Crisis management gaps in tourism mountain destinations: toward a new approach based on innovative milieu to include the territorial dimensions in business continuity responses

Abstract This paper presents a methodological advancement in crisis management research for tourism destinations through the development of a territorial-innovative milieu analytical framework. Conventional business continuity planning (BCP) often relies on standardized protocols that overlook territorial specificities. In contrast, this study introduces a novel approach that integrates qualitative territorial analysis with innovative milieu theory to examine crisis response mechanisms in mountain tourism destination contexts. Addressing a key methodological gap, the research demonstrates how territorially embedded qualitative methods can uncover collaborative innovation processes that remain invisible to traditional organizational-centric models. Using a mixed-method qualitative design, the study combines semi-directive interviews with territorial dynamics analysis, across two Swiss Alpine destinations and one in the French Pyrennes, during multiple crises, including COVID-19, climate change, and energy disruptions. The methodological innovation lies in applying innovative milieu theory to understand how territorial actors co-create adaptive responses under polycrisis conditions. Empirical findings reveal that effective crisis management emerges from territorially rooted collaborative networks functioning as systems of collective intelligence, challenging the individualistic assumptions of classical BCP. The paper’s primary contribution is the development of a territorial-innovative milieu BCP model, offering a systematic framework for analysing crisis management in territorially embedded systems. This model provides researchers and practitioners with a rigorous method to explore how local knowledge, social capital, and collaborative capacity interact to generate adaptive responses, thereby addressing limitations in existing methodologies by incorporating territorial specificity, stakeholder collaboration, and innovation into analytical procedures