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11 – 20 of 36Robert J. Harrington and Michael C. Ottenbacher
The purpose of this paper is to assess the level of strategic management topic representation within the academic field of hospitality. The study addresses the following…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the level of strategic management topic representation within the academic field of hospitality. The study addresses the following questions: what is the frequency of articles related to the topic of strategy in recent hospitality journals? How does the content of these articles differ from the more general field of strategic management? And, what are the potential gaps where researchers in the hospitality field can make contributions?
Design/methodology/approach
This study looks at the number and percentage of strategy-related articles published in leading hospitality journals for 2005 through 2009. The determination of the percentage of strategy-related articles published and categorizing these articles by key strategy topic area required several steps: defining strategic management as an academic area within hospitality; determining key strategy topic areas and key words or terms; and defining characteristics of the hospitality field that may impact what is and what is not strategic management in hospitality. Hospitality journal articles were then coded as strategy-related or other, and (if determined to be strategy-related) the articles were categorized into one of ten key topic areas.
Findings
Overall strategy articles represent about 27 percent of the total journal articles from the five-year period. In comparing hospitality journals to the sole top-tier business journal focusing on strategy, this study indicates differences exist among key topic areas of focus. These differences seem to indicate that researchers in general strategic management tend to focus on less applied and more theoretical notions of strategy where researchers in hospitality strategic management tend to focus on more tactical methods when addressing questions of strategy.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations of this study are: the study focuses on four hospitality journals and the top-rated general strategy journal; and categorizing strategy articles was done using inter-judge reliability by the authors. Future research might identify a socially constructed definition of strategic management in hospitality.
Practical implications
The importance of strategic management and strategic thinking in hospitality and hospitality research has never been greater. With increasing turbulence in the global environment, the field of hospitality (and its related research) must assess and provide strategic approaches to address challenges and opportunities for the future.
Originality/value
The value of this study is in providing an overview of what has been studied in hospitality strategy in the recent past and pointing out future research opportunities for hospitality strategic management issues.
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Michael Ottenbacher, Juergen Gnoth and Peter Jones
The purpose of this study is to gain insight into factors that contribute to the success in high contact new service development (NSD) projects.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to gain insight into factors that contribute to the success in high contact new service development (NSD) projects.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected via questionnaires from hospitality managers knowledgeable about NSD in their organization (sample size =183; response rate 38.1 percent). Discriminant analysis was used to identify the factors that are responsible for successful high contact NSD projects in the hospitality industry.
Findings
Research results indicate that seven factors play a distinctive role in the outcome of high contact NSD: market attractiveness, strategic human resource management, market responsiveness, empowerment, training of employees, employee commitment and marketing synergy.
Research limitations/implications
This study was conducted in only one industry (hospitality) and one country (Germany) and included only the views of managers.
Practical implications
This study outlines the importance of human resource management factors in high contact NSD success. Findings from previous NSD success studies in low contact service industries have been only partly confirmed.
Originality/value
This study expands the scope of NSD research.
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Stephen L. Vargo, Robert F. Lusch, Melissa Archpru Akaka and Yi He
Alexander Kessler, Christoph Pachucki, Katharina Stummer, Michael Mair and Petra Binder
The purpose of this paper is to identify different types of organizational innovativeness in Austrian hotels and analyze their connection to (innovation) success. In the face of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify different types of organizational innovativeness in Austrian hotels and analyze their connection to (innovation) success. In the face of growing international competition, innovation is becoming increasingly important for Austria’s hotel industry. A prerequisite for innovation is organizational innovativeness.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is based on a quantitative survey of 255 Austrian hotel businesses with a minimum of five employees. Innovativeness was measured by three dimensions (willingness, ability and possibility to innovate) and success by five dimensions (overall performance: financial, market and employee-related success; innovation success: product and process innovations). Findings were obtained by combining an exploratory factor analysis with a cluster analysis.
Findings
Factor analysis reveals five factors determining organizational innovativeness: “cooperation as trigger for change”; “acceptance of change”; “resource based scope for change”; “pluralism as trigger for change”; and “loose coupling and error-tolerance”. The cluster analysis identifies four types of hotels regarding organizational innovativeness indicating differences regarding the success dimensions: “potential innovators hindered by scarce resources and unsupportive structures”, “well-resourced conservatives”, “potential innovators hindered by a haphazard approach” and “cautious idea hunters”. On the whole, results show that a balanced configuration of organizational innovativeness combined with a cautious approach is connected with greater (innovation) success.
Research limitations/implications
Key-informant and survivor biases have to be considered as all items in the questionnaire were evaluated by self-assessment of the hotel management and only successful hotels (in the sense of survival) were analyzed. One important implication is that (innovation) success depends on the system that enables it; therefore, organizational innovativeness is a precondition of successful innovations. Nevertheless, there is little research on organizational innovativeness in the service sector so far.
