<p><strong>Purpose:</strong> The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between job satisfaction among hotel employees as well as the relationship between employee empowerment and contextual performance behaviours.</p><p><strong>Background: </strong>Most managers and scholars emphasize that an organization’s most important tool for gaining a competitive advantage is its people and; in order for the firm to attain success employees must be involved and active. It has been argued that success within the hotel industry lies with customer satisfaction, of which is the result of overall job satisfaction of the employee. Most hotels strive to empower their employees in order to deliver better quality service. In addition, contextual performance behaviours are also common practice in such places where employees have a broad range of duties and tasks. Both empowerment and contextual performance behaviours are thus seen to provide overall job satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>The research approach used was that of a single case study, using a survey instrument to collect data on facets empowerment and contextual performance behaviours. The Scandic Hotels of Jonkoping were used for this purpose. The data collected were then analysed by way of factor analysis and multiple regression methods to validate the hypotheses formed in the theoretical framework.</p><p><strong>Findings and</strong></p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Based on the results of the analysis, the majority of the hypotheses were supported.  Training and rewards showed a significant relationship with overall job satisfaction. Job dedication behaviours also showed similar results. In addition, information sharing and trust and training and rewards proved to have interrelationships as facets of empowerment.  Interpersonal facilitation and job dedication behaviours were also proved to be distinct behaviours within contextual performance.</p>

Sustainability communication have in the wake of a wider discussion about climate change been a subject of great exponential growth. This study, The sustainable hotel - A critical discourse analysis of Scandic Sweden´s sustainability communication, aims to present how one of the largest companies in the hotel industry in Scandinavia presents sustainability communication within their system of media. This study relies on a theoretical framework based on Mcluhan´s theory of medium, Bauman´s idea on the society of consumption and the theory of sustainability. With the method of critical discourse analysis combined with rhetorical analysis, we studied Scandic hotels sustainability communication in the context of Fairclough´s three dimensions: textual, discursive practice and social dimension. Furthermore, we analysed how each channel within Scandic Sweden´s media system were used for sustainability communication in the light of Mcluhan´s broad definition of medium. This study makes a number of interesting findings of how sustainability communication mediates from a industry-leading company in regards of sustainability. Scandic hotels make use of vague and broad statements on social media platforms while they communicate about sustainability extensively on their website and in policy documents. This indicates that Scandic construct and presents their sustainability communication differently depending on which medium they make use of.

<p>The awareness regarding environmental issues is increasing and as a result a large number of products are eco-labeled. This enables the consumers to make enlightened environmental decisions when purchasing products. Eco-labeling is no longer for products only, but also for services like hotels. It’s difficult to determine what it actually means to eco-label a hotel and what kind of benefits it includes. Our goal for this essay regarding eco-labeling of hotels is to consider the question –why eco-label?</p><p>The essay also considers benefits or disadvantages connected to eco-labeling and also aim to collect theories and thoughts about the meaning of this in the future. In order to reach this goal the essay involves a case study with hotels who are eco-labeled and those who are not. It also contains information from interviews with representatives from four different eco-labeling organizations and one government environmental scientist. This combined with collected theories aim to give a clear picture about the main focus point –why eco-label? The results show that the hotels whom were studied consider environmental work as very important. It also shows that they notice an increasing demand among customers. The demand also seems to be higher among corporate customers. Eco-labeling can be used as a tool to show the customers that the hotel is working according to special criteria which aims to a more sustainable environment. Care about the environment and increasing customer demand are two main important reasons for the hotels to get an eco-label. It has also shown that there can be more reasons behind the decision to eco-label like; the assistance regarding environmental issues from the eco-labeling organization, competitive advantages, brand related and corporate values. There are also challenges associated with eco-labeling; the ones we have seen are that the environmental work can stop evolving after the label has been accepted. Sometimes the eco-label might not even be the most environmental friendly solution. We have also seen that the eco-labels are combined with different compromises and that they often cost money and take time to implement.</p><p>We have reached the conclusion that in the future eco-labeling of hotels is likely to be significantly important and collaboration between eco-labeling organizations will probably grow and be more international. The results do not generally apply for all hotels but it gives an important insight on eco-labels for hotels, and can give arguments about the subject.</p> / <p>Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen bygger på frågan – varför miljöcertifiera? Uppsatsen ger således en bild av miljöcertifieringars roll och betydelse för hotellverksamheter, där för- och nackdelar ställs mot varandra. Även resonemang kring miljöcertifiering av hotellverksamheters sannolika roll och betydelse i framtiden behandlas.</p><p>Metod: Uppsatsen bygger på en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi och en hermeneutisk tolkningsstrategi. Informationsinsamlandet består av fallstudier, intervjuer, litteraturstudier och informationsinhämtning på internet. Tio intervjuer genomfördes med fyra personer från fyra olika hotell, både miljöcertifierade och inte, fem personer som på ett eller annat sätt arbetar med de olika miljöcertifieringarna samt med en forskare i miljöpolitik.</p><p>Slutsats: Studien visar att många vill engagera sig i miljöarbete, både hotellverksamheterna och deras kunder. Miljöcertifieringar kan även vara ett verktyg för att förmedla och strukturera miljöarbetet. Dessutom har det genom denna studie visat sig att miljöcertifieringen kan bidra med andra positiva aspekter som exempelvis en förbättrad image och identitet samt en tydligare struktur på miljöarbetet. Det finns dock problem och nackdelar även med miljöcertifieringar och med att miljöcertifiera sig, exempelvis att de kräver mycket resurser och att själva miljöcertifieringen inte behöver vara det miljövänligaste.</p>

