The contribution of a nationwide mega event to increased collaborative and knowledge transfer capacity in a regional destination marketing network

Abstract:
The study will explore collaboration and knowledge transfer capacity in destination marketing. Specifically, the research will use a mega‐event, the 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC 2011), to analyse the collaboration and knowledge transfer process between Tourism Auckland (a regional tourism organisation) and other organisations and public authorities in their efforts to leverage this event.

The research topic will be examined from three different perspectives (i.e. case study areas) building up on one another and allowing a comprehensive analysis. Firstly, the research takes a structural approach from network theory and comprehensively analyses Tourism Auckland’s network, its strong and weak ties, and the interaction between its partners, and how they evolve over time. In a second step, the research intends to examine whether Tourism Auckland has been able to improve the relationships with its partners and to collaborate more effectively due to RWC 2011, i.e. if RWC 2011 contributed to an increased collaborative capacity of Tourism Auckland. Finally, the research looks at the interdependence between collaboration and knowledge transfer and analyses the influence of collaboration on knowledge transfer, intending to find out whether the tension between collaboration and competition affects the dynamics of knowledge transfer.

Hence, the study offers a comprehensive review on Tourism Auckland’s RWC 2011 network as well as on the legacy of this mega‐event from a collaboration and knowledge transfer perspective. The thesis aims at making a contribution to the development of a theoretical framework as well as a conceptual model for understanding the influence of a mega‐event on collaboration and knowledge transfer capacity in the tourism industry, with a particular emphasis on the destination marketing perspective.

Biography:
Kim started her professional career in 1997 as a travel agent and since then has gained a profound background in the travel & tourism industry working for variety of tourism companies. She completed a Degree in Business Administration with distinction at the University of Applied Sciences in Bremen, Germany in 2004.

Before emigrating to New Zealand in 2008, Kim worked for the German Football League (Deutsche Fußball Liga) in Frankfurt and was responsible for the travel arrangements of all teams in the German ‘Bundesliga’ (Premier League) to national and international matches. Prior to that, she held the position of ‘Marketing and Events Coordinator Continental Europe’ with Tourism Australia in the Frankfurt office. Next to her PhD studies at NZTRI, Kim is currently working as Sales Executive with Lufthansa German Airlines in the Auckland office.