The Study On The Impact Of Customer Participation In Innovation To Innovation Performance Of Catering Enterprises

Catering industry, as a traditional service industry, has become one of the most importanttertiary industries in China. As customer orientation and customer participation are relativelydistinct and prominent in the innovation of catering enterprises, customer participation plays asignificant role during the process of innovation in catering enterprises. The interactionbetween catering enterprises and customers during the innovation process can make cateringenterprises identify customers’ needs and preferences timely, improve catering products andservices constantly by seizing the market dynamics and development. Simultaneously, thisprocess can make customers understand the latest catering products and services, therebyimproving the innovation performance.Based on the above background, this dissertation mainly focused on whether customerparticipation in innovation has an influence on innovation performance of catering enterprises,through the combination method of theoretical research and empirical analysis. First of all,this dissertation reviewed the related research literatures, including the innovation in cateringenterprises, customer participation in innovation and innovation performance, analyzed theprocess of customer participation in innovation of catering enterprises, and pointed out thatthe essence of this process is that staffs should learn from the customers. Secondly, thisdissertation established a theoretical model which shows the impact path, and introducesupport for innovation as the antecedent variable, organizational learning as the interveningvariable and innovation performance as the outcome variable. Thirdly, an empirical study wasconducted by a questionnaire survey of46catering enterprises located in Guangzhou. Datacollected from their front-line staffs and customers was analyzed by correlation analysis andregression analysis through using SPSS18.0statistical analysis software, in order to test theresearch hypotheses. The research results show that:(1) Support for innovation in catering enterprises has a significantly positive influence oncustomer participation and organizational learning, which is the antecedent variable of theinteraction between customers and catering enterprises during the innovation process;(2) Customer participation in innovation and organizational learning have mutual impactin catering enterprises. This is a process of mutual promotion and spiral growth. (3) Customer participation in innovation has a significantly positive influence oninnovation performance of catering enterprises. Organizational learning also has asignificantly positive influence on innovation performance of catering enterprises. And,organizational learning mediate the relationship between customer participation andinnovation performance of catering enterprises.According to the outcomes of empirical analysis which have practical meanings, thisresearch provides a new way to improve innovation performance of catering enterprises fromthe perspective of customer participation in innovation. The new ways and new ideas arecatering enterprises should build an innovative mechanism; recognize the importance ofcustomer participation in innovation; improve the degree of customer participation ininnovation; set up the system of learning from customers.