Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37

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Tourism Management
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tourman

Research note

A model that connects information technology and hotel performance

lez*, Jacques Bulchand-Gidumal
n-Gonza
Santiago Melia
TIDES Institute of Tourism and Sustainable Development, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Facultad de Economía, Empresa y Turismo, Campus
Universitario de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas, Spain

h i g h l i g h t s

 We review global proposals about IT influence on hotel organizational performance.

 We review particular IT paths toward different hotel organizational performance facets.
 We present a comprehensive model that details the routes that IT applications follow in order to improve hotel performance.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Despite vast investments in IT, there is scant research and empirical data that connects, in depth, IT with
Received 23 February 2015 firm performance in the hospitality industry. However, the literature does show partial evidence and
Received in revised form examples of particular technologies. After an extensive literature review, we posit four global paths
9 September 2015
through which IT can impact hotel performance and, for each one, the precise mechanisms that cause
Accepted 11 September 2015
Available online xxx
these influences. These four proposals are further developed and refined using in-depth interviews with
a group of 30 managers of different areas from several hotels. A final comprehensive model that shows
the specific routes that IT can follow in order to improve hotel organizational performance is presented.
Keywords:
Information technology
This model can be taken as a frame of reference by academics and can also be used by both practitioners
Hotels and IT producers to assess particular IT options.
Organizational performance © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Productivity
Customer service
Commercialization

1. Introduction drivers of the relationship. After a literature review, we pose a

Information technologies (IT) have been recognized as one of
the greatest forces causing change in the hotel industry (Law,
Leung, Au, & Lee, 2013). Many hospitality firms have turned to IT
as a way to cope with an environment characterized by globaliza-
tion, competition, high client turnover, and rising guest expecta-
tions. IT investments are considerable in the hospitality industry,
but those investments do not always guarantee suitable returns;
therefore, research that clarifies in detail how IT can improve
organizational performance is required (Cohen & Olsen, 2013).
Although there is a lack of a comprehensive model of the rela-
tionship between organizational performance and IT investments
in the hospitality industry, there is evidence from the academic and
professional literature about how specific IT may impact some
* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: santiago.melian@ulpgc.es (S. Meli lez), jacques.
an-Gonza
bulchand@ulpgc.es (J. Bulchand-Gidumal).
general model that includes four global paths through which IT can
influence hotel performance. This model is subsequently analyzed
with 30 managers of different areas in five hotels through a qual-
itative approach using in-depth interviews in order to find support
for the different roles that IT should adopt to impact hotel organi-
zational performance.
2. IT and hotel firm performance
IT has transformed tourism globally. Its potential to shape
customer service and hospitality firm performance has been widely
recognized (Buhalis & Law, 2008; Ip, Leung, & Law, 2011). Never-
theless, hospitality firms do not always obtain a return from their IT
investments (Brown & Stange, 2002). In particular, the extant
research has provided little empirical evidence about how IT can be
used in order to produce customer service outcomes and how it
contributes to the performance of hospitality firms (Cohen & Olsen,
2013).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2015.09.005
0261-5177/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 n-Gonza
S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37
However, the literature provides both theoretical arguments
and empirical evidence in order to propose a model that describes
IT influence on hotel performance. We will describe the more
global and comprehensive approaches to the issue, and we will
examine in detail each of the options presented in these general
views about the influence of IT. Nevertheless, we are attempting to
describe how IT can impact hotels' organizational performance;
therefore, this last construct must be explained first.
2.1. Organizational performance in hotels
Organizational performance is a complex and multidimensional
construct (Avci, Madanoglu, & Okumus, 2011). Economic results
represent the final objective of most companies (Chandler,
DeTienne, McKelvie, & Mumford, 2011), and so the economic
dimension stands out. In hospitality, Cohen and Olsen (2013) used
profitability, sales growth, and revenue per available room. On the
other hand, the non-financial performance facet focuses on a firm's
long-term success, with measures such as customer satisfaction
and productivity (Van Veen-Dirks & Wijn, 2002). The sequence
from non-economic performance to economic performance is
assumed by different authors. In particular, it has been considered
that client-related performance and productivity lead to economic
performance (Cohen & Olsen, 2013; Combs, Crook, & Shook, 2005;
Heskett & Schlesinger, 1994). Therefore, any attempt to describe
how IT can improve hotel performance should consider at least the
client, productivity, and economic dimensions of organizational
performance. This is consistent with the more recent research
about hotel performance measurement (Sainaghi, 2010).
