International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences

Quality management in hotels in the Basque Country

M. Jess Alvarez Carmen Jaca Elisabeth Viles Anna Colomer

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M. Jess Alvarez Carmen Jaca Elisabeth Viles Anna Colomer, (2012),"Quality management in hotels in the
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Quality management in hotels

in the Basque Country

Hotels in the
Basque Country

M. Jesus Alvarez, Carmen Jaca, Elisabeth Viles and Anna Colomer

Industrial Management Department, Tecnun, University of Navarra,
San Sebastian, Spain

51

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Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to see how quality management is carried out in hotels in the
Basque Country, a region in the north of Spain with a long tradition in the tourist sector.
Design/methodology/approach The objective of the study was to establish what approaches to
quality management are utilised by hotels in the region. The data were collated from information
gathered via a survey conducted by e-mail.
Findings A large percentage of surveyed hotels implement a quality management system that has
been designed in-house. A figure of note, is the fact that 79 per cent of participants claim their quality
management system has been introduced successfully. The study also indicated that a significant
number of hotels implement a policy of continuous improvement to the system, as hotels believe in the
effectiveness of quality management systems and think that such systems have resulted in an increase
in customers and profit.
Research limitations/implications The hotels that responded to the survey could be those that
are committed to quality management. That fact could introduce a bias that makes it seem that the
situation is better than it really is.
Originality/value This study offers an understanding on the philosophy of quality management
adopted by hotels in the Basque Country. Moreover, it provides empirical evidence on the perceived
results of the implementation of quality management in hotels.
Keywords Spain, Hotels, Quality management, Continuous improvement, Tourism,
Quality management system, Quality standards, Quality in tourism sector
Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction
The tourism sector is considered very important for the Spanish economy. In 2010
Spain received 52.6 million visitors, which generated nearly 10 per cent of the GDP.
However, starting in the early 1990s, the companies in this sector became aware of the
fact that there were new destinations with exotic appeal and competitive prices.
Tourists demanded more value for their money and better service.
In response to this situation, the Spanish tourism sector decided not to compete on
price (which involves the risk of substitutability) but to have companies in the sector
stand out by implementing strategies addressing quality (Casadesus et al., 2010).
Quality can be the key to improving performance and service in a competitive
environment (Ingram and Daskalakis, 1999; Costa, 2004). In fact, Spain is the first
country in the word to define specific quality standards for each subsector and create a
certification system handled by an independent third party.
Companies in the tourism sector in Spain reacted to the threat of new exotic and
more competitive destinations by focusing on improving the quality of service and
management. In fact, Spain has been a pioneer in the implementation of voluntary
quality certification systems for hotels. The Quality Club of Rural Homes in the region

International Journal of Quality and

Service Sciences
Vol. 4 No. 1, 2012
pp. 51-60
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1756-669X
DOI 10.1108/17566691211219724

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52

of Valencia (Club de Calidad de las Casas Rurales de la Comunidad Valenciana), created

in 1999, and the Plan of Excellence in Hotels in Puerto de la Cruz (Plan de Excelencia
Hotelera de Puerto de la Cruz), developed in 1993, are two illustrative cases.
The quality approach spread to Spanish tourist companies more generally in 1996
when the Spanish Tourist Quality System (Sistema de Calidad Turstica Espanola
(SCTE)) project was started. This project was run by the State Tourist Administration,
and it provided technical support for the development of quality systems suitable to
the different subsectors: hotels, travel agencies, restaurants, etc. The SCTE aimed to
provide Spanish hotels (and other tourist companies) with a methodological tool that
helped them to manage their businesses with a focus on quality, and it made it possible
for them to be more competitive and to offer high quality services and products. The
institutional backing was provided in the form of Spanish Tourist Quality Trademark
known as Q for Quality.
In the first years of the project, the SCTE developed specific quality systems for the
tourist subsectors, all of them with certification for business and implementation of
continuous quality improvement in organizations. In the year 2000, the tourism sector,
with the support of the State Department of Trade and Tourism, created the Spanish
Institute for Tourist Quality (Instituto para la Calidad Turstica Espanola (ICTE)). The
ICTE is a private, independent non-profit organization created specifically for the
tourist sector with the mission of standardizing and implementing tourist quality
standards, certification of quality systems (specifically Q, the Spanish Tourism Quality
Trademark), and promotion of quality systems in this sector.
The Q standards take into account the requirements of ISO 9001:2008 and
ISO 14000:2004, which are not identical; but do have certain similarities
(Casadesus et al., 2010).
2. Framework and objectives of the study
The first aim of this study was to find out the approach that hotels take regarding
quality management: what managers understand by quality management, and what
motivations drive them towards quality. Many organizations are motivated to adopt
quality systems by external factors such as pressure from clients, pressure from
competitors, and the desire to enhance the image of the company. Other companies are
motivated by internal factors such as improving efficiency, reducing costs associated
with poor quality, and product improvement (Casadesus and Heras, 2005; Shannon et al.,
2001).
The second aim was to discover what quality standards companies use and the scope
that these standards cover in hotels in the Basque Country. Several methodologies for
quality management have been developed, including the ISO 9000 series, Six Sigma
programs, the EFQM business excellence model and within Spain, the trademark Q for
tourist companies. Some authors note that providing quality tourism experiences
remains problematic. The characteristics of tourism as a service intangibility,
heterogeneity, perishability and simultaneity as well as the diverse nature of the
tourism experience represent significant challenges to the successful implementation of
quality management procedures (Bech Serrat, 2011; Sharpley and Forster, 2003). In
particular, in Spain there was a poor penetration rate of the ISO 9000 family in the tourism
sector in spite of the fact that Spain is the fifth country in the word in terms of the number
of companies with ISO 9000 certifications (Casadesus et al., 2010). However, Spain was

