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Browsing by Author "Liu-Lastres, Bingjie"
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Item A Post-Pandemic Reflection of the Changing Role of Contemporary Event Professionals: Implications for Event Professionals and Higher Education(Taylor & Francis, 2023) Kramer, Savannah Kay; Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Cecil, Amanda; Shonkwiler, Erica; Tourism, Event & Sport Management, School of Health and Human SciencesWhile the event, tourism, and hospitality industry is constantly evolving, COVID-19 vastly shifted the roles, responsibilities, and jobs for event professionals, which caused event management educators to reevaluate their curriculum and course offerings. This study investigated the potential changes COVID-19 has had on event professionals’ skill sets. A mixed-methods research design was adopted, where data were collected from event professionals via focus groups and a national survey. The results highlighted the importance of general business management skillsets (communication, business writing, negotiation) as well as specific event management skills (digital and technology skills). Through a timely reflection on these changes during the pandemic, this study not only highlights the requirements for contemporary event professionals, but also offers implications for higher education institutions regarding how to effectively embrace the new landscape of event management in post-pandemic times.Item A reflection on the Great Resignation in the hospitality and tourism industry(Emerald Publishing, 2022-08-12) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Wen, Han; Huang, Wei-Jue; Tourism, Event & Sport Management, School of Health and Human SciencesPurpose This paper aims to provide a critical reflection on the Great Resignation in the hospitality and tourism industry in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, this paper reviews the causes and effects of the Great Resignation, addresses the labor shortage in this industry and proposes strategies that can help manage the challenges. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on a critical analysis of emerging phenomena, related literature and researchers’ experiences and insights. Findings The Great Resignation has presented unprecedented challenges for the hospitality and tourism industry. A closer examination reveals that the pandemic has served as a catalyst rather than a leading cause of this trend. Workforce issues are becoming increasingly complex under contemporary influences, including internal elements such as new explications at work and external factors like the gig economy and technology implementation. Practical implications This study provides practical implications on how Hospitality and Tourism practitioners can respond to the Great Resignation on micro, meso and macro levels. The practical implications revolve around employees’ changing needs and preferences in the wave of Great Resignation, as well as the necessity for employers’ reflection and improvement. Originality/value This study marks an initial attempt to provide a critical assessment of a contemporary issue involving the Great Resignation. This paper extends its discussion through an advanced analysis of the issue, offers suggestions to manage current obstacles related to labor issues in hospitality and tourism, and illuminates future research directions.Item Are female business travelers willing to travel during COVID-19? An exploratory study(SAGE, 2021-01-20) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Mirehie, Mona; Cecil, AmandaThe outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the tourism industry. A successful recovery from the pandemic requires a clear understanding of the ‘new normal’, including tourists’ perceived risks, safety perceptions, attitudes, and willingness to travel. Guided by the Risk Perception Attitude (RPA) Framework, this study investigated female business travelers’ risk perception attitude and willingness to travel in the COVID-19 climate. This study segmented the sample into four distinct RPA groups, including the Avoidance, Proactive, Responsive, and Indifference groups. These groups differ in some demographic characteristics and the strength of willingness to travel. Findings also showed that anxiety, perceived safety, and consumer confidence mediate the relationships between the sample’s RPA and willingness to travel, but the exact relationship varies by groups. Finally, this paper discussed the theoretical contributions and practical implications of this study.Item Are we always ready? Examining event professionals approaches to risk and crisis management and resilience(Elsevier, 2023-03) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Cahyanto, Ignatius P.; Tourism, Event & Sport Management, School of Health and Human SciencesThe purpose of this study was to provide empirical insights into event professionals' approaches to risk and crisis management and resilience. This study was guided by an integrated model developed based on the 4R Tourism Crisis Management Model and the Organizational Resilience Framework. A qualitative research method was used, where two studies consisted of 26 interviews were conducted before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings revealed that most event professionals' risk management measures center around event operations, and their crisis management practices appear to be more aligned with the organization. Both personal and organizational factors influence the participants' risk and crisis management and resilience-building practices. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic revealed their underpreparedness towards major crises, and most of them had not appreciated the importance of resilience until the crisis ensued. Based on the findings, this study further discussed theoretical and practical implications.Item Are we missing the boat? Examining managers’ perspectives on employee wellbeing in the foodservice industry(Edward Elgar, 2021-05-01) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Wen, HanThe purpose of this research note was to examine managers’ perspectives on employee wellbeing in the foodservice industry. Particularly, this study conducted 14 semi-structured individual interviews with upper-level managers of various organizations within the foodservice industry. Thematic analyses were employed to analyze the data. The overall findings addressed the essence of considering employee wellbeing in the industry. Particularly, this study revealed managers’ interpretation of employee wellbeing, identified major influences on employee wellbeing, reported the current measures, and presented the major challenges facing most organizations regarding improving employee wellbeing. From a theoretical point of view, this study used a qualitative approach and reflected managers’ perspectives on the concept of employee wellbeing. Building on those findings, this study provides practical implications, which mainly involves using a forward-thinking, top-down approach to enhance employee wellbeing, and highlights the roles of organizational support and organizational culture. Based on the findings, this study also discusses future research directions and limitations.Item Building A Resilient Event Industry: Lessons Learned during the COVID-19 Pandemic(TTRA, 2021-06) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Cahyanto, Ignatius; Tourism, Conventions, and Event Management, School of Health and Human SciencesGuided by the theoretical framework of organizational resilience, this study interviewed twenty-six event planners regarding their risk and crisis management related practices and their experiences with the COVID-19 global pandemic. This study conducted thematic analyses to analyze the data. The results showed that organizational resilience was approached through planned and adaptive resilience. Their crisis management practices are influenced by event planners’ personal knowledge, experiences, and expertise as well as their organization’s policy and leadership. When it comes to the case of COVID-19, the concept of organizational residence is mainly reflected through adaptive resilience. It also seems that most resilient organizations have been excellent in communicating and managing customer relationships and creating innovative strategies to generate revenue. Further theoretical and practical implications were provided based on the findings.Item Business travel, risk, and safety of female university faculty and staff(Taylor and Francis, 2020-09-29) Mirehie, Mona; Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Cecil, A.; Jain, N.Women constitute a significant portion of the total business travel market in the U.S. This study aimed to explore travel risk and safety issues among women in higher education who regularly travel for work. Three focus groups were conducted with female faculty and staff at a major public university in the U.S. Results of an inductive-deductive analysis indicated three major themes, namely, risk perception, risk treatment, and risk adoption. Findings provide insights into how female higher education employees perceive risk and safety during business trips, and their travel behaviour that include actions taken to mitigate the potential risks or time-to-time risky decisions about travel arrangements. Further, recommendations are made for enhancement of travel policies at the institutional level to ensure safety of female employees.Item Can post-disaster tourism development improve destination livelihoods? A case study of Aceh, Indonesia(Elsevier, 2020-10-21) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Mariska, Dini; Tan, Xiaoyuan; Ying, Tianyu; Tourism, Conventions, and Event Management, School of Health and Human SciencesDestinations are vulnerable to natural disasters, which can result in damage to infrastructure and built facilities, negative destination images, and a difficult time of recovery. Recently, a growing number of destinations have incorporated tourism development in their disaster relief efforts and used post-disaster tourism as a strategy to enhance local livelihoods and build community resilience. Guided by the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework for Tourism (SLFT), this study analyzed the case of Aceh, Indonesia, a destination that had been struck by a severe natural disaster and developed tsunami tourism as a strategy to recover. The data were collected through focus group interviews among local stakeholders. Based on the SLFT, this study employed a deductive approach to analyze the data and identified six themes. The findings not only validated the applicability of the SLFT to a post-disaster tourism development context, but also revealed how tourism could contribute to various community assets and a resilient destination in the aftermath of a crisis. The study also underscored the importance of local culture and religion during the recovery process. Based on the findings, further discussions are provided regarding the dynamics involving sustainable development, post-disaster tourism, and resilient destinations.Item Combating quiet quitting: implications for future research and practices for talent management(Emerald, 2024-01) Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Karatepe, Osman M.; Okumus, Fevzi; Tourism, Event & Sport Management, School of Health and Human SciencesPurpose This paper aims to offer viewpoints on the emergence of Quiet Quitting. Particularly, this paper reviews the reasons behind the phenomenon and analyzes its potential influences on the hospitality workforce. This study also proposes theory-driven solutions addressing this issue. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on the relevant literature, industry reports and a critical reflection of the authors’ experiences, research and insights. Findings This paper reveals that Quiet Quitting can be a major obstacle for the hospitality business to reach service excellence. This paper also finds that Quiet Quitting is driven by several antecedents and correlates and affects employees, customers and various businesses in the hospitality and tourism industries. Practical implications This paper proposes several suggestions to properly address this issue, including enhancing the person–organization fit, work flexibility and employee well-being. Originality/value Quiet Quitting emerged as a new trend among the young workforce shortly after the pandemic. Despite the popularity of such odd terminology, academic discussions surrounding this issue have been limited. As one of the early attempts, this paper offers a critical analysis of the phenomenon and actional insights to respond to this ongoing challenge.Item Consumers' dining behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic: An Application of the Protection Motivation Theory and the Safety Signal Framework(Elsevier, 2022) Wen, Han; Liu-Lastres, Bingjie; Tourism, Conventions, and Event Management, School of Health and Human SciencesWith the long-lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is critically important that restaurateurs understand predictors of consumers' dining behaviors to better foster strategies to recover their revenue during the re-opening stage. Based on the Safety Signal Framework and the Protection Motivation Theory, this study developed and tested a model investigating the combined effects of restaurateurs' measures and consumers' protective motivations on their dine-out frequencies and dine-in likelihoods. Consistent with propositions of the Protection Motivation Theory, the results confirmed that both the threat and coping appraisals influenced consumers’ dining behaviors. The coping appraisal process is affected by “access to servicescape,” “servicescape,” and “communication.” Additionally, the results of the gap analysis revealed four safety signaling strategies perceived as effective by consumers but with a low implementation rate in the restaurant industry. Theoretical and practical implications were provided to restaurateurs.