Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide guidance regarding the satisfaction of customer needs in the competitive restaurant industry. Restaurants have seen a transformation in employees’ labor, changing from primarily physical and mental to emotional and aesthetic dimensions. In this study, the effect of managers’ emotional and social competence (ESC) on the aesthetic labor of service and kitchen employees has been investigated. Design/methodology/approach Empirical data was collected from employees and managers of a restaurant chain. Structural equation modeling was the main analytical tool used to assess the results. Findings The findings indicated that managers’ ESC affected the aesthetic labor of their service (aesthetic traits (AT), aesthetic requirements and service encounters) and kitchen (AT, aesthetic creativity and aesthetic harmony ) employees. Achievement orientation and adaptability were among the dimensions of emotional competence that contributed the most to aesthetic labor. The most significant elements of social competence were inspiring leadership and conflict management. Practical implications The study suggests that managers can improve the aesthetic performance of their employees by using their ESC. Originality/value This is the first study of this kind to include kitchen employees while considering the effects of restaurant managers’ ESC on aesthetic labor. The findings indicate the importance of the ESC of managers in improving the aesthetic labor of employees.

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This chapter has attempted to discuss the possible scope of destination management and approaches to it. It has also provided a rationale for destination benchmarking's contribution to achieving and maintaining destination competitiveness. In line with the guidelines provided by the benchmarking literature and the proposed model, a series of proposals have also been suggested to achieve success in destination benchmarking. The performance measurement theory has been briefly reviewed, along with its possible application to tourist destinations and the potential use of internal, external and generic benchmarking. The stage of taking action has been the final subject examined in this chapter.

This chapter has addressed the application of internal benchmarking in destinations. The main purpose of internal benchmarking is to improve the performance of tourism businesses or tourist destinations by identifying their own strengths and weaknesses on the basis of the feedback obtained from visitors and the local residents. The literature has consensus on the fact that the benchmarking process begins in the host organization in order to specify areas that need to be measured (internal benchmarking), regardless of the application of any kind of benchmarking. The reason is that internal benchmarking provides a number of benefits for those who are involved in the process. For example, areas where problems seem to appear could be identified and, if possible, improved without going outside. In doing so, a baseline for comparison with others can be established. The application of internal benchmarking also indicates if the destination management needs to go outside in order to observe what and how others are doing.