HSMAI Summit To Focus On Channel Management

Feb 12, 05 | 8:50 am

The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Canadian Chapter is holding its 5th annual summit in Toronto, Ont. on February 15, 2005.  This year, the summit will focus on channel management and the tools and technologies available to assist hotels in this ever-challenging balancing act.  The summit is being sponsored by AV Canada. 

Taking place at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel, the summit includes several thought-provoking speakers and panel discussions with practitioners from the leisure and business travel industries.  Sessions include:

• Examining the current state of the tourism industry with Keynote speaker Lyle Hall, CEO, Hall Hospitality Advisors Inc.
• Leisure Panel- Panelists will discuss trends in leisure travel and engaging dialogue surrounding the “How To” of honing in on the leisure customer. Panelists include Allister Patterson, President, Air Canada Vacations; Gregg Klassen, Marketing Director, Canadian Tourism Commission and Scott Allison, VP Sales & Marketing, Marriott Hotels of Canada
• Managing the Channels- Panelists will discuss the impact of intermediaries and channel management in a recovering economy.  Panelists include, Jim Young, Senior VP Global Distribution, InterContinental Hotels Group; Jens Thraenhart, Executive Director Marketing and Strategy, Fairmont Heritage Place and Gordon Carncross, VP Sales & Marketing, Starwood Hotels and Resorts
• Increasing Web site “Look to Book” ratios with speaker Daniel Taras, VP iBusiness, iPerceptions

The summit registration form is available on the HSMAI’s website, www.hsmai.ca .  To register, complete the form and fax to the Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) at fax number (613) 237-8928 or call (613) 237-7149.  The summit is being held in conjunction with the HAC’s annual conference and a reduced rate is available to those who attend both conferences. 

The HSMAI is a global organization made up of sales and marketing professionals representing all segments of the hospitality industry.  The association has a strong focus on education to help sales and marketing professionals gain the edge they need to enhance their skills.  The HSMAI’s Canadian chapter was founded in the year 2000.  Its focus is to extend the reach of the overall association by providing information and events relevant to sales and marketing professionals who work in the Canadian market place.