Towards a Framework for Participative Innovation in Tourism

Open innovation is a common form of innovation activities in tourism. However, the design of the participation of multiple stakeholders in these activities is challenging. The present research develops a framework for describing participation in innovation activities in tourism to help address this challenge. The research process follows the method framework for Design Science Research with a design- and development-centered entry point. Firstly, a model is designed based on extant literature. Secondly, three case studies are used to amend the model and demonstrate the applicability for individual projects, inter-organizational projects, and the portfolio level from the perspective of destination management organizations (DMO). Interviews are used to gather the case study data. The interview data is analyzed by applying template analysis. The research advances the understanding of design opportunities for participative innovation activities in tourism from the DMO perspective. Eight stages of participation in innovation activities are identified. These are demonstrated in the case study DMOs for various types of projects. Though the qualitative nature of the research is a limitation, DMO managers and other tourism actors are provided with a framework for designing innovation activities and participation in these in their destinations. Future research should validate the framework quantitatively, especially towards incorporating the perspectives of other actors from the touristic ecosystem, e.g., political and public actors.