2021 EuroCHRIE Elections – The Results!

Congratulations to our new Board members who will be sworn in at the International CHRIE Conference on Monday 26th July 2021 with Henri Kuokkanen who takes the role of EuroCHRIE President.

Voting was for the following positions:

Vice President/President-Elect/Immediate Past President (3 year)
Treasurer (2 Year)
Secretary
Director of Member Services and Development (2 year)
Director of Research (2 year)

Thank you for voting and congratulations to the new Board members

Chrystel Masdupuy
Chair of the EuroCHRIE Nominating Committee

Vice President

Platform Statement

I am very proud to be part of EuroCHRIE and am grateful to have further opportunity to serve, following six years as Industry Director. I have taken a very active role and have attended every EuroCHRIE, ICHRIE and APAC CHRIE conference during this period.

During the COVID pandemic I have contributed a large amount to EuroCHRIE. This began by leading webinars focussed on supporting education and industry. More recently this included managing the technology and being the host for the Virtual Conference. I am well placed to deliver this, due to working with over 200 global hospitality schools and the world’s leading hotel groups as Chief Operating Officer for RPT.

We must drive forward the way we work with both academia and industry to further support our membership and the value we deliver. If elected, I commit to the following,

Develop further value to members through collaboration, networking and support
Champion education and research across all channels and networks
Strengthen connections with other federations and across institutions
Drive forward innovative delivery through online and hybrid formats

Now is the right time to put my name forward to serve as Vice President, as I am passionate about the organisation and ready to serve.

Biography

Peter leads all operations and initiatives for Russell Partnership Technology, which includes company strategy, education, finance, sales, marketing, HR, partnerships and being the public face of the company. The company is focused on supporting hospitality education through the development of online programs and simulations. Russell Partnership Technology also work to deliver consultancy with global hotel and hospitality partners.

Peter has spent the last ten years supporting university and college partners around the world in relation to simulation-based learning. This includes curriculum development, instructional design, teaching, training, development and technical support. He is fully embedded within the world of hospitality education and works with partners across five continents.

Peter leads the training team for our collection of industry-leading training, learning and development programs. This includes business simulations, online courses, certifications and bespoke learning environments. All of this is focussed on the hospitality, travel, tourism and events sectors. Peter works tirelessly to continue developing our approach and delivery of learning and development for both industry and academia.

Peter regularly speaks at industry and education conferences worldwide on various topics, including hospitality management, technology, sustainability and revenue management. He is also a very active member of multiple associations worldwide, including CHRIE, The International Society of Hospitality Consultants, HSMAI, The Institute of Hospitality, THE-ICE, and HOSCO.

Treasurer

Platform Statement

With great enthusiasm, I stand for re-election for the position of Treasurer of EuroCHRIE and a member of the ICHRIE Finance Committee. The past two years in this position have been challenging on many fronts. The pandemic had a substantial influence on the work of the EuroCHRIE board, the postponing of the planned conference at UCN Aalborg from 2020 to 2021 meant budgetary shortfalls for the association. As we value partnership over cash-flow, sponsorship payments were paused and renegotiated. Thankfully, EuroCHRIE can look back at many years of thoughtful management of their financial resources. The control of finances of the association in a responsible and trustworthy manner is paramount for achieving current and future goals. The funds that are entrusted to the association by our members need to be spent with care and strategic foresight. The past two years have proven that we as a board can stand up to this expectation and I am determined to continue this path for the next two years. While the world, tourism, and tourism education is slowly returning to a new normal, it will be essential to retain the association’s financial viability in order to provide value-add to all its members.

EuroCHRIE has shown itself as a resilient association and responses to all activities that have happened over the past two years show that the work is valued. Despite all challenges we faced during this time, I again reaslized that there is no alternative association to EuroCHRIE of such quality that provides a professional platform for hospitality educators. The development of EuroCHRIE is an ongoing process and I am prepared to continue taking an active part in this.

Over the years, EuroCHRIE has developed into a vibrant network of institutional and individual members. However, institutions are increasingly under financial pressure, other associations and networks compete with us for members, and our current and future members increasingly ask for a value add. The ability of the association to remain the relevant and respected stakeholder in the hospitality and tourism sphere it currently is, is not at last dependent on its financial capabilities. If I am re-elected as treasurer, I will focus on supporting and advising the executive board on activities that enhance the association’s visibility and future growth.

Biography

Florian has been an active member of the board since 2016, serving as an Area Consultant for Austria as treasurer since 2019 and was interim Director of Conferences and Networking. During this time, Florian has actively promoted EuroCHRIE and its activities in the hospitality and tourism community in Austria and provided support for other members of the board. In particular, his focus was on continuous improvement of the services offered to members and thus ensuring sustained development. Due to its geographical location in Central Europe, a strong network in Austria can function as a bridge towards the East, which is one of the key motives for his engagement in EuroCHRIE.

Florian is Head of Tourism and Hospitality Management study programs at FHWien der WKW, the leading University of Applied Sciences for Management and Communication in Austria. Before joining the FHWien der WKW, Florian played an integral part in the development of the private University Modul, where he was Dean of the Undergraduate School and Director of Non-Degree Programs. He received his academic degrees from universities in Germany and Australia before completing his doctorate with honors at the Vienna University of Economics and Business. Before entering the academic world, Florian gained operational experience in the hotel industry and event management in Germany and Australia. He teaches a wide range of subjects in hospitality management, including hotel asset management, revenue management, and hotel development. His research interests cover relational aspects of creativity, innovation, and organizational design – with a particular application to the hospitality and tourism industry.

