Models of tourism destination competitiveness

Poter`s Diamond model, is supposed to represent how an economy , firm or cluster can create competitive advantage, through its four facets as:

(a) Firm strategy, structure and rivalry:reflects attitudes toward competition, market institutions, degree of competition in domestic market and other cultural and historical factors

(b) Factor conditions reflect:human resources, specialized infrastructure(physical and administrative) and natural resources, capital resources

(c) Demand conditions reflect:sophisticated and demanding local customers that push firms on innovation, unusual local demand in specialized segments that can serve globally and customer need that anticipate those elsewhere

(d) Related and supporting industries:presence of capable local based suppliers and competitive related industries, stimulate cooperation and rivalry and ultimately lead for competitiveness.

Government can influence each of the above four determinants of competitiveness. Clearly government can influence the supply conditions of key production factors, demand conditions in the home market, and competition between firms. Government interventions can occur at local, regional, national or supranational level.

Chance events are occurrences that are outside of control of a firm. They are important because they create discontinuities in which some gain competitive positions and some lose.

Poon (1993) suggests four key principles which destinations must follow if they are to be competitive:

put the environment first_____________________________________________

make tourism a leading sector________________________________________

strengthen the distribution channels in the market place;___________________

build a dynamic private sector________________________________________

Go and Govers (1999)suggests seven attributes of destinationcompetitiveness:

facilities_________________________________________________________

accessibility______________________________________________________

quality of service___________________________________________________

overall affordability________________________________________________

location image____________________________________________________

climate__________________________________________________________

environment______________________________________________________

attractiveness_____________________________________________________

Hassan (2000) posits four determinants of market competitiveness:

comparative advantage(includes those factors associated with both the macro and micro environments that are critical to market competitiveness)__________

________________________________________________________________

demand orientation (the destination’s ability to respond to the changing nature of the market demand)______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

industry structure (existence or absence of an organized tourism-related industry)_________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

environmental commitment (the destination’s commitment to the environment)

________________________________________________________________

Ernie Heath’s Model (2003) is presented in the form of a house with foundations, cement, building blocks and roof:

1. The Foundations provide an essential base for competitiveness. These include:

· Providing and Managing the Key Attractors (e.g. history, culture, climate, events, entertainment, etc.);

· Optimising the Comparative and Competitive Advantages;

· Addressing the Fundamental Non-negotiables (e.g. personal, safety and health issues);

· Providing the Enablers (e.g. infrastructure (airports,roads, signage, etc.), managing capacity);

· Capitalising on the‘Value Adders’ (e.g. location,value, and destinationlinkages);

· Ensuring Appropriate Facilitators (e.g. appropriate airline capacity, accommodation, distributionchannels, etc.);

· Focusing on the Experience Enhancers (e.g. hospitality, service excellence, authentic experiences).

2. ´ The Cement binds and links the respective facets of competitiveness. These include:

· continuous and transparent communication channels;

· balancing direct and indirect stakeholder involvement and beneficiation;

· information management, research and forecasting;

· managing competitive indicators and benchmarks.

3. The Building Blocks are essential to make tourism ‘happen’ in a destination. These include:

· Sustainable Development Policy and Framework (policy and legislative framework, organisational and financing framework,resources and capabilities, investment climate, sustainable environmental principles);

· Strategic and Holistic Destination Marketing Framework and Strategy (destination image and branding, competitive positioning, target marketing/demand management, innovative marketing strategies, visitor satisfaction management).

4. ´ The Roof (the key success drivers) comprises the ‘people’ part of destination competitiveness. These include:

· shared tourism vision and leadership,

· guiding values and principles,

· placing strategic priority on the ‘people’ factor (political will, entrepreneurship, community focus and human resources development).

Date: 2016-03-03; view: 535