Measuring hotel financial performance: The role of training

Xiucheng Bai, Purdue University

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to develop a comprehensive model measuring the impacts of training on corporate financial performance. Training process complexities reveal that training inputs are costly investments. What seems lacking from the existing literature is the examination of the impact of training investments on the financial performance of a firm. In the hospitality industry, hotel companies who own, manage, and franchise properties need to investigate this issue to understand the financial benefits that training efforts may generate and to quantify the relationship between the training inputs and performance outcomes. Based on a conceptual model, followed by a prototype questionnaire deployment and analysis to test the performance of the model, the study demonstrated the validity and reliability of the proposed model of training evaluation. Two major constructs under investigation were training and hotel financial performance. Training was operationalized to include training dollar, training content, training methods, training time, and organizational support. Hotel financial performance was operationalized to refer to the perceptions of hotel executives and training managers of the extent to which hotel manager training contributes to the financial performance. Control variables included company size, hotel segment, and organizational structure. A Web survey was designed for data collection. Descriptive statistics and multiple regressions were employed for statistical analyses. Total training expenditure was not found to have any significant impact on the hotel financial performance. The study found that training content, training time, and organizational support had significant positive impacts on the hotel financial performance. Training methods were not found to have positive impact on the hotel financial performance. A unique professional perspective toward management training from hotel senior and training executives were also explored. This study provided a solid foundation for future endeavors for training evaluations and measurement in the hotel industry.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Pearson, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Inservice training

COinS