Hospitality Core Competence, Innovation and Competitive Advantage: Empirical Study of an Integrated Relationship

Despite the widely held view that core competencies positively influence innovation and competitive advantage and innovation also leading to competitive advantage, the extent to which core competencies help explain how innovation translates into competitive advantage has not been empirically well supported. This study intends to examine the influence of core competencies on innovation and competitive advantage, and the effect of innovation on competitive advantage of hotels. The article proposes and tests an integrated model of the three variables using structural equation modeling. Data was collected from 250 hotels operating in Ghana, using a 5-point Likert survey questionnaire. Significant positive relationships were found between core competencies and innovation and core competencies and competitive advantage. A significant positive relationship between innovation and competitive advantage was also established.