Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to examine the role of senior managers’ use of financial and non-financial
performance measures in the relationship between decentralization and organizational performance in
the hotel industry.
Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected using a mailed questionnaire. General
Managers in charge of medium-to-large hotels in Thailand completed the questionnaire. In total, 131
general managers, one from each hotel, participated in the study. Path analysis technique was used to
test the hypotheses.
Findings – The results indicate that the general managers’ use of financial and non-financial
performance measures fully mediates the relationship between the extent of decentralization of
decision-making and hotel performance. The results reveal that the decentralization of decision-making
alone is not enough to help a hotel improve its performance. Indeed, the relationship between
decentralization of decision-making and hotel performance exists only via the general manager’s use of
the performance measures. It is contended that a general manager’s use of the performance measures in
a hotel encourages department managers to make appropriate decisions to successfully improve their
department’s performance which, in turn, leads to increased performance of the hotel.
Originality/value – This study provides empirical evidence indicating how senior managers in hotels
with decentralized decision-making could use performance measures to better manage their hotels,
thereby improving the hotel’s performance. An in-depth analysis of the data reveals that the senior
manager’s use of the non-financial, and not the financial, performance measures is a mediator of the
relationship between decentralization of decision-making and hotel performance.
Keywords Performance, Decentralization, Performance measures