Hospitality crisis management practices : the case of Lebanese luxury hotels using an importance-performance analysis

Abstract

Purpose: This paper aims to evaluate manager’s beliefs of what actions or practices are important during a crisis, and to evaluate their actions to test for the consistency between beliefs and performance in Lebanon. This will help assess how managers categorize diverse practices to formulate their crisis management beliefs and actions in hotels in Lebanon. Design/methodology/approach: the methodology applied used the quantitative approach of a positivist ontological and epistemological stance. The model that was employed was that of Importance-performance analysis to evaluate decision makers’ beliefs and actions with respect to crisis management practices in luxury hotels in Lebanon. The data was collected via a questionnaire. Findings: the main findings included high positive correlation between practice importance and practice performance (usage), and factor analysis revealed the categorization of the factors into four themes: Marketing Strategies, Cost Cuts, Government Support, and Operations Management. Research limitations/implications: limitations included sample size, possible additions to practice list, location of population, and time constraints. Practical implications: Managers have to evaluate why they perform the way they do, and what to focus on during crisis. Many rhetorical questions are posed. Originality/value: this study is a replication of Israeli, Mohsin, and Kumar’s (2010) study on Indian luxury hotels. However, the analysis techniques and rotation methods varied as to match the needs of the study in Lebanon. The originality is that this paper tackles crisis management in hotels in Lebanon, which seems to have little literature to support managers in their decision making. The value is doors are for further studies to tackle issues raised by this study.