Vol 6 Issue 1, February 2006 - School of Hotel & Tourism ...

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Executive Development Programmes19Kaohsiung CourseStaff members from SHTM visited Kaohsiung, Taiwan,in November on two occasions, to take part in aMICE EDP with executives from the Taiwan ExternalTrade Development Council’s International TradeInstitute. The programmes were conducted atKaohsiung Hospitality College. Prof Kaye Chon andMs Karin Weber addressed participants on the firstweekend, while Prof Amy Chan made the trip on thesecond weekend.Prof Amy Chan and participants of the MICE EDP in Kaohsiung.Finnish VisitorsRepresentatives from Keskimaa Group ofFinland visited PolyU for a one-day EDP aspart of its trip to Hong Kong recently. Thegroup was led by Mr Kuisma Niemelä,President and CEO, and the co-ordinator wasMs Tuula Sillanmäki, Customer RelationshipManager, who were accompanied by 12other colleagues, all directors and seniormanagers, covering areas such as finance,property, human resources, grocery andSenior executives from Keskimaa Group of Finland visited the School.consumer goods, and hotel and restaurantoperations. They were briefed by SHTM staff as well asa representative of PolyU’s Institute of Textiles &Clothing and visited one of Hong Kong’s major fashionretail shops. Fashion retailing enjoys a high profileamong tourists to the city.CHE WorkshopThe most recent Certified Hospitality Educator(CHE) workshop took place at SHTM inDecember. The four-day programme wasattended by 17 participants, including sixfrom SHTM. The aim of the workshop is tooffer intensive, interactive learningexperiences, the latest global principles andskills that provide the best educationalexperience for hospitality students. Theworkshop was conducted by Ms Ada Lo ofSHTM.Participants of the CHE workshop held in December 2005.School of Hotel and Tourism Management
20SHTM Latest ResearchImpacts of Internet Technologyon Consumer Behaviourin China’s Hotel IndustryVincent C. S. Heung, Associate Professor and Cherry Huyan, MSc graduateThe Internet is becoming an important tool for hotel businesses in China,used by customers for hotel information, booking and purchase of hotelproducts and services. The Internet and e-commerce not only bringopportunities, but also new challenges to China’s hotel industry. In thecoming 10 to 20 years, both will become a part of the lifestyle of mostpeople in the world, who will become accustomed to searching fortourism information, choosing destinations, drawing up travel plans andarranging tour routes through the Internet.Heung (2003) points out that there is lack of research concerning whytravellers use the Internet to browse, reserve and purchase tourismproducts, and the characteristics defining this kind of traveller, despite agrowing number using it as a tool for seeking information. This study aimsto explore the impact of the Internet and e-commerce on travellers’behaviours and their implications for hotel management in China.A survey of 300 hotel customers of different demographic backgrounds inChina indicates that approximately 70% use the Internet for searchinghotel information. About 40% of mainland Chinese hotel customers and50% of overseas hotel customers use the Internet for purchasing hotelproducts and services. Findings also indicate that there were virtually nosignificant differences between mainland Chinese travellers and overseastravellers in terms of the Internet usage patterns.The study provides hotel managers with information on hotel customers’behaviour in using the Internet. The key issues are:■ The Internet is the first-choice method used for searching hotelinformation, followed by travel agencies and brochures from travelagencies. In order to exploit the potential of the Internet as a newmarketing channel in the hotel industry, managers are advised to takeHORIZONS
Page 2 and 3: 1Prof Poon Chung-kwong, PolyU Presi
Page 4 and 5: 3Building for the FuturePolyU hoste
Page 6 and 7: Strategic Alliances 5Shandong Provi
Page 8 and 9: SHTM Research and Teaching Excellen
Page 10 and 11: Mainland Update9China Programmes Up
Page 12: China News11School of Hotel and Tou
Page 15 and 16: 14GraduatesInto the WorldSHTM obvio
Page 17 and 18: 16GraduatesAntony HoAirport Guest R
Page 19: 18Executive Development ProgrammesP
Page 24 and 25: SHTM News23News Round-upVietnam Tri
Page 26 and 27: SHTM News25Alumni Reunion DinnerSHT
Page 28 and 29: Student Activities27disadvantage, T
Page 30 and 31: Student Activities29Nominated by th
Page 32 and 33: Mini Retreat31Professional or semi-

Vol 6 Issue 1, February 2006 - School of Hotel & Tourism ...

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?