Business growth of a hospitality IT solutions provider: a success case of Intahub (Pvt) Ltd

Abstract

The hospitality IT solutions industry of Sri Lanka can be considered as an oligopoly market, with few established Sri Lankan players and a couple of global and regional giants catering the high-end customers. Intahub (Private) Limited entered the market in 2015 with an innovative product, which was not offered by the Sri Lankan players. Within the three-year journey, the company has achieved a significant business growth, competing with quarter century old firms. The main purpose of the study was to explore the drivers that contributed to the business growth of Intahub. Business growth being the outcome of the case framework, four key drivers were identified contributing towards the business growth. The environmental moderator identified at Intahub was the competitive environment. Several secondary data sources were used in obtaining the preliminary information related to the case. This was followed by primary data gathering techniques, such as in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. Selection of employees covered both solution development staff and marketing staff, representing different levels of the organization. Collected qualitative data was analysed using the thematic analysis method. Entrepreneurial characteristics were identified as a key contributor, where the solid education background, compelling �entrepreneurial story�, prior experience, and social networks of the owner have contributed towards the success case of Intahub. Human talent of the company has favourably contributed towards its success case, where competencies and commitment of employees have been more dominant. However, employee contribution has been less dominant at Intahub. Strategic alliances were identified as another key driver. Factors contributing towards a long-lasting relationship were identified as picking a good partner, equal sharing of benefits among the partners, and enhancing the trust by keeping their commitments. Value innovation through buyer value creation and cost elimination