Digital Transformation and Service Quality as Determinants of Tourism Enterprise Competitiveness: Evidence from Uzbekistan
Keywords:
digital transformation, service quality, competitiveness, tourism enterprises, Travel & Tourism Development Index, UzbekistanAbstract
Research objectives: This study examines how digital transformation and service quality are positioned as determinants of tourism enterprise competitiveness in Uzbekistan, and it derives a testable framework for enterprise-level research. Design/Methodology/Approach: A triangulated secondary-evidence analysis was conducted. It combined official foreign-arrival statistics for 2021–2025, reported tourism export revenue, the 17 pillar scores of the World Economic Forum's Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024, and a chronology of national digital-tourism initiatives. Growth rates, shares and pillar gaps were computed and mapped onto a framework linking digital transformation, service quality and competitiveness. Research findings: Foreign arrivals rose from 1.88 to 11.68 million between 2021 and 2025 (compound annual growth of 57.9%), and tourism exports reached USD 4.8 billion in 2025. Visits to relatives made up 67.3% of arrivals, and leisure and business trips together 27.8%. Uzbekistan ranked 78th of 119 economies in TTDI 2024 with a score of 3.68. Its ICT Readiness score (5.02) exceeded its Tourist Services and Infrastructure score (1.45) by 3.57 points. Theoretical contributions/Originality: The study links national digital-platform initiatives and TTDI pillars to enterprise-level constructs, identifies a gap between digital readiness and service capacity, and formulates five testable propositions. Implications for practitioners/policy: Enterprises should pair digital tools with service-quality capability and staff skills. Policymakers can connect the national tourism platform with quality standards and enterprise-level data collection. Limitations/Research implications: The data are aggregate and secondary, TTDI 2024 reflects data collected up to the end of 2023, and no enterprise-level effects were estimated. A survey-based structural model of tourism enterprises is needed.
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