Resilience-building in Small Island Family-Owned Accommodation Sector

Abstract

This study aims to understand the crises experienced by family-owned accommodation businesses in small island contexts and how resilience is built alongside the development of their dynamic capabilities (sensing, seizing, and transforming) as they navigate through crises. The study uses a qualitative method and focuses on the experiences of tourism businesses operating in the islands of Boracay, Negros, and Siargao, which are among the top island destinations in the Philippines. Semi-structured interviews with 18 participants were conducted through 1-hour online video calls, phone calls, and written interviews. Crises that affect tourism businesses are mostly due to external factors. Small islands are at high risk of natural hazards, but businesses do not consider typhoons and earthquakes as crises per se since they frequently experience these hazards. Family businesses have distinct strategies, such as knowledge transfer, maintenance of stable financial resources, infrastructure development, employee training, better marketing strategies, and a focus on sustainability to enhance their dynamic capabilities and build their resilience, thus making them more adaptive to future crises. However, government support for the local tourism industry is still needed to ensure a sustainable tourism industry. Dynamic capabilities and resilience are often linked with each other yet there is limited knowledge on how resilience is built specifically in the context of family-owned businesses in small island context. This study addresses this gap in the literature by using dynamic capabilities as a framework to understand resilience development. Resilience and dynamic capabilities are then adaptive strategies in crisis management.