PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the information flows, in terms of content and process, underpinning the sharing of knowledge by managers and owners. Such an examination reveals similarities and differences that will influence the generation and dissemination of knowledge used in tourism business operations and contribute to innovation. Design/methodology/approachThis paper examines information flows within the theoretical and methodological framework of social network analysis. The findings were derived from a quantitative study of tourism managers and owners of a tourism hub in South-West England. FindingsThe main finding was that network structure characteristics determine the flow of information within owners' and managers' social networks. The owners of smaller businesses received information from several sources and, therefore, had fewer structural constraints and reported larger structural holes. In comparison, the managers had more brokerage opportunities to disseminate the information within their social networks. Research limitations/implicationsThis paper highlights knowledge sharing between tourism business managers and owners in an open network structure. First, an open network structure builds innovation through the provision of nonredundant information. This is determined through the effective size of structural holes and the dissemination of information through brokerage roles. Second, the knowledge capability of a destination is built up through the social networking of managers and owners. The generation and dissemination of knowledge in a tourism destination are facilitated by the social networking activities of managers and owners. Practical implicationsManagers and owners of tourism businesses require knowledge through information to assist with innovative business practices. The practical implication of this is that the social networks of managers and owners have different network characteristics, and that these differences result in consequences for the innovation of business practices. Another practical implication relates to the importance of managers in knowledge dissemination based on having several brokerage roles in the tourism destination. Originality/valueThese findings are important because an understanding of social networks and the flow of information is one of the keys to determining the influences on knowledge sharing within tourism destination knowledge networks of owners or managers and their potential contributions to innovation.

A oferta de experiências turísticas resulta da cooperação não só entre empresas que operam na mesma indústria, mas também entre empresas que operam em indústrias complementares, como é o caso das indústrias de turismo e de produção de vinho. Este artigo analisa a ocorrência, ou não, da cooperação intersectorial e/ou diagonal entre as empresas que operam nas indústrias de produção de vinho e turismo, tendo como objetivo examinar a situação atual da cooperação na região e compreender o potencial da cooperação entre estas empresas para a oferta de experiências turísticas. Os dados apresentados foram recolhidos através de um questionário baseado em entrevistas face-a-face aplicado aos proprietários/gestores das empresas. Os resultados indicam que a cooperação já é implementada por muitas das empresas inquiridas e que, embora as experiências turísticas não tenham sido claramente indicadas pelos inquiridos como uma das principais razões para cooperar, já a oferta de produtos/serviços e atividades complementares e diversificadas é uma das principais razões para as empresas, sobretudo as turísticas, cooperarem com as empresas produtoras de vinho. Os inquiridos reconheceram, por um lado, uma crescente procura de atividades relacionadas com a participação em vindimas e provas de vinho e, por outro, a necessidade de uma oferta adequada por forma a dar resposta às expectativas dos turistas que visitam a região. Os resultados indicam que há um reconhecimento, por parte dos inquiridos, de que esta oferta resulta da cooperação estabelecida entre as empresas. Desta forma, considera-se que existe um grande potencial para a cooperação entre estas empresas na oferta de experiências turísticas nesta região.

Merv was the first World Heritage Site in Turkmenistan to be designated, the site comprises early city-sites, religious or sacred buildings including the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar dating from the 12th century, and a shrine to honour the eminent 12th century Sufi scholar Hodja Yusup Hamadani which is a notable focus of pilgrimage. The aim of the paper is to determine a preliminary profile of visitors to a site which has historic and cultural significance for some and is a venue of shrine pilgrimage for others and review the respondent’s assessment of the management of a visitor attraction where tribal traditions and Islamic beliefs and practices are a key consideration for visitors and site managers. The preliminary conclusions support are that following more than 100 years of Russian/Soviet colonisation the Turkmen Sufi inspired form of Islam integrated into a tribal society remains vibrant for an as yet undetermined percentage of the Turkmen nation.

Promoters and planners of events must choose the most suitable venue by considering the creation and development of new venues or the use of previously established areas. The first option is feasible when established areas have a limited capacity. The second is attractive to most promoters, because the space already exists. If the space is, for example, an historic center, it has the potential to enhance the participants' experience. However, such spaces have inherent constraints, and their use may threaten local sustainability. This article examines the concept of sustainability as applied to urban historic centers and the creation and management of festivals and events. It investigates the need for strategic administration and key principles for the development of staging events in urban historic centers. This analysis is illustrated using the example of two events in the urban historic center of Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, in Brazil.

