Business Commons^™

Insights On Factors Influencing Startup Failure In The Hospitality Industry, Shivangi Khurania

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Hospitality businesses and innovative startups have faced extremely high failure rates. The author provides insights on the factors that impact startup failure in the hospitality industry after performing a deep analysis on innovation frameworks such as the diffusion of innovation theory, the theory of disruptive innovation, and the ten types of innovation framework. Not only that, the author also provides insights based on their own personal experience and knowledge gained through education at the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. The research explored in this paper revealed that startup failure is not based on one factor alone and how leaders in …

Evaluating Event Effectiveness Across Alternate Platforms, Kristin Marie Malek

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As technology continues to influence younger generations and demand a commanding presence in the workplace, more industries are trying to incorporate these advances. Organizations are rapidly adopting new technologies and have justified their return on investment by examining new attendee rates, ‘click-throughs’ on links, and company specific metrics. Despite advances in technology and growing consumer dependence on electronics, the meeting and events industry has been slow to adopt IT advances for fear of cannibalization (Fenich, et al., 2011; Pearlman & Gates, 2010). The goal of this research was to gain a better understanding of how alternate platforms can affect event …

An Analysis Of Empirical Research Of Social Media And User-Generated Content In The Hospitality Industry, Didi Fan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Hospitality remains highly competitive industry where establishments are always pushing new efforts to positively attract and retain consumers more so than the others. In recent years, the most significant trend in reaching to consumers is through social media. The research dives into great detail in the interactions and cause and effect between consumers and hospitality in social media such as the effect of user generated content. The research produces more details and ideas than simply engaging in social media helps hospitality establishments. The information was attained from a large content analysis of previous research, studies, surveys, experiments, statistical and quantitative …

Evaluating E-Relationship Marketing Features On Hotel Mobile Apps, Xiaolin Lu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The advent of technology has changed the course of marketing in both the academic and the business field. Given the increasing number of mobile transactions, hotel companies have launched mobile applications (apps) as an alternative e-relationship marketing (e-RM) channel. This study modified a progressive five-level e-relationship building model. The model was employed to evaluate e-RM features of the top 10 hotel companies’ mobile apps. The results indicated that these hotel companies maintained e-RM feature sophistication at the lower levels (Basic and Reactive), but relatively speaking, they did not utilize e-RM features extensively at the higher levels (Accountable, Proactive and Partnership). …

Should Las Vegas Pursue Establishing An Online Gaming Cluster? An Exploratory Study, Laimonas Gubista

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this research was to determine whether (1) clustering benefits cities, (2) Las Vegas is a cluster of the worldwide gaming industry, and (3) online gaming cluster is forming in Las Vegas in spite of unfavorable business environment. The exploratory study should be useful to lawmakers and business leaders in shaping Nevada’s future. It could provide essential information focusing on whether Las Vegas should actively pursue an online gaming cluster.

Analyzing The Effects Of Social Media On The Hospitality Industry, Gaurav Seth

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Statement of objective

The intent of this study is not to quantify how many hospitality businesses actively use social media, rather it is to explore the areas and functions these businesses use social media for, and understand how consumers perceive these new vehicles of communication. The study will bring out a consumer’s perspective of the advantages of social media over traditional marketing methods.

Exploration Of Human-Computer Interaction (Hci) Applications In Hospitality Industry, Jia Wei

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of this professional paper is to explore and identify the best practices in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) applications and use within the hospitality industry.

Statement of Objectives: To accomplish the stated purpose, first, the paper will provide the universal definition of HCI applications and define HCI within the context of hospitality industry. Second, the paper will gather and categorize information, such as the standards of designing HCI applications, from other fields of study such as informatics. Third, the paper will gather existing examples of HCI applications across different areas within the hospitality industry, such as the front desk …

The Adaptation Of Cloud Computing By The Hotel Industry, Anthony Schneider

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The concept of cloud computing has many benefits for the hotel industry. The migration to cloud computing is expected to have a major impact on the way that information and computer resources are handled by the hotel industry. Investment in technology must bring value to a business whether it’s a large international hotel chain or a small, independent resort. Since business strategy will vary, a detailed study must be performed to identify the major issues that must be analyzed before migrating to the cloud.

