Platform-Enabled Destination Management: KPI Dashboards and DEA Benchmarking in the Peloponnese

Platform-enabled governance is reshaping destination management, yet subnational destinations still lack replicable dashboards that combine key performance indicators (KPIs) with efficiency analysis. This study examines whether a compact KPI stack coupled with longitudinal Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) can provide actionable targets for destination development management and marketing organizations (DDMMOs). Using 2020–2024 administrative data for five regional units of the Peloponnese, an output-oriented CRS DEA model is specified with one input (room capacity) and two outputs (tourism revenue and overnight stays), complemented by a VRS specification that decomposes Overall Technical Efficiency into Pure Technical and Scale Efficiency. The results show a clear differentiation in trajectories: one regional unit remains consistently on the efficiency frontier, and others exhibit gradual convergence towards best practice, while at least one unit displays persistent underperformance that is driven primarily by scale rather than managerial inefficiency. These distances to frontier are transformed into proportional, output-specific targets and dynamically updated peer sets, which are integrated into a KPI dashboard to support a continuous measure–act–learn loop on pricing, promotion, and capacity allocation. Overall, the article proposes a transparent, reproducible template that links destination competitiveness frameworks with a multi-input, multi-output efficiency lens and embeds KPIs and dynamic DEA insights in a continuous governance loop for destination management.