The implications of hotel employee attitudes for the development of quality tourism: the case of Cyprus

In an increasingly competitive market, the issue of quality has grown in significance for tourism businesses and destinations alike. This has been influenced by a number of factors, such as the expansion of consumer rights and the alleged emergence ‘new’, quality conscious tourists. In particular, it is the need to retain or increase competitive advantage that has underpinned the drive for quality in tourism—certainly, many destinations, especially those operating in the highly competitive summer-sun market, are now adopting quality tourism development strategies. However, little or no attention has been paid to the role of tourism industry employees, particularly those in hotels, in the success of quality management programmes. The purpose of this paper is to address this omission. Based upon a survey of hotel employees in Cyprus, it identifies a number of factors that may support or limit the drive towards quality service provision, with a variety of implications for the destination as a whole as well as individual hotels. In particular, hotel management should implement strategies based on reward systems, empowerment and reducing staff turnover, whilst there is an important co-ordination and guidance role to be played by the national tourism organisation.     

The Impact of Discounting Room Rates on In-House Restaurant Sales

This study investigates whether discounting hotel room rates during low seasons of demand influences in-house hotel restaurant sales in a positive way. A linear regression function was utilized to assess the relationship between discounting room rates and the hotel's in-house restaurant sales. The model summary provided results indicating that the discounting of room rates during the low season did not significantly influence in-house restaurant sales. The value of this study lies in the empirical results that may provide guidance to the revenue management practices of hotel managers.     

Do price promotions drive consumer spending on luxury hotel services? The moderating roles of room price and user-generated content

Price promotion, as price information, and user-generated content (UGC), as non-price information, play an important role in generating luxury hotel revenue. This study empirically investigates how price promotion influences actual consumer spending on luxury hotel services except room price, by considering the contingency role of room price and volume and valence of UGC. Combined data of daily settlements and Tripadvisor customer reviews of a regional luxury hotel chain are used for the analyses. The results indicate that, overall, price promotion negatively influences consumer spending on luxury hotel services and its negative effect is strengthened when the room is higher priced or the valence of UGC is high. Furthermore, a larger volume of intrinsic attribute-related UGC–amenity and location–with price promotion leads to more consumer spending than a larger volume of extrinsic attribute-related UGC–food and staff. The findings provide hotel managers with important insights into pricing and UGC management.     

Hotel characteristics and occupancy trends: Yorkshire and Humberside hotels, UK, April 1982–March 1984

This study extends the analysis of hotel occupancy in Yorkshire and Humberside, UK, hotels reported in the March 1985 issue of this journal, and confirms the ‘stability’ of the three previously identified dimensions of occupancy performance which reflect differences in overall occupancy levels, intensity of seasonal fluctuations, and length of season. The focus shifts to the identification and interpretation of longer term trends in occupancy performance. The results of a questionnaire survey of hotels are used in a stepwise regression model to relate occupancy trends to a range of ‘predictor’ variables measuring different aspects of the hotels and their management.     

Hotel controllers in the 21st century—a Hong Kong perspective on desired attributes

This empirical study carried out in Hong Kong set out to discover how aware are practicing on-property hotel controllers (OPHCs) and hospitality management graduates of desired attributes for the job of a hotel financial controller. It identified profiles of 21st century OPHCs ‘painted’ by practising OPHCs (practitioners) and graduates and matched these with profiles from recruitment specialists (recruiters) and studies reported in the literature on unit controllers in business generally and hotels specifically. The approach to the research, consisted of a quantitative analysis of secondary data that identified interviewees (practitioners, graduates and recruiters) and themes that were then investigated in primary data collection by qualitative methods (content analysis of discourse). The study found that graduates needed to better inform themselves of desired attributes (qualifications, skills and personality). However, practitioners and recruiters formed a consensus on profiles, both perceiving a distinction in profile between OPHCs in ‘international’ type hotels and ‘other’ types of hotel. Perceived attributes of OPHCs in ‘international’ hotels showed many similarities with their counterparts in business generally.     

The effect of idiosyncratic price movements on short- and long-run performance of hotels

It is a common belief that businesses performance should not be evaluated by immediate fiscal returns, but rather based on an extended time horizon. While the literature implies that pricing decisions may exert lagged as well as contemporaneous effects on performance, a limited number of empirical studies have focused on such effects. The current study investigates effects of idiosyncratic price movements on short-run and long-run hotel performance, where idiosyncratic price movements refer to the changes in individual hotels’ room rates unexplained by price competition, product differentiation, and market conditions. By analyzing spatial panel data from the Houston lodging market between 2005 and 2014, we find that idiosyncratic price movements enhance hotel performance in the short-run and that adverse effects followed in the long-run. Findings of the study and implications for practitioners are discussed along with suggestions for future research.     

