Teaching entrepreneurship in tourism and hospitality undergraduate programmes

by Stanislav Ivanov, Miroslava Dimitrova and Maya Ivanova

Contact details:

Stanislav Ivanov, Ph. D., Academic director, International University College, 3 Bulgaria str.,
9300 Dobrich, Bulgaria; email: stanislav.ivanov@vumk.eu

Miroslava Dimitrova, Ph. D., Assistant Professor in tourism and hospitality, International
University College, 3 Bulgaria str., 9300 Dobrich, Bulgaria; email:
miroslava.dimitrova@vumk.eu

Maya Ivanova, Ph. D. student, University of Economics – Varna, 77 Kniaz Boris I Blvd.,
9000 Varna, Bulgaria; e-mail: maya.g.ivanova@gmail.com

Abstract:

Key words: teaching, entrepreneurship, tourism, hospitality, curriculum, undergraduate

programme

Introduction
Current turbulent economic times require companies to find alternative approaches for
sustainable competitive advantage to price cutting and severe price competition – they focus
more on entrepreneurship and innovations in order to survive.

Entrepreneurship as an educational concept

The place of entrepreneurship as a field of study in the undergraduate programmes
Entrepreneurship has long been recognised an important element in undergraduate
programmes curricula (Fayoll and Gailly, 2008; Hampden-Turner, 2010; Mars and Garrison,
2009; Schwartz and Malach-Pines, 2009; Silva, Henriques, Carvalho, 2009) including in
tourism and hospitality (Ball, 2005; Fidgeon, 2010; Morgan, 2004; Okumus and Wong,
2005). The academic literature is entrepreneurship, starting a new company or new venture
creation is abundant also (e.g. Barringer and Ireland, 2007).
Practically, entrepreneurship usually finds its way to the programmes curricula in two
different ways: entrepreneurship as a separate subject/module and entrepreneurship as a
concept permeating several modules and subjects.
The first approach holds that entrepreneurship is a field of study that deserves a
separate subject/module. The advantage of this approach is that students can have a general
picture of entrepreneurship as an academic field of study, know the different theories of
entrepreneurship and develop their own plan for a start-up business. As a disadvantage one
can mention the false perception that the separate entrepreneurship module creates among
students and lecturers – that one can learn to be an entrepreneur by studying one subject and
writing one report. Furthermore, the introduction of a separate course in entrepreneurship
might give reasons to lecturers in other modules to eliminate topics related to it from their
modules (similar to the case when a small company establishes a separate marketing
department and the employees start perceiving the marketing as responsibility of the newly
created department rather than of everybody in the company). This might cut the links
between the modules and entrepreneurship could be perceived as a subject/module per se.
The second approach recognizes the fact that the body of knowledge in
entrepreneurship cannot be taught in one module only but should permeate several modules
and subjects in the curriculum, which provides integrity and cohesion within the study
programme. The syllabi of the modules/subjects are coordinated so that students gain
knowledge in different aspects of new venture creation (management, marketing, finance,
planning, human resources, accounting, business law, etc.). The advantage is the in-depth
understanding of these aspects by students. However, the lack of separate entrepreneurship
module underestimates the importance of the theoretical advancements in the academic field
of entrepreneurship as they are considered peripheral within other modules.
Within this context, a combination between the two common approaches seems to best
fit business schools – providing the theoretical knowledge and planning skills in a separate
entrepreneurship module/subject and reinforcing these in other related modules. Additionally
to the entrepreneurial knowledge students gain and the business planning skills they develop,
this combined approach cultivates entrepreneurial spirit that cannot be achieved by one
focused module/subject. Intuitively, this is the best approach. However, it rises the question
about the modules prerequisites – should students first study entrepreneurship and then
upgrade knowledge and skill in related modules or first study the related modules
(management, marketing, finance, planning, human resources, accounting, business law) and
then integrate the individual pieces of knowledge into the entrepreneurship module/subject.
The answer to the above question is not unambiguous.

IUC’s experience
For two academic years (2006/07 and 2007/08) International University College
experimented by introducing “Business plan” as a first module for first year students. They
were required to prepare a business plan for a new start-up company having been provided
only the basic knowledge needed to implement the task. The goal was that students
understand the principles of business planning and entrepreneurship by themselves, identify
their own weaknesses and gaps in knowledge and skill, and, eventually, be more motivated to
study the other modules. The experiment was considered only partially successful by the IUC
management team due to several reasons:
- Cultural factors – students were used in high schools to absorbing knowledge and be
examined on how well they have understood it – an innovative approach in which they were
asked to prepare be examined on a project without being given the full knowledge for that
was not fully embraced by them;
- Organisational factors – the learning outcomes and the goal of the module were
probably not communicated well to the students. Additionally, the introduction of business
planning as a first module at Year one required that students prepare the same business plan in
Year two, compare the two plans and see their own progress. This requirement was not
implemented and the first business plan stood alone without a follow-up.
Currently IUC adopts the alternative viewpoint that the entrepreneurship is an
integrative module and it is a follow-up not a prerequisite to the related modules
(management, marketing, finance, planning, human resources, accounting, business law). As a
consequence of this pedagogic viewpoint students first study the general modules/subject and
finish the second year of study by preparing an entrepreneurship plan that summarises the
knowledge and skills gained during the first and second year.

