Confucian Values and Their Implications for the Tourism Industry

The significance of understanding different cultures is well evidenced by a series of recent reports and as Australia situates itself more authentically in the Asian Pacific region of the world, and educational, business and political ties are strengthened with Asia, it is imperative that the aspiring business person and in particular, tourism professionals broaden their understanding of Asian cultures. This paper recognises Confucianism as a key philosophical underpinning to many Asian societies. Bearing in mind that approximately one quarter of the world's population has a Confucian heritage, that the Chinese diaspora around the world is notable, that a variety of scholars have predicted a revival in Confucian thought and that there are significant numbers of Confucian travellers, the clear conclusion that one is drawn to is that it may be useful, if not indeed necessary, to recognise the key elements of the Confucian value system when developing, marketing and managing tourism experiences. This paper outlines the key tenets of Confucianism that underpin human relations and interactions. It then discusses the implications of Confucian values to tourism management and marketing in three specific areas: individualism, protocol, and business and social ethics

Linking Learning Style Preferences and Ethnicity: International Students Studying Hospitality and Tourism Management in Australia

International student enrolment at Australian higher education institutions has grown significantly over the past decade. Traditionally, many international students that study for an Australian qualification originate from Asia and a majority of these students are of Confucian culture heritage. While there is a growing body of literature that explores learning issues of Asian students involved in Australian higher education, there are examples in the literature that promote stereotypical views of the strengths and weaknesses of international students. This paper examines the individual and collective preferred learning style of a sample of Confucian heritage culture university students, analyses links between ethnic origins and preferred learning style and suggests that preferred learning styles should be taken into consideration when developing curriculum which is accessed by international students

The employability prospects of graduates in event management: Using data from job advertisements

As the higher education environment becomes increasingly competitive, prospective students are more likely to compare graduate employability prospects of different universities and different courses. Consequently, the viability of courses is being increasingly challenged with market viability based predominately on student demand, which is often based on their perceptions of workplace requirements. Event management has emerged to become a key sector of the Australian tourism industry and this has given some impetus to the need for tertiary educated event managers and for an evaluation of educational curriculum. To provide an indication of current employer requirements, a nationwide study of web-based job advertisements is being currently conducted. This paper reports the results from a content analysis of 105 job advertisements. The results reveal the range of industries that require event management specialists or skills, and a series of required skills and key attributes of event managers. The results of this study establish a platform from which to develop a classification of event management skills required by the industry. More importantly however, it can be used as the basis for curriculum evaluation and training needs, and create a better understanding and compatibility between event management education and industry practice

A national government’s tourism innovation initiatives: A review of tourism development policies in Norway

Innovation in tourism has becoming increasingly important to create destination competitiveness. There is however poor understanding of the national government’s initiatives and role in tourism innovation. This study has reviewed tourism development policies in Norway using content analysis. The result indicates that the government recognises the importance of innovation in tourism and innovation is also encouraged. Nevertheless, through the three significant themes including network and collaboration, innovation in SMEs, and funding and support it has been revealed that government initiatives in developing an innovative tourism industry are not entirely new. In addition, the government may also be playing a too passive role as many of the innovation initiatives are emphasised as the responsibility of the private sector. Further studies which consider policies as well as perspectives of both Government officials and industry representatives or operators are needed in order to further understand government’s role in tourism innovation

Professionalising Event Practitioners: The Educational Role of Event Management Associations

The proliferation of events in recent decades has resulted in a burgeoning of the event management industry. As the event management industry grows and consolidates worldwide, associations play an increasingly significant role in professional support to the industry by ensuring the continued growth and success of event management professionals. This paper reviews the literature on professional associations and specifically explores the educational role of event management associations. It concludes that professional event management associations play a significant role in providing strategic direction to the event management industry. An important component of this is providing educational direction and services that aim at professionalising event management and event management practitioners

Transformational benefits from a visit to a multicultural festival: The case of South Korea

