Impact of COVID-19 on VisitBritain's Performance and Management

This research project aims to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on VisitBritain's business performance and management. It identifies the challenges faced, strategies adopted, and presents findings using tables, charts, and diagrams. The study is based on secondary research methods and uses thematic analysis to analyze the data. The report concludes that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the tourism industry, and companies need to adopt new strategies to sustain in the marketplace.

Research Project
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Contents
Research Project...............................................................................................................................1
Chapter One.....................................................................................................................................3
Introduction............................................................................................................................3
Research aim..........................................................................................................................3
Research objectives................................................................................................................3
Research problem...................................................................................................................3
Research questions.................................................................................................................4
Chapter 2..........................................................................................................................................4
Research Methodology...........................................................................................................4
Gantt chart..............................................................................................................................5
Chapter 3..........................................................................................................................................5
Literature review....................................................................................................................5
Issues or challenges faced by VisitBritain due to COVID-19 pandemic...............................5
Impact of COVID-19 on performance and management of VisitBritain...............................5
Strategies adopted by VisitBritain to deal with the issues of COVID-19..............................5
Chapter 4..........................................................................................................................................6
Present your findings using tables, charts, and diagrams.......................................................6
Analyse and summarise your findings using secondary research methods............................9
Chapter 5..........................................................................................................................................9
Conclusion..............................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10
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Chapter One
Introduction
Covid-19 pandemic has affected business drastically on the management and performance
of the organization and to deal with it is essential to sustain at the marketplace. Tourism is one of
the most affected sectors by Covid-19 and is impacting economies, public services, livelihood,
and opportunities on all continents (Mruck and Mey, 2019). The tourism industry falls adversely
in the pandemic and most of the tourism companies shut down as they cannot sustain and
maintain their performance in a pandemic. For the present study, VisitBritain is taken into
consideration. It is a national Tourism agency which is responsible for marketing Britain
worldwide. The company was founded in the year 2003 and works with UK trade & investment,
travel operators, official tourism bodies for London, etc. The report aims to identify the influence
of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performance and management of tourism.
Research aim
"To analyze the impact of COVID-19 on business performance and management of
tourism". A study on VisitBritain
Research objectives
 To examine the issues or challenges faced by Visit Britain due to the COVID-19
pandemic.
 To identify the impact of COVID-19 on the performance and management of
VisitBritain.
 To determine the strategies adopted by VisitBritain to deal with the issues of COVID-19.
Research problem
COVID-19 has affected businesses and tourism management worldwide and is the most
affected sector with travel restrictions globally. In addition to this, almost all the tourism
companies face challenges in a pandemic: declined performance, shut down of businesses,
decreased business travels and leisure travels, lockdowns, and so on. This has drastically
impacted the overall performance and productivity of tourism. The present study will help an
organization analyze the impact of COVID-19 on business performance and management of
tourism. This will further help Tourism companies develop effective strategies to deal with the
situation and maintain their performance in the marketplace.
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Research questions
 What are the issues or challenges faced by Visit Britain due to the COVID-19 pandemic?
 What is the impact of COVID-19 on the performance and management of VisitBritain?
 What are the strategies adopted by VisitBritain to deal with the issues of COVID-19?
Chapter 2
Literature review
Issues or challenges faced by VisitBritain due to COVID-19 pandemic
As per the viewpoint of Gazi (2021), it is analyzed that the tourism sector is facing the
negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to this, tourism companies face various
challenges: safety and security, strict government regulations, shutting of businesses,
Lockdowns, and many more (Impact of COVID-19 outbreak on Tourism, 2021 ). This negatively
impacts the performance of respective organizations, which is not easy to recover.
Impact of COVID-19 on performance and management of VisitBritain
According to David (2021), there is a negative impact of COVID-19 on the overall
performance and management of respective organizations. The demand for travel and tourism is
declining due to lockdown and government restrictions. The people did not prefer to travel due to
the high risk of health and safety (Coronavirus and the impact on the UK travel and tourism
industry, 2021). It is analyzed that the number of jobs within the tourism industry is declining
and the turnover rate has increased. The companies cannot perform their functions as they cannot
earn money, which helps deal with the expenses. Therefore, it is said that there is a negative
influence of COVID-19 on the overall performance and productivity of the respective
organization.
Strategies adopted by VisitBritain to deal with the issues of COVID-19
As per the viewpoint of Frank (2020), It is analyzed that tourism companies develop
different strategies to deal with pandemic issues (Action plan to deal with matters of Covid-19,
2021). One strategy is re-balance marketing spending for the existing customer, which helps
travel companies retain them for a longer time. Along with this, there are also other strategies
adopted, such as shifting to digital communication, price discounting, promoting value, etc.
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Chapter 3
Research Methodology
It is one of the significant parts that allow a reader to gain knowledge about the tools and
techniques used by the researcher to conduct the study. The methods used for the present study is
given below:
Research philosophy: It is an integral part of research methodology and includes a set of beliefs
that assist investigators in gathering and effectively interpreting data. The two forms of research
philosophies are positivism & interpretivism and according to the topic, interpretivism
philosophy is practical as it helps in gathering and evaluating secondary information (Berryman,
2019)
. In addition to this, it also aids the researcher in attaining appropriate and valid results.
Research choice: It is the process of gathering and collecting information on a specific
topic. The two primary forms of research choice are qualitative and quantitative, but the
qualitative method is effective and beneficial as per the topic of study. The main reason for
selecting this is that it helps the researcher gain in-depth knowledge regarding the issue cost-
effectively and timely.
Data collection: It is introduced as a process of gathering information by primary and
secondary sources of data collection. The present research is based on secondary data and to
collect it, various books, articles and Journals are studied on the topic. The reason to select a
secondary source for the present study is that it is cost-effective and allows researchers to collect
a wide range of information, which further leads to the development of a valid and reliable
conclusion.
Data analysis: The process used by the investigator to analyze the collected information.
The various forms of data analysis methods are thematic analysis, frequency distribution, etc.
The present study is based on secondary data and to analyze it, the researcher adopts thematic
analysis (Crotty, 2020). The reason to select is it identify the patterns in the information which
are essential and help the researcher to achieve objectives.
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Gantt chart
It is one of the most valuable and popular show's activities against time. Additionally, it
represents the list of activities associated to researcher along with the initial and completion time.
The Gantt chart of the present study is given below:
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Chapter 4
Present your findings using tables, charts, and diagrams
Issues or challenges faced by VisitBritain due to COVID-19 pandemic
Interpretation: From the above chart, it is analyzed that VisitBritain faces significant
challenges related to declining GDP contribution as it is falling from 2019 to 2020 from 10.4% to
5.5%. Furthermore, another issue is to decrease the jobs rate in a travel company and it is
interpreted that out of total, there is the decline of 61.6 MN job rates in the company. Another
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Illustration 1: WTTC Research Reveals Global Travel & Tourism Sector Suffered A Loss,
2021