The cloud is a highly adaptive IT infrastructure that can be shared by many different end …

Running Head: Sustainability Framework Applied To Integrated Resort 1 International Standard Of Sustainability Framework Applied To Integrated Resorts, Jong Hwa Jeon

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the extent to which Las Vegas integrated resorts apply measurement framework for sustainability. It will scrutinize and explore the existing sustainability strategies and practices, and look into several plausible ways to improve the sustainability movement that the companies in hospitality industry currently have. The paper will also look into the tracking and measuring system in consuming resources and the equivalent common actions taken by the management of the hospitality companies. From there, the paper will discuss the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guideline and establish if the companies have aligned their efforts …

Smartphone Application Effecting Potential Increase Of Hotel Business Revenue And Guest Satisfaction, Katelyn H. Kim

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In the past several years there has been an exponential increase in smartphone applications made available by businesses looking for new ways to reach customers. Many of the big hotel business have not failed to deliver such applications for their customers to use that helps expedite and simplify the process of reserving a hotel room. Most applications have many more uses than simply reserving the hotel room, such as locating the hotel, overviews of the hotel, pictures of the hotel and property, and tracking rewards programs. The more popular these smartphone applications the more people there are that will use …

What Is Mission Critical In The Hotel Guest Room: Examining In-Room Guest Empowerment Technologies, Pelin Nasoz

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examined 18 in-room technologies and identified the ones perceived to be mission critical for the hotel guests. It also determined the differences in guest empowerment technology preferences and expectations across generations, purpose of travel, and travel frequency. Moreover, it investigated whether the quality of in-room technologies impacts guests' decision in choosing a hotel.

The data were collected through an online survey. A total of 508 people responded to the survey. An importance and performance analysis was utilized to identify the mission critical in-room technologies for the hotels. The analysis indicated that in-room movie on demand services, in-room wireless …

Identifying New Pari-Mutuel Igaming Offerings In The United States, David W. Downes

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose:

The purpose of this paper is to develop a competitive landscape of current offerings in the online fantasy sports and online pari-mutuel wagering market in the US and to determine potential differentiated pari-mutuel sports iGaming offerings based on that landscape.

A Review Of San Francisco’S Lodging Industry: Past Performance And Future Implications, Adam N. Szilagyi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the past performance of the San Francisco lodging industry in order to identify future growth potential.

The Viability And Necessity Of Desertxpress And The Future Of Las Vegas, Charles Alexander Wellington

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose

The purpose of this professional paper is to determine the effects of the DesertXpress, an interstate high-speed rail which will connect Las Vegas, NV and Southern California and will provide critical information as to the viability and economic strength that the high-speed rail will bring to the region.

Leveraging Slot Gaming Technology To Gain A Competitive Advantage, Philip Zarlengo

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The slot gaming industry is being revolutionized by a recent explosion of new technologies that offer a wealth of management opportunities for casinos and offer a more interactive gameplay experience for players. These new technologies increase the excitement of gameplay while extending time on device (TOD) and revenue for the casinos. This preliminary business proposal informs casino managers on the latest in slot technologies and provides a guideline for their successful implementation.

