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The present study explores the antecedents of frontline employees' boundary-spanning behaviors in the hospitality industry. Based on social exchange theory and role theory, a conceptual model was built to explore how three dimensions of perceived organizational support (perceived supervisory support, internal communication, and training) cultivate frontline employees' boundary-spanning behaviors through job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Based on the analysis of 597 hospitality frontline employees in the United States, which were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk, this study shows the differential impacts of organizational support types on driving boundary spanning staff to effectively operate on the boundary. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are articulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to assist hospitality organizations to better deploy and manage their information technology (IT) resources and enhance overall effectiveness by demonstrating how technologies can be used as a competitive weapon at various levels from a managerial perspective. Both academia and practitioners attempt to understand the driving factors of IT-induced competitive advantage. While some firms enjoy competitive advantage through IT, others struggle to gain such competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach – AHLA E-Commerce and Technology Committee members were interviewed for their knowledge and insight toward the perceived problem. The committee comprises technology executives who meet twice per year to discuss the changing face of technology and e-business in the hospitality industry. Participants of this study consisted of vice presidents, CTO/CIOs of hotels, CEOs of hospitality technology vendors and academics who focus on hospitality technology research. Findings – Findings indicate that IT-induced competitive advantage is possible when hotels choose to integrate all the possible technologies in the organization with a harmony that creates synergy. To create IT-induced competitive advantage, firms also need to allocate resources (human, knowledge and capital) effectively and invest in innovative and sophisticated technologies. Research limitations/implications – IT can be used to create competitive advantage by means of differentiation, innovation, channel domination, cost reductions and efficiency improvements. Practical implications – Four distinct stages of IT usage were identified. The first is the operation stage which includes technologies that are solely used to manage daily business operations. The second is the enhancement stage where IT applications are used to increase productivity and efficiency. IT applications at the strategic stage improves intra-organization and inter-organizational business processes. Finally, IT applications at the transformation stage enable companies to achieve the maximum competitive advantage. Originality/value – The current research serves to fill the gap between academia and industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to examine and predict website marketing activities of US hotels. An online survey is conducted to collect data from members of three major hotel associations located in the US. Change propensity analysis is utilized to evaluate future trends of website marketing activities. The results demonstrate that current website exploitation by the US hotels is relatively limited, with a focus on information dissemination. It is suggested that a number of transaction and relation-building activities will emerge in the near future. Implications based on the results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to apply the ICTRT (information, communication, transaction, relationship and technical merit) model to assess the effectiveness of US official state tourism websites through content analysis by expert evaluators. The results demonstrated that US State Tourism Offices (STOs) were not able to effectively adopt and manage information technology to support more sophisticated business operations. Most STOs focused mainly on basic website functions, such as information and communication. Applications supporting more advanced functions, such as transaction and relationship building were not being widely deployed. In addition, an inverse, curvilinear relationship was found between website complexity and website performance. Suggestions and implications were provided and discussed based on the research findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study assessed convention attendee motivations, performance evaluation, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions in a regional conference setting. Data was collected from conference attendees in the southeast United States. The findings revealed a five-dimension conference motivation: (1) activities and opportunities, (2) networking, (3) convenience of conference, (4) education benefits and (5) products and deals. Furthermore, the relationships between attendee''s evaluation of conference performance, satisfaction judgment, and behavioral intention were examined. The relationships between educational activities, overall satisfaction, word-of-mouth, and intent to return were found to be significant. Recommendations to the meeting planners for conferences are provided based on the results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]