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the first country in the word to define specific quality standards for companies in the
tourism sector and a certification system run by an independent third party.
One of the aspects that we wanted to study was employee commitment to quality
service. Some authors point out (Witt and Muhlemann, 1994; Sharpley and Forster,
2003) that the factor that links all models of quality management is the people involved
in the delivery of service. The success of quality initiatives depends on the willingness
and ability of staff to respond to the demands for increased quality in the delivery of
services. As a consequence, positive employee attitudes are vital to customer
satisfaction. In other words, helpful behaviour from the service provider is one of the
fundamental aspects of management quality in tourism.
3. Methodology
Our empirical study was carried out in the Basque Country. This Spanish region has a
long tradition of tourism due to the geographical and cultural characteristics that make
it a destination of the quality tourist.
A survey of hotels located in the Basque Country was conducted from September to
November 2010. The hotels were selected from the 2010 Basque Country Business
Guide. We selected 223 hotels. We telephoned each participant in advance outlining the
aim of the study and requesting their participation. An e-mail was then sent with a link
to a web page where they could respond to the questionnaire online. Over the course of
the subsequent four week period we sent reminder e-mails highlighting the online
survey. The response rate was 16 per cent.
One of the objectives of the study was to determine the industries motivation to
address quality management an area historically associated with a brands concept or
philosophy. Different authors have pointed to the fact that quality management is
adopted as a strategy to contribute to company survival (Gray et al., 2000; Qu et al., 2000).
However, there are multiple reasons that indicate quality management can be a driving
force used effectively to increase costumers, increase profit (Alonso-Almeida and
Rodriguez-Anton, 2011; Benner and Veloso, 2008; Corbett et al., 2005) or because a
quality management program is a requirement of the group or necessary to fulfil
compulsory norms (Alonso-Almeida and Rodriguez-Anton, 2011; Casadesus et al., 2010;
Chan and Wong, 2006). Table I shows the questions in the survey related with the
concept of quality and motivation.
The hotel industry uses different certifications or quality systems, based on the PDCA
cycle which focuses on the standardization of processes as a tool to remain competitive
(Camison et al., 2006; Terziovski and Sohal, 2000; Wang et al., 2011). In order to discover
what quality systems are used and the scope of quality management, we asked hotels
which certifications or quality systems and processes they use, as seen in Table II.
In the hospitality sector quality practices are related with the development of an
improvement culture, together with employee involvement (Claver-Cortes et al., 2008;
Crick and Spencer, 2011). With respect to employees and other stakeholders such as
suppliers and managers, the questions posed are listed in Table III.
4. Results and discussion
Motivations and approach to quality
Most of the hotel managers (83 per cent) identify quality with a philosophy that tries to
satisfy customer needs. About 63 per cent of them identify quality with a method for

Hotels in the
Basque Country

53

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54

Table I.
Questions about quality
concept and motivations

What do you understand by quality? (Do not mark more than 3)

Possible answers It is a philosophy that tries to satisfy the customer needs
It is to fulfil/implement the ISO standard
It is to manage quality as a competitive advantage
It is a method to get everybody in the company involved with the companys
objectives
It is a method to improve the companys processes
It is a method to prevent mistakes
It is a method for achieving the continuous improvement
What are your main reasons for applying quality management? Do not mark more than 3)
Possible answers To improve our relationship with the environment
To fulfil compulsory norms
To increase profit
To get more customers
It was a requirement of the group the company belonged to
To manage quality as a competitive advantage
To bring about a cultural change within the company
It is in fashion or it enhances the companys image
Out of conviction

Do you have quality certifications, homologations, etc.?

