Use of E-tools opportunities by italian hospitality SMEs

The digitalization and the use of Internet have represented a major opportunity for the development and sometimes, for the revitalization of the companies and their products. In crisis time, the chances to reduce time and costs represent a great possibility, especially for the hotel sector that is increasingly competitive, demanding from the organizations a rapid reaction.In theory,both from the organizational and managerial point of view digital activities play a key role, but what role plays the technological equipment of enterprises and the orientation of managers that manage it towards innovation in practice? In this study the usage of web-based tools by hospitality SMEs for different business operations was verified. Firstly, the previous literature in this field was reviewed in order to synthesize it. Secondly, the empirical analysis was conducted by means of 9 case studies based on in-depth interviews with hotels’ managers of 5 Italian regions for the purpose of identification of e-tools use, especially in turbulence times.