Accor Hotels Research Proposal Paper Example

Problem Statement/Background

The hotel industry like many other countries is experiencing continuous changes due to innovation and technology change which has led to the shift in business models in the hotel industry (Richard & Cleveland, 2016). The hotel group economy class products have been experiencing significant success for many decades since its inception in 1967. Today, Accor Hotels operates in 100 countries under 20 brands which range from budget and economy class and the luxury and upscale hotels which are expensive and prestigious brands. Despite the success, Accor Hotels are facing a significant challenge from Airbnb brand which has adopted a community-based model of space sharing that is leveraging the development of technology to offer more competitive and convenient accommodation services (Farnsworth, 2018). The hotel group which still operates a traditional hotel model has been losing out to the new Airbnb community model that allows local communities to list their spaces in their platform to earn extra income while providing the travelers a chance to interact with the local community (Guttentag, 2015).

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Accor Hotels group of hotels has been losing significant market share in its economy brand due to the rapid expansion of Airbnb which is now operating in 190 countries around the world. Accor Hotels need to change its operating model to increase its competitive edge which will help it to retain its market share or risk collapse due to poor sales and loss of market share to Airbnb. Adopting new technology to carry out sales, marketing, and creating new superior products can help Accor Hotels increase its competitive advantage and gain its lost market share. Failure to carry out a model change and adapt to modern technology products will deny the hotel group a strategic advantage which will significantly reduce the organization profitability and return on investment. Today, most consumers are technology savvy and demand value of their economy brands. Increasing consumer value and convenience of accessing products will help Accor Hotels to restore its former glory in the hospitality industry (Goorah & Panchoo, 2017).

Purpose of the Research

This research aims to assess approaches through which Accor Hotels can increase its competitive edge in the market to counter the expansion of Airbnb new business model which has threatened the group of hotels economy brands.

Research Objectives

• The research will establish new opportunities to increase value for Accor Hotels` economy brands.

Assessing new opportunities can help Accor Hotels to increase its product value especially in the economy class which has been losing its competitive edge due to Airbnb convenient community-based products.

• The research will establish new technology applications to increase consumer convenience.

The new Airbnb community-based model is supported by a technology platform that increases consumer convenience and access to competitive products which are listed by locals in different destinations. Accor Hotels should adopt new technology that improves the organization competitive advantage and tap to the new online platform to quickly reach out to travelers.

• The research will assess the different needs of the consumers and the trends in consumer needs and preferences.

Understanding the needs of travelers will play a significant role in improving the current hotel predicament. The research will assess different needs and trends in the market which will improve Accor Hotels` strategic decision making and plan while meeting the consumer needs and preferences which can increase consumer loyalty.

Research Design

Mixed Research Design

A mixed research design is a research method that involves the combination of both qualitative and quantitative research elements. This approach of research in this research will broaden the understanding of the research elements and help meet the research objectives. To create a conclusive inquiry the research will use both qualitative and quantitative research viewpoints to seek the convergence, correspondence and the corroboration of different results that will require both qualitative and quantitative explanation. The results of the findings in this research will show high complementarity of data which will require illustration, clarification, and elaboration from one method results in another method. Besides, a mixed research design seeks to use results from one method to explain data established in another method. For instance, the poor performance figures in the economy brands can be further explained by assessing the value of services, application of technology and the convenience of the services to the consumers (Schoonenboom & Johnson, 2017). Therefore, the mixed method approach will increase the breadth and range of inquiry on how to improve Accor Hotels` performance in the economy brands by taking into consideration both the quantitative and qualitative data in a complementary manner.

The mixed research method will be used in this research to merge the data that will create more conclusive results and conclusions to promote strategic decision making. The number of customers, amount of revenue, amount of sales, and the number of hotels data will be merged with the quality of technology, types of customers, level of services and convenience of the business model information to create more conclusive assessment of approaches through which AccorHotels can increase its competitive advantage in its economy brands. Data from the AccorHotels and Airbnb will be compared to assess the causes of value and convenient differences.

