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1 – 10 of over 12000Seungwon “Shawn” Lee, Kunsoon Park and Mahmood A. Khan
The purpose of this paper is to understand the relative importance of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) based features and services at conference centers and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand the relative importance of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) based features and services at conference centers and underlying dimensions which could impact their selection by meeting planners. Further, it tests the relationship between types of meeting planners and their perceived importance of ICT‐based features.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 17 ICT‐based features and services were identified through extensive literature content analysis. Meeting planners were asked to rate the importance of each item when they select a conference center. Factor analysis was then performed to identify underlying dimension of the items and ANOVA was used to test any difference of perceived importance by the type of meeting planners.
Findings
Meeting planners consider “availability of technical support”, “high‐speed internet”, “wireless connectivity”, and ”e‐mail station” as important features/service when they select a conference center. However, they show significant lack of knowledge in terms related to network infrastructure that are used in meeting venue marketing materials. The results show that there is no significant difference in their perceived importance of ICT‐based feature/service by the type of meeting planner.
Originality/value
This study provides meaningful new dimensions of important ICT‐based features and services in site selection by both researchers and meeting facility professionals. In addition, this study compared three types of meeting planners including rarely studied corporate and government meeting planners regarding their perceived importance of ICT‐based features and services in their site selection.
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Woojin Lee, Timothy Tyrrell and Mehmet Erdem
The purpose of this study is three fold: to provide a preliminary exploration of meeting planners' use and perceived usefulness of the different types of social media; to examine…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is three fold: to provide a preliminary exploration of meeting planners' use and perceived usefulness of the different types of social media; to examine why meeting planners use social media and; to investigate the perception of adopting the social media, especially as perceived critical mass impacts the adoption of social networking media.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from the members of a professional association for meeting professionals in the Southwest US using an online self‐administered questionnaire. A total of 510 members received an invitation to take the survey and 120 responses were received, representing a 23.5 percent response rate. Descriptive analysis, discriminant validity, reliability and path analysis were used to estimate the relationships between the five constructs: perceived critical mass, usefulness, ease of use, attitudes and intention to use social network media in the future.
Findings
The most commonly preferred social network sites were Facebook (29 percent), LinkedIn (15 percent), YouTube (13 percent), Twitters (11 percent) and My Space (11 percent) and the social networking media rated most useful were Facebook (mean=3.7), LinkedIn (mean=3.1), YouTube (mean=3.0), Blogs (mean=2.7), Webinars (mean=2.6) and Twitter (mean=2.5), The top three reasons for using social media were: to communicate with other planners easily and quickly through chat or discussion boards (80.4 percent), to share queries, problems, solutions and opinions with other meeting planners (70.1 percent) and to get feedback from attendees after meeting/event/convention (69.9 percent). Additionally, the path model used in the analysis indicated that perceived critical mass not only directly influences intention to use social network media but also indirectly affects attitude toward using social media and intention to use social media simultaneously through perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness.
Originality/value
Even though the social networking media has previously been used by many meeting planners to find information, few research studies have explored the meeting planners' perception of social networking media and what factors may have an effect on meeting planners' adoption of using social network media. This study provides a preliminary empirical analysis of meeting planners' perception of these tools and the factors that influence their utilization.
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Kimberly S. Severt and Radesh Palakurthi
The purpose of this study is to determine the value a convention center provides its customers, the brand the center offers, and the importance of the customer/business…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine the value a convention center provides its customers, the brand the center offers, and the importance of the customer/business relationship. Value, brand, and relationship equity (RE) are components of customer equity (CE).
Design/methodology/approach
Interviews were conducted with meeting planners related to their experiences with top‐tier convention centers in the USA.
Findings
Meeting planners confirmed value equity (VE) as the most important in the customer to business exchange. RE followed with brand equity (BE) as the least important of the three. Meeting planners identified the sub‐drivers of VE as location, quality and price received from the convention center. BE sub‐drivers included: reputation and the awareness of the convention center. RE sub‐drivers included: the interactions, responsiveness, and special treatment received from the convention center personnel. A CE model is presented.
Practical implications
The application of the CE model to the convention center's strategic planning process can provide a roadmap for increasing CE across value, brand and relationship activities.
Originality/value
This is the first study to identify the drivers and sub‐drivers of CE in the convention industry.
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Myong Jae Lee and Ki‐Joon Back
Proposes to review convention and meeting management articles published in the hospitality and tourism literature.
Abstract
Purpose
Proposes to review convention and meeting management articles published in the hospitality and tourism literature.
Design/methodology/approach
Uses content analysis of 147 articles published in hospitality and tourism journals for the 14 years from 1990 to 2003.
Findings
Identifies five core research themes, i.e. economic impact of conventions, site selection, meeting participation processes, destination marketing, and advances in technology.
Originality/value
Offers the first thematic view of convention and meeting management issues, derived from the literature.
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Inna Soifer, Katerina Berezina, Olena Ciftci and Alexander Mafusalov
This study aims to explore virtual site visit adoption patterns of US convention facilities based on the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory. Additionally, it offers predictive…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore virtual site visit adoption patterns of US convention facilities based on the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory. Additionally, it offers predictive models of virtual site visit tool adoption by applying probability distributions.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used content analysis of 369 US convention facility websites. Data collected from the websites recorded the presence or absence of the following tools facilitating virtual site visits: photos, floor plans, videos, 360-photos, 360-tours and virtual reality (VR)-optimized tours. The website content analysis was followed by application of the DOI theory and predictive modeling.