2.2. Global proposals about IT impact on organizational
performance
Bannister and Remenyi (2000) state that the process through
which IT improves firm results is more sophisticated than deliv-
ering services at lower costs. IT should be connected with other
non-IT company factors like strategy, clients, and services. Based on
the analysis of different global proposals about how IT can improve
hotel organizational performance (Chathoth, 2007; Law &
Jogaratnam, 2005; Law et al., 2013; Leung & Law, 2005; Piccoli,
2008; Siguaw, Enz, & Namasivayam, 2000; Tavitiyaman, Qiu
Zhang, & Qu, 2012), we posit that the general process involves
acting upon the following organizational performance drivers:
operational productivity, employee productivity, customer service,
and commercialization (Fig. 1). In the next sections, we describe
Fig. 1. Global proposals about IT impact on organizational performance.
31
how IT can be used in each of these global options.
2.3. Operational productivity
Productivity can be defined as the relationship of output to input
(Tangen, 2005). In hotels, there are both relevant outputs (such as
the number of clients and revenue), and relevant inputs (such as
employees, raw materials, and energy). We will consider employee
productivity separately because employees are a very important
resource for hotels. Among the other resources that are relevant in
terms of costs, energy and food stand out (Pavlatos & Paggios, 2007;
rez-Lombard, Ortiz, & Pout, 2008). Furthermore, apart from the
Pe
cost interest, the environmental impact and energy consumption
also contribute to hotel social responsibility (Holcomb, Upchurch, &
Okumus, 2007), and they involve international recognition (e.g.,
EMAS awards). Therefore, both types of non-personnel activities
should be optimized through IT in order to, on the one hand, reduce
costs and, on the other hand, improve the hotel organizational
image associated with hotel social responsibility: green image
(Fig. 2). Examples of interesting IT options in relation to these aims
are kitchen control systems and energy management systems,
respectively (Doukas, Patlitzianas, Iatropoulos, & Psarras, 2007).
2.4. Employee productivity
Hotel firms are labor intensive and task-oriented in their service
operation and delivery. Evidence suggests that hospitality firms can
succeed in using technological resources to improve staff produc-
tivity. One way of increasing personnel productivity involves
reducing staff costs without affecting performance outputs. In this
sense, staff productivity consequences are the same as those of
operational productivity: higher profitability. Thus, guest registra-
tion IT options like kiosks and online check-in allow firms to check
in guests faster with fewer staff (Kim, Kim, Park, Lee, & Jee, 2012).
Besides reducing staff costs, employee productivity can be
achieved through higher output while containing personnel costs.
In this sense, since IT releases employees from manual labor, they
have the opportunity to focus on service and meeting clients'
particular needs and wants (Chathoth, 2007). This staff productivity
facet can influence client satisfaction through better customer
service which, as has been explained, is considered as an ante-
cedent of firm incomes. Fig. 3 illustrates employee productivity and
IT possibilities.
32 n-Gonza
S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37
Fig. 2. Operational productivity through IT.
2.5. Customer service
In hotels, there are two main kinds of services: employee-based
services and IT-based services or self-service technologies (SSTs).
We will first address employee-based services, followed by SSTs.
Service quality is the main criterion considered in assessing
services that rely on employee actions (Lee, Barker, & Kandampully,
2003). Brady and Cronin (2001) model is one of the most
comprehensive contributions in the quality service measurement
field (Martinez Garcia & Martinez Caro, 2010). This model explains
service quality with three primary dimensions and nine corre-
sponding sub-dimensions: interaction quality (attitude, behavior,
and expertise), physical environment quality (ambient conditions,
design, and social factors), and outcome quality (waiting time,
tangibles, and valence).
In relation to interaction quality, attitude alludes to a willingness
to help customers; behavior refers to employees taking actions to
address clients' needs; and expertise relates to the knowledge of
employees about the service. These facets of service quality can be
influenced by IT, since they can be used by contact employees to
improve service encounters by enabling customization, improving
service recovery, and spontaneously delighting guests (Bitner,
Brown, & Meuter, 2000).