The awareness regarding environmental issues is increasing and as a result a large number of products are eco-labeled. This enables the consumers to make enlightened environmental decisions when purchasing products. Eco-labeling is no longer for products only, but also for services like hotels. It’s difficult to determine what it actually means to eco-label a hotel and what kind of benefits it includes. Our goal for this essay regarding eco-labeling of hotels is to consider the question –why eco-label? The essay also considers benefits or disadvantages connected to eco-labeling and also aim to collect theories and thoughts about the meaning of this in the future. In order to reach this goal the essay involves a case study with hotels who are eco-labeled and those who are not. It also contains information from interviews with representatives from four different eco-labeling organizations and one government environmental scientist. This combined with collected theories aim to give a clear picture about the main focus point –why eco-label? The results show that the hotels whom were studied consider environmental work as very important. It also shows that they notice an increasing demand among customers. The demand also seems to be higher among corporate customers. Eco-labeling can be used as a tool to show the customers that the hotel is working according to special criteria which aims to a more sustainable environment. Care about the environment and increasing customer demand are two main important reasons for the hotels to get an eco-label. It has also shown that there can be more reasons behind the decision to eco-label like; the assistance regarding environmental issues from the eco-labeling organization, competitive advantages, brand related and corporate values. There are also challenges associated with eco-labeling; the ones we have seen are that the environmental work can stop evolving after the label has been accepted. Sometimes the eco-label might not even be the most environmental friendly solution. We have also seen that the eco-labels are combined with different compromises and that they often cost money and take time to implement. We have reached the conclusion that in the future eco-labeling of hotels is likely to be significantly important and collaboration between eco-labeling organizations will probably grow and be more international. The results do not generally apply for all hotels but it gives an important insight on eco-labels for hotels, and can give arguments about the subject. / Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen bygger på frågan – varför miljöcertifiera? Uppsatsen ger således en bild av miljöcertifieringars roll och betydelse för hotellverksamheter, där för- och nackdelar ställs mot varandra. Även resonemang kring miljöcertifiering av hotellverksamheters sannolika roll och betydelse i framtiden behandlas. Metod: Uppsatsen bygger på en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi och en hermeneutisk tolkningsstrategi. Informationsinsamlandet består av fallstudier, intervjuer, litteraturstudier och informationsinhämtning på internet. Tio intervjuer genomfördes med fyra personer från fyra olika hotell, både miljöcertifierade och inte, fem personer som på ett eller annat sätt arbetar med de olika miljöcertifieringarna samt med en forskare i miljöpolitik. Slutsats: Studien visar att många vill engagera sig i miljöarbete, både hotellverksamheterna och deras kunder. Miljöcertifieringar kan även vara ett verktyg för att förmedla och strukturera miljöarbetet. Dessutom har det genom denna studie visat sig att miljöcertifieringen kan bidra med andra positiva aspekter som exempelvis en förbättrad image och identitet samt en tydligare struktur på miljöarbetet. Det finns dock problem och nackdelar även med miljöcertifieringar och med att miljöcertifiera sig, exempelvis att de kräver mycket resurser och att själva miljöcertifieringen inte behöver vara det miljövänligaste.