The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is pleased to announce Gopakumar Menon, director, revenue management, Highgate Hotels / Park Plaza Boston, has been awarded the Revenue Management Professional of the Year Award for his outstanding achievements in hospitality revenue management.

2013 RM of the Year

The award will be presented by HSMAI and Rainmaker on June 24 during the HSMAI Revenue Optimization Conference (ROC) in Minneapolis, Minn.

Menon was selected from a talented field of finalists, which included Eddy Braucht, director of revenue, Vail Marriott Mountain Resort; Steve Mulder, director, revenue management, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas; Sue Murphy, corporate director of revenue management, Pinnacle Entertainment; and Ira Vouk, CRME, revenue manager, Gaslamp Hotel Management, Inc.

“It is indeed a great honor to be chosen as the winner considering the talented individuals who were also up for this award,” Menon said.

Described by his colleagues as open-minded, bright and as a forward-thinking strategist, one of Menon’s recent achievements includes producing strong 14.1 percent revenue growth for Park Plaza Boston for the 2012 fiscal year. He also led the concept development and execution of a tool that helps streamline how sales managers quote rates online in real-time. The tool is set to be integrated into additional Highgate Hotels properties in the near future.

“It was both inspiring and humbling to review the nominations we received this year,” said Burl Hutchison, CRME, manager of revenue and system optimization, Sabre Hospitality, and revenue management advisory board member and chair of the award group. “There were so many amazing stories of achievement shared, and each of those who was nominated was well-deserving of this distinguished award. It was a difficult decision to narrow our search to the top-five candidates and even more-so to choose just one for the award. It’s always exciting to see so much passion around the practice and elevation of the revenue management profession.”

Nominations for the Revenue Management Professional of the Year Award come from HSMAI chapters and the industry at large, and nominees represent the very best in revenue management. Nominees are judged by a panel of revenue management leaders on a variety of criteria.

This year marks HSMAI’s 10th annual Revenue Optimization Conference. This conference’s focus is “Leading Revenue Management into the Future” and features thought leaders and subject-matter experts in various aspects of revenue management. ROC keynote speakers include Chief Inspirational Officer and CEO of Aspire… Marketing & Training, Renie Cavallari, who closes ROC with a keynote on leadership.

About HSMAI

The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is committed to growing business for hotels and their partners, and is the industry’s leading advocate for intelligent, sustainable hotel revenue growth. The association provides hotel professionals & their partners with tools, insights, and expertise to fuel sales, inspire marketing, and optimize revenue through programs such as HSMAI’s MEET, Adrian Awards, and Revenue Optimization Conference. HSMAI is an individual membership organization comprising more than 7,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. Connect with HSMAI at , , and .