From classic destination management to destination governance: Flims Laax Falera Management is realigning itself and laying the foundation for the development of a forward-looking destination. The aim is to secure the competitiveness and strengthen the resilience of the destination. To this end, the company is undergoing a radical reorganisation based on the newly developed destination model.
As a destination and company, FLFM AG faces major challenges: demand trends, disruption in the labour market, energy availability, digitalisation and, last but not least, the complexity of information and how to handle it correctly.
In the course of developing the destination’s strategy, the Board of Directors of FLFM AG, together with tourism experts from Quant AG in Flims, deliberately addressed the challenges of the future and future requirements for the company and the destination model. One of the most important findings is that, as a DMO, we must abandon the illusion that a destination and its service providers can be controlled. This is also confirmed by the current SECO background report, which questions existing approaches and theories in destination management.
An important criterion for success is the activation of existing networks and the increased involvement of local service providers and stakeholders. The long-term competitiveness and resilience of the destination should be strengthened through transparency, open dialogue and a joint development process. The key to this is destination governance. Based on the findings of the strategy process, an ambitious transformation process was launched within the Flims Laax Falera destination.
The strategic realignment also changes the areas of responsibility of the DMO, which will focus primarily on communication, information management and project management in future. Product management is now the responsibility of the individual service providers, while the DMO concentrates on strengthening its market positioning and ensuring the competitiveness and consistent sustainable orientation of the destination.
The reorganisation requires a redefinition of expertise and professional skills within the DMO. In addition to tourism skills, entrepreneurial thinking and action as well as digitalisation skills are absolutely crucial. Employees become ambassadors, and maintaining the network is considered a key success factor. Locals are equally important ambassadors for the destination. When creating new tourism infrastructure, it is important to highlight how this benefits the local population. The traditional dichotomy between locals and tourists has no place in the future orientation.
