AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands – HSMAI Region Europe and IDeaS are proud to announce that Paul van Meerendonk, IDeaS' Director of Advisory Services, is now the new chairman of the Revenue Management Advisory Board at one of the most important associations within the hospitality industry, HSMAI Region Europe. The announcement was made at the HSMAI Revenue Optimization Conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday 29 March. A second generation industry veteran — his father worked in hotels sales and general management — Paul brings nearly 20 years of revenue management experience to the position.

The appointment comes in the wake of news that citizenM Hotels Commercial Director Lennert De Jong steps down as the Advisory Board's chair. Mr. De Jong will, however, remain a valued member of the board.

"I have hospitality in my veins and an inherent passion for revenue management and the industry that I want to share with as many people as possible," Paul van Meerendonk says. "As a one of the founding members of the Advisory Board, I want to continue the great work HSMAI has done in growing and developing the revenue management culture of the hospitality industry in Europe."

"We are deeply grateful for Lennert's contributions thus far, confident that his commitment remains unwavering, as he now steps down as an ordinary member of the advisory board," says HSMAI Region Europe's President and CEO Ingunn Hofseth, happy to determine that the board stays in good hands under its new chair, Paul van Meerendonk, adding "Paul has been a tremendous support during his service as the vice chair, so we're really looking forward to working with him in this field of operation."

"I would like to thank Lennert for a job very well done, happy to establish that he will continue his work, although not as chair of the board, always bringing positive energy to every meeting and call, coupled with a deep passion for the industry," Ms. Hofseth declares in a statement.

"Paul van Meerendonk has done a great job for us these past three years. He is highly motivated and has many good ideas. We primarily work with people from the industry as volunteer chairs. Paul is very structured and well organised, as well as very good at separating IDeaS from the job he has done for us," she adds.

"As vice chair and one of the founding members of the HSMAI Region Europe RM Advisory Board, I have been part of the driving force behind creating the momentum and growth of the board. Working closely together with the previous chairs, Christian Boerger and Lennert de Jong, as well as the HSMAI leadership team, we recruited members from Europe who shared our interest in hotels, Revenue Management and the growth of the industry as a whole. I'm looking forward to continuing this work in my new capacity," says Paul van Meerendonk, Director Global Advisory Services at IDeaS, a SAS Company.

He leads a global team of revenue management and pricing experts who are focused on hospitality revenue optimisation projects. During his time with IDeaS, Paul has successfully led several high-profile advisory projects, including estate revenue management audits and roadmap development, function space revenue management, price optimisation, revenue management service desk development, education and training development, and standard operating procedure development.

Paul holds a Bachelor's Degree in Commercial Economics from the Amsterdam School of Business, and is a certified Six Sigma Greenbelt. He is an active participant in a number of revenue management related associations, including currently holding the Vice-Chairman position with the HSMAI Region Europe RM Advisory Board. He is a frequent guest speaker at numerous industry events and conventions, and regularly conducts global webinars on Revenue Management and Pricing topics.

Prior to joining IDeaS, Paul was Asset Manager with Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, working on various assignments in the UK and Europe, on behalf of investors, banks and financial intuitions. Paul's work was aimed at ensuring property performance and return on investment through interaction with and auditing of hotel management.

Paul van Meerendonk started his hotel career with Starwood Hotels and Resorts, where he was active in Sales & Marketing and Revenue Management roles at a hotel, regional and corporate level in Brussels, Munich and Bangkok. He was a key member of the team that rolled out and developed Revenue Management within Europe and the Middle East, for Starwood Hotels, and co-designed an industry first on-line revenue management planning and reporting tool. Text continues below photograph.

Representing Diamond Resorts International, Steven Dow will step up from a member of the Revenue Management Advisory Board, where he has served over two years, to a new role as Vice Chairman of the Board for Revenue Management for HSMAI Europe. With a career spanning 20 years in hospitality, Steven possesses a real passion for continuous improvement in business, including a core focus and drive for youth development within our industry.

"To be given this opportunity makes me immensely proud and I will continue to be fully committed to the industry and the objectives of HSMAI across the European region, adding a valuable contribution wherever possible, thank you for the opportunity," he says. Steven has led and grown his European team to approximately 70 team members in a multi-disciplined environment that started with just one team member 10 years ago. Today the newly created hotel business realises revenues of USD 30 million for Diamond Resorts International, who globally has a network of more than 420 worldwide vacation destinations in 35 countries throughout the continental United States, Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, South America, Central America, Europe, Asia, Australasia and Africa.

Lennert De Jong, Commercial Director of CitizenM and the previous chair of this Advisory Board will continue on the Advisory Board as a member. HSMAI Region Europe would like to thank Lennert for his valuable and continuous support. Text continues below photograph.

"The commitment among the Revenue Management Advisory Board members, and their genuine intention to contribute to the further development of our industry, is inspiring," HSMAI Region Europe President and CEO Ingunn Hofseth says, adding "My team and I are very much looking forward to working closely together with two such committed and actively supporting members as Paul and Steven".

In addition to Paul and Steven, the HSMAI Region Europe Revenue Management Advisory Board 2017/2018 is made up by:

Accor: Our valued member of this advisory Board for three years, Agnes Roquefort, got a new job at Accor as Global Marketing SVP for MGALLERY and Accors new representative for this Advisory Board will be announced at a later time.
Andre Kaufmann, Regional Director of Business Development - EMEA at LodgIQ
Arthur Waller, Product Owner, BookingSuite
Chinmai Sharma, Chief Revenue Officer, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces
Clinton Campbell, Director of Revenue Management, Apex Hotels
Etienne Faisandier, VP Revenue Management & Business Intelligence, Moevenpick Hotels & Resorts
Jan Lundborg, Vice President Revenue Management, Scandic Hotels
Joanna Schröder, Vice President Revenue Management, Steigenberger Hotels
Lennert De Jong, Commercial Director, CitizenM
Michael McCartan, Managing Director, EMEA, Duetto
Perra Pettersson, Founder & Owner, Benchmarking Alliance
Philip Gardner, Vice President Revenue Management Europe, IHG
Stan Josephi, Senior Lecturer at the Academy of Hotel Management NHTVMaastricht School of Management
Stan van Roij, Managing Director, Infor Easy RMS
Thomas Adler, Vice President Global Revenue Strategy, Melia Hotels International
Åsa Murphy, Owner & CEO, BizStrat

About HSMAI

The Hospitality Sales & 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 and their partners with tools, insights, and expertise to fuel sales, inspire marketing, and optimize revenue through programs such as the Commercial Strategy Conference, Sales Leader Forum, and Adrian Awards. Founded in 1927, HSMAI is a membership organization comprising more than 5,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. Connect with HSMAI at hsmai.org.