Яшил иқтисодиёт ва тараққиёт 4-том 9-сан (2026) · 118-124-беттер
FROM AUTOMATION TO STANDARDIZATION: OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT CHALLENGES IN UZBEKISTAN’S HOSPITALITY SECTOR
Kadirova, Asal
Аннотация
In recent years, the hospitality industry in Uzbekistan has experienced significant growth, particularly overthe last decade, as international tourism has surged since the liberalization reforms of 2016 and reached unprecedentedlevels in 2025. This growth has been accompanied by substantial investment in digital and automated operational tools,such as property management systems, online booking engines, self-service kiosks, and artificial intelligence-enabledguest communication; however, formal service standardization has lagged behind. This paper explores the implications ofthis imbalance for operations management.The study was conducted in Samarkand, Bukhara, and Tashkent using a structured survey of hospitality operationsmanagers (n = 124) and fifteen semi-structured interviews. It examines the level of automation, the extent to which servicestandards are documented and enforced, and the operational challenges that managers associate with different levelsof automation and standardization. The resulting automation–standardization quadrants are described, with enterprisesreporting the greatest number of operational challenges in the high-automation–low-standardization quadrant and the fewestoperational challenges in the high-standardization–low-automation quadrant. This demonstrates that standardization, ratherthan the level of automation alone, can serve as a means of reducing operational friction.Themes emerging from the thematic analysis of interview data include role ambiguity, inadequate retraining,intergenerational staff resistance, and the absence of enforced national classification standards. The paper presents anAutomation–Standardization Alignment Matrix as a diagnostic and planning tool for operations managers in the hospitalitysector and provides policy recommendations for Uzbekistan’s tourism development strategy. The results contribute tothe body of operations management research on technology adoption in service industries of transitional economies andprovide valuable recommendations for hoteliers, hospitality education institutions, and tourism policymakers.
hospitality operations management, automation, service standardization, standard operating procedures, tourism industry, digital transformation, Uzbekistan
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