Briefing: lifting the lid on the industry’s biggest event

As you know, we have been sending you regular briefings featuring key people from right across the hospitality industry. These briefings are produced in conjunction with our good friends, yourBusinessChannel who launched The Hospitality Channel 3 years ago. A channel which we have been a key partner for since the outset. We have had some great feedback to these interviews.

One of the great opportunities for the yourBusinessChannel team to capture a lot of this content is the annual International Hotel Investment Forum (IHIF) held in Berlin each year. This week’s briefing is a video that they put together from comments people made about last year’s conference as they thought it would be interesting for those who have never been IHIF conference to understand why people attend.

These comments are not scripted and yourBusinessChannel’s interviewees were not expecting to be asked this question so it’s a great insight into why people attend the conference and why there is so much buzz and business done over the 3 day event.


Briefing: Risk vs. Reward on the African continent

Africa has been an inherently risky market for the hospitality industry. The diversity of countries means that understanding one particular area in which to invest can be time-consuming and difficult. However, countries like Kenya and the Ivory Coast are making it much easier to open the door for international investors.

There is still a long way to go, but with compelling figures of ‘a billion middle-class citizens by 2050’ it is no wonder hotel companies are looking to secure assets for the long-term now. Videos in this briefing include clips from:

  • Chief Edem Duke, Minister for Tourism for Nigeria on investment becoming easier
  • Alex Kyriakidis, President – Middle East & Africa for Marriott International on one billion middle-class citizens
  • Roger Kacou, Minister for Tourism for Cote d’Ivoire on balancing the risk and reward of investment
  • Bani Haddad, Regional VP – Middle East & Africa, Wyndham Hotel Group, on the new rules for the African market
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: hospitality being noticed by global Governments

One of the biggest problems hospitality has is demonstrating to the Government’s of the World the value the industry brings to their economies. Hospitality seems to continually fall off the radar when it comes to the key drivers of change and growth across the World.

With the work of Taleb Rifai at the UNWTO and David Scowsill of the WTTC the industry is beginning to put its head above the parapet and be noticed.

In this briefing we hear from:

  • Taleb Rifai on the UNWTO and the WTTC tackling Governments together.
  • David Scowsill of the WTTC on how much tourism generates for the global economy.
  • Ed Fuller, former MD at Marriott International on the need for Governments to help the industry.
  • And Sir Nigel Knowles, co-CEO of DLA Piper LLP on problems faced by Governments at the moment.

If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: embracing new technology in hospitality

All industries have been digitally disrupted since the mainstream adoption of the Internet. There is no question that these new technologies have developed both communication and engagement facilitation like never before. Whether businesses want to target your consumer directly or make decisions via a mobile device on the go, the evolution of social & mobile technologies is truly global.

It has been suggested that hospitality has been behind many industries in its acceptance of technologies, yet it has some of the most defined and detailed data sets in the market. Communication between colleagues and customers has never been so easy but how should it be harnessed now that you have stakeholders worldwide?

Interviews in this briefing include:

  • Ed Fuller, former President & Managing Director of Marriott International on changes he has seen in a 40 year career.
  • Julie Meyer, Founder & CEO of Ariadne Capital on disruptive technologies now a part of everyday life.
  • Sir Nigel Knowles, joint CEO of DLA Piper on the multitude of new stakeholders businesses have.
  • And Graeme Codrington, Futurist at TomorrowToday on hospitality lagging when it comes to customer engagement

If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: unprecedented growth for the African continent

Africa is the continent of the future. The continent has unrivaled potential, with many believing it remains completely untapped. Some countries in Africa don’t yet have a branded hotel product.

Many countries within Africa are able to compete with nations across the globe. With its mining industry booming and a progressively wealthier population, the hotel industry can be part of the story developing across the continent.

Brands are sought after, but what are the challenges faced when entering into this new market and what does Africa need to do to encourage investment?