This paper investigates the benefits the dominant population has gained from a visit to a multicultural festival in South Korea. The paper aims to improve the understanding of these festivals and explores the contribution of multicultural festivals to building a better multicultural society. The transformational benefit is recognised as the greatest benefit the dominant population gained from attending a multicultural festival concerning the four factors identified (transformational, cognitive, social and affective benefits). Differences were found in the benefits from a visit to a multicultural festival between the dominant population exposed to multiculturalism and one that is not exposed to multiculturalism. It is believed that the findings of this study will help all key stakeholders to more fully understand how multicultural festivals contribute to social harmony and social integration

Comparing supply and demand perspectives of destination competitiveness

The measurement of destination competitiveness usually entails the adoption of either a demand or supply perspective. The former comprises of collecting data from tourists while the latter involves supply-side stakeholders such as business owners and government entities. The overall aim of this paper is to challenge the idea of a choice between the two perspectives and to propose an evaluative framework that combines both: the Supply-Demand Analysis of Competitiveness. Its application is also presented and discussed using the city of Lisbon, Portugal as a case

Chinese visitors at Australia wineries: Preferences, motivations, and barriers

China has become Australia’s most important source market and there are growing number of visitors participated in wine tourism. Using in-depth interviews, the study looked into Chinese tourists’ preferences, motivations and barriers to participate in wineries tours in Australia. The study enriched to literature on wine tourism. It offered practical implications for wineries and destinations to better understand and accommodate Chinese wine tourists’ needs and preferences

Towards a typology of virtual events

Despite the mounting prominence of COVID-induced virtual substitutes to face-to-face events, the boundaries and terminology between different types of virtual events have not been clearly defined. Theoretical misconceptions exist surrounding the diffusion of virtual reality and existing virtual events into the tourism, hospitality and events sectors, with conceptual ambiguity generating contention. Consequently, this paper develops a typology of virtual events designed to clarify theoretical misconceptions and establish clear limits whereby all virtual events can be classified. Integrating the three dimensions of social presence, virtuality of environment, and location, the SPEL cube is presented as a conceptual model. This paper contributes to understanding the extant literature and practices of virtual events, providing implications for the management of events in the tourism, hospitality, and events sectors; and delivering a foundation for future research into optimal adaptations of immersive technologies

A Review of Web-Based Job Advertisements for Australian Event Management Positions

Strong growths in the Australian event management industry, ongoing technological changes and the internationalisation of the market place has spurred the need for appropriately educated and trained event managers and for a re-evaluation of educational and job training curriculum to meet these new challenges. In order for Australia to position itself as a world leader in event management, it is important to provide consistent high professional standards and event managers that not only meet, but exceed the demands of the industry. While there is some literature that focuses on the tourism and leisure job market (Crossley, 1992; Keung & Pine, 2000), and a small but developing literature base that focuses on event management training (Harris & Jago, 1999; Hawkins & Goldbatt, 1995) relatively little consideration has been given to a national agenda for event management skilling. To provide an indication of current employer requirements, a nationwide study of job advertisements in event management has commenced. The aims of the study are to further the understanding of the educational needs and training requirements of the industry; to ascertain the learned skills and personal attributes sought from event managers; to determine the compatibility of industry demands with current educational and vocational provisions; and to suggest post-secondary institutional avenues through which event management education and training needs can be pursued. This is an ongoing study and it is hoped that it will contribute towards a broad scale understanding of the event management job market. More importantly however, it can be used as the basis for curriculum evaluation and training needs, and create a better understanding and compatibility between event management education and industry practice. This paper reports the preliminary results from a content analysis of approximately 100 web-based job advertisements. Email alert accounts were established with several search engines to gather a sample of event management related job advertisements from around Australia. An analytical framework was devised for the analysis of the advertisements themselves. The results reveal several interesting trends including the geographical concentration of the event management job market, the range of industries that require event management specialists or event management skills, and a series of required skills and key attributes of event managers. The results of this study establish a platform from which to develop a classification of event management skills required by the industry