Sacha Reid

Understanding the role of the stakeholder in event management

Event management research has attracted increased recognition within academic literature over the last decade. Much of this research however, has been descriptive in nature and lacks a strong theoretical underpinning. Stakeholder theory emerged in the early 1960s and has been applied in the strategic management, business ethics and tourism fields. As yet however, there are no documented applications of stakeholder theory specifically in event management contexts. This paper examines the role of stakeholders in contributing to successful events. Stakeholder theory acknowledges that when the objectives of the organisation are developed, they should balance the sometimes conflicting claims of various stakeholders. Dill (1975) noted the initiatives and thoughts of stakeholders were external to the strategic planning and management processes of organizations. More recent accounts by Freeman (1984) and Clarkson (1995) have noted a change in organizational decision making over this period. The theory suggests that by understanding an organisations environment and emerging strategic issues will assist in the planning and policy development process. In the competitive business environment there are other factors that contribute to an organisations success apart from the attainment of profits. The stakeholder theory approach adopts an ethical way of dealing with not only the shareholders who have a financial interest but also the groups and individuals who are affected in different ways by their operations. By being responsive to the needs of suppliers, customers and the community with which the organisation engages, ensures loyalty and leads to their long-term success. Therefore, the organisation focuses not only on profitability levels but also on other forms of value creation and ensures that managers consider their impact on the communities to whom they should be responsible. Essentially the organisation is a system of stakeholder groups (Clarkson, 1995) and a failure to retain their participation will result in the failure of that enterprise. By adopting stakeholder theory and implementing a framework to assess the level of satisfaction amongst stakeholder groups, the organisation is able to monitor and if necessary improve the relationships with all stakeholders. The strategic management process that is involved in event management is not unlike other organisations, however the events limited time span is clearly different from an organisations context. Engaging stakeholders throughout the planning process provides a stronger likelihood that the community is satisfied with and will support the event. The emergence of numerous events in recent years has increased the competitiveness of the industry. Employing stakeholder theory and its application to the planning process has the potential of providing a competitive advantage to event organisers.

Event stakeholder management: developing sustainable rural event practices

Purpose – Changes to the economic and social fabric of rural communities in Australia have resulted in an outmigration of residents, shifting economies and disenfranchisement with rural life styles. As a result, events provide important social and recreational opportunities for residents. However, rural communities are constrained by limited resources, such as the number of individuals who are willing and able to participate in event organizations; therefore, it is essential for the sustainable organization of events that stakeholders are attracted and retained. This paper aims to apply a stakeholder theoretical approach to the organizing and planning of rural events to identify event stakeholders, monitor satisfaction and ensure stakeholder retention within rural events.Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative research design using a multiple case study approach examined event stakeholders in three rural communities of Southwest Queensland, Australia. In total, 54 in‐depth interviews were undertaken w...

How Property Title Impacts Urban Consolidation: A Life Cycle Examination of Multi-title Developments

Continuing urbanisation is triggering an increase in multi-titled housing internationally. This trend has given rise to a substantial research interest in the social consequences of higher density living. Fewer enquiries have been directed to examining how property title subdivisions generate social issues in multi-titled housing. This is a significant gap in the literature, as the tensions inherent in multi-title developments have significant implications for individuals, developments and entire metropolitan areas. This article employs a life cycle framework to examine the profound operational and governance challenges that are associated with the fusion of private lot ownership with common property ownership. The article calls for a more explicit recognition of these challenges by academics, policymakers, practitioners and the broader community.

Multi-owned developments: a life cycle review of a developing research area

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the international significance of multi-owned developments (MODs), present an MOD life cycle conceptual model and review the range of identified peer-reviewed empirical research papers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper utilises an exploratory qualitative methodology to collate and analyse literature focusing on MODs. From the 403 research papers identified 96 peer-reviewed empirical research papers specific to MODs were examined. A MOD life cycle model has been conceptualised to facilitate a content analysis of the reviewed papers. Findings – The findings of this paper highlights the gaps in knowledge pertinent to MODs and outlines avenues for future research that argues for the need to develop a more holistic and multi-disciplinary research approach. Research limitations/implications – The research is based on reviewing published papers as identified using specific search terms. Originality/value – The paper makes an important and innovative cont...

An ethnographic exploration of knowledge practices within the Queensland Music Festival

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the utilisation and application of reflexive ethnography as an interpretative methodology for researching knowledge practices within festival organisations.Design/methodology/approach – The ethnographic approach incorporates two methods of data collection in the research design; participant observation and in‐depth interviews.Findings – The research identified that knowledge management practices and processes are often invisible to festival staff when they are embedded within a cohesive organisational culture. Ethnography enables the researcher to make explicit the tacit and normalised ways of working that contribute to the success (and failure) of festival organisations to manage knowledge. The immersion of the researcher in the ethnographic process provided a rich understanding of the relational dimension of knowledge management that would be difficult to elicit from in‐depth interviews alone.Research limitations/implications – New fields of study requir...

