Integrated management in tourism: the role of coopetition

Abstract

The paper explores the nature of integrated management placing attention on the role of coopetition in the destination management. Integrated management is a type of governance based on interorganizational coopetition networks aimed at improving competitiveness. An exploratory qualitative based on multi-case analysis of two Brazilian tourism destinations examined the social organization of the tourism sector, the characteristics of networks and their practices, and production relations. Four categories of analysis were verified, namely Policy, Process, Activity, management and Resolution was verified. Data were obtained from three sources: interviews with managers of tourism associations and entrepreneurs, non-participant observation, and content analysis of documents. The comparative study reveals important differences in integrated management are due to the consolidation of coopetition networks, which work as a central hub to facilitate integrated management.