Strategic Alignment across a Tourism Business Ecosystem

The tourism experience in a destination is evaluated by a visitor at a holistic level across a multiplicity of service encounters, facilitated by a web of tourism-related organisations engaged in different activities, often referred to as the tourism supply chain (TSC) or tourism value chain (TVC). Earlier tourism studies have pointed to the need to progress our understanding of the TSC more holistically to include its wider environment, as the destination it is operating in presents a unique composition of contextual factors that define its experiences offered to visitors, making up a business ecosystem. Such a business ecosystem consists of not only intermediaries and industry partners, but also various stakeholders including governments, visitors, and the natural environment. This research focuses on preliminary insights in relation to strategic alignment across a wider business ecosystem; with application to the Sunshine Coast - region in Australia as an example of a Destination Business Ecosystem.