Flexibility in the Tourism Sector: Do Organisations and Events Need to Be Flexible in Order to Recruit and Retain Volunteers?
File version
Accepted Manuscript (AM)
Author(s)
Lockstone-Binney, Leonie
Smith, Karen
Baum, Tom
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2007
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The concept of flexibility has received widespread attention beyond its theoretical roots in manufacturing. It has been applied to the services sector, including tourism and hospitality; however, little work has investigated the transference of its basic tenets to volunteering. Research is lagging behind practice in contemporary volunteering as the value of flexible attitudes and flexible work options in terms of recruitment and retention outcomes is increasingly recognised. To address this gap, the current paper proposes a conceptual model that takes into account levels of reciprocal flexibility between host organisations ...
View more >The concept of flexibility has received widespread attention beyond its theoretical roots in manufacturing. It has been applied to the services sector, including tourism and hospitality; however, little work has investigated the transference of its basic tenets to volunteering. Research is lagging behind practice in contemporary volunteering as the value of flexible attitudes and flexible work options in terms of recruitment and retention outcomes is increasingly recognised. To address this gap, the current paper proposes a conceptual model that takes into account levels of reciprocal flexibility between host organisations and their volunteers, against the backdrop of volunteer supply. A comprehensive explanation of the literature supporting this model and its accompanying research questions serve as a way forward to determine whether all types of tourism organisations, offering a range of volunteering opportunities, need to be flexible in order to recruit and retain volunteers.
View less >
View more >The concept of flexibility has received widespread attention beyond its theoretical roots in manufacturing. It has been applied to the services sector, including tourism and hospitality; however, little work has investigated the transference of its basic tenets to volunteering. Research is lagging behind practice in contemporary volunteering as the value of flexible attitudes and flexible work options in terms of recruitment and retention outcomes is increasingly recognised. To address this gap, the current paper proposes a conceptual model that takes into account levels of reciprocal flexibility between host organisations and their volunteers, against the backdrop of volunteer supply. A comprehensive explanation of the literature supporting this model and its accompanying research questions serve as a way forward to determine whether all types of tourism organisations, offering a range of volunteering opportunities, need to be flexible in order to recruit and retain volunteers.
View less >
Conference Title
CAUTHE 2007: Tourism - Past Achievements, Future Challenges
Copyright Statement
© 2007 the Authors. This is the pre-peer reviewed version of this paper. Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the conference's website for access to the definitive, published version.
Subject
Human resources management
Tourism management