The Adoption, Productivity and Competency of Technology Based In-Room Services

Source: Karadag E & Dumanoglu S. (2009). The Productivity and Competency of Information Technology in Upscale Hotels

This article presents the results of a survey of 122 managers of upscale hotels in Turkey. Managers were specifically asked about their perception of the levels of adoption, productivity and competency of in-room technologies available to hospitality industry.

Productivity was defined as “the ratio of what is produced (output) over what is required to produce (input) within a specific time limit” (Johns & Wheeler, 1991). Managers were asked for their perception of the productivity of each of the in-room services.

Competency was defined as “the generic knowledge, skill or attitude of a person, related to effective behaviour as demonstrated through performance” (Griffiths & King, 1985). In relation to this survey, competency related to the degree of knowledge about the ability of IT to contribute to the creation of competitive advantage.

Nine in-room technologies were included in the survey. There were notable differences between adoption levels and the levels of perceived productivity of the technologies. Following are the survey results. Technologies are sequenced according to their adoption level (the most widely adopted technology is the mini-bar, and it is listed first). The perceived level of productivity is shown in brackets.
In-room mini bars (8), Room energy sensor (1), Electronic locking system (3), Internet access (6), Automatic wake-up (4), Electronic in-room safe (9), Pay per view TV (7), In-room checkout system (5), Voice mail (2).

Regarding competency, managers were asked to indicate their level of agreement with a number of statements related to technology competency. Mean scores were then obtained. Following are the competency statements, sequenced according to the mean scores they attracted (in brackets):


Competency Statements, Mean Score Ranking
Technology improves service quality (1), Technology improves manager / employee productivity (2), Technology helps lodging properties gain competitive advantage (3), The Internet is a powerful marketing tool (4), As the use of technology increases, online reservations increase (5), As the use of technology increases, service quality increases (6), Technology is too costly to continually upgrade (7), Technology reduces the number of employees (8), As the use of technology increases, the costs increase (9).

The above results show that hospitality managers by and large understand that IT can make a significant contribution to their firm’s competitive advantage. The article then further explores whether there are significant differences in perception of competency between managers of independent hotels, hotels affiliated to domestic chains and those affiliated to international chains. Findings were that managers of independent hotels believed most strongly that technology improves service quality. Managers of hotels affiliated to domestic chains believed most strongly that technology reduces the number of employees and also that service quality increases proportionally as the use of technology increases.