November 9, 2015 – Over the last three weeks, the MGH class has had the privilege of welcoming key industry players in their Hospitality Business Strategies class led by Dr. Inès Blal.
The purpose of the discussions is for the students, to learn about the practical implementation of strategy and hear first-hand about the specific issues in the EMEA region.
The roundtables have been informative, intriguing and engaging; challenging the MGH class’ preconceived notions of the industry. The knowledge gained ranges from understanding the stages of development of a hotel brand in EMEA to managing relationships with franchisors and owners.
The guests, Mr Nicolas Meyer (Partner at PWC); Ms Noelia Rodríguez (Managing Partner at The Beta Factor); Mr Jonathan Humphries (Senior Lecturer at the EHL); Mr Laurent Picheral (CEO Hotel Services Central and Eastern Europe at Accor); Mrs Anne-Marie Auriault (Associate Director at UBS), and Mr Markus Lehnert (Regional Vice President of International Hotel Development at Marriott International), have been sharing their experiences on development, management contracts, and franchising in the EMEA regions.
The Roundtables dive right into question-led discussions among all seated. It is not a lecture. The students are welcome to challenge statements made by the guests as well as answer questions themselves of things they have experienced.
A discussion on innovation, this week, will be the last roundtable. We will have the pleasure of welcoming Mr. Jeremy Ward (COO of iRis Software Systems), Mr. Milan Arandelovic (Area General Manager Belenux at Hilton Worldwide), and Carlo Fontana (CEO, Hoxell).
-Tatiana Bassatne
Student, MSc Global Hospitality Business
3continents3semesters 