Regarding physical environment quality, ambient conditions
pertain to non-visual aspects, such as temperature, scent, and
music; facility design refers to the layout or architecture of the
environment; and social factors refer to the number and type of
people in the service setting. Here, the contribution of IT is possible
as well. For example, IT-based self check-in/out affects the number
of people in the service setting by making processes more efficient,
thus helping to avoid large queues and agglomerations. IT can also
influence the ambient sub-dimension, because IT can change a
room's physical attributions like color, sound and smell (Hosteltur,
2014). IT also affects facility design, because mobile technologies
allow employees to attend to guests in more comfortable setups
than the classical reception desk. Modern hardware also tends to
integrate better, with the facility design avoiding being an obstacle
between the guest and the employee.
The last dimension of service quality is outcome quality. Waiting
time is the amount of time it takes to provide a service; IT applica-
tions help hotels to deliver services faster (Chathoth, 2007). Tangible
Fig. 3. Employee productivity through IT.
relates to the physical evidence of the service; which, in the case of
IT, can be impacted by updated technologies (Schmidt, Cantallops, &
dos Santos, 2008). Valence refers to whether, at the end of their stay,
customers believe that the service outcome is good or bad; an
example of this might be the case of free Wi-Fi (Bulchand-Gidumal,
Melia n-Gonzalez, & Gonzalez Lo
pez-Valca
rcel, 2011).
Regarding the second type of services, IT penetration has
allowed hotels to provide SSTs (e.g., kiosks for self-check-in). There
are two main outcomes that hotels should expect from SSTs: first,
reducing queues (Kokkinou & Cranage, 2013), and second, avoiding
situations characterized by a potentially negative rapport experi-
ence (Giebelhausen, Robinson, Sirianni, & Brady, 2014). Fig. 4
illustrates how IT can improve customer service.
2.6. Commercialization
A number of IT options can be used to increase hotel revenues.
We have identified IT involved in the following: customer satis-
faction measures, client behavior knowledge, distribution channel
management, and revenue management. We will now discuss each
of them in detail.
“Companies and organizations in virtually every industry employ
customer-satisfaction measures for the straightforward reason that
satisfied customers are essential for a successful business” (Gupta,
McLaughlin, & Gomez, 2007: 284). IT makes it possible to get client
opinions through email, corporate and other distribution websites
(e.g., Booking.com), mobile apps, interactive voice-response systems,
and/or traveler review websites (e.g., TripAdvisor).
Relationship marketing involves activities directed to obtaining
successful relational exchanges (Morgan & Hunt, 1994). Its success
depends upon acquiring customer information to be used for
developing highly personalized offerings (Sigala, 2005). Customer
relationship management (CRM) seeks to gather and store client-
related information, share it throughout the entire organization,
and then use it at all organizational levels for creating unique guest
experiences (Sigala, 2005). The latest technologies, such as smart-
phone tracking, can follow the guest's pathway inside the hotel and
create routes of client movements.
Nowadays, most clients choose their stays through the Internet;
so, in accordance with O'Connor and Frew (2004), IT must provide
hotels with a presence in suitable electronic distribution channels
(e.g., hotel websites, OTAs, global distribution systems). Last, IT
plays a critical role in revenue management, which seeks to design
special service packages using appropriate combinations of attri-
butes, such as price, amenities, purchase restrictions, and distri-
bution channels. Fig. 5 illustrates IT options to improve hotel
commercialization.
3. Research objective
Taking into consideration the elements that could take part in
each of the global paths through which IT can influence
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S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37
Fig. 4. Customer service through IT.
Fig. 5. Commercialization through IT.
organizational performance in hotels (Fig. 1), we have elaborated
Figs. 2e5. Considering that these have been elaborated only based
on the literature review, the objective of this work is to find sup-
porting empirical evidence. In particular, what is sought is confir-
mation of each one of the specific routes described for the general
strategic options of operational productivity, employee productiv-
ity, customer service, and commercialization.
