Travel bloggers are usually the more popular influencers for most people in the leisure, tourism, travel, and hospitality sectors. For hoteliers and professional hospitality service providers travel bloggers and adventurers are not precisely the ideal influencers to follow.
Hospitality professionals are usually inspired by other professionals and business leaders who have already attained great honors in their area of expertise. As I sought through the web looking for hospitality influencers I noticed there were fewer resources available on the subject.
Today, we list 14 of the most impressive influencers making a great difference in the hospitality industry by sharing their knowledge and experiences.
Allen Adamson
“Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Metaforce“
Allen Adamson is a branding patriarch with vast experience working in both the consumer & corporate business sectors. Allen has been a part of technology, healthcare, financial services, entertainment, and technology sectors.
Allen Adamson is also a prized author with impeccable works including Brand Simple (2006), Brand Digital (2008), and The Edge (2013) among some of his exuberant titles.
Allen has been a part of some of the most prestigious global brands that include Unilever and Landor. He is also an associate professor at the NYU Stern Business School, specializing in brand strategy.
Allen has proven mettle by assisting clients & organizations tap into strategies that enhance brand equity and increase long term business value. In addition to his consultancy and strategy development, Allen spreads knowledge among the business world through hundreds of articles and of course his best selling titles available on online.
Chris K. Anderson
“Professor & Director of the Center for Hospitality Research at Cornell University“
Professor at Cornell School of Hotel Administration, and a former faculty at the Ivey School of Business (London, Ontario, Canada), Chris Anderson is a knowledge powerhouse in the world of hospitality.
His primary discipline focuses on revenue management and pricing models. Chris is readily involved in multiple industries including hotels, airlines, rental car, tour companies, consumer packaged goods, and financial services firms.
Chris has also received funding from various government agencies, and industrial partners for his research. Anderson also serves on the Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management & the International Journal of Revenue Management editorial boards.
Chris has contributed to hospitality immensely with numerous books, research papers, articles, and speeches. His consultancy service helps businesses with pricing & revenue models, and assist with revenue management. A complete list of his works is available in his curriculum vitae.
Danny Bryer
“Area Director, Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management, Protea Hotels by Marriott“
Danny Bryer began his professional hotelier career back in 1986 at the Protea Hotel Group. By 1994, Bryer had become a shareholder and board member at the prestigious Protea Hotel Group. He still serves in the capacity of Director of Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management with Protea which is now part of the Marriott Group.
Bryer has come through Cornell University and has been a part of the Disney University, where he mastered Revenue Management Optimisation in the hotel industry in South Africa.
Danny’s industry foresight and knowledge have allowed Protea Hotels to position their 3 major brands across the African continent.
Dany teaches as a post-grad marketing lecturer at the University of Cape Town, where he focuses on creative thinking, adapting to evolving business environments, and the ever-changing world of I.T. Bryer has written multiple articles for HospitalityNet where he discusses hotel industry trends, strategy, and brand management.
Raj Singh
“CEO at Go Moment“
Raj Singh is the CEO of Go Moment, the creators of IVY, the world’s first smart-concierge for hotels. Singh’s company also partners with several tech giants including IBM, Google, and Amadeus.
As a mentor at UCLA Anderson, Singh advises start-ups & venture capitalists. He is also a frequent speaker at conferences where he discusses innovation, AI applications, and smart technologies.
Raj has close to 2 decades of experience working as an entrepreneur, with his expertise acclaimed in the hotel industry. Singh has also developed solutions for SONY, Virgin, and Universal Pictures.
Raj Singh is also known for his articles where he discusses everything his brilliant mind has to offer in the areas of entrepreneurship, art, technology, design, Kaizen, futurism, and much more. He is by far one of the best influencers to follow if you are looking for new innovative technology ideas.
Tiffany Dowd
“Founder of Luxe Social Media“
Luxury travel blogger and social media queen, Tiffany Dowd is the CEO & President of LuxeTiffany. Apart from her influential social media profiles encompassing over 300,000 followers, Tiffany is also a hospitality industry influencer.
