Emerald | International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management | Table of Contents

Editorial

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Fevzi Okumus) — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Not available.

"Green" attributes and customer satisfaction: optimization of resource allocation and performance.

Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - This study addresses issues of performance optimization through accounting for asymmetric responses of customer satisfaction to different types of product or service attributes: core, facilitating and "green" (eco-friendly). The primary research inquiry was to explore how these attributes affect customer satisfaction and account for interactions among them in order to identify an optimal combination that would maximize customer satisfaction in lodging industry settings.Design/methodology/approach - An experimental design and a web-based survey were used to obtain data from a convenience sample of faculty and staff of two U.S. universities. Univariate and regression analysis were two primary methods of data analysis.Findings - The findings confirmed non-linear nature of customer satisfaction response and indicated that "green" attributes impact customer satisfaction similarly to facilitating attributes but differently from the core type of attributes in the context of lodging industry.Research limitations/implications - Generalizability of the findings is bounded by convenience sampling technique. Additionally, only a limited number of hotel attributes was examined.Practical implications - The current findings help to resolve the problem of performance optimization and allow the creation of hotel offerings that yield maximum levels of customer satisfaction and optimal resource allocation.Originality/value - The study provides additional insight about the factor structure of customer satisfaction and points on the place and role of "green" attributes in formation of customer satisfaction in the context of the lodging industry.

An Exploratory Study of Competencies required to Co-Create Memorable Customer Experiences in the Hospitality

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Sonia Bharwani, Vinnie Jauhari) — Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - The research aims at identifying and mapping competencies required by frontline employees to enhance guest experience in the hospitality industry in context of the emerging experience economy. Design/methodology/approach - Secondary research through extensive review of relevant literature in the area of experience economy and hospitality management.Findings - This study proposes a new construct of ‘Hospitality Intelligence’ (HI) encompassing mainly Emotional Intelligence (comprising Interpersonal Intelligence and Intrapersonal Intelligence), Cultural Intelligence and Hospitality Experiential Intelligence dimensionsPractical implications - Practitioners and HR professional in the field of hospitality would find the Hospitality Intelligence construct useful in recruiting and training frontline employees, while educationists could use the findings of this study in designing curricula and pedagogical interventions for developing the right skill set for hospitality industry.Originality/value - This study proposes a competencies framework and develops a construct of Hospitality Intelligence required by frontline employees in the hospitality industry to elevate guest experience from a simple interaction to a memorable experience.

The Influences of Collectivism in Hospitality Work Settings

Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - The purpose of this research is to test whether a hospitality worker’s degree of individualism/collectivism influences his/her organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), comfort with empowerment, and leader-member exchange (LMX) in the workplace.Design/methodology/approach - Hypotheses were tested through the use of a sentence completion experiment conducted on American and Korean hotel workers. To increase generalizability, results were then replicated through the use of an identical sentence completion experiment conducted on American and Korean restaurant workers.Findings - This research first confirms the notion that hospitality workers in a collective nation are more apt to possess a collective mindset in their work environments than those in an individualistic nation. Moreover, this research finds that hospitality workers in a collective nation demonstrate more OCB, possess lower comfort levels with empowerment, and possess higher levels of LMX than hospitality workers in an individualistic nation.Research limitations/implications - It would prove informative for future research to test these relationships in other contexts and settings.Practical implications - These findings demonstrate the need to consider country culture when interpreting and managing OCB, employee empowerment, and LMX tendencies in hospitality settings.Originality/value - Research that examines the influences of individualism/collectivism on OCB, comfort with empowerment, and LMX is scarce.

Methodological approaches to job satisfaction measurement in hospitality firms

Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - This study aims to propose a new unbiased, reliable, exact, and systematic method of job satisfaction score estimation. The method considers affective and cognitive aspects simultaneously.Design/methodology/approach - A questionnaire survey following the optimum allocation stratified sampling method was conducted in four up-scale hotels of Tehran. Hotels’ employees completed the questionnaires. Principal component analysis was used to identify facets, and the Friedman test was applied to examine their homogeneity. The Wilcoxon sign rank test and Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were employed to determine the most effective method among those investigated. Findings - The weighted abridged job descriptive index (WAJDI) proposed in the study as a modified version of the job descriptive index seems to overcome the main limitations of the abridged job descriptive index (AJDI) and the perceived job satisfaction (PJS) methods when measuring job satisfaction in the hospitality sector.Research limitations/implications - This paper encourages researchers to consider different methods to assess job satisfaction along with WAJDI. However, although a stratified sampling approach was used, it focused on a limited sociocultural and economic environment, which limits the generalizability of findings. WAJDI must be used in different conditions to prove its efficiency in measuring job satisfaction. Originality/value - This study assesses and compares the power of the AJDI method, which is a cognitive-based structure, with PJS as a global, single-item scale to capture the affective aspects of job satisfaction. By introducing a new method of job satisfaction evaluation, this study contributes to the literature.

