Award Date

1-1-2006

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Hotel Administration

First Committee Member

Curtis Love

Number of Pages

53

Abstract

The meetings and convention market represents one of the fastest growing segments of the tourism industry. Due to increased convention business and growing competition, an emphasis on service quality within convention services has recently become more pronounced. However, little research regarding convention services or the quality of service provided has been undertaken to illustrate or investigate this growing trend; In the early 1990s the position of meeting concierge was created as a way of increasing customer service quality for corporate meeting planners. This position was intended to provide additional personalized assistance to meeting planners while on-site since convention service managers are not always easily accessible. Over the past ten to fifteen years the meeting concierge position has grown exponentially in scope of job description and frequency. Many high-end luxury hotels and resorts such as the Ritz Carlton and Hyatt are using this position extensively throughout their properties as a method of demonstrating their commitment to a high level of customer service to their convention clients. Due to the limited literature about convention services and the meeting concierge in particular, this empirical study is designed to provide new data regarding the convention industry. At present the majority of literature on the subject has been overwhelmingly anecdotal or through trade press sources; The significance of this study was to demonstrate to convention service directors the importance of the meeting concierge. As of yet, there has been no hard evidence to suggest whether or not employing a meeting concierge is worth the cost for convention service departments. The data collected in this research project helped to quantify the impact the meeting concierge position has on convention clients. This new found information will aid convention service directors in determining their staffing needs and whether it is advantageous for them to include a meeting concierge position on their team. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).

Keywords

Concierge; Convention; Management; Meeting; Quality; Service; Value

Controlled Subject

Management

File Format

pdf

File Size

1280 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

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