Tourism Management (TCTM1-GC)

Effective professionals must understand modern leadership and behavior within their organizations. The concepts of leadership versus management, the development of culture within an organization and the formation of effective contemporary leadership techniques are the focus of this course. Issues such as managing diversity, transformational leadership and modern leadership theory will be applied to professional challenges set by industry partners. Topics covered in these challenges may include comparative leadership models, effective communication, global leadership issues, individual and group motivational theory, team-building, and managing change in organizational settings.

This course will focus on understanding the roles and responsibilities of consultants, both internal and external. By examining models, approaches, and best practices used by industry consulting professionals, students will understand the process for conducting a consulting project. Topics to be covered include: preparing a proposal, diagnosing organizational culture, contracting with a client, managing client communications, accessing and assessing resources, developing the deliverables, monitoring progress, reporting results, achieving engagement closure, and re-contracting. Students will conduct a consulting project from contracting to presentation of results, working in teams, with appropriate clients under the guidance of a faculty member. Prerequisites: Student must be in their final 12 credits of the program, Applied Research Methods – TCTM1-GC 1050.

This course explores tourism policy analysis and planning in today’s complex and interdependent global environment. Students are prepared to manage, direct, and lead planning initiatives in many different sectors of the tourism field. Students explore methods to source and analyze data, direct planning initiatives, and use technology to evaluate options and obtain measurable results. Students investigate various strategic planning methods and industry case studies. Topics include analyzing resources; developing research-based plans; measuring efficacy; analyzing impacts; forecasting; developing partnerships; and integrating goals, objectives and strategies with organizational culture, mission statements, and corporate philosophies. Prerequisite: None

This course presents a managerial as well as technical perspective to tourism research. Research design includes the overall structure for gathering data, analyzing it, and drawing conclusions supported by a coherent and comprehensive review of the published literature in the field. Students will learn how to conduct a literature review as well as design an applied research proposal. In this course, the subjects to be examined include: quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods of research; analysis of scholarly and industry research; data gathering techniques and methods of analysis; sample selection and analysis; and application of findings. Prerequisite: None

Inherent in the development of tourism products is the investigation and analysis of potential customers. This course begins with an overview of consumer segments defined by ages, values, ethnicity, cultures, etc. with the focus on defining differences to be used for the development of tourism products. The course then turns to the development of new tourism products and the sustainment of the existing products for specific customer bases. Topics include: the integrated development process of public and tourism specific infrastructures, types of development, factors influencing success, sources of funding, projecting potential market demand; competitive conditions; and potential local obstacles. Prerequisite: None

Working in groups, students will conduct a comprehensive research project within a specific time frame and according to specific guidelines. The topics assigned will reflect current trends within the industry. The project is expected to combine applied research methods and theoretical knowledge to focus on a relevant topical area. Prerequisites: Student must be registered for final 12 units, Applied Research Methods TCTM1-GC 1050.

Corporate Travel Management is a strategic approach businesses adopt to manage their travel expenses. A well-managed program must balance cost containment with traveler satisfaction, traveler compliance with traveler productivity on the road, and traveler comfort and convenience with safety and security. This includes negotiation with vendors such as lodging providers, airlines, car rental companies and payment services. Students in this course will learn how corporate travel policies are developed and implemented, how the safety and security of business travelers is managed, and how technology is used to facilitate and monitor corporate travel.

This course examines the application of marketing and management principles to international airlines. The course is reviews product development, pricing, distribution channels, promotion, revenue management, cargo operations, market research and data driven decision making processes. Particular emphasis is placed on understanding commercial airline marketing practices, the civil aviation landscape, branding, advertising and customer service principles. The course presents relevant theories, models, and other management tools and will include case studies, guest speakers and site visits to enable students observe how principles are applied to real life situations.

