The hotel industry will struggle in 2009, but does that mean hotel businesses should simply retrench and wait out the economic downtown? Many industry experts say no: instead, this is the time for hotel businesses to invest in their managers.

"In this climate, definitely the good, nimble managers are separated from the not-so-good managers," says Arash Azarbarzin, president of SBE's hotel division and a UCLA Extension Executive Hotel Management Program Advisory Board member. "In this economy, the more educated, more well-rounded managers will come to the front."

Providing managers with the real-world business skills and knowledge to be leaders during today's economic challenges and tomorrow's recovery is the purpose of UCLA Extension's Executive Hotel Management Program. This intensive 10-day program is designed to fast-track managers' career development and build their ability to lead their organizations and face the challenges of a fast-changing global economy. Held at UCLA, the program is intended for senior-level managers of full-service and multi-unit hotels, clubs and resorts.

Azarbarzin notes that in today's cost-conscious operations, managers are responsible for more than ever before, making it difficult for them to leave their properties for professional development. However, he adds, that also means they have less time for on-the-job training, traditionally a strong component of the hotel industry's career advancement track. UCLA Extension's short, focused and intensive program allows managers to build their skills with minimal time away from their properties. The investment, says Azarbarzin, will pay off.

The program's curriculum, developed and taught by UCLA Extension and leading industry experts, addresses the real-world complexities and dynamic trends facing hotel executives today:

  • Global Overview: Strategic Vision for the Hotel Industry
  • Advanced Hotel Management and Leadership Skills I and II
  • Strategic Hotel Management
  • Executive Management: Real Estate
  • Executive Management: Technology Issues
  • Marketing and Sales Management: Global Strategy
  • Financial Management: An Executive Perspective
  • Operations Management: Navigating Your Ship
  • Project Management for Hoteliers
  • Hotel Law: Issues Facing Hotel Executives
  • Green Hotel Business Model

The UCLA Extension Executive Hotel Management Program "allows managers to take a step back from day to day operations of a hotel and see the hospitality world from a very high level," says Mobil Travel Guide President and CEO Shane O'Flaherty, also an advisory board member. "Individuals can return to their property and work with management to implement appropriate changes that could have a positive impact on areas of the property such as cost savings, efficiencies and also the consumer experience."

The inaugural UCLA Extension Executive Hotel Management Program takes place Aug. 17-28, 2009. The $9,800 program fee covers registration, course instruction and materials, UCLA housing and meals, access to UCLA's world-class recreational facilities, and visits to elite Los Angeles and Beverly Hills hotels, as well as special events. The application due date is March 31. Find out more and download the application at www.uclaextension.edu/exechotel.

The program's advisory board comprises:

  • Arash Azarbarzin, president, Hotel Division, SBE
  • Bruce Baltin, senior vice president, PFK Consulting
  • Jim Butler, chairman, Global Hotel Group, Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro LLP
  • Javier Cano, general manager, JW Marriott Hotel Los Angeles at L.A. LIVE
  • Alison Cumberland, vice president, Lodging Development, Western Region, Marriott International Inc.
  • Mehdi Eftekari, general manager, Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles
  • William H. Emer, Los Angeles officer managing partner, Perkins Coie LLP
  • Teresa A. Holden, partner, Allimar Marketing
  • David Horowitz, general manager, Hyatt Regency Century Plaza
  • Ali V. Kasikci, managing director, Montage Beverly Hills
  • Victoria H. King, president, Victoria King Public Relations
  • Brian A. Kite, vice president and managing principal, Leo A Daly, Los Angeles
  • Edward E. Leamer, Chauncey J. Medberry Professor of Management, professor of economics, professor of statistics, and director, UCLA/Anderson Business Forecast Project
  • Carlos Lopes, managing partner, Unique Hotels
  • Edward A. Mady, vice president and area general manager, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company
  • Offer Nissenbaum, managing director, Peninsula Beverly Hills
  • Shane O'Flaherty, president and CEO, Mobil Travel Guide
  • Darell Schmitt, principal, Darrell Schmitt Design Associates
  • Joseph Valenti, senior vice president, marine operations, Crystal Cruises

About UCLA Extension

One of the nation's leading university-based institutions for continuing education, UCLA Extension offers some 4,300 classroom and online courses and programs each year, helping 47,000 lifelong learners in Los Angeles and around the world advance their goals for career, academic and personal educational development. For more information, visit www.uclaextension.edu.

John Ferrari
310-794-5671
UCLA Extension