“Q for Tourism Quality” in the Spanish Tourism Tourist Accommodation Sector: Implementation and Results

Abstract

This chapter sets forth results from an empirical study to investigate the degree of implementation of critical quality factors in Spanish tourist accommodation firms. An empirical study was conducted in 186 accommodation firms nationally certified with the “Q for Tourist Quality” standard. The aim of the study was to identify strengths and areas for improvement that will enable Spanish accommodation firms to move towards total quality management (TQM). First, descriptive statistics were calculated. Then, exploratory factor analysis was applied to validate two measurement scales: one scale to measure critical quality factors and one scale to measure performance. Results indicate that the degree of implementation of critical factors is greater than 80 %. The main finding is that employee management is the main area for improvement in these firms. Another key finding is that the way hotels manage critical factors can positively affect employees, society, key results, and customer satisfaction.