The effect of competitive intelligence practices on hotel performance: the perspective of general managers in Malaysia

Competitive intelligence (CI) practices involve gathering and analysing information about competitors to gain a competitive advantage. They involve monitoring competitors' pricing strategies, analysing customer reviews, tracking competitors' marketing campaigns, attending industry events, conducting competitor analysis, monitoring industry trends, and using data analytics. The goal of competitive intelligence is to gain insights into competitors' operations and strategies and use this information for decision-making. However, there is still ambiguity on the impact of competitive intelligence practices on performance, particularly in the hotel industry in Malaysia after the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this research was conducted to investigate the impact of CI practices on the financial and non-financial performance of the respective hotels. A quantitative research design was adopted in this study. To obtain the necessary data for analysing the hypothesised model of the study, 203 questionnaires were issued to general managers, and a total of 101 completed questionnaires were gathered, with a response rate of 50%. The research data were analysed using SPSS and PLS-SEM. The results indicate that CI practices had no effect on financial performance; however, CI had a positive and significant impact on the non-financial performance of hotels. This study offers specific theoretical and practical implications. Furthermore, these findings will help the properties' owners, industry players, and academicians better understand the key factors that should be encouraged to improve their organisational performance. However, since this study is only limited to general manager’s perspectives, it may introduce bias. Future studies are expected to examine the response from the managers especially in CI departments.