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Abu Dhabi University’s Dr. Syed Zamberi Bin Ahmad, Professor of Management, received the 2020 Emerald Literati Award for his work titled: “Social media adoption and its impact on firm performance: the case of the UAE,” that was published in the International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research. Professor Barry O’Mahony was honored for his outstanding article entitled: “Designing memorable guest experiences: Development of constructs and value-generating factors in luxury hotels” in the Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights. 

The professors have been honored for their remarkable research work, which has contributed to the UAE’s knowledge economy. Commenting on the achievement, Dr. Zamberi said, “In our work, my co-authors and I were able to determine what influences social media adoption by small and medium-sized businesses in the United Arab Emirates. We then went on to explore the impact of social media on the performance of a business and were able to develop recommendations to help smaller businesses to use these technologies to respond to competitors with minimal cost”.

This is not the first win for Abu Dhabi University’s College of Business, which has won 6 Emerald Literati Awards in the past five years. Previous award holders of Emerald Literati Awards within the College of Business were Professor Syed Zamberi 2018/2019, Professor Fauzia Jabeen 2018 and 2019, Professor Sherine Farouk 2019, and Associate Professor Mohammed El Adly. 

Professor Barry O’Mahony, Dean of the College of Business said, “Our research set out to support the hospitality industry to develop the measures and tools they need to design experiences that meet guests’ expectations. The research identifies the most important things that hotels can do to generate memorable experiences for guests, which is particularly important for luxury hotels. As we emerge from COVID-19, managing the customer experience will be critical for hospitality businesses because business viability will depend on the delivery of valued guest experiences”.

“I was delighted to receive an award this year but more than that I'm extremely proud of my colleagues in the College of Business who have won 6 emerald literati awards in the last five years. These awards recognize the international value of our research and position Abu Dhabi University as a key player in global education. This recognition is also aligned with the vision of Abu Dhabi University to support the UAE to further develop the knowledge economy”, added Professor O’Mahony.