Social entrepreneurs implement innovative private sector approaches to solve social, cultural and/or environmental problems. This course will examine the practice of identifying, starting and growing successful mission-driven for profit and nonprofit ventures in the travel and tourism sectors. Through case studies, lectures and classroom dialogue, students will learn to think strategically and act opportunistically with a socially-conscious business mindset. Topics will include problem/opportunity assessment, acquiring the necessary resources to grow a social enterprise, and the tradeoffs between social and financial returns on investment. Students None MS in Tourism Management will review good practices in social entrepreneurship, and will develop a business plan for a mission-driven organization

Billions of dollars are spent annually by destinations and private tourism businesses in an attempt to generate awareness, establish images, and attract visitors. Persuasion activities are the focal point for advertising and public relations to influence the consumer: prior to leaving home; while en route to the destination; and after arriving in the destination area. Topics to be discussed include: advertising awareness, brand awareness, message recall, main point communication, campaign diagnostics, destination imagery, motivation, behavior, demographics, constructing the advertising message, and designing print campaigns. In this course, students learn to develop, plan, and budget for destination advertising and public relations programs.

This course incorporates the role of significant international and domestic organizational sources and examines relevant data to compare and contrast the importance of placemaking as the destination attraction. Students will study how creativity and innovation are incorporated in the development processes and how an individual or a group of people conceives of a creative idea that guides decisions about None MS in Tourism Management branding a product or a destination for the purpose of attracting visitors. Place branding is a way of communicating and developing a strategic marketing program based carefully on a planned approach to creating knowledge and experiences at different destinations and within local communities. Prerequisite: None

In this course, students learn how to integrate digital marketing formats into a marketing plan, and how to use digital marketing to achieve business objectives. The course will cover social media, email marketing, blogs, SEO and video marketing. It will examine how digital marketing supports Customer Relationship Management and loyalty programs, and how the success of digital marketing campaigns can be evaluated. Students will be introduced to a wide variety of existing and emerging digital marketing formats, and will review good practice case studies across the travel and tourism sectors.

Thinking up an interesting business idea is not the end of the entrepreneurial process, in fact, it is just the beginning. This idea must be developed into a business concept and a business opportunity through both formal and informal techniques. During the course the students will be challenged to identify areas of need, to find and create business ideas, and to develop business concepts and opportunities. In order to facilitate this, the course will present key skill-sets in a series of lectures, help participants use this in a series of workshops, and further use a mix of theoretical analysis and practicefocused teaching methods.

A proof of concept (POC) is the preliminary rollout of a specific program, process, method, principle, model, product, or idea to demonstrate its feasibility. Students will develop prototyping and presentation techniques that demonstrate for a team, the use and function of digital products such as mobile apps and Co-requisite/pre-requisite: TCTM1-GC XXXX Ideation – Value Creation MS in Tourism Management websites using advanced industry prototyping software. We will discuss concepts of product development pipelines and building use cases. The end assignment will be a proposal pitch that outlines (i) the planning concepts, (ii) feasibility assessment, (iii) visual mock-ups of a prototype

This course explores financial strategies used in tourism development projects. Extensive examination of feasibility studies and the development of business plans form the basis of discussion. Economic, accounting and finance terminology and principles are reviewed through the use of case studies and industry experts. Topics include the steps in feasibility analysis, revenue and expense forecasting, sources and uses of capital financing, business plan development, relationships to tourism planning, and report development and presentation. Prerequisite: None

Events and entertainment are now an important part of the tourism of any major destination. As well, festivals are becoming a significant interest area for a growing population of tourists. Various forms of entertainment such as theater plays in urban environments are also important tourism generators. This course investigates these important areas with regard to their development and maintenance. Topics include market development and analysis, feasibility, financial criteria, stakeholder negotiations, and marketing for sustainment. Prerequisite: None

Cultural Heritage Tourism is one of the fastest growing segments in tourism development both internationally and nationally for the past twenty years. Cultural heritage tourism includes travel to experience places that are authentic and represent the stories of the local culture and the local people based on the cultural, historic and natural resources of a destination. This course examines the process of inventory, planning and development of cultural and heritage resources as potential primary or secondary tourism destination products. Students learn about the range of cultural and heritage assets and their potential to become viable tourism attractions when integrated with museums, performing and visual arts, World Heritage sites, local history and cultures, National Parks and natural areas. Topics include current and future cultural and heritage e trends and issues, the role of the organizations and businesses, policy and planning, the use of cultural and heritage resources for sustainable economic development and the emerging challenges with overtourism at World Heritage sites and other fragile environments at tourism destinations. Prerequisite: None

