Strategic Analysis of the Contemporary Tour Operation Industry

2019 ◽  
pp. 144-165
Author(s):  
Zibanai Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Family Income ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Population Demographics ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
Strategic Intent ◽  
Travel And Tourism ◽  
Travel Agencies ◽  
Fluid Environment ◽  
Demographic Shifts

Tour operators and travel agencies are the fulcrum of the tour operation industry given their eminent role in the tour operation sector value chain. This chapter addresses an underrepresentation in the current tour operation discourse in the period post WW2. To put the matter into context, at the global stage, fundamental changes have occurred since the end of WW2, notably political cum socio-economic and demographic shifts, advances in education, and increases in per capita income due to dual family income among a raft of other variables. These have arguably boosted demand for packaged tour holiday. However, in spite of the highly fluid environment, there is little academic research on emerging economic jurisdictions in the TO and TAs sub-sectors' strategic intent in light of such profound developments. Very few researches have attempted to interrogate these pertinent issues in the context of emerging markets` view point. This chapter seeks to bridge this gap by analyzing how these fundamentals have informed and redefined the contours of the TO and TAs landscape. The chapter lays claim on and envisages to make theoretical contribution by advancing the frontiers of knowledge in the following specific domains of multi-destination theory, TO and TAs product development, population demographics, TO and TAs work ethic, and TO and TAs commitment to environment protection philosophy which have been understudied in the contemporary travel and tourism literature discourse.

Insights Into South Africa's Travel Agency Sector With Respect to Service Quality

2019 ◽  
pp. 101-115
Author(s):  
Vannie Naidoo
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
South African ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Professional Service ◽  
Travel Agency ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Travel And Tourism ◽  
Travel Agencies

Travel agencies remain important points of call for tourists wishing to travel locally or abroad. In South Africa, the Association of South African Travel Agencies (ASATA) drives the travel agency sector. The primary aim of ASATA is to maintain and further improve a sustainable and profitable sector of its members by ensuring the delivery of a professional service to the travelling consumer. This service is achievable by the travel agency or tour operators through a strong relationship and open dialogue being present with all stakeholders in the travel and tourism value chain. Since tour agencies operate in dynamic, continuously changing environments, the concept of service quality is an important strategic tool that can be used by a tour agency to retain its clients and attract new clients. Word of mouth is an excellent tool that can create brand awareness and build customer loyalty towards a tour agency. Travel agencies that provide superior quality service in those service offerings to their clients can be leaders in the travel agency sector. This chapter employs the qualitative research approach and looks at unpacking literature on the travel agency sector. Service quality in the sector in South Africa is another key theme explored.

scholarly journals The Political Stakes of Academic Research: Perspectives on Johannesburg

2005 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivor Chipkin
Keyword(s):  
Inner City ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Equality ◽  
Research Perspectives ◽  
Shift Analysis ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
The City ◽  
Political Question

Abstract:This article considers a burgeoning literature on Johannesburg from the perspective of the sorts of questions it asks about the city. There is a substantial and lively literature on questions of poverty and equality, class and race. These studies are strongly informed by the idea that the mechanisms that produce such inequalities are key to understanding the nature of Johannesburg as a city: in terms of how its economy works and how political institutions function, but also in terms of what sort of city Johannesburg is and can be. I consider sociological and economic studies of the inner city that try to account for demographic shifts in the inner city and for processes of social and physical degeneration. I review urban anthropologies of inner-city society, considering in particular new forms of social and economic organization among inner-city residents. Related to these, I discuss debates among scholars about the prospects for governing the city, paying special attention to the consequences for such readings on partnerships. I also discuss an emerging literature, critical of that above, which seeks to shift analysis of the city toward studies of culture and identity. These literatures do not simply approach the city through different disciplinary lenses (sociology or economy or anthropology or cultural studies) . They come to their studies from different normative perspectives. For some, the key political question of the day is one about social and political equality in its various forms. For others, it is about the degree to which Johannesburg (or Africa) is different from or the same as other places in the world. This paper has tried to bring to the fore the political (and not simply policy) consequences of these different views. It concludes not by seeking to reconcile these perspectives, but by suggesting a way of retaining a commitment to equality and justice while not reducing them simply to questions of economy. At stake, I argue, are questions of democratic culture and of sociability.

