Expectations are high for digital technologies to address sustainability related challenges. While research into such applications and the twin transformation is growing rapidly, insights in the actual daily practices of digital sustainability within organizations is lacking. This is problematic as the contributions of digital tools to sustainability goals gain shape in organizational practices. To bridge this gap, we develop a theoretical perspective on digital sustainability practices based on practice theory, with an emphasis on the concept of sociomateriality. We argue that connecting meanings related to sustainability with digital technologies is essential to establish beneficial practices. Next, we contend that the meaning of sustainability is contextspecific, which calls for a local meaning making process. Based on our theoretical exploration we develop an empirical research agenda.
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While luxury accommodation experience research has increased in the last decade, the field shows little accumulation of knowledge over time, requiring further foundational development. This study presents a meta-ethnographic synthesis of sixteen qualitative studies to propose a new conceptualisation of the luxury accommodation experience. The study follows Noblit and Hare (1988) seven-steps methodology for the interpretative synthesis of qualitative empirical studies, an under-utilised methodology introduced by Smit, Melissen, Font, and Gkritzali (2020) in tourism and hospitality research. The synthesis model highlights the emotional, multi-dimensional and process-driven nature of the luxury accommodation experiences, created by guests, hosts, and external others through the social interaction occurring within a physical and sensorial environment and influenced by personal and situational factors. The synthesis also underlines three factors characterising the luxury accommodation experience, congruence, culture, and collaboration, providing a foundational framework to advance hospitality luxury experience research. Implications for practitioners are also highlighted.
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The model of the Best Practice Unit (BPU) is a specific form of practice based research. It is a variation of the Community of Practice (CoP) as developed by Wenger, McDermott and Snyder (2002) with the specific aim to innovate a professional practice by combining learning, development and research. We have applied the model over the past 10 years in the domain of care and social welfare in the Netherlands. Characteristics of the model are: the interaction between individual and collective learning processes, the development of (new or better) working methods, and the implementation of these methods in daily practice. Multiple knowledge sources are being used: experiential knowledge, professional knowledge and scientific knowledge. Research is serving diverse purposes: articulating tacit knowledge, documenting the learning and innovation process, systematically describing the revealed or developed ways of working, and evaluating the efficacy of new methods. An analysis of 10 different research projects shows that the BPU is an effective model.
