might be challenging to achieve but their strategic objective, thus is to expand their reach, create awareness, and influence and support as many activities as possible. Furthermore, the Historic Royal Palaces next strategic objective is to generate enough money to make even the impossible possible. Finally, it aims at constructing a united organization so as to increase ethnic diversity of its workforce (Mador, Springdal and Dixon 2008, p.597).
Operations of the Charity Status
Historic Royal Palaces is an independent charity agency managing the aforementioned five palaces. The Charity Agency funds itself with the self-generated income. The organization also depends on the contributions from sponsors, volunteers, visitors, members and donors Funds are also raised through major fundraising campaigns (HRP,2017). The operations of the Charity Status are within the palaces it manages as well as the estates. Its operations include helping tourists have a great experience of the palaces when they visit while also letting them learn and discover things on their own. The organization also helps the whole world make history in a place where history had already been made by providing the best that they can all the time. (Larsen 2014, p.110).
Corporate Governance and how The Historic Royal Palaces are governed
Corporate governance is described as the way an organization’s rules and regulations, policies, philosophies, relationships, and processes are implemented and upheld. It entails balancing the company’s stakeholders many interests. In brief, it concerns itself with how the organization is controlled and directed. The palaces are governed by a board of trustees. The board of trustees are all non-executive. As a matter of fact, the board is made up of a chairman and about 11 Trustees who are carefully selected. The chairman of the Historic Royal Palaces is selected by the Queen herself based on the counsel of the Secretary responsible for Culture, Media, and Sports. Apart from the Chairman, the Queen also appoints four Trustees, three of which are ex officio appointments (HRP, 2017). The appointed Trustees promote the influence and support of Historic Royal Palaces in the world. Apart from the chairman and the Trustees is the Chief Executive is who is responsible for the board of Trustees. He also chairs an Executive Board of the eight Directors (Champ and Ormuz 2011 p.42).
How They Adhere to the Standards of Good Corporate Practice.
The board of Trustees adhere to the standards of good corporate practice in Historic Royal Palaces by being fair, transparent, accountable, and by abiding by the palaces laws. As a result, the board in general aims at providing the ground for long-term value creation to their benefit as well as to the benefit of the world at large ( HRP 2017). For instance, the Board of Directors ensure that The Historic Royal Palaces’ Coode of Practice is upheld
The Implications of Having to Observe These Standards
There are numerous inferences of having to follow these standards of good corporate practice in the Historic Royal Places. Foremost, adherence to the standards of good corporate practices results into the maintenance of The Historic Royal Palaces image across the world. Again, it will help the palaces to maintain a law suit. Additionally, adherence to the standards of good corporate practice will help Historic Royal Palaces to build trust among its customers and the world at large, as a result attracting more visitors. Furthermore, adherence to these standard by the Board of Trustees in The Historic Royal Palaces would enable them to continue being of the best palaces in the world. Moreover, devotion to the standards of good corporate practice would result in the growth and development of the palaces and the achievement of the mission statement.
In summary, the Historic Royal Palaces which is a Charity Agency governed by The Board of Trustees remain to be one of the best independent world destinations. The palaces have always recorded the highest number of visitors compared to other world palaces. The Historic Royal Palaces’ mission, strategic objectives, and adherence to the standards of good corporate practice have made it easy for the Palaces to improve their sustainability and maintain their position as the world’s best Palaces. The importance of its mission, which concentrates on every individual’s interests, cannot be overemphasized since it is mainly through this mission statement that the palaces have managed to be the best.
Key Stakeholder
Definition of Stakeholder
The term stakeholder has been defined differently across the globe. It can be described as an individual who has an interest in the success of a business or an enterprise. In addition, it refers to someone who can impact on or is affected by a company or a given project. The term has been described as a person within or outside an organization and is affected by the outcome of what happens in the organization. Moreover, stakeholder can also refer to persons or a group of people who can quickly jeopardize an organization's probability, sustainability, and survival. They may include the customers, the staff, and the even the government (Wetherley & Otter 2014, p.443).
Key Stakeholders in Historic Royal Palaces
An organization's stakeholders include the lenders, the owners, the organization's customers, and the employees. The management of the organization forms an integral part of the stakeholders in the Historic Royal Palace. It is essential to incorporate competitors as team members of the Historic Royale Palace. This is because they are always affected by the outcome of the company and scrutinizes the challenges facing the organization. The community forms an integral part of the company as well since the day-to-day activities can only be successful if members of the community are able to promote cooperation and acceptance of services provided. The community also provides resources to the Historic Royal Palace, a significant contribution and partnership with the Palace. Additionally, the suppliers and the Trade unions contribute significantly in the organization’s activities. The suppliers provide the company with products and services. As a result, they directly influence the day-to-day running of the organization. The above-mentioned stakeholders are classified differently depending on the extent to which they are affected by the actions of the Palace. These categories include primary and secondary stakeholders. The primary stakeholders are individuals or groups who are affected by the actions of the company directly. On the other hand, secondary are affected indirectly by the activities of the organization (Mallin 2016, p.235).
