75 Years of Service and Achievement: Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International

The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International is an organization of sales and marketing professionals representing all segments of the hospitality industry. With a strong focus on education, HSMAI has become the industry champion in identifying and communicating trends in hospitality while operating as a leading proponent for sales and marketing management disciplines.

Founded in 1927, it is an individual membership association of 60 chapters worldwide with over 7, ooo members from 35 countries.

HOSPITALITY SALES & MARKETING ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL

By David C. Dorf, CHME Neil W. Ostergren, CHME With a Chapter by Futurist Marvin Cetron, Ph.D. Forecasting the Next 75 Years of Travel Published by the Foundation of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International

© Copyright 2003

By the Foundation of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association, International 8201 Greensboro Drive, Suite 300 McLean, VA 22102 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded, or otherwise, without prior permission of the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America

Contents 5 7

Introduction

9 11

Acknowledgements

Sponsors

CHAPTER 1 Setting the Stage: Hotel Promotion Before 1927

21

CHAPTER 2 The 1920s: The Formative Years

29

CHAPTER 3 The 1930s: Turbulent Times

39

CHAPTER 4 The 1940s: In War and Peace

49

CHAPTER 5 The 1950s: Time of Transition

63

CHAPTER 6 The 1960s: Reaching Out Globally

83

CHAPTER 7 The 1970s: Challenges and Opportunities

105 CHAPTER 8 The 1980s: Moving Forward 129 CHAPTER 9 The 1990s and Beyond: Creating Relevance 157 CHAPTER 10 Forecasting the Next 75 Years of Travel 167 CHAPTER 11 Remembrances and Reflections 202 Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients

210 Certified Hospitality Marketing Executives 216 About the Authors

Introduction Seventy-five years young ... and stronger than ever! Clearly, this is an occasion worthy of celebration. But more importantly, the 75th anniversary of the Hospitality Sales

& Marketing Association International provides us with an appropriate occasion on which to pause and reflect on the association's remarkable achievements and, more importantly, its impact on those of us who have devoted our careers to the profession of hospitality sales and marketing.

Few, if any, industry associations make a truly lasting impact on the industry they serve or on the careers of their members. That's why the history chronicled in this book is so special. It celebrates HSMAI's commitment to education, training, and the revelation of both insights and techniques that have enabled all of us to practice our profession with greater skill. It also reminds us of the truly special character of the individuals who directed the destiny of the organization over the years ... men and women of remarkable intellect, creativity, persuasiveness, and charm.

But most importantly, the history chronicled on the following pages reminds us of how we have benefited personally from our interaction with members of the association who are truly "best in class" in their profession. The insights we have gained from their knowledge ... the personal goals to which we have aspired because of their leadership ... and the lasting friendships we have made as a result of their gracious hospitality ... these are the things for which we are most indebted to HSMAI. So read on, and enjoy this compendium of the practices and personalities that transformed the profession of hospitality sales and marketing.

Peter C. Yesawich, Ph.D. President and CEO Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown, & Russell

Sponsors The Foundation of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International sincerely thanks the following organizations, individuals, and HSMAI Chapters for helping to make publication of this book possible.

CORPORATE

INDIVIDUAL

CHAPTERS

American Hotel & Lodging Association

Paul Astleford

Aruba

Nebraska-Heartland

Hotel and Travel Index

Hoyt Bacon, CHME

Big Apple

New England

~ INTERCONTINENTAL.

Karen Colliton-Thomson, CHME

California Desert

Northeast Florida

Adrienne Davis-Brody

Canada

Sal Dickinson, CHME

Central Florida

Northeast Pennsylvania

Starwood Foundation

Earl Duffy

USA Today

Maragrita Fedorovakaia

Charlotte, Greater/ NC Western Region

U.S. Franchise Systems, Inc.

Howard Feiertag, CHME, CHA

Warren Kremer Paino, LLC

Henry Flynn

~ HOTELS

GROUP

Colorado Springs Columbus, OH

Northern California Oregon Palm Beach/ Treasure Coast

Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex

Philadelphia

Florida Keys

San Diego

Michael Leven, CHME, CHA

Fort Lauderdale, Greater

Southern Arizona

Fran Levin, CHME

Georgia

Nita Lloyd-Fore, CHME

Houston, Space City

Tampa Bay

Hudson Valley

Vail Valley

Illinois

Vermont

Los Angeles, Greater

Virginias

Magnolia

Washington, D.C.

Sig Front, CHME Robert Gilbert, CHME, CHA James Knauff, III, CHME

Roberta Ming Andria Mitsakos Teri Onsgard Neil Ostergren, CHME George Powell, CHME Gordon Rockwell John Russell Jr., CHME Bob Stein James Tierney, CHME Bruce Timson, CHME Carrie Turner, CHME Ana Viscasillas

Phoenix, Greater

Southern California Southwest Florida

Maryland Memphis Mexican Caribbean Mile High Minnesota Missouri Nashville

Peter Warren, CHME James Ziereis, CHME, CMP

7

Acknowledgements Many people have contributed to this books and it our pleasure to thank them for their time and effort on behalf of the project and to acknowledge their invaluable help in the writing or editing of the manuscript.

We are indebted to HSMAI President & CEO Robert A. Gilbert, CHME, CHA, and to Leonard H. "Buck" Hoyle, CAE, CMP, former executive vice president of the association, for their invaluable input to the chapters covering the Eighties, Nineties, and the early years of the new millennium. We also are honored that Dr. Marvin Cetron, founder and president of Forecasting International and one of the foremost futurists in the world, agreed to write a fascinating account of what the next 75 years will bring to hospitality, travel and tourism.

Chapter 11, "Remembrances and Reflections" has 22 wonderful authors. They write about people and events, past and present, that have helped shape the sales and marketing profession and contributed to the development and achievements of the association. We are especially grateful to Earl G.Duffy, HSMAI president in 1962, whose remarkable memory, writing skills, and fascinating accounts have added so much interest and warmth to this chapter.

For their important contributions to the chapter we also salute: Robert A. Beck, Ph.D.; David R. Evans; Nita Lloyd-Fore, president in 1981-1982; Sig S. Front, president in 1973; Bjorn Hanson, Ph.D.; Franklin B. Hignett, president in 1970; Henk Kloosterhuis; Thomas]. McCarthy, Jr., president in 1980; William Morton, president in 1957; Leonard R. Oakes, president in 1965; John Parker; Peter H. Plamondon; George W. Powell, CHME, president in 1959; Paul O'Neil; Terrence Rufer; Roger Smith; and Frank ]. Stapleton.

HSMAI staff members also lent their considerable skills to the project. Associate Executive Director Ilsa Whittemore served as managing editor, assisted by Jason Smith, director of communications, and student intern, Michael Reischman. The handsome graphic design is by Eason Associates, Washington, D.C. We have enjoyed our trip "down memory lane" and sincerely appreciate the support of those who joined us on the journey.

Dave Dorf and Neil Ostergren

9

Setting the Stage:

• CHAPTER ONE

Throughout its history, the association has helped its members improve their skills and advance their careers. Its activities have brought professionalism to a field once viewed as a necessary evil, at best, and at worst as something a bit unsavory.

Hotel Promotion Before 1927 75th anniversary is a major milestone. Three-quarters of a century, a long time by any measure, is especially impressive in an industry that is dynamic, competitive, and sometimes unpredictable.

For a voluntary membership organization of hospitality sales and marketing professionals to be viable for so many years is an achievement that must be commended and celebrated.

The association known today as the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) was born on September 22, 1927. Over the last seven and a half decades, the organization and its membership weathered inflation, recession, and depression. They witnessed building booms and occupancy busts. They soldiered on through wars, the volatility of the stock market, oil embargoes, and terrorist acts.

They survived and prospered even as the automobile, jet plane, and the Internet dramatically changed the nature of the business.

SETTING THE STAGE: HOTEL PROMOTION BEFORE 1927

11

As the world and business changed, so did the association and the people it serves.

When the organization began, sales and marketing was merely an afterthought, but today it plays a leading role in the hospitality industry. Throughout its history, the association has helped its members improve their skills and advance their careers. Its activities have brought professionalism to a field once viewed as a necessary evil, at best, and at worst as something a bit unsavory. This book commemorates those 75 years of service and achievement.

AVery Brief History of Travel Human beings travel for just two reasons: 1) they have to or 2) they want to. Early travelers generally fell into the first group. Asiatic nomads crossed the land bridge between Siberia and Alaska and migrated south because they had to find land and a better climate. They were the original snowbirds.

Mary and Joseph traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem because they had to register with Roman census takers. In the process they became the world's first recorded victims of overbooking.

Since the Neolithic and Bronze ages, people in Europe have flocked to min era l or hot springs for their health. The world's oldest operating hotel, Japan's Hoshi Ryokan, built in 717, is located at the site of such a spring.

For centuries, the devo ut made pilgrimages to holy places because their beliefs demanded it. Geoffrey Chaucer immortalized such travels in his Canterbury Tales, written in the late 14th Century. Today hundreds of thousands of Muslims annually make the hajj to Mecca to fulfill one of the five pillars of Islam.

Marco Polo became the world's best-known business traveler when he left Europe for Asia in 1271. Unfortunately for this merchant of Venice, he set out long before loya lty programs, so he earned no frequent flyer/frequent guest points for his 17-year journey.

Travel because people want to -

a.k.a. leisure travel -

was reserved for only the

top echelon of society throughout most of human history. The elite of ancient Rome, for example, maintained seaside retreats where they would escape the capital city's heat and disease. Their vacation homes in Pompeii also offered terrific mountain views -

of Vesuvius.

In the 16th century, the British aristocracy initiated long-haul travel with extended

tours of continental Europe. By the mid-18th century, the grand tour of the continent became commonplace even for the sons of well-to-do British professionals and merchants. Wealthy Americans also adopted the custom. At about the same time, "taking the waters" at spa towns such as Baden-Baden also became popular with th e upper crust on both sides of the Atlantic.

12

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

Although leisure travel was no longer solely the province of the crowned or titled, it remained confined to the tiny minority of people who actually had leisure time, a group that could be counted in the thousands. The introduction of railroads and steamships in the mid-19th century, however, began the democratization of travel. By making transportation faster and cheaper, these modes enabled even th e upper middle class to enjoy pleasure travel.

In 1851, Thomas Cook single-handedly created the group leisure travel market with his package tours. He began by taking groups from the British Midlands to London for the Great Exhibition, a world's fair celebrating the achievements of industrial technology.

Later in the century, industrialization fostered another type of leisure travel. As an antidote to the crowding and pollution in industrial cities, the emerging urban middle class sought healthful sea and mountain air. Thus was born the market for affordable seaside and mountain escapes. aturally, as the middle class began to travel, the wealthy demanded distinctive accommodations and transport to separate themselves from the masses. The luxury travel segment grew up to accommodate their desires, and so did the brand names that became synonymous with high-end travel: Ritz hotels, Pullman sleeping cars, and the Orient-Express trains.

Introduction of the automobile in the early 1900s led to a form of leisure travel that is still popular today -

driving vacations. Initially, the auto was a convenience

only the wealthy could afford, but car ownership soon spread. For holiday-makers, the automobile offered new flexibility to travel whenever they wanted, wherever they

SE TTI NG TH E ST AG E: H0 TE L PR 0 M0 TI 0 N BEF0 RE I g 27

13

Forget How to Say " I Don't Know" Written by the legendary hotelier Ellsworth M. Statler in 1923, this commentary is still true today.

mong many things that the telephone people have done to make business contacts

A

easier and more pleasant and more satisfactory, there is one practice they have worked out which makes a great hit with me. I wish I could get everybody in our

organization to believe in it and like it as well as I do.

It is a very simple thing, too. It consists merely in having everybody understand that in their dealings with the Company's customers he is never to say, "I don't know:' You can see what a tremendous help and satisfaction it would be to our customers if we you and I, every last one of us-would make up our minds here and now that we would never again say to any of our guests these three discouraging and often annoying little words.

There are times, of course when we don't know what time a given train leaves, or where one can buy an odd kind of razor blade, or where the Blank Factory has moved to, or any one of a thousand things that we may be asked.

Nobody knows everything - nobody is expected to - BUT in this organization everybody IS expected to see that a guest who asks for information gets it.

So when you are asked a question and are tempted to say "I don't know" say instead, "I'll find out," and take the guest to the porter or the city directory or the assistant manager or to some source of information that will be a help to him.

Even if he does not get the particular bit of information he is seeking, the difference between his feeling that he has been helped and that you tried, is a very different thing from the feeling he will have if you had said "I don't know," no matter how pleasantly and courteously you might have said it.

The point is, as I have said so many times and expect to say as many times more, the only thing that counts when a guest wants help is being helpful.

The thing that makes this practice easy is that if you will once get it in your mind that you must never use that phrase, you will find that it rapidly becomes natural and normal for you to be helpful with guests when you're asked out-of-the-way questions, and carry out the policy upon which we insist so strongly.

14

7 5 YE ARS 0 F SERVI CE AND ACHI EVEMENT

wanted -

as long as there were roads. To accommodate eager drivers, the 1920s

were the golden age of road building, with the federal government alone building nearly 10,000 miles of highways and roads across the United States. This, in turn, gave rise to roadside lodgings, the last major development in leisure travel prior to formation of the association.

There is one last market segment that doesn't fit neatly into the dichotomy of those who travel because they have to and those who travel because they want to. The meetings and conventions market includes both types of travelers, and serving this market was the primary motivation behind the creation of HSMAI. Meetings and conventions grew out of Americans' mania for organizing themselves into groups. In 1832, Alexis de Tocqueville keenly observed this phenomenon in his book Democracy in America. He noted, "Americans of all ages, all conditions, and all dispositions constantly form associations .... The Americans make associations to give entertainment, to found seminaries, to build inns .... " The early associations Americans formed included political parties; social, sports, and hobbyist clubs; patriotic and fraternal organizations; religious groups; anti-slavery, temperance, and women's rights organizations. With industrialization came professional and trade groups such as the American Statistical Association, founded in 1839, and the United States Brewers Association, formed in 1860.

Whatever their purpose, these organizations and associations needed large amounts of public space for meetings, revivals, rallies, receptions and banquets. To meet this need, hotels began to expand their facilities and services, and they hired salesmen to work with their association clients.

Despite creating an entirely new revenue stream for hotels, many owners viewed the meetings and conventions market as the business of last resort. As a result, convention delegates often were treated as second-class guests. In fact, it was not uncommon for front desks to display signs saying, "Convention delegates with badges, please use the rear service elevators."

Management often applied this same negative attitude toward the people hired to service meetings' business. Improving the perception and status of the hotel salesmen working with the meetings and convention market was one of the reasons the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion (now HSMAI) was formed in 192 7.

A review of developments in hospitality since 1927 can be found in succeeding chapters. Before delving into the industry's modern history, however, it's useful for 21st century sales and marketing professionals to learn that their predecessors used many of the techniques they still rely on today.

SETTI NG TH E STAGE: HO TE L PROMO TION BE FOR E 1927

15

Sales and Marketing Through the Centuries One of the oldest advertising messages ever was found on a marble column at an ancient Roman health spa. A hand-carved "billboard" proclaimed, "Thermae M. Crassi Frugii. Aqua-Marina Et-Canin Dulci. Januarius. L." Translation: proprietor Januarius L. wanted Romans to know his establishment offered warm sea and fresh water baths. Just as any modern marketer would do, Januarius. L was touting the luxury features of his property.

Early sales tools were carved, written or drawn by hand. During the centuries when illiteracy was the norm, a proprietor's chief communications medium was the sign above his door. Usually it was painted with a bright, easily recognizable symbol representing the establishment's name, i.e., the Red Fox Inn or the White Unicorn Tavern. Such signage continued to be used well into the 19th century and examples still can be seen in the quaint old cities of Europe.

After Guttenberg invented the printing press in circa 1450, owners of lodging and dining establishments added printed media such as broadsides, posters, and posted notices to their repertoire. According to the 1887 edition of Chambers 's Encyclopedia, advertisements were found in England as early as the mid-17th century.

Later, the invention of high-speed presses led to the spread of newspapers that hoteliers used to bring their messages right into the homes of potential customers.

Word of mouth was as valuable in days of yore as it is today. To generate positive buzz in the early 1800s, hoteliers and others began using publicity. Showmen like Buffalo Bill Cody used publicity stunts to generate headlines and ticket sales for their attractions. Hoteliers took note and also sought publicity -

but of the most genteel kind.

Direct mail became popular about 100 years ago when low-cost, color lithography made it possible for hotel owners to print colorful postcards, brochures, folders, Christmas cards, matchbook covers, and luggage stickers for steamer trunks. Other common marketing techniques of today that originated in the past include: • Suggestive selling -

In the early 20th century, hotels in Alpine Austria mailed col-

orful postcards to merchants and businesses in Vienna suggesting that since the forthcoming Tuesday was a holiday, they might also want to close on Monday and take their families for a four-da y weekend in the mountains.

• Special rooms for women -

This approach, which was popular in the 1970s and

1980s, in fact, was first used 50 years ago to attract what one hotel company called the " bachelor girl."

• Frequent guest promotions -

Many commercial hotels 100 years ago had

"Peddlers' Clubs " with special rates and rooms for tra veling salesmen. They also offered special dining rooms and menus as well as "sample rooms" where salesmen

16

75 YEARS Of SERVICE AND ACH IE VEMENT

could display their products to the public.

• Marketing partnerships -

In the early 1900s,

the Fred Harvey Corporation and the Santa Fe Railway teamed up to develop and promote the Grand Canyon as a tourist attraction so they could sell transportation, lodging, and tours to this previously hard-to-reach destination.

• Outsourcing -

At the turn of the 20th century,

most hotels did not include a sales or promotion department as part of their operations. Some larger hotels, however, hired outside consultants to generate sales on their behalf. This was outsourcing long before the term was coined.

Personal selling didn't become a part of hotel marketing until the meetings and conventions market emerged. Prior to that time, calling on prospective customers was generally viewed as highly undignified and tantamount to begging for business. This philosophy began to die out in the United States in the early 20th century, but remained prevalent in parts of Europe until the mid-1950s.

The people who organized meetings and conventions were naturally reluctant to rely on just advertising and word of mouth when selecting a site for an event. They wanted to know about the full range of options available, see the facilities for themselves, and interact personally with the hotel personnel responsible for fulfilling their requirements. Hotels responded by hiring staff to make outside sales calls to prospects' offices. Today's hospitality professionals continue to pound the pavement, following the trail blazed by these pioneers.

As this brief history of travel and hospitality sales and marketing makes clear, hospitality sales and marketing professionals of the 21st century face essentially the same challenges and use basically the same tools as their predecessors. The medium may be a Web site rather than a marble tablet, but the problem remains: How do you economically deliver the right message to the right audience at the right time? Today's target market might brew new gene therapies rather than beer, but its meeting requirements are strikingly similar.

Santayana wrote that those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it. By remembering the first 75 years of HSMAI's history, 21st century sales and marketing executives may learn to avoid the mistakes of their forebears and, with luck, replicate their achievements. •

SETTING THE STAGE: HOTEL PROMOTION BEFORE 1927

17

IN THE PAST, the general image of the lodging

and unbusiness-like by the majority of other fello w

industry was not always the most positive . The

hoteliers as well as by potential customers. It was

stereotyped image of the genial innkeeper or hotel

thought that the reputation of an establishment

proprietor, at least to most of the public, was that

was all the promotion any property required. The

of a smiling, amiable host who offered shelter, bed

"classic" hotels lived mostly on repeat, recom-

and board, and some very basic "away-from-

mended, and referral business.

home" comforts.

At best, a stay at a good establishment almost

For some une xplainable reason, the idea of what seemed to be "begging" people to stay or

seemed like a visit to one's grandparents. At its

meet at a hotel was not considered to be the same

worst, which was far too often, it was considered a

as encouraging people to purchase goods and sup-

"nightmare ." Many 18th and 19th century hotels,

plies at a shop or store . Far too often, the early

particularly country inns, were, as some unkno wn

pioneering hotel salespeople seemed to the public

writer described them, "nefarious gathering places

to be the counterpart of the co vered wagon "drum-

for purse-snatchers, petty thieves, cutthroats, and

mers" and "snake oil" hucksters of the early

strumpets:' Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has his leg-

American western frontier.

endary detective, Sherlock Holmes, apologize to his associate, "I much fear, my dear Watson, that there

Even in the 1960s, many European hotel sales managers tried to avoid directly "asking for the order" and concentrated more on the "soft selling"

AShort History of Hospitality Sales 6 Marketing

techniques of public relations. Those who didn't were "taken to task" by both their potential cus -

is no return train tonight. I have un wittingly con demned you to the horrors of a country inn."

But of far more importance than just literature

general apprehension . Those who carried the title of hotel sales or promotion manager in the early

rarely thought of as being the equal of any other

part of the 20th century were, for the most part,

business owner or manager-particularly in the

totally unfamiliar with hotel operations. They gen-

sense of professional management practices. As

erally kne w very little about the properties they

bad as that may seem, the situation was even more

represented because they were mainly "recruited"

negative when considering the early reputation of

from other industries. They were first and foremost

the hotel sales executive.

