Factors Affecting Tourism Service Delivery and its Effectiveness: The Case of Addis Ababa Arts, Culture, and Tourism Bureau

Abstract

The main objective of this research was to assess the factors affecting tourism service delivery and the effectiveness of the Addis Ababa Art, Culture, and Tourism Bureau. Employing an exploratory sequential design, the study utilised a pragmatic research paradigm with a mixed approach of both qualitative and quantitative. The methodology included surveys, simple random sampling, and purposive sampling and was based on a total population of 215 with a sample size of 140 participants. To gather comprehensive insights, 120 employees were surveyed, 11 individuals participated in focused group discussions, and 9 key informants were interviewed.This study collected both primary and secondary data, incorporating key informant interviews, focused group discussions, and an extensive literature review consisting of books, journal articles, and documents as the secondary data. The data were analysed through qualitative and quantitative analysis tools. Specifically, the quantitative data analysis included descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS version 26, whereas the qualitative research analysis employed phenomenology. The finding shows that, poor leadership performance was marked by the inability to effectively manage tasks, not effectively improving the quality of services, not significantly contributing to the growth and development of tourism, not successfully leveraging the city's culture, not effectively using historical attractions to benefit the tourism industry, and providing inadequate support to employees. Similarly, the absence of proper communication channels hindered the smooth flow of information, the effective use of various communication channels, and interdepartmental coordination, consequently impacting service delivery. Furthermore, limited capacity-building training led to a lack of professional development, inadequate skills, and insufficient expertise among employees. Lastly, insufficient infrastructure, such as the lack of suitable facilities and resources, has not been successful in meeting the needs of tourists and has hampered the overall operations of the bureau. In conclusion, the study identified several critical factors contributing to suboptimal tourism service delivery and the reduced effectiveness of the Addis Ababa Art, Culture, and Tourism Bureau. Based on these findings, the researchers recommend addressing these issues through improved leadership practices, establishing efficient communication channels, providing targeted capacity-building programs, and enhancing infrastructure development to mitigate existing inadequacies. By addressing these problems, it is posited that the bureau's effectiveness and tourism service delivery will be significantly improved.

Key words: Tourism service, Leadership peformance, Communication strategies, Capacity building training, and Infrastructure.