Know‐how and qualification gaps in the tourism industry: The case of alpine tourism in Austria

Abstract

The paper is concerned with the tourism industry's increased demand for better educated and/or trained manpower and the general requirements of higher levels of know‐how on account of secular changes in the demand for higher quality tourism products, technological changes and a more competitive global environment. After discussing the general patterns of skill and know‐how acquisition in tourism in the context of today's labour markets and tourism schooling/training systems the paper speculates on possible causes for know‐how deficits assumed to be particularly prevalent in alpine tourism (section II and III). Following this section IV reports on qualification and know‐how deficits on the basis of a self‐assessment survey carried out among 144 tourism enterprises comprising the typical tourism value chain of alpine tourism. Conclusions are drawn up in V.