Doctoral thesis of philosophy creativity and innovation in hotels and resorts the role of leadership

Creativity and Innovation in Hotels and Resorts: The Role of Leadership A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Solmaz Moghimi Master of Business Administration (MBA) Bachelor of Occupational Health and Safety Management School of Management College of Business RMIT University March 2016 Declaration I certify that except where due acknowledgement has been made, the work is that of the author alone; the work has not been submitted previously, in whole or in part, to qualify for any other academic award; the content of the thesis is the result of work which has been carried out since the official commencement date of the approved research program; any editorial work, paid or unpaid, carried out by a third party is acknowledged; and, ethics procedures and guidelines have been followed Solmaz Moghimi March 2016 i Acknowledgements Firstly, I am grateful to God for giving me the health, patience and perseverance to complete this thesis It was the most challenging period of my life but you were always with me My PhD journey would not have been possible without the invaluable support, understanding and motivation of my supervisory team I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Dr Nuttawuth Muenjohn, Associate Professor Rosalie Holian and Professor Adela McMurray whose continuous support and immense knowledge helped me in all the time of my research Their exceptional knowledge, experience, insightful feedback, and constructive critiques substantially guided me through this process to overcome my PhD challenges I can’t imagine having a better supervisory team It has been a true pleasure for me to know you and have the opportunity to work with you over the past four years I owe this accomplishment to my lovely parents, Nasrin and Mohammad Reza, and my brother Daniel, who have always been there for me through all the tough moments They have been a source of unfailing support, encouragement, and endless love I will forever remember and appreciate the sacrifices that you have made for me to live my dreams I am deeply grateful and you should know that your support was worth more than I can express on paper I would like to extend my appreciation to my friends and fellow PhD candidates at RMIT University who made this journey joyful and pleasant I will always remember in my heart the beautiful moments that we shared together A special thanks goes to the faculty members and administration staff at the School of Management, RMIT, for their guidance and support during the course of my study They have always been available to help with my academic and personal matters This thesis has been professionally edited by Dr Margaret Johnson of The Book Doctor, in accordance with the Institute of Professional Editors’ guidelines I truly appreciate her flexibility, support and guidance ii Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my parents and brother whose love and support have made this journey possible iii Publications, Presentations and Grants Conference Publication Moghimi, S & Muenjohn, N 2014, ‘The conceptual link between leadership and innovation: the role of organizational climate and personal initiative’, in Proceedings of the Asian Conference on Business and Public Policy, Osaka, Japan 20–23 November, pp 107–124 Conferences Moghimi, S, Muenjohn, N, Holian, R & McMurray, A 2016, ‘The impact of leadership on employee’s creativity and innovation in the Australian hotel industry’, paper presented to Australia and New Zealand International Business Academy (ANZIBA) Conference Sydney, 17–19 February Moghimi, S, Muenjohn, N, McMurray, A 2014, ‘Capturing innovative leadership in the hotel industry’, paper presented to 28th Australia and New Zealand Academy of Management (ANZAM) Conference, Sydney, 3–5 December Moghimi, S & Muenjohn, N 2014, ‘The conceptual link between leadership and innovation: the role of organizational climate and personal initiative’, paper presented to Asian Conference on Business and Public Policy, Osaka, Japan, 20–23 November 2014 PhD Milestone Presentations Moghimi, S 2015, ‘Creativity and Innovation in hotels and resorts: the role of leadership’, completion seminar, School of Management, College of Business, RMIT University, Melbourne, 25 June Moghimi, S 2014, ‘Creativity and innovation in hotels and resorts: the role of leadership’, mid-candidature review, School of Management, College of Business, RMIT University, Melbourne, 17 July Moghimi, S 2012, ‘Creativity and innovation in hotels and resorts: the role of leadership’, confirmation of candidature, School of Management, College of Business, RMIT University, Melbourne, 29 November iv Grants 2014 Higher Degree by Research Travel Grant (HDRTG) RMIT University: International Conference Travel Grant 2014 Higher Degree by Research Travel Grant (HDRTG) RMIT University: Domestic Conference Travel Grant v Contents Abstract…… xviii Chapter INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Research 1.2 Research Objective and Questions 1.3 Rationale 1.3.1 Theoretical Significance 1.3.2 Methodological Significance 1.3.3 Practical Significance 10 1.4 Research Context 11 1.4.1 Introduction to World Tourism Industry 11 1.4.2 Tourism Industry in Australia and Iran 13 1.4.3 Hotel Industry in Australia and Iran 14 1.5 Structure of the Thesis 19 1.6 Chapter Summary 22 Chapter Literature Review 23 2.1 Introduction 23 2.2 Innovation in the Hotels and Resorts Context 29 2.3 Creativity and Innovation 33 2.4 Definition of Leadership 38 2.5 Leadership Approaches 39 2.5.1 Trait Approach 39 2.5.2 Behavioural Approach 40 2.5.3 Situational Approach 40 2.5.4 Transformational Era 41 2.5.5 Recent Leadership Theories 42 2.6 Leadership and Innovation 44 2.7 Organisational Climate Supportive of Innovation 51 2.8 Personal Initiative 53 2.9 Proposed Relationships between Factors of the Study 55 2.9.1 Leadership and Employees’ Creativity and Innovation 55 2.9.2 Leadership, an Organisational Climate Supportive of Innovation and Employees’ Creativity and Innovation 59 vi 2.9.3 Leadership, Personal Initiative and Employees’ Creativity and Innovation 62 2.10 Development of Research Theoretical Framework 64 2.10.1 Theoretical Foundation of Framework 64 2.10.2 Research Conceptual Framework 66 2.10.3 Scope of the Proposed Research Framework 69 2.11 Chapter Summary 70 Chapter Research Methodology 71 3.1 Introduction 71 3.2 Research Paradigm 71 3.2.1 Research Paradigm Choice 73 3.3 The Rationale for Mixed Method Research 75 3.3.1 Mixed Method Design Approaches 77 3.3.2 Sequential Exploratory Mixed Method Design 79 3.4 Study 1: Qualitative Study 81 3.4.1 Sampling Strategy 81 3.4.2 The Instrument: Semi-structured Interview 83 3.4.3 Data Collection 85 3.4.4 Data Analysis 85 3.5 Study 2: Quantitative Study 88 3.5.1 Sample and Sampling Strategy 89 3.5.2 Sampling Size 89 3.5.3 Controlling for Common Method Bias 90 3.5.4 Data Collection Procedure 91 3.5.5 The Survey Questionnaires 91 3.6 Data Analysis Approaches and Tools 93 3.6.1 Preliminary Analysis 93 3.6.2 Exploratory Factor Analysis 93 3.6.3 Confirmatory Factor Analysis 95 3.6.4 Multiple Regression Analysis 96 3.7 Ethical Considerations 97 3.8 Chapter Summary 97 Chapter Study 1: Qualitative Findings 98 4.1 Introduction 98 4.2 Interviewees’ Attributes 98 vii 4.3 Results and Emergence of Themes 99 4.3.1 Innovation-enhancing Leadership 101 4.3.2 Categories of Innovation Practice in the Hotels and Resorts Industry 122 4.4 Developing Categories of Innovation-enhancing Leadership 129 4.5 Discussion 132 4.5.1 Empowering 132 4.5.2 Participative 133 4.5.3 Innovative-oriented 