Introduction
Consumer dynamics and the ever-changing consumer demands are among the major characteristics of the present hospitality industry. Over the recent past, some managers in the hospitality industry have focused on price and consumer levels. However, the focus has since shifted since the modern consumers demonstrate varying tastes and preferences dictated by the trendy dynamics that contemporary societies present. The increasing levels of competition, the introduction of technology, and online reservations are threatening dominant players in the industry. Companies such as Booking.com and Expedia, which provide online reservation services, are posing a great challenge to the hospitality industry. These challenges posed by online travel agencies (OTAs), Airbnb, and changing consumer demands compel managers in the hotel industry to be creative and innovative. As the innovation manager of W Hotels that operate all over the world, my focus will be on consumer demands, their changing preferences, and employment of the right levels of innovation. It is within this backdrop that the study examines innovation and its implementation, employee participation, strongest creativity element, and integration of sustainability and innovation to discuss innovation and creativity in the hospitality industry.
Level of Innovation and Its Implementation
A high level of innovation is what I will recommend so that that W Hotel chain outsmarts its competitors and meets its intended market share. Some of the factors that the hotel needs to employ to achieve the high level of innovation include good public relations, excellent customer care, and proficient service quality. It is paramount to note that modern consumers base their choices on quality and product price. Therefore, by focusing on quality and price, W Hotel chain can easily outshine its competitors in the industry. In the assertion of Ray (2015, p. 32) and Peters (2012, p. 45), tourism and hospitality industry is one of the industries that experience high variances when there is a change in the marketing environment.
The high variance witnessed in the industry is due to the nature of its products, which mainly comprise services. Improvement of the services requires innovative and creative practices that would improve quality of products and services offered by the W Hotel chain. In this view, the innovative and creative strategies that W Hotel chain should employ are generation of new ideas, modification of existing products to fit consumer demands, and encouragement of high-end service delivery. As a result, a high level of innovation is critical in the quest to ensure that W Hotel chain outsmarts its competitors and wins the market share.
Implementation of high-level innovation is a concept that requires some factors, which entails both the employees and the management of W Hotel chain. Vrontis and Thrassou (2013) elucidate that a high level of innovation and creativity is not achievable if the shareholders involved in the hospitality industry do not participate. As the innovation manager, I will involve all the shareholders in the implementation of the concept. Shareholders such as the suppliers, employees, and the management of W Hotels need to take part to facilitate a smooth employment of the concept. To ensure that there is a high level of innovation and creativity, I will ensure that suppliers deliver the required products on time and employees deliver high-end services such as food and beverages. Additionally, I will ensure that the management creates an environment that facilitates the development of new ideas. Therefore, by ensuring that the shareholders employ the right elements of innovation and undertake their roles effectively, W Hotel chain achieves the much-desired high level of innovation, wins the hearts of potential consumers, and amplifies its market share.
To ensure that W Hotels implements and executes the concept successfully, I will encourage the employees to follow the procedures provided by the pentathlon framework of innovation. Using the framework, I will create an environment, which facilitates generation of ideas, and after that, employ those that are productive and budget friendly. Imperatively, the proposals and suggestions advanced by employees and other stakeholders involved in the hotel will be the subject of scrutiny by the management. These ideas and suggestions from employees are very crucial since employees are the ones, who interact with the end consumers. The essence of educating the employees and other stakeholders of W Hotels emanates because they are the ones, who determine the value of services that it delivers. By creating a favorable environment and educating employees and other stakeholders on the essence of innovation and creativity, they start initiating fruitful ideas that when applied by the hotel they yield productive results.
Employee Participation
Employee participation is crucial in the success of W Hotels. Employees are among the major determinants, who dictate the success or failure of a given hotel. As a result, their participation is very critical in the process of undertaking innovation and creativity of W Hotels. As the innovation manager, I will strive to ensure that the employees understand the importance of creativity and innovation and participate in its implementation. Goffin and Mitchell (2010), explain that innovation is achievable when employees in the hospitality industry apply the ‘Pentathlon Framework’, which outlines the application of procedures in strategic development, idea generation, prioritization, implementation of selected ideas, and individual participation (p. 5). The importance of educating employees on the concept of innovation and creativity transpires because they are the ones, who interact with the consumers during the moment of reality.
Fundamentally, employee participation becomes successful when they have the requisite expertise on the elements of creativity and innovation. As such, employee training and education is one of the vital factors that enable me, as the innovation manager, to achieve the necessary employee participation. High service quality, proficient customer care, and excellent relationship are results that can only flourish in an instance where employees know the importance of creativity (Kim & Mauborgne, 2015, p. 56). These results thrive because creativity and innovation compel employees to think outside the box and ensure that the end consumers receive the best. Some of the creative strategies that I can employ in W Hotels include a standard way of treating clients and timely service whenever they arrive. The standardized service will encompass appreciating the consumers, acknowledging their presence, and ensuring that they receive their desired services on time. Therefore, by employing unconventional strategies and offering the best to the consumers, employees of W hotels participate in enabling the hotel enjoy a sustainable market share.
Strongest Creativity Element
My strongest creativity element will be the products offered by the hotel. Products form the basis of consumer loyalty and the focal point which when undertaken successfully can initiate organizational progress. Promotion, distribution, and pricing complement the product. According to Kim and Mauborgne (2015), some managers can work on prices and improve products that do not meet the consumer demands and expectations (p. 13). On the other hand, some organizations can have good distribution channels but the products distributed fail to match what consumers expect. Consequently, a hotel can promote products that its potential clients do not require. Therefore, focus on products is central to the achievement of client loyalty and development of W Hotels’ market share and revenues. For instance, the hotel can add special accompaniments to products such as food and beverages to increase their appeal and demand among potential clients. The accompaniments, which may be juice, snacks, or dessert recipes, should not strain the W Hotels’ budget, but should increase the magnitude of sales. As such, the hotels can effectively meet consumer needs and achieve their loyalty.
Integration of Sustainability and Innovation
During the process of implementing innovation and creativity in W Hotels, I will endeavor to integrate the concept of sustainability. Principally, innovation and creativity is a concept that propels an organization to higher levels of success as opposed to its competitors. Smart managers understand that even though innovation and creativity can help a respective organization succeed, it is paramount to ensure that the success becomes sustainable. According to the assertion of Goffin and Mitchell (2010), several organizations have employed the concept of creativity and innovation and succeeded, but they did not remain for a long period at the top of the market (p. 4). Essentially, organizations that fail to note the importance of integrating innovation with the concept of sustainability do not remain for a long time in the market. Therefore, besides creativity and innovation, sustainability is a concept that the hotel needs to enjoy a large market share and a long product life cycle.
By integrating sustainability with innovation and creativity, I ensure that the benefits accrued from the concept are long-lived. Since the contemporary society is experiencing high levels of competition and pronounced and ever-changing consumer demands, it is wise for managers in the hospitality and tourism industry to sustain their growth (Walder & Rico, 2006, p. 36). When an organization sustains the concept of innovation and creativity, it enjoys a long life and an increasing market share. To integrate the concepts of innovation and sustainability successfully, it is necessary to keep in touch with consumer demands and engage in continuous research so that the hotel keep abreast with the changes in the market. Kim and Mauborgne (2015) explain that integration of innovation and sustainability requires continuous research from the subject organization (p. 11). In aligning innovation, creativity, and sustainability in W Hotels, I will develop a research team, which will undertake continuous research on the changing market. By developing a research team in W Hotels as an aspect of innovation and creativity, I will not only help in increasing the revenues in the short run but also sustain its growth.
Conclusion
The hotel industry is one of the industries that have experienced challenges in the advent of technological advancements, as well as the shifting consumer trends. With the modern developments, several consumers advance varying tastes and preferences that at times challenge the respective hotels. The advent of companies such as Booking.Com, Expedia, and Airbnb, which use technology in service provision, have made the hospitality industry challenging and increased the essence of innovation and creativity. Innovation and creativity is one of the core elements that is useful in the management of hotels since it helps compound the quality of products offered, which are mainly services. Smart managers understand that creativity and innovation can help hotels succeed but ensure that measures are in place so that the success becomes sustainable. As such, integration of sustainability and innovation is a factor that managers in the hotel industry cannot downplay. As the manager of W Hotels, I will ensure that I employ the concept of creativity and innovation and enact measures that will help sustain the growth that innovation initiates.
References
Goffin, K., & Mitchell, R. (2010). Innovation Management: Strategy and Implementation Using the Pentathlon Framework. Basingstoke: Macmillan.
Kim, W., & Mauborgne, R. (2015). Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant. Boston: Harvard.
Peters, M. (2012). Innovation in Hospitality and Tourism. New York: Routledge.
Ray, N. (2015). Emerging Innovative Marketing Strategies in the Tourism Industry. New York: Hersey.
Vrontis, D., & Thrassou, A. (2013). Innovative Business Practices: Prevailing a Turbulent Era. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Walder, B., & Rico, B. (2006). Innovation and Product Development in Tourism:Creating Sustainable Competitive Advantage. Berlin: Schmidt.