The 4th India
International Hotel Travel and Tourism Research Conference
(IIHTTRC) 12 – 15 February, 2014
Banarsidas Chandiwala Institute of Hotel
Management & Catering Technology, New Delhi, inaugurated the 4th India
International Hotel Travel and Tourism Research Conference (IIHTTRC) on
February 12, 2014 with the objective to bring Industry Managers, Tourism and
Hospitality Researchers together to deliberate on the issues related to the
travel, tourism and hospitality business.
The Honorable Guest at the inaugural ceremony,
Mr.
Gour Kanjilal, Executive
Director at Indian Association of Tour Operators, India, gave his insights on “A Tourism Concern: How to move forward in this competitive age”. He
mentioned that travelers are becoming more environment friendly and would like
to visit those destinations which are adopting global eco sensitive practices.
They are shifting from 5 star luxury concept to more price sensitive, clean and
affordable holiday concept with accommodation which matches the local
surroundings, provide local experiences, and relate to food, culture as well as
local employment. The tourists are looking into emerging markets like India,
China and Brazil for which the Government of India needs to partner with the
private operators in Tourism Sector. There is a need for new marketing strategy
to emphasize on “Experiential Tourism” products through the removal of
bottlenecks such as high taxation, regimental visa policy and civic governance.
In the twelfth five year plan (2012 – 17) of the Government of India, there is
a special focus on Tourism due to its economic value as also for job creation,
poverty eradication and women empowerment.
Mr. R. K. Bhandari, President IIHTTRC and Principal BCIHMCT,
welcomed the dignitaries and thanked all the
participants for attending the conference. He asserted that due to the
changing needs of travelers, increase in competition, and change in macro
environment & technology, there is a potential for research in the field of
tourism and hospitality and considers this as a platform to strengthen the
hospitality and tourism teaching learning process. Mr.
Bhandari announced the dates for IIHTTRC, 2015 to be February 11 – 14.
In the key note address Dr.
Therdchai (Ted) Choibamroong, Foundation Dean and Director, Centre of
Integrated Tourism Management Studies, National School of Development
Administration, Bangkok, Thailand, highlighted the need for “Creativity” in
tourism products. He revealed the iceberg model
of tourism and said, “There is a need to pay attention to the supply side
consisting of tour operators, people, service, spa, restaurants, safety,
natural resources, transportation and hotels, that remains under the water;
Development and management of tourism being the tip of the iceberg”. He
stressed on the fact that there is a call for improving the quality of products
on the supply side for sustenance though the industry is running after
increasing the number of tourist receipts. Predicting
the future, Dr. Ted presented the components of tourism in the form of 5 E
(entertainment, excitement, education, expertise and experience) and 5 S
(security, safety, service, sanitation and satisfaction).
Dr.
Maharaj Vijay Reddy, School of Tourism, Bournemouth
University, UK gave a key note speech on Green Economy:
Opportunities and Challenges for Tourism and Hospitality. He gave his insights
on, “Transition to Green Economy: Opportunities and Challenges for Tourism and
Hospitality”. Transition in sustainable development, Challenges and Targets due
to climate change, Tourism Opportunities, emerging issues and challenges for
tourism in Green Economy, Adaptation and Mitigation as well as capacity
building and awareness raising were the topics discussed by Dr. Reddy. He
further explained the “Bio-regional” approach of tourism as a challenge, which
stands for creating stronger linkages with local economy and embedding within
local natural and cultural heritage.
A vote of thanks was given
by Mr. Bhupesh Kumar, Convener IIHTTRC 2014 at the end.
Online social network and use of
social media has increased opportunities and potential for achievements in all
areas of hospitality, travel and tourism industry. It has changed the face of
Tourism & Hospitality Sector providing information to the traveler. These ideas
were highlighted through the 1st
technical session of the day “Marketing Management in Tourism and Hotel
Operations,” chaired by Dr. Kumar Ashutosh. The papers presented in this track were - The
use of social media in the promotion of leisure destination – A Case Study on
Ramoji Film City (Hyderabad); Promotion of tourism in Himachal Pradesh through
Culture - A Study of Shimla Summer Festival; Gastronomy Tourism and Destination
Image Formation; The success story of Gujarat Tourism and Hotel Web-Sites
Exhibits Effective Sales and Marketing Techniques for Branding and Positioning
of the Hotel Product.
