Abstract
The rapid increase in the population has caused problems in the correct use and management of resources in cities. Solutions to these problems have been sought based on knowledge management. In today's digital age, the concept of smartness of cities has been put forward together with the web-based applications. It has changed the expectations and needs of tourists and residents, especially in the tourism sector in the service sector. Smart tourism destinations, which are seen as a solution to the expectations and needs of the changing tourists and local people, bring holistic innovations covering all the stakeholders in the tourism ecosystem. In this direction, it is thought that knowledge management makes the right use of resources obligatory and contributes to sustainable tourism understanding. For this purpose, in the chapter, suggestions were made to provide maximum benefit from web-based projects that are carried out in qualitative direction of knowledge management and smart tourism destinations.
TopIntroduction
Rapid population growth in metropolitan cities has caused problems with the correct use and management of resources. For this reason, especially in large cities, programs are needed to provide conveniences for the increasing number of people and their needs. In the digital world we live in, web-based solution proposals have been sought for these problems. With the widespread use of computers and the internet, the concept of smart city emerged when knowledge about cities was transformed into web-based and artificial intelligence formats in order to increase the efficiency of cities and facilitate human needs.
In the ongoing process, such practices have led to the rapid spread of smart cities and even radical changes in various sectors. This situation has changed the expectations and needs of tourists and residents in tourism, especially in the service sector. Smart tourism destinations that are expected as a solution to the changing expectations and needs of tourists and residents introduce holistic innovations that cover all stakeholders within the tourism ecosystem. In addition, it has made it imperative to adopt a protective approach to the use of environmental and socio-cultural resources, which is the capital of tourism. It contributes to sustainable tourism understanding by necessitating the correct use of resources. Therefore, the concept of smart destination has enabled the establishment of an integrated structure in which all stakeholders are involved. For this purpose, in the study, a qualitative assessment of the smart tourism destinations that have been examined in the international literature in the 1990s, but which have recently been discussed in Turkey, has been made.
It is seen that enterprises, which are an indispensable member of the social environment, use the knowledge obtained with the increasing speed of technology and the use of computers for the purpose of sustainable competitive advantage in the market through projects such as web design and software. Especially in the service sector, knowledge management applications have gained significant advantages against their competitors.
Tourism destinations showed great interest in the concept of smart city. In this context, tourism destination enterprises are trying to establish superiority in competition by increasing the satisfaction of tourists and increase market share as well as regional destination managers adopt the concept of smart tourism destination in order to provide their citizens with a better quality of life. In line with this knowledge, it is aimed in this study to conduct an extensive examination in the smart tourism destinations (Çelik and Topsakal, 2017:164) which are a new subject in Turkey in a qualitative way. Initially, it was aimed to examine knowledge management and to reveal the sectoral and regional importance of knowledge. Then, the concept of smartness was examined in qualitative terms and a judgment on what smart cities are like was made. Afterward, the compilation obtained was scrutinized with the concept of smart destination in a holistic way. Finally, an evaluation of the smart tourism destination for the tourism economy and the stakeholders in the ecosystem has been made.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Talent Maturity Models: A model lies in improving the processes of an institution. Describes which elements are missing on the basis of process areas or which elements should be present.
Smart Tourism: Smart tourism is physical tourism, social connections, state/organization resources and tourism supported by efforts in a destination for gathering data from the human mind.
Smart City: The smart city is the name given to an environment where technology is integrated into the city.
Smart Environment: Smart environment is a concept that emerged in the early 1990s where city residents are continuously interacting with objects and sensors seamlessly to better their lives.
Smart Public Transportation System: Connected solutions for shared passenger transport services such as buses, trains and ferries. Includes applications for connected vehicles and related infrastructure, such as passenger information, ticketing & payment systems, cloud & analytics services as well as traffic management & control.
Smart Destination: Smart destination is the integrated concept in which the principles are applied to the new city profile and not only in the citizens but also in the exchange process.
Knowledge Management: Knowledge management is to be aware of the information in order to make maximum use of the process, to identify, implement, disseminate, develop and store the aims of information.