4. Methodology
The authors employed a purposive sampling (Jennings,
Rajaratnam, & Lawrence, 2003) that encompassed five four-star
hotels. Four of them were sun and beach hotels located in tourist
zones of the Canary Islands and belonging to different hotel chains.
The fifth was an independent urban hotel located in a major city of
the same destination. All the hotels had more than 200 rooms and
more than 100 employees. The hotel category and size was selected
because of its tested IT penetration (Ruiz-Molina, Gil-Saura, &
Moliner-Velazquez, 2011). Considering this was a first approach to
explore the theoretical paths, we adopted a qualitative perspective
based on in-depth interviews in order to gain an understanding of
the phenomena.
In each of the hotels, the following personnel were interviewed
face-to-face: hotel director, front office manager, housekeeper, food
and beverage manager, IT manager, and marketing manager. A total
33
of 30 interviews were carried out and all were tape-recorded with
the permission of the respondents. In all cases, there were two
interviewers present and each took individual notes. The in-
terviews lasted for an average of 1 h and featured open-ended
questions about the role of IT in the categories represented in
Figs. 1e5. The hotel performance influence was addressed
regarding the following organizational performance facets: client
results, operations, incomes, and costs. Content analysis was done
following a deductive approach. In cases of subsequent doubt,
email or phone contact was used to clarify.
Sampling was concluded once saturation was reached. Data
saturation was identified because in the last two hotels that were
interviewed no new issues, technologies, or improvements were
mentioned.
5. Results
The results will be presented according to each of the categories
shown in Figs. 1e5. Previously, there are two general results of the
research that must be commented upon. All the global paths (Fig. 1)
were confirmed by the interviewees and no new ones were found,
since all the mentioned options regarding the use of IT fitted
adequately into the constructs. What was found were other options
inside one of the global paths (commercialization) and some new
relationships between the constructs, as will be explained at the
end of this section.
5.1. Operational productivity
Energy consumption was a matter of concern for all hotel di-
rectors. They perceived their businesses as intensive consumers of
energy and stated that IT could help them with two tasks: providing
relevant information for management and automatically adapting
energy consumption to surrounding changes. Although cost
reduction was the main criteria, some managers also highlighted
the sustainable hotel image facet. Another matter of concern
mentioned by hotel directors and by food and beverage managers
was reducing food wastage. Several of the interviewees were
considering implementing IT to help with this process, but none
had yet implemented this type of application. Two of the cases
34 n-Gonza
S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37
mentioned applications that would reduce food waste by adapting
the buffet to the profiles of the guests.
5.2. Employee productivity
Several interviewees found that IT was a way to reduce
personnel costs without affecting earnings or service quality. This
was the case of the front office and marketing managers, respec-
tively, who stated that their IT applications (e.g., PMS, online check-
in, and channel manager) allowed their departments to perform
the same amount of tasks (e.g., check-in, check-out, modifying in-
formation in the distribution channels) with fewer employees.
Despite this admitted advantage, front office managers asserted
that, when unexpected events happened, the staff numbers were
insufficient, affecting client satisfaction.
The front office managers and hotel directors agreed that the
routine task automation that IT generated was an opportunity to
focus on client interaction. Contact employees could dedicate more
time to understanding clients' needs, to explaining hotel facilities
and services, and to recognizing loyal clients.
5.3. Customer service
With respect to employee-based service quality, the influence
on the interaction quality dimension was the most mentioned IT
impact. The main examples were the behaviors of contact em-
ployees that fit in the behavior quality sub-dimension. For instance,
in the case of the front office staff, the employees can clarify client
doubts on consumptions showing exactly which services and
products were consumed, as well as where and when the client
approved those services. Similarly, the sales staff can quickly
answer client questions by email. Regarding the attitude quality
sub-dimension, the interviewees stated that employees' actions to
satisfy client requirements are interpreted as a willingness to help.
As such, if employees use IT in order to meet clients' demands, it
can reflect their intention to assist them. Regarding the last sub-
dimension, expertise, the interviewees commented that IT re-
sources could be a problem for contact employees if they do not
master them well.
