Tourism ecosystem management: The role of trust and procedural justice

Ecosystem theory is becoming more prevalent in tourism as a powerful concept to explain value creation at tourism destinations, especially in developing countries. However, for well-established destinations collective action, which is a prerequisite for successful ecosystem operation, is difficult to ignite. This phenomenon can especially be observed at community-based destinations in structurally well-developed countries like Switzerland that consist of a large number of independent actors whose offerings are complementary. Together, these independent actors (henceforth called complementors) form the tourism product which is greater than the sum of its parts provided that the complementors collaborate. This study investigates if the active integration of ecosystem complementors by the destination management organization (DMO) fosters complementors’ trust towards the DMO. This is important as trust is the functional prerequisite for effective collaboration. Further, we analyze whether this effect is amplified by high levels of procedural fairness. The results show that the systematic integration of complementors positively influences complementors’ trust towards the DMO. Also, if integration processes are executed in the context of high procedural justice trust levels are further enhanced. Thus, systematic complementor integration can be a crucial and efficient step towards a functioning ecosystem at community-based destinations. The results inform DMO practitioners as well as scholars about the dynamics of successful ecosystem operation at tourism destination management.