Best practice in tourism innovation

South Dublin County Council

ERRIN Tourism Working Group MeetingMarch 12 2012

Raymond KeaneyDirector South Dublin County Tourism

Lecturer in Tourism Management ITT Dublin

Agenda

• Background to South Dublin County Council (SDCC)• Work of the council • Where tourism fits in• The tourism strategy• Early challenges • Changes made and key wins• Conclusion

Location

South Dublin County

Background to the council• Established 1994• 3rd largest local authority in Ireland covering an area

of 222.74 sq km• Population 265,174• Main urban centre is Tallaght with a population of

80,000 approx• Provides a range of services to more than 250,000

people, 90,000 households and over 6,000 businesses

The work of the council

Organised around four strategic themes:

• A living place• A connected place• A busy place• A place to protect

The tourism strategy1. Identified the potential of the tourism sector to

drive socio-economic development2. Developed an infrastructure to support the sector3. Established South Dublin County Tourism Ltd to

promote the county as a leisure and business tourism destination

4. Encouraged collaboration between industry groups, elected representatives, the education sector and the general public

Where did the potential come from?• Demand - economic prosperity in domestic and

overseas markets• Supply - new air routes and cheaper fares, wider

range of tourist options available, and aggressive marketing by national tourism agency

• Saw an opportunity to exploit business travel market as Ireland attracted greater foreign direct investment– 8 of the top 10 global technology companies– 8 of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies – 15 of the top 25 medical device firms

Infrastructure investments • Motorway and light-rail access to/from city centre• 13 hotels (2,900 bedrooms)• International event and convention centre, Citywest

(4,200 capacity & 800 on-site bedrooms)• Victory conference centre (1,000 capacity)• Tallaght stadium (7,000 seats, 20,000 music venue)• National basketball arena (2,000 seater, multi-purpose

venue)• Three shopping centres/theatres/cinemas• Seven golf courses• The Dublin mountains

South Dublin County Tourism• Established in 2005 as the County’s tourism

promotional, marketing and development company• Grew out of a need for the region to develop its own

identify as a tourist destination• It brought the diverse tourism interest groups together

into one cohesive structure• A voluntary membership association• Funded 90% council, 10% membership• One full-time marketing executive and 18 directors

Early challenges• Internal and external confusion as to the function of

the company• Limited tourism expertise among board members• The booming economy did not encourage joined-up

thinking and co-operation between businesses • The membership criteria was ill-defined• Membership proposition failed to attract sufficient

numbers• Member retention was an issue

Changes made• New vision – ‘to make the region Ireland’s premier

business and event tourism destination’• New objective – to compete for major national and

international conferences and events• Composition of the board changed to incorporate greater

industry representation• A managing director with international sales experience

appointed• Specialist working groups established• New membership criteria and benefits defined• Enhanced on-line presence

Key wins• Membership doubled between 2009 and 2011• Increasing income from membership fees reducing

complete reliance on council funding• Profile of membership broadened• A significant number of high value bids won

– World and All Ireland Dancing Championships 2011– World Darts Championships 2010 and 2011– World Handball Championships 2012– Disney on Ice and Top Gear 2010 and 2011

• Businesses now working together in partnership • Greater economic activity and employment

Conclusion

Tourism innovation at regional level requires;

• Vision

• Leadership

• Partnership

Questions?