"salesmen"-many of whom prided themselves on the fact that they had cultivated such a great ability

posters, advertising notices, and other printed pro -

to use words in such a persuasive way that they

motional literature in the hotel industry, which can

could sell anything to anyone at any time-for

be traced back hundreds of years.

almost any price. They could, as the old saying

However, the concept of individuals represent-

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

There were several other good reasons for this

was the fact that a hotel owner or manager was

There are abundant examples of signs and

18

tomers and by their fellow hoteliers.

went, "Sell refrigerators to Eskimos."

ing specific hotels and personally asking the public

Most of them, it seems, wanted little to do with

to patronize their establishments is, by and large,

the internal operations of the properties they rep-

less than 100 years old . And when personal selling

resented-largely because most of them did not

was first used, it was generally considered "vulgar"

plan to make anything other than a very short-time

career within the hotel industry. In fact, many

those would be the times when it would be the eas-

excused their hotel sales occupation by saying they

iest for them to make the sale) . As far as how much

had to do something "in between jobs" while they

business, most early sales executives follo wed the

were looking for a good position selling life insur-

general "rule of thumb" of booking at least ten

ance, books, or cars.

times their salary (but not much more)-since that

In effect, they were professional salesmen who

was related to the fact that hotels were generally

were using the hotel industry to advance their sales

paying a ten percent commission to travel agents.

careers. Jumping to a description of today's success-

This process of "selling" neglected two key

ful hotel sales/ marketing executives, their modern-

considerations: What did the hotel need to reach its

day counterparts are hotel career executives who

objecti ves and goals-and what did the potential

specialize in the areas of sales and marketing .

guests or customers need to reach their objectives

If we examine the procedures used by hotel

and goals with respect to their reasons for wanting

salesmen from the turn of the 20th century until

to use hotel accommodations and facilities?

the end of World War II, we find most (but not all)

So, in the early 1950s (and in a fe w cases, even

were selling conventions, meetings, and other

earlier), hotel salespeople started to recognize that

groups primarily on the basis of their personal

before the actual "selling process" should take

charm, persuasi ve use of words, and sho wmanship.

place, there must be a "marketing" approach to the

And-unfortunately, in too many cases- on the

merging of their product's features and benefits

ability to ha ve the best all-night hospitality suite

with the specific needs and wants of various differ-

the evening before the convention delegates voted

ent types of customers.

on selection of future meeting sites.

Site selection, in effect, was far too often just a

Other industries had been utilizing this basic approach for years. But for some reason, the hospi-

popularity contest. And this frequently had disas-

tality industry thought that as a business it was

trous effects on both the groups holding the meet-

"different" from all others-often using the excuse

ings and on the sites and hotels that hosted them.

that its products were mainly "intangibles."

Now, for one more excursion back into history .

However, as more experienced and business-

When sales managers were hired during the first

minded hotel executives entered the sales depart-

half of the 20th century, many of them would ask,

ment (as well as sales executives directly recruited

"What am I supposed to do?" The usual answer

from the "outside"), the industry realized that the

from the general manager was, "Go out and get us

key to profitable operations lay in the development

some business - we need to fill up our rooms!" The

of an annual "marketing plan" to structure and

sales manager's response: "Where do I get this

guide selling and other promotional activities. And

business - and how much do you need?" To which

the marketing plan became the essential "vehicle"

the GM would usually smugly reply, "Hey, if I kne w

that changed "selling" from primarily being an

the answers to those questions, I wouldn't have

"art" to "marketing," which became a "science."

needed to hire you!"

And both are essential for success in the hospitality

And so the sales managers went out to book business, usually for the times when their hotels were already in a high-demand situation (since

industry, and will become even more so during this 21st century.

DAVID C. DORF, CHME

SETTING TH E STAGE: HOTE L PROMO TION BEFORE 1927

19

• CHAPTER TWO

In 1927, a demand for ethical practices, combined wi th a desire to raise the knowledge and status of hotel representatives, led to the formation of the first International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion.

The Formative Years HE DECADE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR I, THE SO-CALLED war to end all wars, was one of enormous vitality and optimism in the United States. It was the Jazz Age, the time of the Harlem Renaissance and Prohibition. Law-abiding citizens became law-breakers in order to enjoy bathtub gin and frequent speakeasies. It was a time of larger-than-life characters like Babe Ruth, Charles Lindbergh, Josephine Baker, Sigmund Freud, and Al Capone.

Economically, America roared in the Twenties. Wartime technology and new production methods were converted to peacetime use, thus creating new and more efficient businesses. Radio dramatically speeded up communications. Labor-saving machinery allowed employers to start offering eight-hour workdays, five-day workweeks, and paid vacations. Between 1922 and 1929, national income rose more than 40 percent.

THE 19 2 Os: THE F0 RM AT IVE YE AR 5

21

The Formative Years Lodging Roars Into the Twenties The lodging industry benefited from this economic boom in two ways. Paid vacations and five-day workweeks created leisure time for travel. Automobiles, which grew in popularity with each passing day, provided Americans the means. By 1929, there were 23 million cars in the United States. To accommodate all those new drivers, governments constructed thousands of miles of roads and the hospitality industry built thousands of rooms and restaurants along the new highways . This was the industry's first building boom.

The vigorous economy also led to the expansion or creation of associations and large corporations that needed to hold meetings, conventions, expositions, and exhibitions.

Illustrative of this trend was the Machine and Tool Division of the American Society of Steel Treating. The division grew so quickly after the war that in less than ten years it split off to become a separate organization. In 1927, the machine and toolmakers required 75,000 square feet of space for their first solo exhibition. That same year their former parent organization hosted its own 150,000-square-foot event.

According to Harry B. Dickson, then convention manager for United Hotels of America, 90 percent of Americans participated in conventions of one sort or another during the Roaring Twenties.

"We have the agricultural, industrial, scientific, military, religious, political, patriotic, commercial, financial, educational, reformative and art conventions," he said. "Men, who a few years (ago) were skeptical of each other's intentions, are getting together, getting acquainted, and talking over their various problems and have done much toward the development of America."

A hotel was the usual place where these men (and most participants were male) got

1927

J. W. Marriott's Empire Begins with an A&W Root Beer Stand Lindbergh Completes First Solo Flight Across Atlantic

Huntington Hotel Installs Lodging's First Olympic-Size Pool Transatlantic Telephone Service Initiated German Economy Collapses The Hotel Statler in Boston Becomes the First Hotel with Radio Reception

22

7S YE ARS OF SER VICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

together to advance their own fortunes and those of the nation.

Addresses d J;· Inr . e >'ered ernation I at the Promotion ~ Conference on ~er:U,g of the ' oronto r_ '"lOte/ B . ''-illlada, ]uJ U.Stnes,s y 8 th, 1929_

However, neither the executive secretaries who organized these events nor the hotel convention executives who served them had any training in this type of work. Even fewer held much status within their organizations. In fact, hotel representatives typically

I

I

had to check with their management before they could make firm commitments to their clients.

Ethics Cast Shadow Over the Future Besides a surfeit of training and status, some on either side of the convention-booking negotiation apparently lacked solid business ethics. As over-building created a surplus of hotel rooms, competition became fierce and often dirty. Getting the business at any cost became the battle cry of too many convention sales warriors.

As a result, concern about unsavory business practices grew. In 1926, the president of the International Association of Convention Bureaus called on the American Hotel Association to adopt a code of ethics.

-

He asserted, "Hotels have a civic responsibility in the ... handling of the convention which should forbid them from using unfair, unbusiness-like or unethical methods in their pursuit of this trade."

1928

1929

First Mickey Mouse Cartoon

Western Hotels, Now Westin, Establishes Industry's First Hotel Management Company

Novel Grand Hotel Published

First Scheduled TV Broadcast

Cascade Tunnel Completed

U.S. Stock Market Collapses

Kellogg-Briand Pact Outlawing War Signed by 65 Nations

More Women Than Men Work In Hotels

Receipts for U.S. Hotels Equal $838 million

Graf Zeppelin Airship Flies Around the World

More Than 580, ooo are Employed by the Hotel Industry

TH E l g 2 os: TH E F0 RMA TIV E YE A RS

23

THIS IS THE SEPTEMBER 24, 1927 AGENDA ofthelnternationalConferenceonHotel Business Promotion that took place on September 22-24 at the Belmont Hotel in Chicago, Illinois.

PROGR AM

AGENDA September 24, 1927 Officers, Board of Directors, and Office Address of the Secretary -Treasurer Attendees

lNTERNATIO AL

Co FERE CE •• H OTEL B u ESS PROMOTION

Conference Minutes and Resolutions, September 23, Including Purposes of the Organization Nominating Committee Report Morning Meeting of September 24, Including Speakers Program Agenda

THE KING EDWARD HOTEL

Afternoon Meeting of September 24, Including Minutes of the Board of Directors Greetings to the American Trade Association Executives (ATAE) [now known as the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE)] Constitution and By Laws The Purpose of the Association, H.B. Dickson The Week-End Convention (Advantages to the Convention), L.E. Pierce How We Can Get Actual Registration of Convention Delegates in the Hotel, Edgar L. Dixon How This Association Can Cooperate With the Convention Organizations to Bring About Better Understanding and Greater Cooperation, T. W Vinson How Can Hotels Cooperate in Raising the Standard of Solicitation of Conventions, Walter L. Gregory Canvassing Conventions Already Booked, Mrs. G.B. Cummings The Value of the Convention Department in the Hotel, W.B . Reamer What Should Convention Organizations Expect of Hotels, U. Hoyt Week End Convention Advantage to the Hotel, David B. Mulligan The Problem of Room Assignment, R.D. McFadden Remarks, Horace Leland Wiggins

24

7 S YE ARS 0 F 5 ERVI CE AND ACHI EVEMENT

An Association Is Born In 1927, this demand for ethical practices, combined with a desire to raise the knowledge and status of hotel representatives, led to the formation of the first International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion. Over the next 75 years the organization would evolve into today's Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International.

Ironically, this new association, created to clean up the convention business, was born in Chicago, where the notorious Al Capone himself owned a hotel. In late September, 36 sales-minded hotel executives gathered at the Belmont Hotel for a convention of their own where they outlined the purpose of their organization; elected officers; and heard a variety of practical, educational presentations by their peers and clients.

They defined the five purposes of the organization as: • To consider and discuss methods of hotel business promotion.

• To establish a system of interchange of convention information among member hotels.

• To cooperate with convention secretaries so conventions in hotels will be handled with maximum efficiency.

• To assist convention secretaries in securing correct information concerning the facilities, rates, and services of member organizations.

• To establish and maintain greater cooperation and uniform practices in the solicitation and handling of group business by hotels.

John C. Burg, Hotels Statler Corporation, New York, was selected as the association's first president; Harry K. McEvoy, Boomer Dupont Co., Chicago, was vice presi-

John C. Burg, one of the 36 founders and first president of the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion.

dent; and Harry B. Dickson, United Hotels of America, New York, was named secretary-treasurer. The members also appointed a six-member board of directors.

All but one of the attendees were male. There was one Canadian in the group and

Top Photo: A typewritten roster of attendees at the inaugural meeting of the organization.

the rest were Americans. They represented primarily large hotel companies or independent properties and hailed from the East and Midwest.

Those early educational sessions covered topics that are still pertinent today. They included: • "What Should Convention Organizations Expect of Hotels?"

• "The Problem of Room Assignment" • "The Weekend Convention - Advantages to the Hotel" THE 1920s: THE FORMATI VE YEARS

25

• "The Weekend Convention - Advantages to the Convention."

Closing remarks by Horace Leland Wiggins, managing director of The Benjamin Franklin Hotel in Philadelphia, underscored the enormous potential of the newly formed organization. "I

Jiz.eJ{~1f e /[3 e f11io1l L OVERLOOKING

BELMONT

HARBOR

CHICAGO

ar 11ucrsccr1nn of Shcrhl.rn Ril.hl. BdnhHH Avenue ;rnd New Outer Dnv~

predict a wonderfu ll y successful association, successful for yourselves and successful for the hotel interests you represent. There is no question that a world of good can come from this exchange of ideas, " he said.

The site of the first meeting of the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion September 22-24, 1927.

The Early Years The International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion held its second annual meeting in Cleveland in 1928. John Burg continued as president. In 1929, the group headed north to Toronto for its confab. William C. Royer of the Atlanta-Biltmore became the association's second president. Soliciting and serving the convention market continued to dominate the educational programming, but sessions about the

Men, who a few years (ago)

tourist market, advertising, and ways of increasing hotel business overa ll were added to the agenda.

were skeptical of each other's intentions, are getting together,

One speaker, from the accounting firm of Horwath & Horwath, took hoteliers to task for their narrow focus on convention business. "The hotel industry today is spending an enormous amount of money for advertising and sales promotion. But

getting acquainted, and talking

what is being accomplished?" he asked.

over their various problems and

sales objectives beyond conventions. "If you can learn how to create new business and

This provocateur urged the fledgling association and the industry to broaden their to 'sell the whole hotel' to your registered guests, then you as individuals will find suc-

have done much toward the development of America.

HARRY B. DICKSON, CONVENTION MANAGER, UNITED HOTELS OF AM ERICA

cess," he exhorted.

Whether or not they followed the speaker's advice, success for most hoteliers proved to be short lived. Less than five months later, the U.S. stock market crashed on October 29, the day that became known as Black Tuesday.

Over the previous four years, stock prices had tripled, but by mid-November 1929, they plummeted 40 percent, a loss of $30 billion. This was the start of the Great Depression, which eventually spread like cancer across the globe. The hospitality industry was not immune to its ill effects. Hotel receipts for 1929 were $838 million, but by 1933 they wou ld sink to just $516 million. •

26

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHI EVEMENT

his excerpt recognizing the importance of "constructive salesmanship" is from Sales

T

Promotion for Hotels, a booklet published in 1931. The material was originally prepared for

an address in 1928 presented at a meeting of the Indiana and Ohio State Hotel Association.

The booklet was distributed through the Cornell Society of Men and was used by students of Hotel Administration courses at the university.

POLICY OF MANAGEMENT We must all concede the fact that constructive salesmanship must be an integral part of successful hotel management. In outlining the sales policy for the hotel, the following factors must be given consideration: 1. The attaining of a volume of sales.

2. Profitable sales.

3. The limits of hotel sales possibilities.

4. A knowledge of the Limits of Selling Costs.

s. That the article to be sold cannot be sent to the patron -the patron must come to the

VISITORS Ml)ST

!iQI SNORE.

hotel to buy.

THOSE AQDICTED TO

It is also necessary to keep in mind that the article or commodity it is hoped to sell

TRANSHRRED TO

shall be presented to the public from a sales standpoint at the LEAST POSSIBLE COST.

flOORS ll TO l't

We are all cognizant of the fact that largely up to the present time, the average hotel-

ON APPLICATION TO

NIGHT NOISES CAN BE

keeper's conception of the selling end of his business has been about as follows:

CHECK CLERK .

1. Attempting to increase the volume of sales and promote business by means of price

and rate cutting.

2. Depending upon the affability and personality of the employees behind the desk and in other departments, to make up for the demerits of the product.

3. Depending upon the room clerks, in some magic and mysterious manner, to please patrons with an inferior article, and trying to hypnotize the patron with room salesmanship instead of seeing that the room and price are right.

4. By being a good fellow himself and attending to everything else under the sun except to his business.

It has not been many years ago that the average American city boasted of one leading hotel and, as a rule, that one outstanding hotel in many of our larger cities was nationally known.

Today we have any number of hotels in almost every city entitled to the rank of "first-class" and

In 1926, a hand written sign tacked onto the wall of a modest hotel room warns the occupant that snoring is forb idden.

catering to a high type of patron. This intensive competitive situation has brought about the realization that hotels must seek the services of the selling expert; that the sales department is a necessary adjunct; and that advertising, per se, must give way to what we will term "hotel merchandising."

HOTEL MERCHANDISING may briefly be described as attempting to sell a superior commodity at the same, or better price than the competitor would sell it, and focusing attention on the article to be sold, and considering salesmanship and advertising as merely incidentals, or a medium to assist in bringing about the sale .

TH E I 9 2Os : TH E F0 RMATI VE YE AR5

27

• CHAPTER THREE

By the end of the decade, unemployment in the United States remained an astonishing 17 percent.

Nonetheless, HSMA had prospered.

Membership had risen nearly 300 percent since 1930.

Turbulent Times HE THIRTIES WAS A TURBULENT ERA OF ECONOMIC and social upheaval brought on by the Great Depression. On the horizon, the rumble of war could be heard, faintly at first, and then it burst forth to engulf the world.

Still, the Thirties was also a time of important advances in the hospitality and travel industry. With commercial air travel in its infancy, major airlines were being formed and Pan Am began the first regularly scheduled air service between the United States and Europe. The Waldorf-Astoria opened in New York with 2,200 rooms filling its 42 stories, the largest hotel in the world at that time. Tourist attractions, including the Empire State Building, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Baseball Hall of Fame, came into existence. Nevada legalized casino gambling. Prohibition ended and air-conditioning was invented, eventua lly opening up southern climates for tourism and the population shifts that would forever change the face of the United States.

THE 1930s: TURBULENT TIMES

29

As the 1930s dawned, the United States and the rest of the world were sinking into the deepening depression. As hard as the United States was hit, European countries were in even more dire straits because they had not fully recovered from World War I. Initially, the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion, as the organization was then known, maintained the momentum it built up in the late Twenties.

Membership continued to grow, reaching 55 in 1931. The group optimistically set a goal of 100 members by the next meeting. Education sessions at the annual meetings focused on such topics as exhibit rentals, advertising, the importance of small meetings, and travel agency comm1ss10ns.

By fall of 1932, almost 15 million Americans were out of work. Despite the worsening economy, the organization held its annual meeting in November. Speakers from the American Trade Association Executives and the American Steel Institute underscored that convention business remained the group's primary focus. Cleveland was selected as the site for the 1933 convention.

Banking Crisis Nearly Kills the Association As the months wore on, however, the economy continued to decline. Industrial stocks had lost 80 percent of their value since the Great Crash. In March of 1933, the banking system delivered a blow that nearly killed off the fledgling International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion.

Banks were failing at an alarming rate (eventually 44 percent would go under in the The 1930 convention of the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., made headlines. William C. Royer was elected to a second term as president.

United States) . As each bank foundered, depositors at other financial institutions

1930

Commission to Travel Agents is Ten Percent

1

Christ Statue Built Atop Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro

Pluto Discovered First Trans-African Railroad Built Youth Hostels Association Founded in Great Britain United Airlines Introduces the Airline Stewardess Camera Flashbulbs Patented Four Out of Five Hotels in the United States go into Receivership

30

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

Waldorf Astoria Opens on Park Avenue in New York Empire State Building Completed

panicked and withdrew their savings, which, in turn, caused those banks to fail. State after state declared emergency "bank holidays" to try to stop the hysteria. On March 6, 1933, newly inaugurated President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared a national bank holiday to give banks a chance to organize their accounts. Some remained closed for weeks, and many never reopened. The financial crisis forced many other industries to cut back production or shut down entirely. As business dried up, so did the need for meetings and conventions. Hotel receipts for the year dropped to $516 million, a 62 percent decline since 1929.

Since the programs of the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion focused on the selling to and servicing of the now nearly nonexistent meetings market, the organization was declared inactive. With the very survival of many hotels in question, minutes of that last meeting in 1933 indicated "The Board thought it unwise to call upon the Managers for membership dues or to have their assistants come to the conference." Ultimately, 85 percent of hotels went into receivership or some form of liquidation.

Amidst the overall gloom, a glimmer of hope appeared in 1933 -

the New Deal.

This unprecedented federal spending program was designed to aid victims of the depression and put business proprietors and farmers back on their feet. New Deal agencies such as the Public Works Administration, Civilian Conservation Corps, and Works Progress Administration pumped billions of dollars into the economy and provided jobs for millions.

Workers who otherwise would have been unemployed built 75,000 bridges and constructed or improved 650,000 miles of public roads. They also built courthouses, hospitals, schools and libraries, theaters and museums; planted trees; renovated historic

1932

1933

Amelia Earhart Becomes First Woman to Fly Solo Across Atlantic

Loch Ness Monster First Spotted

Air-Conditioning Invented

Grand Hotel Wins Oscar for Best Picture

Lake Placid Hosts First Winter Olympics in U.S.

The only two ladies attendi ng the 1930 co nven tion in an official capacit y: Ada Taylor, person al representative of the Hotel Chelsea, Atlan ti c City, NJ, and Mrs. Ka te Pierce Thaye r, social director of the Roosevelt, New York City, look ove r a guidebook of Was hingto n's attractions.

To p photo: The 1930 co nven tion host Daniel O'Brien (le ft), of the Mayflowe r Hotel, welcomes William C. Royer, president of the International Conference on Hotel Business Pro motion .

Prohibition Ends in U.S.

U.S. Hotel Occupancy Rate Reaches All-Time Low- 51 Percent Wiley Post Makes First Solo Flight Around the World

Franklin D. Roosevelt Wins First of Four Presidential Terms THE 1930s: TURBU LE NT TIM ES

31

More on the Early History of HSMA Frank F. Hendrickson made another important contribution to the convention business in 1936, when he was one of those participating in the re-activation of HSMA. It had been initially founded in 1927 as the International Conference on Hotel Business Promotion, but had not then met for three years. H.B. Dickson was secretary. He inspired the publisher with the need for reviving the group, and Mr. Hendrickson gave him space in the office and paid for a direct mail campaign - including my services in writing it. With the blessings of L.E. Pierce, Manager of the Hotel Cleveland - the hold-over President of the Conference - and of John C. Burg, a Past President of that group and Vice President of the Hotels Statler Company, a three-day meeting was called at Mr. Pierce's hotel, in March.

