HITEC 2005 Session: Hospitality CIOs to Dicuss Recent Accomplishments and the Industry's Future
AUSTIN, TEXAS | The 2005 Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®) Thursday general session, on June 23, will feature a panel of chief information officers (CIOs) who will highlight their recent accomplishments, mistakes they have made and where the industry is lacking when it comes to technology. Panelists will also share their vision of the future and what technology will impact both their operations and customers.
AUSTIN, TEXAS | The 2005 Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®) Thursday general session, on June 23, will feature a panel of chief information officers (CIOs) who will highlight their recent accomplishments, mistakes they have made and where the industry is lacking when it comes to technology. Panelists will also share their vision of the future and what technology will impact both their operations and customers. The lively and highly interactive session will be moderated by Dr. Lalia Rach, associate dean and HVS International Chair for the NYU Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management.
Secured panelists include:
- Andrew Furrer, corporate director of information technology for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants. Mr. Furrer is directly responsible for the day-to-day operation of the information technology systems at Kimpton. He was in the computer business for 12 years before coming on board at Kimpton. In his business, he lead of a group of 12 employees into the development and service and support of single user systems to complex systems incorporating numerous systems and sites. From that position, Mr. Furrer joined Kimpton supporting the Pacific Northwest and was subsequently promoted to his current role.
- Nicholas Malcolm Price, CIO/CTO for the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group Limited. Mr. Price is responsible for a broad range of digital, or soon-to-be digital technologies and services, including traditional hotel IT, enterprise networks and infrastructure, Internet presence, PABX and telephony, hotel networks, in-room technologies and audio visual systems. He joined Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group in January 2000 as director of technology. With more than 19 years experience in IT and emerging technologies, Mr. Price brings to Mandarin Oriental, an in-depth understanding of current and emerging technology trends and their commercial application.
- Tim Stanley, senior vice president and CIO for Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. Mr. Stanley is responsible for all of Harrah’s world-class information technology functions including their award-winning Total Rewards®, program leading an organization of over 500 employees. Prior to Harrah’s, he was a partner with consulting firms USWeb and marchFIRST, the CIO for Las Vegas based National Airlines, and has held various leadership positions with Intel, Optima/KPMG, InnovaTech and Kimberly-Clark Corporation, both in the U.S. and abroad.
- The session moderator, Lalia Rach, Ed.D., associate dean of the Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management, and HVS International Industry Professor at New York University in New York City, is a nationally recognized tourism educator and industry leader. Dr. Rach consults with organizations in the U.S. and abroad, is a highly skilled and successful facilitator, a well-known speaker, and an expert in curriculum development in hospitality and tourism higher education.
HITEC 2005 is June 20-23 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles (
HFTP®, HITEC® and ONHTEC® are registered service marks of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals.