A Demand-Side Analysis of Intellectual Capital in the Accommodation Industry: The Case of the Youth Market in Slovenia

Abstract

To date, research on intellectual capital (IC) in tourism has dealt with the supply-side view. This study continues the research into IC and develops a new perspective dealing with the demand side of IC in the accommodation industry, focusing on young consumers. On the theoretical ground, the study adapts the supply-side IC indicators to the demand-side perspective. A convenience sampling approach is used, and data was collected from 150 students representing the youth market. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is used to identify the dimensions of human, customer and structural capital of the accommodation industry for the youth market. Five dimensions of IC perceived by the youth market are identified: ‘Employee attitudes towards work’ and ‘Employee qualification’ constitute human capital; ‘Connectedness with guests’ and ‘Accommodation reputation and image’ represent customer capital, and ‘Structural knowledge’ reflects structural capital for youth in the accommodation industry.

The impacts of intellectual capital and entrepreneurship orientation on business performance

“…Intellectual capital is the knowledge, intellectual property, information, analytical skills, competencies, and skills of an organization's employees to create a competitive advantage. Several studies have demonstrated that intellectual capital affects the performance of hospitality firms (Bontis et al, 2015;Cuevas-Vargas et al, 2019;Haliq et al, 2018;Rudež, 2021;Zeglat & Zigan, 2013). According to Anggraini et al (2018a), intellectual capital consists of human capital (HC), such as knowledge; structural capital (SC), such as information and communication systems; and relational capital (RC), such as partnerships with stakeholders and has been demonstrated to affect business performance.…”

“…Human capital (HC) is defined as employees' knowledge, competencies, workrelated attitudes, and capacity for innovation (Rudež, 2021). According to Cuevas-Vargas et al (2019), elements of human capital for hospitality organizations, such as employee competence, attitude, and innovation, are crucial because they can generate new consumer values.…”

“…Structural capital (SC) refers to organizations' physical and non-physical infrastructure, including operational systems, processes, databases, strategic plans, routines, and information technology (Rudež, 2021). According to Costa et al (2020), structural capital includes critical organizational attributes such as organizational culture, management structures and processes, knowledge networks, and organizational philosophy.…”

“…Hence, SC in the tourism industry is focused on IT and new information channels powered by the internet. Rudež (2021) documents that culture, business processes, and IT are SC's critical components and significantly affect the performance of hospitality firms in the tourism sector. Firms with greater structural capital will arguably exhibit more effective human capital and eventually better performance.…”

“…Several empirical studies have demonstrated that intellectual capital is a strategic asset and significantly affects organizational performance in various fields and perspectives, including universities (Anggraini et al, 2018b(Anggraini et al, , 2018aBrusca et al, 2019;Pedro et al, 2022), banking (Castro et al, 2021;Chahal & Bakshi, 2016;Pernamasari & Sugiyanto, 2021), manufacturing (Rosario & Mazumdar, 2022;Subagyo & Waluyo, 2020;Tsai & Mutuc, 2020;Xu & Liu, 2020), and entrepreneurship (Al-Jinini et al, 2019;Arshad et al, 2014;Demartini & Beretta, 2020;Gross-Gołacka et al, 2021). Furthermore, prior studies have explored the critical role of IC in the hospitality tourism industry (Aboushouk & Tamamm, 2021;Bontis et al, 2015;Kim et al, 2012;Rudež, 2021;Zeglat & Zigan, 2013). They argue that IC can contribute to service improvement and hotel innovation for sustainable hotel development.…”