Drawing again on World Convention Dates' resources, we combined the three best pages from the typewritten transcript into one photo-offset mailing piece and offered the "book" to every hotel on our prospect list. I forget the price, but enough orders came in to finance the printing, with enough left over to promote another convention. The group met again in December of the same year, at The Greenbrier, where a decision was reached to change the name to the Hotel Sales Managers Association. After a winter of constitution writing, this was effected at French Lick Springs, in March 1937. Some years later, the name was changed again to Hotel Sales Management Association.

The Fight to Recognize 'Sales' It was my privilege to serve as public relations director of HSMA for seven years, during which Mr. Hendrickson continued his support by devoting a monthly section of the magazine to hotel sales and service . This helped the group in its up-hill fight for recognition -which was harder than many people realize, because the sales function itself was hardly recognized by management. The title "Sales Manager" was used by few hotels, and there were dozens of euphemisms like business manager, convention director- and even entertainment manager.

Many hotel men were prejudiced against the word 'sales' because they considered it too commercial. One influential manager rebuked me in public for using the word "customer" . His words, which were applauded, still sting my ears: "A hotel is the manager's home. The patrons are his guests. The employees are his servants!"

ffotel,

•

1.

LlCI\-

f r''''c It f ren<: t

511rings r L"IC"'' 1. I rt cl·

'

Many also dreaded the rise of convention business as a mainstay of their hotels. Another manager, also a prominent host, told me, "I will take conventions as a last resort, but the delegates may not wear badges and must ride to their meetings in the service elevator!" Needless to say, he booked no business. His differently-minded successor did.

GEORGE K. DAHL, HSMA EXECUTIVE SECRETARY 1943

32

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AN D ACHIEVEMENT

Data on Sales Promotion buildings; and carved out trails and campgrounds in state and national parks across America. Many of these projects remain an important part of the nation's tourism infrastructure.

The WPA even employed artists who created exquisite posters promoting tourist destinations and attractions such as Puerto Rico, Montana, and the O lympic bobsled run in Lake Placid. Still popular with today's travelers, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, San Francisco's Coit Tower, Skyline Drive, and the Appalachian Trail are legacies of the depression-era government agencies.

Initially, the New Deal focused on economic relief, but later it emphasized reforms, many of which influence American business to this day. D uring this era, the Federal Reserve Bank and Social Security were created, banking and securities were regulated, and labor laws were revised to include a minimum wage and a maximum number of work hours per week.

Organization Reborn

f:\ h:incllHw.1k on hotel ~ales promotion. containini! :ipproximatcly 70 p:i;!C'S of in format ion :md idca5 on :i wide range of prohlems affect ing the ~>lici· t:ition of group and ind ividua l )!Ue.St hU!•ines5, h:is just hcen i~ued by the Hotel Businc,;s Promotion Confe rence.

The hook which record~ the procccdini::~ of 1i1e 5e,;,;ions recently hdd b~· that org:iniza1ion a1 The GH·cnhriar, \ Vhi tc Sulphur Springs. \ \ ". Va ., is he· ing mailed to t•:1ch of 1hc 100 or more hotel men who rq!is1ercd for those meeting; , as " ·,•II :i5 to nwmhers of the confcrcnn· who were not in attendance.

Ext ra copie,; arc :t\':tibblc. :ict:ording to Ha rn · B. Dicbon. secretary-treasurer of . h<' group, anti will he mai led on rcqut·>t to those who wi,;h them. As in iH<'\·iou,; ~T;lJ',;, the,· arc priced at ~2.00 11(-r cop~" All requc:<ts should be addrt•;.;.ed to :'11 T. Dicbon, Room J so ~. :uo \\\·::t ~2nd str<.'Cl, ?'\c\\" Yo ~k City.

The New Deal couldn't restore the U.S. economy to its pre-1929 exuberance, but things began to improve. In 1935, Americans spent $2.3 billion on vacations and

Hotel Gazette, January 30, 1937

more than half expected to take vacations in 1936. These and other signs of economic recovery led hotel promoters to resurrect their organization.

Over 100 people headed to Cleveland for the Hotel Business Promotion Conference in 1936. The president of the American Hotel Association (now the American Hotel & Lodging Association) addressed the delegates. Optimistically he told them, "The hotel business is beginning to reflect improved conditions which are noticeable in other lines, and we are beginning to wear a smile again. Traveling men who have been off the road for years are getting back again."

1934

1935

Porgy &Bess Debuts in New York

1936

Detroit's Hote1 Stat1er Creates a Centra1 System to Air Condition Pub1ic Rooms

Co1onia1 Wi11iamsburg Opens

Life Magazine Debuts

Socia1 Security Act Passed in United States

Kodachrome Film Introduced

Cheeseburger Created

RMS Queen Mary Launched

Baseball Hall of Fame Founded in Cooperstown

Pan Am C1ipper Serves First Hot Mea1s A1oft Greyhound Cuts New York-Chicago Bus Fares to $B New York Convention and Visi tors Bureau Formed

London's Gatwick Airport Opens

Har1em's Apo11o Theater Opens Great Smoky Mountains Na tiona1 Park Created

by Act of Congress

* USA * WORI< PROGRAM

Works Progress Administration Created

Howard Johnson Begins Franchising Restaurants THE 1930s: TURBULENT TIMES

33

In fact, the associati on felt so positive about the economy it held a second meeting in December of that year and attracted 97 enthusiastic delegates. This ga thering proved especially important for the orga nization's future beca use it attracted a number of new members who went on to be national and regional leaders of the association. From this point on, the fu ture of what was to become HSMA was assured.

The year 1936 was also noteworthy beca use the organization, under the direction of President L.E. Pierce, modi fied its conference program in order to increase participa tion by mem bers and make room for diverse points of view. It eschewed lecture-style presentations fo r panel discussions fea turing a variety of speakers, a format that continu es to be popular.

1937: ASeminal Year In 1937, the year the first National H otel Week was officially proclaimed, the association took several important steps toward ~~

~--1.~ ~ \Wlr"'!:!:,___

becoming the organization it is today. First, it began chartering

local chapters, with Atlantic City as the first. To further professionalize the group, the 81-member organization also voted to change its name to the H otel Sales Managers Association. The force behind the name change was Hugh J. Con nor, who became the organization's president and fo unding president of the New York chapter.

From a 21st century vantage point, this decision may seem like a minor detail, but John R. Stubblefield, who was the executive secretary at the time, saw it as a turning point for the organization. "It broke away fro m the traditional concentration on convention business alone, by broadening its scope to include all types and forms of business in

1937

1938

RMS Queen Elizabeth Launched

1939

Membership in the Waiters and Bartenders National Union, Encompassing Hotel Employees, Exceeds 200, ooo

32,000 Americans Die in Auto Crashes

Pan Am Inaugurates Trans-Atlantic Commercial Flights

Florida Overseas Highway Cuts Miami-Key West Drive to Fi ve Hours

LaGuardia Airport Opens

Neville Chamberlain Declares "Peace in Our Time"

World War 11 Begins

First Sheraton Hotel Opens

Amelia Earhart Vanishes in South Pacific Golden Gate Bridge Opens The Hindenburg Explodes Killing 36 34

7 5 YE A R5 0 F 5 ERV I CE AN D AC HI EV EM ENT

Total Value of U.S. Lodging Properties is $S Billion

BOAC (now British Airways) Created

DURING THE 19305, HaroldlafrenereworkedattheEdgewaterBeach Hotel on Chicago's lakefront, a 1,000-room resort that closed during the winter months. The United States was suffering through the depression and most people believed if you were lucky enough to have a job, you should just keep your head down and your mouth shut. So, it took courage for Lafrenere to approach Mr. Dewey, the hotel's owner/operator, with what was then a radical proposal. He suggested that if someone made sales calls on downtown businesses, the national companies headquartered in Chicago and Chicago-based association executives, perhaps enough off-season group business could be generated to allow for year-round operation.

Mr. Dewey's reaction was abrupt and to the point. "It sounds possible," he said, "but I'm not going to spend my time and money on it. If you want to do it, fine. But do it on your own time, and don't expect any extra pay for your effort:' So, Lafrenere did just that. And he was successful - so successful, that Mr. Dewey created a full-time sales department with Lafrenere as its manager.

Focusing on group business, Lafrenere's sales representatives were paid a minimum sum, but received a cash commission for business booked and served.

He demanded ten personal sales contacts daily and wanted each call to be intelligent and productive. This called for efficient information gathering and recording long before computers made databases easy.

Lafrenere created the "Ka rd ex System." Through the use of color-coded signal flags,

The Home Insurance Building in Chicago, circa 1930, one of the national company headquarters on which Edgewater Beach Hotels sales representatives made sales calls, a "radical" concept at the time.

Ka rd ex gave the sales representative quick, concise information about the location of the prospect's office, the meeting months preferred, when the next call should be made, etc.

Other information was posted on the face of the contact card the sales rep carried to each call and reviewed prior to meeting the prospect. That way he could intelligently discuss the prospect's needs without referring to notes or correspondence. The system allowed Lafrenere's sales staff to spend maximum time on the street instead of in the office shuffling papers and reviewing files.

Five HSMAI past presidents and countless members were influenced by this pioneer in hotel sales who inspired a passion for excellence, personal contact, and respect for the client. "Know your product," Lafrenere would constantly repeat. "Know it down to the last detail. You'll gain the respect of your prospect. You'll gain his confidence and you'll close the sale. Every time!"

EARL G. DUFFY, PRESIDENT 1963

THE 1930s: TURBULENT TIMES

35

Early Hotel Promotional Contests Among the early forerunners of the HSMAI Advertising Awards Contests were the entries in the Hotel Promotional Materials Contest on display at the annual conventions in the late 1930s.

In the 1939 contest, the judges were required to give their reasons for their selectionsand it's interesting to note that these same reasons are as valid today as they were over 70 years ago.

Here are the winners - and the reasons given for their selections.

1. CONVENTION PRESENTATIO N:

Hotel William Penn, Pittsburgh, PA: Complete, factual, courteous, personal, not high pressure.

2. GENERAL DESCRIPTIVE LITERATURE FOR PROMOTI NGIN DIVIDUAL GU EST BU SIN ESS:

The Greenbrier Hotel, White Sulphur Springs, WV: Complete, interesting pictorial copy, continuity.

3. FOOD AND BEVERAGE PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL:

Hotel New Yorker, New York, NY: Informative, specific, continuity, good timely merchandising, definitely appetite creating.

4. DIRECT MAIL LITERATURE:

Cha/Jonte-Haddon Hall, Atlantic City, NJ (for a special folder for travel agents): Attractive in make-up, complete information necessary for a travel agent, convenient, and easy for the travel agent to use.

While the first two categories could also be considered as part of "direct mail advertising," the judges felt that an award should be made for the "best individual piece of direct mail literature," regardless of its purpose or to whom it was directed.

36

7 5 YE AR 5 0 F 5 ERV ICE AND AC HI EVE MEN T

IN THE EARLY DAYS of what was to become HSMAI, the great majority of

hotels -

individuals as well as groups, permanents

as well as transients, internal as well as external sales," he wrote. "What emerged ... was not just the old organism with a new name, but something entirely transformed, expanded and rededicated."

The organization also inaugurated an annual display and an awards program for hotel promo-

hotel salespeople were looked upon by hotel managers as "good will ambassadors:' The presumption, perhaps with some merit, was that they did not know much about the operation of their hotel and, conversely, the hotel managers, did not really understand the sales manager's function. So, to a large degree, they ignored each other.

The path leading to the position of hotel manager was first, accounting; second, accounting; and third, accounting. Trailing behind was food and beverage manager, front office manager, and hotel engineer. Yes, there were some salespeople who became hotel managers, but they were few and far between. This management selection process, to a large degree, continued through the 1940s and 1950s.

tional materials.

LEONARD R. OAKES, PRESIDENT 1965

Despite a recession that hit in late 1937, HSMA continued to thrive. The 1938 annual meeting featured notable speakers such as Edward L. Bernays, the father of modern public relations, and Elmer Wheeler, who authored the marketing maxim, "Sell the sizzle, not the steak." For the first time, the program included speakers from the leisure travel market.

In just one year the number of local chapters had grown to eight and four more were being formed. As a result, the organization elected eight regional governors for the Untied States and an additional governor for Canada.

By the end of the decade, unemployment in the United States remained an astonishing 17 percent. Nonetheless, HSMA had prospered. Membership had risen nearly 300 percent since 1930. During the administration of G.E.R. "Dick" Flynn, growth was especially apparent on the West Coast where new chapters were chartered in Los Angeles and San Francisco in 1939.

For the first time, the association published its Handbook for Sales

Managers, edited by George Dahl, an invaluable reference containing reprints of speeches and presentations delivered at hotel shows and state hotel association meetings as well as original articles written by HSMA officials, members, and other authorities.

While America was limping back to life at the end of the Thirties, the depression had created an atmosphere ripe for aggression and totalitarianism in other parts of the world. At decade's end, war was breaking out in Europe, Asia, and North Africa. Only after Pearl Harbor, when the American war machine went into overdrive, did the U.S. economy fully recover. •

THE 1930s: TURBULENT TIMES

37

• CHAPTER FOUR

Within four months of the bombs falling on Pearl Harbor, HSMA was already helping members cope with

f

the new realities of the business. The annual convention focused on "Sizing Up Wartime Sales Problems."

In War and Peace Y 1940, AMERICA WAS OUT OF THE DEPTHS OF THE GREAT

D

Depression, but had not returned to its previous heights. The gross

D

level and nearly 15 percent of Americans remained jobless. However,

national product of $99.7 billion was still $4 billion below its 1929

things were looking up. In the first two years of the decade, the national economy grew 23 percent. But such robust growth was not univer-

sal. Hotel income rose a mere six percent and rates were flat. Moreover, hopes for continued economic improvement were overshadowed by the fact that Europe was at war.

HSMA's Board of Directors worked hard to keep the organization growing and relevant in the face of uncertainty. "Integrating Sales and Service," a perennially popular subject, was the theme of the 1940 convention in Pittsburgh. President F. Burton Fisher, assistant manager of the Plaza Hotel in New York, announced membership had reached 254, a healthy 64 percent increase over the previous year.

THE 1940s: I N WAR AND PEACE

39

In War and Peace The year 1940 was important for the association and the industry because HSMA began planting the seeds for future generations of sales and marketing professionals.

Adrian W. Phillips, CHME, who became HSMA's president in 1942 and later its executive vice president, taught the first-ever college course in hotel sales promotion to 54 juniors and seniors at Cornell University.

On the educational front, HSMA member Theodore R. Nathan, assistant general manager of Drier Hotels, authored an extremely useful tool for working sales managers. Nathan, the director of the HSMA New York City chapter, wrote

The First Hotel Promotion Work Book, a 448-page compendium of ideas, illustrations, examples, and samples that members easily could put to work at their own properties.

By 1941, the United States was steadily marching towards war, and the theme of HSMA's annual convention, "The Hotel Sales Offensive in a National Defense Year," reflected the militarized mood of the nation.

Massachusetts Governor Leverett Saltonstall officially opened the meeting's exhibition of stellar sales and advertising materials in which the Hotel New Yorker, New York, took the prize for local advertising; the Parker House, Boston, for direct mail; and The Providence-Biltmore, Providence, for convention promotion. Later that year, HSMA's executive board met to discuss the association's relationship with travel agents, a topic that would have great economic significance to hotel sales in years to come.

Hospitality Goes to War

By December 7, 1941, America was at war and life on the homefront was turned upside down. The Interstate Commerce

1940

Pennsylvania Turnpike Opens

1941 Pearl Harbor Bombed; U.S. Enters WWII

Air Conditioning Takes Hold Polyester Fiber Created Bugs Bunny Makes His Screen Debut

40

7 S YE AR5 0 F 5 ER VI CE AN D ACH I EVEMENT

First College Course In Hotel Sales at Cornell

Travel Industry Association Of America Founded

First Highway Opens in Los Angeles

Washington, D.C. National Airport Opens

Churchill Named Britain's Prime Minister

Citizen Kane Premieres

Commission suspended tourist transportation for the duration, speed limits were capped at 35 miles per hour, and rubber and gasoline were rationed. With these factors limiting discretionary travel, the hotel industry might have suffered during the Forties, but the war set America in motion. People relocated for jobs, wives moved to be with husbands, military recruits headed to training centers, and troops went on leave. The wealthy still could afford leisure travel and since they couldn't go abroad, they traveled domestically.

As a result, many hotels were nearly full.

While demand stayed strong in many places, the room supply shrank as the military took over hotels for housing, training, medical, and R&R facilities. The U.S. Army, for example, purchased The Greenbrier and converted it into a hospital. The venerable resort also served as an internment center for Japanese and German diplomats.

Hotels, of course, were not alone in contributing to the war effort. Cruise liners, commercial airplanes, buses, and trains also were drafted. Restaurants went from serving 20 million meals per day before the war to a high of 75 million as they fed hungry troops and factory workers.

Like every segment of society, the hospitality industry faced shortages and rationing during the war years. One critical shortage was personnel as hotel staff left for military service or work in the defense industry. (Sig Front, the association's 1973 president, was among the thousands of teenagers "drafted" into the hotel business as a replacement during this period.) When sugar rationing was instituted, hotels had a 50 percent quota. Restaurants were ordered to remove sugar bowls

This is the dining car of the new Twentieth Century limited, which was shown to the public for the first time on September 9, 1948 during a trial run. Offering every modern convenience of rail travel, the luxuriously appointed New york Central Rail Road train went into service between New York and Chicago.

from tables and faced severe penalties for breaches. Later, brownouts to conserve electricity for war production snuffed out hotels' lighted signs and decorative lighting.

1942

ICC Suspends Tourist Transportation

1943

S.S. Normandie Destroyed By Fire

Chicago Convention 6 Visitors Bureau Founded

Maiden Flight of USA's First Jet Plane

U.S. Office of Defense Transportation Bans Conventions

World's First Operational Nuclear Reactor Built

Japanese-Americans Held in Internment Camps Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Occurs Casablanca Wins Best Picture

Pentagon Construction Completed

THE 19 40s : IN WA R AN D PE ACE

41

Civilians

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al th• lloo"v•ll . We mojor in these "furlough fieslo1•.

Phone ATLANTIC 3700 for dttoih or better 1lil/ come in ond Ue oru of our •P•<iol repr•uritolives for iuch portie1 . You 'll b• omoud at the moderate co1t .

ROOSEVELT HOTEL CHA.AlES R WllSON, Monogor

A government ban on most conventions, starting in 1943, dea lt the harshest blow

"Only the extreme satisfaction

to the industry. By 1944 even meetings as small as 50 people had to be pre-approved.

In Chicago alone these measures resulted in 2,500 empty hotel rooms every night.

of finding a place in the war

HSMA Reports for Duty

organization of our country

Within four months of the bombs falling on Pearl Harbor, HSMA was already helping members cope with the new realities of the business. The annual convention focused on "Sizing Up Wartime Sales Problems." Attendees heard optimistic presentations predicting "Trade Group Conventions Will Continue Despite War." (Unfortunately, they were wrong, thanks to the U.S. Office of Defense Transportation!) They also learned about

where I can be of real service would ever cause me to withdraw from real participation in

the devastating impact the war had already made on British hotels. Another session addressed a topic as relevant in the post-September 11 era as it was in the early days of World War II: "Combating Rumors and Stimulating Travel."

HSMA took a direct hit from the war when President Osgood Roberts, of Washington's Mayflower Hotel and a Naval Reserve officer, returned to active duty.

the affairs of the Hotel Sales Managers Association:' OSGOOD ROBERTS , HSMA PRESIDENT 1942

Upon resigning his presidency, Roberts wrote, "Only the extreme satisfaction of finding a place in the war organization of our country where I can be of real service would ever cause me to withdraw from real participation in the affairs of the Hotel Sales Managers Association." First Vice President Charles E. Hofman of the BellevueStratford Hotel, Philadelphia, served out Roberts' term. Despite the war, the association's membership continued to climb, reaching 339 members.

There were two important firsts in 1943: during the presidency of Clayton S. Hicks, HSMA's first female executive secretary, Esther Quinn Joyce was appointed.

The association also produced its first major publication, the 16-page Portfolio of Wartime Hotel Advertising.

1944

D-Day Invasion Hemingway Helps Liberate the Ritz In Paris

1945

Travelodge Becomes First Economy Lodging Company Brownouts Ordered to Conserve Energy Atomic Bombs Dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

National System of Interstate and Defense Highways Authorized S.S. Queen Elizabeth Brings Home 12,000 Happy Canadian Soldiers

Sheraton Corporation is First Hotel Company to be Listed on the New York Stock Exchange Bess Myerson Crowned First Jewish Miss America

Anne Frank Discovered by Nazis, Sent to Auschwitz World War II ends 43

By the time HSMA members convened in Pittsburgh at the end of 1944, the war in Europe was coming to a successful conclusion and the mood was upbeat as they planned for peace. One session simply, but boldly, proclaimed "25 Million New Jobs." The convention's program emphasized the various transportation modes and their projected impact on the industry. With the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1944 authorizing a network of multi-lane, limited-access expressways, the influence of the automobile on lodging was predicted to increase An HSMA leadership meeting in the 1940s, attended by 1946 President Leonard Hicks (first row, second from right), past president Dick Flynn (back row, middle) and 1952 president Charli e Bird (back row, far right).

and

how right they were!