challenge is related to the deterioration of domestic and international spending sources. In 2019-
20, household spending was -45%, and global spending changed to -69.4%.
Impact of COVID-19 on performance and management of VisitBritain
Interpretation: From the above chart, it is analyzed and interpreted that the tourism
industry's total turnover is related to managing business activities and it will feel down to
26.06%. The significant impact on the tourism industry is associated with the trading industry as
it is increased in most of the travel industry between July and August. Whereas, in mid-January
2021, the use of proportion is the further decline and only 37% of the accommodation become
reasons for new government restrictions.
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Illustration 2: Coronavirus and the impact on the UK travel and tourism industry, 2021

Strategies adopted by VisitBritain to deal with the issues of COVID-19
Interpretation: From the above graph, it is interpreted that the respective company can use
different strategies through digital media. Some of them are related to making Re-direct inbound
mail, automating manual processing, and accessing the data through a digital platform. The
respective company should adopt all of these strategies to overcome Covid-19 challenges in the
market.
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Illustration 3: Digital Solutions To Help With Covid-19 Business Challenges, 2021

Analyse and summarise your findings using secondary research methods
Theme 1: Issues or challenges faced by VisitBritain due to COVID-19 pandemic
The above secondary data is analyzed and interpreted the information through major
sources that the company is facing a wide range of issues after Covid-19. Some of these
challenges are related to declining GDP, downfall in the jobs opportunity in this market and loss
of revenue in the tourism market in the UK. Most consumers are now not spending too much in
this field and saving for future use.
Theme 2: Impact of COVID-19 on performance and management of VisitBritain
From the above thematic literature review, it is interpreted that the significant impact of
the Covid-19 on the company's performance is related to declining efficiency. Some of the
factors are related to risk management, service delivery, transportation cost and different hygiene
and safety. These factors are associated with an impact on the company's performance and
control.
Theme 3: Strategies adopted by VisitBritain to deal with the issues of COVID-19
This is interpreted that the company is adopting new strategies related to digital media
platforms as they are now providing effective growth in the market. Some of the designs are
connected to digital platforms and other sources related to their customers' safety and hygiene
factors.
Chapter 5
Conclusion
From the present study, it has been concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic directly
impacts the overall management and business of the tourism sector. In addition to this,
companies face many challenges. To deal with it, various strategies are used and applied by
organisations such as increased use of digital marketing, Virtual offerings, and so on.
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REFERENCES
Books & Journal
Berryman, D.R., 2019. Ontology, epistemology, methodology, and methods: Information for
librarian researchers. Medical reference services quarterly, 38(3), pp.271-279.
Crotty, M., 2020. The foundations of social research: Meaning and perspective in the research
process. Routledge.
Mruck, K. and Mey, G., 2019. Grounded theory methodology and self-reflexivity in the
qualitative research process. The Sage handbook of current developments in grounded
theory, pp.470-496.
Patnaik, A., 2019. Research Methodology, Design and Methods. In Institutional Change and
Power Asymmetry in the Context of Rural India (pp. 113-150). Palgrave Macmillan,
Singapore.
Pheng, L. S. and Hou, L. S., 2019. Research Design and Methodology. In Construction Quality
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Wang, G., 2019. Empirical Research Methodology. In Using Pedagogic Intervention to Cultivate
Contextual Lexical Competence in L2 (pp. 145-167). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Online
Impact of COVID-19 outbreak on Tourism, 2021 [Online] Available through; <
https://www.unwto.org/impact-assessment-of-the-covid-19-outbreak-on-international-
tourism>
Action plan to deal with issues of Covid-19, 2020 [Online] Available through;
https://www.simon-kucher.com/en/blog/nine-action-points-travel-companies-respond-
covid-19
Coronavirus and the impact on the UK travel and tourism industry, 2021. [Online]. Available
through:<https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/tourismindustry/articles/
coronavirusandtheimpactontheuktravelandtourismindustry/2021-02-15>
Digital Solutions To Help With Covid-19 Business Challenges, 2021. [Online]. Available
through:<https://www.cleardatagroup.co.uk/digital-solutions-to-help-with-covid-19-
business-challenges/>
WTTC Research Reveals Global Travel & Tourism Sector Suffered A Loss, 2021. [Online].
Available through:<https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4103655.html>
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