This chapter reviews the factors determining the characteristics of the tourism sector of Turkmenistan. Particular attention is given to the adoption of Islam resulting from Arabic, Seljuk, and Sufic cultural influences. The resulting distinctive form of Islam, incorporating pre-Islamic traditions and beliefs together with the persistence of tribalism, Soviet and post-Soviet governance, and the sociopolitical and economic characteristics of contemporary Turkmen society are considered in order to underpin an analysis of its underdeveloped and little-known tourism industry. An outline of the results of a small-scale preliminary case study of tourists in one of Turkmenistan's World Heritage Sites is presented as an illustration of current tourism activity and the future opportunities in its development.

This paper provides a preliminary analysis of one element of a research study into knowledge sharing between business people in the tourism sector of the Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch conurbation in England. The paper sets out the academic context of the analysis of knowledge sharing, the methodology and methods used to explore the nature and outcomes of knowledge sharing and preliminary results relating to knowledge network mapping. The overall aims of the research are to better understand knowledge sharing between people in the tourism sector and to suggest how knowledge sharing can be improved to the benefit of the tourism sector.

Amidst claims that the use of mixed methods research is in the ascendancy (Brannen, 2005) much has been written defining mixed methods research itself, defining the types of mixed methods research and arguing the case for or against it. However, perhaps because academic journals tend to be discipline-based and often incline towards particular research paradigms, there are few examples demonstrating how the elements of a mixed method design were selected. In this chapter it is shown how a proposed two-phase mixed methods study was subsequently adapted to four phases to meet the changing circumstances of a cultural tourism research project. In doing so, a novel approach to interviewing was required and the method selected, drawn from ethnography, is described in detail.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the perceived implications of economic and monetary union (EMU) as a driver for changes in the hotel business environment and, consequently, on Portuguese competitiveness, in terms of the conceptual framework and methodology adopted and showing the way how it may contribute to help managers and decision makers to effectively manage their competitive strategies.Design/methodology/approach - The paper adopted and adapted Porter's models (Diamond, Five Forces and Value Chain) as the basis for analysing the implications of EMU upon the hotel business environment (at national, industry and operational level). Those implications are the ones perceived by the stakeholders in that sector: public authorities, trade associations and hoteliers.Findings - The findings indicated that EMU not only changed the hotel business environment at a national level, but also changed the competitive and operational environment. Nonetheless, as this study found, the hotel stakeholders had relatively different hopes and fears concerning EMU.Practical implications - The paper offers a conceptual framework sufficiently versatile (regarding the context of the study) which can be used by decision makers or managers as a tool to understand their business environment and, consequently, to cope with potential challenges.Originality/value - Two of the innovative features of this study are: the triangulation of perspectives on the implications of EMU on hotels and the use of a combination of Porter's models as a suitable tool for studying the implications of EMU in the services sector. This can be useful to service decision makers and managers that seek to cope with the business environment challenges.

Internetin kullanilmaya baslamasindan beri 10 yildan uzun bir sure gecmis olmasina karsin, seyahat urunu satin almalarinda internetin kullanimi acisindan ulkeler arasinda belirgin farkliliklar oldugu goze carpmaktadir. Portekiz gibi bazi ulkelerde, seyahat urunu satin almalarinin sadece kucuk bir orani internet uzerinden yapilmaktadir. Bu calisma, seyahat urununu internet uzerinden satin alma niyetinin belirleyicilerini degerlendirerek, satin almalarda internet kullaniminin daha iyi anlasilmasina katkida bulunmayi amaclamaktadir. Bu niyeti hangi faktorlerin etkiledigine iliskin goreceli avantaj, karmasiklik, kapsam (involvement) ve e-ticaret uyum surecindeki asama gibi bircok faktor degerlendirmeye alinmistir. Kruskal Wallis ve lojistik regresyon analizleri sonucunda goreceli avantaj, kapsam ve e-ticarete uyum surecindeki asamanin internet uzerinden seyahat satin alma niyetinin onemli belirleyicileri oldugu, karmasikligin ise belirleyici etkisinin olmadigi ortaya cikmistir.

ABSTRACT More than 10 years on since the launch of the Internet, there are clear differential levels of adoption of the Internet for purchasing leisure travel across countries. In some countries, such as Portugal, only a minority of travel purchasing is conducted over the Internet. This paper aims to contribute to a greater understanding of adoption of purchasing over the Internet by evaluating the determinants of intention to adopt the Internet for purchasing leisure travel. A number of variables are used to assess which factors influence intention, including the attributes of purchasing over the Internet (relative advantage and complexity), involvement, and the stage in the e-commerce adoption path. Kruskal-Wallis and logistic regression were employed and the results indicated that relative advantage, involvement and stage in the e-commerce adoption path were important predictors of the intention to purchase leisure travel over the Internet, while complexity was not.

