David Solnet

Exploring Consumer Perceptions of Green Restaurants in the US

Consumer attitudes and behavioural intentions towards environmentally sustainable practices in restaurants is an under-explored area in the hospitality literature, despite the growing ‘green’ trend. This article analyses data collected from 455 restaurant customers across five casual dining restaurants to gain insight into consumer attitudes towards, and willingness to pay more for, restaurants that engage in ‘green’ practices. The findings illustrate that there is an unfilled market niche for ‘green’ restaurants, as customers care about restaurants protecting the environment and would be willing to pay more to offset any additional costs associated with ‘green’ practices.

Introducing employee social identification to customer satisfaction research: A hotel industry study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to address the concept of linkage research and propose the addition of social identity theory as an important consideration in managing employee‐customer interactions and customer satisfaction.Design/methodology/approach – Following the creation of a conceptual model, this study used an employee questionnaire based on the incorporation of service climate (SERV*OR) and employee identification factors. A total of 314 individual surveys were collected from four hotels in Australia. Hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to determine the effects that demographic factors, service climate and different levels of employee identification would have on predictions of customer satisfaction.Findings – Service climate factors most closely linked to customer‐centric organizational practices were the significant predictors of customer satisfaction perceptions, as was employee identification at the superordinate (company) level.Practical implications – The framework propose...

Hotel restaurant dining: the relationship between perceived value and intention to purchase.

Restaurants affiliated with the hotel industry play an important role in increasing revenue and responding effectively to customer expectations. This paper examines how perceived value relates to intention to purchase (ITP) in the context of hotel restaurant dining using a quantitative approach involving multiple regression analysis. In addition, the findings indicate that there are three significant key variables that positively contribute to ITP: perceived brand image, perceived quality and perceived sacrifice (both monetary and non-monetary price).

Legends of Service Excellence: The Habits of Seven Highly Effective Hospitality Companies

This article identifies hospitality firms that are frequent subjects of positive customer storytelling and examines these firms for common practices. Seven exemplar firms were identified. Themes drawn from data were categorized into 10 theme clusters. A single theme—related to customer and employee obsession—was determined to be the common thread. An assessment of customer and employee practices from the exemplar firms is provided to give illustrations of specific practices. By understanding some of the practices of exemplar firms, managers can gain insights into how customer and employee treatment strategies can be incorporated into their businesses.

How some service firms have become part of “service excellence” folklore: An exploratory study

Purpose – This paper aims to address the concept of customer advocacy through storytelling, urban legends and folklore. The main purpose of the paper is to identify firms that are frequent subjects of positive customer storytelling, and to examine these firms for common practices.Design/methodology/approach – Following an assessment of various literature, this paper incorporates a two‐stage design. The first stage identifies a set of companies that are frequently the subject of customer service storytelling. The second stage takes a grounded theory approach, utilizing a thematic analysis of data collected in relation to the exemplar firms.Findings – Ten exemplar firms were identified. Themes and sub themes were drawn from data about the firms and categorized into ten theme clusters. A single theme – related to customer and employee obsession – was determined to be the common thread. An assessment of customer and employee practices from the exemplar firms is provided to give illustrations of specific pract...

Decline and turnaround: a literature review and proposed research agenda for the hotel sector

Tourism systems are composed of an inter-related and inter-dependent set of individual businesses, organisations and servicescapes. The hospitality industry, and more specifically the hotel sector, comprises many businesses that contribute significantly to the tourism system. Yet, the industry is renowned for business failures and poor financial returns. Increasing competition, globalisation, technology, social change and internal weaknesses are some of the reasons why tourism and hospitality businesses fail or perform significantly below expectations. When in a state of decline or poor performance, many businesses attempt a ‘turnaround’. Declining performance can have wide-ranging impacts not only on hotel businesses directly, but also upon those communities where local economies rely on tourism for jobs and economic prosperity. Consequently, an improved understanding of the processes of declining performance and turnarounds is particularly important to both researchers and practitioners. However, there has been limited research focused on turnarounds in the tourism industry, in general, and in the hotel industry, in particular. In this study we assess the literature on decline and turnarounds and propose an agenda for future research that will enhance our knowledge and inform ongoing debate on the process and impact of turnarounds in the hotel industry.

