The International Hospitality Research Centre

A key feature of the future of HTMi is the development of a research culture within the Institute and the development of research linkages worldwide. Research already has a high profile at HTMi and has been developed and embedded through recent initiatives:

« The establishment of the International Hospitality Research Centre in 2008;

« The appointment of Dr Hazel Sommerville as Head of Research in September 2008;

« The inauguration of the International Hospitality Research Conference in November 2008;

« The launch of the International Hospitality Student Journal in January 2009;

« The presentation of HTMi student research at prestigious International Conferences. In June 2009, a paper was presented at the Consumer09 Conference in Edinburgh: The Influence of Waiting Time to be Seated in Restaurants on Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty: A Case Study of Chain Restaurants in Thailand Department Stores, Ms Sirintra Vatcharasingh, Dr Hazel Somerville and Professor Richard Kerley. Further international conference presentations are planned.

« The introduction of a research course into all programmes of study. From August 2009, all students will study research methods, engage in research at a level appropriate to their studies and have the opportunity to see their research published on-line.

HTMi learning culture requires students to have full access to a worldwide network of quality journals and books. Within the Hospitality Research Centre there is a network of Learning Resource Centres, each having an area for quiet research and learning and equipped with wireless internet and full access to the HTMi campus-wide intranet. Thus, students have full on-line access to more than 600 journals, 300e-books and more than 50,000 articles written by eminent authors in hospitality research. In addition, a wide range of textbooks is available on campus and HTMi has an inter-library loan system with the British Library.