HVS announced that Michael Handy has been promoted to Vice President of the HVS Consulting & Valuation satellite office in Austin, Texas, operating under the umbrella of HVS Dallas.
Westin Hotels & Resorts, part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: HOT), today announced the opening of its latest Austin hotel, The Westin Austin Downtown, located in the heart of the city at the corner of San Jacinto Boulevard and Fifth Street. A joint venture among White Lodging Services Corporation, the Harry Whittington family and REI Real Estate Services, LLC., the 19-story hotel, which draws design inspiration from the local music scene, is Westin's second Austin property, and one of five new openings in North America this year.
Four Seasons Hotel Austin is excited to announce the appointment of Blake Miller as its new director of business travel. In this key role, Milleris responsible for negotiating, contracting and effectively managing relationships with local and national corporate accounts. A long-time Austin resident, Miller most recently spent 13 years as the director of corporate travel for the InterContinental Stephen F. Austin Hotel. Prior to the InterContinental, he was with the Omni Downtown as their director of business travel. Miller is very involved in the Austin Business Travel Association, among several other charities and industry organizations.
Lance Taylor has been promoted to general manager of the Spring Hill Suites Austin South. Previously, Taylor was the general manager at the Courtyard Austin North/Parmer Lane. Prior to his experience as general manager at the Courtyard Austin North/Parmer Lane with White Lodging, Taylor was the general manager at the Hampton Inn and Suites Lakeway in Texas. His previous operations positions also include director of front office operations at Dallas Marriott Las Colinas in Irving, Texas and director of hotel operations at the Radisson Hotel and Suites in Austin. Taylor also gained experience as a parking manager/guest service manager, contract manager and guest service supervisor throughout his hospitality career.
Puzzle Partner, a leading high growth marketing agency for travel and hospitality technology companies, is pleased to announce that CEO and co-founder Alan Young will be a featured presented at this year's Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC) .
London, June 10th 2015:
ALPHARETTA, GA. — June 15, 2015 — Agilysys, Inc. (Nasdaq: AGYS), a leading global provider of next-generation hospitality software solutions and services, today announced that Hotel Granduca Austin, in Austin, Texas, has selected a comprehensive solution suite ─ including Agilysys systems for property management, point-of-sale and inventory and procurement ─ to streamline operations and deliver exceptional guest service. The luxury boutique hotel, which already has received the exclusive The Leading Hotels of the World designation, is scheduled to open later this year.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) is finalizing plans for its latest installment of the 20X series: Entrepreneur 20X (E20X). The E20X pitching competition and kiosk pavilion will be featured at the 2015 Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®), June 15–18 in Austin, Texas USA. Produced in partnership with Capital Factory, E20X will gather innovative start-ups to pitch cutting-edge, transformative hospitality technology to an audience of venture capitalists, angel investors, serial entrepreneurs and HITEC attendees on Monday, June 15 at 1:00 p.m. at the Austin Convention Center. In the action-packed E20X session, open to registered full-conference HITEC attendees, entrepreneurs will pitch for three minutes, followed by two minutes of Q&A from an expert panel of judges. The winning start-up will receive a cash prize and a coveted HITEC Tech Talk speaking opportunity.
This month hoteliers flocking to Austin Texas to attend HITEC will not have to worry about inadequate cell coverage for 3G Voice or 4G Data if they are staying at the JW Marriott Austin downtown hotel. The largest JW Marriott in the Americas and the second largest in the world with 1,012 guestrooms is a game-changer for conventions in the Austin market. Prior to its opening in February 2015, property owner and manager White Lodging began noticing that as construction progressed, cell signals on the upper floors weakened. Although White Lodging had an initial agreement with a carrier to correct the problem, they found themselves having to go in a different direction since the doors were scheduled to open in just four months. White Lodging VP of IT Ken Barnes reached out to the company's trusted partner RoamBOOST. Today, the system has exceeded expectations.
The Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®) being held June 15-18, 2015, produced by Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals(HFTP®), is organizing several avenues for exhibitors and attendees to donate monetary funds to the United Way for Greater Austin. These efforts will be the basis of HITEC Helps, HFTP/HITEC's way of giving back to the community. All donations to the United Way for Greater Austin will go towards helping those victims affected by the Memorial Day flooding devastation in and around Austin, Texas, USA, the host city of HITEC 2015.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) announced today that the Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC) 2015 Opening Party at ACL Live at The Moody Theater will host Stevie Salas, considered by Guitar Player Magazine to be one of the 50 greatest guitarists of all time. Salas, guitarist for Mick Jagger, Rod Stewart and Justin Timberlake, is the author of the bestselling book, "When We Were the Boys: Coming of Age on Rod Stewart's Out of Order Tour." Salas, recognizing the power of technology, also created one of the earliest apps: RockStar Solos. The program is still popular and available for download, with downloads in the six figures. Salas will be available to greet attendees and sign his book at the Opening Party for HITEC, June 15 from 6:30–9:00 p.m. in Austin, Texas, USA.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) has elected to postpone the HITEC Hackathon, which was slated to be the first hospitality hackathon, due to a lack of available space. The hackathon gathers technology developers for a two-day straight competition which tasks participants to come up with solutions to specific hospitality technology problems. The event was originally scheduled to run in the 48 hours preceding HFTP's Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (June 15–18 in Austin, Texas USA), which is expecting record attendance this year. The City of Austin is a popular event destination and additional groups are also expecting high attendance during the days the hackathon was scheduled, making amenities limited for the competition's participants. HFTP is dedicated to the success of the first hospitality hackathon and has decided it was best to postpone the event to a future date when it could offer a full experience for all involved, most likely for later in summer or fall 2015.
This June, Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) will induct Scot Campbell, CHTP and Michael Schubach, CHAE, CHTP into the HFTP International Hospitality Technology Hall of Fame. Campbell and Schubach were nominated and selected by their peers for being pioneers and visionaries in the hospitality industry. Hall of Fame inductees are known as representing the best in innovation and application and as leaders in their profession.
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants is pleased to welcome Joe Pagone as general manager and Jess Johnson as director of sales and marketing for its highly anticipated Hotel Van Zandt in Austin, set to open in summer 2015.As general manager, Pagone will oversee the opening of the hotel and is responsible for all personnel, business development, property operations and guest relations for the 319-room and 41-suite hotel located in the Rainey Street Historic District.
Pagone joins the Hotel Van Zandt team from the Hotel Monaco Baltimore. At the 202-room hotel, he achieved such notable successes as maintaining customer satisfaction rankings within the top ten list of hotels in Baltimore on TripAdvisor and increasing overall revenue for the hotel over a two-year period. Prior to the Hotel Monaco, Pagone was assistant general manager at Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar in Chicago. He is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University where he majored in hospitality with a minor in business administration.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®), producers of HITEC (Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference®), have announced that the location of the HITEC 2015 opening party will be Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater (ACL Live). The opening party will serve as a social event where guests can network, enjoy live music and prepare for the coming week's activities.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) is set to sponsor the "HFTP-iHITA Best Research Paper Award" at the 2015 International Hospitality Information Technology Association (iHITA) Annual Research Conference. The award will be the highest honor presented at the event and will recognize the top ranked research paper submitted.
JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts opened its first property in Austin today, approximately two and a half years after the hotel first broke ground. The 34-story JW Marriott Austin is not only the largest hotel in Austin, but also the largest JW Marriott in North America and the second-largest JW Marriott in the world. The JW Marriott Austin employs approximately 800 associates, has achieved a LEED Silver certification and a two-star Austin Energy Green Building rating.
Atlanta-based Hotel Equities (www.hotelequities.com) recently announced its selection as the management firm for three Marriott hotels in the Lone Star State. The hotels under development include the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott in Waxahachie, Texas; the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Pasadena, Texas; and the SpringHill Suites in Austin, Texas. Hotel Equities now manages 35 Marriott hotels nationwide with over 60 hotels in its portfolio.
Johann Runarsson will be joining the JW Marriot Austin team as the new director of food and beverage (F&B) for the hotel. Runarsson is a native of Iceland and earned a degree in hotel management and F&B operations from Cesar Ritz Colleges in Switzerland and a degree in hotel and restaurant administration from Washington State University. After completing his education, Runarsson moved to the Boston area and served as the banquet manager for hotels including the Hyatt Regency in Cambridge, MA and the Westin Copley Place Boston Hotel. Prior to joining the JW Marriott Austin, Runarsson was the director of F&B at the Park Hyatt Resort in Beaver Creek, CO.