At the first Cornell International Hospitality Summit (CIHS) India, presented by the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, industry leaders and academics will examine the future of the hospitality industry in India. The summit, which will be held Tuesday, January 17, 2012, in Mumbai, India will be co-presented by the school's Center for Hospitality Research (CHR). Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces is title sponsor of the summit, and all summit sessions will be held at the Taj Mahal Palace.

"We are excited to host the first Cornell International Hospitality Summit in India, one of the foremost emerging markets in the hospitality industry in the world, and we are honored to partner with Taj," said Michael D. Johnson, dean and E. M. Statler Professor at SHA.

The CIHS India will feature the ninth edition of the Dean's Leadership Series, a CEO Panel of four of the top hospitality executives in India. Jon Denison, associate dean for external affairs at SHA, will moderate the panel, which will feature Raymond Bickson, managing director and CEO of Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces; P.R.S. Oberoi, chairman and CEO of EIH–Oberoi Hotels & Resorts; Vivek Nair, vice chairman and managing director of Hotel LeelaVenture Limited; and Raul Pandit, president and COO of Lemon Tree Hotels.

"Taj has enjoyed a long partnership with the School of Hotel Administration, first as senior partner of the CHR and more recently as a member of the strategic corporate alliance program," said Bickson. "We are excited to build on our previous collaborations with Cornell to bring this important summit to India."

Other sessions held during the summit will be "Achieving Excellence Via Operational and Human Capital Innovations," moderated by Rohit Verma, professor of services operations management and CHR executive director, and "Revenue and Performance Enhancement in Emerging Hospitality Markets," moderated by Chris Chan, professor of accounting and dean of the Cornell-Nanyang Institute for Hospitality Management.

Other key sponsors of the summit include the following companies: France 24, Hospitality Architecture + Design, Hospitality Design, Hotel Business, Hotel Management, Hsyndicate, InterContinental Hotels Group, International Tourism Partnership, Oberoi Hotels & Resorts, Peppermint Hotels, PhoCusWright, Questex Hospitality Group, and TTG India.

For a full schedule of events and more information about the CIHS India, visit http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu/industry/events/cihs.html. For corporate sponsor opportunities, please contact Kathleen Bolton, corporate and foundation affairs associate, at 607.255.1204 or [email protected].

About the Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration

The Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration is the premier school for hospitality education in the world. As an integral part of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, the school is leading the world in teaching and researching the business of hospitality—marketing, finance, real estate, operations, and more, all applied to the world’s largest and most exciting industry. Top faculty, industry leaders, alumni, and students work together to generate new knowledge for the hospitality industry and form the premier network that shapes the industry every day.

Ashlee McGandy
607.254.1368
Cornell