Naslov
Tourism and hospitality professionals cross-cultural communication competence: tourists and tourism professionals perspectives

Autori
Kostić-Bobanović ; M. i Novak, M.

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u zbornicima skupova, cjeloviti rad (in extenso), znanstveni

Izvornik
Future World by 2050 / Pavlović, D. - Pula : University of Pula, FET, 2018, 275-303

ISBN
978-953-7320-68-3

Skup
The 8th International Scientific Conference “Future World by 2050”

Mjesto i datum
Pula, Hrvatska, 01.06.2017. - 03.06.2017

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Međunarodna recenzija

Ključne riječi
tourism and hospitality sector, cross-cultural communication competence, communicative effectiveness, intercultural sensitivity, international tourism settings

Sažetak
The tourism and hospitality industry is one of the largest and fastest developing industries of global economy. In parallel with the industry's growth worldwide, customer expectations are rising, while competition is intensifying, setting up additional challenges for tourism and hospitality organisations to distinguish themselves in service quality and overall performance. Taking the view that employees are one of the most important assets for tourism organisations, the current study is aimed at exploring the industry's professionals' cross- cultural communication competence as a potential source of competitive advantage. Based on a sample of 157 respondents employed in the tourism and hospitality sector, and 328 British and Irish tourists visiting the City of Pula and neighbouring municipalities in the County of Istria, Croatia, during the 2016 tourist preseason, our study examines the tourism professionals' cross-cultural communication competence as perceived by the professionals themselves, as well as by the tourists who participated in the survey. In particular, this study investigates the two dimensions of cross- cultural communication competence as identified by the authoresses: cross-cultural communicative effectiveness, and intercultural sensitivity. The 12- items research instrument to examine the two dimensions was developed and adapted from the Cross- Cultural Communication Competence Model by Matveev et al. (2001). The results showed slight differences between the professionals' and the tourists' perceptions of the two dimensions, demonstrating how tourists’ expectations somewhat exceed professionals’ self-perceived capabilities. Statistically significant differences in the perceptions of the two studied groups were, however, found for one item in each dimension of cross-cultural communication. Our findings have important practical implications for the tourism sector: they may help professionals improve their working efficiency and advance their career prospects, and provide the employers with a better understanding of customers’ expectations when integrating cultural elements with communicative skills in ensuring proper further education for their employees, as well as provide a valuable tool in managing human resources and recruiting qualified personnel. The authoresses suggest it is crucial for the industry to take into account the potential impact of personnel's cross-cultural communication competence on the service providers' success, and on the service recipients' satisfaction, and suggest ways of implementing strategies to successfully improve interactions in intercultural tourism settings.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Ekonomija, Filologija

POVEZANOST RADA