Management instruments in the process focused on improving the results of organizations functioning in economic crisis - based on the research of opinions presented by managers of tourist enterprises

• Published in: Management (Zielona Góra) 2013-05, Vol.17 (1), p.291
• Main Authors: Rapacz, Andrzej, Jaremen, Daria E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Costs; Economic crisis; Economic impact; Management of crises; Management theory; Studies; Tourism
• ISSN: 1429-9321; 2299-193X
• DOI: 10.2478/manment-2013-0020

The economic crisis, which has affected the global economy in recent years, also exerted impact on, among others, the tourism sector. It view of the worse financial and economic results obtained by enterprises operating in tourist sector and other negative phenomena tourist entities started paying attention to tools adequate for crisis management. The objective of article is to define the impact of economic crisis on the functioning of Polish tourist enterprises both in the perspective of its effects and activities undertaken to overcome them. The paper presents an attempt to verify the hypotheses, referring to the opinion of tourist companies' managers, according to which an increase in operating costs represents the more important result of the current global crisis, rather than a drop in revenues or smaller number of clients. In spite of that, among crisis management instruments higher significance, than cost reduction, is associated with such activities and instruments as: promotion and its intensification, higher online sales intensity, offering discounts on services or winning new sale markets. It refers to hypothesis verification suggesting that these enterprises are not prepared for crisis situations and the activates undertaken are of temporary nature. The discussion presented in the paper is based on empirical research results carried out among entrepreneurs operating in tourism sector in the most popular tourist locations in The Karkonosze and The Izery mountains, i.e. Karpacz, Szklarska Poreba, Swieradów Zdrój and Jelenie Góra. The empirical part of the paper was preceded by theoretical remarks referring to attitudes of crisis management in tourism. The results of conducted research indicate that in the opinion of the majority of tourist companies' managers/owners the crucial impact of the global crises was observed in higher functioning costs, while the most important instrument for its effects counteracting is the extension of promotion and offer distribution, mainly online, with the cost reduction to follow.