Organizational contingency and hotel quality management

Abstract

Purpose. This study examines how organizational contingencies shape hotel quality-management modes in an emerging tourism destination. Rather than assuming that formal quality management is universally appropriate, the study asks whether hotel size, organizational affiliation, service scope, strategy, price positioning, clientele, competitive pressure, technology, and managerial style are associated with different degrees of quality formalization.

Design/methodology/approach. The study draws on a field survey of 24 hotels in Tangier, Morocco. A deductive, quantitative design is combined with exploratory fieldwork and analyzed through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), complemented by principal component analysis and multivariate grouping. The structural model was assessed using bootstrapping with 5,000 resamples. Measurement quality was examined through internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, KMO/Bartlett diagnostics, and exploratory component analysis.

Findings. The empirical model identifies a differentiated configuration of quality-management practices. Employee size (β = 0.182), accommodation capacity (β = 0.191), turnover (β = 0.129), organizational affiliation (β = 0.293), service scope (β = 0.092), strategy (β = 0.121), average price (β = 0.138), and target clientele (β = 0.100) are positively and significantly associated with quality formalization. Perceived competition (β = −0.008, p = .790) and technology (β = 0.057, p = .066) are not statistically significant direct predictors in the reported model, while managerial style shows a significant negative association (β = −0.136). Quality-management mode strongly predicts hotel typology (β = 0.737). Multivariate analysis distinguishes three configurations: formal, hybrid, and informal quality management.

Originality/value. The study contributes to contingency-based quality research by linking organizational context to differentiated quality-management modes in a North African hospitality setting. It also extends service-quality research beyond customer-perception models by examining the organizational architecture through which quality practices are formalized, coordinated, and enacted.

Keywords: hotel quality management; contingency theory; service quality; quality formalization; PLS-SEM; hospitality; organizational context; Morocco; Tangier; typology.

Received Date: August 17, 2026

Accepted Date: September 09, 2026

Published Date: October 01, 2026

Available Online at: https://www.ijsrisjournal.com/index.php/ojsfiles/article/view/967