Environment is necessary for sustenance of Tourism. Tourism
will never be completely sustainable as every industry has impacts, but it can
work towards becoming more sustainable. As more regions and countries develop their tourism industry,
it produces significant impacts on natural resources, consumption patterns,
pollution and social systems. The need for sustainable/responsible planning and
management is imperative for the industry to survive as a whole. The 2nd track “Sustaining
Environment in Tourism” brought forth these valuable discussions through
papers namely - Emerging Trends and
Developments in Indian Tourism and Hospitality Industry; Impact of Tourism in
Kumaon – A Case Study of Development of Tourism Avenues in the Kumaon Region;
Entrepreneurial Developments in Tourism and Hospitality Industry – Indian
Perspectives; Tiger, Tourism, Animal Ethics and Conservation – A Needed
Co-existence; Emerging Trends in Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Sector. The session was chaired by Dr. Nimit
Chowdhary.
The parallel session on
“Destination Development and Promotion in Tourism” chaired by Dr. Therdchai
(Ted) Choibamroong gave insights to
destination development and promotion of tourism. Managing destination development is fundamental to successful
‘Implementation’ of tourism management; where destination managers and
stakeholders put into action the priority strategies and plans developed during
the ‘Destination Planning’ process. Marketing
of New Tourism Destinations and Service in Himachal Pradesh – Analysis of
Various Efforts by Himachal Pradesh Tourism Department; Promotion of Pilgrims
Tourism in Bhandara District; World Expo 2020 – Heralding Dubai’s Super Growth
– A Road Ahead; Pilgrimage Motivation and Travel Destination Choice – A
Relationship Framework; Analyzing Heritage Tourism Potentials of Himachal
Pradesh. These papers provided some
effective measures that can assure motivation to travelers and reassure value
for money by making their trip a memorable one. Culture and ethnicity need to
be preserved along with promotion of tourism product and services.
The second day started with the keynote speech by Dr. Asad
Mohsin, Director – Institute for Business Research, University of Waikato
Management School, Hamilton, New Zealand, who spoke on “Cross
Cultural Sensitivities in Hospitality: Potentials for Conflicts and
Understanding”. The thought provoking questions raised by him
during the presentation were “Are multiculturalism, multinational,
globalization disheartening words, or are they enriching? Are we losing our cultural
values or enriching them? What is the role of diversity in the contemporary
world of hospitality?” Explaining the importance of Professionalism in the
Industry Dr. Mohsin quoted, “Never allow one simple issue to take away the big
picture of your life”. He urged the hotel managers to utilize cultural analysis
and insights while dealing with guests of other nationalities.
Talking about “Emerging Global trends in Tourism: An
India Perspective” Dr. Sandeep
Kulshreshtha, Nodal Officer and Chairman – Academics, Indian Institute of
Tourism and Travel Management, Gwalior, M.P., India, pointed out
the growth of special interest tourism in India through theme park visits,
adventure tourism, casinos and activity based tourism. He further added that
today’s travelers seek for shorter length of stay and careful spending. With
increase in life expectancy, older people are also an upcoming target market
for tourism sector.
Tourism marketing is the application
of principles and techniques of marketing to the general field of tourism. Marketing
tourism “products” is different from most other products because what is being
sold is the consumption of an experience rather than a tangible product. Tourism
product means the combination of products and particularly services, which make
up the total experience. With such opinions aired in the 1st
session “Marketing Issues in Tourism Products & Services”, chaired by Dr. Manohar Sajnani, the
various paper presentations included - The Impact of cultural attractions
and amenities in building image of a tourist destination – A study of tourists
visiting Jaipur; Product Development, positioning, branding and Management –
Case Study of Himachal Pradesh; Art of Marketing Handicrafts – A Case Study of
Andhra Pradesh; Time Share Vacation Holidays and Marketing Difficulties; Green
Marketing and its effect on the Destination Image – A Conceptual Analysis;
Perception of Houseboat Owners on Houseboat Industry in Kashmir – An Empirical
Study.
The parallel track chaired by Mr R.K.Bhandari,
on “Issues in Tourism” discussed contemporary issues in tourism highlighting Geo
Tourism, Community Participation, Cinema
Tourism, GDP and Tourism and Niche Tourism. Research papers presented
were - Scope of Geotourism in Himachal Pradesh & Increasing
Consciousness with Regards to Geo-Heritage and Geo-Conservation; Community
Participation in Tourism Development and Livelihood Sustainability; Cinema
Tourism - The Emerging Trend in Genre of Innovations in Tourism Industry;
Causal Links between GDP and Tourism – A Comparative Study of India and
Pakistan; Niche Tourism – Contribution of Festivals and Events to Destination
Development in Tamil Nadu; Tourism – A Catalyst to Economic Dimension.
The quality of
service in hotel industry is an important factor of successful business. The
existing trend of complete quality management in hotel industry ensures the
achievement of competitive advantage of hotel companies and is therefore the
subject of contemporary research into service quality in hotel industry. Hospitality Service Quality and Customer Delight – New
Directions and New Challenges; A Comparative Study on Revenue Management
between Four and Five Star Hotels of Delhi – NCR; Quality Management Systems in
the Hospitality Industry; Ethicurean - A Study on Ethical Food Trend,
Opportunities and Risks; Emerging Healthy Food Options Offered By The Hotel
Industry; The Adoption of Eco-friendly Practices in Restaurants of Eastern
India – Antecedents and Accolades were the research presented during
the 2nd technical session on
“Hotel Operations and Food Service Management” chaired by Dr. Asad Mohsin.
