Strategic Management in Business Atmosphere of Urban Economy (The case of religious tourism in the holy city of Mashhad)

Identifying the current obstacles in the business atmosphere of urban economy and determining methods of improving it are among the primary measures for achieving operational strategies in improving economic activities. The current study aims at strategic planning to improve business atmosphere in the holy city of Mashhad with regard to its religious tourism potentiality. Therefore, the strong and weak points as well as the opportunities and threats of the business atmosphere of the city were identified based upon focusing on religious tourism through SWOT and quantitative matrix of strategic planning. Following filling-out a questionnaire by 23 experts from related organizations, operational measures and proper executive policies were decided upon. The results indicated that the strategic situation of the business atmosphere of urban economy of the holy city of Mashhad, emphasizing the condition for attracting religious tourists, is in a defensive status; therefore, the strategy for supporting the active members in the field of religious tourism is among defensive strategies for this domain. Besides, deregulation, reducing official bureaucracy, and unifying organizational management are among the most important factors in devising strategies for improving business atmosphere in the holy city of Mashhad.