Who we are
The Tourism Intelligence Network is an organization devoted to strategic information-gathering in the field of tourism. It was launched on January 30, 2004, by the Transat Chair in Tourism at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) School of Management, with the financial support of Canada Economic Development – Quebec Regions and Tourisme Québec.
OUR MISSION
Locate, gather, analyze and distribute value-added information to enhance the Quebec tourism industry’s competitiveness and help its decision-makers develop forward-looking strategies.
On the lookout for both potential opportunities and pitfalls, our team of analysts gathers strategic intelligence to help Quebec businesses find innovative ways to develop, manage and market their products and services.
Intelligence is gathered constantly and with a long-term perspective. The findings of this research are published as they are compiled, in the form of short articles posted on the Network's site as well as through its bimonthly newsletter and Facebook and Twitter accounts. Analysts consult a variety of information sources: databases, surveys, studies, reports, specialized magazines, conferences, etc. The Network also occasionally calls on the expertise of recognized experts and contributors from various fields of tourism.
In addition to producing and distributing analyses, the Network engages in other activities aimed at helping tourism businesses with their decision-making:
- Lectures and conferences
- Contributions to Transat Chair in Tourism research activities
- Mandates to gather information in specific fields
- Responses to information requests from the media and tourism stakeholders
Marc-Antoine Vachon
Co-holder
Marc-Antoine Vachon has been a professor in the ESG UQAM Department of Marketing since 2009. His areas of interest are tourism services and destination marketing, performance indicators, inter-organizational collaboration and sales promotion. A lecturer from 2006 to 2009, he worked with Mr. Bernard Landry on courses in international management as well as various consulting mandates. Holder of a PhD in Business Administration (Marketing) from the joint PhD program (Concordia-HEC-McGill-UQAM) since 2012, he has been interested in tourism since beginning his doctoral studies. His dissertation on the antecedents of inter-organizational collaboration performance in tourism was approved by UQAM, with no changes, earning an evaluation of Highest Distinction.
Mr. Vachon has extensive teaching and research experience and has headed the Transat Chair in Tourism scientific committee since April 2015. Some examples of this experience are his many publications and contributions to scientific journals, the 2014 publication of a book on new marketing, and numerous presentations at academic conferences, both national, such as the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (ASAC) Conference – Tourism and Sport Management Division, and international, like the Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Marketing & Management Conference.
He has won several academic awards and honours, notably at the 2011 and 2012 Jeux du Commerce, and was a Highly Commended Award Winner at the Emerald Literati Network 2009 Awards for Excellence for an article published in the International Journal of Bank Marketing.
Claudine Barry
Analyst
Having earned a BA in Urban Planning from the Université de Montréal, Claudine Barry then completed a BA in Tourism and Hotel Management at UQAM in May 2001. She joined the Chair in the fall of 2001 as part of an international work-study placement.
Her research projects have looked at tourism and entertainment, bicycle touring, golf tourism and camping. In September 2007, she also began working for the Tourism Intelligence Network as an analyst, focussing on a variety of topics like urban tourism, resort and outdoor tourism, marketing and human resources.
Kate Germain
Researcher
Kate joined the Chair in 2005 to conduct the economic and financial analysis of Quebec ski areas, a study that she now produces every year. A contributor to several research mandates, she specializes in coordinating surveys taken in the nordic tourism sector.
Having earned a BA in Tourism Management, she is now completing an MA in Environment. Drawing on her professional and academic expertise, she has played an active role in a study on climate change and outdoor tourism since 2010. At the same time, she writes articles for the Tourism Intelligence Network about nature-based trends, products and accommodations, as well as sustainable management models in organizations and communities.
Chantal Neault
Analyst
Chantal Neault has worked in the tourism industry for many years, primarily in the fields of strategic planning and marketing. Holder of a BA in Tourism Management and Development from UQAM with a specialization in Marketing, she began her career as a research officer for the Quebec Ministère du Tourisme, where she was in charge of strategic planning for the tourism sectors of hospitality, training and customer service. In addition, she coordinated the creation, implementation and maintenance of a marketing information system at the Ministère.
After a stint as a copywriter for the Société des casinos du Québec, she worked as a consultant for the Transat Chair in Tourism for five years, contributing to several strategic studies on various tourism-related sectors: cruises and tours, charter bus transportation, winter tourism, water sports and consultation mechanisms. She has been a part of the team at the Tourism Intelligence Network from its inception, in the spring of 2004.
Amélie Racine
Analyst
Field-specific monitoring
Field-specific monitoring:
As time goes by, the tourism industry is increasingly grasping the usefulness and relevance of business intelligence and with it, the expertise of the Transat Chair in Tourism’s Tourism Intelligence Network of UQAM’s École des sciences de la gestion. Among other things, it translates into a growing demand for dedicated monitoring.
Monitoring projects in progress: