The reason for initiating the study program lies in the successful European practice, according to which present tourist boards, through the process of rationalization of the system and the territorial consolidation, are becoming real Destination Management Organizations (DMO). This implies their adequate staffing and additional training for business management of destination development, which particularly means strengthening the competitiveness of destinations and ability to coordinate and harmonize often conflicting interests of stakeholders in the destination. Moreover, specialized receptive travel agencies, Destination Management Companies (DMC), which create and place the offer of complex tourist products and package tours, tailored to the needs and/or requirements of individual market segments of tourists, are one of the key actors in the diversification and increasing the total value of destination offer.
The study program Destination Management Organizations (DMO) and Companies (DMC) is realized in cooperation with top experts and academically educated lecturers with rich practical experience. Students learn through studying examples of domestic and world business cases. They also have the opportunity to pursue their knowledge and gain valuable experience during the professional practice. Lectures and workshops are conducted in accordance with international educational trends. The education of professional staff in the field of destination management greatly contributes to the development of tourism and the participants of this study program are offered different employment opportunities. Besides employment in Destination Management Organizations (DMO) and Destination Management Companies (DMC), students will be trained to carry out management and administrative tasks in: Tourist Boards, Tourist Agencies and Associations, Tourist Alliances, City Administration Tourist Departments, Counties Tourist Departments, Tourist Departments of the Ministry of Tourism, hotel facilities, business systems, event management companies, marketing agencies, market communications agencies, marketing management departments, consulting companies and general management of companies in the economy.
The professional management skills gained during the study offer numerous opportunities to start private business. Creating an adequate offer within destination management, alongside the more educated market segments of the tourism, can be a real challenge. Therefore, the aim of this study is to qualitatively improve professional skills for work in tourism by introducing new knowledge and skills through specialization. Study program Management of destination organizations and companies is the first such program in Croatia and it enables students to be the carriers of the transformation process of tourism.