Rich Harrill, Ph.D.

Director
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Travel & Tourism Industry Center
International Tourism Research Institute

Education
Ph.D., Clemson University, South Carolina, 2000
M.C.R.P., Clemson University, South Carolina, 1994
B.A., College of Charleston, South Carolina, 1991

Research Interests
Tourism Planning and Policy
Destination Marketing and Management
Tourism as an Economic Development Tool
Tourism in Emerging Markets
Asia-Pacific Tourism

Biography

“Leadership in International Development through Innovative Economic Development and Tourism”

Dr. Rich Harrill has a strong record of success in and an international reputation for leveraging his academic and professional experience combining tourism with economic development and urban planning to drive local, regional, national and international business, tourism and economic growth. He brings an industry-driven business mode and academic entrepreneurship to the university level.

Currently, in his dual roles as Director of the International Tourism Research Institute (ITRI) and Director of the prestigious Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Travel and Tourism Industry Center at the University of South Carolina, he conducts on applied research to provide practical solutions to increase U.S. and international tourism industry competitiveness, resulting in additional revenues and strong economic development opportunities.

Since 2001, Dr. Harrill has been awarded more than $1.2 million in external funding for his research, including grants from more than 30 different government, business and industry clients, making him the highest earning grant recipient in University of South Carolina’s College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management history. With this funding, he has delivered research results leading potentially to billions of dollars from increased tourism as a Principal Investigator on 35 major projects and Co-Principal Investigator for 11 major projects covering research in tourism planning and development, destination marketing and management, and economic development. 

Also, Dr. Harrill secured a $1.5 million match from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation that created the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Travel and Tourism Industry Center.  Based on his economic development experience, he co-proposed and secured $4 million funding for a Center for Tourism and Economic Development (CTED) at the university under South Carolina’s Centers for Economic Excellence (CoEE) program. 

Dr. Harrill has focused extensively on international tourism and economic development. He collaborated with the U.S. Travel Association and the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Travel and Tourism Industries on the definitive study of future Chinese outbound tourism to the U.S., potentially leading to additional tourism dollars for both China and the United States. In doing this research, he directly influenced both U.S. and China federal policies to enable cultural and research exchanges. He is currently working with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Travel and Tourism on a study of the recent decline in Japanese tourists to the United States. He also has conducted additional research in the Dominican Republic on tourism development, and accepted a two-month appointment as a visiting professor at the University of Aruba.

In addition to driving economic development through tourism, Dr. Harrill has vastly increased the reputation of the University of South Carolina in China by building strong international ties that have led to research and exchange agreements with top Chinese universities, including Peking University, Nanjing University, Nankai University, Shandong University, and Sun Yat-Sen University, along with the Institute for Tourism Studies, Macao, enriching the academic experience for students.  

Dr. Harrill’s professional work has focused on recreation and open-space planning, land use and comprehensive planning, citizen participation, and survey research. With this background, he has received strong reviews for his ability to enhance graduate and undergraduate student skills while teaching courses on sustainable tourism planning and policy, destination marketing and management, community tourism development, international and national resort development and environmental planning. His research advocates for progress and innovation in economic development at the local level, successfully synthesizing urban planning, economic development and tourism for the benefit of communities.

Dr. Harrill published two guidebooks for practitioners, covering his research of 33 best-practice cases in tourism and destination management—Guide to Best Practices in Tourism and Destination Management, Volumes I and II. These books generated interest from tourism organizations throughout the U.S. and internationally, including China, Japan, Vietnam, Brazil, Guatemala and Uruguay, with many resultant speaking and research opportunities.  His field experiences also include on-site tourism marketing and development workshops in Sudan and Yemen.  His work is frequently cited by major media outlets, including USA Today, CNN Travel, National Public Radio (NPR, All Things Considered), Las Vegas Sun, LA Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Daily Telegraph (Australia) and Reuters.