Possible answers
No
Q touristic
ISO 9001
Awards
Others
Which processes have you documented in your hotel?
Possible answers
Reception
Check-in
Check-out
Cleaning
Bar
Maintenance
Accommodation
Purchasing
Others
Are the documented processes evaluated?
Possible answers
No
Yes

Table II.
Questions about quality
system and certifications

Are there critical points in the documented processes?

Possible answers
No
Yes
Does you organization have a system of continuous improvement?
Possible answers
No
Yes

How?
Internal audit
Person in charge
System
Other
For instance: _____

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Does a teamwork structure exist in your organization?

Possible answers
Yes, it exists and it is well developed
Yes, it exists but it requires further development
It practically does not exist
It does not exist but we are thinking of developing one
It does not exist and we are not thinking of developing one
In terms of the quality management that you carry out, do you think that employee commitment has
Possible answers
Decreased drastically?
Decreased?
Stayed the same?
Increased?
Increased drastically?
In terms of the quality management that you carry out, do you think that manager satisfaction has
Possible answers
Decreased drastically?
Decreased?
Stayed the same?
Increased?
Increased drastically?
In terms of the quality management that you carry out, do you think that supplier satisfaction has
Possible answers
Decreased drastically?
Decreased?
Stayed the same?
Increased?
Increased drastically?

implementing continuous improvement. And 43 per cent of them think that quality is
mainly a method to get everybody in the company involved in the companys objectives.
As for the motivations that drive hotels towards quality management, most of the
hotels (80 per cent) pointed out that managing quality was a competitive advantage.
About 40 per cent of them said that they applied quality management out of conviction.
The third (37 per cent) the fourth (20 per cent) most cited motivations were to get more
customers and to increase profit (Figure 1).
Motivation is primarily related to results. The purpose of having a competitive
advantage is to get more customers or profit. Those managers who applied quality
management out of conviction are usually seeking greater efficiency, which leads to an
increase in profit as a consequence.
Certifications
About 43 per cent of the hotels have the Q certification (the Spanish tourist quality
certification), 29 per cent have other certifications and 28 per cent of them do not have
any certification. Among those that do not have any certification, most of them said
that they have a tailored system. They have a quality management system although
they do not have any certification.
About 11 per cent of the hotels have ISO 9000 certification, and all of those have the
Q certification as well. As we mentioned above, the Q and ISO 9000 certifications are
complementary standards. The same thing is the case with ISO 14000 (Figure 2).
About 74 per cent of the hotels have a continuous improvement system, which means
that some of the hotels that are not certified have this kind of system. But it is clear that
the hotels that do not have a continuous improvement system are not certified.

Hotels in the
Basque Country

55

Table III.
Questions about
employee involvement
and satisfaction

IJQSS
4,1

It is a method to reach the

continuous improvement

63

It is a method to prevent mistakes.

56

11

It is a method to improve the

company's processes.

26

It is a method to to get everybody

involved with objecives

43

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It is to manage quality as
a competitive advantage.

37

It is to fulfil/implement the
ISO standard.

Figure 1.
Motivations and approach
to quality

It is a philosophy that tries to

satisfy the customer needs

83
0

20

40

60

80

100

28%
43%
29%

Q
other certifications
no certification

Figure 2.
Certifications

About 96 per cent of those hotels have a formalized suggestion box system, 73 per cent
have a method for solving problems and 50 per cent use the 5S methodology.
Most of the hotels surveyed documented their processes with written procedures.
About 63 per cent of them have documented procedures for the following processes:
reception, check-in, check-out, accommodation, cleaning and maintenance. About
34 per cent have one or more of their processes documented, and only 3 per cent have
none of their processes documented.
Processes are evaluated periodically. About 51 per cent of hotels evaluate their
processes through an internal audit, and in 29 per cent of the cases the person in charge
carries out the evaluation of processes. About 11 per cent evaluate their processes using
other methods and, finally 9 per cent of them do not evaluate their processes at all.
Almost half of the hotels declared that they have critical point in their processes.
When they were asked to give more details, the recurring idea was that the most
critical point is where there is direct connection with customers. How customers feel
they have been treated greatly influences their level of satisfaction. This fact is closely
linked to the next section.

