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RESOURCES: PAPERS & PRESENTATIONS

Author : Rayka Presbury
School/Work Place : University of Western Sydney, Australia
Contact : r.presbury@uws.edu.au
Year : 2004

In order for tourism to be sustainable in the long term, there must be continued viability of tourism related entities (Tesone 2004), that is business operations must be sustainable. Hotels are major tourism entities and play an important role in the tourism business. They provide facilities for the transaction of business, meetings and conferences, as well as recreation and entertainment. In addition, hotels are employers of labour; attract visitors to spend money; and provide amenities for both visitors and residents (Medlik and Ingram 2000). All of which have a potential to add to the long-term sustainability of the tourism destination.

For hotels to be sustainable, efficient performance in a number of key areas is of vital importance, including: high occupancies, revenues and profits; suitable returns to owners and investors; happy and contented staff; and satisfied customers (Eddystone & Nebel 1991; Gee 1994; Jones & Pizam 1998; Kandampully, Mok & Sparks 2001; Rutherford 2002). The key to this success is to retain and satisfy customers, as this will generate ongoing revenue and keep occupancies high through repeat business, positive word of mouth endorsements and referrals that bring in new customers. Therefore the most important concern is the provision of quality service to meet and exceed customer expectations, and, in turn, minimise occassions when customers are disappointed. It is the employees, when appropriately acquired, developed, rewarded, and motivated, who will provide the standard of service quality that is required to sustain a hotel entity. So it is the 'human capital' of the organisation that is of greatest importance to the sustainability of the hotel and this rests significantly with human resource management.

The specific focus of this paper is to report on a number of ineffective human resource practices that were found to be a threat to the long-term sustainability of hotels, as reported by hotel managers in Sydney, Australia. Findings indicated that there is an absence of long-term commitment to people; that the potential for enhanced achievement of employees is limited; that the way hotels recruit, and develop staff is deficient; and that there is an overall lack of faith in current employees. Practices, which are in stark, contrast to sustainable human resource management, and have serious implications for the delivery of service quality, which is essential for long-term sustainabiliy of hotel entities.


List of Articles
No. Subject Views Datesort
7 Think Tank IV Evaluation of Tourism Events: A Critical Review with a... file 2290 Oct 13, 2013

This presentation will critically review the three main sources of error in tourism event evaluation, related to the limited temporal, geographic and economic scope of current event evaluation approaches. In doing so, it will draw the attent...

Author: Jack Carlsen 

Year: 2004 

6 Think Tank IV Cultural Tourism as a Means for Sustainability in a Ma... file 4169 Oct 13, 2013

Tourism has become for many islands a means of social, economic and cultural development through the creation of jobs, raising standards of living and through the development of local resources for culture and heritage. Thus, many of these d...

Author: Chryso Panayidou 

Year: 2004 

» Think Tank IV Impediments to Sustainable Service Quality in Luxury H... file 15876 Oct 13, 2013

In order for tourism to be sustainable in the long term, there must be continued viability of tourism related entities (Tesone 2004), that is business operations must be sustainable. Hotels are major tourism entities and play an important ro...

Author: Rayka Presbury 

Year: 2004 

4 Think Tank IV After the Sydney Olympic Games: Sustainable Infrastruc... file 3211 Oct 13, 2013

Olympic Games epitomize the definition of a mega event, due to the size and scope that these events have in terms of participation, worldwide viewing and infrastructure development. However with the commercialization of these events over the...

Author: Sacha Reid 

Year: 2004 

3 Think Tank IV Sustainability and Mass Destinations: Challenges and P... file 4451 Oct 13, 2013

In year 2001, the Government of the Balearic Islands decided to establish a tourism tax, named "ecotax", as an important measure to achieve a more sustainable tourism model for the islands. This paper analyses the background of the ecotax, t...

Author: Antoni Serra Cantallops 

Year: 2004 

2 Think Tank IV Sustainability in a Mature Mass-Tourism Destination: T... file 4687 Oct 13, 2013

Most destinations are struggling to achieve sustainability for their economies, their environments, their cultures and their tourism industries. This laudatory, idealistic and complex process involves many sectors of the industry, the commun...

Author: Pauline Sheldon, John Knox & Kem Lowry 

Year: 2004 

1 Think Tank IV The Benefits of Visitor and Non-Visitor Research in th... file 4198 Oct 13, 2013

Our premise in this paper is that if sustainable tourism development and management is to meet the needs of both the present and the future then it is equally important to prioritise research on those who visit tourism destinations (and incl...

Author: Pat Sterry & Debra Leighton 

Year: 2004 

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