Eight more months passed and they were eventful. The forces of Adolf Hitler, whose invasion of Poland in 1939

began one of the deadliest eras in world history, were defeated and the dictator reportedly took his own life as Berlin fell to the Allies. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt died in office on April 12, 1945, a month before Germany surrendered, and over 100,000 Japanese civilians perished as the first atomic bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, resulting in the surrender of the Japanese -

and finally

on August 15, 1945, World War II ended.

I WANTED TO GO TO CORN ELL on the GI Bill, but my family needed me to make money, so I had to go to work immediately. Eventually I became a room clerk and they were paying $40 a week. Ifound out the dishwasher was making $60 a week, so I went into the general manager and complained. The haughty GM replied, "I didn't know you wanted to be a dishwasher:' Acouple of weeks later he called me back into his office and said,

The rush of relief and joy at the end of the war was enormous, but for many, anxiety lay just beneath the surface. It was the war effort that had finally jolted the country out of the depression and some feared it might slide back. Would there be enough jobs for the millions of returning Gls? Could wartime innovations be converted for peacetime use without touching off an inflationary spiral?

"There's a new thing in the hotel industry called sales - just the major hotels have it, but Ithink there's room for us to have it. Do you think you could do it?" Ireplied, "Does it pay any more?"

Itook the job, so then Imade as much as the dishwasher. The gen-

"Service patterns have collapsed. Guests wait for

eral manager gave me beautiful calling cards and rack folders and I

rooms. There is a shortage of maid, bellboy,

had to go out and knock on doors, which I did. Ifound out Iwas quite a salesman and Ifound out there was no competition on the streets.

porter and telephone service. Room service is

Nobody was out making calls. People were quite surprised that a hotel

virtually eliminated. Elevator service is crippled:'

guy would come by, so Iwas bringing in a lot of business.

EARL G. DUFFY, PRESIDENT 1962

44

7 5 YE A R5 0 F 5 ERVI CE AND ACHI EVEM ENT

CHARLIE L. BIRD, ATLANTA BILTMORE, 1946

THE Fl RST HOTEL SALES COURSE ever was offered in 1940 ateornell. It met As servicemen came home, millions of women who had gone to work to help the war effort gave up their jobs to these returning warriors. The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, better known as the GI Bill of Rights, also smoothed out the post-war readjustment period fo r Gls and the country. By

from 10 a.m. to 12 noon on Saturdays. It took a mighty stalwart and undaunting individual to face 40 or so less-than-fully-awake students for two hours on a Saturday morning. I know from personal experience that it also took a student extremely devoted to the study of hotel sales to face the challenge, or at least feign interest, after a TGIF party the night before.

HSMA's Adrian Phillips, who undertook this assignment as instructor of the course, was indeed the stalwart and undaunting individual called fo r. He traveled weekly to Ithaca, New York, from Abescon, New Jersey, - no mean feat in itself - at his own expense and without fee, to extol the intricacies of hotel sales management.

RO BERT A. BECK, SECOND DEAN OF THE CORNELL SCHOOL OF HOTEL AD MINISTRATION

diverting many young vets into co lleges and universities rather than back into unemployment lines, the GI Bill eased veterans back

into the economy over a period of severa l years. And with the combination of the educa tion they received at these institutions and the lessons they'd learned on the battlefield, these soldier/scholars turned America's military might into a massive dream machine fo r fulfilling the desires of hungry consumers . Retooling, rebuilding, and reconstruction became the watchwords of the day.

Post-War Occupancy Skyrockets Converting wartime industries to peacetime uses required changes in manufacturing, adaptation of new technology, and considerable training and retraining of the workforce. These, in turn, necessitated thousands of company meetings, trade shows and professional association gatherings - most of which were held at hotels. After years of restrictions, leisure travel's powerful pent-up demand exploded, putting millions of "hea ds in beds." With demand high and the room supply depleted by wartime closures and military conversions, occupancy skyrocketed. In 1946, occupancy reached it highest rate ever - variously reported as 93, 95 or 96 percent, depending on the base used.

1946

Flamingo, The First Casino Hotel, Opens In Las Vegas

THE

FLRMI

HOTEL

LAS VEGAS NEVADA

First Round-Trip Commercial Flight From Ne wYork To London

1947 Xerographic Copier Debuts

The Roosevelt Hotel in New York City Installs Television in All Guest Rooms Jackie Robinson Breaks Baseball's Color Barrier

The Harvey Girls Movie Immortalizes Harvey House, One of the Earliest Restaurant Chains

Bogart and Bacall Subpoenaed by House Un -American Activities Committee

Westin Debuts the First Guest Credit Card

Chuck Yeager Breaks Sound Barrier

First Annual Travelguide Published for People of Color

United Airli nes Inaugurates Ten Hour Coast-ToCoast Flights THE 19405: I N WAR AND PEACE

45

IN 1943 A RESORT ON LAKE WINNIPESAUKEE in New Hampshire was having trouble finding bellmen and busboys with most young men off fighting the war, so it was recruiting high school boys wherever they could be found. Young Sig Front of West Virginia, who would become HSMAl's 1973 president, traveled 19 hours by train to "enlist" in the resort's workforce for the summer. After less than an hour on property, he had

The industry responded with a tidal wave of expansion. Chains such as Best Western, Loews, and Travelodge were born. Hilton became the first international cha in. Pan American Airways opened a couple of hotels of its own. Not only was the industry growing,

his first assignment: unloading and carrying six pieces of luggage in a rainstorm. His tip? Athin dime. For the entire ten weeks Sig

ment contract while Westin debuted the first guest credit card and

earned $25 plus tips, which he usually increased by playing

reservation system. Manhattan's Roosevelt Hotel fired the opening

penny-ante poker.

sa lvo in the still-ongoing amenities wars by installing a television in EARL G. DUFFY, PRESIDENT 1962

but also innovating. lnterContinental signed the first hotel manage-

each guestroom. Other sectors of hospitality were also burgeoning.

In the first three years after the war, 75 ,000 new food service es tablishments opened. To report on the growing industry, HSMA mem-

ber Philip Harrison started Conventions Magazine in 1946. Over the years it morphed in to the industry bib le, Successful Meetings .

HSMA Retools During those first years after the war, HSMA did some retooling of its own. First, it changed its name from the Hotel Sales Managers Association to the Hotel Sales Management Association, in 1946. Typica lly, the word "international" was included after the name to indicate the breadth of the membership, but this wasn't officially part of the name at that time. T he organization also broadened its membership to include "all hotel owners, operators, managers and other executives engaged in the promotion of sales, advertising, publicity and public relations." Later, representatives trade press were also included.

At the 1946 convention in Biloxi, Mississippi, speaker Charlie L. Bird of the Atlanta Biltmore, who in 1952 served as the association's president, raised the alarm

1948

Intercontinental Announces Plans for 11 Properties in Latin America

1949

Hilton Becomes First International Hotel Chain

Death Of A Salesman Opens on Broadway Berlin Airlift NATO Alliance Formed Teflon Commercially Produced Polaroid Camera Invented Congress Passes Marshall Plan

Convention Liaison Council Formed

about an industrywide problem that had developed as a result of neglect during the war years and the new wave of expansion. "Service patterns have collapsed," he proclaimed. "Guests wait for rooms. There is a shortage of maid, bellboy, porter, and telephone service. Room service is virtually eliminated.

Elevator service is crippled."

As a seasoned sales manager, Bird knew service snafus would negatively affect the ability of HSMA members to do their jobs, so the deficiencies had to be corrected immediately. He told his brethren, "Our biggest selling job today is internal not external."

Over the next two years, the association continued to grow by focusing on the fundamentals of members' business. Annual meetings included sessions on advertising, developing beneficial relationships with association secretaries, updates on the state of the industry, and niche topics such as allied sales and sales ideas from south of the border, featuring a panel re properties in Mexico and Cuba.

I

The 1949 convention became the template for all future HSMA annua by bringing in a broad range of speakers, including sales executives from inside and outside the industry, general managers, representatives of related trade associations, convention bureau executives, members of allied fields, and representatives from key customer organizations. Among the star speakers were World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker, president of Eastern Air Lines; celebrity caterer C.C. Philippe, a.k.a. Philippe of The Waldorf; and

P1ANNIN~

f ~R i~A~~

Zenn Kaufman, merchandising director of Philip Morris, illustrating the use of showmanship in selling. Students from Cornell added a bit of levity with a skit spoofing the difficulties new graduates encountered adjusting to their first hotel jobs.

Starting in 1939 and continuing throughout the Forties, HSMA published the Handbook for Sales Managers as a service to members. It was a treasure trove of samples of successful sales and servicing ideas that members shared

PROCEEDINGS OF THE HOTEL SALES MANAGERS ASSOCIATION DECEMBER 9, 10, 11, 19H PI TT SB UR G H, PENN A.

with one another. It also reprinted speeches from HSMA conventions as well as remarks and articles by sales experts, travel industry leaders, and representatives of major customer organizations. In the post-war years, HSMA's mimeograph machines whirred, producing nearly 400 singlespaced, blue-and-white pages for the handbook on topics such as readjusting to peacetime demands, successful selling practices, and internal sales.

After shaking off the depression and surviving a world war, at the end of the 1940s hospitality sales professionals looked forward to an exciting era of expansion and change in their industry. • THE 1940s: IN WAR AND PEACE

47

• CHAPTER FIVE

During this decade HSMAI celebrated its 25th anniversary and one might say it came of age, becoming a far more professional organization.

Time of Transition N THE 1950S THE CONVERSION OF AMERICA'S MIGHTY WAR machine was complete. Instead of bullets and bombs, the country produced hula hoops, poodle skirts, Barbie dolls, station wagons, Formica, McDonald's hamburgers, and I Love Lucy shows. Technology made possible luxury items like color TVs and transistor radios that fit in your pocket. It also improved productivity at home and in the workplace with time-saving devices such as spin clothes dryers, photocopiers, and electronic computing machines.

America's returning warriors themselves were mighty productive. The baby boom they started in 1946 hit its peak in 1952 and continued until 1964. All those babies sparked a housing boom, primarily in suburbia, that ignited America's love affair with the automobile, which was fueled by President Eisenhower's decision to spend $31.5 billion to build the federal interstate highway system in the name of national defense.

THE 1950s: TIME OF TRANSITION

49

National defense was on everyone's mind because this was the era of the Cold War, that geopolitical chess game between the United States and the Soviet Union where checkmate meant mutually assured destruction. The Iron Curtain had descended across Europe and fear of Communism in America gave rise to the McCarthy hearings, fallout shelters, and duck-and-roll drills. Our staunch anti-Communism led to three miserable years of fighting in Korea and a foreign policy based on the "domino effect" in Southeast Asia.

Hotels were not immune to the icy grip of the Cold War. In cooperation with the federal Civil Defense Administration, the American Hotel Association developed air raid instructions for guestrooms and a card entitled "What to Do in Case of Enemy Attack."

AHA also issued a brochure to its members called "Basic Plan in Event of Enemy Attack." The federal government built an ultra-secret bunker (code name Greek Isles) deep beneath The Greenbrier resort in West Virginia to house the U.S. Congress in case of a national emergency. The bunker's existence wasn't revealed to the public until 1992 and now is a popular attraction at the resort.

... Motels Fuel Industry Growth For the hospitality industry, the Fifties was a time of enormous growth.

The decade gave birth to organizations and brands still prominent today: Marriott, Holiday Inn, Hyatt, Omni, Forte, Ramada, Howard Johnson, and the National Tour Association. With the rise of the motel, it was the start of segmentation and product diversification.

In the first half of the decade, occupancy continued a steady decline from its record Patrons enjoying the Ebb Tide Motel in Chatham Massachusetts, circa 19SO.

high in 1946. The primary culprit was supply -

it grew nearly twice as fast as demand.

Two factors had fueled the upward supply spiral: the motel building boom and the decreasing length of stay.

1950

North Korea Invades South Korea

Smo key the Bear Rescued From New Forest Fire, Sent to National Zoo "Peanuts" Comic Strip First Published RCA Develops First Color TV For Home Use Liz Taylor Marries Conrad Hilton Jr.

50

75 YE ARS OF SERV I CE AND ACHIEVEMENT

In the suburbs, created by the post-war demand for housing, the car was king. Americans became accustomed to driving everywhere.

At the same time, the federal government began building an interstate highway system to take drivers wherever they wanted to go. And wherever they went, the dri vi ng public needed roadside dining and lodging to feed and shelter them. To satisfy hungry drivers, fast food giants McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken (now KFC) , and Burger King were born during this period.

Roadside lodging (tourist courts, motor courts, or motor lodges) had been around since the 1920s, but were mostly mom-and-pop operations of dramatically varying quality and price. It took entrepreneur Kemmons Wilson to perfect the motel concept for weary travelers. In 1952, after what he called "the most miserable vacation trip of my life," Wilson conceived the idea of a chain of roadside inns that

The master bedroom in the Presidential Suite of the Waldorf Astoria, occupied

by General Douglas McArthur and his wife .

consistently offered large guestrooms, two double beds, a restaurant, and a swimming pool. Wilson opened the first Holiday Inn in Memphis. It was an instant success. A pioneer in motel franchising, the company grew along with the interstate highway system.

The use of marketing and reservation networks enabled it to book new inns even before they were built.

Other companies also got into the roadside hotel business during the 1950s. Hotel Corporation of America (now Sonesta) had its Charter House properties, Howard Johnson began franchising, and Marion Isbell started Ramada . The very first of the Marriott Motor Hotels (now Marriott International), although located not far from Washington, DC's National Airport, was clearly designed with drivers in mind: it offered drive-up check in.

1951

Cousteau Perfects Underwater Camera

1952

Kemmons Wilson Opens First Holiday Inn in Memphis

•

Rosen bergs Convicted of Spying For Soviet Union New York City Installs "Don't Walk" Signs Diners Club Issues First Credit Card

American Bandstand Premieres on TV

New Jersey Turnpike Opens

JFK And Jacqueline Bouvier Marry

I Love Lucy Debuts Forerunner of National Tour Association Formed

Kentucky Fried Chicken Debuts World's First Commercial Jet Service (LondonJohannesburg) THE 1950s: TIME OF TRANSITION

51

Airplanes Take Off The airplane also affected travelers' lodging needs in the 1950s. Boeing and McDonnell Douglas began building larger four-engine propeller planes that enabled people to cut multi-day travel time to just hours. Where it formerly was a three-day drive, or a 24-hour trip on the train, to travel from New York to Miami, these larger planes could make the trip in four hours. In the early Fifties, the DC-7 reduced coastto-coast travel time to eight hours. Jets, which were introduced in 1959, accelerated travel further. The Boeing 707 cut trans-Atlantic travel time to six hours, half the previous 12-hour flight time, which was still a vast improvement over six days by ship from New York to London. Now anyone with a week's vacation had enough time for long-haul travel.

The convenience of air travel was not lost on business travelers either. A 1948 International Association of Convention Bureaus survey showed 40 percent of convention visitors traveled by train and 46 percent by car. By 1957, only 24 percent traveled by train, whi le 37 percent arrived by car. The largest group, 38 percent, traveled by airplane, a mode not even mentioned nine years earlier. Overa ll, the volume of passenger air travel tripled in the United States between 1950 and 1959.

By allowing people to travel faster, airplanes and interstate highways shortened the duration of trips. A business traveler could take off for another city in the morning, wrap up a deal by 3 p.m. and fly home that evening without an overnight stay. A family speeding along a new superhighway took less

1953

Jonas Salk Reports Successful Polio Vaccine

AMERICAN AIRLINES IN< read g ;-111-///lt

ome,UO.:S ,,,,._

/fl

Edmund Hillary Conquers Mt. Everest Western Hotels Institutes "Kids Stay Free" Plan Polyester Fiber Commercially Marketed First Successful Open Heart Surgery Coronation of Queen Elizabeth

52

7S YEA RS OF SERVICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

I WAS 22 WHEN I GOT INTO SALES IN 1955. time to reach its destination and, so, the family vacation required fewer days and room nights. This was bad news for hoteliers.

The good news was that technology made travel more accessible to the masses and it also gave the hospitality industry a new product to sell them. In 1956, the Fontainebleau Hotel (now the Fontainebleau Hilton) in Miami became one of the first luxury prop-

It was convention sales - that was the only kind of business salespeople went after in those days.

Jack O'Connor, the director of sales at the Waldorf Astoria, took me out to the cornerof SOth and Park Avenue and said, "OK, Mac, winter, spring, summer, fall, big or small, we want 'em all.

Go get 'em tiger!"And that was it. No training. Iwas probably the worst salesperson in the world for quite some time.

THOMAS T. McCARTHY, JR. HSMA PRESIDENT 1980

erties to open with air-conditioning throughout the hotel. Air-conditioning caught on because it allowed hotel operators to open seasonal properties year-round. To fill the hotels, sales executives began promoting off-season packages to secretaries and factory workers, promising them the same fabulous Miami Beach (Palm Beach, Palm Springs, etc.) experience their bosses had in the winter.

Businesses, too, recognized the cache of the top resorts and the off-season opportunities made possible by air-conditioning, so they began using meetings at posh resorts as an incentive or reward for their executives, suppliers, and agents. Insurance companies were the first to recognize the desirability of such events.

Travel agents began playing a bigger role in booking room nights during the 1950s and in recognition of agents' booking prowess, hotels developed many of the aids and rewards that are commonplace today. For example, one Poconos resort rewarded bookings with points redeemable for merchandise, while a hotel representative published a chart listing rates and facilities of its member properties so agents had all the information they needed at a glance. At the same time, Sheraton introduced two technologies that dramatically eased the process of making hotel reservations: the toll free number and the automated electronic reservations system.

Credit cards, which made it easier for guests to pay for hotel stays, also debuted in

1954

1955

Texas Instruments Begins Using Silicon in Transistors

Disneyland Opens

Brown vs. Board of Education Desegregates Schools

Rosa Parks Refuses to Give Up Her Seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, Bus

Dien Bien Phu (Viet Nam) Falls to Communists Hilton Buys Statler Hotels Howard Johnson Initiates Lodging Franchising

Ferry Service Begins Between Key West, Florida, and Havana, Cuba

Nevada Legislature Approves Spercent Hotel Tax, Funds Las Vegas Convention Center Ohio Turnpike Prohibits Discrimination in Lodging Along the Toll Road

Marilyn Monroe Marries Joe DiMaggio TH E I 9 SO s : TI M E 0 F TR A NSIT I 0 N

53

--J. ,'t

-./

~

•.t... . '-'

Attendees at the 1952 HSMA Convention celebrate the 25th anniversary of the association at the opening luncheon held in the Drake Hotel, Chicago.

1956

Supreme Court Bars Segregation On Public Transportation Grace Kelly Marries Prince Rainier of Monaco Andrea Doria Sinks Off Nantucket, Killing so

Elvis Appears on the Ed Sullivan Show

Suez War Breaks Out

Eisenhower OK's $31.S Billion for Interstate Highways First Transatlantic Telephone Cable

54

7 5 YE AR 5 0 F 5 ERVI CE AN D ACHI EVEM ENT

HOTEL LETTERS THAT SELL, The HSMA Sales Digest, 1 the 1950s. Diners Club was the first. The American Hotel Association mounted its own credit card initially, but later licensed it to American Express.

Finally, in a move that had far-reaching effects on the meetings business, in 1955 the Nevada legislature passed a five percent hotel tax that was ultimately used to fund completion of the Las Vegas Convention Center. This method of financing was painless for local residents and spurred a boom in convention center construction that continues unabated to this day.

still have these books written in the Fifties on my shelf. They're amazingly effective and even today you will see some of their ideas recycled as original by people who have the same thought 50 years later. If you look back in those books you'll see stayanother-day programs. You'll see two-fer discounts. You'll see run-away-with-your-wife weekends. May God help you if you use those words, but what's the difference between that and an escape weekend? The verbiage may be offensive to today's eyes and ears, but the concept was the same - extend the stay the extra day or get people to stay longer or get them to come back in another phase of their life. This was visionary.

DAVID A. TROY, PRESIDENT 1983

HSMA Comes of Age The 1950s also was a turning point for the Hotel Sales Management Association. Like the hospitality industry, the association experienced tremendous growth, expanding from 823 members in 1952 to 1,332 members in 1959, a 62 percent jump.

During this decade HSMA celebrated its 25th anniversary and one might say it came of age, becoming a far more professional organization. It also became more international, holding its first convention outside the United States, in Montreal in 1958 and installing its first non-U.S. president, Canadian George W. Powell, CHME, in 1959.

Although primarily American, HSMA members hailed from Argentina, the Bahamas, Canada, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, Holland, Mexico, Panama, and Venezuela.

In 1951, the annual convention's dates were standardized so the event was always held in late November. This step allowed members to set aside the end of November for HSMA's annual meeting, where they would meet with colleagues to learn about the latest developments in the industry.