Findings
According to the DOI theory, the use of VR-optimized tours (4.34%) is still in the early adoption stage, followed by 360-degree tours (12.74%) and standard videos (17.89%) that have transitioned into the early majority stage of adoption and photos (72.09%) and floor plans (84.82%) that represent a late majority stage. Three predictive models with shifted Gompertz, Gumbel and Bass distributions forecasted that convention centers would achieve a 50% adoption rate of 360-degree tools (photos and tours) in 4.67, 4.2 and three years, respectively. The same models predicted a 50% adoption rate of 360-degree tours in 6.62, 5.81 and 4.42 years.
Practical implications
The research indicates that most US convention facilities have not taken full advantage of their websites as a sales and marketing tool.
Originality/value
This study is the first comprehensive attempt to evaluate the adoption rate of VR and other technologies enabling virtual site visits by using content analysis of US convention facility websites. Additionally, it is the first attempt to apply probability distributions to predict technology adoption in the convention industry context.
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While corporate executives have long realized that the ultimate goal of strategic planning is to forge a competitive advantage that will produce superior profits, only in recent…
Abstract
While corporate executives have long realized that the ultimate goal of strategic planning is to forge a competitive advantage that will produce superior profits, only in recent years have strategic planners recognized the urgency for creative approaches to the development of strategy.
Carole B. Sox, Jeffrey M. Campbell, Sheryl F. Kline, Sandra K. Strick and Tena B. Crews
This paper aims to examine generational formative referents as factors that influence meeting attendees’ adoption and technology use within virtual and hybrid meetings, and test…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine generational formative referents as factors that influence meeting attendees’ adoption and technology use within virtual and hybrid meetings, and test the applicability of the technology acceptance model (TAM) as presented by Davis (1986). This study investigates how attendees’ experiences from their respective formative years (i.e. generational formative referents), the basis of the Generational Cohort Theory (GCT), influence the TAM model constructs.
Design/methodology/approach
A partial least squares analysis test is utilized to determine technology acceptance within meetings across three generations: Baby Boomers (1946-1964), Generation X (1965-1978) and Generation Y (1979-2000).
Findings
The multi-group comparison determined all three generations responded similarly with regard to the paths being tested, indicating each of the three generational cohorts within this study are influenced by the experiences of their formative years, which are different for each generation.
Research limitations/implications
The findings add to the limited foundation for scholars wanting to further analyze technology use within meetings, and for those interested in generational influences.
Practical implications
This study provides useful information for marketers and planners to increase meeting attendance, enhance attendee satisfaction, and further explore meeting engagement opportunities.
Originality/value
Underpinning the GCT, this study is the first within hospitality and tourism studies to investigate a theoretical model on generational technology use within meetings.
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A growing body of literature suggests that creating a just sustainable society will require reorganizing economic arrangements and, in particular, rethinking work. Previous…
Abstract
A growing body of literature suggests that creating a just sustainable society will require reorganizing economic arrangements and, in particular, rethinking work. Previous studies have recognized alternative organizations, such as cooperatives and intentional communities, as sites for building more democratic, sustainable models of work. This study contributes a description and analysis of work and sustainability at Twin Oaks Intentional Community, an 80-person income- and resource-sharing commune in Louisa, Virginia. Some measures show that Twin Oaks members live more sustainably in terms of energy consumption than the average US resident. In this article, I investigate the relationship between sustainability and work at Twin Oaks. I find that sustainable work is linked to the following key principles: broadening definitions of work, prioritizing community well-being, and democratizing decision making. In doing so, I contribute to previous literature on work, sustainability, and alternative organizations by suggesting that (1) sustainability in intentional communities is deeply intertwined with systems of work; (2) broadening definitions of work to include social reproductive labour contributes to sustainability; and (3) the democratization of work can further goals of sustainability.
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Rex S. Toh, Barbara M. Yates and Frederick DeKay
The aim of the paper is to help graduate students in the area of hospitality management to understand and deal with non‐performance charges and attrition issues.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of the paper is to help graduate students in the area of hospitality management to understand and deal with non‐performance charges and attrition issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses case studies to illustrate the issues that must be resolved.
Findings
There are many ways to look at issues – from the hotel's perspective, from the customer's viewpoint, and from an independent observer's position.
Originality/value
This training exercise highlights the complicated issues surrounding non‐performance charges and attrition issues, and suggests ways in which they can be fairly resolved to the mutual satisfaction of all parties to preserve goodwill all around.
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This paper aims to provide an overview of the field of hospitality management and a guide to the major books, databases, web sites, and other resources that comprise a quality…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide an overview of the field of hospitality management and a guide to the major books, databases, web sites, and other resources that comprise a quality hospitality management reference collection.
Design/methodology/approach
Following a short introduction and overview, key sources and annotations are presented in categories that will help reference and collection librarians to better understand and serve hospitality management students. The sources were identified through the author's experience, library research guides and web sites, bibliographies, and other standard sources.
Findings
Hospitality management is growing and maturing as an academic discipline, aided by the fact that the field offers good job prospects. The key sources pertaining to hospitality management are scattered among several different industry sectors, including food and beverage, lodging, meetings and special events, travel and tourism, and theme parks and attractions.
Originality/value
This paper is the first to systematically identify key reference works for the field of hospitality management. It will be useful for librarians who work with business, culinary arts, hospitality management, or related fields.
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