OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE AS A CORPORATE GOVERNANCE MECHANISM IN SLOVENIAN HOTELS

Rad istražuje odnos između vlasničke strukture i poslovanja poduzeća u slovenskoj hotelskoj industiji u svjetlu teorije korporativnog upravljanja i aktualnog procesa privatizacije. Postojeća istraživanja na primjeru Slovenije pokazala su da je država pasivan i loš vlasnik, dok su privatni vlasnici (domaća i strana poduzeća) i zaposleni aktivni vlasnici zainteresirani za uspješnost poslovanja poduzeća. Rezultati našeg istraživanja su pokazali da privatizacija hotelskih poduzeća u Sloveniji nije završena te da su investicijski i državni fondovi još uvijek vlasnici značajnog dijela slovenskih hotelskih poduzeća. Poslovanje hotelskih poduzeća je slabije od ostalih poduzeća u slovenskom gpospodarstvu i može se povezati s vlasničkom strukturom. Sadašnja vlasnička struktura ima negativan utjecaj na konkurentnost hotelskog sektora. Zato je potrebna promjena vlasništva koja bi potakla povećanje konkurentnosti hotelskog sektora i Slovenije kao turističkog odredišta.This paper analyses ownership structure and company performance in the light of corporate governance theory and the actual privatisation process. Previous research has proven that the Slovenian state is a poor and passive owner, whereas private owners and employees are more active and more interested in their company’s economic performance. This paper shows that the transition to private ownership in the Slovenian hotel sector has not been finished. Consequently, state-owned and investment funds remain important owners of Slovenian hotels. The financial performance of hotel companies is below average in the economy and can be correlated with the current ownership structure. Since the current ownership structure has a negative impact on the hotel sector competitiveness, an ownership change is needed to boost the sector’s competitiveness and the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourist destination

Ekološko orijentirani menadžment u turizmu sa stvarnim eko orijentiranim karakteristikama (postupak za postizanje stvarnih eko-orijentiranih karakteristika)

Die natürlichen, kulturellen und sozialen Atraktivitäeten der Tourismusdestination stellen die Anziehungskraft für die touristische Nachfrage dar. Deswegen ist die Umwelttourismusmanagement eine Notwendigkeit für erfolgreiche Tourismus-betriebswirtschaft. Es geht um eine Verstärkung ökologisch orientierten Denkens und Handels, die durch verschiedene Formen erfolgen kann. Ökologische Kennzeichnung stellt eine Möglichkeit dar. Die Autorin unterscheidet drei Arten der Umweltkennzeichnung (Umweltzeichen, Umweltgütezeichen, kombinierte Umweltkennzeichnung). Wesentlich für die Objektivität der Ökokennzeichnung ist die Objektivität der Vergabe. Das objektive Verfahren für Ökokennzeichungvergabe ist vorgeschlagen und am Beispiel der Blauen Flagge dargestellt. Es wird zwischen objektiven und subjektiven (Quasi) öko-Kennzeichen unterschieden.Stvarne kulturološke i sociološke atrakcije turističkih destinacija predstavljaju privlačnu silu turističke ponude. Zbog toga je ekološko orijentirani menadžment nužna potreba za uspješno turističko poslovanje. Potrebno je osnažiti ekološko-orijentiran način razmišljanja i djelovanja koji se može iskazati na nekoliko načina. Autorica razlikuje tri vrste ekološko orijentiranih postupaka i značajki (ekološko orijentirane karakteristike, ekološko orijentirane karakteristike dobara, kombinirano ekološko orijentirane karakteristike). Naravno za objektivnost u pogledu ekološko orijentiranog označavanja (karakteristika) potrebna je objektivna procjena. Objektivni postupak za davanje eko-orijentiranih značajki pojedinim proizvodima i aktivnostima, te destinacijama, predložen je primjerom Plave zastave koja se razlikuje između objektivnih i subjektivnih (ili quasi) ekoloških karakteristika

