Degree Name

MA in Intercultural Service, Leadership, and Management

First Advisor

John Vogelsang

Abstract

This paper documents how hotel companies develop and implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs. Previous research on this subject is limited, but I’ve included Ito’s (2007) study of the sustainable operating practices of Majorcan hotels and Park’s (2009) that examines how the attitudes of top managers affect the success of CSR programs at their hotels. The adoption of CSR programs at hotels has the potential to not only transform the hospitality industry into a socially conscious and environmentally sustainable field, it can also change the way hotel employees experience their relationship with their community and the Earth. I included larger international management companies, mid-sized boutique hotel companies, and smaller locally owned properties in the research and conducted interviews and several surveys to learn about CSR development and implementation. The degree to which employees are engaged in CSR programs is an unforeseen and encouraging finding. Not only are staff members educated on CSR programs, many times their feedback is actively sought by the corporate office and they are included in the development of the initiative. This paper showcases the CSR partnership that has developed between many hotel companies and their property level staff and offers evidence that a strong CSR partnership is the first step in developing best practices that hotels, and potentially all other businesses, can follow when incorporating socially responsibility and environmentally sustainability into their organization.

Disciplines

Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Business Law, Public Responsibility, and Ethics

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