Student’s perspective
In the beginning of the academic year 2010/2011 a survey with second and third grade
students in Tourism Management and Hotel management programmes at UIC was conducted.
Its primary goal is to study the attitude of the students towards Entrepreneurship module,
which is included in their teaching plan. For this purpose two major group of students were
questioned: students who didn’t participate in Entrepreneurship classes yet (mainly second
year students) and those who have already studied Entrepreneurship as a separate module
(mostly third year students). Two different questionnaires were elaborated. The one given to
the first group was aiming at discovering whether the students were familiar with this subject,
what their expectations are, if they consider it important and valuable for their future career.
The second questionnaire attempted to reveal the overall impressions of those who have
already participated in Entrepreneurship classes, the outcomes according to their opinion and
their general satisfaction about the course (i.e. whether the outcomes correspond to their
expectations).
The representative sampling consisted of 64 students. The results of the survey showed
that students realize the importance of Entrepreneurship module. 82% of them sustain that it
should be included in the Hospitality and Tourism Management programmes. During this
course students expect to learn how to start a new business (80%), how to write business plan
(48%), as well as to study some basic economic concepts (35%). Majority of students (55%)
prefer to study Entrepreneurship as a separate module without being incorporated in other
courses, while 9% believe that it should not be studied at all. Student’s preferences about ratio
between theory and practical implications in the module are splitted between “a combination
of both” (52%) and “practice only” (44%). Unfortunately most of the students who have
already participated in this course are not satisfied with the outcomes (56%) and claim that the
course was insufficient to provide them with necessary knowledge and skills (71%).
The servey shows that students are aware of the utility of entrepreneurial skills for their
future careers. They are definitely searching for programme which provides them not only
with theoretical background, but is mainly involved with the real life practice.

Practical issues in teaching entrepreneurship in tourism and hospitality

Integrated entrepreneurship in hospitality and tourism programmes is important, but
challenging task. Finding the right combination between theory and practice and involving
students and industry persons in teaching process is vital for its successful implementation.
One of the major outcomes of the Entrepreneurship module should be to teach students how
to prepare an entrepreneurship plan, usually referred to as “business plan”. For training
purposes we recommend a small company to be chosen in order to encompass easily all
aspects of its management, organizational structure, cycles of supply, production and
distribution etc. The students should be given a concise, clear and understandable assignment
which is feasible and consistent with their aptitudes. That is to say, lecturers should be able to
modify the requirements and level of difficulty of the task in accordance to the general level
of the groups and even to the individual students. Hence entrepreneurship teaching should
encourage team work and communication skills, it is advisable that the business plan is
prepared by several students working as a team instead of being an individual endeavour.
Based on our experience, we suggest that three to four persons in a group is the optimum.
Student should learn how to delegate tasks between each other and bare collective
responsibility concerning the quality of their work. That is why they should not be marked
separately, expect for their individual presentation skills (in case that the business plan is
defended before a jury).
The teaching process itself should represent a combination between lectures and
workshops. Lectures are held before bigger audience, while during the workshops students
are divided into smaller groups (up to 10-20 persons) in order to secure the individual’s
involvement in the discussions and problem solving. Workshops should be based on various
heuristic methods such as brainstorming, Delphi, scenario playing etc.
The assessment criteria should reveal objectively the outcome of the teaching process.
On one hand a theoretical knowledge acquired during the course should be measured, on the
other skills to apply this knowledge in practice should be demonstrated. That is why a two-
fold examination is most suitable as a combination between written exam (test) and business
plan prepared during the course. The weight of the two components in the overall mark is at
the course leader’s discretion, but more importance should be given to the practical
implementation, that is – the business plan.
The practical implication of the entrepreneurial course could be supported by field visits
in hotel, restaurants, travel agencies, congress centres and other tourist enterprises. These
visits should be arranged by the lecturers or administration of the educational institution. The
benefits could be various: students and lecturers could receive adequate and up to date
information about the latest trends in the travel and hospitality industry, on the other hand
students are provided with valuable first-hand information concerning specific businesses,
which they can use while preparing their business plans. Another advantage of the field visits
is that they encourage the liaison between education and industry and are an opportunity for
feedback from the business stakeholders about how the teaching programme should be
adjusted in order to correspond to the industry needs). The field visits could be successfully
complemented with guest lecturers. In the first case the students go on place and get idea of
the working environment, but a drawback could be the possibility of interrupting and
disturbing the working process. Guest lecturers on the other hand could reach greater
audience and spend more time on explaining and answering students’ questions in details. In
both cases students have chance to contact industry representative and receive future
employment opportunities
The internship is another valuable tool to assist the entrepreneurial study process.
During the internship the students are put in a real-life working environment and could
develop skill such as team working, discipline, diligence etc. The impressions gained during
their work could assist in writing the business plan.
In order to encourage utmost performance, the best entrepreneurship plans could be
awarded at the end of each academic year. The award event could be turned into ceremony
that brings together students, lecturers, friends, relatives and industry representatives. That is
to say it could be used successfully as a marketing tool promoting the quality of the education
in Tourism and Hospitality programmes.

Conclusion

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