Impact Of Quality Control On Sustainability Of The Hospitality Industry

This study investigated the impact of quality control on sustainability of the hospitality industry. The study was specifically focused on investigating whether there is a relationship between quality control and the sustainability of the hospitality industry, and the effects of quality control on the hospitality industry examining the challenges of quality control on the hospitality industry. A total of 150 responses were validated from the survey. The study adopts the three factor theory. From the responses obtained and analysed, the findings reveals that there is a relationship between quality control and the sustainability of the hospitality industry. The study also found out that the effects of quality control on the hospitality industry include: saving money or avoiding new cost, increasing efficiency, productivity, and or accuracy, and aiding budgeting, creating new assets and identifying risk and reducing it to acceptable levels. The study recommended that if hospitality industry must be developed in Nigeria, hospitality assets products and services must be built upon intrinsic quality assurance practice. The hospitality assets, products and services must be supported by and packaged with requisite step by step quality assurance policy framework at every stage of production of goods and services to ensure guest (customer) satisfaction at the end of the cycle. To do this, government and private sector must formulate a comprehensive quality assurance master plan for the hospitality industry; this will go a long way in creating a more attractive and internationally acceptable hospitality products and services.

Introduction

1.1 Background to the Study

Since the late 1980s, many authors - especially those associated with the Nordic School of Services - have studied sustainability in the service sector and have addressed the need to define a con- cept of sustainability that takes into account the distinctive features of this sector of economic activity. This approach was followed by Vuorinen et al., 1998, Ojasalo (1999), Parasuraman (2002), and more recently by Djellal and Gallouj (2013), indicating that this topic is still under discussion. During this period, the first studies on sustainability in hotels appeared (Van der Hoeven and Thurik, 1984). Several focused on measuring hotel sustainability, and many others investigated its key drivers (Brown and Dev, 1999; Kilic and Okumus, 2005; Marchante and Ortega, 2012).

The concept of quality in business has evolved over time, lead- ing to changes in the methods used for its management. Since the 1980s, the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM) has been adopted together with a strategic approach to quality in an attempt to focus all the resources on achieving excellence. Various quality management systems, international standards, and qual- ity certificates are based on this approach. The implementation of this concept has brought out the difficulty of managing quality in the service sector. However, compared to the number of studies on tangible goods, there are still few studies on this subject. Such studies are driven by two main schools of thought: the North Amer- ican school (Rosander, 1989; Horovitz, 1990; Zeithaml et al., 1990; Berry, 1995); and the Nordic school (Grönroos, 1984; Edvardsson and Gustavsson, 1988).

The hotel industry is one of the largest industries in the service sector. The quality aspect is a really important fact in this industry and in the last years it has been in the focus of the management. Producing quality is a hard hurdle in the hospitality industry and this hurdle has to be cleared and the quality management had to change again. The special challenges of the hotel industry made it even more complicated to deliver a high quality.

A lot of hotels concentrate on the quality aspect and want to deliver a high quality. It is also clear that some customers make a purchase decision just because of a different or higher quality. The aim of all hotels is to increase the occupancy and to have a high turnover.
Interest in quality in hotels arose in the late 1980s - similar to the case of sustainability - in response to increasing competition in the hotel industry, which was followed by a recession in Western economies (Stewart and Johns, 1996). The first studies focused on quality management from a theoretical per- spective, the implementation of specific management systems, and the gaining of quality certification. Over time, two lines of research emerged in the literature in this field (Hernández-Maestro et al., 2009): studies addressing quality from the customer"s perspective (Camisón et al., 1996; Al Khattab and Aldehayyat, 2011) and others analysing the advantages and disadvantages of the implementation of quality management practices and systems in hotels and their relationship to business performance (Claver-Cortés et al., 2008; Viada-Stenger et al., 2010).