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Employee involvement
About 60 per cent of the hotels believe that they have a teamwork structure and that it
is well developed; 29 per cent report that they have a teamwork structure in place but
that it needs further development; 6 per cent think that it practically does not exist,
3 per cent said that they do not have a structure but they are thinking about developing
one and, finally, 3 per cent respond that they do not have any structure and that they
are not thinking about developing one. Most of the cases where there is a teamwork
structure that needs further development are hotels that do not have any kind of
quality certification.
With regard to employee commitment as a consequence of implementing a quality
management system: 48 per cent believe that it has increased, plus another 7 per cent
that think that it has greatly increased and 38 per cent answer that the level of
commitment has stayed the same. Only 7 per cent report that employee commitment
has decreased.
Manager satisfaction is also affected: 48 per cent of respondents think that levels
have increased, and another 3 per cent that think that levels have greatly increased;
45 per cent believe that the manager satisfaction has stayed the same, and only
3 per cent consider that it has decreased.
As for suppliers, none of the hotels believe that supplier satisfaction has decreased.
About 34 per cent report that it has increased, plus another 7 per cent that think that it
has greatly increased. About 59 per cent think that the supplier satisfaction levels have
stayed the same (Figure 3).

Hotels in the
Basque Country

57

Results
With respect to the results regarding the implementation of quality management in these
organizations, the overall impression is that it has been very positive for the company.
Regarding customers, 37 per cent of the hotels report that the number of customers has
increased, while 55 per cent think that the number has stayed the same and only
6 per cent think that the number of customers has decreased.

Supplier
satisfaction

34

59

Customer
satisfaction

66

Manager
satisfaction 3
Employee
commitement

48

48

31

46

38

it has greatly increased

it has increased

it has styed the same

it has decreased

Figure 3.
Employee involvement
and satisfaction

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58

When asked about profit, 41 per cent say that profit has increased, another 41 per cent
report the same level of profit and only 17 per cent report a decrease in profit.
The results for customer satisfaction are the most relevant: 66 per cent of
respondents think that customer satisfaction has increased, 31 per cent report that it
has stayed the same and only 3 per cent believe that it has decreased.
Overall, 79 per cent of the hotels believe that the quality system has been implemented
successfully, as opposed to the 21 per cent who they do not consider it to be successful.
5. Conclusions
As a general conclusion, we see that the philosophy of quality is extensive in hotels in
the Basque Country. Almost 80 per cent (79 per cent) of the hotels surveyed reported
that the quality system has been successfully implemented.
The concept of quality that they have is related to customer satisfaction and
continuous improvement, whereas the motivation to adopt a quality system is
connected to results, which was the most frequently cited motivation for managing
quality as a competitive advantage.
The hotels in the Basque Country have a culture of quality management: most of
them have a quality system, of which 72 per cent have quality certification. The most
popular is Q touristic, the Spanish Trademark for the tourism sector.
The use of a quality management system led to an increase in employee
involvement in 55 per cent of the cases. This fact is very important because it is closely
related to customer satisfaction. Additionally, 60 per cent of the hotels surveyed have
a well developed teamwork structure in place. Increases in manger satisfaction and
supplier satisfaction are reported in 51 and 41 per cent of the cases, respectively.
The results of the survey clearly show that hotels consider that having a quality
management system in place has led to increases in customers, profit and customer
satisfaction. These results are even more significant when we consider that the survey
was conducted during a period of economic crisis.
As for research limitations, the first is that the hotels that completed the survey
could be those that are committed to quality management. That fact could introduce a
bias which makes the situation seem better than it really is. The second limitation is
the small size of the sample.
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y sistemas, Prentice-Hall, Madrid.
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Universia Business Review, Vol. 7, pp. 90-101.

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Casadesus, M., Marimon, F. and Alonso, M. (2010), The future of standardised quality
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About the authors
M. Jesus Alvarez holds a PhD degree in Agricultural Engineering from the Universidad
Politecnica de Madrid (UMP). She is a Professor of Operational Research at Tecnun, Universidad
de Navarra, in the Management Industrial Engineering Department. Her research activities are
in operations research applied to logistics and to the improvement of the productivity of the
systems. She has been involved in research in national and European projects in these areas.
M. Jesus Alvarez is the corresponding author and can be contacted at: mjalvarez@tecnun.es
Carmen Jaca is an Industrial Engineer and holds a PhD in Industrial Engineering from
Tecnun, University of Navarra. She has worked in different industrial companies as Quality
Manager and now she is Professor of Quality Management at Tecnun. Her research activities

Hotels in the
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60

are in continuous improvement and teamworking. She is co-author of several publications in

Quality Management and Continuous Improvement.
Elisabeth Viles is a Mathematician. She earned her PhD in Physics from Tecnun, University
of Navarra, where she is a Lecturer in Statistics. She has been actively conducting and publishing
research on the use of statistical tools for improving quality and reliability. She is a regular
conference speaker in different postgraduate courses related to quality management, Six Sigma
implementation and Black Belts training.
Anna Colomer is an Industrial Engineer from Tecnun, University of Navarra who works as a
Quality Manager.

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