scholarly journals Socio-Economic Profile, Motivational Sources and Reason behind Joining the Farmer Producer Companies by the Dairy Farmers in India

2021 ◽  
pp. 35-44
Author(s):  
Sunil Kumar ◽  
Gopal Sankhala ◽  
Priyajoy Kar ◽  
Devendra Kumar Meena
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Family Income ◽  
Direct Marketing ◽  
Uttar Pradesh ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Motivational Factors ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Dairy Farmers ◽  
Economic Profile

Collective action approaches plays a significant role in solving marketing problems like providing the remunerative price of the product, eliminates the intermediaries from the agriculture value chain, and enhance the direct marketing between farmers and consumers. In these references, a new collective action approach being popularised in India i.e., farmer producer company. So, it is important to study the socio-economic characteristics of dairy farmers, motivational factors, and the reasons behind joining the FPCs. Hence a study was conducted from January 2020 at the three states i.e. Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh of India to investigate the socio-economic profile, motivational factors, and the reasons behind joining the FPCs among farmers. Primary data was collected through a semi-structured interview schedule using a sample of 360 farmers selected from twelve dairy-based FPCs of three states. Data were analyzed through frequency, range, and percentage. It was found that most farmers were middle-aged, possess small landholding, educated up to graduate level. The most important reason behind taking the membership of FPCs was to enhance the family income through FPCs, better price realization by FPCs, and quick payment settlement. Due to the above reasons, most of the farmers want to join FPCs in study areas. The result of the present study helps to enhance the membership of farmer Producer Company through formulating a suitable strategy that should attract the farmer to joining the farmer producer company. This also helps to identify the motivation sources and their credibility among farmers for convincing them for joining FPCs. It was also found that the participation of farmers in dairy-based farmer producer companies is largely dependent on the socio-economic characteristics of the dairy farmers.

scholarly journals Digital Echelons and Interfaces within Value Chains: End-to-End Marketing and Logistics Integration

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 13929
Author(s):  
Sergey Evgenievich Barykin ◽  
Elena Aleksandrovna Smirnova ◽  
Dan Chzhao ◽  
Irina Vasilievna Kapustina ◽  
Sergey Mikhailovich Sergeev ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Analytical Description ◽  
Digital Transformation ◽  
Management Support ◽  
Digital Platforms ◽  
Economic Relations ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
Software Products ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
End To End

The goals of real business in the context of the digital transformation of international logistics networks and marketing channels have necessitated the application of a scientifically based theoretical approach to the development of a formalized description acceptable for predictive planning based on leading indicators. In the context of globalization and interstate and regional economic unions, this will lead to achieving the maximum end-to-end integration of digital platforms. Based on the analysis, the article presents the integration of digital logistics and marketing approaches with the mathematical models of the ecosystem organization of economic relations. The features of the organization of economic relations between contractors involved in the execution of virtual transactions and the material movement of resources were analyzed. The researchers considered prerequisites for the analytical description of interconnections between the participants of digital platforms in cross border e-commerce. The authors’ approach is based on the idea of both a sales funnel in marketing and a conversion funnel in digital transformation. Considering the integration of logistics and marketing, authors offer the definition of business echelons as stages of the consumer value creation. The theoretical contribution of this article consists in constructing a mathematical description of business echelons along the entire value chain. The developed analytical description of business echelons is acceptable both for embedding a digital management support system into various software products, and for conducting in-depth analysis and finding optimal solutions.

The global internet market(s): a reconstruction of the views of the industry

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Paul Simon
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Business Models ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Comprehensive Overview ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
The Past ◽  
Internet Markets ◽  
Innovative Products ◽  
Internet Market