Destination characteristics that drive hotel performance: A state-of-the-art global analysis

The increased market saturation and competition in both domestic and international tourism destinations have renewed interest among hotel operators in identifying the key drivers of hotel performance. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the determinants of hotel performance and their relative importance across multiple tourist destinations. We employ a two-step estimation method to identify key determinants of hotel performance, using a rich sample of international hotels. Our empirical analyses show that the main drivers of hotel performance are the quality of the educational system, government support, disposable income, and number of international arrivals within a tourism destination. Results indicate that the most important barriers to hotel performance are the competition among accommodation providers, tax rate and fuel price. We argue for the need for hotel providers to develop strategies that take cognisance of the key drivers and barriers to enhancing hotel performance in an ever-changing global tourism sector.     

Trends and tensions in UK public house management

The management role in UK managed public houses has increased in relative importance over the years since 1970. Using material derived from both secondary sources and fieldwork in a major leisure retail company, the role of house manager is examined through the inter-related notions of landlord, manager and employee. There is a particular focus on shifts towards the employment of younger managers and the relationship between this and branding strategies. The implications of this relationship is examined through the notion of the ‘locus of interpretation’, and stress is placed on the need to view managing as a relationship.     

Marketing strategies for hotels

The aims of this article are to investigate the application of hotel marketing strategies by independent vs group (chain) hotels and to investigate comparatively the performance — along a number of criteria — of these two types of hotel organisation.The study presents in detail the main stages in developing a hotel marketing strategy and a taxonomy of the 9 major strategies available for hotels, discussing their features, characteristics and when appropriate for application.Any meaningful analysis of hotel marketing should be based on the marketing strategies employed by the individual establishment and group/chain organisation. No doubt effective selling of hotels' products and services depends to a large extent on the marketing strategies selected. As the market for hotels' services is dynamic and accompanied by rapid changes in the environment due to uncertain economic conditions, increased competition, advancement in technology, and inflation, increased attention will be given by hotels in the future to the selection of an appropriate marketing strategy.     

Antecedents and consequences of relationship quality in hotel industry

This study investigated the antecedents and consequences of relationship quality. This study will help hotel managers to develop and implement effective relationship marketing strategies. Effective usage of relationship marketing strategies will be able to improve hotel performance such as share of purchases, relationship continuity, and word of mouth. To analyze data collected from 12 five-star hotels in Seoul, the linear structural relationship (LISREL) model was used to identify structural characteristics of relationship management between service providers and guests. The empirical results of this study were threefold. First, greater service providers’ relational and customer orientation resulted in higher relationship quality. Second, better service providers’ attributes resulted in higher relationship quality. Third, higher relationship quality resulted in higher share of purchases and better relationship continuity and share of purchases.     

A travel demand model for Mainland Chinese tourists to Hong Kong

The purpose of the study was to determine what exogenous variables best explained the travel demand for Mainland Chinese tourists to Hong Kong. The 12 years (1984–1995) annual time series data of ‘number of Mainland Chinese tourist arrivals’, ‘China disposable income per capita’, ‘consumer price indices in Hong Kong and China’ and ‘exchange rates’ was used to develop a travel demand model. Seven exogenous variables were selected for the model through a literature review. An OLS multiple regression analysis was performed to identify the ‘best’ subset of seven exogenous variables to determine the demand model. The results showed that travel demand for Mainland Chinese tourists to Hong Kong could be explained by ‘disposable income per capita’ and ‘relaxation of visa requirements’.     

Asymmetric price responses to hotel competition caused by heterogeneous customers’ willingness to pay

Heterogeneous customers’ willingness to pay affects hotel competition and results in competitors’ asymmetric price responses. To study this lopsided effect, we construct a game framework featuring an upscale hotel and an upper-midscale hotel under a series of assumptions. We first analyze hotel pricing and competitor price responses and then compare the competitors’ responding adjustments. Primary findings show that (1) the price response expressed as an amount by the upscale hotel is more than that of the upper-midscale hotel, and that (2) the price response expressed as a percentage by the upscale hotel is less than that of the upper-midscale hotel. Finally, we present reasons for our findings and offer suggestions to hotel revenue managers.     

Human resource management and performance in the Barbados hotel industry

This article measures the effect of human resource management (HRM) on performance in the hotel industry in Barbados. It used a quantitative survey covering 46 hotels out of a population of 75 hotels. The respondents were hotel's management, being either a general manager, human resource (HR) manager or line manager. Similar to Hoque's study of UK hotels, the impact of internal and external fit and the universal relevance of HRM were tested. The findings showed no major support for external fit, universal relevance and internal fit in the Barbados hotel industry. All the hotels perceived themselves as performing well, given the focus on quality and targeting high spending tourists. A quest for high service pushes the industry more towards best-practice ‘HRM’ rather than best fit.     

