Crisis Management - Tourism’s Indispensable Tool

With a spate of natural and man-made disasters occurring in the past few years, tourism has always suffered in the aftermath. Express Travel & Tourism presents a special report on Crisis Management

The tourism industry, by virtue of its character, is one which is especially exposed to crisis situations. The industry is vulnerable to any disaster striking at destination level, be it natural, technological, economical or political. Just as in other industries, a national tourism product can be a country's most lucrative asset and warrants similar 'brand protection' to other industry products. Considering these scenarios, the development of a Crisis Management Programme is of utmost importance to the Indian tourism industry.

Crisis in tourism

In the past, crisis situations such as 9/11, Iraq War, SARS or even the recent Tsunami have left affected destinations vulnerable to loss of business, enforced discounting, or worse still, travel embargoes. A haphazard approach to remarketing and enticing bargain hunters has proved the downfall of many a destination. Often quick-fix decisions are made either to engender loyalty to the country or to create confidence, addressing the struggle only in the short term. These decisions can cause irreversible changes in market position and are difficult to change in the long-term strategy of managing the national tourism product.

In view of this, safety, or perceived safety, is one of the primary factors supporting the continued growth of a destination's popularity. The need for safety is deep seated in the human psyche and can overrule the desire to experience pleasure or adventure. The tourism industry is both reactionary and flexible; tourists vote with their feet and have a wealth of destinations competing for their business. Tour operators are independent agents, as are airlines and cruise lines, which can exercise their mobility to a large extent through destination and route changes.Tour operators are often criticised for their lack of loyalty to destinations in times of trouble, but their motives are easy to comprehend the safety and satisfaction of their clients is their future business. The same kind of defensive action is taken by governments in the form of travel advisories. Travel advisories may be issued for a number of reasons, including: the protection of civilians, pressure from tour operators to provide adequate and authoritative travel advice, and as a form of trade embargo to exhort political pressure.

Other potential barriers to tourism are fluctuations in the world economy, health scares and environmental disasters. The United Nations maintains that reports of natural disasters have increased five-fold in the past three decades. In the last two years, the world's tourism industry has undergone a number of high-impact natural disasters.

Imbibing The Concept

Crisis management is still a relatively new concept within tourism although it already has an established presence in other business environments. Some of the crisis situations discussed above are unavoidable, yet to some extent they can be prepared for and managed. Crisis management developed at the core of the tourism industry can reduce their negative impact. It is critical for countries to adopt a more structured approach to crisis management and ensure that crisis plans are introduced well before disaster strikes. The first hours after the crisis are crucial in communicating correct information to the media. If left uninformed, the situation creates a crisis of perception. The subsequent crisis-communications exercise can thus become disproportionate to the actual level of the disaster. If a crisis team is established in advance, the extent of perceived crisis can be reduced. This could help reduce the cost of winning back consumer confidence after the event, which often involves expensive marketing campaigns, price-cutting, special promotions and familiarisation trips.

As Ashwini Kakkar, CMD, Thomas Cook India P Ltd says, "During a crisis apart from being able to provide immediate support, it is extremely important to communicate well and pass on the right message to the media. It is wrong to give out an impression that a certain place is safe when actually the place is affected and needs emergency support. We at Thomas Cook have our own crisis management manuals and an emergency assistance department that springs into action the moment things are out of control. Anything can affect tourism, it could be a national or global crisis." With all of this in place, E M Najeeb, chairman, ATE Travel Group talks about the advantages and disadvantages of adopting this concept. He says, "There are no visible disadvantages in forming a crisis management team, who can function as a think tank during a crisis. However, the only negative aspect would be if it is made as an ineffective set up that becomes ornamental. The advantage though is that in a developing tourism destination like India, the presence of a crisis management body will only enhance the efficiency and professionalism of a destination."

Getting Well-Equipped

As well as becoming more 'crisis-prepared', the tourism industry should aim to be more proactive both in preventing disaster through enhanced safety measures and in giving responsible travel advice. A number of progressive signs have emerged in recent years such as an increasing number of special tourist police forces, industry manuals on safety and a number of industry conferences creating awareness on the subject. Mobilising the industry to respond to concerns about traveller safety and security, through community partnerships and disaster preparedness programme is of prime necessity. There are a number of practical measures which can be implemented by the industry at large to reduce the risk of dangerous events, including: extensive safety training for all tourism staff; improved safety measures and routines in all tourism establishments; establishing an international monitoring system to help countries develop more-effective crisis policies. Long-term measures should focus on: co-operation with airlines to open new routes and offer competitive fares; identifying new markets and market segments to avoid over-dependence on a few strong ones; developing further emphasis on domestic and intra-regional tourism.

Conclusion

The national tourism product can be compared to a host of other exportable products and can similarly represent a major contribution to domestic economies (particularly in developing countries). Where tourism does represent such an important resource, government authorities and their tourism organisations should have plans in place or seek international professional advice to ensure that the future of these assets is sufficiently protected. This involves the establishment of permanent national and regional contingency planning/communication teams, even during periods of healthy tourism trade, to monitor and identify potential threats to the tourism industry and facilitate the necessary speed of response should a disaster occur.

(With inputs from Reema Sisodia and Charmaine Fernz, Mumbai)