Ownership Structure as a Corporate Governance Mechanism in Slovenian Hotels

This paper analyses ownership structure and company performance in the light of corporate governance theory and the actual privatisation process. Previous research has proven that the Slovenian state is a poor and passive owner, whereas private owners and employees are more active and more interested in their company’s economic performance. This paper shows that the transition to private ownership in the Slovenian hotel sector has not been finished. Consequently, state-owned and investment funds remain important owners of Slovenian hotels. The financial performance of hotel companies is below average in the economy and can be correlated with the current ownership structure. Since the current ownership structure has a negative impact on the hotel sector competitiveness, an ownership change is needed to boost the sector’s competitiveness and the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourist destination

Ownership Structure as a Corporate Governance Mechanism in Slovenian Hotels

This paper analyses ownership structure and company performance in the light of corporate governance theory and the actual privatisation process. Previous research has proven that the Slovenian state is a poor and passive owner, whereas private owners and employees are more active and more interested in their company’s economic performance. This paper shows that the transition to private ownership in the Slovenian hotel sector has not been finished. Consequently, state-owned and investment funds remain important owners of Slovenian hotels. The financial performance of hotel companies is below average in the economy and can be correlated with the current ownership structure. Since the current ownership structure has a negative impact on the hotel sector competitiveness, an ownership change is needed to boost the sector’s competitiveness and the competitiveness of Slovenia as a tourist destination

The changing role of ICT competitiveness: the case of the Slovenian hotel sector

The purpose of the article is to survey the role of information and communication technology (ICT) for hotel firm’s competitiveness. Based on competitive advantage factor (CAF) and resource theory, this article empirically tests ICT as one of several possible competitiveness factors. The research is focused on analyse of ICT competitiveness position over time, with special attention to different generations of ICT technologies. An electronic survey instrument has been used to collect Slovenian hotel manager’s opinion on competitiveness resources in 2000 and 2010. Hypothesis testing and cluster analyses has been applied, SPSS was also used. The article’s findings indicate that hotels need time to recognise the competitiveness potential of every new resource, and once they start to implement it its importance may change over time. Some firms might be slower in implementing new ICT resources, yet, over time, the resource use converges among the firms. The process is repeated with every new ICT generation. The study informs firms and researchers on practical and research issues forthcoming with ICT progression. Research results directly benefits hotel managers by providing actual information on how to employ different generations of ICT. This contribution is a novel way of connecting a firm’s competitiveness with different web generations over time

DETERMINING IMPORTANT ENVIRONMENTS FOR MOUNTAIN DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT

Planinske destinacije sve više u turizmu vide mogućnosti za svoj razvoj. Kako bi se održao korak s neprestanim promjenama, neophodno je odrediti okoliše koji pridonose održivom razvoju turizma. Ovaj rad ima za cilj odrediti elemente i čimbenike destinacijskih okoliša važnih za razvoj planinskih destinacija. Popis mogućih elemenata pronađenih u literaturi poslan je turističkim menadžerima i znanstvenicima koji su ocijenili njihovu važnost za razvoj planinskih destinacija. Provedena je faktorska analiza u kojoj su korišteni samo važni elementi. Identificirani su sljedeći čimbenici: tehološki okoliš, socio-kulturni okoliš, prirodni okoliš te politički i pravni okoliš. Među tim čimbenicima nije identificiran ekonomski okoliš te se u radu istražuje zašto je tomu tako. Ovo istraživanje pruža dodatna saznanja korisna sveučilišnoj zajednici i dionicima u planinskim destinacijama. Usto, menadžerima planinskih destinacija donosi informacije o tome koji čimbenici okoliša pridonose održivom razvoju destinacije.Mountain destinations are increasingly seeking their development opportunities in tourism. In order to keep pace with rapidly changing situations, it is necessary to determine the environments that contribute to sustainable tourism development. The purpose of this paper is to determine the elements and factors of destination environments that are important for mountain destination development. A literature-based list of possible elements was sent to tourism managers and researchers who evaluated their importance for mountain destination development. Factor analysis was then conducted, using only the important elements. The identified factors are: technological environment, socio-cultural environment, natural environment and political and legal environment. The economic environment was not identifi ed among these factors, and the paper examines the reasons for its absence. This research provides more in-depth knowledge to both academics and stakeholders in mountain destinations. It provides information to mountain destination managers about which factors in environments help advance sustainable destination development