Be Good for Love or for Money? The Roles of Justice in the Chinese Hotel Industry

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Alice H. Y. Hon, Lin Lu) — Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - Drawing on the social exchange theory, this paper examines the relationship between the interactional justice of supervisors and the job performance of subordinates in an expatriate context. Specifically, we take a relational approach by introducing help intention directed to the supervisor (upward help intention) as the mediator. We also consider the moderating role of distributive justice in the relationship between upward help intention and job performance.Design/methodology/approach - A survey was conducted among 232 service employees and their expatriate supervisors in multinational hotels in China. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was conducted to test the proposed model.Findings - The statistical results of this study supported the positive effect of interactional justice on job performance as well as the mediating effect of upward help intention. Meanwhile, we also found that when the level of distributive justice is high, the relationship between upward help intention and job performance is strengthened, whereas the effect is leveled off when the level of distributive justice is low.Practical implications - The findings of this study suggest that managers in the service industry should be sensitive in treating their subordinates as it will lead to positive interpersonal relationship, which in turn, will stimulate job performance. Moreover, the fair organizational compensation system aids the managers in turning good interpersonal results into positive performance outcomes.Originality/value - This study contributes to the literature on justice by revealing the relational mechanism between interactional justice and job performance, and the economic boundary of this relationship.

High-performance work practices, work social support and their effects on job embeddedness and turnover intentions

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Osman M. Karatepe) — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - This study proposes and tests a research model that examines whether job embeddedness mediates the effects of high-performance work practices and work social support on turnover intentions. Design/methodology/approach - Based on data gathered from 174 full-time frontline employees in the four- and five-star hotels with a time lag of two weeks in Iran, the relationships were tested using LISREL 8.30 through structural equation modeling. Findings - Results suggest that job embeddedness fully mediates the effects of high-performance work practices and work social support on turnover intentions. Specifically, frontline employees with high-performance work practices and work social support are more embedded in their jobs, and therefore, are unlikely to display intentions to leave the organization. Research limitations/implications - Testing hope as a moderator of the effects of high-performance work practices and work social support on job embeddedness in future studies would add to the existing knowledge base. The time lag used in this study provides limited support for causal inferences. Therefore, future studies should use a longer time lag than it was done in this study.Originality/value - The present study adds to the current literature by investigating the antecedents of job embeddedness. This study also adds to the current knowledge base by examining job embeddedness as a mediator of the effects of high-performance work practices and work social support on turnover intentions through data collected in the hotel industry in Iran, a developing non-Western country.

Causal Relationships between Table Game Players’ Perceptions of Service Quality, Perceived Winning, and Game Spending: Moderating Effects of Demographic Factors

Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - The purposes of this study are: (1) to examine the roles of five drivers of service quality (tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy) and perceived winning in the gaming behavior of table game players; and (2) to test the moderating effects of table game players’ demographic and situational factors (gender, education level, parenting status, and proximity to a casino).Design/methodology/approach - A review of the current literature in the above-mentioned areas revealed thirteen theoretical hypotheses, from which the authors derived a structural model. The model was tested utilizing data collected from 383 United States casino patrons that primarily played table games during visits to casinos. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were utilized to test the proposed theoretical relationships.Findings - The results indicate that various dimensions of perceived service quality (including tangibles, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy) in casinos as well as casino patrons’ perceived winning have considerable influence on their satisfaction. Brand affect and game spending were found to be influenced by the patron satisfaction with table games. The relationship between perceived empathy and table game satisfaction was stronger for females than for males; the relationship between perceived winning and table game satisfaction was stronger for those with lower levels of formal education; and the relationship between table game satisfaction and game spending was stronger for table game players without children and for those residing near a casino. Originality/value - This study provides an empirical analysis of the effects of perceived service quality at table games and perceived winning on table game players’ satisfaction, brand affect, and game spending. The results of this study may be utilized to aid casino operators to better tailor their marketing efforts and improve returns on investments.

An Empirical Framework of Financial Characteristics and Outperformance in Troubled Economic Times: Evidence from the Restaurant Industry

literatinetwork@emeraldinsight.com (Nan Hua, Qu Xiao, Elizabeth Anne Yost) — Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0100

Abstract

Purpose - This study is designed to explore: 1). the financial characteristics associated with outperformance of U.S. public restaurant firms in challenging economic times; and 2). the empirical measure of outperformance proposed herein.Design/methodology/approach - This study utilizes a Logit model and considers the relevant financial variables in annual deviation forms to explore an empirical model that explains financial outperformance in troubled economic times for the restaurant industry. Findings - The results of the study indicate that larger market share, asset turnover, and profit margin, combined with lower leverage, BM, earnings variance, and size, in addition to franchise utilization, appear to produce collectively a fine balance for success in difficult economic times. Research limitations/implications - This paper does not address the fine balance between short-term financial performance and long-term sustainability. Further, the employed contemporaneous modeling framework may limit generality of findings of this paper. Originality/value - This study provides systematic evidence on an empirical framework linking financial characteristics and outperformance of restaurant firms in difficult economic times. Its results have timely and significant implications for practitioners, researchers and other parties of interest.