1957

The Cat In The Hat Published First Marriott Motor Hotel Opens in Arlington, Virginia Federal Troops Enforce Desegregation in Little Rock, Arkansas Jay Pritzker Buys First Hotel in the Hyatt House Chain

Hilton Offers Direct-Dial Phone Service in All Rooms

During the decade the convention's programming became more inclusive, addressing the needs of small hotels with speakers on "Promotion for Small Hotels" and "Making a Small Hotel Important in the Community." Roundtable discussions were divided into three groups: city hotels, resorts, and small hotels. This enabled attendees to network with others from similar organizations and gave members the opportunity to participate as discussion leaders.

In large part, the annual meetings' content continued to focus on meetings and convention sales. How-to sessions such as "Ways to

A March 1959 Board of Directors Meeting. Note the white shirts and conservative ties.

Increase Convention Attendance" and "Phonemanship - Telephone Selling Techniques" are just as appropriate today as they were when they were offered 50 years ago. A session from 1951 entitled "Safety and Sales" seems eerily on-target for 2002.

But HSMA's convention programming also reflected the new realities of the 1950s marketplace. AANs National Travel Director discussed "Selling Americans on the Road." The concept of marketing and all the disciplines that comprise it started to creep onto the agenda. Robert Letwin, editor of Sales Meetings magazine advised listeners that "Marketing Means Survival" while James Butler of Sheraton discussed "Understanding and Forecasting Market Behavior." Sessions on "Selling on Film" and "Radio and TV Advertising" helped members integrate leading-edge technology into their repertoires.

Reflecting the increased value hotel management placed on sales, top executives from the American Hotel Association regularly spoke at HSMA conventions as did major hotel company presidents like Albert Pick Jr., Pick Hotels; Roger Sonnabend,

H5MA 1957 President Bill Morton (left) with George Powell, president in 1959, and Charlie Bird (center), president in 1952, in Atlanta to attend the American Hotel Association's Public Relations Committee Meeting.

Hotel Corporation of America (now Sonesta); and Ernest Henderson, Sheraton.

1958

1959

Hula Hoop Debuts

Alaska and Ha waii Become States

- Sheraton Intro duces First Toll-Free Reservations Number Sheraton Launches First Automated Electronic Reservations System

Castro Takes Over Cuba Some Like It Hot Filmed at Hotel Del Coronado

Mattel Introduces Barbie Doll

Charles Forte Starts his Hotel Empire

First Ramada Franchise Sold

American Express Card Debuts

Xerox Unveils Plain Paper Copier

Omni Hotels (Originally Dunfey) Founded

Researchers Isolate DN A First Coast- to -Coast Jet Service TH E 1 9 5Os : TI ME 0 F TR AN SI TI 0 N

57

With top ad men reviewing critical topics such as "How to Select an Advertising Agency" and "Cooperative Advertising Can Make Good Sense;' members received invaluable

Celebrities, including the iconic Commander Edward Whitehead, president of Schweppes; Arthur "Red" Motley, editor of Parade Magazine; and Miss America, Mary Ann Mobley also addressed the gatherings.

The association's annua l convention was not the only forum by which members became aware of the latest developments in sales and promotion. In cities, regions, and countries, progressive sales-oriented individuals in the hotel business formed local chapters affili ated with HSMA. By 1956 there were 15 professional and two student

advertising counsel through the HSMA newsletter.

chapters. Realizing the importance of education to their members, many local chapters scheduled programs of their own.

The New York chapter, for example, presented a "Sales Managers Workshop, " featuring the president of the Hotel Commodore, who reviewed the "Sales Manager's Part in Management, " and the director of sales and catering at the Waldorf Astoria, who discussed "Building Food and Beverage Sales." Not only did attendees benefit from the pearls of wisdom dispensed at this workshop, but also the entire HSMA membership was enriched because highlights of the presentations were printed in the Handbook for Sales Managers. In this way, HSMA helped good ideas cross-pollinate

from one chapter to another.

Th e first HSMA Bulletin and Idea Exchange was pu blished in Septembe r 1953. The masthead of the seco nd issue, shown he re, became th e stan dar d for all subse qu en t issues .

Phillips Adds New Service and Professionalism The association's Silver Anniversary in 1952, marked a turning point for the organization. Adrian Phillips, formerly with Chalfonte Haddon Hall, was hired as HSMA's fulltime manager and given the title executive vice president.

The energetic and knowledgeable Phillips, who was HSMA's president in 1942 and taught the inaugural hotel sales course at Cornell, ushered in an era of greater professionalism and service to members.

In the August 1952 issue of World Convention Dates magazine, the publisher wrote glowingly about HSMA's "winning team" and the revitalized organization. He said, "The program of achievement for HSMA outlined

by Mr. (Charlie ) Bird during his term as president, implemented by the services of Mr. Phillips as the administrator of this program, can indicate to "top management" the vital role salesmanship plays in profitable hotel operation today."

Th e association 's headquarters moved from

Columbus, Ohio, to Atlantic City where Phillips also worked tirelessly on the Miss America pageant. He proved such a dedicated leader of HSMA that he directed much of the planning for the 1957conference from a hospital bed after being struck by a taxi while visiting Washington, DC. One of Phillips, early efforts to improve the professional image of the association was publication of a slick, offset-printed monthly newsletter. In 1953 the HSMA BULLETIN and Idea Exchange replaced the Handbook of Sales Managers.

Originally eight pages, the HSMA BULLETIN quickly grew to 12 pages and doubled in size when reporting the highlights of the annual meeting. Enclosed with each issue were sample property folders and brochures and promotional materials from allied members. These supplements allowed members to see first-hand what the best and the brightest in the industry were doing in the way of promotion.

The association's membership roster, first published in pocket-size form in 1951, evolved over the decade into a valuable sales tool for members to promote themselves and their properties. By 1959, the Official HSMA Hotel Membership Directory and Facilities Guide was 152 full-size pages and 539 members took the

opportunity to include a five-line description of their facilities, features, and services. HSMA distributed 4,000 directories free to trade associations, corporations, and select travel agents. Headquarters received 850 acknowledgements from customers, clients, and travel organizers attesting to the value of the listings. In subsequent years, the distribution of the publication increased to more than 20,000 copies annually.

Another Phillips service innovation was a series of six payroll "stuffers" that members could distribute in their hotels to remind staff of the importance of meetings guests. The theme was "The man with the badge is a special attention guest."

Cartoons and copy emphasized that without meetings the contents of hotel employees' pay envelopes would be significantly less. The stuffers underscored HSMA's philosophy that service was a key component of sales.

Sig Front (left), president 1973. and Executive Vice President Adrian Phillips, review the 1959 edition of the Official HSMA Hotel Membership Directory and Facilities Guide.

In 1954, creation of the HSMA Research Office significantly broadened the association's service capabilities. A member could call the office with a question about a particular topic or problem and the staff would peruse the research files and get back to the caller with an answer. The office's extensive files contained sample promotional materials supplied by members and articles clipped from the trade press

THE 1950s: TIME OF TRANSITION

59

"The program of achievement for HSMA outlined by Mr. (Charlie) Bird during his term as president, implemented by the services of Mr. Phillips as

and other sources. In 1956, the files covered 379 categories ranging from accounting to wine lists. The staff also used the research materials to prepare booklets and pamphlets for the members. Not surprisingly, the title of the first was Convention

Solicitation.

HSMA's first research director was Helen Recknagel, a professor at Cornell

the administrator of this

University's hotel school. Two recent Cornell graduates, Dave Randall and Marley Halvorsen Jr., assisted her and even made a five-week, 5,400-mile road trip to collect

program, can indicate to 'top management' the vital role

additional materials from members in order to supplement the research files. In 1955, David C. Dorf, CHME, joined the research office and remained on the HSMA staff, serving in a variety of positions, until his retirement in 1990. Hobson D. Chinnis

salesmanship plays in profitable

joined the headquarters staff in 1958 as administrative assistant.

hotel operation today:'

Advertising Awards By 1957, Adrian Phillips was not satisfied with the volume of promotional materials

WORLD CONVENTION OATES MAGAZINE, AUGUST 1952

he was receiving for the research files. President William Morton suggested an advertising contest would bring in all the samples Phillips could use and, thus, the association's annual advertising awards contest was born. Today it is the advertising awards component of the HSMAI International Travel Awards Competition, known as the Adrian Advertising Awards named after Phillips.

That first year, 79 organizations submitted 356 entries in six categories of hotel sales promotion. Top prize winners among large hotels were: guest rooms, Sheraton Corporation; function rooms, Hotel Statler, Buffalo; conventions, Mayflower Hotel, Washington, DC; resorts, Chalfonte-Haddon Hall, Atlantic City; beverage, Vanderbilt Hotel, New York; food, The Plaza Hotel, New York. Top honors for smaller properties went to: guest rooms, Caneel Bay Plantation, Virgin Islands; function rooms, Hotel El Cura~ao, Cura~ao; conventions, Princeton Inn, Princeton, New Jersey; resorts, Merry Hill Lodge & Cottages, Cresco, Pennsylvania; beverage, Hotel Fremont, Fremont, Ohio; food, Hotel Fremont.

President Morton also appointed an Advertising Advisory Committee to prepare pertinent articles for the

HSMA Bulletin. These pieces began running in May 1957 and continued through the end of the decade. With top ad men reviewing critical topics such as "How to Select an Adrian Phillips at his desk in the HSMA office in Atlantic City.

60

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

Advertising Agency" and "Cooperative Advertising Can

WHILE GIVING HSMA PRESIDENT GEORGE W. POWELL Make Good Sense," members received invaluable

and his wife a tour of the palatial "Top of the Mark"suite in 1959, the owner of San Francisco's famous Mark Hopkins Hotel pointed out a unique feature. "When

advertising counsel through the HSMA newsletter.

you use that toilet, you'll be the first to sit on it since President Nikita

During the 1950s, HSMA began its tradition of creating tools members could use to upgrade their skills

Khrushchev of the USSR;' the owner explained. "He stayed with us recently and security measures were such that we had to replace the usual window with bul-

information or inspiration. The first such timeless vol-

letproof glass as well as put those bars across it to make certain he wouldn't be a sitting-duck target:'

ume was published in 1952, in conjunction with the

Later a mischievous Powell noted, "On our departure Iwas sorely tempted to

and then refer to again and again when they needed

association's 25th anniversary. Leonard Hicks Jr., who had been the association's president in 1946, produced the 370-page HSMA Sales Manual. In 1959 Hicks edit-

scrawl 'President Khrushchev USSR and President Powell HSMA Sat Here' on the wall above the toilet, but graffiti being infra dig in our association's circumspect circles, discretion prevailed:'

ed Hotel Letters That Sell. The same year, Bob Stein, a

EARL G. DUFFY, PRESIDENT 1962

partner in the Chicago ad agency, Gardner, Stein, & Frank, compiled the HSMA Group Sales Manual.

Educational publishing remains a core benefit of HSMAI membership.

ALook Back, A Look Ahead The Fifties was a transitional period for the world and the hospita lity industry.

The Baby Boomers, who were children and teenagers in the Fifties, and their auto-loving parents demanded an entirely new lodging product: the motel. And it took the industry by storm. The Baby Boomers eventually became so large a market that their needs would continually reshape the industry for decades to come.

Air-conditioning created opportunities to sell resorts in the off-season. But more importantly, it exposed large areas of the south and

H·S·M·A

southwestern United States to business and residential development and hospitality was a part of that growth.

The speed of the jet engine only accelerated the impact of the airplane on travel patterns. Within three years of the Boeing 707's debut, piston-engine planes all over the world would be scrapped and replaced with jets. By bringing distant places ever closer to business and leisure travelers, jets opened new geographic markets to the hospitality industry.

During the Fifties, the Hotel Sales Management Association had reshaped itself and increased its capabilities to keep pace with the challenges facing the industry. As they looked ahead to the 1960s, sales professionals needed more than ever the networking,

What's New in Hotel Sales, edited by Leonard Hicks Jr., was one of a series of widely distributed books published in the 1950s by HSMA that met the information needs of hotel sales managers of the time.

research, and educational opportunities provided by their association. The new decade was, as President Kennedy would call it, the new frontier. •

THE 1950s: TIME OF TRANSITION

61

• CHAPTE R SIX

From the association's inception, it has fought to have sales and marketing recognized as a critical management discipline in order to drive revenue and meet competition head-on. In the Sixties, the effort was showing progress, albeit slowly and grudgingly.

Reaching Out Globally HE DECADE OF THE SIXTIES ARRNED IN THE MIDST OF A riptide of civil division and unrest. Social order and government authority had been strengthened by World War II, but this stability was challenged by anti-establishment sentiments in the aftermath of the Korean War and further solidified by the Vietnam War. As a result of the tugs and pulls of radical social tumult, the Sixties proved to be a true watershed of change.

In 1960, four black college students were refused service at a Woolworth's counter in Greensboro, North Carolina. Within weeks the word had spread, and 50,000 peopie across the South were responding with "sit-ins" and picket lines. Riots and arrests followed . The fight for civi l rights had begun. One of the major issues of the decade, it was a call for change that would be high on the agenda of both President John F. Kennedy and his successor, Lyndon B. Johnson.

In the Sixties, women made up 40 percent of the workforce, but their average earnings were less than 60 percent of men's salaries. In 1961, the first oral contraceptive -

the "pill" -

went on the market, helping to launch a sexual revolution that

not on ly affected women's decisions about marriage and motherhood, but also fueled

TH E 1960s: RE ACHING OU T GLOBA LLY

63

Reaching Out Globally their drive for equality in the workplace. It was the beginning of major changes for many industries and professions where men once dominated, including hospitality sales and marketing. The influence of females in the industry would grow during the next 40 years, altering forever the notion that "salesmen" was an acceptable description of those who drove the hotel sales and marketing profession.

The failure of the invasion of the Ba y of Pigs by anti-Castro exiles, supported by the United States, in 1961, was followed a little more than a year later by a face-off between President Kennedy and Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev over missiles in Cuba. The Cold War was at its height and the confrontation of the nuclear powers spread fear throughout the world and forever changed the course of international relations.

On the lighter side, but just as significant in terms of societal change in the Sixties, was the impact that the Beatles, Elvis Presley, and other rock stars had on millions of young people around the globe. It was not only their music, but their looks and attitude that were admired and emulated by younger generations everywhere. Long hair, once synonymous with classical music, now was the trademark of millions of kids "hanging loose" at rock concerts. Bewildered parents wrestled with rebellious offspring while contemplating the ominous signs of the Cold War, racial unrest, the killing of civil rights activists, a burgeoning drug culture, Woodstock, the televised horrors of the Vietnam War, massive protest marches and demonstrations, and the assassination of political leaders, including Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X. The polarizing diversities ranged from the Wans Riots in Los Angeles to student takeovers at universities across the country. While the older generation was repulsed by much of the daily news, younger people around the globe reveled in their newfound freedoms, increased earning power, and their ability to afford travel.

1960

The Automated Teller Machine is Invented by Luther Simjian

A Hologram is Constructed, Successfully Tested Pauline Frederick is the First Woman to Act as a Radio Network Anchor for a Presidential Convention The Tele vision Series Route 66 Premieres

TVSets in Seven of Eight U.S. Home s with More than SOD Stations Broadca sting Taki ng Food Orde rs by Ph one, Domino's Delivers Pizza s Theodo re Maiman Uses a Synthetic Ruby to Build First True Laser The Post Office Experiments with "Facsimile " Mail 64

7 5 YE A R5 0 F 5 ERVI CE AND ACHI EVEM ENT

The Jack Tar Hotel in San Francisco Introduces The Auto mated Check -in System Siegas Introduce s the First True Minibar

HSMA Responds to International Travel Markets It was not lost on HSMA leaders that in 1959, the turn of the decade, some 175,000 Europea ns had visited the United States and over 600,000 Americans had traveled to Europe. T hey believed that this was just the tip of a new wave of ind ividual and group travel, for business meetings and conventi ons, and to urs and vacations. New international travel markets were emerging. Globalization had begun.

In response, H SMA and other industry associations bega n discussions with the airline ind ustry to initiate a "closer liaiso n" to maximize their coo peration in generating group business domestically and internationally. HSMA took the lea d in 1960 by crea ti ng the H SMA-Airline Liaison Committee chaired by Robert Showier, Hilton International. Committee members includ ed Leonard R. O akes, CH ME Shera ton; John H. Sienold, Realty H otels; Joseph Brosnan, InterContinental H otels; and Ro bert Wa rner, Robert Warner, Inc. The airlines were represented by Claudi o Fuseo of Pa n America n; Ray B. Thorpe of Scandinavian Airline System; and Jack Yo ung of Sabena.

The committee successfully worked with international air carriers to translate the hotel industry's capability of forecas ting futu re convention business into the airlines' need to predict transportation and equipment inventory to service this rapidly growing market segment.

1961

Time-Life Books Begin Publication IBMSelectric "Golf Ball" Type writer Introduced

Harper Lee Wins Pulitzer for To Kill a Mockingbird The Soviet Union Wins the Race to Put a Man in Space Kathy Switzer Becomes the First Woman to Run the Boston Marathon

Wireless Microphones Developed FCC Approves FM Stereo Broadcasting, Spurring FM Stations IBM's Shoebox Recognizes 16 Voice Commands, Does Simple Arithmetic

Alan Shepard Becomes the First American in Space President Kennedy Establishes Peace Corps

THE 1950s: REACHING OU T GLOBA LLY

65

Focusing on Membership and Education HSMA was rich in leadership as it moved into the Sixties. As the association's president in 1960, John H. Seinold concentrated on membership development, and three months into that year, there were 1,344 members on the roster, including 102 in Canada and 67 overseas. HSMA was slowly beginning to reflect the growing globalization of hospitality, travel, and tourism. The theme of the 33rd annual convention, "Integrating Honored at HS MA's 33rd Convention i n Ch icago were Mrs. Ells wo rth M. Statler, chairman of tru stees, and H.B. Call is, managing director of the Statler Foundati on , (right) who were made hon orary life members of HSM A.

Sales," reflected the association's focus not only on group and individual guest markets, but also on the importance of internal sales as a tool to increase business.

During that same convention, Executive Vice President Adrian Phillips, and the association's past presidents established the Adrian Phillips Cornell Scholarship Foundation, raising money to aid students attending the storied Cornell University School of Hotel Administration. Phillips was also honored at the convention for his service to the industry and for teaching sales promotion at Cornell over a 20-year span.

In 1960, one of the industry's most compelling texts for both event planners and hoteliers was produced. The Convention Liaison Council (CLC), with Phillips representing HSMA, published the Convention Liaison Manual, a pacesetting book describing principles of event management. Complete with checklists, diagrams, and narratives by industry professionals, the publication quickly became the most coveted study guide for meeting planners and hoteliers alike. By the year 2000, it would be in its seventh edition - three times as thick and many times more valuable. The role of HSMA in the manual's inception and its progression over the years has been an invaluable contribution to the profession.

Arthur F. Taylor, CHME, director of sales for the Sheraton Corporation, was elected president of HSMA in 1961. That year, advertising guru Albert E. Koehl,

Touch-Tone Phones Introduced with Fanfare at Seattle World's Fair Berlin Wall is Erected

"' ' High-speed Digital Lines Developed, Installed in Telephone Networks Telstar Satellite Sends First Television Signals Across the Atlantic FCC Requires UHF on Television Sets Comsat Created to Launch, Operate Global Satellite System 66

John Steinbeck Wins Nobel Prize in Literature John Glenn Orbits the Earth in Spacecraft Cuban Missile Crisis Alarms the World Curt Carlson Buys Shares of the Radisson Hotel in Minneapolis, Minnesota Motel 6, the Forerunner of Budget Brands, Opens in Santa Barbara, California

founder and president of Koehl, Landis & Landan, stepped to the plate to announce that all royalties from his book How to Make Advertising Pay for Hotels and Restaurants would go to scholarships for students at Cornell. Koehl himself wou ld be honored years later by the creation of the "Albert E. Koehl Award," recognizing the best of the best in hospitality advertising in the HSMA Hotel and Travel Advertising Awards competition.

More industry leaders moved to enrich the education of those young people aspiring to careers in hotel sales. Donald Winter, president of Hendrickson Publishing Company, created the HSMA-World Convention Dates Scholarship to assist hotel students at Cornell, Florida State, Michigan State, Oklahoma State, and Washington State universities as well as the University of Denver. These hotel school graduates also were assured of primary consideration for sales positions at HSMA member hotels upon graduation.

Convention Chai rman Sig Front, makes a presenta tion to actress Jane Mansfield, official hostess of the Los Angles Co nve ntion in 1961.

HSMA Tackles the Issue of Ethics With an emphasis on sales came a concern about ethics between the seller and the buyer of hotel products and services. HSMA devoted print materials and seminars to the question of ethics in sales, and the issue of profitability at all costs versus ethical considerations.

Pages of the HSMA Bulletin were devoted to the subject, including a treatise provided by A.M. Sullivan of Dun's Review. Perhaps lost in time, many of the lessons taught in the Sixties to HSMA members could well be repeated today. The association told its members that " ...there is no easy distinction between the morality of the corporation and the morality of the individual. The corporate conscience must be interpreted by individuals."

1963

Betty Friedan Publishes her Manifesto on

Martin Luther King Gives "I Have a Dream" Speech John F. Kennedy is Assassinated in Dallas

Feminism .

