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Oliver Bonke (Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing EAME – Starwood Hotels & Resorts) is to join the previously confirmed keynote speakers Ted Teng and Peter Burwash at the Young Hoteliers Summit 2013. Mr Bonke is keen to share his inspiring story with the audience and further enhance the delegate and participant experience.

The delegates, who will come from schools around the globe including Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Emirates Academy and Washington State University, will have a unique chance to compete against each other and rise to the challenge set by Starwood Hotels & Resorts, as well as exchanging ideas through panel-led discussions.

One of these panels will explore how "Generation Y" and employers have to find common ground in the hospitality industry and also seeks to emphasise the way in which today's managers actively incorporate changing workforce dynamics into the workplace. The work-life balance has gained importance in an ever more competitive and globalised world, and this panel discussion will target the challenges that delegates will face in the near future. Furthermore, the panel also aims to examine professional implications for hotel companies when recruiting and debate both the advantages and disadvantages of management trainee programmes and determine how these can ensure career stability.

Another panel discussion will review brand loyalty and its importance in order to achieve career success. The panellists will also debate the future of OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) in the hospitality industry.

Captivating workshops will take place during the summit and will focus on talent management, global market trends and maximising personal and team effectiveness, allowing students to gain an insight into current company practices.

About the Young Hoteliers Summit

The Young Hoteliers Summit (YHS) was founded in 2010 by five students of the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL), who shared the vision of fostering innovation in the industry through insightful discussions between thought leaders and hospitality students. Today, YHS has become the largest student-run summit in the world, inviting over 30 speakers, 80 delegates and 20 partners to its event every year. During the summit, the delegates have to solve the YHS Challenge set by the summit's most esteemed partner, the Challenge Provider. The team behind YHS consists of over 40 students from EHL Hospitality Business School, speaking over 25 languages and coming from 28 countries. They prepare the event for an entire year.