HOSPACE 2014 – HOSPA's Annual Conference and Exhibition for Hospitality Finance, Revenue Management, IT and Commerce Professionals on 20 November at Sofitel London Heathrow, Terminal 5 – is the largest and most prestigious annual gathering of like-minded hospitality practitioners in the UK

As daylight emerges from years of recession, HOSPA is delighted to announce the distinguished line-up of hospitality operators and senior leading specialists to shed light on current management thinking at the Association's HOSPACE 2014's eagerly awaited 'Leaders Panel' discussion on 20 November.

With an upturn in the economy, 'how is the hospitality industry investing in the future'? Is it by creating new businesses or brands, installing new guest and back-of-house technology, recruiting new staff and training them, or does it involve something else? Answering these questions and much more – under the expert guidance of Panel Chairman Peter Hancock, Chief Executive, Pride of Britain Hotels – the panellists will include: Steve Cassidy, Area Vice President, UK & Ireland, Hilton Worldwide, responsible for the company's multi-brand portfolio across the British Isles; Simon Ewins, Business Development and Corporate Responsibility Director, Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants, who is responsible for the roll-out of Whitbread's new high-tech city centre hotels: 'Hub by Premier Inn'; Heiko Figge, Head of private equity company Moorfield Group's hospitality portfolio; and Phil Le-Brun, Senior Director - European Restaurant Solutions at McDonald's Europe Ltd.

The 'Leaders Panel' is the second of two sessions that will set the scene for HOSPA's Annual Conference and Exhibition 'HOSPACE 2014' – the most prestigious gathering of like-minded hospitality practitioners in the UK – to be held at the Sofitel London Heathrow, Terminal 5. The first is the traditional 'HOSPACE Industry Overview' with the latest hotel data – again presented by STR Global and PwC, but this year with the addition of a presentation by Coffer Peach on sales trends for the UK eating and drinking-out market.

Commenting on the two introductory sessions, HOSPA Chief Executive Carl Weldon said: "As the recession clouds move away, the HOSPACE 2014 Industry Overview should reveal a significantly more positive year for both London and the provinces – with double digit growth recorded for the UK hotel industry in August.

"Against this background, we are delighted to welcome such an experienced and illustrious panel of multi-disciplined leaders to our traditionally popular 'Leaders Panel' session – to be once again chaired by Peter Hancock, who received such high praise from HOSPACE 2013 delegates. The panellists will be examining everything from the sustainability of supplies in light of increasing food and beverage sophistication, to presenting their views on the way ahead for UK hoteliers to take full advantage of the upturn in the economy. The omens for 2015 are undoubtedly better than they have been in recent years, boosted by England hosting the Rugby World Cup."

Another HOSPACE 2014 morning highlight will be the very first 70-minute, in-depth 'HOSPA Spotlight' examination, which will be dedicated to 'How to get the most from the data insights revolution' – one of the biggest challenges currently facing hospitality finance, revenue management and IT practitioners. Finance managers, for instance, will be looking to their data for researching trends and information primarily on 'cost'; and revenue managers will be seeking out guest behaviours, in terms of booking and spend patterns. This is an area where supermarkets and OTAs have traditionally led the way and the HOSPA Spotlight session has been designed to help hospitality delegates gain greater insights into how to gather and use their data more effectively. Rounding off HOSPACE 2014's morning sessions will be a 'Tourism Council Overview' presented by British Hospitality Association Chief Executive Ufi Ibrahim, who is also Chairman of the Tourism Alliance.

Kick-starting the major afternoon sessions will be another 70-minute 'HOSPA Spotlight' which this time will be shone on 'Hospitality cures for sleepless night anxieties – from fraud and PCI compliance, to 0TA commissions and purchasing technology'. This will be followed by HOSPACE's highly topical programme of hospitality industry specific educational workshops – all led by top specialists in their subjects. For the first time, some of the workshops will be devoted to panel discussions on specific hot industry subjects. As in previous years, HOSPACE 2014 will be hosting its ever growing exhibition of hospitality technology solutions – providing delegates with a 'one stop shop' to view and interact with the latest and 'best in class' technologies – covering all eventualities for any hospitality business, whether they be start-up, established independent, or multi chain-owned, operations.

The event's grand finale Gala Dinner – including the signature 'HOSPA Pub Quiz and entertainment' – is one of the traditional social networking highlights of the Conference.

For regularly updated information on HOSPACE 2014 (HOSPA Conference and IT Exhibition), visit the HOSPACE 2014 Website at: www.hospace.net . For bookings and further details for HOSPACE 2014, contact the HOSPA Membership and Events Office on telephone: +44 (0) 203 418 8196; or email: [email protected]

About HOSPA

HOSPA - the Hospitality Professionals Association - is a not-for-profit educational organisation, formed to bring together professionals involved in all things commercial within the hospitality industry in the UK. HOSPA is recognised as the UK's authoritative voice in the hospitality industry on financial management, technical accounting issues, as well as the leading arena for debate on investments, hospitality technology developments, revenue management and marketing. HOSPA's Professional Development Programmes provide rigorous and relevant education for all those seeking to further their careers in these important functions. It will also be launching its new course in Asset Management in September 2020. A regular programme of workshops and seminars provides the perfect opportunity for members to continue to develop their knowledge and network with colleagues. HOSPA is on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @HOSPATweets. For more information, visit: www.hospa.org

Jane Pendlebury
HOSPA Chief Executive
HOSPA

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