Another category of stakeholders is the key stakeholder who refers to individuals who are most likely to bring a remarkable power to bear on the organization's actions. Important key stakeholders in the Historic Royal Palaces include the directors, the Queen, the Chairman, the Charity Agency's employees and the government of the United Kingdom; they form an integral part of the organization and play most managerial roles (Mallin 2016, p.241)). The government of the United Kingdom makes its pivotal contribution either financially or otherwise to the organization through their creditors and the government agencies The directors who include the Chief Executive, the retail and Catering Director, The Palaces Group Director, The Finance Director, The Tower Group Director, Human Resource Director, Public Engagement Director, Communications and Development Director, and The Palaces and Collections Director play essential managerial roles in the charity company.
Interests of Stakeholders in an Issue
Organizations and social institutions are accountable for the outcome of their verdicts and actions on society and natural environment. The Royal Palaces are social institutions entrusted with the responsibility of passing British culture from one generation to another. The interest of various stakeholders in different issues in these Palaces determines the success the Royal administration. According to the stakeholder aspect of stakeholder’s theory, the success of the Royal palaces largely depends on public perception of the institution and the nature of the Royal family (Wetherley & Otter 2014, p.443). Stakeholders such as the British community, her majesty the queen, and the prime minister plays important role in the company. Based on stakeholder’s theory, the British people may raise ethical concerns about the management of the Royal Palaces which may reduce public trust in the institution.
The treatment to the communities in places where the Royal Palaces are located is an important issue. The local people may be highly interested in how they stand to benefit from the presence of the Palace in their community. In this respect, proper handling of the community creates a favorable environment for administration and development. The future generation is another group of stakeholders that will form part of the management team in the Palaces. They will get to know how the symbols or authority and the role of the queen have been maintained without eroding any cultural practice. The queen may be primarily interested in the commitment of various palaces to her mission and charity duties. The corporate social responsibility of the Royal Palaces is to add value to the English communities. The British government may have high interest in how the Palaces use public resources. Besides, the prime minister may focus on the management of succession planning for the next queen (Buchanan & Huczniski 2017 p.198).
Consequences of Stakeholder Power
The management of the palaces cannot focus on serving the queen without considering the views of various stakeholders. Environmental degradation may invoke the power of local communities to resist the activities of a palace in their locality. They may use physical power to stage mass action against the administration of the palace as a way of expressing their disgruntlement with environmental degradation by the palace authorities. As the main custodian of the palaces’ responsibilities, the queen may dismiss palace directors who fail to accomplish the mission to the local communities by using her personal power (Wetherley and Otter 2014 p.443). Besides, employees of the palaces may down their tools in protest to unfair harassment by the royal family as Freeman described in the stakeholder expertise source of power. Additionally, it is evident in the stakeholder theory that stakeholders the resource power to influence the activities of the Royal palaces. The public are entitled to both financial and non-financial disclosures by the royal Palaces. The government through the office of public audit may take legal action against the administrators of palaces where embezzlement of public resources is rampant. It is important to note that the queen may be oblivious of the misuse of the resources that occurs in different palaces.
Viewpoints of Significant Stakeholders
The significant stakeholders' viewpoints are all directed towards the sustainability of the Palaces. For instance, the chairman Mr. Rupert Gavin views The Historic Royal Palaces as the only place that can offer the whole world a chance to understand their meaning by exploring the story of how the royals and people across the world have shaped the society in some of the best palaces ever established. Again, he views it as one of the most successful palaces in the world as the palace play an ever-increasing role in the rich fabric of the UK government and the world at large (Buchanan and Huczniski 2017, p.190). Apart from the chairman's perspective on the Historic Royal Palaces, the Chief Executive Mr. John Barnes is certain that the Historic Royal Places offers some of the best products and services to the UK government and the world at large. He is also sure that the Historic Royal Palaces is a palace that every individual in the world can never think twice about believing and trusting in.
Besides, the Trustees also views The Historic Royal Palaces as one of the most sustainable organizations in the world. This is because the palaces improve its sustainability through well designed and calculated strategic objectives. The Queen, the employees, and the UK Government are also confident that the Palaces offer some of the best services that no any other palace can offer (HRP, 2017).
In summary, the stakeholders play a significant role in the success of the Historic Royal Palaces. In particular, the key stakeholders have a direct and significant impact on the palace. Besides, they can exercise their powers to bring a remarkable change on the actions of the Historic Royal Places. They ensure that the palaces' influence is felt across the world through their commitment to the activities within the palaces.
References
Champ, A. and Ormuž, A.T., 2011. Historic Royal Palaces Insulation Project. In International Conference on Energy Management in Cultural Heritage, 6-8 April 2011, Dubrovnik, Croatia: Programme Summary.
Cuomo, F., Mallin, C. and Zattoni, A., 2016. Corporate governance codes: A review and research agenda. Corporate governance: an international review, 24(3), pp.222-241.
HRP, 2017. Historic Royal Palaces. [Online] Available at: www.hrp.org.uk [Accessed 15 December 2017].
Larsen, L.A.E., 2014. The Royal Palace of Dahomey: Symbol of a transforming nation (Doctoral dissertation, The University of Iowa).
Mador, M., Springdal, K. and Dixon, S., 2008. Quasi-privatisation and corporate governance: a process perspective. Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, 8(5), pp.595-606.
Otter, D., 2014. The economic environment. The Business Environment: Themes and Issues in a Globalizing World, p.33.
Roberts, Z., 2010. Decision making and the broadening of conservation boundaries: a personal perspective. Textile Conservation: Advances in Practice, p.269.
Sonková, M., 2014. Public Image and Perception of Current British Royal Family (Doctoral dissertation, Masarykova univerzita, Filozofická fakulta).