Prior to his tenure at the University of South Carolina, Dr. Harrill achieved success as a senior business associate for the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) Economic Development Institute (EDI) [now Enterprise Innovation Institute (EII)]. In this role, he facilitated a $6.5 million development proposal to Hacienda Piniella resort owners in Costa Rica by collecting, evaluating and analyzing sustainable development indicators. Dr. Harrill also undertook numerous projects for Georgia clients seeking to foster tourism as part of a local/regional economic development strategy, including projects with the Rockdale County Economic Development Authority to the Lower Chattahoochee Regional Development Center to the Golden Isles Parkway Association. During this period, his research helped to revive the Woodpecker Trail Association covering 10 counties, and enabled the Lake Hartwell Regional Marketing Alliance to better position itself for attracting tourists. 

Later in South Carolina, he completed a strategic tourism plan for Kershaw County world-renowned for its equine industry and events. He also conducted a strategic tourism plan for the state’s rural, five-county Salkehatchie region, an effort that explored nature-based and ecotourism development opportunities. More recently, Dr. Harrill completed a development and economic impact study for the 14 counties of the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor. 

Dr. Harrill earned his Ph.D. in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management and his master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from Clemson University. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from the College of Charleston. He has published his research in urban planning’s top three journals: the Journal of American Planning Association, Journal of Planning Education and Research and Journal of Planning Literature.  The Journal of the American Planning Association is the top-ranked journal for urban studies and number-two ranked journal for planning and development.  

Dr. Harrill edited Fundamentals of Destination Management and Marketing (American Hotel & Lodging Association, 2005), the first comprehensive textbook for the destination management industry. He is also co-editor of the International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research and Research Notes Editor of Tourism Analysis.

Recent Publications

Harrill, Rich.  (2005). Fundamentals of Destination Management and Marketing.  Editor.  Lansing, MI:  Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

Harrill, Rich.  (2005). Guide to Best Practices in Tourism and Destination Management:  Volume II.   Lansing, MI: Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

Harrill, Rich. (2003). Guide to Best Practices in Tourism and Destination Management.   Lansing, MI:  Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association. 

Harrill, Rich. (2004). Residents’ Attitudes toward Tourism Development:  A Literature Review with Implications for Tourism Planning. Journal of Planning Literature 18 (3):  251-266.

Harrill, Rich, and Thomas D. Potts. (2003). Tourism Planning and Historic Preservation:  Attitudes Toward Tourism Development in Charleston.  Journal of the American Planning Association 69 (3):  233-244. 
                  
Harrill, Rich. (1999). Political Ecology and Planning Theory.  Journal of Planning Education and Research 19 (1):  67-75.

Recent Grants
Harrill, Rich, and Robert Li.  The Future Outbound Chinese Tourism Market to the United States.  ($170,208). A landmark, in-progress project analyzing the motivations and preferences of future Chinese visitors to the United States.  Project conducted in partnership with the Travel Industry Association and the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Harrill, Rich.  Best Practices in Southern Tourism. ($27,000). Project documenting 16 best practice case studies in tourism for the Southern Governors Association.  A best-practice case study was chosen from nominations submitted by each state. 

Harrill, Rich.  A Feasibility Study for Open Studio Development in Olde Town Conyers, Georgia.  ($21,000). A downtown planning and redevelopment project focused on increasing arts tourism through the creation of an open studio district.

Harrill, Rich.  A Strategic Tourism Development and Marketing Plan for the Salkehatchie Region.  ($30,000). Project included asset inventory and evaluation, economic impact, and market segmentation profile of visitors most likely to visit South Carolina’s Salkehatchie region—a five county area including Allendale, Bamburg, Barnwell, Colleton, and Hampton counties.

Harrill, Rich.  A Strategic Tourism Development and Marketing Plan for Kershaw County.  ($20,000). Project included asset inventory and evaluation, economic impact, and market segmentation profile of visitors most likely to visit Kershaw County and historic Camden, South Carolina.  Emphasis on developing economic impact scenarios for future decision- making.

Professional Affiliations
International Economic Development Council (IEDC)
Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI)