The use of dynamic capabilities and ambidexterity in hospitality SMEs to address gay-village decline

Holzapfel-Barta, Roger

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The use of dynamic capabilities and ambidexterity in hospitality SMEs to address gay-village decline

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Holzapfel-Barta, Roger (2025) The use of dynamic capabilities and ambidexterity in hospitality SMEs to address gay-village decline. PhD thesis, University of Gloucestershire. doi:10.46289/TZLD6510

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Abstract

The available theory on the perspectives of hospitality companies within gay villages is scarce or outdated; scientific literature provides little guidance on the potential evolutionary outcomes of such organizations. However, there is ample business evidence that gay villages in most of the Western World are on a decline, including German-speaking Europe. Management science papers on gay-oriented hospitality SMEs outside the Anglo-Saxon world are scarce, as are those outside metronormative spheres. This thesis aims to reveal how managers of such hard-to-access establishments in three German-speaking countries, including Germany, Austria and Switzerland, perceive the external and internal forces that have led to an environment of decline for many players in their segment and to a loss of several gay-village landmarks. To achieve this, the study is based on a comprehensive set of in-depth, qualitative managerial interviews conducted in diverse geographical locations, complemented by field notes, which provide a comprehensive, provider-based view of gay-village developments in the region. The thesis employs the dynamic-capability framework to demonstrate how the idiosyncrasies of this unique industry influence the deployment of organizational capabilities and identifies specific hindrances that arise. In addition to revealing ample evidence of dynamic capability use in this under-researched arena, the thesis also theoretically aligns capability use with the concept of ambidexterity to determine the core dynamic capability, which has long been sought in the relevant literature. It is then this core dynamic capability that forms the basis of an extended model of gay-village evolution and is shown to be the primary determinant of the future viability of individual businesses within the gay village. The contributions are manifold: the thesis combines earlier research, predominantly rooted in urban geography, sociology, sexuality, and health studies, with the business-oriented spheres of dynamic capability and ambidexterity, to reveal new, managerially relevant findings concerning gay-village evolution. It provides an exhaustive catalogue of dynamic-capability deployment within gay-oriented hospitality, an area that has been entirely neglected in this regard. Furthermore, it conceptualizes a combined framework of the related arenas of dynamic capabilities and ambidexterity in a theoretically innovative manner. Due to its location at the intersection of the aforementioned various strains of science, the thesis responds to several calls stemming from each of those strains, all while utilizing an unusual industry that has rarely been a focal point for scientific endeavours. Additionally, the study helps inform our empirical understanding of how gay-oriented hospitality organizations progress through their organizational life cycles. It also reveals new trends in general gay-village evolution, including the changing composition of gay villages and how such gay villages interact with one another across various regions. Lastly, and most importantly, the thesis helps reveal how gay identity is manifested in entrepreneurial efforts. It thereby lends a voice in academic discussions to a frequently marginalized set of business providers that are deeply embedded in their minority community, have had to endure a history of oppression, and are now facing potentially destructive market threats.

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Thesis (PhD)

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