Data Collection Design

Documents and Records Previous data records on the organization sales and decisions will play a significant role as a source of primary data that will be used in the research to make decisions on how to resolve the current issue facing the economic brands. Documents are rich in data on sales, current marketing approaches, products, potential customers and also training and skills of the employees which can be used in making the critical conclusion on what the organization should do to increase its market share again. However, the data and records will vary from one hotel to another which will need the research to specify important data that is relevant to this research.

Questionnaire

A questionnaire is a data collection method that involves asking the target audience specific questions with the aim of getting a better understanding of the market situation. This research will use both open-ended and closed questionnaires with the aim of increasing the validity of the data (GSBS6002).

Open Ended Questionnaire Design

The open-ended questions in a questionnaire pose a problem to the respondents, and the respondents are supposed to respond using their own words. The open-ended questions will be useful in this research because they will provide exploratory responses which are not limited to the scope of the researcher. The open-ended questions will help collect the feelings of the management, employees, business partners and the organization executive which will help establish various recommendations for the problem (Zikmund et al., 2013).

Closed-end/ Fixed Questionnaire

The fixed questions in the questionnaire asked the respondents questions which have fixed responses that are already provided in the questionnaire. The fixed questions will be more because they help compare the views of the respondents are easier to answer. The single dichotomy questions will be used for the fixed questions which will allow the respondent to choose between two alternatives (Yes/No).

Focus Groups

The organization will use focus groups within the management personnel which will deliberate on the current organization problem and create recommendations which will be considered in the conclusion and recommendation stage of the research. Focus groups are an important source of qualitative data and provide an in-depth understanding of the situation. The focus groups create multiple views and are not limited to the feelings, attitudes, and beliefs of the respondents (Barbour, 2005). In Accor Hotels the focus groups will be brand managers, supervisors, departmental managers, and the hotel managers. The focus group study will be carried out during the annual organization general meeting to increase inclusivity of delegates from all the hotels across the world.

Questionnaire

The responses to this questionnaire will help in determining the causes of poor competitive advantage and declining sales of the economy brands in Accor Hotels and will help to create recommendations to resolve the issue.

Open-ended Questions

Please respond to these questions as appropriate and the level of your knowledge and understanding of the questions.

Please tell us about yourself and your relationship with Accor Hotels.

Name:

Relationship:

Contact Information:

Provide a succinct assessment and list of Accor Hotels` economy brands and products that you know?

Create an account of technology being used to market or support sales of economy brands and products in Accor Hotels.

List the essential items needed by travelers and how Accor Hotels meet them?

Assess the level of competence of the Accor Hotels employees?

Assess the level of services in Accor Hotels budget and economy brands that you have visited?

Fixed Questions

Please choose between yes or no in the following questions.

• Does Accor Hotels booking procedures provide convenience to the customers?

YES/NO

• Does the setting of Accor Hotels budget and economy brands provides value to the consumers?

YES /NO

• Does Accor Hotels` customer service meet international standards?

YES/NO

• Does Accor Hotels create value for the host communities?

YES/NO

• Does Accor Hotels respond positively to technological applications changes in the hotel industry?

YES/NO

• Are Accor Hotels` accommodation arrangements tailored according to the needs of the consumers?

YES/NO

Sample Design

The sample design of a study assesses the target population who will participate in the research and the different sampling techniques that will be used to derive a study sample from the target population. The sample design is determined by the type of study and the target population.

Target Population

The research will largely rely on the organization personnel, customers visiting the brands and the business partners who work together with the organization such as the suppliers, tour companies, and credit organizations. This particular choice of target population will ensure that the questionnaires can easily be distributed and collected for data collection and also will ensure that the research budget remains manageable and also to increase the validity of the data collected. The target population has a good knowledge of the organization which will ensure that their responses are of high validity. The personnel has significant knowledge of the organization services, and the ability of the services to meet the customer needs because of their direct interactions with the customers. The customers will provide information on the value of the economy and budget based brands products and the ability of th...