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Purpose This study aims to propose an integrated moderated mediation model to examine the process by which hotels obtain competitive advantage from the perspective of hotel managers. Design/methodology/approach After obtaining the agreement of the participants, a total of 560 candidates, all of whom were hotel managers, completed a survey administered online over a three-month period from November 2020 to January 2021. Ultimately, 257 valid responses were obtained after data screening by research assistants, for a response rate of 45.89%. Findings By reference to the concepts of big data (BD) and sustainability, the results show that BD management is a foundational attribute with respect to the indirect effects of BD analytics capabilities via proactive market orientation and social media collaboration. Furthermore, sustainability commitments and marketing are found to affect the relationship between such analytics capabilities and competitive advantage. Additionally, information sharing and food services have positive moderating effects that strengthen the changes in critical attributes during the process of obtaining competitive advantage. Originality/value To date, despite the proliferation of the concepts of BD, social media and sustainability, there is a lack of adequate empirical evidence and systematic literature reviews to comprehensively synthesize the emerging body of literature in the fields of tourism and hospitality research.

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to explore the influence of entrepreneurial attitudes, motivation and orientation on the entrepreneurial competitive advantage of innovative entrepreneurs in the tourism and hospitality industry, including those involved with bed and breakfasts, travel agencies and restaurants.Design/methodology/approachFirst, the sample for this study was selected through news media reporting on well-known new entrepreneurs, from lists of those entrepreneurs who have won innovation entrepreneurship loan subsidies from the government and from lists of those who have won innovation awards. Second, a pretest was used to confirm the feasibility of the questionnaire. The pretest survey was distributed to a total of 150 tourism and hospitality entrepreneurs. A total of 8 dimensions/facets and 36 items were confirmed. Finally, data collection took place for 9 months. A total of 1,150 questionnaires were distributed, and 606 questionnaires were recovered.FindingsThis study proposes a new multi-integration model of moderation-mediation analysis. The innovative business model explores the relationship between entrepreneurial factors and competitive advantage. Based on a survey of 606 staff members and managers of tourism and hospitality firms, entrepreneurs in the tourism and hospitality industry with entrepreneurial attitudes and motives had opportunities to increase their entrepreneurial orientation.Practical implicationsIn the process of innovative entrepreneurship, whether through organizational learning or other enterprise cooperation, it is necessary to pay more attention and propose different environmental management strategies. In addition, this study also found that marketing uncertainty moderates between entrepreneurial attitudes and entrepreneurial motives. Entrepreneurial motives are more conservative than other motives, and there is increased confidence in investing in innovative entrepreneurship in stable environments.Originality/valueThis study indicates that innovative entrepreneurial tourism and hospitality firms have a mediating or moderating effect on the relationship between entrepreneurial attitudes and positional advantage. If used properly, these resources can help the new entrants in the tourism and hospitality sector avoid the limitations of environmental change, firm size or insufficient information and improve their competitive advantage.

PurposeThis study aims to determine essential attributes of sustainable service innovation (SSI) in the Taiwan hospitality industry.Design/methodology/approachBy combining qualitative and quantitative methodologies while considering perspectives on sustainable management and service innovation, the present study extends the related literature on SSI and presents a new framework. The decision-making trail and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) analytical approaches are used to identify relations between dimensions and their causality attributes.FindingsThe findings of the DEMATEL result indicate that innovation diffusion has direct and indirect effects on dimensions of sustainable innovation and on organizational factors. Furthermore, sustainable innovation emerged as the most important attribute while the analytic network process analysis was used.Practical implicationsThe critical dimensions identified in this study may serve as guidelines that hospitality practitioners or hotel managers may use when engaging in SSI.Social implicationsSustainability management is ranked the most important criterion of sustainable practice, which indicates that considerations of sustainability are necessary when hospitality managers wish to carry out a sustainability project in an organization. Furthermore, organizational capabilities were ranked the most important criteria among all organizational factors. This finding implies that the first step involves establishing a shared vision.Originality/valueThe current study integrates and applies Rogers’ (2003) diffusion of innovations theory (DIT) to identify how to facilitate sustainability through service innovation. In so doing, this study can add to our knowledge in the hotel industry by using the DIT.

PurposeThis study aims to explore and analyze the extrinsic environmental factors that influence the development of culinary creativity.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses in‐depth interviews and content analysis. A total of 13 internationally famous and/or award‐winning culinary artists and contest judges from the USA, Singapore, and Taiwan were interviewed to provide the data for the project.FindingsThere is a close relationship between the creativity of culinary artists and the quality of their environment. Therefore it is important to develop and maintain a physical, social, cultural and educational environment that is conducive to culinary creativity.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study can serve as a basis and frame of reference for the future planning of culinary education, the purpose of which is to cultivate a more creative mode of culinary thinking in students.Originality/valueThis is the first research project to focus primarily on identifying specific factors in the environment which have a positive impact on individual, creative, culinary artists. Having identified those factors and described the ideal “culinary environment”, some specific suggestions for the culinary industry are made, indicating how to create such a potentially stimulating environment and thereby cultivate more, and more creative, culinary artists.