Secretary

Platform Statement

I am standing for re-election as Secretary of EuroCHRIE to be able to take a more involved role in the running of the organisation, including voting for proposals that are in Members’ interests and ensuring the sustainability of EuroCHRIE. As the current Secretary, I am responsible for the running of official Board Meetings and Annual General Meetings, the maintenance of records and representing EuroCHRIE on the ICHRIE Bylaws Committee. A belief in diversity, partnership and excellence underpins my work for EuroCHRIE and beyond. Indeed, these three cornerstones of my candidacy for Secretary reflect the very best of EuroCHRIE—something we celebrate every year at conference—and I would welcome the opportunity to serve the Membership, if elected, to bring these values to bear on the evolution of EuroCHRIE.

Biography

Higher education leader, educator and researcher. First-in-family to go to university and passionate about widening participation in Higher Education. Committed to providing transformational opportunities for learners and businesses through outstanding education, research and knowledge exchange.

I am Dean of the School of Business at the University of Central Lancashire and Professor of Business Engagement. My research interests include transport and tourism, the experience economy, cultural tourism and tourism/hospitality education. I have published research papers in peer-reviewed academic journals and presented at international tourism and transport conferences. I am a reviewer for leading tourism and management journals.

I am the President of EuroCHRIE (European Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education). I sit on EuroCHRIE’s Executive Board of Directors and the Board of Directors of International CHRIE. I have been an active member of EuroCHRIE since 2004 and served on the Board of Directors since 2012, first as Area Consultant for the UK and then Federation Secretary and Vice President. In 2015, I was Conference Chair for the EuroCHRIE Annual Conference in Manchester, UK.

I am a Chartered Association of Business Schools Certified Management and Business Educator (CMBE), Senior Fellow of Advance HE (SFHEA) and a Member of the Institute of Travel and Tourism, and the Institute of Place Management. I also serve as a Quality Assessor for the Office for Students.

Director of Member Services & Development

Platform Statement

It would be a great honour to serve as the EuroCHRIE’s Director of Membership Services. Having represented the Board as Area Consultant for the UK, I wish to further engage with EuroCHRIE’s membership orientation. I acknowledge that this position requires commitment; meaning a thorough dedication to the current and future direction of EuroCHRIE’s membership services – a role in which I will fully partake. The approach that I aim to take, will ensure current members as well as prospective members: benefit from an excellent experience and reap the rewards associated with being a valued EuroCHRIE member.

The creation of this excellent experience will be catered for and sign posted via three main avenues. These will include: utilising the quality EuroCHRIE on-line platform to share the far-reaching offerings of EuroCHRIE, identifying and targeting a broader audience to encourage engagement and interest – thus protecting the longevity of EuroCHRIE’s standing, status and excellence and finally, mapping out time to understand what current members value, what they require more of and gauge what potential new members hope to avail of via EuroCHRIE membership services.

To fulfil my commitments, I intend to continue to work closely with the EuroCHRIE team and work with the ethos of #Strongertogether.

Biography

Anne Conneally works as a Higher Education Consultant with Anglia Ruskin University, London. Her area of specialism pertains to Hospitality Business Management and Human Resource Management. Her academic credentials include a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, Sheffield Hallam University, a BSc in Hospitality Management, Dublin Institute of Technology, and an MSc in Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations, National University Galway, Ireland.

Anne has dedicated working hours to the international hospitality industry, living and working in Ireland, Germany and the United States of America. She has shared her personal, professional and academic knowledge across the globe - delivering at conferences in Lausanne, Berlin, Dublin, and Florida and teaching in Denmark, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, and Cologne. Anne has been instrumental in supporting the validation of hospitality programmes at business schools in Mauritius and Vietnam and views these as essential success stories for the future and sustenance of the hospitality industry.

Anne is a Fellow of the Institute of Hospitality, a Fellow of the Institute of Learning and Teaching Academy, CIPD registered and is a certified Emotional Intelligence coach working as a consultant as well as embedding the practice into her teaching.

Director of Research

Platform Statement

Having been at the EuroCHRIE, APacCHRIE and I-CHRIE conferences for many years, it would be a real honour to serve as your Director of Research. In this role I would have three ambitions: (1) making EuroCHRIE attractive for oversees CHRIE researchers whilst remaining a true home for our EuroCHRIE family; (2) facilitating a dialogue between academia and industry to uncover current and actionable ideas for research and practice; and (3) fostering unique research experiences and long-lasting research collaborations, friendships and exchange. To pursue these ambitions, I would utilise my international network of contacts, develop close working relationships with conference hosts, and actively involve myself in each and every research-relevant detail of the conference, in particular the organisation and level of the review process, setting up/drafting parallel sessions, and searching for appropriate moderators, to ensure the best possible conference programme and preparation. Attending all sessions, I will listen to your ideas and experiences. In this way, I will continuously prospect and strive for new conference parts, such as research workshops (e.g., data treatment, data mining, multi-level regression, text analytics, qualitative analysis, NVIVO, etc.), data sharing initiatives, special interest groups, editor / expert meet-ups, and research contests.

Biography

Jean-Pierre van der Rest is Professor of Business Administration at Leiden University, one of Europe’s leading research universities. He previously served as a Professor, Research Director and Associate Dean at Hotelschool The Hague. Jean-Pierre received a PhD in Business from Oxford Brookes University (Oxford School of Hospitality Management), a MA in Managerial Economics from University of Durham (Department of Economics and Finance), and a BBA in Hotel Administration from the Hotel Management School Maastricht. His research focuses on pricing decision-making and revenue optimization in the hotel and restaurant industry. He currently is editor for the Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research (JHTR), along with Prof. Li Miao and Prof. Peter Kim, and has won several research awards. Jean-Pierre has taught in Bachelor, Master, MBA, and Executive Education programs, has chaired accreditations, and has been an external examiner, external advisor, and a visiting professor at various international business schools. Recipient of various competitive research grants, he actively promotes research and teaching excellence.