The importance of service quality and a positive reputation, individually leading to enhanced performance of hospitality organizations, is undisputed. However, little is known about their interplay and how they collectively explain the variability in performance. The purpose of this article is to contribute to the understanding of the individual and collective impact of service quality and reputation on variability in performance, categorized as customer satisfaction and loyalty. This study was conducted using quantitative research methods with data derived from hotel guests in Iceland in the summer of 2023. We gathered 1487 valid answers from guests staying at any of the 9 selected hotels, all belonging to the same Icelandic chain. The factor analysis revealed a credible four-factor model that consists of tangible service, performed service, reputation, and performance. All three independent factors had a statistically positive connection with variabilities in performance, and the collective explanation ratio for the model was strong. The independent factors were correlated to a satisfactory level, and tangible service had the strongest unique connection to performance.

Employee satisfaction remains a central theme in management, with substantial evidence linking it to organizational performance. This study examines the nature and strength of that relationship and investigates whether its magnitude varies across different performance indicators. Using existing data from 23 organizations where organization culture was assessed through the Denison Organizational Culture Survey (DOCS) between 2015 and 2022, the study analyzes 1532 employee responses. Organizational performance was evaluated across five dimensions: growth, profitability, quality of products and services, employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and overall performance. Bivariate regression analyses reveal positive and statistically significant relationships between employee satisfaction and all other performance indicators. The strongest associations were observed for overall performance and customer satisfaction, while moderate relationships emerged for profitability, growth, and quality of products and services. Employee satisfaction accounted for approximately 36% of the variance in overall performance. The findings support the view that employee satisfaction functions both as a driver and as an outcome of organizational performance. They further indicate that the strength of this relationship is greater for human-centered outcomes than for financial indicators. Practically, the results underscore the importance of cultivating intrinsic motivation, trust, and employee participation to enhance both satisfaction and perceived performance. Future research should investigate the causal direction between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction and explore how organizational culture moderates this relationship across different sectors.

This article offers a systematic review of research trends and methodology, with a focus on the state and order of knowledge regarding service orientation in hospitality and tourism research. A search algorithm was created through Web of Science and Scopus using search words related to service orientation and criteria regarding hospitality and tourism, yielding 154 articles. Duplicates and articles that did not focus on hospitality and tourism or did not have service orientation as their focus were removed, leaving 50 articles that were reviewed thoroughly and are the bases of the results. The review’s main findings are that discussion of service orientation seems to be selective in categorizations and bound mostly to employee hospitableness, therefore leaving out organizational culture, strategy, and process. There is, however, evidence in recent literature that scholars are taking a more holistic view of the phenomena. Most articles contribute to knowledge-building through the third order of knowledge, leaving little room to define concepts or gather mutual understandings through empirical data. Based on our findings, we recommend conscious and continuous building of tools and methods that will contribute to a more in-depth and holistic understanding and measurement of service orientation in hospitality and tourism.