I would like to draw readers attention to the forthcoming one-day HOSPACE 2013 annual international conference on 21 November, hosted by HOSPA – the UK's leading organisation for hospitality professionals involved in financial management, revenue management and IT.
In these days of information assaults from all sides while you're trying to do the day job, it pays to take some time out to step back and consider what is going on in the industry from experts, leaders and even your own colleagues.
HOSPA is made up of three communities – Finance, Revenue Management and Technology – but we like to think that the three come together under the umbrella ‘Commercial', where the principle of making a return drives the discussion. Technology wants to make sure Finance understands the investment, Revenue Management wants to ensure all the pieces of information can flow over the systems; and Finance wants to make sure the systems lock together and are commercially viable.
At HOSPACE 2013 – to be held at the Sofitel London Heathrow, Terminal 5 – one day out can bring you all this. This year, the ‘Leaders Panel' – hosted by Chief Executive of Pride of Britain Hotels Peter Hancock – includes Robert Cook of De Vere, who is always happy to put his point-of-view across. He is joined by Stewart Campbell of Redefine BDL, who has the angle on managed and franchised hotels – particularly in the budget market, while Jonathan Raggett of Red Carnation Hotels is well known for his service-led business and classic British hotels. They are joined by Heiko Figge, former Managing Director of Guoman and Thistle Hotels and currently head of private equity company Moorfield Group's hospitality portfolio, who knows what it is like to run a large three-star group.
There will also be specialised panel discussions on our three areas of expertise. In Finance, Paul Dukes, a former finance director and now chairman of Kew Green and HOSPA, will ask a panel of experts where the money for deals is going to come from. The current growing industry trend is to look beyond the banks for financing hospitality operations; and our expert panellists will be scrutinising, amongst other important finance topics, these sources of funding – ranging from venture capital groups and private equity firms, to ‘crowdfunding', ‘angel investors', and ‘mezzanine capital finance'.
HOSPA'S IT Community leader, Bryan Steele, will be asking what the industry has done to serve guests – or itself – using the latest technology. Fielding the questions will be an array of International IT Directors such as Jeremy Ward of Kempinski Hotels, Timo Kettern of Westbridge Europe (Westmont Hospitality Group); and Carson Booth of Starwood Hotels & Resorts.
In the Revenue Management field, the panel will be looking at how revenue managers can collate all their information streams into a cohesive picture and how smaller companies can sometimes adapt and move quicker without the issue of older legacy systems to slow them down. The expertise will come from amongst leading luminaries in the field: Brian Hicks, Vice President Revenue Management, InterContinental Hotels Group, EMEA, and Howard Langer, Global Capability Managing Director – Pricing and Promotions, dunnhumby which is one of the world's leading customer science companies.
You can also choose from one of 21 different half-hour education sessions, on our three specialist areas, all led by experts in their field. If you fancy a wander, there is the exhibition, with companies who produce the latest technology and services to the industry. You will be guided around the event by the latest in digital signage (produced exclusively for HOSPACE 2013), with additional content from Sky.
Of course, it's not just about the day's content – half of the value in a day like this is from meeting new people and catching up with old colleagues and acquaintances.
We always end the day with an excellent dinner at the five-star Sofitel London Heathrow, Terminal 5, and some fun and games. But you would have to be there to know what it will turn out to be! For bookings email: bookings@hospace.net or telephone: 01202 889 430. HOSPACE 2013 – it's got to be good to be there!
Source: HOSPA