Technology Base Self Service In Hospitality Industry, Wan Chi Chen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

There are more and more technology based self service (TBSS) encountering people’s daily life, even hospitality industry, where people pay to get service, has began to add TBSS as part of their service. Some people believe this TBSS is the trend for the future, but some others who have experienced this service believe that traditional human touch service (THTS) will be remain as the main service providing channel. While people are wondering what kind of service to provide as they want to get a high return on their investment, they need to have a better understanding on self service technology. …

E-Mail Management Of Japanese Hotels In Comparison With South Korean Hotels, Kyoko Morikoshi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

There has been little study done concerning the service quality of Japanese hotels toward foreign guests; especially e-mail management in English has not been analyzed in Japan before. Since e-mail inquiries in English from foreign guests could be the first step for Japanese hotels to provide good service to prospective guests, managing English e-mails efficiently is a key to attracting more foreign guests. Therefore this study examined the actual condition of e-mail management at Japanese hotels by sending an English inquiry to them. Korean hotels were also included because South Korea and Japan have similar linguistic and economic backgrounds. A …

Evaluating Websites By Features: Do Independent Hotels In Singapore Get It Right?, Prasetya Purnawan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study aims to evaluate the websites of independent hotels in Singapore in the business-to-consumer (B2C) framework. The modified balanced scorecard (BSC) approach is incorporated into the evaluation by features method in order to avoid the dominance of the marketing perspective by including technical, customer, and destination information perspectives. A set of website evaluation criteria representing these four perspectives is then used to examine the websites of 37 independent hotels. Almost three of four hotels get it right in developing, utilizing, and maintaining their websites. These websites have the presence of features that are known to be contributing towards website …

A Content Analysis Of Indonesian Hotel Website, Irene Hidayat

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose:

The purpose of this professional paper is to develop an effective content model for the Hotel Tentrem website. The content model will be obtained and modified from literature review. This study will also utilize content analysis to analyze five-star hotel websites in Indonesia to identify the common problems associated with the hotel websites, justify specific measures to build a successful website and provide suggestions on the potential areas of improvement.

Hotel Room Rate And Availability Parity Across Electronic Distribution Channels, Subashini Selvaraj

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This is an exploratory research paper looking at the parity of hotel room rates and hotel room availability across electronic distribution channels. The fulfillment of the best rate guarantee of hotels was also analyzed. The study surveyed 40 hotels in Singapore, covering 4 hotel segments, luxury, upscale, mid-market and budget with data collected over 5 dates. The results were analyzed across segments and dates of collection and it was found that neither rate nor room availability parity existed across all the hotels surveyed. In addition, majority of the hotels were unable to fulfill the best rate guarantee. Reasons for why …

Self Service Technology In Airports And The Customer Experience, Hannah Drennen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Justification:

This paper will help the airline industry identify how SST has influences customer behavior and reactions to SST while also understanding how airlines have been affected financially by the use of SST. The material discussed will help readers understand where the airline industry stood years ago, where the airline industry stands today and where it has the potential to stand 5 – 10 years down the road with the use of SST. The information will present both the positive and negative affects SST has on the airline industry and will assist in moving the industry forward in implanting SST …

How User-Generated Review Websites Impact A Hotel’S Revpar, Milan Patel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This is a professional paper which explores the correlation between user-generated reviews on TripAdvisor.com and how a hotels’ TripAdvisor Popularity Index ranking affects a hotels’ RevPar. The study surveyed nine hotels in Dallas, TX, three hotels in the four star level, three hotels in the three star level, and three hotels at the two and one half star level. The study focus’s on the strength of TripAdvisor in the hotel industry, the credibility of reviews, influence and expectations of guest that are developed due to the reviews, and lastly the impact the reviews on TripAdvisor have on a hotels’ RevPar.

Activeion Ionator Exp, Linda Straker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The case study was conducted to determine the effects of the cleanliness of the guest rooms and the effects to the hotels bottom line in implementing Activeion’s Ionator EXP as a new cleaning method to be used in the hotel guest rooms by the room attendants as opposed to the traditional cleaning method using 5 different cleaning chemicals to clean the guest rooms. The Ionator EXP is a chemical-free cleaning system. It is a hand held cleaning spray bottle unit that holds, cleans, and sanitizes with water. The Ionator EXP uses ionization, electricity and oxygen to clean.