Practical implications
This paper supports tourism businesses in understanding the concept of organizational innovativeness and its relation to (innovation) success. SMEs, which dominate the Austrian hotel industry, tend to focus on the financial aspect of innovativeness and, in general, do not consider the range of factors that constitute an organization’s innovativeness (willingness, ability and possibility to innovate) and the various outcomes.
Originality/value
By combining organizational innovativeness and (innovation) success, the paper applies an important element of innovation theory to the Austrian hotel industry. The characterization of different types of hotels regarding organizational innovativeness and success enables a (self-) assessment for hotel businesses and the deduction of customized implications.
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Mo Zhang and Ruoqi Geng
In accordance with the commitment–trust theory, employee attitudes and behaviours mediate the impact of empowerment on service recovery performance. The purpose of this paper is…
Abstract
Purpose
In accordance with the commitment–trust theory, employee attitudes and behaviours mediate the impact of empowerment on service recovery performance. The purpose of this paper is to extend the self-regulating process model and develop a structural framework that combines empowerment, self-regulation mechanisms (service recovery awareness, job engagement and emotional exhaustion) and post-recovery satisfaction. This framework explores how empowerment can lead to action of frontline employees (FLEs) in service recovery.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors test the hypotheses by investigating 290 pairs of FLEs and customers, who have service failure experience in the express mail industry, using structure equation modelling.
Findings
The findings show that empowerment enhances both service recovery awareness and job engagement. On the one hand, service recovery awareness has a positive impact on emotional exhaustion, which has a negative impact on post-recovery satisfaction. On the other hand, job engagement has a positive impact on performance. These results provide the whole picture of the double-edged effects of empowerment on FLEs in service recovery.
Practical implications
This paper indicates that managers should re-consider approaches to empowerment based on self-regulation process to enhance performance following service failure.
Originality/value
This study explores the dark side of empowerment in service recovery from a self-regulation perspective.
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Thomas Anning-Dorson and Michael Boadi Nyamekye
While acknowledging the importance of innovation capability and its potential for creating competitive advantage for firms, the purpose of this paper is to further explain how…
Abstract
Purpose
While acknowledging the importance of innovation capability and its potential for creating competitive advantage for firms, the purpose of this paper is to further explain how firms can gain the most from this potential. In the face of the low success rate of innovations and innovation activities in the hospitality sector, this study explains – through the dynamic capability perspective – that building a flexible organization is instrumental in creating competitive advantage out of innovation capabilities.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses data from hospitality firms operating in an emerging economy with a fast-growing hospitality sector. As this study uses survey and statistical methods, the possibility of common method bias is addressed by partial least squares structural equation modeling to test the hypothesized relationships.
Findings
The study finds that organizational flexibility (OF) is an important mediator in the relationship between innovation capabilities and competitive advantage. The study explains that building a flexible organization is instrumental in creating competitive advantage out of innovation capabilities in hospitality firms.
Originality/value
This study suggests that relying only on innovation capability offers hospitality firms just a fraction of what would be gained if such capabilities are properly aligned with OF. This is because such alignment generates better response power to changing needs as the firm becomes more mobile, responsive and agile to rapidly identify market trends, adjust internal operations and respond quickly to new market demand.
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Edward Brooker, Marion Joppe, Michael C.G. Davidson and Kathy Marles
Traditional innovation typologies within the extant literature are not compatible with the innovation levels found within the Australian outdoor hospitality parks (OHP) sector…
Abstract
Purpose
Traditional innovation typologies within the extant literature are not compatible with the innovation levels found within the Australian outdoor hospitality parks (OHP) sector, given its tourism and small business characteristics. This paper seeks to introduce an innovation typology specific to the Australian OHP sector.
Design/methodology/approach
A two‐phase qualitative research method was employed, whereby 30 semi‐structured interviews were conducted with OHP operators/administrators who were identified as being “innovative” by four industry executives. Based on the 30 interviews carried out in Phase 1, six industry individuals who demonstrated a wider and deeper approach to innovation than the others were further interviewed in Phase 2.
Findings
A small percentage of Australian OHP industry operators and executive officers showcase a level of innovation that is beyond incremental in character, but is not radical, revolutionary or disruptive. This group of “strategic innovators” are the first to adopt ideas from other sources and adapt them to fit within the Australian context. These new ideas are introduced in three‐ to four‐year increments, providing the individuals with sufficient time to assess the market's reaction to the changes, and to measure increased value to their situation. The three‐ to four‐year time span dovetails with the length of time taken by the majority of competitors to imitate the new concepts.
Originality/value
The paper introduces an innovation typology applicable to the Australian outdoor hospitality parks sector.
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