Information Technology and Operational Perfromance of Firms in the Kenyan Hospitality Industry

Abstract

Information technology plays a major role in tourism, travel and hospitality industry. It has become a key pillar to business operations and growth. Adoption of information technology in operations helps reduce operations costs and improve operational efficiency. However the intuitive impact should be studied in details. The aim of this study is to ascertain the influence of information technology on operational performance of firms in the Kenyan hospitality industry. Specifically the study seeks to; to establish the extent to which information technologies is used in operations in the Kenyan hospitality firms and then determine the relationship between information technology and operational performance. To achieve this objectives, the study employed a cross sectional descriptive survey. Data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire from starred hotels in Nairobi Kenya. A total of 134 questionnaires were administered to various hotel firms, but the researcher managed to obtain 114 completed questionnaires representing a response rate of 90.0% .The researcher adopted an online survey –form approach where questionnaires were sent using email then the results were available immediately after every respondent finished answering questions. The collected data was edited, coded and entered for analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (Version 17.0) computer package. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Factor analysis sorted the eight factors into three main factor components according to their absolute values. The higher the absolute value of the loading, the more the explanatory power of the variable.The findings of this study will be of great use to the hotels management, regulating bodies in formulating IT policies so as to promote compliance in the hospitality sector. The recommendations show that the firms should align themselves to using ICT at a strategic level and to these strategies are cascaded to all levels of the hierarchy.