New avenues for business competitiveness: the case of a community of practice in the hotel sector

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to better understand community of practice (CoP)’s dynamics with a focus on the hotel sector and perceived benefits to members and business performance. Design/methodology/approach This is a case study research focusing on a successful experience within a CoP found in the hotel sector. The study reports in detail how a CoP was created and how it evolved to a digital platform to give birth to a fully co-designed tourism product. It analyzes this CoP’s social dynamics, processes of communication and interaction, as well as digital evolution. To collect rich data, method triangulation was applied by mixing quantitative and qualitative analyses. Findings The community is highly participated and valued because it is perceived as a dynamic system contributing to rapid information exchange and diffusion, efficient context for knowledge transfer and individual responsiveness to daily professional activities and challenges. The reasons why members perceive Amigas do Trade as a distinctive community include shared values and attitudes; professional area and position; and group composition. The majority of members acknowledged that belonging to this CoP has helped in making an informed decision with impact on business practice. The sub-theme more intensely participated and discussed concentrated on human resources issues. Research limitations/implications A case study brings useful insights into the understanding of CoP members’ behaviour; however, findings are not generalizable to other communities. Practical implications This study contributes in several ways to business practice and management. Hotel businesses pertain to a sector in which CoPs easily thrive. This seems to happen because businesses in the tourism and hospitality industry are highly dependent on networks, people, communication channels and technologies. Engagement with technological platforms is stimulated because of the unproblematic integration of these digital platforms into other technologies members already use in their daily work and life. Moreover, digital platforms are not expensive and potentially increase motivation levels within CoP, and consequently in companies. This example inspires the use of digital platforms to exchange knowledge in other CoPs in the hotel sector. Social implications CoPs are contexts of good interaction within a group of people by nurturing a good value system (comprehending trust, cohesion and good communication climate). Thus, a non-hierarchical and non-biased approach to CoP by managers could be accomplished by fostering an organizational culture based on joint innovation, coopetition and open communication principles. Expectedly, in this respect, intensive use of digital technologies in the business arena will keep playing a key role. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study on CoP applied to the hotel sector. Additionally, it is also the first time a CoP composed only by women working in the hotel sector was analyzed. One other element of novelty links to the fact that a CoP with physical and virtual dimensions was studied, introducing the use of digital platforms to the analysis of CoP dynamics.

Community of practice: the making of knowledge dynamic in intangible cultural heritage

“…The potential stage is the initial stage of forming a CoP: it entails identifying contacts and building informal relations. Similar to the claim of Almeida and Campos (2021) that a CoP could operate on its gut sense in a highly dynamic context, the members deemed the current member combination with diverse expertise levels to be appropriate. They members belong to the same domain of Cantonese opera, believe in collaborative relationships and act as a shared repertoire for the city, as well as the industry.…”

“…They describe CoP as “an intrinsic condition for the existence of knowledge, not least because it provides the interpretive support necessary for making sense of its heritage” (Lave and Wenger, 1991, p. 98). CoP are defined as groups of people that share a passion or concern for something, leading them to engage one another and learn how to develop, create, spread and retain this passion (Almeida and Campos, 2021). It is characterized by domain (individuals demonstrating commitment and competence in a subject area), community (collaborative relationships binding members as a social entity) and practices (a shared repertoire of history and concepts built over time) (Wenger, 1998).…”

“…The plausible reasons are fragmentation among tourism providers, lack of ownership of the complete tourist experience, lack of knowledge transfer across sections and a gap between academic research and industry practice (Cooper, 2015). Communities of practice (CoP) are key to the successful adoption of knowledge management in the tourism sector (Almeida and Campos, 2021). However, there is scant literature on this topic.…”

Realizing potential: a real option perspective on communities of practice in organizational transformation

“…While embedded within organizational structures, CoPs prioritize not only organizational profitability but also the enrichment of their members. Men, Yue, & Liu (2020) suggest that senior leadership should integrate these communities to expedite organizational learning (Gedro et al, 2020) and secure a competitive edge (Azeem et al, 2021;Almeida & Campos, 2022). Without sufficient executive focus, CoPs may become underutilized and not fully effective.…”

Creating Sustainable Tourism Through Innovation [Digital-Based Marketing in the Tinalah Rural Tourism]

“…Various sectors understand the importance of the presence of technology, and the tourism industry is no exception [24]. The use and application of technology in organizational management activities is no longer a difficult thing but should be considered as an opportunity that must be taken [25,26]. Competition in the competitive and collaborative era like today forces organizational managers to think creatively in the marketing strategies they use [27].…”