Travel and Tourism is the world’s largest industry and is a key sector for economic development and job creation. Tourism may be defined as the sum of the processes, activities, and outcomes arising form the interactions among tourist, tourism suppliers, host governments, host communities governments and organizations in the process of attracting, transporting, hosting and managing visitors. Topics of study include tourism supply and demand; trends and issues, the geographic, economic and socio-cultural perspectives of travel; consumer behavior; transportation and distribution systems, the other segments of the industry such as airlines, lodging, tour operators, food service, and cruise lines, public policy; trade organizations; and the impacts of tourism on sites and communities.

There is an increasing awareness of the economic, sociocultural, and environmental impacts at tourism destinations within the international, national and local governments, businesses, organizations and individuals who are involved in travel and tourism development and marketing throughout the world. Tourism growth has None MS in Tourism Management led to many nations and businesses to recognize the need to develop policies and programs that protect and conserve precious tourism resources. As tourism is projected to grow to around 18 billion travelers by 2030 tourism, how will businesses develop programs designed to protect and conserve national, regional, and local natural and cultural resources. In this course, students examine best practices in tourism as an industry whose product is based on the consumption of the local environment, both physical and human, and the importance of planning to incorporate how the development of sustainable tourism policies and strategic plans can assist tourism managers in better inform and educate their clients about potential tourism impacts and the need to protect and conserve the tourism resources for future generations.

This course is designed to research and analyze the emerging political, technological, environmental, sociocultural and economic trends and issues in international and national travel and tourism and provide a framework for exploration relative to the travel and tourism system. Students learn to identify tourism trends that impact destinations planning, development, marketing and growth. Topics include techniques for identifying and researching trends and how to measure the impacts of trends on destinations in order to determine which products and services will meet the needs of the different generations of visitors and create authentic experiences that visitors are seeking when they travel.

This course is designed to analyze emerging political, technological, and economic trends and to provide a framework of exploration relative to the tourism industry. Students learn to identify issues and trends that impact destination planning, development and growth. Topics include techniques for identifying trends and issues, measuring the impact of trends on the destination to determine which products and services will meet the needs of sophisticated and informed tourists. Prerequisite: None

Tourism generated by sports activities is an emerging trend in the development of major destination areas. Students learn an awareness of the factors necessary to plan and execute this significant and growing area of tourism. This course investigates the needed infrastructures, policies and plans, marketing, special services, economic impacts, financial structures, organizational structures, and strategic sponsoring partnerships. This course will make use of case study analysis and integrate industry expert guest speakers. Prerequisite: None

In this course, students develop skills in how to research tourism policy initiatives, collect and analyze data, and use technology to evaluate options and obtain measurable results. Students examine components of the tourism industry and develop tools to analyze and evaluate tourism policy as it impacts tourism organizations in government and private sectors. Strategic policy analysis methods and industry case studies are examined in a framework of public, private, and non-profit systems. Prerequisite: None

Visitor attractions and entertainment are key elements of the tourist experience, as well as being a major part of the day visitor recreation market. This course reviews the principal types of visitor attractions in the commercial, public, and not for profit sectors; the key attributes of each of these attractions; and the implications for management. In order to understand the operation of these attractions students consider the main management functions including finance, marketing, visitor management, facilities management, interpretation and education, ethical issues and the management of sensitive sites including sacred and dark heritage sites.

Design thinking is a method of applying creativity to come up with novel solutions and innovations to tough problems. It's the process of immersing in a problem space, thinking creatively around pain points and opportunity areas, and then iteratively developing totally new solutions. Focused on listening, user empathy, whole-brain thinking, collaboration, and experimentation, design thinking can be applied from business to architecture and from design and to new service development.