The study included …

Specifications For Creating A Mobile Application For Meeting And Conference Attendees, Heather Lynne Willden

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to develop specifications for a mobile application for meeting and conference attendees. The set of features was determined by comparing the current offerings of mobile applications for meetings and conferences. There was a discussion of the purpose of meetings and conferences, followed by a review of the history of meetings technology. The mobile software development process was also explored. The paper resulted in the creation of flow charts and wire-frame outlines that would be used to develop a mobile application for meetings and conferences.

Hotel Revenue Management: Investigating The Interaction Of Information Technology And Judgmental Forecasting, I-Pei Claire Chen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Traditionally, forecasting has included human judgment and/ or guessing. The process has often been described as “guesstimation.” For instance, people are easily affected by user interface issue or rewarding policies during this process. The purpose of the study is to study and understand how revenue managers and other decision makers “make noise” during forecasting, especially when utilizing the advanced RMS, and to offer constructive suggestions to overcome the issues related to human judgment. In other words, the main objective of this study is to analyze the known influential factors for the interaction of revenue managers’ judgment and RMS tools by …

Can Self Service Technologies Work In The Hotel Industry In Singapore? A Conceptual Framework For Adopting Self Service Technology, Lixin Iris Ong

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The proliferation of self service technologies has changed the way customers interact with service employees and technology. More consumers are now valuing the convenience, consistency, and the control they have over the self service technologies. However, despite the growing popularity of these technologies, hotel industries in Singapore have not embraced self service technologies in their day to day operations. Self service technologies present opportunities for hotels to improve on service standards, and the wide variety of technology applications available allow hotels to choose an application that suits the customers and the hotels needs. To enable hotels to seamlessly adopt self …

A Mathematical Approach For Optimizing The Casino Slot Floor: A Linear Programming Application, Kasra Christopher Ghaharian

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Linear programming is a tool that has been successfully applied to various problems across many different industries and businesses. However, it appears that casino operators may have overlooked this useful and proven method. At most casino properties the bulk of gaming revenues are derived from slot machines. It is therefore imperative for casino operators to effectively manage and cultivate the performance of this department. A primary task for the casino operator is planning and deciding the mix of slot machines in order to maximize performance.

This paper presents the task of optimizing the casino slot floor as a linear programming …

Online Gaming: Prohibition Vs. Regulation, Andrew Montgomery

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Since online gaming began in 1995, the industry has been unsettled. Despite online gaming being viewed as illegal by the United States government, revenues generated from players in the U.S. grew consistently and rapidly from 1995 to 2006. U.S. lawmakers believed they clarified the legality issue by passing the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in 2006 (UIGEA); however, this legislation did little to discourage people in the U.S. from engaging in online gambling. U.S. lawmakers have long debated prohibition vs. regulation of the industry. Given the apparent ineffectiveness of online gaming prohibition via UIGEA, lawmakers favoring legalization and regulation of …

Embracing Self Service Technology For Hotel Productivity Growth, Kee Chuan Neo

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This paper explores the various ways in which self-service technology (SST), if employed by the hotel industry, can actually contribute to the productivity growth in Singapore. The study provides an understanding of customer’s technology acceptance and readiness by utilizing the two widely extended and accepted approaches, Technology Readiness Index (TRI) and Technology acceptance model (TAM). The study also evaluated the four common self-service technology channels: electronic kiosks, the Internet, mobile devices, and the telephone applications. From an investigation on past studies, it is found that Singapore is receptive to self-service technology. Self-service technology thus could bring a highly respectable return …

Technology Enhancement In Hotel Guestroom, Chee Wah Peter Too

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This is an exploratory research paper looking on various types of technology, facilities enhancement and devices adopted by hoteliers for their guestrooms to meet the ever increasing demand and expectations from their guests. This paper also explores the technologies and devices that owners use to leverage on business sustainability for their operations. As part of the corporate social responsibility, hotel owners are exploring the opportunities to increase these activities through the use of modern technology and devices to reduce damage to the environment such as using energy saving devices in their properties. Business and leisure travelers who are environmentally conscious …