HSMAI Foundation Board Launches Restructured Foundation With Renewed Focus On Research, Education, Scholarships

MCLEAN, VA | With a steadfast commitment to create relevance for members as well as the industry at-large, the newly-elected Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Foundation board of directors has restructured the HSMAI Foundation with a renewed focus on hospitality industry research, enhanced education for members and scholarships for students pursuing a career in hospitality sales and marketing.

With a new board of directors in-place, led by Pam Streeter, vice president, electronic distribution/marketing for Interstate Hotels & Resorts as its chair, the HSMAI Foundation has set ambitious goals, including:

• Creation of signature research projects not provided by any other organization that will add relevant content for the hospitality industry
• Closer alignment with HSMAI’s five Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to develop targeted research and educational materials
• Coordination with the association’s 39 chapters across the Americas to enhance the educational process and provide resources for the membership
• Increase the level and reach of scholarship funding
• Enhance and expand the eConnect portal of global information

“For the past 24 years, the HSMAI Foundation has accomplished impressive work, and we look forward to building on those past successes with a new level of responsibility that delivers a defined and focused agenda targeted to the key initiatives of HSMAI’s new SIGs and provides full support of the HSMAI chapters,” states Chair Pam Streeter.

In the realm of research and original content, one of the HSMAI Foundation’s major initiatives is to develop and publish the inaugural edition of the HSMAI Foundation’s Hospitality Sales & Marketing Leadership Report – a signature research project not provided by any other organization.

The bi-annual report will benefit:

1. Individual members who seek objective and credible information to plan their careers in the hospitality field;
2. Hospitality industry employers who seek to attract and retain talented sales and marketing leaders;
3. Vendors who seek a highly-targeted audience to promote solutions to hospitality providers and/or members.

Among the potential topics for such a report are: a roadmap for career development; building diverse business acumen; compensation trends; and member profiles and success stories.

The HSMAI Foundation’s educational interests will also provide HSMAI chapters with resources allowing them to deliver research and educational topics to their constituencies on a turn-key basis.

A Scholarship Committee has been created to singularly focus on significantly increasing the reach of scholarship funding.

Among the HSMAI Foundation’s other initiatives is to further develop eConnect, a powerful one-stop portal to global information and resources on hospitality industry sales and marketing topics.

Revolutionizing the way vital information and research is available and accessed, HSMAI’s new eConnect was created as a repository for information and research addressing today’s most important industry issues and is already ranked in the top five for value among HSMAI members.

Foundation Announces Impressive Line-Up for New Board

The HSMAI Foundation has announced its 2007 slate of board members, including:

• Chair: Pam Streeter, Vice President, Electronic Distribution/Marketing of Interstate Hotels & Resorts

Board Members

• Hoyt Bacon, CHME, Senior Vice President, Revenue & Distribution Mgmt, MeriStar Hospitality Corporation
• Don Bender, President, Bender & Associates
• John Bradley, CHME, President, Hotel Owner, Monop, LLC
• Dale Brill, Ph.D, Chief Marketing Officer, VISIT FLORIDA
• Richard Chambers, President, TravelCLICKinteractive
• John Fareed, CHME, Partner, Fareed & Zapala Marketing Partners
• Mike Fegley, Vice President, Global Sales, The Americas, InterContinental Hotels Group
• Vail Brown, Director of Sales & Marketing, Smith Travel Research
• Rick Garlick, Director of Consulting, Martiz Research
• Peter Goldreich, Vice President, Marketing, Carlson Hotels Worldwide
• Cindy Estis Green, Managing Partner, The Estis Group
• Richard Green, Vice President, Industry Relations, Marriott Corp.
• Allan Lockhart-Kane, Vice President of Sales, Choice Hotels International
• Gary Leopold, CHME, President and CEO, ISM
• Doug Price, Senior Vice President, Development, Destination Marketing Association International
• Jim Struna, Revenue Management Specialist
• Susan Thronson, Senior Vice President, Global Marketing, Marriott International
• Ron Volper, Managing Partner, Ron Volper Group Inc.

Foundation projects are designed to help develop practical skills that can be applied on a day-to-day basis. The Foundation is accelerating its research, book publication, and creation of pertinent course material in order to contribute even more to the education of hospitality sales and marketing executives, giving them the tools, and therefore the edge, to be competitive in today’s hospitality industry and move ahead in their profession and career.

Established in 1983 to serve as the research and educational arm of HSMAI, the HSMAI Foundation’s mission is to expand and enhance the educational opportunities available to hospitality sales and marketing executives and to increase the amount of in-depth research conducted on behalf of the profession. Today, and in the years ahead, the HSMAI Foundation plans to accelerate its research and publishing activities to contribute even more to the continuing education of those engaged in this fast-paced, increasingly demanding profession.

The work of the HSMAI Foundation depends entirely on the voluntary financial support it receives from individuals and organizations. Those who underwrite a particular project by awarding the Foundation a full or partial grant are recognized on the title page of the resulting publication or in the credits of a film or audio or video cassette. Since the Foundation is tax-exempt under the provisions of Section 501 (c) (3) of the IRS code, monetary contributions and donations of goods and services are tax deductible as the law allows.