360 Degrees of Pressure The Changing Role of the HR Professional in the Hospitality Industry

Many hospitality companies highlight the importance of their employees, and this features strongly in their consumer marketing. However, the capacity of organizations to deliver “people first” practices is seemingly subject to increasing pressure within the international hospitality sector, both internally and from the external environment. Nowhere is this clearer than in the roles that are played with respect to the human resource management (HRM) function, both by those specifically designated in that post and by nonspecialist managers taking HRM responsibilities. This conceptual article has two principal aims: first, to illuminate the growing trend of formalized HRM practices being downgraded, eliminated altogether, or decentralized; and second, to highlight the need for a greater understanding and consideration of the external factors affecting hospitality HRM practice. The article reviews the nature and scope of the HRM function in hospitality, presents an overview of the trends toward internal reorganization through decentralization of HRM functions and, finally, assesses the impact of external pressures of the delivery of effective HRM. We then propose a dynamic framework designed to help facilitate greater understanding of the implications of internal and external pressures by HRM professionals and researchers, and conclude with reflections and recommendations followed by proposals for future research.

Service Research in the Hospitality Literature Insights from a Systematic Review

This study applies a Delphi analysis regarding the level of integration of service topics in the hospitality literature, as found in 539 service-related papers published in four hospitality journals from 1998 to 2012. The journals in question are Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, International Journal of Hospitality Management, and Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research. The number of service-related studies account for 16 percent of the total pool of articles in the four journals over the fifteen-year period, and the analysis records an increase in the number of service-based articles published over this period. Since then, the number of articles dealing with service-related phenomena has ebbed somewhat. Theory-testing papers dominated the hospitality literature during the study period, accounting for more than half of the papers, while theory-building papers accounted for a quarter of all papers, and around 15 percent had a conceptual purpose. The most popular topic for papers in this sample was service experience, followed by operations management, human resource management, and accounting.

Service Climate, Employee Identification, and Customer Outcomes in Hotel Property Rebrandings

ABSTRACT Rebrandings have become commonplace on the hotel landscape. Research has not directly examined rebrandings from the employees perspective, nor has previous research considered the impacts of rebranding on service quality and customer outcomes. In this paper we discuss the role of service climate and employee identification in hospitality organizations and propose a conceptual model that links service climate and employee identification with customer service and related outcomes such as word of mouth communication behaviours. As part of a larger project, 228 employees in three hotels in Australia completed a self-report survey. At the time of the survey, the hotels were undergoing rebranding processes. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis investigated the relationships between the variables of interest. Preliminary findings demonstrate the significant role of customer-contact aspects of service climate and the role of employee identification with their department in predicting employee perceptions of customer outcomes. Future research is proposed.

A Lodging Internship Competency Model: Enhancing Educational Outcomes through Work Integrated Learning

Abstract This paper examines current views of lodging industry executives as to competencies required of student interns and introduces a model for the development of these competencies through the ‘work integrated learning’ internship process. The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the intern competencies that are currently considered most necessary by the lodging industry – an area that is under-researched in the lodging internship literature – so as to progress understanding of how lodging management education programs, particularly internships, can improve educational outcomes for all stakeholders to the process – educators, industry and students. The paper first offers an introduction and background on work integrated learning, internships and lodging competencies, before presenting the results of a preliminary survey into lodging executives views of desired intern competency levels, pre-and post-internships, across 18 core essential competencies (CECs). The results of this preliminary survey indicate that leadership and interpersonal skills are the intern competencies most required by industry and that interns should even display some level of competence in these skills prior to commencing the internship. The Lodging Internship Competency Model proposed is an introductory model designed to highlight potential relationships between key variables in the competency development process of the lodging internship.