Corporate Identity Structure in Hotels: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Corporate identity is regarded as a critical element of competitiveness in a dynamic business environment. Effective management of corporate identity is vital to demonstrate the strengths of the company to internal and external stakeholders. It is therefore necessary to define and clarify corporate identity and to reveal its dimensions, and more so for hotels operating in a highly competitive international market. The paper aims to find out which dimensions construct the corporate identity in hotel establishments, through a holistic and multidisciplinary approach. Hence, the main aim of this study is to explore and conceptualize the dimensions of a holistic corporate identity structure in hotels via an exploratory method and a multidisciplinary approach based on the conceptual corporate identity dimensions put forward in the light of different disciplines and different paradigms existing in relevant literature. Research sample consists of the managers of 5-star hotels operating in İzmir. The research was designed with a qualitative approach, a field research has been conducted and semi-structured, in depth interviews were used to gather data. Research findings point out 8 dimensions that make up the corporate identity structure in hotels. Considering the themes and codes that were revealed according to the content analysis, the dimensions that constitute the corporate identity in hotels are determined as corporate culture, corporate structure, corporate strategy, corporate design, corporate communication, corporate behaviour, destination identity and industrial identity. Based on the emerging dimensions, the definition of corporate identity has been developed in the conclusion section.