Tiffany is an authority when it comes to social media marketing and digital online strategy. Dowd has already been featured as one of the 25 Best Luxury Digital Experts To Follow, while she has been named Tiffany “The Influencer” by Boston Magazine in 2019.
Tiffany’s specialist skills are communications and social media marketing. Her expertise has allowed her to help luxury hotels, destinations, celebrities, and consumer lifestyle businesses.
Tiffany regularly contributes articles on USA Today, US News & World Report, and other luxury travel publications. Her honors also include mentions on Forbes, Luxury Daily, and several other recognized publications. Ms.Dowd is a popular travel influencer in the Americas, Europe, the Caribbean, Asia, and the Pacific.
Barak Hirschowitz
“President, International Luxury Hotel Association“
Barak Hirschowitz is a legend of the hospitality industry. He is the president of the ILHA (INTERNATIONAL LUXURY HOTEL ASSOCIATION), and a founding member at Hospital Recruitment. In his bio, Hirschowitz mentions that he perseveres to deliver thriving talent, media, and events for the hospitality industry.
Barak was named the biggest influencer in luxury hospitality by PRNewswire in 2018, while the ILHA remains the biggest community of hospitality professionals in the world today.
Hirschowitz also sources human talent for hospitality companies including restaurants, hotels, resorts, cruise ships, and more. In addition, Barak also operates his own travel & hospitality forum, where he discusses topics like the best hotels and amazing travel destinations.
As a speaker, Hischowitz has participated in legendary events including the INSPIRE Summit, HITEC, World Travel Forum PISA, MTA China, HD Expo, and Relais & Chateaux North America Conference. You can read Barak’s articles on his official LinkedIn feed and listen to his conference speeches on YouTube.
Mohammad Shoaib Ziaee
“Director of Information Technology at Advanced Hospitality Technologies“
Muhammad is a legend of the hospitality technology industry with close to 2 decades of professional experience. He is a founding member and Director of Information Technology at ADHT (est. 1996).
Muhammad is a hotel technology consultant and has worked with world-class brands including Starwood, IMG, Marriott, Wyndham, Sheraton, Hilton, and Choice Hotel Groups. He is one of the most gifted technology professionals when it comes to hotel new build franchise standards & renovations.
In addition, with his sophisticated technical knowledge and vast experience also offer risk mitigation, compliance management, infrastructure design & management, interface management, and business intelligence consultancy to hotels.
Ziaee has recently begun his journey as an influencer with a handful of articles to his name, while he also aims to collaborate with hotel owners and other professionals to discuss fantastic ideas and new technology insights in webinars, conferences, and white papers.
As a professional Muhammad is always ready for the next project, while as an influencer he is always ready for a constructive discussion with other industry professionals.
Jonathan Newbury
“Senior Vice President, Strategic Development at Preferred Hotels & Resorts“
Currently the SVP Strategic Development at Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Jonathan joined 10 years ago as the group’s VPN of brand development.
A Cornell alumnus, Newbury brings an illustrious career in hospitality sales, operations, global development, e-commerce, and technology.
Jonathan is constantly fostering hotel development and retention for his company in North America. His interviews are popular on YouTube, allowing him to be one of the top upcoming influencers for marketing management and global hospitality operations.
Dana Waud Floberg
“Vice President at HVS Chicago“
Dana is a VP and an expert at HSV’s Milwaukee office. With over a decade of experience as a consultant, Dana has solidified her skill in hospitality operations while hotel appraisals and market studies are some of her specialist skills.
Dana is one of the fastest upcoming influencers in hospitality, thanks to her MS in Hospitality Administration from Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne in Switzerland, her knowledge and specialist expertise is an inspiration to everyone following her work.
Ms. Floberg has worked with some of the biggest names in hospitality including the Chicago Hilton, Fairmont Copley Plaza, Westmoreland Country Club, and is now a premier professional at HSV.
