Innovation in Hospitality Essay Example for Free

Innovation in Hospitality Essay Innovation is seen as difficult in many countries around the world, innovation strategies are not inclusive to all countries but vary in each country. To minimise the situation within these countries many firms in particular small business see innovation as a high financial commitment that may also be very risky to the business operations. The reason for this tendency is due to the limited hospitality innovation studies needed as a foundation to support managements perception of the theory. The availability of studies has the ability to encourage innovation that may not be detrimental to finances depending on the level of innovation selected. However innovation brings many other barriers and challenges that hinder the successful implementation of innovation: unqualified employees, knowledge, lack of understanding of the relationship between product and the market, high staff culture turnover, strategy-related factors etc. On the other hand hospitality firms used the following three approaches to innovation to successfully undertake innovation: innovation process strategy, continuous improvement theory and strategy as practice perspective. These innovation approaches are used a survival tool to combat against competition and it brings about benefits to the business: improved quality and brand image, knowledge sharing, customer satisfaction, increase in profits. Is innovation difficult within the hospitality industry.? First of all it may be useful to know what is the definition of innovation. Most definitions of innovation vary across the industry. Bessant and Francis (1999) defined innovation as an organisations wide process of sustained and focused incremental innovation where as Cooper (2002) defined innovation as the innovation process strategy for driving new food concepts from the initial stage right through to the final stage.