As service is
people oriented, management of a true hospitality profession is crucial for
proficient management of the operations in the organizations. The 3rd track on “Human Resource Management: Issues &
Challenges”, chaired by Dr. Sonia Sharma, had papers emphasizing on topics
such as Strategic Training and
Development Programme – A Step towards Motivating and Retaining Middle
Management Staff of Hotel Industry - A Case Study on Five Star Hotels of Delhi;
E-Learning: An Emerging Trend to Strengthen Hospitality and Tourism
Teaching-Learning Process; Socio-demographic profile of the hospitality
supervisor in a changed South Africa labor force.
The third day of
the conference started with a Keynote Speech by Dr. Swarup Sinha, Principal, ITC Hospitality Management
Institute, Gurgaon, who stressed
on “Service Quality and Hospitality Education”, in an effort to mitigate
the gap between the two. Emphasizing
the importance of contemporary knowledge, he commented that “Creativity is as
important as Literacy”. Speaking on Service Quality Mr. Sinha said, “Good is
the enemy of Great and building a Service Excellence Culture must be
prioritized”. Advocating the hospitality Institutes and the Industry about
their future, he urged to “Challenge the crisis” and explained that “Whenever
there is danger, there is an opportunity”.
A Panel
Discussion on “Building
Stronger Links between Education and Industry” was conducted comprising of academia, industry stakeholders
and industry professionals on the third day of the conference. The session was
moderated by Dr. Asad Mohsin. The panel comprised of Mr. Kunal Sood, Human
Resource and Talent Development Manager, Crowne Plaza New Delhi Okhla, Dr.
Swarup Sinha, Principal,
ITC Hospitality Management Institute, Gurgaon, Mr. Deepak Behl, Director -
Human Resources, The Grand, New Delhi, Mr. Ashok K. Agrawal, Professor, School
of Hospitality Management, G.D. Goenka University, Gurgaon, Mr. Douglas Peter,
Advisor Human Resources and Training at KUE Advisors, India, Ms. Jacqueline
D’Almeida, Training Manager, Shangri-La Hotel, New Delhi and Mr. R. K. Bhandari,
President IIHTTRC and Principal, BCIHMCT to deliberate on the expectations of students,
academicians and industry stakeholders.
After the
interactive session, following recommendations were framed:-
1.
Strengthen
Recruitment: Faculty and Staff
2.
Nominate
the industry people in the Institute’s Advisory Board.
3.
Revision
of the curriculum as per Industry needs, to reduce the gap between industry’s demands
and institute’s delivery.
4.
Institutes
must develop a graduate profile to facilitate Industry.
5.
Institutes
are required to have a Quality Assurance process that is credible.
6.
Research
on real life issues of business: Faculty must involve in active research in order
to teach beyond curriculum whereas the Industry should involve in the
researches by providing timely information.
7.
Education
needs to have innovation and a strategic focus in order to fulfill the needs of
the future.
8.
Provide
continuous Industry Exposure to the faculty.
9.
Necessary
tie-ups between Industry and Institutes, that give value, must be initiated.
10.
Increase
in number of Guest Lectures from the Industry Professionals would intensify
knowledge and experience sharing.
11.
Institutes
ought to be good pay-masters so as to attract quality educators.
12.
Industry
needs to have a 360 degree feedback in order to get insights from a trainee’s
perspective.
The
conference concluded with the presentation of the conference report and vote of
thanks by Mr. R. K. Bhandari, Principal, BCIHMCT & President IIHTTRC 2014,
highlighting the salient features of the three days conference. He emphasized
that the Conference would have enlightened the participants and stake holders
to get an insight into the challenges and opportunities lying ahead due to the
rapid changing technology, practices and trends in the hospitality and tourism
sector.
He thanked all
the Researchers and Presenters for their excellent cooperation and contribution
to the Tourism and Hospitality field. Expressing his gratitude towards all
those who participated in the Conference, he appreciated the contribution of
the Banarsidas Chandiwala Sewa Smarak Trust Society Group for providing all the
necessary support in the organization of the conference.
A cultural trip
to Suraj Kund International Crafts Mela at Faridabad was organized, for the
delegates on the third day of the conference where the unique diversity of
Indian Traditions and Culture represented the ethos of rural India. It
showcased some of the most exquisite handlooms and handicrafts of India.
On the last day
of the conference, the delegates enjoyed a trip to Agra, the city which gives
access to Three World Heritage Sites – Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikri.
