Volunteers and mega sporting events : developing a research framework

Interest in all aspects of the politics, financing, planning, management and operation of mega sporting events has been highlighted both by success stories and ongoing problems associated with Olympic Games, Football World Cups and other similar events. There is a growing literature that addresses these and related matters through both case history and comparative analyses. Within the context of mega sporting events, the issue of employment creation is an important motivator for host cities and features high on the political justification agenda for bids to host events. At the same time, the most significant working contribution to major mega events in sports, as in other areas, is provided by the very large numbers of volunteers who undertake tasks across the range of opportunities afforded by such events. Numbers of volunteers between 40,000 and 60,000 have been noted for some recent major events. Relatively little is known about these volunteers at mega sporting events and yet their contribution and wider impact is very significant, both to the events themselves and within the host community. This paper seeks to identify the evident gaps that exist in understanding areas such as what volunteers do at mega sporting events; who they are; what motivates them; how volunteering impacts upon their lives; what associated activities they do surrounding the event in the host city; and the extent to which volunteering is recidivistic. The paper concludes with the presentation of a tentative research framework agenda in order to guide future study of this important area

Is a social marketing framework the key to promoting volunteer participation?

This paper explores the suitability of a conceptual social marketing model, the MOA (motivation, opportunity and ability) framework (Rothschild, 1999), to volunteering to determine whether it has the potential to promote volunteering with its associated socially desirable benefits. In doing so, the individual components of the model are discussed from a social marketing perspective and communalities in the volunteering research highlighted. This discussion culminates in the presentation of an adapted MOA framework, the practical implications of which for volunteer involving organisations are briefly discussed and an agenda for future research proposed.<br /

Battlefield tourism in Turkey : an empirical analysis of British ex-colonial event attendance

This paper explores the influence of visitor satisfaction on intention to recommend event attendance. The Anzac Day commemoration at Gallipoli, Turkey, an event that has become increasingly popular in recent years and provides the backdrop for the current study. Some 20,000 people travel to attend this event. Data was collected from 331 attendees while they were in transit from Gallipoli to Istanbul on 25 April 2007. The analysis of this data was undertaken using factor analysis as a basis for identifying model constructs to be tested using structural equation modelling. Findings suggest that the constructs relating to the ceremonies held at Anzac Cove and Lone Pine and the experiential and emotional aspects of the event were significant predictors of event satisfaction and subsequent recommending behaviour. The implications of these findings for events in general and the success of the Anzac Day commemorations at Gallipoli are discussed.<br /

Talent in Hospitality Entrepreneurship: A conceptualization and research agenda

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrative conceptual framework of the "talented hospitality entrepreneur". In doing so, the authors address the current lack of understanding of talent at the individual entrepreneurial level and the lack of integration between the talent and entrepreneurship literatures and specifically consider the hospitality context. Design/methodology/approach: This conceptual paper systematically synthesizes the extant literature and links key concepts within talent management, entrepreneurship, hospitality and human resource management to develop a model of the talented hospitality entrepreneur. Findings: Seven propositions emerge from the literature synthesis, and the integrative conceptual model is developed to define the individual antecedents of the talented hospitality entrepreneur and their outcomes for success. Originality/value: To date, understanding of the individual level of talent has been neglected in the management literature. The quandary is that the extant literature on talent has focused on the management of talent at an organizational level, while the entrepreneurship literature has concentrated on spatial macro-level effects. Further, the notion of talent in hospitality literature remains underexplored. Adopting an inclusive view of talent, the authors offer a new integrative framework explaining the constituencies of talent for hospitality entrepreneurs and an associated research agenda

Introduction: events in society

Introduction to special issue of the journal Event Management

Critical Event Studies: Issues and Perspectives

In considering critical event studies, a brief reference to critical pedagogy is made before an initial look at Critical Management Studies (CMS) prior to consideration of Crtical Event Studies (CES). As most students of education and teaching will know, Paul Freire’s Critical Pedagogy (CP) (1973) stemmed from the body of Critical Theory, whose members sought to determine what they saw as a just society (Darder, 2014). By utilising knowledge to ensure the autonomy of the mind and possible emancipation of the oppressed, the development of a student’s critical capacity gave them the opportunity to transform their life. A banking model of education, where students receive knowledge in a predominantly passive way, on the other hand, served to oppress further (Darder, 2014)

The Motives of Ambassadors in Bidding for International Association Meetings and Events

As destinations contest the rights to host international association-based meetings and events, competitive points of difference in the bidding process can mean the success or loss of a bid. One of these points of difference has been the growth of ambassador programs worldwide. These programs consist of influential, high-profile individuals, representing their particular industry body or association. Ambassadors work together with destination marketing organizations (DMOs) and meetings/conference professionals in putting forward bids to their association for future events. To understand the motivations of ambassadors in bidding for international meetings and events, an exploratory study employing an online survey was conducted with ambassadors from three programs, one based in Australia, one based in Southeast Asia, and one in the Middle East. The results provide a demographic profile of ambassadors and highlight their motives for actively bidding for international meetings and events. The study adds to knowledge on a topic for which limited research has been undertaken—that of the bidding process for business events—and expands understanding of how ambassador programs, together with DMOs, can contribute to a professional bidding process for globally roaming international association meetings and events

The role of corporates in creating sustainable Olympic legacies

The Olympic Games is a major stimulus for increased tourism. In recent years there have been greater calls for this and other mega events to leave sustainable positive legacies for the host city, partly to offset the massive cost of hosting. To date, little consideration has been afforded to the role of corporates might play in contributing to event legacies. This gap is compounded by the lack of research examining stakeholder engagement in legacy planning more generally. This paper adopts Holmes, Hughes, Mair and Carlsen’s (2015) sustainable event legacy timeline to conceptualise how corporates through the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives of sponsorship and employee volunteering can engage across the Olympic event planning cycle to generate volunteering legacies. Drawing upon a comparative study of the Sydney 2000 and London 2012 Olympic Games, tentative evidence of corporate engagement was noted but for the most part it was fragmented and CSR initiatives primarily focused on the immediate planning and delivery stages of the event cycle. The paper advances new knowledge of how volunteering legacies can be generated through the best practice engagement of corporates as key stakeholders involved in legacy planning and governance across the Olympic planning cycle