Resident perceptions and responses to tourism: individual vs community level impacts

This paper reviews resident tourism attitude research through the lens of the individual- and community-level perceived impacts of and responses to tourism. It explores how perceived impacts of tourism and responses to tourism development have been conceptualised and measured in the existing resident attitudes models published between 1990 and 2020. Three categories of variables were identified and used: antecedent variables, tourism impact variables, and dependent variables. The latter three categories are used to discuss the research topic from the lenses of improvements in measurement instruments. Finally, the paper suggests rethinking the overall conceptualisation of residents’ perceptions of and reactions to tourism – it proposes future research directions to distinguish between individual-level and community-level effects and reactions

The influence of the political environment and destination governance on sustainable tourism development: a study of Bled, Slovenia

In the context of sustainable tourism development, there are many studies about the exchange process between residents and tourism, yet this issue is practically unexplored with respect to the political environment of tourism. Therefore, this paper introduces and posits that the political environment is a necessary enabler for implementing sustainable tourism. The authors extend the established three-pillar sustainability concept by adding in the political dimension. Then they surveyed how residents' positive and negative perceptions of tourism impacts determine their satisfaction with life in the tourism destination and thus their support for tourism in their community. The model was empirically tested within the context of the long-established Alpine destination of Bled in Slovenia. The findings confirm the importance of the political environment and question the sustainability of Bled's tourism development. It is suggested that the community has relatively weak destination governance due to the underdeveloped political environment. The survey expands and deepens the tourism sustainability debate by adding in the political environment and how it relates to the emerging growth of research on destination governance. The proposed model can be adapted and applied to any destination in order to improve its governance, including the implementation of sustainable tourism development

Can overtourism be managed?

Purpose This paper aims to present a model to survey if effective destination management can manage (unsustainable) overtourism from the perspective of residents’ quality of life (QOL). Design/methodology/approach A constructivist approach, based on factors taken from conceptual overtourism model (Mihalic, 2020), was used to propose an overtourism QOL management model. Relationships among the factors were analysed with a path analyses model with two second-order latent factors. The model was tested in a real setting, the city of Ljubljana. Findings The proposed theoretical model is comprised of five factors: positive tourism impacts, negative tourism impacts, irritation with overtourism, residents’ QOL and destination management. Empirical tests confirmed the model. Positive tourism impacts positively affected residents’ QOL via destination management. Negative tourism impacts created overtourism-based resident irritation and negatively impacted their QOL. Research limitations/implications The model was limited to one group of sustainable tourism stakeholders: residents of a destination. The sustainability performance of tourism was only assessed based on residents’ QOL. Practical implications The proposed model adds to the conceptual knowledge of tourism and may be useful for (sustainable) destination managers to monitor the existence and causes of overtourism and may help to focus efforts to manage the causes of overtourism irritation and improve residents’ QOL. Originality/value Overtourism is a concern for residents of tourism destinations who become irritated by unsustainable tourism impacts on community resources and their QOL. The suggested model is the first to address destination management’s ability to manage unsustainable overtourism

(Un)sustainable and (ir)responsible tourism in Ohrid

The aim of the paper is to identify the main factors that affect tourism development of Ohrid (North Macedonia) from the three-pillar sustainability dimension (socio-cultural, environmental and economic). Based on 630 questionnaires collected from residents in January 2020, exploratory factor analysis is conducted to assess residents’ satisfaction with given impacts of tourism. The research revealed positive socio-cultural and economic factors and negative environmental impacts, indicating that Ohrid is practicing neither sustainable, nor responsible tourism development. Despite having legislation and an institutional framework to safeguard Ohrid’s World Heritage property, many serious concerns were noted with regards to the sustainability values. The findings may assist policy makers in establishing tourism planning process and developing sustainable development strategies