Information Technology and Its Challenges Towards Sri Lankan Event Tourism: Event Managers’ Perspective

The event industry is rapidly developing and contributes to business and leisure related tourism in the global context. The environment has got considerably more complex due to growing regulation and government and corporate engagement in events, and many event organizations have implemented information technology. Hence, the central focus of the study was to identify the challenges of the adaptation of information technology in Sri Lankan event tourism. The purposive sample methodology was used to collect primary data from 15 event managers who are members of the Sri Lanka Association of Professional Conference, Exhibition, and Event Organizers. In addition, qualitative data analytical method was employed, and the collected data were transcribed and analyzed by using content analysis. The study’s findings reveal that the Sri Lankan event industry was not adequately used information technology. The cost, resistance to change, tech-savvy employees, lack of government support, and security issues resulted from adopting information technology in the Sri Lankan event industry and further maximizing the awareness of attendees and organizers, investing in the latest event technologies, increasing government involvement in policy framework, and creating a private-public partnership for long-term opportunities and improving the Sri Lankan event industry quality.