135 4.5.4 Supportive 136 4.5.5 Consultative–advisory 138 4.5.6 Charismatic 139 4.5.7 Authoritative 141 4.6 Summary 142 Chapter Instrument Development 143 5.1 Introduction 143 5.2 Scales Used in the Quantitative Study 143 5.2.1 Development of the Innovation-enhancing Leadership Behaviours Instrument 143 5.2.1.1 Determining the Construct Conceptualisation 144 5.2.1.2 Item Pool Generation 145 5.2.1.3 Determining the Format of Measurement 146 5.2.1.4 Pre-test 147 5.2.2 Employees’ Creativity and Employees’ Innovation 150 5.2.3 Organisational Climate Supportive of Innovation 153 5.2.4 Personal Initiative 154 5.3 Pilot Study 154 5.3.1 Demographic Analysis 155 5.3.2 Reliability Analysis 157 5.3.3 Exploratory Factor Analysis 160 5.4 Descriptions of Survey Used in the Quantitative Study 162 5.5 Summary 163 Chapter Study 2: Quantitative Analysis 164 6.1 Introduction 164 6.2 Response Rate 164 6.3 Preliminary Analysis 165 6.3.1 Data Screening and Cleaning 165 viii 6.3.2 Normality 166 6.3.3 Collinearity Statistics and Outliers 167 6.3.4 Assessment of Common Method Variance 168 6.3.5 Distribution of Latent Constructs 169 6.4 6.3.5.1 Innovation Enhancing Leadership Behaviours 169 6.3.5.2 Organisational Climate Supportive of Innovation 169 6.3.5.3 Personal Initiative 170 6.3.5.4 Employees’ Creativity 170 6.3.5.5 Employees’ Innovation 170 Demographic Characteristics of Respondents 171 6.4.1 Analysis of Sample Characteristics: Comparisons between Australia and Iran 173 6.4.1.1 Gender 173 6.4.1.2 Age 173 6.4.1.3 Highest Level of Education 174 6.4.1.4 Current Organisational Position 175 6.4.1.5 Tenure 175 6.4.1.6 Hotel Category 176 6.4.1.7 Organisation Type 177 6.4.1.8 Hotel Star Rating 177 6.5 Reliability Analysis 178 6.6 Exploratory Factor Analysis 179 6.6.1 Factor Loadings Associated with Innovation-enhancing Leadership Behaviours 179 6.6.2 Factor Loadings Associated with an Organisational Climate Supportive of Innovation 182 6.6.3 Factor Loadings Associated with Personal Initiative 182 6.6.4 Factor Loadings Associated with Employees’ Creativity 183 6.6.5 Factor Loadings Associated with Employees’ Innovation 184 6.7 Construct Reliability and Validity 185 6.8 Confirmatory Factor Analysis 187 6.8.1 Innovation-enhancing leadership 187 6.8.2 Organisational Climate Supportive of Innovation 189 6.8.3 Personal Initiative 190 6.8.4 Employees’ Creativity 191 6.8.5 Employees’ Innovation 192 6.9 Regression Analysis 193 6.10 T-Test and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA): Differences between Groups 226 6.10.1 T-Test and Analysis of variance (ANOVA): Differences between Groups in the Australian Sample 226 ix 307 Appendix D: Invitation to Participate in a Research Project (Quantitative Study) 308 309 310 311 Appendix E: Interview Protocol 312 Appendix F: Consent Form (Interviews) 313 314 Appendix G: The Survey Questionnaire Section 1: Demographic Information 315 316 Part 2: Innovation-enhancing Leadership Behaviours Please think of your immediate leader/manager/supervisor and choose a number that best describe your situation My Leader/Manager/Supervisor: 317 318 Part 3: Organizational Climate Supportive of Innovation The following statements are related to your perception of support for innovation in the current organization Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each statement by selecting a number from to 319 Part 4: Personal Initiative Think of yourself and please indicate the extent of your agreement or disagreement with each statement by selecting a number from to Part 5: Employees’ Creativity Please rate the following statements in regard to your creativity in the present hotel/resort by selecting a number from to 5: 320 Part 6: Employees’ Innovation Please rate the following statements in regard to your innovation in the present hotel/resort by selecting a number from to 5: 321