Cornell School of Hotel Administration's Professor Cathy Enz and Thayer Lodging's Lee Pillsbury share perspectives at the Revenue Strategy Summit — Photo by Silver Hospitality Group, LLC
Craig Weissman (right), Duetto Co-founder and CTO, interviewed at the Summit — Photo by Silver Hospitality Group, LLC
Alice Deeb, Senior Vice President, Revenue Management, La Quinta Inns & Suites — Photo by Silver Hospitality Group, LLC
Marco Benvenuti, Duetto Co-founder and Chief Analytics Officer, and Stowe Shoemaker, Dean, Dean, William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration, University of Nevada Las Vegas — Photo by Silver Hospitality Group, LLC
Revenue Strategy Summit (RSS)
  • More than 200 Leaders Discuss Threats, Opportunities and Disruption, at the Inaugural RSS, Powered by Duetto
  • Thayer Lodging CEO Lee Pillsbury Urges Leaders to Take Risks, Assert Leadership, in Today's "Very Crowded Value Chain"

New York, November 12, 2013 … There was a sense something

bigger was at work than "just an industry conference," as 200 leaders from the fields of revenue management, marketing, sales and distribution converged on today's first annual Revenue Strategy Summit at the Affinia Manhattan.

That "something" was the birth of a new discipline – Revenue Strategy – as leaders

from major hospitality brands, academic institutions and start ups in the Americas, Europe and Asia came together for a no holds barred discussion of how the hotel industry's leading practitioners can create value amidst changes in technology, consumer demand and third parties intermediaries in a rapidly evolving lodging marketplace.

There is No End to Disruption

Keynoting the session, Thayer Lodging CEO Lee Pillsbury called attendees to action,

noting adaptation and change have characterized the modern lodging industry since its birth more than a hundred years ago.

"There is no end to disruption," said Pillsbury, who presented the advent of Revenue

Strategy as the latest innovation in an industry that has seen peaks and valleys over the past four decades, alongside the rise and fall of major companies, brand concepts and formulas for financial success.

"It's an incredibly crowded value chain in today's industry," said Pillsbury, who has

participated directly in many of the industry's major inflection points as a senior executive at Marriott, the CEO of Thayer Lodging, a Member of Cornell University Board of Trustees and a Board Member of Thayer Ventures, the only Venture Capital fund focused solely on the travel and hospitality industry. He concluded, "The only thing for certain is that the future is in our hands."

Morning speakers at the conference echoed the sentiment, calling on revenue

managers and marketing professionals to seize the initiative in charting revenue growth at their hotels. With attendees from major brands, start up companies and hotel executives from throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia,speakers and panel participants at the event included:
  • Lee Pillsbury, Chief Executive Officer of Thayer Lodging
  • Cindy Estis Green, CEO and Co-Founder, Kalibri Labs, LLC
  • Gian M. Fulgoni, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of comScore, Inc.
  • Drew Patterson, CEO, Room 77
  • Thomas Botts, EVP and Chief Customer Officer, Denihan Hospitality Group
  • Alise Deeb, Senior Vice President, Revenue Management, at La Quinta Inns & Suites
  • Andrew Mantis, SVP and Group Head of Merchant Information Services, MasterCard Advisors
  • Patrick Bosworth, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Duetto

A Discipline Whose Time Has Come

Duetto's Bosworth said, "The tremendous attendance, and frank, spirited discussions at

today's RSS, validate our conviction that Revenue Strategy is a discipline whose time has come – as innovators break down the silos which have created opportunities for third parties to fragment the development of revenue growth at hotels."

Bosworth concluded, "We thank our sponsors, media partners and all the thought

leaders in attendance, who made the first RSS possible – and who, today, took an impressive step in taking back the initiative to chart the future of revenue growth in our industry."

Bosworth noted the proceeds from the event will be donated to academic institutions

and the HSMAI Foundation to further the study of Revenue Strategy in the coming year.

"An incredible group of thought leaders made the inaugural Revenue Strategy Summit

important and unforgettable," said Stacy Silver, President of Silver Hospitality Group (SHG) and conference host. "With innovation as its guiding theme, today's event set a new standard for excellence. We are excited to begin planning RSS 2014, which will build on the important foundations that were laid today."

For more, visit #RSSummit or www.revenuestrategysummit.com 

A
bout Duetto | Duetto provides dynamic,

intelligent revenue strategy solutions to the world's leading hotels, allowing them to maximize profits through superior, actionable data to better manage pricing, revenue and business mix decisions. Leveraging a cutting-edge, cloud-based architecture, combined with a feature-rich product set, and unparalleled expertise in revenue strategy, Duetto transforms the way hotels price and sell rooms.Powered by leading Silicon Valley technologists and hospitality industry veterans, Duetto has attracted many of the highest regarded investors and advisors from the hospitality and technology industries, including, among others, Thayer Ventures, Battery Ventures, Trinity Ventures, Altimeter Capital, Lee Pillsbury, founder and Chairman of Thayer Lodging, and Marc Benioff, founder, Chairman and CEO of Salesforce.com.

About Silver Hospitality Group | Silver Hospitality Group (SHG)

specializes in building revenues and profitability for hospitality companies through targeted industry relations outreach, creative marketing solutions and specialty events. The firm and its network provide unparalleled experience and relationships in all facets of hospitality.