Presidents of the United States, Nigeria, Have First Phone Conversation by Satellite Postal ZIP Codes Introduced lnstamatic Cameras with Drop-In Cartridges Sent to Market Patent Issued for the Computer Mouse

TV News "Comes of Age" in Reporting of JFK Assassination First Live TV Murder: Jack Ruby Shoots Lee Harvey Oswald as Millions Watch AHA Changes its Name to the American Hotel & Motel Association Desegregation in Hotels Begins

67

The concern for ethical stand ards and equita ble moral judgment grew as a result of the exploding competition in the hotel industry and the increasing demand for its products and services. Tourism, conventions and meetings, and group travel were growing exponentially, as was the need for hotels to maximize profits, build new p lants, acquire new equipment, and establish new properties. This was an industry caught up in unbridled growth beca use of dra matically increasing dema nd . And HSMA rolled up its sleeves to tackle the issue of ethics, both in the media and in its dea lings with clients and competitors .

(Left to right) 1962 HSMA Preside nt Earl Duffy , 1952 HS MA President Charlie Bird , Adrian Philli ps, and bathing beauties, at the 196 2 Ge orgia Hotel-Mo tel As socia tio n Conv entio n.

Art Taylor led the association through these delicate issues and changing industry practices. HSMA turned its attention to helping smaller hotels, many of which were not sharing in the growth being enj oyed by larger properties in big-city ven ues.

Surveys identified trends among the smaller properties, some of them surprising by 21st century practices.

For exampl e, one question asked was, "Are you in favor of more or less credit card business?" A ma jority of the responses indicated doubt

MODERN BUSINESS ETHICS are improving

concerning the viability of credit cards, although 60 percent admitted that

with the increased sensitivity of management toward its employees, customers, suppliers, and stockholders. But when it's a case of ethics versus profits, an uncomfortable basic question rises up and demands to be answered:'

credit cards had increased their sales. Still, 30 percent reported no jump in

A.M. SUL LI VAN, DUN'S REVIE WAND MODERN INDUSTRY

sa les because of credit cards and the remainder of respondents indicated negative feelings about credit cards as a source of additional revenue.

Yet another question probed the extent of incentive plans for sa les employees. The response from sma ller properties: 41 percent opposed a sales incentive plan, an equal amount favored incentive plans but did not

1964

Olympic Games in Tokyo Broadcast for the First Time Globally by Satellite

Trans-Pacific Submarine Te lephone Cable Service Begins Beatie-Mania Takes America by Storm

IBM Introduces Fi rst Mass-Produced Computer Operating System

Civil Rights Legi slati on is Passed

Mari ner IV Sends Tele vision Images from Mars

Travelodge Debuts Wheelchair-Accessible Rooms

Muhammad Ali Defeats Sonny Li sto n for the Heavyweight Title

0,

Intelsat, International Satellite Organization, is Founded

j

Sidney Poitier is the First Black Ma n to Wi n an Oscar for Best Actor

JOHN SIENOLD, A GERMAN

offer one, and 15 percent answered, "it depends." It was becoming obvious to HSMA why many smaller properties were failing to experience growth.

Things also were changing among hotels seeking convention business. The hotel employee title "convention services coordinator" came into vogue, and HSMA emphasized to its members that the title " .. .is very meaningful to the association executive responsible for the successful operation and staging of the annual meeting." In a published article, HSMA acknowledged that " ... some (sales managers) miss the old days when he actually was the "mother hen," personally looking after the business that he had sold on coming to his hotel. This is no longer so generally done, because of the stiffer competitive situation, the increased cost of sales, and other demands that require constant sales effort concentrated on future business."

Specialization in selling to clients, and further specialization in servicing them, was creating newly recognized disciplines in hospitality management that would engender not only new career paths but also new professional associations serving those practitioners. Among them, the National Association of Catering Executives; the International Association of Conference Centers; the International Association of Auditorium Managers; the Exhibit Designers and Producers Association; the Exposition Service Contractors Association, and others.

In the Sixties, the hotel and meeting facilities industry was evolving into a complex field of specialized skills, target-marketed products, and customer-oriented services.

HSMA was poised to fill the educational and professional growth of those attracted to this emerging sector of the global economy.

Seeking Support of Management Throughout its history, HSMAI has sought the support of general managers and

immigrant and HSMA's 1960 president, was director of sales at Manhattan's elegant Savoy Plaza Hotel. He hired and mentored many young people during his career, but few received a lesson as memorable as Terrence Rufer.

One cold December morning Sienold told me, "I'm going down to see that idiot chef of ours and find out what he thinks he is doing to our menus:· After only 30 minutes, the sales office door burst open and a red-faced Sienold rushed into his office and slammed the door. Moments later the door burst open again and in stalked the very French Chef Dubonet with his toque askew and a large knife in his outstretched hand. He marched into Sienold's office and Rufer followed.

Sienold stood behind his (fortunately) large desk with arms folded across his slightly heaving chest. The knife-wielding chef stood glaring at him until finally Sienold said, "Now chef, we are in my office!" The nonplussed Frenchman hesitated for a moment before lowering the knife and then hissed "German pig!" With an exaggerated motion the chef adjusted his toque, turned on his heel and stalked out. Without missing a beat or changing his stern expression, Sienold turned to his young apprentice and said, "Learn something Rufer.

Never argue mit the chef in the kitchen!"

Ralph Nader's "Unsafe at Any Speed" Attacks Detroit's Auto Industry Vietnam War Becomes First War to be Televised

The Sound of Music Premieres

Joe Namath Rece ives a Then-Unheard of Amount of $400,000 to Join the New York Jets.

He Would Help Lead the Jets to Victory at the 1969 Super Bowl

'Gatorade' is Invented in Florida

Mobile Radio Telephone Becomes Available in United States Nine ofTen U.S. Telephones Can Use Direct Distance Dialing Post Office Tests Optical Scanners to Read ZIP Codes

Arthur Hailey's Hotel is Published The Flagship Hotel in Galveston is the First to Build on a Pier Extending into the Gulf of Mexico lS,000 Students March in Washington, Protesting the War in Vietnam THE 19 60s: REACHING OUT GLO BALLY

69

owners of hospitality fa cilities. From the association's incepti on, it has fo ught to ha ve sa les and marketing recogni zed as a critical management discipline in order to drive revenue and meet competiti on head-on . By the Sixties, the effort was showing progress, albeit slowly and grudgingly.

O wners and genera l managers were not only hesitant to add incentives to sa lary packages for sa lespeople, they were also reluctant to make the investment required for the sa les team to travel to association or corporate hea dquarters or to client events, such as conventio ns and expositions. Instead , th ey told their sa les people to go " knock on doors."

Innovative sa les managers explored niche markets, and taught others in HSMA what they had lea rned. This was the real strength of HSMA: the willingness of members to share kn owledge to strengthen the industry as a whole, despite the often myopic protests of their genera l managers and bosses.

These niche markets included sports, weddings, gaming, tours and vaca ti ons, small meetings and seminars, religio us events, community festiva ls, and co untless others.

HSMAI embraced a large number of new markets for its members as an educati onal priority, and sought out members to share th eir

WAY BEFORE THERE WERE COMPUTERS, HSMA had a central data base that Itapped into all the time.

knowledge and experiences.

In his 1961 column, " Pipe Dreams," in the HSM A Bulletin, Lou

If Iwere researching a market segment or a weekend package I would get hold of HSMA headquarters and Adrian Phillips or

Runner captured the mood of the times and made a telling point:

Frank Berkman would turn up what I needed remarkably quickly

tant respect -

and remarkably effectively.

different approach to the changing challenges of the 1960s. They do DAVID A. TROY, PRESIDENT 1983

"Sales managers differ from hotel (genera l) managers in an imporcomparati ve youth . As a result, sales managers ha ve a

not know that the job is difficult, if not impossible, so th ey go ahead and do it!

Xerox Begins Marketing of the Telecopier, a Fax Machine

Old Metropolitan Opera House Closes in New York City; the Company Moves to Lincoln Center Holly wood Adopts an Age-Based Rating System: G, PG, R, X SA BRE Airline Reservati on System Launched FCC Blocks Cable Te levision Wiring in La rge Cities

The Amateur Computer Society Organizes Personal Computer Users Best Western is the First Hotel Company Governed by a Board of Directors Made Up Entirely of its Own Franchise Members Intercontinental Introduces Retra ctable Drying Lines in Showers, Ice and Vending Machines in Corridors, Business Lounges, and Street Entrances for Hotel Restaurants

"We have deep respect for the work of the Hotel Sales Management Association, and believe hotel managers are missing the boat in not attending (HSMA) meetings and giving wholehearted support.

Certainly they can learn much about their hotel's most perishable product -

vacant rooms -

and how to turn them into profitable business.

And they will discover, too, how more effective cooperation can produce still more profits and customer satisfaction."

HSMA Looks to the Future In 1962, as Earl G. Duffy, national sales manager of the Hotel Corporation of

Master of Ceremonies Joe Kordsmeir (left), greets incoming HSMA President Earl Duffy at the 1961 Tennessee Hotel / Motel Association Convention.

America (now Sonesta Hotels & Resorts), became president of HSMA, the association's members looked into the future of the industry during the 35th Annual Convention. The keynote speaker was Roger Sonnabend, president of HCA, who set the tone with his presentation entitled "Crisis in Hotels: The Decade Ahead."

Sonnabend focused on the growing overexpansion of the hotel industry, and the attendant over-capacity that would follow.

In a speech that would be covered not only by industry publications but also by consumer periodicals such as Time magazine, Sonnabend cited five major problems facing the industry: Overbui lding and excess capacity; rapidly rising costs, with a resulting profit-squeeze; a growing shortage of skilled workers and executives; harmful ethical practices; and wide-scale price-cutting. Throughout the Sixties and into the next decade, his sobering predictions would come true to confront the hospitality industry.

Sonnabend's wake-up call shook the industry, and helped generate a new awareness of sales as vital to hotel growth. The phenomenon of "sales alliances" between hotels began in 1963 with the collaboration of three New York City hotels to form

196

In New York, the World-Telegram Goes Out of Business

Cordless Teleph ones Introduced Rolling Stone and New York Magazines Launched Fashion Model "Twiggy" Embodies the Decade's Ne w Female Look

IBM Introduces the Floppy Disk Congress Creates the Corporation for Public Broadcasting Pre-Recorded Movies on Videotape Offered for Home Use

Hyatt Hotels Corporation Splits into a Real-Estate Holding Company Massive Anti-Vietnam Demonstrations in Washington

The First Super Bowl is Held

TH E 1960s : REACHING OUT GLOBALLY

71

Grand Central Hotels. The Roosevelt, The Biltmore, and The Commodore (now Grand Hyatt) formed this sales alliance, linking 4,000 rooms, 90 meeting rooms, 15 restaurants, and 50,000 square feet of meeting space. Closed-circuit television provided simultaneous coverage for as many as 5,000 attendees.

This was the first such alliance in the industry, and HSMA was the driving force. All of the executives who formed the marketing package were members of Adrian Phillips presents a plaque of appreciation to Executive Vice President Charles Horwath of the American Hotel 6 Motel Association. Frank Berkman (left), Vic Barrett, incoming 1963 HSMA president (center), and 1962 President Earl Duffy (right) look on.

the association.

HSMA also reached out to new markets by increasing its distribution of the HSMA Directory and Facilities Guide to 12,000 copies, a marketing tool for members

that was now sent not only to members, but also to association executives, corporate executives, travel agencies, government officials, and others who influenced the selection of venues and hotel accommodations.

Victor E. Barrett, vice president of advertising and promotion for Manger Hotels, HSMA president in 1963, noted the influence on hotel sales as an increasingly recognized profession and cited Sonnabend's HSMA speech as a turning point. In a message to HSMA members, he described Sonnabend's perseverance in traveling 24 hours through inclement weather to make it to HSMA's Pittsburgh convention to deliver his keynote speech. Rather than give up and cancel the presentation, Barrett wrote, "The Herculean efforts of Roger Sonnabend to get to

8

Intelsat Completes Global Communications Satellite Loop

Womens Liberation Groups Begin to Emerge Around the Country

Approximately 200 Million TV Sets in the World; 7B Million in the United States

60 Minutes Begins Ticking at CBS

Englebart Ties Together Keyboard, Keypad, Mouse, Monitor for Computers

TV Photographers Lug Two-Inch-Tape Portable Videotape Recorders

Martin Luther King is Assassinated in Memphis

Magnetic-Strip Credit Cards Introduced Pictures of Earth Taken from the Moon Sony Develops the Trinitron Color Television Tube 72

75 YE ARS OF SER VI CE AND ACH I EVEMENT

Robert F. Kennedy is Shot to Death in Los Angeles

The one bright spot in an otherwise gloomy picture over Pittsburgh to deliver his keynote address well illustrates the high regard that hotel management has for HSMA. " Despite the challenges of the Sixties, or perhaps because of them, the tide had turned . Hotel sales was now being seriously considered an integral part of the corporate

the past 20 years has been the growing convention and group business market, which has been

management process.

the salvation of many a hotel, ANation in Turmoil The hotel industry continued to grow despite continuing turmoil throughout society in America. Vietnam dominated the American conscience. But beyond that, other struggles ripped at the fabric of mainstream America: children were killed in the

motor hotel, and resort.

LAWSON A. ODDE, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT AM ERIC AN HOTEL & MOTEL ASSOCIATION

bombing of a Birmingham church; civil rights activists were murdered by racists; black students were shot down at Jackson State, just as white students were at Kent State; and the influence of feminists was growing but women faced an uphill climb to reach their goal of equality in the workplace.

A disrespect for authority was rampant as government officials, from President Richard Nixon to John Mitchell to]. Edgar Hoover, were accused of malfeasance in office. The moral commitment of family and devotion to national service of the Fifties were in disarray. Many of the nation's best and brightest were fleeing to Canada rather than wear their country's uniform during the Vietnam War. It has long been held that in times of turmoil people gather together to solve problems, communicate concerns, and seek solace from one another. This was the essence of the association movement, as people with a common cause affiliated to face the challenges of the Sixties. It was during this time that the hotel industry began its most concerted effort to identify and embrace the association community.

Hotel sales executives realized that associations typically grow in troubled times.

1 Woodstock Music Festival Opens Neil Armstrong is the First man to Walk on the Moon Westin is the First Hotel Chain to Implement 24-Hour Room Service

RCA SelectaVision Plays Pre-Recorded Cassettes Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Created UCLA Computer Sends Data to Stanford, Foreshadowing Internet FCC Bans Broadcast Ads for Tobacco

More Than 250,000 Demonstrate Against the Vietnam War in Washington, D.C. Another 200,000 Gather in San Francisco The Saturday Evening Post Fails; TV Blamed

CompuServe Goes into Business Midnight Cowboy Becomes First X-rated Oscar Winner THE 1960s: REACHING OU T GL OBALLY

73

In 1965 when Istarted at Marriott they had five hotels. I was national sales manager then and opened the Washington

More people feel the need to gather with peers to share concerns and to fight through problems as a group.

This translates into more and larger meetings and conferences. Perceptive hotel

office. Outside of a 100 mile

sales executives put trade associations and professional societies high on their lists of

radius of Washington Ihad to

The association strongly opposed new tax regulations and in collaboration with

target markets, and HSMA helped them do it. the American Hotel & Motel Association (now the American Hotel & Lodging

walk in and say Hi, I'm Tom 11

McCarthy from Mar- ri- ott, that's M-A-R-R-1-0-T-T".

Association) protested the effects of a new tax law severely restricting deductions of business entertainment expenses. The dampening of business expenses would have a dramatic effect on hotel revenues, causing an economic downturn and employee layoffs in the industry. Equally affected were their clients, both corporate and association executives, whose travel and entertainment costs were instrumental in their con-

Nobody had ever heard of it. -

duct of business.

The mood of the hotel community was darkened as well by the assassination of

THOMAS McCARTHY, JR., PRESIDENT, 1980

President John F. Kennedy in 1963 on the opening day of HSMA's 36th Annual Convention at the Fontainebleu in Miami Beach. The event was somber in tone, with entertainment functions either curtailed or canceled. But the business of the convention continued as speakers appeared before audiences determined to focus on the message. Louis E. Rogers of The Fontainebleu, installed as the 1964 president, proved to be a great navigator for HSMA during these turbulent times.

Heads Raised, Eyes Forward, HSMA Moves On Despite societal challenges, HSMA moved ahead with its program of work and its priorities. The annual HSMA advertising competition, now in its seventh year, broke yet another record with 377 entries from 103 hotels, motor hotels, and chain operations.

Entries were now coming in from across borders and from around the world. The international influence of HSMA was becoming apparent.

HSMA chartered the Australian Chapter, the first outside of the Western Hemisphere. And with the membership of the Cavalieri Hilton in Rome, Italy, HSMA's membership outside the United States increased to 279 representatives in 34 countries. These were followed by memberships in Beirut, Lebanon; Monrovia, Liberia; Geneva, Switzerland; Jerusalem, Jordan; and Singapore, Malaysia. Back in the United States, state and regional chapters were growing as chapters in Minnesota and Wisconsin were added.

The association's membership goal of 2,000 was not quite reached, but the total of 1,935 was not far off the mark. By the end of 1964, HSMA could boast of memberships in every continent with the exception of Antarctica.

74

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

One of the greatest barometers of HSMA growth was the HSMA Directory and Facilities Guide. The print-run for the 1964-65 edition grew by 3,000 copies to a total of 15,000. Those receiving it included many new markets for HSMA members. Member information and facilities descriptions were now mailed to associations, insurance companies (to serve the growing corporate insurance meeting market), sales promotion executives, travel and transportation officials, tourist boards, embassies, and libraries and schools.

ATime of Two Eras The time was 1965 and an era was ending. Adrian Phillips, executive vice president of HSMA for 15 years announced his retirement.

Leonard R. Oakes, CHME, of the Sheraton Corporation of America, was elected the 1965 president of HSMA. In that year, following his resignation as general manager of Loew's City Squire Motor Inn in New York City, Frank W. Berkman, CHME, succeeded Adrian Phillips, as executive vice president. Berkman, HSMA president in 1958, was a 32-year veteran of the hotel industry who rose from a job as hotel elevator operator to become a member of the HSMAI Hall of Fame.

The association's headquarters moved from Atlantic City, New Jersey, to New York City, maintaining a branch office in Absecon, New Jersey, where Phillips would continue an active retirement by serving as editor of the HSMA Bulletin and Idea Exchange and its educational advisor for another two years. Staff executives Dave C.

Frank Berkman, left, presents Leonard Hicks, Jr., HSMA president in 1946, with a plaque in recognition of his efforts in compiling and editing the HSMA Hotel-Motel Sales Digest.

Dorf, CHME, and Cass Folis-Bullock would also continue to work for the association, serving its educational and publication needs.

Going International HSMA became a truly international association during the tenures of both Adrian Phillips and Frank Berkman. Throughout his tenure, Berkman put the "I" in what is now HSMAI, by building chapters outside the United States and increasing the numbers of members worldwide. Under his direction, HSMA's interna-

HSMA past presidents identify the year of their presidency at an association luncheon in 1965.

tional membership continued to grow with the addition of members in such places as Karachi, Pakistan; Reykjavik, Iceland; a new chapter in British Columbia, Canada; and members in New Zealand. The number of nations represented within the HSMA membership had grown to 40. He also expanded the educational program responsibilities of Dave Dorf who taught at conferences, seminars, and workshops throughout the world as well as meeting the educational needs of the domestic chapters.

THE 1960s: REACHING OUT GLOBALLY

75

HSMA Board of Directors in Atlantic City, NJ, 1965

Underscoring the growing influence of HSMA's representation of hotel sales as an integral part of management was that, for the first time, 52 percent of the HSMA membership was composed of owners, managers, and others at equivalent executive levels.

Commensurate with this growth was that barometer of HSMA industry influence: the

1965-66 edition of the HSMA Directory and Facilities Guide now had a circulation of 18,000, adding 2,000 key industry people to its previous annual mailing list. The publication also hit a record 300 pages of information about HSMA members worldwide.

Under the leadership of 1996 President Angus R. MacDonald, general manager of Jug End Barn in the Berkshires, HSMA continued its growth through new chapters chartered in the United States, including a U.S. chapter offshore in Puerto Rico, and an international chapter in Ireland. Individual memberships were established in Sweden and Thailand, increasing the number of countries represented in HSMA to 4 7.

In 1967, new HSMA President Chuck Grigsby, CHME, of the Regency Hyatt House, Atlanta, continued the international expansion of the association by chartering a new chapter in Mexico. And during the same year, additional chapters were added domestically, including new affiliates in Missouri and North Carolina. A total of eight new chapters were formed during Grigsby's presidency, bringing HSMA's chapter total to 42 located throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Europe.

Women Come Into Their Own Meanwhile, the number of women becoming members was growing dramatically.

While women were increasingly active in hotel sales, few men realized that fact during

76

7S YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIE VEMENT

HOW DID MY MEMBERSHIP in

the time of "hotel men" and "good old boys," Gertrude Cummings was one of the original 36 founders of HSMA and 40 years later was sti ll at work and living at the Besse Motor Hotel in Pittsburgh, Kansas. She had few fema le peers in those days, but in the 1960s, Ada Taylor was appointed vice president of sa les at the Claridge Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, making her the first woman in the hotel industry to have been given that title. She followed that accomplishment by being honored by the "National Salesman of the Year" award from the Sigma Iota Fraternity of the Hotel and Restaurant School at Washington State University. The irony of the term "salesman" certainly was not lost on her, nor on many of her peers.