Purpose This paper aims to provide a synthesis of the evolution of the global internet markets through an assessment of their economic strength. It is an attempt to describe the various segments of the internet value chain and the evolution of the markets. It aims at briefly summing up the very dynamics of the sector, of the various subsectors while looking at the business models and the market capitalization. Design/methodology/approach The paper is a descriptive paper, presenting market trends, based on desk research and trade press. It is not meant to provide any theoretical contribution but attempting to reconstruct the views from the industry as documented by trade literature. Hence, the paper relies mostly on industry and consultancy data. The paper builds on a database collected by the author over the past 30 years and the selection of the relevant data to document and identify the trends and offer a synthesis of the views of the industry. Findings The paper shows how over the past 30 years the internet has changed dramatically from both a quantitative (reaching more and more users worldwide and witnessing a dramatic growth of all markets) and qualitative (offering an array of innovative products and services enabled by the deployment of new networks) and the availability of new devices. The paper reveals how each technological wave ushered in a series of innovation and new services, boosted the foundation and the growth of pioneering companies. Research limitations/implications Taking into account the lack of official data, the industry data used should be treated as just signals of potential trends, but sufficient to give an overview of the evolution of the global internet markets. Furthermore, detailed studies should complement this descriptive approach. The approach does have obvious methodological and theoretical limits, not providing a robust methodological framework just offering a reconstruction of the trends as documented by the trade publications. However, it concludes highlighting some of the tensions and contradictions. Practical implications The paper closes with a summary of the main transformations and considers some future developments. The paper draws some lessons from some failures and from the strategies of firms. Social implications The paper hints at the way users developed “unique” behaviors using social media, taking advantage of the new opportunities to exchange with others. The paper hints at some regulatory issues and challenges. Originality/value The paper briefly sums up the very dynamics of the global internet market(s). It attempts to characterize some of the main features of their evolution and of the main segments. If offers a comprehensive overview of available data.

Customer Satisfaction towards Hotel Industry in Malaysia: A Systematic Review of Pre-Covid19 Era

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norliza Aminudin ◽  
Nita Abdul Hassan ◽  
Nurul Fatiah Aishah Shaukani ◽  
Salamiah A Jamal
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Customer Satisfaction ◽  
Consumer Satisfaction ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Hotel Industry ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
Review Protocol ◽  
Accommodation Sector ◽  
Tourism And Hospitality

Customer satisfaction is a significant segment in the tourism and hospitality sector which resulted in increased attention to studies being conducted in all pillars of tourism including in the accommodation sector. This study aims to present the state of academic research in customer satisfaction attributes in the Malaysian hotel during the pre-Covid era. To achieve this aim, the objectives of this study are to provide a systematic review of the literature published on consumer satisfaction towards the hotel industry in Malaysia. A systematic literature review is conducted, and in a total of 17 key journal articles in the Scopus database up from 2000 until 2019, 20-years period taken into consideration, in which the review protocol proposed in this study makes use of specific techniques such as PRISMA, applied thematic analysis and bibliographic documentary review. The findings reveal that the staff prompt and courtesy of front desk attributes are frequently examined by researchers, followed by comfort and value for room attributes, accessibility of the facilities at the hotel and a variety of food and beverages were the important attributes for the customer satisfaction towards Malaysian hotel industry. The theoretical contribution of this study includes the presentation of a systematic review of the literature, different research approaches and perspectives on customer satisfaction towards the hotel industry, through which it helps to enrich knowledge in the area of hotel attributes on customer satisfaction in the hotel business.

3D technology in fashion: from concept to consumer

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 240-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronica Arribas ◽  
José A. Alfaro
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Digital Technology ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Digital Culture ◽  
Fashion Industry ◽  
3D Technology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Haute Couture ◽  
3D Software

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to show how 3D digital technology can bring value to the fashion industry by analysing the specific benefits it offers along the value chain. Additionally, the authors show some of the challenges ahead identified for both software and fashion firms. Design/methodology/approach The authors present by means of a case study the experience of an haute couture designer who used 3D digital technology – in collaboration with a recognised 3D software company – for developing his first luxury footwear collection. Findings The enhancement of creativity and a better communication with suppliers are just some of the benefits identified in the case study from the use of 3D digital technology. In addition, challenges such as the development of a digital culture or the need for technology simplification are drawn from the case. Practical implications Apart from the benefits and challenges drawn from the case study, which can be useful to practitioners in this industry, the authors also identify the collaboration through which the experience took place as an interesting practice to implement as a previous step of a digital transformation strategy. Originality/value Despite the growing interest the fashion industry is showing in the use of new digital technologies, academic research on this topic is still scarce. Therefore, the case study presented in this paper adds value to the literature showing how 3D technology can help fashion from concept to consumer.

Institutional distance, firm heterogeneities, and FDI location choice of EMNEs

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Zheng ◽  
Daying Yan ◽  
Bing Ren
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Location Choice ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Institutional Distance ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Positive Direction ◽  
Holistic View ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Intent

Purpose This paper aims to propose an integrated framework combining the cost-reduction rationale and the institution-leveraging rationale to explain how institutional distance, both formal and informal, influences emerging multinational enterprises (EMNEs)’ foreign direct investment (FDI) location choice. This paper also explores the moderating role of EMNEs’ FDI experience and strategic intent on value chain positioning as a reflection of firm heterogeneities, on the link between institutional distance and location choice. Design/methodology/approach This paper tests the hypotheses based on a firm-level longitudinal data set of FDI by Chinese EMNEs. The unique data are manually collected from Chinese companies listed on Shenzhen and Shanghai Stock Exchanges, composed of 250 FDI entries of 122 manufacturing firms from 2006 to 2010. The conditional logit model is used to estimate the proposed main effect and moderating effect. Findings Cultural distance does not deter Chinese EMNEs’ entrance in general, but firms investing in low value-added manufacturing subsidiaries are more likely to choose culturally similar countries than those investing in high value-added subsidiaries such as in upstream R&D and downstream marketing. Formal institutional distance with positive direction promotes Chinese EMNEs’ entrance, and this effect is enhanced when firms have less FDI experience and have the strategic intent to invest in high value-added subsidiaries. Originality/value This paper contributes to the current literature by identifying a holistic view of the institutional influences on FDI location choice of EMNEs and revealing how firm-level heterogeneities, particularly FDI experience and strategic intent of subsidiary value chain positioning, shape the boundary conditions of the institutional effects in different ways.

International firms in Africa’s food retail business-emerging issues and research agenda

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 448-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix Adamu Nandonde ◽  
John Kuada
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Retail Sector ◽  
Food Retail ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Retail Business ◽  
Emerging Issues ◽  
Buying Behaviour

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the state of the retail sector in Sub-Saharan Africa, to point out the lack of information on some critical issues and to raise some questions about relevant topics for researchers and practitioners in the retail area for the African market. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is comprised of a comprehensive review of the literature and integrates the fragmented body of knowledge on the area of retail internationalisation and food marketing. The gaps in the literature identified here may help to understand the sector better and develop academic research agendas on both the growth of the modern food retail sector and the agribusiness sector in Africa. Findings – Four major topics were identified in the urban agri-food retail business in the African continent: large global retailers in Africa’s food sector; the internationalisation of African food retailers; the procurement practices of international retailers; and, the food-buying behaviour of Africa’s middle class. Originality/value – This research paper relied heavily on grey literature such as newspapers and unpublished masters’ dissertations and PhD theses. With this material as a context, this paper provides guidance as to how scholars can advance the study of retail internationalisation in Africa, not only through further empirical and conceptual research but also by developing usable prescriptions for agribusiness value-chain actors on the continent.

Proposing an information value chain to improve information services to disabled library patrons using assistive technologies

2021 ◽  
pp. 016555152098471
Author(s):  
Devendra Potnis ◽  
Kevin Mallary
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Academic Libraries ◽  
The United States ◽  
Information Services ◽  
Assistive Technologies ◽  
Information Value ◽  
Work Practices ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Qualitative Responses

Information services offered by academic libraries increasingly rely on assistive technologies (AT) to facilitate disabled patrons’ retrieval and use of information for learning and teaching. However, disabled patrons’ access to AT might not always lead to their use, resulting in the underutilization of information services offered by academic libraries. We adopt an inward-looking, service innovation perspective to improve information services for disabled patrons using AT. The open coding of qualitative responses collected from administrators and librarians in 186 academic libraries in public universities in the United States, reveals 10 mechanisms (i.e. modified work practices), which involve searching, compiling, mixing, framing, sharing, or reusing information, and learning from it. Based on this information-centric reorganisation of work practices, we propose an ‘information value chain’, like Porter’s value chain, for improving information services to disabled patrons using AT in academic libraries, which is the major theoretical contribution of our study.

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