RCDTT Leadership: Prof. Dan Wang Proposes New Stakeholder Framework to Drive Sustainable Hospitality

As the global hotel industry seeks to minimize its environmental footprint, researchers at the Research Centre for Digital Transformation of Tourism (RCDTT) are providing the strategic tools necessary for meaningful change. A recent study led by Prof. Dan Wang (Associate Director of RCDTT and Professor at SHTM), alongside RCDTT team members Dr. Mei Yang (Postdoc Fellow of RCDTT) and Dr. Zhiming Deng (Research Assistant Professor at SHTM), has introduced a groundbreaking framework to strengthen environmental management through effective stakeholder engagement.

A Collective Milestone for RCDTT

This study, titled “Pathway to Environmental Management in the Hotel Industry: A Stakeholder Engagement Framework,” represents a significant contribution by RCDTT scholars to the field of sustainable tourism. Published in the Journal of China Tourism Research, the paper identifies that while hotel operators are the face of sustainability, the success of green initiatives depends on a complex synergy between internal and external stakeholders.

By focusing on the "human and organizational" side of transformation—a core research pillar of RCDTT—the team examined five international hotel chains in Beijing and Shanghai to understand how different groups influence decision-making.

Key Findings: Identifying "Definitive" Stakeholders

The RCDTT research team applied Stakeholder Theory to classify groups based on three critical criteria: power, legitimacy, and urgency. Their findings provide a clear roadmap for practitioners:

• Internal Drivers: The study identifies hotel owners and employees as “definitive” stakeholders. Because they hold direct influence over the design and delivery of green practices, their buy-in is essential.
• Barriers to Innovation: The research highlights a practical challenge: while owners have the power to implement new technologies for energy reduction and emission control, their commitment is often constrained by cost concerns and return-on-investment (ROI) considerations.
• External Influence: Beyond internal staff, the framework emphasizes that guests, industry associations, and local communities play vital roles in shaping and sustaining environmental outcomes.

This global attention reinforces RCDTT’s mission to produce high-impact research that transcends academia and offers real-world solutions for the digital and sustainable transformation of the tourism sector.

Read the full paper: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19388160.2024.2374726#abstract