Diversification of Sources of Financing Regional Tourist Organizations in Poland as Conditioning the Effectiveness of their Actions

Abstract

Purpose. To characterize the financial condition of Regional Tourism Organizations (ROT) in Poland, including comparative analyzes of disparities in the level of funding for these organizations, and also to make the author attempt to identify the catalog of conditions of a financial nature surrounded by ROTs having impact on the level of the effective of their functioning. Method. Methods of research included desk research of written resources, together with ROT status (analysis of the structure of their aims) and in-depth analysis of data acquired during the author’s own questionnaire research. The conclusions were made with the use of the deductive method, comparative analysis, and – to simplify the presentation of problems – the reduction method, as well as the authors’ own observations. Findings. The study revealed strong differentiation and large disparities in the level and character of funding sources of ROTs which could be crucial in assessing the effectiveness of the organization. Research limitations and conclusions. The study involved 16 ROTs from a historical perspective, and survey research data were obtained from 15 organizations from 2013. Due to the difficulty of obtaining financial data, studies on sources of ROT financing in the period 2014- 2015 were not considered, which resulted in limited capacity to formulate opinions. The analysis allowed, however, to distinguish and outline patterns in the characteristics of financing ROTs and the conditions of financial nature in their environment affecting effective functioning. Practical implications. The research diagnoses the level and character of funding sources of ROTs, and allows for a practical comparison of the activities and operations of each organization. Originality. Thy analysis and identification of sources of financing conditions in the ROT environment directory , in the context of tourism policy issues, system of organization of tourism, the behaviors of organizations focused on obtaining sources of functioning. A specific ranking of the ROTs. Type of paper. The article presents the results of empirical research.