Imbrications of IT and hospitality organizations

Abstract

The impact of information technology (IT) on the hospitality and tourism industry has been extensively documented in the last two decades. However, what happens during the adoption process and to the organization over time due to changes in IT is unclear. This study applies the lens of “imbrication,” stemming from Giddens' theory of structuration, to examine the interactions between a casino resort in Macau, China and the use of customer relations management systems over 20 years (1997–2017). The processes of imbrications of IT and people reveal the social construction of reality. This paper expands our scope of knowledge on organizations' integration of IT by offering a window into the complex, recurrent nature of IT adoption in hospitality and tourism industry.