The reputation of companies in the tourism and restaurant industry has improved despite the challenges posed by the pandemic

T-Media’s Reputation&Trust of the travel and restaurant industry examined Finns’ views and perceptions of the sector. The survey reveals that the industry has been able to meet Finns’ expectations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

T-Media has been tracking the overall reputation of the Finnish travel and restaurant industry since 2018. A positive trend can be seen in the sector’s reputation: the overall reputation of the tourism and restaurant sector received a score of 3.33 this year, whereas in 2018 it was rated at 3.09 on a scale of 1–5.

 

 

“We have managed to maintain our positive reputation even though times have been challenging. This is particularly important for the tourism and restaurant industry, as reputation has a greater impact on people’s behavior—such as word-of-mouth recommendations and job searches—in this sector than it does for the average company operating in Finland,” says Elisa Runsas, an information management expert who led T-Media’s research roundup on the tourism and restaurant sector.

 

Strengths: adaptability and responsibility – areas for improvement in the employer brand

The reputation of the tourism and restaurant industry has improved over the past year in nearly all eight areas of reputation. The industry’s strongest areas of reputation are its ability to innovate and its commitment to responsibility.

“The tourism and restaurant industry has had to adapt its operations significantly in a short period of time. This has reinforced the public’s perception that companies in the industry are adaptable and innovative,” says Runsas.

 

 

“Although businesses in the tourism and restaurant sectors have been the focus of particular attention during the pandemic, the study shows that Finns view companies in these sectors as responsible actors. In fact, their rating for responsibility has risen significantly over the past year.”

The relative weakness of the tourism and restaurant sector’s reputation continues to stem from perceptions of companies in the sector as places to work. The overall rating for the sub-area measuring employer image has improved since 2018, but it still lags significantly behind the overall rating of companies operating in Finland in this sub-area.

“The perception of companies in the healthcare sector as employers has improved, but not enough. Layoffs during the pandemic have led staff to switch careers and pursue training in new fields, and there is currently a shortage of skilled professionals. This situation is putting even more pressure on companies in the sector to develop as employers and keep pace with the changing perception of them as employers,” says Harri Leinikka, CEO of T-Media.

 

Conducting the Study

The results are based on Reputation&Trust of the tourism and restaurant industry, conducted in April–May 2021, which examined the reputation of organizations in the sector operating in Finland among the Finnish public.

Organizations were evaluated using T-Media’s Reputation&Trust, in which an organization’s reputation score is calculated as the average of eight different categories. The areas are corporate governance, finance, leadership, innovation, interaction, products & services, workplace, and responsibility. The study used a five-point rating scale (1–5).

A total of 2,426 Finns participated in the survey. The survey targeted Finns aged 15–65 nationwide (excluding the Åland Islands). The sample was weighted to be representative of the population by gender, age, and region of residence.

 

For more information:

Harri Leinikka, CEO, T-Media
+358 40 505 5001, harri.leinikka@reptrust-staging.fi-p.seravo.com

Elisa Runsas, Sales Lead, T-Media
+358 50 468 8849, elisa.runsas@reptrust-staging.fi-p.seravo.com