Hawaii To Air $100M Dirty Travel Marketing Laundry
Hawaii To Air $100M Dirty Travel Marketing Laundry: Things have gone from bad to worse since we last reported on what’s going on with Hawaii marketing, the Hawaii Tourism Authority of the state, and its marketing contractors. This is something that we discuss from the perspective of tourists and the travel business in Hawaii, which is the only area that we concentrate on. The manner in which Hawaii crafts and communicates its message to the rest of the world is of the utmost significance to the achievement of a favorable outcome for all parties involved.
Yesterday, the losing contractor, the 100-year-old HVCB (Hawaii Visitor and Convention Bureau), filed its objection to the multi-year, $100 million contract award that was given to the newcomer CNHA. This was something that we had anticipated would happen (Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement).
The majority of Hawaii’s tourism promotion, including the administration of its mainland brand as well as global support services, are included in the aforementioned deal. There are a few other less significant contracts that will be renewed in the near future, but for the time being, we are going to concentrate on this one because it is by far the largest and most crucial to Hawaii’s marketing.
The HTA contract has never before been awarded to a company other than HVCB, making this a historic moment.
The sequence of events that followed was truly unprecedented. The first step in the process was when HVCB was given the formal go-ahead for another multi-year contract. After that, the award was contested by the current winner, CNHA, who, judging by their website, once again does not appear to have any prior expertise in either marketing or hospitality. After that, the state of Hawaii decided to take back the prize it had previously given. A second request for proposals (RFP) was developed, and this time the unsuccessful bidder emerged victorious. However, there is a great deal more to it than that.
The HTA will now be responsible for conducting an investigation into the complaint and determining 1) whether the award was made in the state’s best interest, and 2) if the second RFP process was fair to both the HVCB and the CNHA.
There is going to be a lot of trouble on the horizon because the process was probably not fair.
Because of the legally binding nature of the situation, any further statements from HTA, as well as those from the two bidders, will be kept to a minimum for the time being.
The “coconut wireless,” on the other hand, gives the impression that the process may not have been as fair as it was made out to be, and it is still debatable whether or not it was appropriate for the state of Hawaii to hire a company that had no prior experience in the travel or marketing industries.
It is being asserted that the most recent proposals were scored in an improper manner, which is reflected in the fact that a non-marketing organization was awarded the lead marketing contract for the state. While we do not have all the details, it is being asserted that this led to a non-marketing organization obtaining the contract. We have been informed that, among other things, we should anticipate an examination of the qualifications held by CNHA for the newly created primary marketing post in Hawaii.
The HTA and its judges were reviewing the most recent requests for proposals (RFPs), and there have been issues raised about the integrity of the scoring process that they used. It has been whispered that at least some of the judges weren’t being fair in their decisions. but instead, they were biassed against CNHA coming out on top, regardless of their track record, competence, team, or the honesty of their proposal. There was a substantial shift in the composition of the judging team from one RFP to the next for unknown reasons.
This is going to result in people losing their jobs. That is an extremely high probability.
The new contract will be put on hold until this issue is rectified, and the state will need to find a way to “fill the gap” in Hawaii marketing. Until these issues are overcome, the new contract will not be implemented. We anticipate a statement from HTA very soon regarding exactly how that is going to take place and by whom.
The next step will be for HTA to conduct an investigation into its own process, which appears to be questionable and lacks obvious objectivity. In the event that the objection raised by HVCB is not taken into consideration by HTA, the state will initiate an administrative review process separate from HTA. As a result, this will continue for the foreseeable future at least many months. Even after that, it is possible to file an appeal against the administrative review with the state court. It would seem that now is the time for the parties to consult their attorneys.
Because it affects tourists from the mainland, which are Hawaii’s principal source of revenue, this issue is giving many people working in the tourism business in Hawaii cause for concern. Keep an eye out for the upcoming laundry update… Will there be a further spread of the filth, or will everything be made clean?
