Managing Global Tourism

Hi all, since I am not in class today I thought I would send you a quick video message.

Please remember:

1. Your group projects are due very soon (they are worth 25% of your grade).
2. Today's assignment is due Thursday.
3. If you need me, please send an email to smithww@cofc.edu

HTMT 210 Message

Hi all,

I am sorry I am not in class but I thought I would send you a little video message.

Please remember:

1. Interview a tourist assignment will be due Thursday
2. The questions from today's video will be due Thursday as well.
3. Please remember, next Tuesday we start presentations/ papers are due.  

If you need me for any reason, please send me an email, smithww@cofc.edu.

Proof genetics exists....

Erik's First Picture

Liam's First Picture

Welcome Erik...

Please welcome into this world, Erik Reid Alfred Smith!

The Vitals:

Date: Friday, October 29th  at 7:46 PM.  
Weight: 9 lbs 14 oz.
Length: 20 3/4 inches

Of upcoming welcomes to the world...

Yesterday, everyone was asking me if I was nervous and/or excited about the pending arrival of baby ‘E’ and my answer was neither.  I think the better answer is/was pensive.  What type of world is little ‘E’ coming into?  

1. Is it a tolerant place or one of bigotry?
2. Is he entering a world of freedom or persecution?
3. Is this a community of empathy or one of self interest and greed?
4. Is this planet represented by love or is it managed by hate?

 Then I considered his place in this new environment.

1. Will the machine grind him or will he be an operator?
2. Will he become a leader of man or be a follower of fools?
3. Will he give comfort or will he provide hardship?
4. What path will he choose?

 So young ‘E’ on this day of your potential arrival, I offer you many questions and sadly few answers.  He is entering a world of tremendous uncertainty.  The paths to which the future may follow are too numerous to calculate.  It scares me to no end.  I want a world that my child will be given a chance to live a lifetime in peace, harmony and empathy.  Can I guarantee it? Alas, no.  We live in the most interesting of times.

With those fears expressed, no matter what the world throws at you.  As you parent I will guarantee you that,

1. You will know love. 
2. You will see comfort.
3. You will experience empathy
4. You will live in an environment that encourages
5. You will be supported
6. You will have opportunities. 

 You will live in a household that plans for the future, lives in the moment and learns from its past.  You will be cared for by people who genuinely care for your well being.  You will be nurtured by people who will provide you guidance with the best intentions at heart.  You will be loved by those who want for you a life of happiness.  With these tools you will choose your path.  What path will you choose my son?

Wayne.

Of Toronto and elections...

Yesterday was my hometown's elections.  As anyone who knows me knows, I am apolitical.  I like politics (for their anthropological value), I follow them closely but I have no party allegiance or political ideology to which I follow.  As a person, who has a passion for understanding human behavior, politics is the ultimate opportunity to observe and understand my fellow citizenry.

So here are my observations from yesterdays election:

1. George Smitherman was never going to win.  Three reasons; 1) he had a terrible record as a minister; 2) he has a brutal disposition that screams 'elitist'; and 3) his lifestyle doesn't match up to the perceptions of acceptable to religious zealots and many immigrant populations;
2. The Toronto media's witch hunt ended up back firing on them.  The lack of journalism integrity shown by major newspapers such the the Globe and Mail and the Star was embarrassing.  They were transparent in their attempt to manipulate and thus created a backlash amongst the population. The biggest problem was that the papers forgot about the comments sections as well as social media.  Their attempt to control the message was beat down with social marketing.  Rob Ford learnt this from the Obama campaign and used it well in Toronto to combat the media;
3. The former council created this perfect storm by not being inclusive.  They may not have agreed with the 'other side' but to consistently mock and ridicule varying ideas was perceived by the public by arrogant and out-of-touch.  BTW, for those of you on the left side in Canada, I would ditch the 'progressive' tag.  It is smug and does not translate well amongst the general population.  They sent the message that they were 'entitled to their entitlements', so the electorate corrected them on that assessment; and
4. Rob Ford, borrowed from several successful play books.  He sent a simple concise message (Obama play book), did not get baited (Mike Harris) and presented a human demeanor (Ralph Klein).  He became a sympathetic figure as a result of his strategy.  He was the kid in the school yard being picked and was trying to stick up for himself but was over matched. The public came to help him and believed his message as a result.  George Smitherman, on the other hand, came across as being the out-of-touch elite that had the likability of a cobra.  

In summary, I won't get into platforms because I do not really care. I am apolitical for a reason.  I do however, think that the lessons above should be heeded by political figures heading into elections in the next few years.

Wayne.

New Article...

See my latest publication in the International Journal of Festival and Event Management.

Setting parameters: operational budget size and allocation of resources

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Author(s):	Wayne W. Smith, (Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, School of Business and Economics, The College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina, USA), Stephen W. Litvin, (Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, School of Business and Economics, The College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina, USA), Andrea Canberg, (Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, School of Business and Economics, The College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina, USA)
Citation:	Wayne W. Smith, Stephen W. Litvin, Andrea Canberg, "Setting parameters: operational budget size and allocation of resources", International Journal of Event and Festival Management, Vol. 1 Iss: 3, pp.238 - 243
Keywords:	Benchmarking, Budgets, Costs, Festivals, Financial management, Operations management
Article type:	Research paper
DOI:	10.1108/17852951011078032 (Permanent URL)
Publisher:	Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Abstract:	Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine how festivals allocated their funds among various expense categories. Design/methodology/approach – Festival managers from across North and South Carolina were asked to specify the percentages of their expense budgets allocated to each of the following categories: marketing, administrative, entertainment and operations. Findings – It was found that “smaller” festivals spend a significantly greater proportion of their budgets on marketing (23 percent) and a far smaller share on administrative expenditures (5 percent) than do their “larger” counterparts that spend only 15 percent on marketing and triple the “smaller” festival's administrative costs (15 percent). The differences related to their spending for entertainment (35 versus 28 percent) and operations (36 versus 41 percent) are not as dramatic in relation to their proportion of total spending. The data herein suggest that festival size plays an important role when it comes to such allocations. Originality/value – The paper has provided benchmarks that hopefully will assist festival directors' budget-decision-making strategies as they allow a measure with which to evaluate those decisions. While the research needs to be interpreted with great care due to its relatively small sample size and broad budgetary categorizations, the findings provide a guide to assist festival organizers as they manage their events for the benefit of their stakeholders and the communities that support them. The paper also provides a starting point for future research in this area, much of which is needed.