Business tourism in Abu Dhabi - Assignment Example

? Business Professionals' Perception on Abu Dhabi Business Tourism COM 550: Applied Research Seminar Shereen Al Nowais (ID: M8000997) of your Univeristy Abstract This paper explores the research methodology to be employed to study the predominant perception of business professionals in relation to the development of business tourism in Abu Dhabi. The paper defines the scope of research. It also states that the research must be conducted through the use of various techniques to examine the business tourism sector in relation to Abu Dhabi and the global level to set the framework for the study of perceptions of business professionals who will be targeted by the drive. It also seeks to use various research techniques like interviews and surveys to find out about the perceptions of business professionals and authorities who are linked to the business tourism development drive. Keywords: Abu Dhabi, Business Tourism, Methodology, ADNEC, MICE Methodology Introduction This chapter examines the methodology to be used to conduct the research. The research seeks to identify important things that will help boost business tourism in Abu Dhabi. It draws on the contribution of business professionals and related matters to ascertain the main elements that can support the creation of a good environment for business tourism in Abu Dhabi. Scope of Research Abu Dhabi holds over 90% of the United Arab Emirates' oil (Noack, 2007 p13). Since oil reserves make a significant contribution to UAE's economy, Abu Dhabi is a very important part of the country. However, the Abu Dhabi authorities have announced their intention to diversify the economy by investing in manufacturing, trade and tourism (Noack, 2007 p13). Vision 2030 of the United Arab Emirates provides an important emphasis on tourism as a key element of the growth of the nation's economy (Oxford business Group, 2011, p155). Oxford Business Groups go further to identify that several activities have been conducted to see this come to pass by 2030. There have been a lot of capital investments in infrastructure to ensure that meetings, incentives, conferences (MICE) are carried out in Abu Dhabi. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) is an important part of this process. It seeks to mobilize investments and promote the promotion of business activities in Abu Dhabi. The decision to focus on the promotion of business tourism in Abu Dhabi is strongly connected to the Emirate's geostrategic location which makes it accessible to business professionals and corporate entities from Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific (Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority, 2010). This research is conducted with the view of identifying the most important elements of the development of Abu Dhabi as a business tourism center and how best they can be developed for the optimum results. Research Design Research design is generally related to the creation of a system of studying and making enquiries into a given subject (Marshall & Rossman, 2011 p3). This research is designed to answer the research question: optimization of the structures of business tourism in Abu Dhabi through the incorporation of external studies and views of business professionals. The design seeks to use the various elements of scientific research to identify important factors that can help make recommendations about the best ways that business tourism can be boosted. It will focus on examining the needs and expectations of targeted consumers and how best to attain the elements of the strategies identified by the relevant authorities (MICE and ADNEC) to ensure that the best results are attained. The process therefore draws on various information that are relevant to the numerous stakeholders in this drive to ensure that the best recommendations are done. The research is going to be an exploratory research in nature. Although it will examine information and data from numerous sources, attempts will be made to acquire primary data and study new trends. The inferences that will be made from the findings and conclusions will become the basis for the recommendations that will be targeted for key players of the business tourism drive of the UAE. Variables of the Research A variable is a component of a research that changes and can be measured (Kothari, 2004 p32). In this research, the main independent variable that is being tested is business tourism in Abu Dhabi. Business tourism in Abu Dhabi is the basis for the entire research and it is examined with the view of getting the best results in the future. The dependent variables are the Abu Dhabi business tourism infrastructure, global factors affecting Abu Dhabi's business tourism proposal and the views of future customers, that is business professionals around the world. Sampling The population of the three main dependent variables are to be identified. However, due to the limitations of resources and funds, the research will limit its scope to samples that will be taken and measured in an appropriate manner. The business tourism infrastructure to be studied include the ADNEC and other related infrastructure that affects MICE in the UAE's business tourism drive under study. Some supporting infrastructure like travel and accommodation will be examined in the research albeit briefly. The global environment will be studied by examining similar contexts of business tourism as it has occurred in some important parts of the world, particularly in the Middle East. The research will therefore study related elements of business tourism in Qatar and Istabul. This will be done mainly through comparative analysis and case studies and the samples that will be taken will be chosen on the basis of similarities to Abu Dhabi. The third interest group to be studied will be the prospective customers of the proposed development – business professionals. There is an inherent difficulty in identifying the best group to study in this quest. However, there will be samples taken from people and organizations that have a propensity towards international business and travel. This will be done by examining the statistics of past visitors and other potential visitors identified by Abu Dhabi's business tourism authorities. Operationalization of the Research The research will identify the following questions in sequence to ensure that efficient analysis can be carried out: 1. The main components of Abu Dhabi's Business Tourism drive 2. The status of business tourism on the global scale 3. The current view of prospective clients (business professionals) of the Abu Dhabi Business tourism drive. 4. The achievement and plans of Abu Dhabi's business tourism resource persons. 5. Analysis and evaluation of the main components of the research. These elements will be studied using a series of eclectic research methods to study all these concepts and ideas so that there will be conclusions that will reflect the reality on the ground. The research will culminate in recommendations for the future of business tourism in Abu Dhabi based on the findings of the various components of the research. The recommendations will be based on generalization of facts and information that will be identified in this drive. Research Methods The research will begin by identifying the elements of Abu Dhabi's business tourism structures. This will involve the analysis of important elements of the history of business tourism of Abu Dhabi. It will examine what has been done and the structures that are already in place in Abu Dhabi that support business tourism. It identifies the projects that are currently being carried out and will be carried out in the near future that will create infrastructure that will accommodate the expansion that Vision 2030 is seeking to bring to Abu Dhabi's business tourism industry. Afterwards, there will be a comparative study of how business tourism was developed elsewhere in on the global scale. This will include case studies of the development of business tourism in other parts of the world. The study will draw on the development of business tourism in three leading centers in the world. It will examine current desires and expectations of businesses based on present trends and desires. Based on the study of the global climates, research will be designed to collect information about the preferences of individual business professionals and what they will expect from the Emirate in question. The final part of the research will entail the collection of data on the actual status of business tourism by authorities in the United Arab Emirates. It will involve the collection of primary information about what has been done and what is being done to promote business tourism in the UAE. Finally, the research will examine the variances of what is being done and what is expected by prospective business tourists. Data Collection Data on the business tourism structures of Abu Dhabi's business tourism system will be collected from secondary sources. This will entail the collection of data from books, journals and websites that have current and historical information about business tourism. The development of tourism in other nations around the world will also be studied from secondary sources like books and websites. This will entail the examination of numerous trends and activities and this will bring out the conception of the average global business tourist. The research on the preferences will be conducted through an extensive survey that will target individuals who are potential tourists with the relevant business portfolio that will be targeted by the research. The survey will include an email questionnaire that will be sent to targeted clients chosen carefully to reflect the various potential clients that can come to Abu Dhabi and access the infrastructure being created to boost business tourism. The activities and achievements of the various units of Abu Dhabi's tourism sector will be studied through interviews with two authorities actively involved in the development of business tourism. They will include people drawn from very influential sectors in the industry who can give reliable information about what has been done and what is yet to be done. Data Analysis The data collected under this research will be analyzed logically and summarized to reflect the realities on the ground. Information about the various tourism efforts will be grouped according to sectors and inferences made from that on the basis of history and present activities. The status of business tourism on the global scale will also be analyzed on the basis of important and strategic findings of the industry. They will be modified so that they can be used to gauge success and failure in Abu Dhabi. The expectations of clients will be categorized from the various questionnaires and summarized using statistical methods like ANNOVA to give an overview of what various stakeholders are seeking to see in a business tour-friendly Abu Dhabi. This will act as yardstick for the evaluation of projects undertaken by the various sectors of the tourism authorities. The achievements and plans of the authorities will be compared with consumer expectations. From there inferences and analysis will be done by identifying the variances as well as what can be done. Conclusion The conclusion will be in the form of recommendations that will be made on the basis of variances between the targeted client expectations and the achievements/forecasts of the various tourism authorities in Abu Dhabi in relation to business tourism. Limitations & Delimitations The main limitation of the research is the lack of funds and time to collect all data from relevant stakeholders: from potential visitors, Abu Dhabi business tourism authorities and the general environment of related parties. Due to this, the research will need to zoom in on definitive authorities that can be studied for a meaningful conclusion to be drawn. The research suffers from the common drawback in qualitative research, subjectivity. Most of the findings of this research are likely to vary according to the sample chosen, current trends in the global business tourism sector as well as individual opinions. Due to this, the results and findings cannot be quantified easily and can give rise to difference that might affect the reliance people can place on it. To live above the subjectivity issue, the research will attempt to use objective tools and techniques for analyzing data. The research will constitute an attempt to interview different classes of respondents and also try to use two or more models to analyze different cases that may come up. References Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (2010) Business Tourism: Growing Opportunities Available online: http://www.abudhabitourism.ae/en/portal/mice.inside.aspx Accessed 5th October, 2011 Colton, D. & Covert R. (2009) Designing & Constructing Instruments for Social Research & Evaluation Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Kothari, C. R. (2004) Research Methodology: Methods & Techniques New Delhi: New Age Publishing Marshall, C. & Rossman G. (2011) Designing Qualitative Research London: SAGE Noack, S. (2007) Doing Business in Dubai & The United Arab Emirates. GRIN Verlag. Oxford Business Group (2011) The Report: Abu Dhabi 2010 Oxford Business Group. Read More