Human talent management and community tourism development: A study at the La Esperanza Ecological Center, Colta – Ecuador
Keywords:
Management, Human Talent, Community-Based Tourism, Ecological Centre La EsperanzaAbstract
Community-based tourism has emerged as a sustainable alternative for invigorating rural economies and preserving the cultural identity of territories. In this context, the purpose of the study was to analyse the contribution of human talent administrative management to the tourism development of the Community Ecological Tourism Centre La Esperanza, located in the canton of Colta, Ecuador. A quantitative approach was adopted, with a non-experimental, descriptive and correlational design and a cross-sectional scope. The population consisted of the 18 active members of the centre, applying a census sampling technique. A Likert-type questionnaire validated through expert judgement was used, achieving a Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient of 0.918, indicating high internal consistency. The analysis was carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics (version 26), through descriptive statistics and Pearson correlations. The results indicate strong levels of community participation (88.9%) and tourism service quality (77.8%), both reflecting social cohesion, organisational commitment and adequate visitor orientation. However, weaknesses were identified in human talent planning (66.7%) and performance evaluation (55.6%), revealing administrative processes that remain incipient and receive limited technical feedback. The study concludes that administrative management of human talent represents a strategic axis for strengthening community-based tourism, by integrating training, participation and local leadership as key factors in improving organisational performance. It is recommended that planning systems, continuous evaluation and technical training be strengthened in order to promote more professionalised management.
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