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PurposeThis paper aims to present the findings from a European study on the digital skills gaps in tourism and hospitality companies.Design/methodology/approachMixed methods research was adopted. The sample includes 1,668 respondents (1,404 survey respondents and 264 interviewees) in 5 tourism sectors (accommodation establishments, tour operators and travel agents, food and beverage, visitor attractions and destination management organisations) in 8 European countries (UK, Italy, Ireland, Spain, Hungary, Germany, the Netherlands and Bulgaria).FindingsThe most important future digital skills include online marketing and communication skills, social media skills, MS Office skills, operating systems use skills and skills to monitor online reviews. The largest gaps between the current and the future skill levels were identified for artificial intelligence and robotics skills and augmented reality and virtual reality skills, but these skills, together with computer programming skills, were considered also as the least important digital skills. Three clusters were identified on the basis of their reported gaps between the current level and the future needs of digital skills. The country of registration, sector and size shape respondents' answers regarding the current and future skills levels and the skills gap between them.Originality/valueThe paper discusses the digital skills gap of tourism and hospitality employees and identifies the most important digital skills they would need in the future.
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Purpose: This paper aims to investigate potential consumers' willingness to pay for robot-delivered services in travel, tourism and hospitality, and the factors that shape their willingness to pay. Design/methodology/approach: An online survey yielded a sample of 1,573 respondents from 99 countries. Independent samples t-test, Analysis of variance (ANOVA), cluster, factor and regression analyses were used. Findings: Respondents expected to pay less for robot-delivered services than human-delivered services. Two clusters were identified: one cluster willing to pay nearly the same price for robotic services as for human-delivered services, whilst the other expected deep discounts for robotic services. The willingness-to-pay was positively associated with the attitudes towards robots in tourism, robotic service experience expectations, men and household size. It was negatively associated to travel frequency, age and education. Research limitations/implications: The paper's main limitation is its exploratory nature and the use of a hypothetical scenario in measuring respondents' willingness to pay. The data were gathered prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and do not reflect the potential changes in perceptions of robots due to the pandemic. Practical implications: Practitioners need to focus on improving the attitudes towards robots in tourism because they are strongly and positively related to the willingness to pay. The marketing messages need to form positive expectations about robotic services. Originality/value: This is one of the first papers to investigate consumers' willingness to pay for robot-delivered services in travel, tourism and hospitality and factors that shape their willingness to pay. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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Purpose>The purpose of this study is to investigate the robotic restaurant experience of travellers around the world and understand the components of robotic restaurant experience.Design/methodology/approach>Travellers who had experienced a robotic restaurant were purposefully selected as a sample group for the study. As the robotic restaurants are limited around the world, multiple case study method has been chosen to gather richer data. A user-generated content technique which is a form of qualitative case study method has been benefited to gather data from travellers’ reviews.Findings>The results reveal a model of components of robotic restaurant experience that include six main themes: attraction for kids, robotic system, memorable experience, ambience related attributes, food related attributes (economic value and gastronomic aspects) and deficiencies (in robotic system, in ambience related attributes and in food related attributes).Originality/value>This paper is one of the first to investigate the robotic restaurant experience of travellers around the world. Moreover, it contributes to the research on restaurant experience and offers a model of components of the robotic restaurant experience.
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PurposeThis research discusses the role of service robots in gastronomic and dining experiences in a post–coronavirus disease (COVID) world.Design/methodology/approachThe research note draws on secondary data to analyse the use of robots as an important mechanism to address the impacts of global disease outbreaks on the food industry, as related to hospitality and tourism.FindingsHospitality and tourism services are highly affected by the current travel bans, lockdowns and health-related rules that have emerged to manage the current pandemic (COVID-19). This research showcases the role of service robots in food encounters in hospitality and tourism as agents that contribute to safe and innovative experiences.Originality/valueThis research note explores how the use of robots in tourism futures will not only transform food experiences, but it is also critical to sustainable development of communities and destinations in a future that will continuously have to deal with disease outbreaks and pandemics with continued travel mobilities.
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COVID-19 pandemic is affecting negatively the tourism and hospitality industry. As people must avoid physical interaction, service robots can be a useful tool to ensure a high level of physical social distance during the epidemic. This paper steps on available secondary data and discusses whether the application of service robots to provide physical distance in tourism and hospitality context is going to be beneficial or there will be side effects as well. The paper posits that service robots create a technological shield between tourists and employees that increases the physical and emotional distance between them. Tourism and hospitality companies need to complement robots with other technologies to provide social connectedness and offset the negative consequences of physical distancing.
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This study aims to develop a conceptual framework of the service delivery system design for hospitality firms in the (post-)viral world. Several theoretical approaches such as resource-based view, value chain analysis, stakeholder theory, PESTEL analysis, positioning strategy, and service delivery system design were adopted. The paper identified three service delivery system designs (robotic, human-based, and mixed) and analyses their requirements, advantages, disadvantages, and potential target markets. According to the suggested model, hospitality firms need first to explore the expectations of tourists. Then comes the analysis phase (based on a holistic perspective, and consisting of RBV, Value chain, Stakeholder, and PESTEL analyses), which helps hospitality firms to identify how they should differentiate and position themselves in the market. Following, companies decide on what kind of service delivery system they should offer to their target customers, and position themselves in the market according to the chosen system.
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The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 will have a significant influence on travel, tourism and hospitality (TTH) globally. With a massive reduction in tourism globally because of the health crisis, the industry will have to plan recovery and rebuilding of the industry with greater consideration of the biosecurity of customers. A critical element in the reorganisation of the industry will involve the increased incorporation of automation technologies. This article adopts a supply-side perspective and elaborates on the opportunities that automation technologies provide to TTH companies to mitigate the negative impacts of biosecurity threats on their economic performance. It discusses the costs and benefits of the incorporation of increased levels of automation, especially in regard to the benefits of the safety and health of the consumer. It elaborates on how the current pandemic would stimulate the adoption of automation technologies. Finally, the article discusses how this fit into the business models of tourism-related industries and outlines the micro- and macroeconomic implications of the greater incorporation of automation into the industry.