Hospitality Challenge Online Events to Focus on Future of Tourism

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and Sommet Education are organizing the Hospitality Challenge Pitch, a series of online discussions focusing on the future of the tourism industry.

The events will also feature the finalists of the Hospitality Challenge, the solidarity initiative created by the two partners.

Over four weekly sessions, UNWTO experts and tourism leaders will share insights on the state of tourism and hospitality, and the prospective solutions to accelerate recovery.

Launched in the summer of 2019, the Hospitality Challenge aims to foster the recovery of the hospitality industry through creative and innovative projects submitted by entrepreneurs, startuppers, students, career changers and anyone passionate about the industry.

Among almost 600 applications received from all over the world, 30 top finalists have been granted a full-board scholarship for Master programs, MBA’s, and other specialized programs in hospitality, culinary and pastry arts. All of them are hosted by Sommet Education’s internationally renowned institutions: Glion Institute of Higher Education, Les Roches, and École Ducasse.

Starting from January 21, weekly between 4.30pm and 5.30pm CET and over a course of four weeks, the Hospitality Challenge Pitch online sessions, to be held on LinkedIn, will focus on four topics:

• What’s next in jobs & education – January 21
  

The first session shall be moderated by Hervé de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, Founder & President of TalentriCity. The session will take off with a discussion between Stéphane Rousseau, Chief People Officer at Sommet Education; Natalia Bayona, Director of Innovation, Education and Investments at UNWTO; and Francois Delahaye, Chief Operating Officer at Dorchester Collection.

• What’s next in safety & hospitality experience – January 28
  

The second session will be led by Michael Collins, Founder of TravelMedia.ie. He will leave floor to Barbara Czyzewska, Head of Luxury Marketing and Brand Management at Glion Institute; Alessandra Priante, Director of Regional Department of Europe at UNWTO; and Quentin Desurmont, Chief Executive Officer at Traveller Made.

The pitches will then be presented for three of the 30 winning projects.

• What’s next in revenue & productivity – February 4
  

The third session will be guided by Damon Embling, Journalist at Euronews. Joining in the panel discussion will be Jonathan Humphries, Head of International Hotel Development & Asset Management Specializations at Glion Institute; Sandra Carvao, Chief of Market Intelligence and Competitiveness at UNWTO, and Marc Vieilledent, Chief Development Officer at easyHotel Plc.

The three winning project pitches will be presented afterwards.

• What’s next in waste reduction & sustainability – February 11

The final session of the online event series will be run by Rajan Datar, Broadcaster, Journalist and Writer at BBC. The experts sharing their analysis of the situation will be Dimitrios Diamantis, Professor and Dean of Graduate Studies at Les Roches Crans-Montana; Manuel Butler, Executive Director at UNWTO, and Jochem-Jan Sleiffer, President Middle East, Africa & Turkey at Hilton.