Dana has already published articles and lucrative reports to help hoteliers understand hospitality market insights and trends.
Craig Weissman
“CTO and Co-Founder at Duetto“
CTO and founder of Duetto, Craig is a leader in the area of SaaS development & design. He comes from the legendary SalesForce.com platform where he was CTO.
A Harvard alumnus with an MA in computer science, Weissman is a master in the field with expertise ranging from enterprise software, cloud computing, multi-tenancy, saas, PaaS, data models, SQL, distributed computing, metadata, Java, data warehousing, to analytics, and CRM.
Craig’s videos, insights, articles, and other helpful resources are available directly on his Duetto website. He has also discussed cloud solutions and other hotel technologies in his articles on Tech Crunch, Xconomy, and Venture Beat. For those interested in hospitality I.T. and service automation should follow Craig like a holy book.
Patrick Landman
“CEO & Founder at Xotels“
As CEO & Founder of XHotels, Patrick consults with independent hotels improving their design, services, management structures, and overall offerings. Landman’s XHotel specializes in strategic hotel management, helping hospitality companies with asset management services.
Patrick has been helping hotels in the areas of revenue management, distribution, and online marketing to grow both revenue & profit. He frequently consults with boutique hotels, unique budget hotels, youth hostels, and other hospitality properties.
Patrick regularly writes about hotel technologies, management best practices, hotel design, revenue management, and marketing management. His articles are a treasure of years of knowledge and experience working with some of the most prominent names in hospitality.
Rajiv Trivedi
“President at La Quinta Brands Wyndham Hotel and Resorts“
Rajiv is a crusader of the hospitality industry and has been part of LaQuinta Hotels & Resorts since 2000. He was a monumental figure in securing the recent Wyndham acquisition of La Quinta Group.
Rajiv specializes in brand development, and it was his amazing foresight that allows the LaQuinta group to secure a perfect marriage with the Wyndham franchise.
Trivedi, however, is not an influencer rather a corporate powerhouse. He successfully transformed La Quinta when Blackstone Group acquired the brand in 20016 also.
As CDO & EVP, Trivedi is a complete knowledgebase to learn from about hotel development, vendor management, brand conversions.
Adrian Butler
“SVP, IT & CIO at Dine Brands Global“
As SVP and CIO at Dine Brands Global, Adrian is an accomplished expert known for his magnificent work in I.T. transformation, strategy, innovation, and technology delivery. He is a proficient innovator with an eye for enhancing digital, mobile, social media, and data management capabilities of clients.
20 years experienced I.T. specialist, Adrian brings immense expertise from Target and the US Air Force. In addition, Butler’s honors include experiences across the financial, insurance, hospitality, and retail industries. Adrian has earned honors for leadership & performance at both the Airforce and at his organizations. He was also named one of the Premier 100 IT Leaders by Computerworld magazine.
Adrian might not be an influencer but he is by far one of the most amazing technology consultants in hospitality. His busy activity feeds on LinkedIn makes him one of the very few authoritative figures to dwell deep in hospitality tech.
Dorothy Creamer
“Editor at Hospitality Technology“
Probably the most powerful figure that deserves to be in our 2019 influencer countdown, is the editor of Hospitality Technology. An illustrious 5-year career with HT and thousands of articles later her opinions and ideas are parallel to those of professional hospitality experts.
Dorothy has also managed HT’s social media, e-newsletters and the website in addition to the blog. Today she is the editor, analyst, and writer for HT’s three premier industry research reports.
Previously, Ms. Creamer has managed the editorial strategy for several magazines. Now with over 15 years of experience, Dorothy has handled publications across children’s entertainment, cooking, lifestyle, and home decor.
Dorothy is probably the most important influencer to follow when it comes to keeping connected to the hospitality industry. She covers not just trending issues in articles but also features in several videos covering hospitality conferences.
