The article discusses the role of sharing economy in hospitality and tourism sector. The paper argues that sharing economy business models are perceived as sustaining innovations at the time of their emergence. To date they demonstrate the features of disruptive innovations, exerting a growing and ambiguous influence on all key elements of tourism industry structure. The example of Greece discussed in the article shows the opportunities and threats for new business models in hospitality and tourism, as well as the need for existing market players to adapt to new conditions and to improve legal framework and mechanisms for their implementation. All these will help to mitigate possible negative effects of sharing economy development and to create conditions for realizing the benefits of sharing economy for business, government and society.
The article is devoted to the creation of Russian small cities' tourist product. The model of consumer behavior with respect to tourism products and the concept of tourist product value for consumer are considered; the necessity to form complex value propositions for target audiences segmented by their needs is substantiated. The offer of small cities' tourist product in three regions — Perm Krai, Vladimir Oblast and Tula Oblast is carried out. The possible ways of developing and improving small cities' tourist product in these regions are determined. Particular attention is paid to the most promising areas for today - event tourism and cultural and educational thematic routes; high importance of gastronomy as part of the tourist experience is highlighted. The analysis leaded to identification of some problems, including insufficient use of event marketing potential to ensure a stable tourist flow throughout the year, as well as poor awareness of target audiences outside the regions. Recommendations proposed to improve the offer for target audiences.
The article discusses issues related to the effectiveness of strategic planning for the development of small citiesand municipal district centers on the base of the network coordination mechanism. The relevance of the topic is related to the insufficient effectiveness of existing approaches to municipal development planning, and the need to search for new solutions in this area. The authors briefly describe the new institutional economic theory approach in defining the network coordination mechanism, as well as the concept of the "network city". It is shown that the network coordination mechanism creates a basis for cooperation of small citiesin several directions, including infrastructure development, exchange of best management practices, labor resources and competencies, joint projects implementation. It is concluded that network cooperation of small citiescan contribute to increasing the effectiveness of strategic planning through the exchange of experience, alignment of interests and priorities of joint development. The obtained results can be used in the development of strategic planning documents for small cities and municipal district centers in Russia.
The paper discusses the results of the consumer behavior survey conducted in the research project "Social and economic activity of the mature age people (50+): needs, satisfaction, consumer behavior models, interaction with business and authorities". The findings confirm that creation of products and services for the older age cohorts must take into account both physiological characteristics of ageing, and psychological (cognitive) perception of age by target consumers.
International audience ; The paper addresses networking as a basis for cooperation of small cities leading to more sustainable regional development at the city, regional, and federal level. It is shown that networking of cities can contribute to increasing sustainability in many ways. Still, additional research is needed to adjust best management practices discussed in the relevant academic literature to the peculiarities of transition economies. The objective of the research presented in the paper was to help regional and municipal authorities in the optimization of territorial development planning aimed at long-term sustainability. Research was carried out in Russia on an example of two regions, namely Perm Krai and Vladimir Oblast. The case study revealed that local authorities underestimate the potential of small cities in raising regional sustainability. Actually, a number of small cities in both regions have hidden competitive advantages but cannot realize them separately, whilst development of regional city networking is a fruitful approach to improve their socioeconomic situation, and to boost sustainable regional development. Therefore, when planning regional development, federal and local authorities should regard the role of small cities, including disadvantaged and depressed ones, as potentially valuable members of a city network. Measures to embed small cities into different types of networks should be based on the thorough assessment of their resources, with the aim to develop collaboration of cities with mutually beneficial network externalities.
The paper analyses methodological features and results of the first Russian oil and gas companies environmental rating. This rating is relevant because Russian oil and gas industry plays a key role in the national economy and at the same time it is unfavorable and nontransparent from an environmental point of view. Our study aims to provide a comparative assessment of environmental responsibility of oil and gas companies operating in Russia. The study is based on a comprehensive analysis of qualitative and quantitative corporate indicators in three areas: environmental management, environmental impact and disclosure. Results of the rating indicate a high differentiation among Russian oil and gas companies in terms of environmental responsibility and transparency. Public listing of shares as well as linkages between shareholders and regional communities are among factors that have positive impact on the level of environmental responsibility of oil and gas companies.
This paper aims to provide a better understanding of marketing issues relevant to sustainable tourism development. Marketing issues are of crucial importance for Russian regions with unique landscapes and many small towns with their ancient churches, original local museums, and other attractions. The main obstacle for sustainable tourism development in these regions is the lack of prominence and absence of right positioning for target audiences. For the Mari El Republic as one of the most prospective sustainable tourism destinations in Russia, ethno-tourism concept, based on preserving paganism, the traditional religion of the Mari people, can become a solid basis for positioning. The research presented in the paper will contribute to the literature on tourism marketing and sustainable regional development in emerging markets by shedding light on the Russian tourism market diversity, as well as on the uniqueness of small Russian towns and villages as attractive destinations in terms of cultural heritage, history, and ecology. It will also underline the need to understand socio-cultural specifics of tourism destinations to ensure positive impact on the prosperity of local communities that are among the most important stakeholders in destination marketing.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop and test models explaining the unsatisfactory innovation activity of Russian firms and the main obstacles to innovation cluster development.Design/methodology/approachBased on statistical analysis and the results of a pilot survey of 192 local businessmen, followed by imitation modeling analysis, the study tests hypotheses regarding the impact of unsatisfactory institutional environments, including weak property rights protection, on innovation cluster development in Russia.FindingsThe analysis shows that the impact of adverse factors on innovation activities of cluster members is crucial, and estimates to what extent the negative factors' influence should be reduced to prevent cluster degradation processes.Research limitations/implicationsThe models provide a number of sensitivity tests of the parameters; however, data from clusters with different levels of support and protection need to be obtained. Government experiments could be conducted to test the models and find ranges of optimal parameters for cluster development. Short of this, examination of actual data from different cluster in similar environments would allow estimated of optimal strategies for support. Longitudinal data can also help determine the actual cause and effect of successful innovation cluster development.Practical implicationsThe paper provides managerial implications for organizations involved in innovation clusters, which can be used to improve cluster members' performance and collaborative innovation activities by means of creating acceptable institutional environments.Originality/valueThe paper provides evidence of the connection between collaborative activities of clustering organizations in Russia and their performance caused by expectations concerning institutional conditions on the macro level in Russia.
