Implementing Service Innovations in European Hotels

This paper examines the impact of postadoption innovation implementation strategies on five distinct performance outcomes. Using a sample of 85 hotels in Europe, the study explores which implementation strategies are most strongly linked to specific innovation outcomes and competitive performance. The results reveal that employee enabling implementation strategies have a positive direct effect on employee performance and indirect effects on customer sentiment outcomes and the operational performance of the innovation. Administratively driven implementation strategies had a positive direct effect on customer comparative performance, and an indirect effect on a firm’s comparative operational performance, as hypothesized. Finally, owners were more likely to be idea generators and principal early supporters of successful innovations, highlighting the power of top‐down approaches to championing change within the European context.