Assessing information needs and external change

The managerial activity of learning about events and trends in the organization’s environment is known as environmental scanning. This process differs from industry or competitor analysis in two main respects: it is broad in scope and future‐directed. Assesses the extent to which information needs are currently met by scanning activities and profiles the “top 30” hospitality industry issues as reflected by UK‐based and North American hospitality management journals. Concludes with a priority ranking of the “top 30” issues assigned by UK hotel general managers and summary comments from this group on the implications for organizational learning.