Where is the ‘social’ in constructions of ‘liveability’?: exploring community, social interaction and social cohesion in changing urban environments

Abstract Ongoing changes in the urban environment have renewed interest in the transformation of cities and suburbs as liveable places. This article examines the limitations inherent in a functional (objective) notion of liveability that commonly underpins government policy directions. Through an examination of key debates in the literature we consider how the delivery of the social (subjective) dimension of liveability, linked to community, social interaction and social cohesion, poses unique challenges for policy makers, urban planners and developers. We argue for a deeper understanding of the social constructs of liveability that acknowledges the complexity of changing urban environments in contemporary society.

Living it up in the 'new world city': High-rise development and the promise of liveability

The growth of high-rise developments raises questions about how the emotional and social leisurescape of the city is evoked, produced and represented. In this article, we examine how advertising images and texts promoting new high-rise developments produce notions of ‘liveability’ through the depiction of idealized spatial experiences that typify urban leisure lifestyles. The focus of our analysis is three high-rise developments in Brisbane, a self-proclaimed ‘New World City’, and the capital of Queensland in Australias northeast. We identify how marketing images evoke particular emotions to construct desirable relationships between consumers, domestic space and urban leisurescapes. Our analysis revealed social tensions between different constructions of the liveable city and the implications for leisure planning. While Brisbane City Council sought to be inclusive in its planning for urban liveability, developers imagined urban renewal projects through exclusive lifestyle practices and normalized consumer identities (white, middle class, heterosexual, without children).

Awarding sustainable Asia-Pacific hotel practices: rewarding innovative practices or open rhetoric?

Abstract Award programmes facilitate recognition and reward of innovative practices creating industry benchmarks for world-class standards. Growing recognition and adoption of sustainability practices and corporate social responsibility charters amongst hotels internationally is nudging the sustainability paradigm. However, comprehensive empirical data, detailing and describing these practices are under examination. This paper examines sustainable hotel practices of Asia-Pacific hotels utilizing an exploratory inductive content analysis of self-reported award submissions. The submissions of 64 hotels to the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific Sustainable (HICAP) Hotel Award scheme over 2009 and 2010 were analyzed. Three primary categories of sustainability practices were identified: operations-related, community engagement and design-related initiatives. A model of sustainable hotel practices is then proposed, which will assist hotel managers in benchmarking their organization to achieve higher levels of sustainability.

Professional Standards: The Current State of Event Management Associations

ABSTRACT As the event management industry grows and consolidates worldwide, event management associations play an increasingly significant role in professional support to the industry and its managers. Event management associations provide newcomers and existing practitioners with the necessary skills to ensure the continued growth and success of event management professionals. This article reviews the literature on professional associations and specifically explores the issues of codes of ethics or conduct that event management associations require their members to subscribe by. While there is a growing interest in the concept of ethics, especially in the tourism and leisure industries, there are no prior studies that investigate the codes of ethics or conduct that event management associations offer. This aricle identifies that of the 152 professional associations servicing the events industry 39.5% (60) associations had stated codes of ethics or professional codes of conduct/standards. Content analysis of these codes of ethics/conduct indicated four major categories. These included; effective business practices; reputation, respect and personal conduct; communication and professionalism.

Women’s perspectives on liveability in vertical communities: a feminist materialist approach

ABSTRACT Vertical communities are increasing as cities adopt compact planning approaches. However, the neoliberal urban development approach is often male dominated and reflective of male values and interests [Fainstein, S. 2001. The City Builders: Property Development in New York and London 1980–2000. 2nd ed. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas]. For women, changing demographic and societal trends linked to marriage, family and household composition, have led to increasing rates of female residential investment in and occupation of, high-density developments. Little research has focused on this growing owner/occupier market. A qualitative approach framed with a material-discursive lens was used to explore women’s perceptions of liveability and consumption of space within vertical communities. In-depth, semi-structured interviews with 25 females in South-East Queensland described experiences of liveability that were influenced by the materiality of apartments and buildings that created unsafe and inappropriate spaces for children as well as affective relations of distance rather than sociality. To avoid the problems plagued by high-rise projects overseas and in Australia in earlier decades, a greater focus on women’s needs should be considered in urban research and planning. Planners, developers and other professionals need to look beyond the investor driven stock currently provided to ensure sustainable and liveable housing options for this important emerging market.