Change has become continuous, and innovation is a primary approach for hospitality, i.e., hotel companies, to become or remain economically viable and sustainable. An increasing number of management researchers are paying more attention to workplace rather than technological innovation. This study investigates workplace innovation in the Dutch hotel industry, in three- and four-star hotels in the Netherlands, by comparing them to other industries. Two samples were questioned using the Workplace Innovation survey created by the Dutch Network of Social Innovation (NSI). The first was conducted in the hospitality industry, and these data were compared with data collected in a sample of other industries. Results suggest that greater strategic orientation on workplace innovation and talent development has a positive influence on four factors of organizational performance. Greater internal rates of change, the ability to self-organize, and investment in knowledge also had positive influences on three of the factors—growth in revenue, sustainability, and absenteeism. Results also suggest that the hospitality industry has lower workplace innovation than other industries. However, no recent research has assessed to what degree the hospitality industry fosters workplace innovation, especially in the Netherlands. Next to that, only few studies have examined management in the Dutch hotel industry, how workplace innovation is used there, and whether it improves practices.
This introduction to the special issue on events as platforms, networks, and communities reviews recent research on these subjects. It outlines the previous work of the ATLAS Events Group in developing a “network approach to events,” as well as conceptualizing the differences between event networks and platforms.
MULTIFILE
Purpose – The hospitality industry creates a distinctive context in which learning takes place. The industry’s international perspective and large globalisation play an important role in learning, as well as the operational and structural features that give meaning to learning and development in the hospitality industry. This explorative research therefore studies the relation between workplace learning and organisational performance in the Dutch hospitality industry. Design/methodology/approach – The qualitative research is done through 15 in-depth interviews with general managers and HR managers of Dutch hotels with three or more stars and at least ten employees. Findings – It can be concluded that there is a relation between workplace learning and organisational performance in the hospitality industry, as the participants in this research and the literature both mention workplace learning enhances organisational performance. Originality/value – Little research has been done on learning and organisational performance specifically, in the (Western) hospitality industry. This research therefore focusses on HRD and studies the influence of workplace learning on organisational performance in the Dutch hospitality industry.
The Dutch hospitality industry, reflecting the wider Dutch society, is increasingly facing social sustainability challenges for a greying population, such as increasing burnout, lifelong learning, and inclusion for those distanced from the job market. Yet, while the past decades have seen notable progress regarding environmental sustainability and good governance, more attention should be paid to social sustainability. This concern is reflected by the top-sector healthcare struggles caused by mounting social welfare pressure, leading to calls by the Dutch government for organizational improvement in social earning capacity. Furthermore, the upcoming EU legislation on CSRD requires greater transparency regarding financial and non-financial reporting this year. Yet, while the existing sustainability accreditation frameworks offer guidance on environmental sustainability and good governance reporting, there must be more guidance on auditing social sustainability. The hospitality industry, as a prominent employer in the Netherlands, thus has a societal and legislative urgency to transition its social earning capacity. Dormben Hotel The Hague OpCo BV (Dormben) has thus sought support in transitioning its social sustainability standards to meet this call. Hotelschool, the Hague leads the consortium, including Green Key Nederland and Dormben, by employing participatory design to present a social sustainability accreditation framework. Initially, Dr. David Brannon and Dr. Melinda Ratkai from Hotelschool The Hague will draft a social sustainability accreditation framework informed by EFRAG. Subsequently, Erik van Wijk, from Green Key Nederland, the hospitality benchmark for sustainability accreditation, and Sander de Jong, from Dormben, will pilot the framework through four participatory workshops involving hospitality operators. Later, during a cross-industry conference, Dr. David Brannon and Dr. Melinda Ratkai will disseminate a social sustainability toolkit across their academic and industry networks. Finally, conference and workshop participants will be invited to form a social sustainability learning community, discussing their social earning capacity based on the revised sustainability accreditation.
Hotelschool The Hague (HTH) was founded and funded in 1929 by the hospitality industry to create a hub where industry partners could gain and share new insights, skills and knowledge. Since then, it has become a professional operation with a solid international reputation in hospitality management. Though HTH has expanded considerably over the years, it has always remained true to its original mandate with a clear commitment to hospitality and a strong connection with the industry. Since its establishment, HTH has sharpened its focus, remaining regionally rooted with an increasingly concentrated international outlook. In line with its heritage, HTH established an ambitious research and internationalisation strategy through its Research Center in 2010 and has pursued that strategy ever since. The goals of the strategy are clear: to achieve international recognition for high quality research that has immediate practical application in the real world while driving towards sustainable development facilitated by an expansive international network and learning community. In pursuit of this ambition, HTH finds the perfect opportunity in this Pilot Richting Europa project to advance the progress made in its established research and internationalisation strategy and to focus the expansion of its international network towards industrial, governmental, and other private and public sector partners. Through this project, it is the ambition of HTH to increase the impact of its research area, City Hospitality. City Hospitality is mainly a nationally focussed initiative which would significantly benefit from international exchange with other European cities engaging in hospitality efforts. This will be achieved through (1) the expansion of its network of industrial and governmental partners and networks across Europe and (2) by increasing its participation in cooperative European projects, with the ultimate aim of leading a consortium for a European project by the end of the project year.
Na een uitgebreide voorbereidingsfase hebben zeven hogescholen begin 2023, als onderdeel van de landelijke pilot gestart door de Vereniging Hogescholen, besloten deel te nemen aan de professional doctorate in het domein Leisure, Tourism en Hospitality (PD-LTH). Het gezamenlijk ontwikkelde programme proposal door de Graduate Committee (GC) van de PD-LTH is inmiddels goedgekeurd door de landelijke Validatiecommissie PD (VaCo-PD) met een aantal verbetervoorstellen en de GC heeft de eerste voorstellen van kandidaten besproken. Uit gesprekken met het werkveld in LTH en uit de analyse van de eerste aanvragen door kandidaten blijkt dat er duidelijk behoefte is aan een praktijkgericht doctoraatstraject op EQF niveau 8, zoals de PD, voor het domein. Tegelijkertijd is duidelijk dat het ontwikkelen van een professional doctorate een meerjarig leertraject is. Voor het eerst zetten de 7 hogescholen en 18 lectoraten een dergelijke samenwerking op, samen met actoren in het werkveld. Het takenpakket van de GC is uitgebreid en het is voor de GC-deelnemers de eerste keer dat ze een dergelijke rol en verantwoordelijkheid op zich nemen. De inhoudelijke focus van het programma, de structuren van besluitvorming, het ontwikkelen en uitvoeren van een kwaliteitszorgsysteem en het opzetten van een effectieve governance, zijn allemaal nieuw. De deelnemende hogescholen nemen dit ontwikkeltraject serieus en zijn blij met de handreiking die SIA geeft middels deze Impuls Kwaliteitszorg Professional Doctorate. In deze aanvraag bieden de zeven hogescholen het gezamenlijk plan aan waarmee ze willen werken aan een iteratief proces van kwaliteitsverbetering gedurende de periode 2023- 2027. Hiermee kunnen de GC en het Graduate Network (GN) in het domein Leisure, Tourism en Hospitality zich ontwikkelen tot een lerende en sturende networkstructuur. Deze moet in staat zijn om de professionele organisatie van de derde cyclus in onze organisaties te leiden. Het projectplan bestaat uit vijf werkpakketten, die ieder door twee hogescholen worden uitgevoerd.