Although the relationship between quality and sustainability has attracted some interest from a theoretical perspective, most research has focused either on quality or sustainability; studies focusing on the relationship between the two aspects remain few, especially empirical studies. However, in recent years, growing interest in the study of sustainability and quality in the service sector has led to the emergence of studies that have more or less explicitly investigated the relationship between the two variables, based on different perspectives and with different results. The traditional view is that quality and sustainability are incompatible. However, many authors have questioned this relationship proposing a modern vision that takes into account the customer"s perspective. Thus, researchers consider the two variables as being positively related, and assume that quality has a direct effect on sustainability (Gummesson, 1992; Parasuraman, 2002, 2010; Kontoghiorghes, 2003; Hope, 2007). In fact, an integrative or dual perspective is considered necessary (Hernández-Maestro et al., 2009; Parasuraman, 2010), whereby perceived quality depends on objective quality and consumer expectations. Consequently, from the standpoint of managing both sustainability and quality, traditionally addressed in isolation, integrated management is also considered a necessity (Vuorinen et al., 1998; Parasuraman, 2002; Kontoghiorghes, 2003). TQM is seen as the most useful tool in this approach, although some authors have proposed their own management systems that are based on similar philosophies (Young and Colosi, 1993; Mohanty, 1998).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Thus, taking into account the foregoing, we use a strategic approach based on the concept of TQM to investigate the relation- ship between quality and sustainability. This analysis is also justified by the fact that various public administrative bodies have strongly invested efforts in promoting improvements in quality in hotels in Spain. These activities have often been developed under pro- grammes designed to increase the competitiveness of the sector, ensure the survival of companies that form the sector, and main- tain or steadily increase the sector"s contribution to the economy over time.

Furthermore, opportunities may exist for increasing sustainability levels in the hospitality sector in Nigeria. Moreover, labour sustainability decreased in real terms in Nigeria up to 2008, mainly due to a large increase in employment during the latter half of the 1990s (Ortega and Benavides Chicón, 2013).

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The aim of this study is to explore the impact of quality control on sustainability of the hospitality industry using Eco hotels suits and Victoria Crowns plaza hotel as a case study.

Specifically the study seeks to:

Determine whether there is a relationship between quality control and the sustainability of the hospitality industry.

Examine the effects of quality control on the hospitality industry.

Examine the challenges of quality control on the hospitality industry.

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions will be answered in this study:

Is there a relationship between quality control and the sustainability of the hospitality industry?

What are the effects of quality control on the hospitality industry?

What are the challenges of quality control on the hospitality industry?

1.5 Research Hypothesis

The following null hypothesis will validate this study:

Ho1: There is no relationship between quality control and the sustainability of the hospitality industry.

1.6 Significance of the Study

This work is significant to the hotel industry because it focused on service quality and guest satisfaction. When staff and management of hotel can render quality services, then the guests are satisfied. When the guests are satisfied, it will lead to more patronage which will in turn affect the profitability of the hotel.

Again, the government will be of benefits because when organization makes more profit it result to increase in taxes. Hence the government will generate more revenue.

Finally, the work is also, beneficial to other organizations as service quality and customer satisfaction cannot be underestimated in any business.

1.7 Scope of the Study

The study aims to assess the impact of quality control on sustainability of the hospitality industry. Empirically, this study will determine whether there is a relationship between quality control and the sustainability of the hospitality industry, examine the effects of quality control on the hospitality industry and examine the challenges of quality control on the hospitality industry. This study will be carried out in Eco hotels suits and Victoria Crowns plaza hotel.

1.8 Limitation of the Study

The major limitation to the study are insufficient fund to involve many respondents to this research and carry out other logistics required in this study. Also, time factor was another constraint where the researcher had to share available time with academic work and conducting of this research within the given time frame.

Inadequate materials needed for the success of this study was another factor that limited this study. The sources for literatures and conducting of interviews in order to validate this research posed a barrier to the researcher.

Furthermore, limiting this study to only to Lagos State, instead of involving all the 36 states in Nigeria was another limitation of this study.

1.9 Definition of Terms

Quality:

The standard of something as measured against other things of a similar kind; the degree of excellence of something.

Hotel:

An establishment providing accommodation, meals, and other services for travellers and tourists.

Industry:

Economic activity concerned with the processing of raw materials and manufacture of goods in factories.

Hospitality Industry:

The hospitality industry is a broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, food and beverage services, event planning, theme parks, travel agency, tourism, hotels, restaurants and bars.

1.10 Organization of the Study

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows.

Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), historical background, statement of problem, objectives of the study, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of terms and historical background of the study.

Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature.

Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study.

Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.

Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.

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