In its continuing summer school program at Cornell, HSMA's audience reflected not only an increasing number of female students, but also its growing international scope. The faculty was made up of Frank Berkman; Dave Dorf; Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME, vice president of sales and marketing for Marriott; Donal A. Dermody of Cornell; and John Robinson, president of Hannau-Robinson Color Productions.

The student composition was equally interesting. In addition to the United States,

HSMA benefit me? In the short run, while a student at Cornell in the early 6os when the Hotel School class ratio of men to women was about 10 to 1, my association with HSMA gave me confidence that Icould successfully compete for a leadership position in a male-dominated arena. In the long run, that assurance was beneficial to me as my career progressed. As Ilook back, Ican single out certain events that were indeed true building blocks of success, and the experience of being an HSMA officer certainly cemented that foundation.

JULIE (MILLI GA N) FLIK CLASS OF 1963, CORNELL HOTEL SCHOOL EXECUTIVE VIC E PRESIDENT COMPASS GROUP, NORTH AMER IC AN DIVISION

they included representatives from the Caribbean, England, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the Philippines, Scotland, Sweden, Thailand, and Tunisia. The globalization of HSMA, and the industry as a whole, was now being seen in a new generation of future sales and marketing professionals.

International Membership's Continues to Grow In 1968, the first Norwegian to join HSMA several years before must have been pleased. His involvement with the association had led to the growth of a chapter of 51 members with the charter presented by Dave Dorf at the Grand Hotel in Oslo.

Chapter Norway became the 44th on HSMA's rolls, and the number of countries represented in its membership had grown to 70 around the world.

Donald B. Martin, CHME, assumed the presidency in 1968 and more new memberships were added within the United States as well. A record 951 new members joined the ranks, compared to the previous records of 924 in 1967 and 705 in 1966.

The association celebrated its highest number of members in history: 3,579, including 611 members from 65 countries globa lly. New countries were added to the list, including Ecuador, Monaco, India, and Malaya.

The 1968-1969 HSMA Directory and Facilities Guide set yet another consecutive record. This edition increased to 434 pages, with a circulation of just under 21,000 copies.

HSMA's President Jim Bearce, CHME, took office in the 1969 program year, and in January celebrated his new position with the association by also being named vice president and general manager of the Emera ld Beach Plantation and Hotel in Nassau, THE 1960s: REACHING OUT GLOBALLY

77

11

I WAS A MEETING PLANNER for Dairy Queen for about five years, declares Nita

Lloyd-Fore, "so I kne w what meeting planners wanted . I'd taken Dairy Queen's conventions to Ha waii, New Orleans, Canada, and Florida. I used to book the Hilton at the St. Louis Airport for board meetings. That's ho w I be came acquainted with the hotel. They didn't have an ad out; they weren 't planning to hire anyone. One day in 1967, I just wal ked in and said, 'I think I could be a salesperson.' They sent me to Chicago for a si x-month training period and I came back in three months with everything completed, so I was hired full time then .

"As a professional woman in the Si xties, you had to overcome a lot of stigmas - a lot of unkind thoughts, many times. 'Ho w did you get here?' 'What did you have to do?' From the customer's point of vie w: 'What does this woman know?' 'Is she too aggressive or too assertive?' 'Is she just a mouthy broad?'

You had to prove yourself. You had to work more than twice as hard in the same position as a man to be recognized.

"However, being a woman opened a lot of doors. Curiosity probably caused that. 'What does she want?' 'Who does she think she is7' 'Does she know her product?' 'I'm going to challenge her with a lot of questions she's probably not going to be able to answer.' And they were fooled - especially if you did your home work.

"Sometimes the job cut into family time, which was not good, but you had to be able to juggle. Those who could organize her time became successful; others fell by the wayside . It's a shame because a lot of talent was lost, but women had to set their priorities. It was still a time when women were expected to be at home raising a family or in secretarial positions or be nurses or teachers. Sales for a woman, especially in the hospitality industry, was an oddity, but it became more and more popular as time went on .

"A couple of times I had to leave a customer's office and say, This is not what I'm selling .

I'm selling my hotel or my company, I'm not selling any anything else . It happened two or three times. I learned who to avoid and I would send a male assistant out if I had any doubts or have someone come with me . But after a while they learned to respect me . It was just a credibility thing."

NITA LLOYD - FORE , CHME , PRESIDENT, 1981 - 1982 (FIRST WOMAN TO HOLD THAT OFFICE )

78

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

"Making unrealistic commitments usually results in a dissatisfied Bahamas. He was committed to the growth philosophy of HSMA's leaders, namely

customer... and a one-time sale:'

that of increasing the international demographics of the membership.

ADRIAN W. PHILLIPS HSMA BULLETIN, 1965

The Past Presidents' Council and Hall of Fame He also saw value in tapping the insights and experiences of past HSMA presidents by re-activating the Past Presidents' Council. Its first meeting was in the spring of 1969, and was chaired by Leonard Oakes (1965 president), and attended by G.E.R. "Dick" Flynn (1939), Adrian Phillips (1942), Frank Berkman (1958), Earl Duffy (1962 ), Vic Barrett (1963), Lou Rogers (1964), and Don Martin (1968). These past leaders were asked to evaluate the direction of HSMA, and to offer their advice to the HSMA Executive Committee. At that first meeting, they asked themselves three questions: "Where have we been." "Where are we." and "Where are we going?" These questions give direction to the Past President's Council to this day, as they share their experiences of past history and the lessons taught by its successes and failures with each generation's HSMAI leaders.

Adrian Phillips spearheaded the efforts of the Past President's Council to urge HSMA to teach pragmatic wisdom to its members, especially to its

DEWITT COFFMAN'S BOOK, "THE FULL

younger participants. His favorite philosophy was one that he taught to

House ," was the first text on hotel sales management in the United States and probably the world. He later published "Marketing for the Full House"which was the first text about hotel "marketing;' a concept that was slow to be understood or utilized by much of the hotel industry. Because they were used to the concept of sales, most general managers just kept doing what they had always been doing and simply changed the name from "sales" to "marketing:' They could not grasp the concept that "sales is selling what you have whereas marketing is what you sen:•Coffman's book did a great deal to develop a true sense of the meaning of the term "marketing:'

standing-room-only audiences as well as to individuals visiting his home in the piney woods of Absecon, New Jersey. "Life is a combination of concentric circles," he said, "and everyone travels around a circle trying to get off at the right time in order to achieve success. If you don't time it right, you miss opportunities. And then you find yourself back where you began."

In 1968, the HSMA Hall of Fame was established to honor individuals for their outstanding achievements and contributions to the field of hotel/motel sales and marketing. The first four recipients were installed at HSMA's 41st Annual Convention in New York City. They were C. Dewitt Coffman, Dick Flynn, Leonard Hicks, and Adrian Phillips.

An Icon Retires If anything, Adrian Phillips' prestige grew even more during his retirement.

ROBERT A. BECK, SECOND DEAN OF THE CORNELL SCHOOL

He had served as HSMA president in 1942 and as executive vice president

OF HOTEL ADMINISTRATION

from 1950 to 1965, but his active involvement in HSMA spanned the early years of the association to his death in 1989. He welcomed visitors constantly to his home in Absecon, his guests ranging from incoming presidents and HSMA staff to industry moguls to hospitality and consumer press reporters. And there he regaled them with stories from the past and present, always teaching lessons and producing volumes of historical industry publications, letters, and documents for them to see.

THE 196 0s: RE ACHI NG OU T GLOB ALL Y

79

He never left HSMA, even after retirement. He attended virtually every key leadership meeting. He was known to listen without comment to hours of discussion and debate on association and industry challenges and opportunities. Someone would invariably ask, "Adrian, what do you think?" His answer was always succinct, and on target, simple and logical. And almost always, his answer was the key everyone was seeking. He was then, and remains today, truly the icon of HSMA. Lennie Oakes and Frank Berkman (middle) receive appreciation plaques at the First Annual Western Regional in 1969 from co-chairs David R. Evans (far right), and Ed Merling (far left).

Western Regional Conference The first Western Regional HSMA Convention was held on June, 1969 at the Delmonte Hyatt House in Monterey, California with more than 150 HSMA members ffrom other western states attending. It was a three-day program, with Frank Berkman, HSMA's executive director; Lennie Oakes, HSMA's general manager; and the dynamic Bud Grice, vice president of Marriott and HSMA's president, actively involved. This was the first time that the HSMA leadership had participated in an association activity of this scope outside of the national conventions. The Western Regional was the beginning of a long series held in Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and Utah. It was a milestone for HSMA.

Membership Reached a Record A close friend of Adrian Phillips, and there were many, was Franklin B. Hignett, CHME, director of marketing for the Knott Hotels Corporation. Hignett was elected HSMA President Bud Grice addresses attendees at the first HSMA Western Regional Conference, held in June 1969 at the Demonte Hyatt House in Monterey, California.

president of HSMA for the 1970 administration during the 1969 HSMA Annual Convention in Houston, Texas. There, long-time member Sanford Lindy once again was recognized as the award-winning sponsor of new members, with 41 recruits to his credit during the last year of the decade.

But HSMA was not done in the final days of 1969. Continuing its pursuit of closer liaison with the airlines, the association sponsored the Second Annual Airline-Hotel Seminar to examine the potential for "Travel's Giant Leap Into The 70s." Featured speakers were author Arthur Hailey, writer of the best-sellers Airport and Hotel, who shared the podium with Najeeb Halaby, president of Pan American World Airways; F.C. "Bud" Wiser, president of Trans World Airlines; and Phillip Lowe, president of the Sheraton Corporation.

At the close of the decade, HSMA announced that a record total of 4,020 members were in the fold. The membership now encompassed 73 countries and 59 chapters.

In a tumultuous decade for many, HSMA had grown impressively. But more important, it had built the foundation for hotel sales and marketing to be a recognized and valued profession for years to come. •

80

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

An Editorial-Retirement Message From Adrian Phillips, CHME, June 1967 With this issue of the HSMA Bulletin 5 Idea Exchange: I am" bowing out" as editor of what I hope has proven a helpful and idea-stimulating publication for you sales minded executives- the members of HSMA. As" founding editor" It has been my privilege for many years to endeavor to have this printed, communication line to the membership reflect the policies, principles, and education objectives of HSMA. This, then, is the second phase of my "retirement" program." Two years ago I turned over the responsibilities of the Executive Vice Presidency to Franklin Berkman. Now seeing magic at age 71 (when perhaps I may qualify as an "elder statesman" of HSMA), I am endeavoring to gain more free time to indulge a diversity of interest and hobbies - not the least to which is "The Phillips Place" where we so enjoy life back in the woods.

However, my active interest in HSMA- its progress, welfare, and fulfillment of its potentials for progress will be a lifelong goal. I have a deep and abiding affection for this organization, which to my personal knowledge has proven educationally helpful to many young people in our profession, as well as a greater experience .

The advancement of sales promotion into its proper primary position in the techniques of modern hotel management has been an effort which has gained substantial success-though there is still much more to be accomplished for the benefit of the profits-picture in the hospitality industry .

So, over the past 15 years, there has been much that has provided rich satisfaction - also being involved in warm friendships I have been privileged to enjoy with HSMA officers, Chapters and members from literally all around the world.

There have, of course, been abundant frustrations too - in that progress couldn't be achieved more rapidly, especially in the area of educational endeavors. I still hope to see the day when every School of Hotel Administration will have an integral part of its curriculum a REQUIRED course in sales promotion. To me, this is training for those aspiring to become the future managers of hotels and motels catering to the traveling public. This is a crusade that should be actively continued, for it will ultimately be successfully achieved.

Chief of a number of earnest persuaders in influencing me to undertake the reorganizing the of Association's affairs, and getting it off to a new start at the beginning of its second ZS-years of growth and progress, was HSMA Past President D. W. Carlton. With his help and that of many, my overall experience covering these past 15 years has proven most meaningful and worthwhile for me - and I express again my great appreciation for the generous cooperation given by so many during the period of active official service. I am grateful, too, for the numerous honors and tributes paid me--embarrassing as they were at the time to the recipient!

Retirement is just a word with me - not a state of mind . Therefore, I intend and hope to continue active in many ways, and in HSMA matters you may be sure that I will always stand ready to be helpful as needed .

THE 1950s: RE ACHING OUT GLOB ALLY

81

()AS g Sales Limited to 10 GALS.OF GAS. PE!< Ot/9TOMEJ<

·

H5MA's leaders and staff understood

• CHAPTER SEVEN

that, in times of trouble, associations with a defined mission grew as peers came together to solve problems and find answers. H5MA obviously had a defined mission. Membership increased by 855 new members during 1971to4,266 in 86 countries.

Challenges and Opportunities T 10:56:20 P.M. EST ON JULY 20, 1969, COMMANDER Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon. "The surface is fine and powdery," he radioed to Houston. "I can pick it up loosely with my boots." In this defining moment, he was describing man's first footsteps on a surface other than Earth. He also could have been describing the nature of things on the planet he had left.

The war and social changes that marked the Sixties continued well into the 1970s. In May of that year, four students were killed and ten wounded when National Guardsmen opened fire at Ohio's Kent State University. In 1973, the Supreme Court's decision regarding Roe v. Wade legalized abortion and opened a floodgate of controversy that rages to this day. At the same time, there was a growing disillusionment about government advances in civil rights and a heightened concern about the environment.

THE 1970s: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

83

Challenges and Opportunities The Vietnam War officially ended in 1974, but continued to divide the country as tens of thousands of American soldiers returned home from Vietnam to the jeers of many of their countrymen.

President Lyndon B. Johnson declined to run for re-election in 1969 and Richard M. Nixon was elected the 37th president. In 1972, Nixon's campaign operatives broke into the Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate Hotel. The president's attempts to cover up the break-in led to his resignation two years later. Gerald Ford became president in 1974 and faced the problems of an economy shattered by the worst recession in 40 years. In 1979, Jimmy Carter's presidency was marred when he dealt unsuccessfully with a serious crisis caused by the overthrow of the Shah of Iran, the seizure by student revolutionaries of the American Embassy in Tehran, and the taking of 52 American hostages.

The winds of change were blowing as Neil Armstrong kicked dust on the moon in the quiet vacuum of space. In light of society's global and domestic upheavals, those watching him on their television screens were entranced at the sight of moon dust but many also wondered if there was any terra firma left at home.

~~W~~li~.--~t~he '70's arketing lU OU U\

Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude The first landing on the moon was called the "gate-

way to the stars." It expanded the perspective of humankind beyond the latitudes and longitudes of its planet. The association created its own "gateway" by setting the theme of "Gateway to Ideas" for its 1970 annual convention, under the direction of Convention Chair Edmund Sansovini, CHME.

1970

Germaine Greer's The Female Eunuch Adds to the Feminist Movement

U.S. Movie Tickets Drop 66 Percent since Record of 1950 AP Sends News by Computer Canadians Invent Giant IMAX Projection System

Postal Reform Bill Makes U.S. Postal Service Self-Supporting Optical Fi ber Developed by Corning Glass Barcodes Introduced

84

7 S YE AR 5 0 F 5 ERV I CE AN D AC HI EVE MENT

ABC Debuts Monday Night Football World Trade Center in New York City is Completed

Flash Forward!

John Glenn, the first astronaut to orbit the Earth, recently

The program emphasized open discussion to generate answers to the daunting issues of the new decade, and for responding to the growing globalization of a shrinking world.

During the Installation Banquet that closed the convention, Frank Hignett, CHME, passed the HSMA gavel to Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME, who served as president during 1971.

A new generation of hotel salespeople entered the field in the Seventies, and HSMA invested in the body of knowledge it needed to

recounted the story of the Wright brothers' first manned flight at Kitty Hawk and compared it to the first landing on the moon. "From the sands of Kitty Hawk to the dust of the moon was just 66 years," he said. "That's pretty amazing."

HS MAi's lifespan is already nine years longer than the years it took aviation to go from a 200-foot flight in North Carolina to spacecraft reaching the moon and landing men on it.

That's also pretty amazing.

thrive. The HSMA Sales Research Library, a storehouse of information, was fast becoming one of the most beneficial assets of membership. Members, from veterans to fledglings, used the library for insight into industry trends, marketing examples, and sales ideas for properties of any size, whether independent or chain-affiliated.

Nowhere else in the industry was there a centralized resource of such range and depth.

With total membership now reaching 4,256 at the beginning of the decade and the advent of new member programs, the association needed additional staff resources.

Leonard R. Oakes, CHME, a past president of HSMA and veteran executive with the Sheraton Corporation, was named HSMA's general manager. This was the number two executive position, reporting directly to Executive Vice President Frank Berkman.

Reach Out and Touch Someone HSMA had already reached out to liaison with the airline industry, and that relationship was providing educational opportunities and the exchange of ideas well into the Seventies. In 1971, the association also was instrumental in the creation of the Travel Liaison Committee, the purpose of which was to discuss issues of mutual interest with representatives of the broader travel industry. President Grice appointed the highly

Cecil B. Day Opens the First Days Inn on Tybee Island, Georgia

s One Holiday Inn ewhere in the World Every

The Boeing 747 is Invented Earth Day is Celebrated for the First Time

rt Debuts, Spawning the ie" Genre

Amtrak Debuts The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is Formed Hilton Becomes the First Billion-Dollar Lodging and Food Service Company and the First to Enter the Las Vegas Market

es

respected Michael A. Leven, CHME, of Sonesta Hotels, as HSMA's chief representative to this committee.

In the meantime, changes also were being made in the makeup of the jointly sponsored Airlines/Hotel Seminar. Hotel sales and marketing executives, airline executives, hotel and airline advertising agencies, and the United States Travel Service (USTS) were now involved in producing the meetings. The USTS, Trans World

THE EARLY SEVENTIES WAS ONE OF THE GREATTIMESinthehotel business. That was when the Hyatt Regency opened the first atrium hotel in Atlanta. I remember the opening director of marketing of that hotel saying that if this thing doesn't go as a hotel we can always turn it into a church. And I asked, "Why?" And he said because if you stand here in the lobby and watch people come into this hotel they say one of two things: "Goddamn!' or 'Je-sus Christ!" The awe of it!

What really happened is that Hyatt had remade the hotel business. Several years later the Westin Peachtree Plaza opened and it was the tallest hotel in the world at the time. I remember going up the glass elevator outside that hotel and looking down on top of the Hyatt and feeling chills at understanding what had happened in just a few short years to the business we were in.

DAVID B. EVANS, CHME, PRESIDENT 1974

Airlines, and Pan American World Airways worked with HSMA to consider incentives to increase travel by Europeans to the United States.

Continuing its efforts to attract to new constituencies, HSMA announced plans to organize a Corporate Meeting Planners organization within the framework of HSMA. The effort was in recognition of corporate meetings as a potential market approaching the magnitude of the firmly established association event market and the burgeoning religious meetings market.

Phil Harrison, an industry legend as publisher of Sales Meetings (now Successful Meetings) magazine, was named to work with President Grice to pursue the plan.

As HSMA continued to reach toward new market segments, it created an "Associate Member" category, to cover not only members of the corporate meetings community but also other entities within the growing conference and travel industry.

1971 E-mail Introduced

Intel Builds the 4004 Microprocessor, a "Computer on a Chip"

Newspapers Switch from Hot Metal to Offset Printing

Apollo 14 and lS Crews Explore the Moon

Internet Forerunner ARPANET Has 22 Users Online

The New York Times Publishes The Pentagon Papers

Wang Launches the First Word Processor Texas Instruments Introduces a Portable Electronic Calculator

In Washington, the Kennedy Center Opens

The Cell Phone is Invented

"All In The Family" Brings Social Consciousness to TV Beginning of Detente Between China and the United States Walt Disney World Opens

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75 YEARS OF SE RVI CE AND ACH I EVEMEN T

IN 1972 BJORN HANSON, then During this time, the Society of Corporate Meeting Planners was formalized with a close working relationship with HSMA but not within its organizational framework.

The expansion of HSMA was also directed toward its growing chapter base. The "HSMA Marketing Seminar," presented by the association's staff, reached more than 2,000 participants in 21 chapters. Regional programs also were delivered, including "How to Make a Sales Call" and "Management's Role in Marketing."

The latter educational program was an obvious extension of HSMA's efforts to reach out to hotel management and make it an integral partner in marketing, as well as to stretch its members' skills beyond sales to the broader disciplines of marketing. That seminar also was presented to hotel management associations, including AH&MA affiliates in Massachusetts, Arizona, Louisville, New England, New York state, and Texas.

HSMA went beyond its borders in 1972 to hold its 44th Annual Convention in Mexico City. The theme, "The Challenge of Change," and the educational programming reflected the fluid nature of the industry and the society that sales and marketing professionals sought to serve. Among subjects covered were: "The Changing Impact of Minority Markets," "The Changing Patterns of Travel," and "Adjust to Change."

At the convention, the association recognized and applauded the winners of the 15th

president of the student chapter of HSMA at Cornell University, won the Adrian Phillips scholarship. "I met Mr. Phillips (at that time, no one my age would call him 'Adrian') at the HSMA convention in Mexico City. He was in his natural surrounding, encircled by hotel sales executives hoping for pearls of wisdom from the world's renowned luminary on the subject of hotel sales and marketing. He was explaining how by looking at a prospect's thumb he could tell a great amount about the person and how to approach the sale.

