The papers presented in this volume advance the state-of-the-art research on digital marketing and social media, mobile computing and responsive web design, semantic technologies and recommender systems, augmented and virtual reality, electronic distribution and online travel reviews, MOOC and eLearning, eGovernment and sharing economy. This book covers the most significant areas contributed by prominent scholars from around the world and is suitable for both academics and practitioners who are interested in the latest developments in eTourism.

Improving Convention Center Management Using Business Analytics and Key Performance Indicators presents sound practical advice from an author who successfully lived the experience. Transitioning from a traditional business model to one that is data driven and entrepreneurial can be difficult. This book explains the rationale and importance of each indicator along with data collection issues and presentation advice. It guides you through that process from launch and trial, up to making analytics an indispensible part of your management strategy.

With the increasing globalization and fast-paced technological advances in business today, service organizations must to respond to the changing business dynamic between employers and employees. The service industry has metamorphosed into a revolution not only in United States but in developed and developing countries also. Highly industrialized countries have become 'service economies', at least when measured in terms of share of the workforce employed in service industries. This new book, Employees and Employers in Service Organizations: Emerging Challenges and Opportunities, the first volume in the 21st Century Business Management book series, provides an in-depth exploration of recent concepts and trends in business management in the service industries. It looks at the changing expectations and loyalties of young workers and others and the challenges and opportunities presented for service employers. The book considers theory and research findings, providing a plethora of practical implications and applications for these new workplace behavior dynamics. Exploring the different perspectives and concepts from the book's researchers and authors, Employees and Employers in Service Organizations: Emerging Challenges and Opportunities cover themes such as * work-life balance * spirituality in the workplace * emerging positive psychology concepts, such as psychological capital, knowledge management, and mindfulness * expectations, motivation, and behavior of different generations, such as Generation Y This informative volume will be valuable for faculty teaching courses in management and self-improvement for leaders and executives as well as for those in service industries.

Services now account for almost three quarters of economic activity in advanced market economies and two of the principal topics that researchers on services have been concerned with are, on the one hand, productivity, and on the other, innovation in and through services. These two issues, and finding ways to measure and conceptualise them, lie at the heart of this book. The productivity question is a puzzle in many so-called 'stagnant services', where national accounts show little or no increase in productivity, while closer empirical investigations and case studies reveal that some of these sectors are in fact as dynamic as their manufacturing counterparts. How can these opposing views be reconciled? The same applies to innovation in and through services, where many of the existing approaches retain much of their bias towards manufacturing and technology, and fail to capture some of the fundamental aspects of innovation in services. Written by some of the most distinguished authors in the field, this book elucidates the critical and complex relationships between services, production and innovation. The authors discuss the limitations of current theories to explain service productivity and innovation, and call for a conceptual re-working of the ways in which these are measured. They also highlight the important role of knowledge in the production system and in doing so make an important contribution to a key debate which has emerged in the social sciences in recent years. Productivity, Innovation and Knowledge in Services will inform and interest those in the fields of economics, management, business studies and economic geography.

We think we know services - not a day goes by without using them - until we have to design them. It is then that their realities confront us, teasing us sometimes. While services have always been 'designed', the qualities of their designs are more important than ever, given how much more we depend on them. Thus the need for deepening our understanding of what services are, what they can be, and why they fail - often in unexpected ways. This book reveals the surprising design of services - their internal structure or 'DNA' - through simple diagrams. It introduces a language and format for describing the concept of a service with clarity and depth. And, it provides the principles for implementing strategy through design.

A great deal has been written on the theoretical aspects of copyright and the cultural industries but much less on the applied side - how copyright law works in practice. How do lawyers, firms and artists manage and administer copyright and what economic and legal problems does this raise? In recent times in particular, technological inventions appear to have outpaced the development of copyright law. This illuminating book addresses these issues and looks at the serious implications for copyright policy in the future. Several of the authors question the efficacy of copyright, which is increasingly regarded as benefiting multinational organisations rather than individual authors and performers. Others are less critical of copyright per se, but question its ability to meet the new challenges of a digital era. Some of the specific issues covered include: * law and international transactions of copyrighted material * economic analysis of copyright and freedom of expression * music licensing in the digital age * the role of copyright in stimulating cultural development * internet distribution of copyright material * the problems of licensing museum images. International in scope and offering views from both academics and practitioners, this book will interest and inform economists, lawyers and policymakers alike. Commercial managers and business analysts involved with copyright would also benefit from reading this comprehensive yet accessible book.

