Keynote: Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Keynote Session

Tilak Mandadi, EVP, Digital and Chief Technology Officer, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products

Tilak Mandadi, Executive Vice President, Digital and Chief Technology Officer for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, shares how technology has enabled new Disney experiences while helping to transform the operation of the company’s global parks and resorts business during these unprecedented times. Mandadi will provide insight into how his team relentlessly uses technology to innovate and reimagine the Disney guest experience of the future.

Day 2 Welcome Remarks, Followed by Keynote: Restarting the Travel & Tourism Industry

Bonny Simi, President, Jet Blue Ventures

Mike Blake, CEO, HTNG

Join us in the Auditorium for a kick-off to HT-NEXT Day 2, featuring the CEO of HTNG Mike Blake! Keep your video player open - we'll proceed directly into the keynote segment.

Bonny Simi, president, JetBlue Technology Ventures (JTV), the venture capital arm of JetBlue Airways, will discuss how her company has been sourcing new, innovative startups – especially when it comes to contactless technology. Simi will offer up her perspective on the travel journey and discuss what hotels can learn when it comes to sourcing technologies that are both nimble and creative, based on JTV's work with emerging technology and startups.

Hot New Research: Voice of the Hotel Customer

Daniel Connolly, Professor of the College of Business and Public Administration, Drake University

Josh Rowe, Director of Product and Business Development, DISH Business

Frank Pitsikalis, Founder & CEO, ResortSuite

Listen in as a panel of experts discusses data from the 2020 Customer Engagement Technology Study. Consumers have a lot to say and the hotels who listen best to their concerns and wishes will come out ahead on the other side of the pandemic. This year, we took a deep dive into consumers’ technology preferences when staying in a hotel, eating at a restaurant, or ordering food for take-out/delivery — and focused on how consumer preferences have and have not changed in light of the global COVID-19 pandemic. The result: A roadmap to meeting new guest expectations.

Day 3 Welcome Remarks, Followed by 5 Privacy Issues Hotels Should Address ASAP

Odia Kagan, Partner and Chair of GDPR Compliance & International Privacy, Fox Rothschild LLP

Abby Lorden, VP, Publisher, Hospitality Technology

During this quick moving session, Odia Kagan, partner and chair of GDPR Compliance and International Privacy at Fox Rothschild, addresses the many moving parts hotels need to be aware of and working on right now when it comes to CCPA, CPRA, FTC oversight and GDPR. From updates to privacy notices to adjustments in how data can be transferred between the EU and the USA, Kagan lays out in detail how hotels are affected by changing privacy laws.

IT Leadership Panel

Brian Kirkland, CTO, Choice Hotels International

John Laplante, CIO, G6 Hospitality

Michael Mrini, Director of Information, Edwardian Hotels

Robert Firpo-Cappiello, Editor-in-Chief, Hospitality Technology

The IT leadership panel brings together top executives from leading hospitality brands to unpack the major issues impacting the lodging, travel and hospitality industry. We'll talk about how the pandemic is affecting technology roadmaps and implementations, how workforce management tech is evolving (at the corporate level also!), and ask our panelists about their 2021 plans when it comes to marketing, loyalty and enhancing the guest experience.

Hope Springs Eternal: An Outlook for the US hotel industry, followed by Industry Alert and Wrap Up

Jan Freitag, SVP – Lodging Insights, STR

Mike Blake, CEO, HTNG

Abby Lorden, VP, Publisher, Hospitality Technology

Join us as Jan Freitag, Senior Vice President – Lodging Insights, STR discusses the year that was and how COVID-19 shaped the U.S. hotel industry's performance. He will discuss RevPAR trends, segmentation and chain scale data, and take a look at pipeline and profitability metrics. Jan will conclude with an outlook for the next few years and "think out loud" about what could happen as the hotel industry recovers. Bring your questions as he'll also be hosting a live Q&A at the end of his session!

2020 Visionary Award Winner: G6 Hospitality

John Laplante, CIO, G6 Hospitality

HT interviews G6 Hospitality CIO John Laplante on its 2020 Visionary Award win for replacing its decades old CRS and PMS with a cloud-based solution.

Firechat: Three Key Lessons to Inspire Innovation in a Time of Crisis

Scott Strickland, EVP & CIO, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Wyndham’s EVP & CIO shares how the company has empowered innovation for key stakeholders, including staff members, owners and guests, in a time of crisis. Learn about the three key takeaways that will have a lasting impact on decision making, project management and more.

