Improving Productivity in a Service Business Evidence From the Hotel Industry
Abstract
The objective of this paper is to compare, along three strategic dimensions, franchising with other types of
operating arrangements in the lodging industry. The operating arrangements studied are, in addition to
franchising, chain-managed and independent hotels. The three strategic dimensions include: (1) the
variability or volatility of the task environment facing a hotel; (2) the business strategy chosen by a hotel's
general manager; and (3) the level of sales revenue and profit margin achieved by a hotel.