Migration and Innovation at the Bottom End: Understanding the Role of Migrant Managers in Small Hotels in the Global City

Abstract

The paper examines the role of international migration and innovation in small hotels through a comparative study of migrant and non-migrant owners and managers in London hotels. The findings show the dependence of the sector on international managers whose contribution to innovation is understood in relation to the global environment of London, sectoral particularities and complex processes of mobility amongst both migrant and non-migrant managers. Although there is only limited evidence of differences in the levels or types of innovation, international migration is significant in the transfer and dispersion of knowledge, and plays a key role in the incremental innovation processes which are essential to innovation performance in the sector.