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Case Study: Adventure Tourism Market Development in NE India

May 9, 2008 Situation


The Tourism Department, Government of Assam in NE India, recognizing the value of tourism as an economic development tool, wanted support in developing adventure tourism responsibly and sustainably. With tourism to India growing at 13.5% per year, state policymakers saw the opportunity to draw more visitors to Assam, but were concerned about preserving important cultural and natural resources. They chose an adventure tourism development route, defined according to a consumer-based understanding of adventure, which called for the development of products and itineraries that would include: Nature and wildlife exploration Cultural interactions and learning which may include regionally unique spiritual and religious experiences, and exposure to defining cultural aspects such as the production of tea in Assam Rural experiences Active, physical sports whether strenuous or easy including but not limited to cycling, trekking and hiking, kayaking and other river exploration, hang-gliding, and horseback riding

Challenge
This beautiful NE Indian state, bounded by Himalayan foothills and cut through by the powerful currents of the Brahmaputra River, has little existing tourism infrastructure and low market awareness. The states tourism department leaders requested not only recommendations for product development, but also wanted to ensure that new products would reach an audience of tour operators and travelers to begin operating trips in the region. In addition, the states leaders were very concerned that any new market development initiatives encourage sustainable, responsible tourism.

Solution
Assams tourism officials selected Xola as its partner in this important initiative because of its specialization in adventure tourism, the linkages to industry its approach brings, and its overriding emphasis on sustainable tourism development for the benefit of communities and the environment. Xola completed a Feature Adventure Destination analysis for Assam using the Adventure Tourism Development Index approach developed by the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), The George Washington University (GW), and Xola Consulting, Inc. Specifically, the goal of the project was two-fold:

To support Assam in developing its adventure tourism market by providing specific market development guidance; and To provide access to markets and media through the consulting partners (ATTA, GW).

Results
As a result of this study: A responsible tourism development philosophy for the state was recommended Seven adventure tourism zones or Hotspots were defined A structure for organizing specific activities relative to product development, human resources development, infrastructure improvement, marketing, and impact monitoring was created Highlights of the research showcasing Assams unique assets will be revealed to more than 450 international adventure tour operators & adventure and mainstream travel media in a special report released through the Adventure Travel Trade Association (www.adventuretravel.biz), the largest trade organization for adventure tourism

compaAbstract

The caselet gives an overview of the innovative services offered by the banks in India to stay ahead of the competition. Most of these banks took the help of proprietary processes and technology to launch innovative products to woo customers and differentiate themselves from the competition. Banks also started using their ATMs as a means of differentiating their services, making them more accessible and attractive to consumers. They added bill payment and credit card payment options at the ATMs. In addition, the banks used service personnel as a means of differentiation. Issues: Service Use of Services differentiation technology personnel as in in a Indian Indian banking banking sector. sector.

service

differentiator.

Introduction With the Indian Government initiating the liberalization and

deregulation process in the late nineties, the Indian Banking Industry changed completely. Liberalization and deregulation saw the entry of private sector banks into India. These banks used state-of-the-art technology, had lean organizational structures, focused on specific customer segments, and set high standards of operations and customer service. They also adopted global practices, and developed core competencies in the form of proprietary technologies and processes Questions and brand building for to differentiate them... Discussion:

1. With the banking industry in India already cluttered with 289 scheduled commercial banks (March 31, 2003), private sector players have resorted to proprietary processes and technology to differentiate themselves. What are the different means that banks have adopted to differentiate their services from those of competitors?

2. Banks have begun to lay emphasis on remote service encounters by encouraging customers to use ATMs and Internet banking services for their banking transactions. Briefly discuss the pros and cons associated with the usage of remote service encounters.

nies. The employee at Taj is viewed as an asset and is the real profit center. He or she is the very reason for our survival. The creation of the Taj People Philosophy displays our commitment to and belief in our people. We want an organization with a very clear philosophy, where we can treasure people and build from within." - Bernard Martyris, Senior Vice-President, HR, Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL). Introduction In March 2001, the Taj Group1 launched an employee loyalty program called the 'Special Thanks and Recognition System' (STARS). STARS was an initiative aimed at motivating employees to transcend their usual duties and responsibilities and have fun during work. This program also acknowledged and rewarded hard working employees who had done excellent work. The Taj Group had always believed that their employees were their greatest assets and the very reason for the survival of their business. In 2000, to show its commitment to and belief in employees, the Taj Group developed the 'Taj People Philosophy' (TPP), which covered all the people practices of the group. TPP considered every aspect of employees' organizational career planning, right from their induction into the company till their superannuation. TPP offered many benefits to the Taj Group. It helped the company boost the morale of its employees and improve service standards, which in turn resulted in repeat customers for many hotels in the group. The STAR system also led to global recognition of the Taj Group of hotels in 2002 when the group bagged the 'Hermes Award'2 for 'Best Innovation in Human Resources' in the global hospitality industry.
The Taj's People Philosophy and Star System - Next Page >>>

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Comprehensive Hospital Management System


The client is a leading Mission Hospital providing advanced medical treatment for needy patients.
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RSS Email To Friend BACKGROUND The client is a leading Mission Hospital providing advanced medical treatment for needy patients.
The hospital offers state-of-the-art treatment for various diseases & is at the forefront of providing outpatient as well as surgical interventions. The hospital wished to have a web based HMS that was easy to navigate. Authorities knew how important their website was for distressed patients and hundreds of visitors who regularly sought the latest medical information. CHALLENGE: Mission Hospital wanted to manage scientific information as well as the treatment modalities offered by more than 10 departments. The need was to create an aesthetically pleasing yet practical system. In spite of the large volume of information, the structure and navigation needed to be simple and targeted to the audience perspective. With multiple departments and information running into hundreds of pages, the hospital felt it was critical for the information to be organized systematically in an uncomplicated way. The system needed to support audio as well as video files and integrate the Picture Archiving System seamlessly.

SOLUTION: After completing the hospital background and needs assessment, our team of experts immediately begin crafting ideas for the HMS. Upon finalization of the clearly defined goals, strategies and design elements, our team of experts created a complete HMS. We also incorporated a physician database, which stores information about their doctors. Information about various departments, treatment options, technologies & services offered by the hospital were also incorporated and neatly classified and organized. The key website attributes provided were as follows:

Professional, soothing and inviting design.

Updated Logo. Organization of hundreds of pages of information for easy navigation. An integrated site search feature to quickly locate information. A content management system for managing website. A Physician Database about their doctors. Information about various departments, treatments & services offered. Information about the latest medical technologies being used in the hospital.

RESULTS: Softweb Solutions provides an inviting & reassuring experience that presents scientific information in a precise, uncomplicated manner. The treatment modalities & services provided are clearly explained providing relief to distressed patients, relatives and friends. Consultants can access patient reports, history & images across the hospital with great ease. The website encourages frequent interaction and repeat visits. Detailed information can be searched by specialty, name of doctors accepting new patients, or by the last name. Although information can be accessed in a variety of ways, each doctor's name needs to be entered into the database just once. By simply changing their address or phone number in the database record, it is possible for all results for that particular doctor to be automatically updated.

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