With respect to the physical environment service quality
dimension, all the interviewees agreed that clients really appreciate
the physical conditions of their hotels. The ambient condition
quality sub-dimension was seen as being far from IT influence. The
same was the case with the layout design. IT was only mentioned
with reference to the physical appearance of the hardware used. In
contrast, the social factor sub-dimension was clearly associated
with IT, as using IT can avoid crowds in the hotel areas where these
can appear. Self-check-in, self-check-out, and online check-in IT
options were all considered by front office managers as a way of
avoiding annoying agglomerations.
The last service quality dimension, service outcome, was also
considered as improvable by IT. The same IT judged as useful for
eluding agglomerations was valuable for clients to avoid excessive
waiting times. Additionally, the Internet's possibilities and infor-
mation systems such as the PMS can also eliminate the latter.
Nevertheless, IT has brought a new kind of waiting time that is
often criticized by clients: Internet browsing speed. IT can also
affect the tangible quality sub-dimension. Several managers
emphasized the corporate web page characteristics, such as
updated information, good quality pictures, ease of use, and a
modern appearance. Other technology in full sight of clients was
also considered relevant for the hotel's image: large touch screens,
computer monitors, and POS. Cutting-edge IT was cited as inter-
esting for improving the tangible client experience, for instance,
with technology that allows clients to change the room's
appearance.
Regarding the valence quality sub-dimension, the interviewees
considered that this global client evaluation may be influenced by
IT, as an IT failure can negatively influence a client's stay. Currently,
a day without Internet access can really harm a short client stay. IT
was considered as affecting the output quality service facet when it
presents problems because some services strongly depend upon it.
Nevertheless, when technology runs well, this does not mean that
the output service quality is enhanced.
Regarding SSTs, the interviewees agreed that check-in/out
operations represent clear examples of services that many cli-
ents appreciate that exist as SSTs. Nevertheless, they affirmed that
their hotels were businesses that involved clienteemployee in-
teractions and that offering such services only through an IT-
based service option would not be a good idea. Many clients
prefer to interact with employees or value having both options.
SSTs were considered as a complement to personnel-based ser-
vices that avoid waiting times, queues, and walking to the
reception desk.
5.4. Commercialization
In this area, two big themes were raised by the interviewees: the
opportunity to know clients' opinions and behaviors, and
commercialization through the Internet. Regarding clients' opin-
ions, the social media phenomenon stood out. Acquiring these
evaluations during the clients' stay was mentioned, too. With
respect to clients' behavior, CRM was the most mentioned IT
function. According to the interviewees' comments, this technology
allows hotels to both personalize employeeeclient interactions and
increase sales opportunities.
Regarding commercialization, an appropriate presence in the
different distribution channels on the Internet and the revenue
management technique were highlighted by marketing and hotel
managers. As hotels commercialize their offers in a larger number
of channels, greater flexibility is demanded from IT to allow for new
options to be created.
Another theme upon which both a marketing manager and an IT
manager commented was the adaptability of IT in order to intro-
duce new services. This does not have to do with combinations of
existing service attributes, but rather the design of a new service
and the flexibility of IT to connect it with the necessary related
activities (e.g., accounting, payment). This concept had not been
found specifically in the literature, but we thought that it was an
interesting idea to add to our model. Thus, this additional specific
path appears as “new products,” understanding as such the ability
of IT to support the creation and commercialization of new
products.
Another issue mentioned by some of the interviewees is the use
of IT as a source of revenue per se. This is the fact that hotels have
various technologies that are rented or sold to guests and are a
source of income (e.g., access to Wi-Fi networks and rental of IT
devices). We do not believe that this source of income will be
sustainable over time, because, as other interviewees commented,
guests arrive at hotels more frequently with their own technologies
and free Wi-Fi is becoming very common. However, we decided to
add this specific path to the model, representing it with dotted
lines.
5.5. Final model
We started with the model shown in Fig. 1 and with the details
depicted in Figs. 2e5. We refined each of the paths and the re-
lationships between them, thus creating the resulting model pre-
sented in Fig. 6.
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S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37
Fig. 6. Detailed proposal about IT impact on organizational performance in hotels.