The development of the public service modernization seeks to facilitate services delivery to citizens, when and where they need them. For it, management and utilization of service quality have special relevancy. In this paper, we are trying to contribute for improving the relations between the small public local administrations and citizens across analysis of the link between quality and satisfaction, beside of analyzing how they relate to citizen's credibility on institutions. By means of opinions spilt by citizens, obtained results allow us to raise a series of public policies and offers for the improve- ment of administration service quality, which end up as directly satisfaction and credibility.

While the adoption of e-commerce in the purchasing of leisure travel is gaining momentum, higher levels of adoption can be achieved if greater knowledge of the market for e-commerce is obtained. This research uses two variables, involvement with computers for leisure purposes and purchasing leisure travel over the Internet, as a means of segmenting the market with regard to the adoption of e-commerce in the purchasing of leisure travel. A sample of residents of a suburban borough of Lisbon (Portugal) was surveyed and hierarchical clustering was performed on 225 usable questionnaires. The four resulting clusters of residents that emerged were quite different from one another in relation to the adoption of e-commerce in the purchasing of leisure travel and in supporting the internal and external validity of the clustering procedure. One segment that has not been reported in the literature before was identified, comprising those who have moderate involvement with both innovations (the moderate enthusiasts). Moreover, the results suggest that individuals in this cluster may be stronger candidates for the adoption of e-commerce in the purchasing of leisure travel that computer fanatics.

A methodology for evaluating local government performance in municipal services, based on quality and satisfaction dimensions, is presented. Quality has become a decisive factor for the transformation of municipal services and an important driving force for better citizen satisfaction. The contribution of this paper is the analysis of the link between quality dimensions and satisfaction in respect of improving the relationship between small public local administrations and citizens. Research conducted with citizens are the basis for the proposals in this paper of a series of public policy actions that are aimed at improving administration service quality, which, ultimately should lead directly to better citizen satisfaction.

More than 10 years on since the launch of the Internet, there are clear differential levels of adoption of the Internet for purchasing leisure travel across countries. In some countries, such as Portugal, only a minority of travel purchasing is conducted over the Internet. This paper aims to contribute to a greater understanding of adoption of purchasing over the Internet by evaluating the determinants of intention to adopt the Internet for purchasing leisure travel. A number of variables are used to assess which factors influence intention, including the attributes of purchasing over the Internet (relative advantage and complexity), involvement, and the stage in the e-commerce adoption path. Kruskal-Wallis and logistic regression were employed and the results indicated that relative advantage, involvement and stage in the e-commerce adoption path were important predictors of the intention to purchase leisure travel over the Internet, while complexity was not.

Agriculture/horticulture has traditionally been an important sector in the economy of Bulgaria. The paper outlines the structural changes in Bulgarian agriculture since 1989 and discusses the product and market orientation of the horticultural farms in the Plovdiv region of Bulgaria. This paper analyses how farm owners /managers with different sized farms evaluated 5 product/market strategic options: 'doing what you currently do but better', 'developing new horticultural products', 'developing new markets', 'developing new agricultural activities' and 'developing new non-agricultural activities'. The owners /managers identified; whether they perceived these options as feasible for their future development, the encouraging/discou raging factors and the outcomes they expected from their implementation. The small-scale farms (less than 2 ha) were mainly subsistence farms that were relying upon the farmer's experience to survive during the transition period. The second type of farm (2-10 ha) was 'transitional' farms and were working under pressure either for survival or expansion under the new EU related conditions. The third type of farm (over 10 ha) was more business orientated, aiming at business viability and trying to respond to the rapidly changing business environment in Bulgaria as they recognised that the EU accession would present new challenges and opportunities for the successful future development of their farm businesses.

Understanding the consumer is important in estimating the market for an event. This study analyzed the socio-demographic and other characteristics of actual and potential visitors to three styles of English horticultural shows. The shows selected varied in terms of their status (national, regional, local), the number of visitors they attract, and the length of time they are open to the public. The analysis of the findings of a survey of residents in southern England suggests that while age is a key demographic variable, a more valuable means of segmenting the population is by their level of enthusiasm for gardening. Furthermore, it is proposed that demand for the largest shows, held nationally, can be established not only through these factors but also by the potential visitors' history of attending smaller horticultural shows. The implications for the marketing of these and similar events are discussed.

Motivated by the ongoing post-Enron refocusing on corporate governance and the shift by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the UK to promoting compliance-competence within the financial services sector, this paper demonstrates how template analysis can be used as a tool for evaluating compliance-competence. Focusing on the ethical dimension of compliance-competence, we illustrate how this can be subjectively appraised. We propose that this evaluation technique could be utilised as a starting point in informing senior management of corporate governance issues and be used to monitor and demonstrate key compliance and ethical aspects of an institution to external stakeholders and regulators.