Green Management Tools as a Way to Sustainable Behaviour in the Hotel Industry: Case Study from Czechia
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
the idea of this study is very interesting and I would recommend this work published in sustainability.
Author Response
Thank you for your review.
Reviewer 2 Report
The research is interesting, but in my opinion it is necessary to develop more in depth the theoretical framework about green hotel management, in order to identify some hypothesis which can be discussed after examining the empirical results. In this form the paper is too descriptive, as it shows a series of measures more than a general evaluation of the impact of these choices on the management of the hotels.
Author Response
Thank you for your review.
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 3 Report
It is a very interesting paper in many respects and I learned a lot about the practices of that particular case study hotel, but for the paper to be worthy publication as an academic piece of work it needs to be significantly improved. In my opinion it is not there yet, although I like the general idea and I believe there is enough potential in this material to yield an academic publication. I would therefore recommend the following:
- I would start with the title. It is not clear whether the term ‘green labels’ is understood here as an indication of truly green and sustainable practices or a manifestation of greenwashing with unsustainable practices continued under the cover of a green label. The way the paper is positioned at the beginning suggests the latter but the discussion of practices in the main body of the paper gives a clear account of various genuine pro-environmental practices. It would be therefore good to clarify upfront and in the title what the main argument here is.
- The literature review is presented as if the whole hotel industry consistently aimed to become more sustainable and if there were no differences of opinions in this matter, which is of course far from true. I also take issue with the statement on page 3 that sustainable practices translate into lower operating costs. I would argue the opposite – sustainable practices often require substantial investments and only some of them may in the longer term translate into lower operating costs. The objective of sustainable practices is to save the environment (often at the expense of short erm economic gains). If sustainable practices automatically translated into lower operating costs, would we be having this discussion now? Would not all capitalists quickly switch to sustainable practices in order to minimise costs and maximise gains? Much of the green transition in the hotel industry is happening not because managers and owners believe in it but because they have no choice. Isn’t it why customers need to pay MORE for staying at green hotels? The question whether the public are prepared to pay more derives from the fact that green hotels are more expensive.
- I have a very serious problem with the methodology, as it is presented in the paper. The methods section focuses on explaining the correspondence analysis without any links to the focus of the paper and without explaining any variables and how this analysis was used to generate findings. As such, the whole section 3 looks like it is our of place. Moreover, no reference has been made to these calculations in the findings section apart from Figure 1 which is also not explained in the text at all.
- The authors declare that interviews were conducted but fail to provide any details – how many interviews, who was interviewed, what roles the interviewees had in the hotel, etc. Also, the interviews do not seem to be utilised in the findings section at all. The findings section reads as a list of observations with no use of primary data (e.g. direct quotations) from the interviews. As a result, the findings section is very descriptive, with almost no evidence of primary data (other than from observations) and no links to the literature review.
- Finally, I take issue with Section 4.1. While I totally appreciate that the economic and social dimensions of sustainability are as important as the environmental one and I do understand why this section is in the paper, there is no mention of social and economic issues in the literature review. The literature review focuses solely on environmental aspects and does not prepare the reader for any analysis of economic and social aspects. This disjuncture should also be therefore addressed.
- One important aspects missing from the analysis is how many of the green practices discussed in the paper reflect the attitude of the owners/managers, as opposed to things that are legally required and must be implemented across the sector in Czechia (or the respective region). This would surely help the authors to determine how much of green-washing is taking place there, as opposed to genuine pro-environmental, potentially innovative initiatives (as per my first point above).
Author Response
Thank you so much for your review and detailed comments that contributed to the higher quality of the paper.
Please see the attachment.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Round 2
Reviewer 2 Report
The new version of the paper is more complete and clear. Adequate space has been given to the managerial implication and to the impacts of the decisions regarding green/environmental policies of the hotel.
Author Response
Thank you.