To understand the model, the connections among the different
global paths must be explained. For example, SSTs, like other IT
options, can release employees from operative tasks, thus
increasing the opportunities for client interaction. SSTs may also
contribute to increasing employee productivity, through worker
displacement. These influences are represented in Fig. 6 with an
asterisk. The client satisfaction measure is useful for modifying
customer service according to detected weaknesses, which is rep-
resented with two asterisks. This same box also shows how
knowledge of client behavior can be used to get service quality
through improving client interactions. Last, a better image of the
hotel as being environmentally friendly can be used as a commer-
cialization argument. This is represented in our model with three
asterisks.
6. Conclusions
In this article, we propose and analyze with a qualitative
method a model that relates IT to the performance of hotels. Ev-
idence supporting each of the paths' specific content was found.
Academics can use this model to understand in a comprehensive
way the role of IT in the hospitality business. Additionally, it
should be considered that IT attributes matter, as not all of the
technologies associated with the prescribed processes exhibited
the same potential to increase organizational performance. For
example, although one of the hotels had a CRM, it was not sys-
tematically used by its employees to surprise clients or to offer
35
them additional services. Nevertheless, another hotel's CRM por-
trayed client consumption data in such a way that employees
knew easily what clients specifically demanded from the hotel.
These employees were able to particularize their client in-
teractions and to generate cross-selling opportunities. Further, in
many cases, IT contribution depends upon employee behavior,
which means that IT should not be analyzed in an isolated way.
Hospitality is a people-oriented business, and forgetting this can
be a great mistake (Ryan, 2015).
Practitioners can use the model to assess how a specific IT
option may be used to improve hotel performance. It can also be
used by IT producers and entrepreneurs to design and evaluate
their products, as the variables included are those that drive hotel
performance.
Hotel managers should not directly rely upon the type of IT (e.g.,
online check-in, smart TV, presence sensors); instead, they should
analyze the extent to which a specific IT product or service (with all
its configurations, and possibilities) is capable of improving the
operational productivity, personnel productivity, customer service,
and income generation paths. According to the proposed model, if
an IT product or service does not influence any of the factors por-
trayed in Fig. 6, organizational performance will not be enhanced.
Furthermore, sales pitches like “This product will increase
personnel productivity” should not be accepted. Instead, more
precise information should be requested; for example, a measure-
ment of how much more availability for service interaction an
employee or group of employees will have. Additionally, hoteliers
36 n-Gonza
S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37
should try to imagine the future with the technology and clearly
define how this spare time will to be used (e.g., upselling, cross
selling, and/or improving guest interactions). If there is no clear
relation to the content of this path or to none of the others collected
in the model, the product under consideration will most probably
produce little or no outcome.
Last, the importance of the four routes towards hotel perfor-
mance will depend upon the hotel's strategy. If a hotel competes
on price or emphasizes a cost control approach, the operational
and employee productivity paths will be more important than
customer service. Alternatively, hotels that try to stand out in
terms of service quality will assign more importance to the
customer service route and to some of the factors of the
commercialization path (e.g., client satisfaction measures and
client behavior knowledge). When considering which IT applica-
tions to implement, prioritization should be given to those that
best contribute to the hotel's strategy. However, hoteliers should
take into account that previous research has found a stronger
connection between IT and firm performance through paths
related to increasing revenue than through paths related to
reducing costs (Mithas, Tafti, Bardhan, & Goh, 2012).
7. Limitations and future research directions
This research presents some limitations. The sample may be
suitable for a first qualitative approach to the phenomena, but it is
limited. Furthermore, it contains similar hotels (four-star hotels)
located in the same destination and is restricted to two types of
hotels: sun and beach, and urban. Thus, and in order to progress in
hospitality research, a subsequent extensive quantitative research
would be required (Rivera & Pizam, 2015).
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 n-Gonza
S. Melia lez, J. Bulchand-Gidumal / Tourism Management 53 (2016) 30e37 37

Santiago Melia n-Gonza lez is an associate professor at the
University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in the Canary
Islands, in Spain. His research interest include human re-
sources, information technology and their interaction in
order to improve organizational performance. He is
focused in the tourism sector.
Jacques Bulchand-Gidumal is an associate professor at
the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in the Canary
Islands, in Spain. His research interests include informa-
tion technologies, social media, innovation and entrepre-
neurship. He is focused in the tourism sector.