Developing a meaningful customer experience requires consistent management of information and action. This course investigates structures, cultures, and the goals of organizations with the purpose of developing effective strategies for customer relationship management. Topics to be examined include: loyalty, life-time-value (LTV) of customers, service quality analysis, service recovery tactics, service experience design and delivery, analysis of customer touch points within organizations, developing service strategies consistent with corporate culture and mission, and implementing customer service necessary to achieve excellence and dominant market share. The role of technology in CRM management will be examined closely.

This course will introduce students to a variety of technical and business writing practices. It teaches the fundamentals of good business writing, including protocols for business letters, electronic mail and formal reports and proposals. It will review intercultural communication, and the role of technology in delivering a clear and effective message. It will highlight the importance of evidence-based communications, and will cover academic research and writing practices, including the selection of reliable sources and accurate referencing. In addition, the course will cover how to create effective presentations, and will require students present individually and/or as a group.

The objective of this course is to examine the use of information technology in the travel and tourism sectors, including websites, reservation systems, electronic payments and travel distribution systems. Students will learn the information technology needs of international tourism businesses, and will define the requirements of a good e-commerce system. Topics covered in the course include the fundamental use of information technology in travel; a brief overview of computing hardware, software, networks, security, and e-commerce and their use as related to the travel industry; and the usability and system quality factors used in the evaluation of systems.

Strategic decision-making in hospitality and travel is usually underpinned by data analytics – data are a valuable commodity today, and professional success is often tied to the ability to generate and visualize insights from data sets. This course will provide students with a functional literacy in business analytics, using hospitality and travel data. They will be introduced to key analytical tools in MS Excel and statistical functions commonly used in business. Students will learn how to ask the right questions, evaluate data collection mechanisms, find patterns in data and build models, and communicate their findings to make sound recommendations.

This course examines various financial instruments, structures, and strategies by which hospitality and tourism businesses operate. Topics to be covered include important financial concepts such as time value of money, capital budgeting, operations budgeting, ratio analysis, sources of capital, and forecasting. Excel will be used in class and for homework assignments.

Using significant international and domestic organizational sources, this course examines data to compare and contrast destinations under specific measurement criteria. Organizations such as the UN World Tourism Organization, the World Travel and Tourism Council, the World Bank, and the U.S. Travel Association generate significant analysis and evaluation of worldwide destinations. Topics include sources of reliable data, the development and use of the Tourism Satellite Account system, comparative analysis, current destination trends and predictions for the future, and the relevance of analysis to tourism destination planning. Prerequisite: None

Provides the opportunity to work with a faculty member on a well-defined specific topic via independent study. Approved topics should be extensions of existing courses previously taken on areas in which no courses are offered. Independent research is intended to extend the students knowledge in an area in which his or her interest is more specialized than the norm. Requires prior approval of an appropriate academic adviser as to the topic of the research. Prerequisite: Divisional Dean approval needed, Applied Research Methods − TCTM1-GC 1050

This course provides students with limited industry experience an opportunity to work in a hospitality enterprise. Building a career requires appropriate industry work experience to strengthen the student’s knowledge and skills formed in the classroom. Students are expected to complete three hundred (300) hours of work experience approved by the Tisch Center. Prerequisites: Faculty advisor approval needed. Completion of 18 credits, in good academic standing with the University (no academic or disciplinary action on record), and a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.

This course provides students with limited industry experience an opportunity to work in a hospitality, travel or tourism enterprise. Building a career requires appropriate industry work experience to strengthen the student's knowledge and skill formed in the classroom. Students are expected to complete a one hundred and fifty (150) hour work experience approved by the Tisch Center.

Travel and tourism are multi-faceted sectors that offer a wide scope for study. This course provides advanced study on a selected topic or emerging issue in international travel and tourism. Special topics course offerings can vary from term to term: topics are selected based on student demand and faculty None MS in Tourism Management expertise. Students can take multiple sections of special topics courses with advisor approval.

The individual thesis is designed to allow students to undertake an original piece of research; demonstrate an ability to select and define and focus upon an issue at an appropriate level; develop and apply relevant and sound methodologies; analyze the issue; develop recommendations and logical conclusions; be aware of the limitations of research work. The students will also be expected to demonstrate an awareness of any ethical dilemmas that arise in their research.