Managing green marketing: Hong Kong hotel managers’ perspective

In view of the serious environmental problems we are currently facing, taking action to protect our planet is becoming more persuasive and important. Along with various environmental initiatives, the concept of green marketing emerged in the late 1980s. Some hotels have taken various initiatives to position themselves as green hotels, including the use of eco-labels as a marketing ploy to attract customers. Nevertheless, some of the hotels that use these green marketing strategies have been accused of “green washing”. The main aim of this study is to investigate Hong Kong hotel manager perceptions of the relative importance of different green marketing strategies. Questionnaires containing 30 attributes were distributed to this effect. The findings reveal that hotel managers equally perceive “Hotel green marketing should begin with green product and service design”, “Hotels provide products and services that do no harm to human health” and “The Internet is an effective channel to market a hotel's green initiatives to customers directly” as the top green marketing ploys. Independent t-tests and one-way ANOVA were also used to examine significant differences in the way hotel managers with different professional backgrounds and individual demographic characteristics rate the importance of hotel-related green marketing strategies. The findings indicate that lower-grade hotels tend to adopt lean green marketing strategies, whereas hotels with larger sizes or formal environmental management systems are likely to adopt shaded or extreme green marketing strategies. The study also provides a number of insights to help hotel managers and especially marketers better understand the implementation and importance of different green marketing strategies, thereby allowing them to employ suitable measures to avoid the “green washing” designation and attract more green-conscious travellers.     

The exploration of hotel reference prices under dynamic pricing scenarios and different forms of competition

The reference price, used by consumers to evaluate market prices, has tremendous relevance in dynamic pricing. Reconciling current heterogeneous theories and studies on reference prices, this paper analyzes the impact of hotel price sequences on consumers’ reference prices through a lab and a field experiment. Experiment 1 tests the importance of retrospective price evaluations, while Experiment 2 evaluates the impact of three forms of competition: (i) simultaneous behavior, where firms adjust prices simultaneously; (ii) leader–follower behavior, where one firm acts as the leader; and (iii) independent behavior, where each player takes its rival's strategy as given and seeks to maximize its own profits. The results show that consumers decrease their reference price when competing hotels adjust their prices simultaneously. Relevant managerial implications are drawn for the hospitality industry, which is affected by the presence of online travel agencies that announce the daily rates offered by each competitor.     

Environmental awareness and initiatives in the Swedish and Polish hotel industries—survey results

Despite its importance, environmental stewardship is not always the top priority in the hotel industry in Europe. This study investigates the influence of the geo-political, economic and socio-cultural context of a country on the environmental attitudes and pro-ecological initiatives incorporated in this sector. To illustrate the differences, hotels in Sweden and Poland were targeted and a total of 349 hoteliers participated in an e-mail-based survey. The study reveals that hotel operators generally recognize the need for environmental protection and are involved in a number of activities. The economic situation and pro-environmental efforts initiated by the government were found to have an impact on certain aspects of hoteliers’ attitudes and actions. The survey has further indicated the two major directions that need to be followed when introducing environmental sustainability into the hotel industry. The first involves incorporating responsible technical and behavioural practices in the sector. The second highlights the necessity of initiating greater demand for “green” practices from the customers.     

Problems faced by managers in the hotel and catering industry

This survey shows that managers in the U.K. hotel and catering industry rank the importance of problems faced by managers differently from managers in other industries, and that managers in different sectors of the hotel and catering industry also rank their problems differently from each other. The problems revealed are open to wide variations of meaning and a further survey is planned.     

Determinants of using operating lease in the hotel industry

This study investigated the determinants of using operating lease in the hotel industry. The hotel industry has utilized operating lease not only for operating equipment but also as a financing instrument through ‘sales and lease back.’ This study found that hotel firms with less internal funds and/or with higher debt ratios are more likely to use operating lease. Contrary to the studies of other industries, hotel firms with less financially distressed are more likely to use operating lease. This study indicated that operating lease decrease as firm size increases, but only up to a certain level, after that level operating lease increase as firm size increases. Contrary to our expectations, the growth opportunity of hotel firms appeared to have no relationship to use of operating lease. These findings contribute to further understandings of hotel industry-specific information regarding what drives hotel firms to use operating lease.     

‘Scientific identity’ of scholarly journals in hospitality and tourism research: Review and evaluation

The objective of this study is to describe the ‘scientific identity’ of scholarly journals in hospitality and tourism research by reviewing and evaluating the approaches and the geographical affiliations of authors published in selected journals. The compiled results are analysed for patterns that appear to reveal the ‘scientific identity’ of each of the selected journals. In particular, scholars can note the particular features of individual journals while acknowledging the width and variety of research designs that are published in these scholarly journals.     

Transformational leadership style,market competition and departmental performance: Evidence from luxury hotels in Australia

This study examined the relationship between hotel departments’ financial and non-financial performance, market competition, and transformational leadership style. A self-administered postal survey was used to collect the data. Completed and usable questionnaires were received from rooms and food and beverage department managers of 56 hotels and resorts. The transformational leadership style, market competition, and departmental performance were measured using instruments adapted from previous studies [Bass, B., Avolio, B., 1994. Improving organisational effectiveness through transformational leadership. Sage Publication, Thousand Oaks, CA; Gupta, A., Govindarajan, V., 1984. Business unit strategy, managerial characteristics and business unit effectiveness at strategy implementation. Academy of Management Journal, 27 (1), 25–41; Khandwalla, P., 1972. The effects of different types of competition on the use of management control. Journal of Accounting Research, Autumn, 275–285]. The results of the study indicated that transformational leadership style was positively associated with the non-financial performance, which, in turn, was positively associated with the financial performance of the departments. However, no such relationship was found between market competition and the non-financial, and financial performance.