Investigating the impact of online customer reviews on the relationship between defensive and forward-looking strategies and management controls (Case study: Parsian Hotels in Tehran)
Keywords:
Customers’ online reviews, Prospector strategy, Defender strategy, Management Control system, Hoteling, TourismAbstract
Hotels can certainly use a defensive strategy or a forward-looking strategy to advance their goals. The main goal of a defensive strategy is to maintain and protect the hotel's current position in the market. A defensive strategy involves focusing on efficiency and cost control within a sustainable service range. Sustainability, risk avoidance, increased efficiency, and an emphasis on loyal customers are the main pillars of a defensive strategy in the tourism and hospitality industry. On the other hand, the main goal of a forward-looking strategy is to identify and exploit new market opportunities, often through innovation and first-mover advantages. Dynamism, innovation, risk-taking, and market leadership are the main pillars of a forward-looking strategy in hospitality. Hotels can adjust their management controls by reviewing online customer reviews on accommodation sales sites and based on the strategy they have chosen. Management controls include personnel control, action control, outcome control, and cultural control. The purpose of this study is to examine the moderating role of online customer reviews in the relationship between company strategies and management controls. The Parsian Hotels Group was selected as the case study of the study and the statistical population of this study is the managers of Parsian hotels Group in the country. Based on the Cochran formula, 80 sample members were selected by simple random sampling. Data were collected using a questionnaire. Structural equation model and partial least squares method were used to analyze the data. The results showed that the forward-looking strategy in Parsian hotels Group has a significant effect on personnel control, action control, result control, and cultural control. On the other hand, the defensive strategy only has a significant effect on action control, result control, and cultural control. The results of this study contribute significantly to control decisions in strategic management in the hotel industry.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Davood Moazzen (Author); Seyed Pouya Ghazimirsaeid
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