The adoption of cloud computing technologies in the hospitality businesses within the framework of digital transformation and its effect on business performance

Cloud computing is a fundamental technology that enables integrated online provision of hardware and software for both individual users and businesses, providing significant advantages in terms of accessibility, cost effectiveness, flexibility and security. Hospitality businesses also benefit significantly from the opportunities offered by this technology in various areas such as digitalization of operational processes, development of customer relationship management, revenue optimization, reduction of error rates and increase of strategic flexibility. However, despite these advantages, it is noteworthy that the majority of studies on the adoption of cloud computing in the literature focus on technical and operational issues; and there is a limited number of studies in the tourism sector, especially in the context of hospitality businesses. The main purpose of the research is to determine the level of adoption of cloud computing technology hospitality enterprises operating in Turkey, to reveal the main factors that encourage or hinder this process and to analyze the effects of the technology in question on business performance. For this purpose, a theoretical model based on the integration of Diffusion of Innovation Theory (DOI) and Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework was developed to explain the relationships between the main factors affecting the adoption of cloud computing and performance outcomes. A total of 11 structures were formulated within the scope of the model, their reliability and validity analyses were conducted, and the relationships between the variables were tested through regression analyses. The research findings indicated that the "compatibility" element in particular had a strong and positive effect on the adoption of cloud technologies in hospitality businesses, while "complexity" and "security and privacy concerns" negatively and significantly affected the adoption. In addition, the "external support" and "technological readiness" factors also stood out as other important variables that positively affected the adoption of cloud technology. Contrary to expectations, no significant effect was observed for the "relative advantage" and "top management support" variables. Similarly, no significant effect was detected for the "organizational resources" and "competitive pressure" variables on the adoption of cloud computing. However, one of the strongest and most significant findings of the study is the positive and significant relationship established between the adoption of cloud computing and business performance. This situation reveals that cloud computing technologies have the potential to increase the overall performance of hospitality businesses. Key Words: Cloud Computing, Hospitality Businesses, Diffusion Of Innovation Theory (DOI), Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) Framework