Nidhi Choudhary

The Impact of Service Quality on Business Performance in Qatar-Based Hotels: An Empirical Study

This study focuses on the impact of service quality on business performance in Qatar-based hotels. The study tests fifteen hypotheses built on existing theoretical models. The research adopts survey sampling method and uses the structural equation modeling approach. Empirical data were collected through the tourists of ten 5-star hotels in Qatar using the simple random sampling technique (n = 243). The findings revealed significant interrelations of tangibles, reliability, and empathy with financial, nonfinancial, and operational performance of the surveyed hotels. Responsiveness and assurance had a significant interrelation with nonfinancial performance and operational performance respectively. Based on the findings of this study, the paper discusses key managerial implications to improve specific dimensions of service quality for enhanced business performance. This paper has a special relevance for hotels in Qatar as they witness steady growth and seek avenues for improvement in service quality for a sustainable business performance.

The Causal Dynamics in Indian Agriculture Commodity Prices and Macro-Economic Variables in the Presence of a Structural Break

Agriculture commodity prices have been quite volatile in India. The proposed study explores the effect of structural change on the flow of information between the spot and futures market of agriculture commodities and select macro-economic factors. The volatility in agriculture commodity prices is studied with respect to three dominant macro-economic factors—movement in crude price which serves as an input to agriculture sector, movement in INR/USD exchange rate and movement in Sensex which is considered as a barometer of investment in India. The study uses non-linear cointegration and causality test to understand the direction of causality in volatility of commodities and impact of macro-economic factors. The study observed the agriculture commodities spot and futures prices to be co-integrated with crude, forex and Sensex for majority of the break periods. We find robust evidence that futures market played a leading role in the price discovery function and information processing. Breaks in agriculture commodity prices are attributed to fundamentals of demand and supply in the market and global financial turmoil of 2007. We observed mixed results of influence of the exchange rate, Sensex and crude on agriculture prices in different sub-periods.

Career perceptions of undergraduate students in hospitality industry: an empirical study

This research focuses on the factors influencing student desire to pursue a career in the hospitality industry, with particular reference to hotels. Based on the literature review, seven dimensions have been chosen which have been theoretically linked to the choice of career by students. The dimensions are nature of work, social status, industry-person congeniality, working conditions, pay scale and benefits, promotion opportunities and commitment to the industry. As there is no evidence to empirically prove their relationships, an empirical investigation has been conducted. Second-generation statistical analysis software Structural Equation Modelling has been adopted to test these hypotheses. Two types of analyses were carried out: descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. The descriptive statistics provided the description of the data in terms of Structural Equation Modelling, etc., and the inferential statistics were used to test hypotheses and draw specific suggestions to guide policy makers as to what measures could be taken to build a positive image of the hospitality industry among the future career seekers. Out of the seven hypotheses posited, five have been accepted, based on which suggestions are made.

Weather Derivatives: Another Need for India

The weather derivatives are comparatively new instruments which were launched only in 1997 for the first time in USA. The instrument since then has developed huge market in USA and Europe. This paper is an attempt to understand the working of the instrument and then conclude if the instrument is a good product for India. The need analysis of weather derivatives in India will be done as per the three sectors of the Indian Economy, namely Primary or the agriculture and allied activities sector, secondary or the manufacturing sector and tertiary or the service sector. The analysis will be done in terms of threat faced by these sectors from uncertain weather in India and how can weather derivatives help in controlling the loss in this condition. The paper is an analysis of sectoral need of weather derivatives. The paper will also discuss the major challenges which Indian economy can face while introducing weather derivatives.

Modelling the causality of sustainable tourism in Qatar: an empirical study

This research focuses on the modelling of the causality of sustainable tourism in Qatar. It follows the procedure of identifying the variables which influence sustainability and seeking the links between them through the contemporary literature. The hypotheses are built to study the significance of relationship between the variables which have been causally linked to each other. Structural equation modelling using partial least square method has been chosen for its ability to undertake factor analysis and regression simultaneously and address the issue of multi-colinearity. Confirmatory factor analysis which has been undertaken as the indicators of measurement has proved validity through earlier studies. Based on six accepted hypothesis out of ten tested, the implications have been drawn for the benefit of the tourism managers so that sustainability of tourism can be promoted. This research outcome is useful to Qatar which is gearing up to host 2022 FIFA World Cup.