Husna Zainal Abidin
Academic and research departments
School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.My research project
Digital Collaboration: A Solution for Destinations
Technological advancements and innovation are on the rise and are disrupting the traditional ecosystem of the tourism industry. Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) that are supposed to shape the ecosystem, however, DMOs are struggling to adapt to these changes. Husna’s research seeks to take a positive stance towards technological disruptions and aims to explore the positioning of a DMOs role within the tourism ecosystem in this digital era. Integrating biometric and qualitative research methods, the research will investigate the elements of the next generation digital collaborative platforms for DMOs from the perspective of both the businesses and visitors. Through the collaboration with Visit Surrey and Minted Box as the key industry partners, a trial platform will be developed and tested with existing stakeholders of the region.
Supervisors
University roles and responsibilities
- Teaching Fellow
Business, industry and community links
Husna obtained her bachelor degree in Tourism Management in 2016 from the University of Surrey and was subsequently awarded a studentship, enabling her to pursue her PhD programme. Her main research revolves around the area of behaviour and decision making, collaboration, research design and multi-sided digital platforms within the tourism industry.
Husna works closely with industry partners to bridge the gap between academic and industry practice. In particular, she has been working closely with Visit Surrey, the regional Destination Management Organisation (DMO) of Surrey alongside various key attractions within Surrey to create a better understanding of DMOs and the impacts of technological influences. Prior to her PhD, Husna interned under to the Minister of Tourism and Culture of Malaysia. The experience deepened her interest in research-based decision making in governmental level tourism management.
News
In the media
Supervision
Postgraduate research supervision
I am currently supervising five Masters students with researches that look into the influences of socio-technological factors on tourism destinations and the use of digital technologies on tourism marketing and management
My teaching
I teach undergraduate and postgraduate modules around tourism management and marketing.
MAN3141 Strategic Brand Management in Tourism
MAN1067 Tourism Management
MANM150 Destination Management and Marketing
MANM146 Strategic Tourism Management
MANM050 Visitor Attraction Management