The number one issue for financial professionals is capacity. What is the number one way to constantly build capacity in your financial services business? What blind spot is holding you back from achieving more? Does it seem there is never enough time to grow? It's time for you to implement the missing practice management processes into your financial business so you can build your ideal business. Based on extensive financial industry practice management research, proven marketing strategies from Guerrilla Marketing legend Jay Conrad Levinson and over 27 years of unique financial industry experience, Grant Hicks has created simple yet easy to implement strategies for any financial professional to build and manage capacity in their practice. Research shows that a majority of financial professionals do not have detailed practice management processes including: a unique value proposition clearly articulated, a formal feedback system for clients, a clear definition of an ideal client and a process for attracting ideal clients. Learn strategies to build your ideal capacity, and increase your revenue by up to 33%, through unique practice management processes. Quickly learn how to: Identify and attract better ideal clients to manage your growth effectively Manage your time to achieve consistent double digit growth and manage capacity issues Gather more revenue and get more referrals by implementing proven processes Inspire clients to act quickly through articulating your ideal client experience and case studies Build key practice management processes to build ideal capacity such as feedback and your value proposition Save yourself valuable time. By implementing just one new process, you will be on the path to your ideal capacity and ultimately your ideal practice.

Managing strategies for professional service firms is an important and complex activity. The main issues in this book cover the core management principles for service firms in a comprehensive way. Based on current research findings it includes the management of service quality, knowledge and marketing as well as people, organizational and strategic issues. In understanding critical resources managers and partners will be able to effectively develop and exploit them. The book contains practical advice and offers a profound insight into the managerial excellence of service companies.

Geography Of Tourism explains to the readers the wide range of aspects related to the tourism industry and the meaning of geography when it comes to tourism, so that the readers can understand the tourism industry in a refined way and know how the geographies affect the industry in certain ways. This book also discusses about the demand for recreation in the tourism industry, geographies of Europe and North America and the relation to tourism, geographies of central Asia and Africa and related tourism and the geographies of middle east and the relation with tourism. It also provides the readers with a basic knowledge of the way in which the different geographies affect the tourism in various parts of the world and the other factors dependent on it.

A striking aspect of India's recent growth has been the dynamism of its services sector. In 2010, it accounted for 57 percent of the country's GDP and 25 percent of its total employment. The results do not conform to the growth experience of currently industrialized countries or other developing economies. Is the increasing share of the service sector in India's total output simply notional, as several activities that were earlier classified in the industrial sector are now subsumed in services' value added, or because the relative price of services has increased over time? No. The sector's growth is real - it is linked to household final demand, policy reforms and increased service exports. Is this service-led growth process sustainable? That remains an open question because the service sector is highly heterogeneous, ranging from software services and business process outsourcing to wholesale and retail trade and personal services. These subsectors vary considerably in the context of different economic characteristics that are important for development.

Drawing upon interviews with key people in the World Rally Championship as well as trans-local ethnographic research, this book explores questions of commerciality and sporting identity, tackling the sport's controversial handling of the shift into 'the commercial age'. It is essential reading on combining sporting heritage and commercial progress.

As service becomes a more and more important factor in customer choice, all executives with the ambition of a building world class company should read this book.

"This book identifies the critical common practices of highly successful, international service enterprises. These businesses are led by inspiring teachers, who connect employees to customers to the benefit of both, and who build business models that are internationally mobile, while locally contextually relevant … a must read for students and practitioners alike who wish to understand the ingredients for successful growth of service business around the world." Gary W. Loveman, CEO, Harrah's Entertainment Inc.

"Winning at Service is not just about food and security services. It is about how to succeed in the service industry, and shows how sharing the vision with employees and customers, sticking to it and empowering employees to act upon it are the key ingredients for success." Rob Kuijpers, Former CEO, DHL International

"Gate Gourmet started on a journey similar to the four companies in Winning at Service, albeit on a smaller scale. Before we took off, we could sure have used the enduring lessons from this remarkable 'tour guide' in our own toolbox. But it is deeply reassuring to see that Gate Gourmet's key focus and basic beliefs are very much aligned with the winning strategies and values of the four service leaders in the book." Henning Boysen, President and CEO, Gate Gourmet International

The nature of services in society and the economy is wide-ranging and complex, and the management of services and their innovation provokes a number challenges for practitioners, professionals, and academics. This book provides a range of perspectives on understanding, managing, and reconceptualising service by bringing together contributions from leading figures in service research, to make a timely and significant multi-disciplinary contribution to the theory and practice of service management. The book presents a collection of contemporary perspectives on service management challenges, extending the understanding of service through exploration and critique of service organizational and managerial strategies from selected theoretical and empirical perspectives. Amongst other contributions, it reviews the distinctive role and importance of service to academics, professionals, and practitioners; identifies appropriate bridging strategies; evaluates selected aspects of the practice of service management, and investigates the challenges inherent in managing services; reviews the nature, direction, and applicability of selected theoretical dimensions which inform the understanding of service management; considers contemporary innovations in services and service management; and assesses the opportunities for theory building, to further support understanding of the complexities of service management and its impact on organisations and wider society. It will be of interest to graduate students, academics and practitioners in service management.

In the face of rapid industrialisation in the last few decades, the tourism economy has blossomed into a major industry with positive impacts such as economic growth, infrastructure development, employment, and income generation. However, tourism brings negative environmental effects such as degradation of landscapes and habitats, increased vulnerability of avifauna and wildlife, and pollution leading to the decline of species. Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Developing Nations is a pivotal reference source that explores some of the critical challenges faced in the tourism economy particularly with regard to the impacts on the environment in developing nations. It also explores the impact tourism plays in the biophysical environment such as the issue of climate change. While highlighting topics such as environmental justice, ecosystems, and ecotourism, this book is ideally designed for academicians, policymakers, environmentalists, tourism professionals, and graduate-level students seeking current research on the environmental and economic impacts of tourism.

Over the past four decades the wealthiest OECD economies-in Europe, North America, and Australasia- have faced massive structural change. Industrial sectors, which were once considered the economic backbone of these societies, have shrunk inexorably in terms of size and economic significance, while service sectors have taken over as the primary engines of output and employment expansion. The impact on labor markets has been profound: in many OECD countries more than three-quarters of employment is now in services, while industrial sectors, on average, account for less than one-fifth. This sectoral shift in the locus of economic activity has potentially radical implications for politics and society. However, these implications are only beginning to be understood. This path-breaking book is a systematic attempt to understand the distinct political economy of service societies. It examines how different types of socio-economic regimes manage the service transition, with a central focus on job creation and destruction and the changing characteristics of labor markets, and shows that the economic, distributional, and political outcomes with which it is associated vary across countries depending on their political-institutional structures.

Across the EU, services are the cornerstone of the modern economy, accounting for over 70% of national GDPs and over 90% of new jobs created. Fostering trade in services has, accordingly, become central to the EU's vision for developing the internal market. Yet regulating services and their international trade is notoriously complex, and controversial. For years the EU's efforts were limited to sector-specific regulation in key areas, until the adoption of the general Services Directive in 2006. Since then, confronted by the limited success of traditional legal intervention, the EU's attentions have shifted to alternative forms of regulation. This book looks back on the historical development of services law, discusses the nature of impediments to trade in services in the EU, and explains the basic rules and principles applicable to such trade. It also examines the recent development of alternative regulatory methods, such as networking, the use of common standards, private regulation, self-regulation, open methods of coordination, and administrative cooperation. Taking a broad perspective and placing services regulation within its economic context, the author offers a thorough evaluation of current regulatory methods alongside the alternative methods which could be deployed. The book is the first to provide an overview of the regulation of services in the EU.

Tourism is characterized by diversity, enormous growth, and multidimensional impacts on several levels. In the current turbulent environment, tourism destinations need, on the one hand to maintain and enhance their products in the tourism map, and on the other hand, to protect their resources' integrity for future generations, based on sustainability premises. This is more evident for traditional destinations in Western-Europe, as many of them face the consequences of over-growth, unsustainable development, and lack of service quality. In this respect, attention in the literature needs to be given to how destinations in the region can conceptualize and mitigate their weaknesses as well as capitalize on their competences in order to plan, develop and manage tourism products that could lead them to sustainable competitiveness in the long-term. The collection of cases in this book: * Considers global trends and forces in order to understand the marketing environment of a wide number of countries and the appreciation of the sustainable competitive development of destinations. * Explores specific marketing strategies in Western-European countries' destinations. * Is authored by scholars who have performed extensive research on tourism in the countries documented. The book is of significant interest to those researching and working within the area of tourism marketing, but also of interest to students who are seeking wider reading on the topic.