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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of empathy in the student service experience. Taking a dyadic perspective, both students’ and staff’s perceptions are analyzed to determine if empathy matters to both actors alike; and which differences in perceptions about the role of empathy between these actors exist. Design/methodology/approach The authors adopt a multi-method approach and used data from 256 usable survey responses from 11 higher education service providers in Singapore. Empathy was operationalized by six cognitive and affective independent variables and multiple multivariate analyses are applied, such as multivariate analysis of variance, discriminant analysis and multiple regression analysis. Findings Results show that both students and staff alike evaluate empathy as important in the co-created service experience. The provision of individualized attention to students to positively influence student experience in learning was deemed important by both staff and students. Yet, there are also distinct differences. For students, it is essential that staff members have students’ best interests at heart; for staff members, knowledge of students’ needs and show of care and concern are important. Practical implications Students and staff perceive empathy in higher education service provision differently. Interestingly, whilst staff think caring for students is important, students feel that too much care and concern from staff has a negative effect on their experience. Hence, too much care and concern might cause potential issues with the students’ perception of “over-servicing” which might manifest as “spoon-feeding.” Instead, students are asking for individualized and professionalized attention to be taken seriously and to be involved in the co-creation of the education service experience. Originality/value This study advances the understanding of affective and cognitive aspects of empathy and their influence on students’ service experiences.

Purpose Recognising tourists’ increasing desire for authentic destination-specific experiences, the hospitality industry has responded by increasing provision of innovative culinary activities. This study aims to use the concepts of serious leisure and terroir to examine how knowledge, physical environment and service quality influence co-creation within the culinary tourism context. Design/methodology/approach Following cooking class participation, 575 domestic Iranian tourists were surveyed. These educational classes provide opportunities to learn about local foods alongside peers in an interactive setting. Consistent with the benefits of serious leisure, this consumption context could prove conducive to stimulating co-creation. Findings Prior knowledge strongly influences tourists’ reflective and recreational motives for participation (i.e. the benefits of serious leisure). This shapes how tourists evaluate physical environments and service quality therein; influencing value co-creation and supporting serious leisure as the conceptual lens through which to understand experiential culinary consumption. Research limitations/implications The proposed conceptual model was tested on domestic tourists following class participation. However, in suggesting that visually-stimulating, tactile premises with the olfactory appeal can encourage co-created experiences, the findings are relevant to service touch-point management more generally. Originality/value Recognizing the influential role played by the physical and social aspects of experiential consumption, the serious leisure framework improves an extant understanding of value co-creation.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to systematically synthesize the extant literature of knowledge sharing (KS) and knowledge transfer (KT) in the small and medium enterprise (SME) context and to contribute with predictions of emerging themes.Design/methodology/approachApplied is a systematic literature review using three bibliometric techniques: (1) textual analysis for keywords and abstracts to identify the research hotspots, (2) co-citation analysis of references to identify the evolution of KS and KT in SME and (3) bibliographic coupling analysis of documents to synthesize antecedents and outcomes.FindingsA conceptual map emerges from the review to reveal the antecedents of KS and KT at the individual, group and organizational levels. The analysis shows the strategic importance of KS and KT for the SME context. Specific findings include: (1) KS and KT are involved in enhancing SMEs strategic focus for human resources, including organizational learning, customer relations, creativity, higher profit and positive effects on operational processes and decision-making. (2) Innovation, trust and performance are identified as central human factors linked to KS and KT in SMEs. (3) Human resource (HR) management research could contribute to KS and KT in the SME domain by exploring KS- and KT-based practices, linking the emergence of innovation and innovative behaviors to these practices, leading to a better understanding of strategies that enable the long-term storage and retrieval of tacit and explicit knowledge as organizational memory in the SME context.Originality/valueThis paper is one of the first to systematically review KS and KT in SMEs and propose a concept map. The research adds value to the growing literature of KS and KT and exposes the need for more specific activities to support SME managers, as well as HR managers, who need to facilitate KS and KT in SMEs.

The aim of this study is twofold. First, we draw on organizational behavior, strategic management, and events literature to conceptualize the event workforce. We show that events are a highly heterogeneous organization with a temporary and project-based structure, and are characterized by a high fluctuation of paid employees and volunteers. Second, we contextualize these unique characteristics to understand knowledge sharing behavior of the event workforce. We analyze interview data from volunteers and paid employees at tourism events to make two theoretical contributions: 1) We advance theory in events literature, showing that event organizations are unique in terms of their processes and team composition; 2) We contribute with novel insights of how knowledge is used in heterogeneous event teams, explaining how knowledge serves as a source of power for both volunteers and paid event managers alike.

Although there is substantial research on various elements of knowledge management in organizations, there is a gap in our understanding of how event organizations transfer knowledge. We address this gap using qualitative interview data and show in our results that knowledge transfer processes can be categorized into three distinct phases: 1) preevent, 2) event operations, and 3) postevent. Event managers and staff mostly transfer explicit knowledge preevent; yet, tacit knowledge is transferred during the event operations. However, tacit knowledge is rarely converted into explicit knowledge in the postevent phase, and organizational memory is largely underutilized. Practical implications are deduced, suggesting for event organizations to adopt a more strategic approach to knowledge transfer. We suggest that event management then operates more effectively in this fast-paced and knowledge-intensive business environment, and better integrates heterogeneous event staff, including both paid employees and event volunteers.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how quality of work life (QWL) influences job satisfaction and to test if gender and organizational type moderate this relationship for Generation Y (Gen-Y).Design/methodology/approachQuestionnaire data were collected from 328 Gen-Y employees in European hospitality businesses. Drawing on generational theory, social role theory and person–environment (P–E) fit theory, the authors discuss how gender and organizational types (i.e. independent vs corporate structures) moderate Gen-Y’s QWL–job satisfaction relationship.FindingsThe findings of the paper are as follows: first, gender and organizational type influence the QWL–job satisfaction relationship for Gen-Y. Second, job security does not change job satisfaction levels for female employees while high levels of job security negatively influence job satisfaction for male employees. Third, receiving appreciation at work increases job satisfaction for both women and men but, when receiving little appreciation at work, women remain more satisfied. Fourth, having opportunities to contribute to decisions positively affects Gen-Y’s job satisfaction. Fifth, having the right to say is more important in independent organizations, while the opportunity to realize an employee’s own potential leads to higher job satisfaction in corporate organizations.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the limited empirical scholarly research, adding to a deeper understanding of influencing factors of Gen-Y’s QWL–job satisfaction relationship.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how quality of work life (QWL) influences job satisfaction and to test if gender and organizational type moderate this relationship for Generation Y (Gen-Y). Design/methodology/approach Questionnaire data were collected from 328 Gen-Y employees in European hospitality businesses. Drawing on generational theory, social role theory and person–environment (P–E) fit theory, the authors discuss how gender and organizational types (i.e. independent vs corporate structures) moderate Gen-Y’s QWL–job satisfaction relationship. Findings The findings of the paper are as follows: first, gender and organizational type influence the QWL–job satisfaction relationship for Gen-Y. Second, job security does not change job satisfaction levels for female employees while high levels of job security negatively influence job satisfaction for male employees. Third, receiving appreciation at work increases job satisfaction for both women and men but, when receiving little appreciation at work, women remain more satisfied. Fourth, having opportunities to contribute to decisions positively affects Gen-Y’s job satisfaction. Fifth, having the right to say is more important in independent organizations, while the opportunity to realize an employee’s own potential leads to higher job satisfaction in corporate organizations. Originality/value The study contributes to the limited empirical scholarly research, adding to a deeper understanding of influencing factors of Gen-Y’s QWL–job satisfaction relationship.

Purpose This study aims to explore and synthesize the role of knowledge management (KM) in tourism organizations (including micro, small, medium and large enterprises and destination management organizations). Design/methodology/approach This study adopts systematic review methods to synthesize the role of KM in tourism from 90 journal articles. Findings This study identifies the prominent theories adopted to explore the relation and impact of KM in the tourism sector, the geographic distribution of the literature and thorough qualitative synthesis. This study identifies the critical research themes investigated and the outcome of KM applications. Finally, through reviews, this study identifies critical gaps in the literature and offer promising avenues to advance the KM in tourism research. Originality/value This is one of the few papers that comprehensively review the role of KM in the tourism industry and offer implications.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop an integrative conceptual framework of the “talented hospitality entrepreneur”. In doing so, the authors address the current lack of understanding of talent at the individual entrepreneurial level and the lack of integration between the talent and entrepreneurship literatures and specifically consider the hospitality context.Design/methodology/approachThis conceptual paper systematically synthesizes the extant literature and links key concepts within talent management, entrepreneurship, hospitality and human resource management to develop a model of the talented hospitality entrepreneur.FindingsSeven propositions emerge from the literature synthesis, and the integrative conceptual model is developed to define the individual antecedents of the talented hospitality entrepreneur and their outcomes for success.Originality/valueTo date, understanding of the individual level of talent has been neglected in the management literature. The quandary is that the extant literature on talent has focused on the management of talent at an organizational level, while the entrepreneurship literature has concentrated on spatial macro-level effects. Further, the notion of talent in hospitality literature remains underexplored. Adopting an inclusive view of talent, the authors offer a new integrative framework explaining the constituencies of talent for hospitality entrepreneurs and an associated research agenda.

Purpose Food is a key element in tourism experiences. This study aims to investigate the interplay of sensory and non-sensory factors in food tourism experiences and models their influence on satisfaction and behavioural intentions. Design/methodology/approach The study focuses on the culinary experiences of 304 tourists dining at ethnic restaurants and uses causal relationship discovery modelling to analyse data. Findings Sensory factors are important in tourists’ culinary experiences with cleanliness, noise levels and room temperature at the top of the causal chain. Results also indicate the interplay between sensory and non-sensory factors to explain overall satisfaction, intention to return and intention to say positive things. Originality/value Using embodied cognition theory, the study offers novel insights into the role of senses in food tourism experiences at rural destinations. 研究目的 美食是乡村旅游的主要吸引物之一。本研究的目的是调查游客在用餐体验中感官和非感官因素的相互作用, 以及这些因素如何影响游客的满意度和行为意愿。 研究设计/研究方法 本研究使用因果关系建模的方法来分析 304 名在某地方特色餐厅用餐的游客的问卷数据。 研究结果 结果显示, 对于游客的用餐体验而言, 感官和非感官因素具备同等的重要性。此外, 结果发现, 游客感知到的噪音水平、适宜的室内温度及清洁度在与其他因素的相互作用中非常重要, 并能激发游客的满意度和重游意愿。 原创性/研究价值 基于认知理论, 本研究为更好地理解感官因素和非感观因素在乡村旅游情境下的游客用餐体验中的作用提供了新的知识。 Propósito La comida es un elemento clave en las experiencias turísticas. Este estudio investiga la interacción de factores sensoriales y no sensoriales en las experiencias de turismo gastronómico y modela su influencia en la satisfacción y las intenciones de comportamiento. Diseño/metodología/enfoque El estudio se centra en las experiencias culinarias de 304 turistas que cenan en restaurantes étnicos y utiliza modelos de descubrimiento de relaciones causales para analizar los datos. Resultados Los factores sensoriales son importantes en las experiencias culinarias de los turistas con la limpieza, los niveles de ruido y la temperatura ambiente en la parte superior de la cadena causal. Los resultados también indican la interacción entre factores sensoriales y no sensoriales para explicar la satisfacción general, la intención de regresar y la intención de decir cosas positivas. Originalidad/valor Utilizando la teoría de la cognición incorporada, el estudio ofrece nuevos conocimientos sobre el papel de los sentidos en las experiencias de turismo gastronómico en destinos rurales.