Environmental awareness, initiatives and performance in the small- and medium-scale enterprise hotel industry of Malaysia

Authors

  • Hanafi Hamzah Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism Management, UCSI University, Malaysia
  • Shahrim Ab. Karim Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
  • Yuhanis Ab. Aziz Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
  • Azilah Kasim School of Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Malaysia,

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24191/jeeir.v8i1.7700

Keywords:

Environmental management systems, Hospitality, Sustainability, Small- and Medium-Scale enterprise, EMS implementation

Abstract

This paper examines the environmental awareness, initiatives and performance in the Malaysia Small- and Medium-Scale Enterprise (SME) hotel industry revealing that most hotel managers actively introduce initiatives that contribute to cost savings. The main purpose of this paper aims to examine the environmental awareness, initiatives and performance in Malaysia SME hotel industry. A mixed research method was adopted involving quantitative surveys with 252 hotels in Malaysia and 11 face-to-face interviews with the selected hotel managers, facilities managers and engineers. Responses from the surveys and interviews with 252 managers show that SME hotels in Malaysia have a high level of environmental awareness. Most hoteliers actively introduce initiatives that contribute to cost savings. Initiatives including using energy conservation light bulbs, having an active system to detect/repair lacking facilities and installing water conserving fixtures are widely implemented, while programs involving using solar lawn light, recycling leftover food and reusing wastewater. Major barriers for going green include the lack of government regulations on environmental management systems (EMS), financial constraints, the lack of employees to handle EMS and the fear that environmental initiatives may negatively impact the guest’s experience, especially customers who expect enjoying the luxuries services in Malaysia hotels. Lower star hotels experience more difficulties in adopting green approaches. This paper presents a single case study of Malaysia; therefore, the results in this research may have limited generalizability.

Author Biographies

Hanafi Hamzah, Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism Management, UCSI University, Malaysia

Hanafi Hamzah is a PhD candidate in the Faculty of Food Science and Technology at the Universiti Putra Malaysia. His main research activity is in the area of environmental management systems, sustainability and hospitality. His PhD research mainly focusing on the environmental management systems in small- and medium-scale enterprise in Malaysia. He can be reached through his email at hanzhamzah@gmail.com.

Shahrim Ab. Karim, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia

Shahrim Ab. Karim is a Professor in the Faculty of Food Science and Technology at the Universiti Putra Malaysia. His main research activity is in Food and Culinary Tourism, Sustainable Food Heritage, Consumer Behavior and Marketing and Foodservice Management. He has published widely on these subjects in publications such as International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, Journal of Hospitality and Marketing Management, Journal of Advances in Science and Technology, Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, International Journal of Food Research, International Food Research Journal, Hospitality and Culinary Arts etc. He can be reached through his email shahrim@upm.edu.my.

Yuhanis Ab. Aziz, Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia

Yuhanis Ab. Azis is Associate Professor and Deputy Dean for Graduate Studies in the Faculty of Economics and Management at the Universiti Putra Malaysia. Her main research activity is in the area of tourism marketing, hospitality and service marketing. She has published widely on these subjects in publications such as Journal of International Food and Agribusiness Marketing, International Journal of Economics and Management, Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts, Pertanica Journal of Social Science and Humanities, Journal of Islamic Marketing, etc. She can be reached through yuhanis@upm.edu.my.

Azilah Kasim, School of Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Malaysia,

Azilah Kasim is Professor in the School of Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management at the Universiti Utara Malaysia. Her main research activity is in the area of sustainable tourism marketing and green practices. She has published widely on these subjects in publications such as International Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Administration, Journal of Hospitality and Leisure Marketing, Journal of Sustainable Tourism, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Journal of Global Management, International Journal of Tourism Cities, International Journal of Management Practice, etc. She can be reached through azilah@uum.edu.my.

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Published

2020-01-31

How to Cite

Hamzah, H. ., Ab. Karim, S. ., Ab. Aziz, Y. ., & Kasim, A. . (2020). Environmental awareness, initiatives and performance in the small- and medium-scale enterprise hotel industry of Malaysia. Journal of Emerging Economies and Islamic Research, 8(1), 43–68. https://doi.org/10.24191/jeeir.v8i1.7700