The 411 on 911 – Big Changes in Emergency Communications for Hotels

Patrick Dunphy, CIO, HTNG

Lasse Norgaard-Larsen, Director Americas, IT, Marriott

It’s easy to take emergency services for granted, but hotels must actively manage systems and service providers to ensure guest and staff safety. HTNG’s 911 Location Communication is keeping track of these requirements, including the most recent changes in the US: Ray Baum’s Act. Service providers and hotels take note: you are responsible and accountable for dispatching detailed location information to emergency service providers, which many organizations are not doing today. Join this session to learn what you need to do to keep your guests and staff safe, and reduce the risk of non-compliance.

Firechat: Tackling the Topic of ABS

Flo Lugli, Principal, Navesink Advisory Group LLC

George Roukas, Partner, Hudson Crossing LLC

Are you totally confused by Attribute Based Selling (ABS) and want to know: What it is (and isn’t), how it benefits you and your guests, and how it works? You aren’t alone! So, bring your questions for our two experts to answer: George Roukas, partner, Hudson Crossing LLC and Flo Lugli, principal, Navesink Advisory Group, LLC. They’ll provide an in-depth look into this burgeoning topic including addressing some common myths: “It’s the same as attribute-based filtering!” “It’s the same as selling ancillaries!” or “It will result in lower ADRs and profitability!” (Spoiler Alert: It isn’t, it’s not and nope!)

The 411 on 911 – Big Changes in Emergency Communications for Hotels

Patrick Dunphy, CIO, HTNG

Lasse Norgaard-Larsen, Director Americas, IT, Marriott

It’s easy to take emergency services for granted, but hotels must actively manage systems and service providers to ensure guest and staff safety. HTNG’s 911 Location Communication is keeping track of these requirements, including the most recent changes in the US: Ray Baum’s Act. Service providers and hotels take note: you are responsible and accountable for dispatching detailed location information to emergency service providers, which many organizations are not doing today. Join this session to learn what you need to do to keep your guests and staff safe, and reduce the risk of non-compliance.

2020 Visionary Award Winner: G6 Hospitality

John Laplante, CIO, G6 Hospitality

HT interviews G6 Hospitality CIO John Laplante on its 2020 Visionary Award win for replacing its decades old CRS and PMS with a cloud-based solution.

Freshly Packed with New Tech: How Aspen Skiing Co. Prepares for a Contactless Experience

John Lilley, CIO, Aspen Skiing Company

When COVID-19 struck, the U.S. ski season came to an abrupt halt. Aspen Skiing Company responded quickly, fast-tracking its digital transformation plans, now with a hyper-focus on reducing crowds and touchpoints. Learn about the mobile and contactless tools that are welcoming guests back to the resort, and how the team got it done in record time.

How Mandarin Oriental Devised Safe Operating Protocols for COVID-19

Anja Luthje, founder and CEO of Unique Hospitality Solutions

Luthje will take viewers through the thought process and journey Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group embarked on at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Luthje helped devise training strategies for hotel staff on how to interact with each guest both in-person and with the help of technology. She will also discuss how MOHG helped keep the workforce informed and safe while also improving morale and it ensured accountability, compliance and reporting in its housekeeping department.

2020 TechOvation Award Winners

Pedro Torres, CEO and Co-founder, Yoonik
Leonel Domingues Co-Founder and CTO, Nonius
David Sjolander, CAE, COO, HTNG
Kris Singleton, CIO, Enseo

HTNG's COO talks with its 2020 TechOvation winners on how their solutions - designed prior to a pandemic - remain useful in a post-pandemic world and how they are leveraging those products in similar industries to hospitality.

The Secret to Successful Meetings at Loews: StreamLine

Dan Kornick, CIO, Loews Hotel Group

Dan Kornick, CIO at Loews Hotel Group, provides a behind-the-scenes look at the launch of a new virtual meetings platform for the new normal.

2020 Visionary Award Winner: Hyatt

Don Nichols, Director Property Systems, Hyatt

HT interviews Hyatt's Director of Property Systems Don Nichols on Hyatt's implementation of OPERA hosted in Microsoft Azure.

2020 Visionary Award Winner: RLHC

John Edwards, SVP & CIO, RLHC
John Reeves, VP IT DevOps, RLHC

HT interviews RLHC's CIO John Edwards and its VP of IT DevOps John Reeves on the company's creation of a single point of integration that allows 13 hotel systems to communicate seamlessly.