Alan E. Young

Alan Young began his hospitality/travel technology focused career 25 years ago when he began working in an operational capacity with Four Seasons Hotels based in Toronto, Ontario. During this time his interest in the technology aspect of the hospitality industry intensified and he began to work towards moving from operations into the tech side of the business. Alan then transitioned his love of the hotel industry to technology when asked to head up the sales effort of Micros/Fidelio in the Caribbean for a Micros partner. Returning to Canada in 1997, Alan was the Industry Sales and Marketing Manager for Sweda Canada concentrating on providing technology solutions to the hotel, gaming and restaurant industries.

Alan has held executive level positions with Newtrade Technologies (Expedia), Hotel Information Systems (Softbrands), Hotel Booking Solutions and IBS Software focused on marketing and selling software applications to the global hospitality industry.

Most recently, Alan held the position of partner at Apical Resources Group, the leader in hospitality technology recruiting services. Alan still sits on the board of Apical.

Alan is past Chair of The Board of Directors of The OpenTravel Alliance, a global hospitality/travel industry technology standards association. Alan has also been very involved with other industry associations most notably AHLA, HEDNA and HTNG. Alan has been a guest speaker at World Travel Mart, HITEC, HEDNA, The HOT Conference and a number of other industry events.