Experts this week include:

  • David Scowsill, the CEO of the WTTC on what needs to be done in Africa to galvanize the hospitality industry.
  • Ed Fuller, former President & CEO of Marriott International on the challenges faced by the company when investing in the first locations.
  • Sir Nigel Knowles, co-CEO of DLA Piper, on the need to take Africa seriously.
  • And Gordon Drake, CFO of Kingdom Hotel Investments, on the implications of the resource-laden continent
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: China’s ground-breaking demand

The unrelenting growth of all industries in China is too much to ignore for the big hotel brands. Entering this market isn’t as simple as cut and pasting Western philosophies into the new cities. Strategic alliances need to be sought and alternative business techniques understood.

Of paramount importance is capitalising on a fast-growth market. Whether that be creating new brands or twisting existing ones, many brands are attempting to be malleable in this Chinese market.

In this briefing we hear from key experts on their thoughts about China. Including:

  • Ed Fuller, former President and Managing Director of Marriott International on the unprecedented growth in hotel development.
  • Yann Caillère, COO of Accor Hotels, on Accor’s strategy for tackling the Chinese market
  • Chris Boulton, CEO of yoo on demand for hotels, particularly branded ones.
  • And James Chappell, of Horwath HTL, on a different development perspective in Asia.

If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: modern-day construction of deals

Deal making in hospitality has always been complex. However, the current economic environment has led to some key differences in how deals are now constructed.

Has the speed in which deals are done changed post 2007? What sort of deals are being putting together? And what are the components that are needed to speed up a deal?

These issues are discussed in this week’s briefing.

Including comment from:

  • Mark Wynne Smith, Global CEO of Jones Lang LaSalle on the increasing interest from Asian investors.
  • Ed Fuller, former President & MD of Marriott International, on business models for hotels.
  • Nick van Marken, of Deloitte, on whether it is currently a buyers or a sellers market.
  • Peter Norman, of Hyatt International, on the differing approach to negotiation by owners.
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by yBC.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: Contemporary decision-making

Technology provides businesses with a plethora of opportunity. Most prevalent perhaps is the speed in which we can communicate, understand and react to new things at the click of a button. Without the invention of email, and other technologies, it would feel like we are all standing still.

Data being created every day now needs to be understood, and using software that is available to make sense of this is now essential. Modern day decision-making can be faster than ever before. This has both positives and negatives which are discussed in this briefing, including comment from:

  • Ed Fuller, former President & MD of Marriott International on how he managed the decisions he had to make.
  • David Scowsill, CEO of the WTTC, on the velocity of new mobile and social technologies
  • Sir Nigel Knowles, co-Global CEO of DLA Piper on the caution to be taken when making decisions quickly.
  • And Prof. Ian Goldin, of Oxford University on digesting the instantaneous online platforms.
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by yBC.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: The changing face of the consumer

Growing complexities in the contemporary environment don’t help in trying to paint a picture of your consumer. Technology, and more specifically the Internet, has opened up a wealth of opportunities but, some would argue, also a plethora of headaches.

Consumers are being seen to completely change the way they purchase everything. Hotel brands have to be malleable to this in order to retain loyal customers as well as attract new ones.

Experts this week discuss this change in the way consumers behave and the new ways of appealing to them:

  • Sir Nigel Knowles, co-CEO of DLA Piper on the fundamental shift consumers have taken, away from traditional behaviours.
  • Ed Fuller, former CEO & MD of Marriott International on appealing to a consumer with multiple brands.
  • Kingsley Seevaratnam, of Westmont Hospitality Group, on the new found sophistication consumers bring to the table.
  • And Prof. Ian Goldin, of Oxford University on the fine line organisations walk when using technology.
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by yBC.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: hospitality embracing digital marketing

Many large organisations are now coming to terms with the new digital channels. It is a highly effective way of communicating with consumers, potential customers and other people in their respective industries.

Hospitality is in a unique position to establish relationships with all stakeholders using this new channel. The amount of information hotel brands collect is a rich mine to ensure brand loyalty.

However, social media does have its downfalls and some of these are explored by this week’s experts:

  • Ed Fuller, former President and Managing Director of Marriott International, on getting the right combination of marketing channels.
  • Sir Nigel Knowles, co-Global CEO of DLA Piper, on the implication for leaders with this new medium.
  • Prof. Ian Goldin, of the Oxford Martin School at the University of Oxford, on the cultural impacts social media is having
  • Simon Vincent, President – Europe for Hilton, on his company embracing these new digital channels.
Loading playlist …

If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by yBC.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Chat Button