Abstract
The aim of this research was to explore the implementation of strategic management approaches in Greek tourism and hospitality businesses during economic crises, in order to further expand our current knowledge of operating in a turbulent environment and embracing novel aspects by linking economic crises with the current literature on the COVID-19 pandemic. This research emphasizes the connection between the strategic management approaches of 131 tourism organizations and hospitality business performance by analyzing entrepreneurs’ opinions and hospitality business markets. The results reveal that a significant percentage of the participants understand and use some strategic management procedures, and some strategy in general, but there is a lack of a concrete strategy for managing the turbulent environment caused by an economic crisis. However, a large percentage of small tourism businesses are completely unaware of strategic management approaches, and their knowledge of implementing a strategy during an economic crisis is limited. The practical implications of this research can act as a navigator of the economic consequences caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Highlights
Tourism is one of the most important pillars of Greek economic growth, accounting for 20.8% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and 21.7% of total employment which, before the COVID-19 pandemic, was estimated as totaling 846,200 jobs [1]
One of the main factors that influenced the Greek tourism industry during this time was the prestige and solvency loss of Greece in foreign countries, especially during the loan period, that led to a reduction in disposable income and a reduction in tourism expenditures, especially for Greek families, as their income was reduced by 25% and they were unable to borrow from the financial system
Taking into account the above context of an economic crisis, this paper addresses the recent calls for more extensive research on the strategic management approaches in tourism and hospitality businesses [6,7,8], along with recent calls linking crises and strategic management in tourism businesses [9,10] and tourist destinations [11]
Summary
Tourism is one of the most important pillars of Greek economic growth, accounting for 20.8% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and 21.7% of total employment which, before the COVID-19 pandemic, was estimated as totaling 846,200 jobs [1]. The recent report from the Bank of Greece [2] revealed a dramatic situation caused by COVID-19, as the tourism revenues for June 2020 were only 64 million euros, in comparison with the 2.56 billion euros of June 2019. The importance of Greek tourism for the economy becomes even greater when considering that the total revenues reached 17.7 billion euros in 2019, according to the official data of the Bank of Greece [2]. The importance of Greek tourism is revealed through academic studies, as in developed countries such as Greece, tourism contributes to economic growth and development [4]. One of the main factors that influenced the Greek tourism industry during this time was the prestige and solvency loss of Greece in foreign countries, especially during the loan period, that led to a reduction in disposable income and a reduction in tourism expenditures, especially for Greek families, as their income was reduced by 25% and they were unable to borrow from the financial system
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