Organizational Adaption to External Change in Tourism: The Case of the Fred Harvey Company

Abstract

Organizational adaptations are strategic choices organizations make to adapt to changed market conditions. Those adaptations come about through internal change or through mergers and acquisitions. The Fred Harvey Company changed and adapted exceptionally well to serve customers in more than one industry and in rapidly changing business environments. The company was first linked to the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe Railway and as westward traffic moved from railroads to highways, it was linked to U. S. Route 66. The company supplied eating places--Harvey Houses—and newsstands along the railroad and Route 66. The railroad changed when Route 66 was developed, and Route 66 changed with the Interstate Highway system, and the Harvey Company changed with them.