There we all were, taking notes about the lengths and shapes of thumbs. It was a thrill to see him and observe his influence and celebrity, and his humbleness despite his renown as the founder of modern hotel sales and marketing:'

annual Advertising Awards Contest. This year's contest drew another record number of entries, including 437 from 161 hotels in 18 countries. Ed Sansovini received the president's gavel from Bud Grice, followed by a delightful performance of the Ballet Folkloric and an optional post-convention tour to Acapulco. While all HSMAI conventions dealt with serious business, they were as enjoyable as they were productive.

HSMA's leaders and staff understood that, in times of trouble, associations with a defined mission grew as peers came together to solve problems and find answers.

1972

In the Philippines, Marcos Establishes Martial Law, Throttles Free Commerce

The Film The Godfather Opens

"Pong" Becomes the First Home Video Game

President Nixon Visits China

Sony Introduces the Betamax Videotape System for the Home

The Giant Pandas Hsing Hsing and Ling Ling Find a New Home at the D. C. Zoo.

First Public Demonstration of ARPANET Introduces What Will Become Internet

The Feminist Movement is Bolstered by the Introduction of Ms. Magazine U.S. Approves "Open Skies": Any Firm Can Have Communications Satellite The Washington Post Begins Watergate Reporting

Polaroid Debuts First Self-Focus Camera Alcatraz Becomes a National Park

FCC Ends Ban on Cable TV in Large Cities Terrorists Kill German Athletes at Olympic Games

TH E I 9 7 Os: CHALLE NGES AND 0 PP0 RT UNIT I ES

87

HSMA obviously had a defined mission. Membership increased by 855 new members during 1971 to 4,266 in 86 countries. Nevertheless, the net increase was disappointing.

The dampening effects of domestic and international crises were taking their toll financially, as some 700 existing memberships were canceled for non-payment of dues. The cause of the membership cancellations was largely linked to spending cutbacks in the face of the economic conditions prevailing in the United States. The country was entering a deep recession combined with rising inflation. The old adage "when times are tough, you have to spend money to make money" was a tough sell in the 1970s.

Riding Out the Storm In 1972, HSMA continued its healthy pace of member services, but in the face of economic challenges became more aggressive in offering programs that could attract additional revenue. For example, the highly popular Official HSMA

Directory and Facilities Guide accepted advertising from members only, with the intent to add $30,000 in income to offset production costs. Seminars and workshops were promoted extensively while keeping registration fees in line with members' ability to pay. Still, the costs of delivery rose and costs of production skyrocketed when attendance increased significantly at these events.

Nonetheless, the association continued its fast-paced program of work of recent years while at the same time working to stabilize itself financially.

There was never any question that the association would always strive to invest in educating members and in expanding its membership horizons.

Discussions that HSMA had started at the turn of the decade with Pan Am, TWA, and the USTS resulted in a special promotional program designed to attract overseas

1973

After the Signing of a Cease-Fire Agreement in Paris, American POW's are Released by North Vietnam The Sears Tower is Completed . At 1,454 ft. Tall, it is the Tallest Building in the World.

Arab Oil-Producing States Embargo Shipments to the United States, Japan, and Europe, Creating a Gasoline Shortage Around the Country .

Billy Jean King Defeats Bobby Riggs in Tennis

88

75 YE ARS OF SERV ICE AND AC HI EVEMENT

The Sheraton Anaheim is the First to Offer Free In-Room Movies For $575, People Can Buy a New Computer Kit with Microprocessor Reggae Music Spre ds Out from Jamaica

HSMA WAS A SOURCE OF EDUCATION and training. I have a distinct recollection of attending a visitors to the United States. All members of HSMA were invited to participate at no cost, and more than 300 properties joined in the effort for worldwide promotion. At the same time, HSMA produced more than 40 seminars during the year, attracting in excess of 3,000 sales and manage-

regional meeting in 1974 with Dave Dorf and Lennie Oakes who were on staff, and getting good input on direct marketing and how to make a sales call and how to conduct negotiations and things of that nature. All I could say was, 'Oh, that's how you do that stuff:

ment executives, customers, and hospitality industry students.

HSMA also turned its attention to helping members better respond to

The other thing that was great about HSMAI was and still is the creation of relationships with other people in the industry - the networking. Being in independent hotels and resorts as I was then, getting to know people in

educational programming, it also was the focal point of global interaction and

similar situations and similar properties, was important.

If they couldn't handle a piece of business they'd pass it

technology. The Internet, just emerging as a communications tool, was developed

off to a friend and that was reciprocal . The networking,

by the Department of Defense with the aid of universities and other government

the ability to learn from those people, was a large part of my early training.

IN THE EARLY 19705 whi1e communication was at the center of HSMA's

agencies. An innovative communications marvel, the Internet in relatively few

JAM ES B. TIERN EV, CHM E, PRESIDENT 1990

years would literally change the world.

The University of Hawaii developed the first wireless computer networking system, and the U.S. Post Office teamed with Western Union to offer "Mai1grams."

The Wang 1200 became the first word processor; the cellphone was invented, and Sony introduced a videotape system designed for the home: the Beta max. For the first time, satellites were used for television news reports. Xerox introduced the Alto, the first computer with a mouse and graphical interface. AP and UPI announced plans to install computers in all of their U.S. bureaus, and IBM proclaimed that its popular Selectric typewriter was now available in a "self-correcting" mode1. All would have been well advised to have followed Voltaire's advice : "The danger in communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished."

The Sting Wins the Oscar; The Exorcist, American Graffiti Hit the Screens

Erica Jong Shocks Readers with Her Language in Fear of Flying

1974

Super 8 Home Movie Cameras are Developed with Magnetic Stripping for Sound

Pocket Calculators Become Popular

President Nixon Resigns over 'Watergate' Scandal The Film Chinatown Opens

Xerox Sets Up the Local Area Network System (LAN) called Ethernet

Syria and Israel Agree to Cease-Fire

The Energy Crisis Hits the Industry. Hotels Dim Exterior Lights, Cut Heat to Unoccupied Rooms, and Ask Guests to Conserve Electricity Four Seasons Adds Standard Overnight Laundry Service Ramada Introduces Regional Marketing Associations

AP Announces Plans to Store News Photos in its Computers

Carrie Becomes the First of Stephen King's Blockbuster Gothic Novels

People Magazine Steps Out THE 1970s: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUN IT IES

89

the needs of their customers. Understanding the expectations of clients beca me the focus of much of the associ ation's seminars, workshops, and member communications.

For example, the theme of the 45th annual convention in 1972, held at the Atl anta Ma rriott, was "Customer Communications." HSMA invited a number of dynamic speakers to focu s on that theme. Among them, James P. Low, president of the prestigious customer group, the American Society of Association Executives, delivered a (Left to right) Danny Amico, Frank Berkma n, Sig Front, Ben Gou ld, Witt Coffman, and Ed Sa nsovini, at the 1972 HSMA Convention in Atlanta.

hard-hitting keynote speech, "The C ustomers Speak." Nolan M oore, executive director of the Printing Industries Association of America, fo llowed with an insightful "Solving the People Puzzle." Paul M ills, a partner with Sales Power, Inc., spoke on "Yo u're Talking, But Are They Listening?" and Georgia State University President Noa h La ngdale addressed "The Secret of Successful Communica tions."

At the end of the convention, Sig S. Front, CH ME, accepted the HSMA President's gavel fro m Ed Sansovini who had led the association through a challenging, but successfu l year.

In 1973, HSMA responded to the rapidly expanding global membership by opening a European office in La usa nne, Switzerland, headed by Jacq ues Papazian, a longti me acti ve member of the association. Communica tion was the spearhead of his efforts, as he endeavored to esta blish new chapters in Austria , Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. H e also acted as a commu nications agent between existing European chapters and provided HSMA headquarters with news and photographs for use in the H SMA Bulletin.

HSMA had just completed production of a new seminar, "Profits Through People,"

1974

Coaxial Cable is Developed to Carry 108, ooo Phone Conversations Simultaneously "Mailgrams" Can Now be Sent

U.S. Ne wspapers Scramble to Replace Reporters' Type writers with Computers

1975

Disposable Razors are Introduced Jimmy Hoffa Disappears

The Word "Internet" Enters the Lexicon The Wall Street Journal Begins to Transmit Editions by Satellite

James Michener Completes his Novel Centennial

90

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

Dolby Labs Introduces "Surround Sound" for Movies and Theater

The United Nations Officially Recognizes 1975 as 'The Year of the Woman'

and Papazian was the first to book a presentation, with the curtain-raiser scheduled for the German chapter. In the years to follow, European chapters would become a rich field in which HSMA could grow its many educational offerings and expand the association's influence.

Leading The Industry Expansion In 1949, HSMA was one of the four original founders of the Convention Liaison Committee, later named the Convention Liaison Council (and in the year 2001, the Convention Industry Council).

Together, HSMA, the American Society of Association Executives, the American Hotel

The 1973-74 HSMA Board at a meeting held in Tarpon Springs, Florida.

& Motel Association (now the American Hotel & Lodging Association), Meeting Planners International, and the International Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus formed a coalition that would double in size by 1973.

Joining the CLC were the Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives (producers of major technical and scientific meetings and symposia); the International Association of Auditorium Managers (made up of HSMA peers managing and selling convention centers and public auditoriums); the National Association of Exhibit Managers (producers of expositions and trade shows); and the Professional Convention Management Association (convention and meeting planners).

CLC began a restructuring that would ultimately include many associations representing the new disciplines emerging from a growing industry, both buyer and supplier organizations. Potential new member groups included those representing corporate meeting planners, religious conference p lanners, incentive meeting planners, air travel cruise lines, bus companies, and car rental firms. CLC initiated a systematic and strategic plan toward growth that by the turn of the century would include 26 associ-

The Roman Catholic Church Appoints the First U.5.-Born Saint

The Microcomputer, in Kit Form, Hits the U.S. Home Market

Lodging Magazine is Authorized as the Official Publication of AH&MA

Jaws Hits the screens, Taking a Bite Out of the Beach Resort Business

Four Seasons is the First Hotel Company to Offer In-Room Amenities such as Name-Brand Shampoo

HBO's Thrilla' From Manilla Begins Pay Cable TV Boom

Hyatt Introduces an Industry First when it Opens its Regency Club, a Concierge Club Level that Provides the Ultimate in VIP Services

BASIC Becomes the First Programming Language for the Personal Computer

Cecil B. Day Hands out Wooden Nickels to Guests Over so, Establishing the First Seniors Program

Venera 9 Sends Pictures of the Surface of Venus

Bill Gates and Paul Allen Start a Company Called Microsoft

The First Retail Computer Store Selling Assembled Computers Opens in LA

U.S. Television Networks Agree to Set a "Family Hour" Free of Sex and Violence

TH E 1970s: CHALLE NG ES AND OPPOR TUNIT IE S

91

ations, with more on the waiting list. H SMA has always been proud of its charter membership and its influence on the development of this industry orga nization.

The World Is Your Market Dublin, Ireland was the home of the 1973 HSMA Convention, the first convention outside N orth America, and a memora ble one it was.

David Adare FitzGerald of La Touche Hotel in Greystones, and a leading HSMA member in Ireland, served as convention chair. Literally decades later, members who were there still remember the meaningful At the 1973 HSMA Convention in Dublin, Ireland, HSMA Preside nt Sig Front and his wife, Toni, tour the home of Erskin Childers (right), President of The Republic of Ireland .

general sessions and seminars, as well as the social events, including an unforgettable evening at Dublin Castle sponsored by the Irish government.

David B. Eva ns, CHME, became the 1974 president, succeeding Sig Front.

Speakers, seminar lea ders, and discussions centered on the world market and its emergence in the 1970s. Tom Driscoll, exec utive director of the Europea n Travel Commission, set the stage fo r follow- up topic ta ble sessions with his presentation on "The Cooperative Approach to World Tourism ."

Back at home, H SMA tallied up its successes for the year. The 1973- 74 edition of the Official HSMA Directory and Facilities Guide broke its previous record with a press run of 25,000 copies and its new advertising policies generated an income over expense of $50,000, 25 percent over budget.

At the sa me time, membership increased to 4,898 reaching an all-time high and an increase of some 10 percent from a year earlier. It was hoped that the economic

HSMA President Sig Front (left) is presented with his 1973 portrait, compliments of Successful Meetings magazine.

1976

Two Florida Hotels are the First to Offer HBO in Guestrooms The United States Turns 200 Four Seasons Provides Complimentary Newspapers with Room-Service Breakfast Delivery Alex Haley Publishes Roots

92

7S YE ARS OF SERVIC E AN D ACH I EVEMENT

restrictions of the past three years were easing, and that the association's aggressive marketing of its products and services was working.

Queen Elizabeth II is the First Head of State to Send an E-mail Small Satellite Dishes Begin Appearing in Backyards Court Rules "Family Hour" on TV Unco nstitutio na l FCC Reserves Line 21 on Television Sets for Cl osed Captions

Barbara Walters is the First Woman to Anchor a Network Newscast

HSMA World Reflects Growing Globalization, Certification

Identifies Professionalism The new year of 1974 began with major changes fo r HSMA. The venera ble H SMA Bulletin, the association's member newsletter for many years, was to undergo a complete facelift. A change of name, layout, body type, headline style, and graphics were in order.

More than 75 different entries were received in the "Name the Bulletin " contest. The winning name was HSMA World, Attendees at the 4th Annual HSMA Euro pean Con fe renc e in Dublin in 1978.

submitted by Hilton International Advertising M anager Neil W. Ostergren, CH ME. With H SMA's rapid and continuous growth around the world , it was becoming obvious that the global influ ence that the associati on had been building should be reflected in the publica tion's name. There were now more than 5,000 members in over 80 co untries, including 14 chapters in Europe and several in Asia .

HSMA had achieved a legitimate international profile. It had beco me a worldwide orga nizati on.

The association also moved to identify experienced professionals in its ranks by creating the H SMA Certified Hotels Sales Executive (CHSE) designation. The program was developed by the HSMA Certification Committee, chaired by veteran leader James A. Knauff, CHME. It joined the ranks of other certification programs at that time, particularly those of buyer organizations such as the Certified Associati on Executive (CAE) program offered by ASAE. The thrust of the CHSE designation was to identify to both suppliers and buyers that the holder of the designation had demonstrated

thro ugh performance, experience, a test, and industry involvement a high level of professionalism upon which his or her clients and peers could rely.

1977

Disco Music and Dancing Become the Rage Toronto Globe Becomes First to Offer Newspaper Text Database to Public

The Films Saturday Night Fever and Star Wars Open

TV Miniseries Roots Draws Record 130 Million Viewers

The Panama Canal Treaties are Signed, Giving U.S. Control of the Canal until 1999 Showtime and The Movie Channel Debut in Hotels The Love Boat Makes its Television Maiden Voyage MCI Ends AT&T Exclusivity for Long Distance Phone Service

Apple ll's Floppy Disk Drive Leads to Writing cif Ne w Software Prog rams

Nintendo Begins Selling Computer Games

Atari Brings a Programmable Video Game to the Home

AT&T Begins Transmitting Phone Calls via Fiber Optics

Apple II Becomes the Best Selling Computer

THE 1970s: CHALL ENGE S AND OP PORT UNI TIE S

93

MOST AWARDS PROGRAMS have interesting roots. The HSMA Advertising Awards Competition was no exception . Adrian Phillips was not only leading the association, he was also a prolific writer and teacher of hotel marketing. But he was frustrated by not being able to obtain samples of advertising from HSMA-related hotels to use in his sales courses at Cornell and elsewhere. William Morton, 1957 president of HSMA, urged Phillips to create the competition. His advice: If you run the contest year after year, you'll have access to all of the advertising examples that you need. He was right. Adrian had a wealth of advertising samples to share with his students and others for many years, and

Those who met the requirements to become a candidate for the CHSE designation had to document professional experience, pass a written examination, and write an original thesis. In time, the certification program would grow and be fine-tuned, and was ultimately expanded in 1998 to become the Certified Hospitality Marketing Executive (CHME) designation. At that time, the CHSE program was eliminated and all CHSE designees assumed the CHME designation.

the competition flourishes to this day.

Student chapters continued to grow. Following the first HSMA Student Convention in 1973 at Cornell, the Second Annual HSMA Student Convention was held at Southwest Minnesota State College. Attendees came from as far away as Toronto, Canada and Pullman, Oregon .

The Advertising Awards Contest Comes of Age HSMA's Advertising Awards Competition, now in its 17th year, had become the largest such contest in the world. In 1972, a "Best of Show" award was presented for the first time in the competition. During 1973, the Advertising Advisory Committee agreed that the advertising awards should be personalA gold award winner in the Adrian Advertising Awards Competition

ized by being connected with the name of the individual most responsible for the spirit of the competition. Committee chair Neil Ostergren announced in 1974 that the advertising competition had been re-named the "Adrian Awards" in honor of Adrian Phillips, the founder of the competition.

(Years later, "Adrian" was used as the name of the advertising component of the annual awards competition after a public relations component was added.) The Best of

1978

Camp David Peace Summit Hosted by President Carter The First 'Test Tube' Baby is Born in England Westin Becomes the First Major Hotel Company to Establish its Own Training Program for Executive Chefs

Atlantic City Permits Gambling Oracle is Born in England, a New Generation of Video and Teletext Systems

RCA Introduces the Selectavision Video Disc Cultists Commit Mass Suicide at Jonesto wn

96

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEV EMENT

WE ALL RECOGNIZE THE NEED for more professionalism in marketing our Show in public relations was named the Edward L. Bernays Award, and the "H.

product. Through regular business meetings we will be able to exchange ideas and

Victor Grohmann Award" became name of the Best of Show in advertising.

HSMA met in Denver to close out 1974 at its annual convention, with David B. Evans, turning the presidency over to William E. Worsham for the 1975 administrative

involve the hospitality industry in mutual discussion and self-help. HSMA can supply

year. Noted speakers, outstanding seminar leaders, and informal topic tables highlighted

our members with a vast amount of data

the event. But perhaps the most significant feature was the induction of the first class of

and selling aids that can be passed on to the entire industry.

Certified Hotel Sales Executives. There were 17 CHSE designees in the inaugural group.

DAVID WARR EN, PRESIDENT

"Taking It To The Streets"

NEW SOUTH WA LES, AUSTRALIA CHAPTER

The HSMAI Board met in early 1975 to announce a new series of six Regional Conferences to be conducted during the year throughout the United States and Canada. This new series had been approved in 1974 to provide education for those members who, for whatever reason, could not travel long distances to attend national educational programs.

The first six programs were delivered in Atlanta, Baltimore, Detroit, Hartford, Kansas City, and Montreal. Toronto was added to the list after the success of the previous five editions. Because one of the objectives of the conferences was to give members a chance to meet HSMA leaders "up close and personal," President Bill Worsham was the luncheon speaker at each of the events held during 1975.

Meanwhile, the global influence of HSMA was becoming more apparent, and demanding of attention. In response, HSMA held its First Annual International Congress in Munich, Germany, drawing 142 attendees from 12 countries. Among the Congress speakers were Leonard Lickorish, director general of the British Tourist Authority; Robin McKenzie Smith, director of the Montreux, Switzerland Conference Bureau; and Leonard H. "Buck" Hoyle, director of conventions and meetings for the

1979

PBS Goes to Satellite for Broadcasting, Abandoning Telephone Lines

Margaret Thatcher Becomes the First Woman Prime Minister of Britain

Video Game Arca des Become the Rage, Featuring Games like "Space Invaders"

Sony Walkman is Introduced Susan B. Anthony $1 Coin is Introduced Three Mile Island Meltdown Occurs Hyatt Names its First Woman General Manager, Cheryl Phelps, to the Former Queen Mary Hyatt in Long Beach, CA THE 1970s : CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUN IT I ES

97

I HAD TWO GOALS as president of HSMA: first, to convince more womento come into hotel sales as a career; and second, to convince owners and managers of hotels and hotel corporations that their most important asset was theirsales department and their productive sales executives. Iwrote articles, had interviews with newspaper writers, gave speeches to large groups of hotel and travel executives, was interviewed on national television travel shows - all to communicate and promote those two goals.

One result was a letter from Richard Swig, CEO of the Fairmont chain, saying he'd circulated one of my articles to all his top staff. With it he sent a directive that general managers and senior hotel executives should become active in sales and help each property not only obtain business, but also refer business to sister properties.

SIG 5. FRONT, PRESIOENT 1973

American Society of Association Executives. (Hoyle became executive vice president of HSMA upon the retirement of Frank Berkman in 1981).

Mike Leven, vice president of operations for the Dunfey Family Corporation group of hotels, became president of HSMA in 1976 during the Annual HSMA Convention at the Doral Country Club & Hotel in Miami. Shortly after the transition, Leven accepted the position of senior vice president of marketing for Americana Hotels and was on his way to become one of the industry's legendary figures over the coming years.

The Second Half of the 70s: Evolution and Revolution Watergate had brought down Nixon and his administration. People

Magazine was born and soon would tap into a growing tabloid market, and "punk rock" music began its emigration from Europe to America with its themes of nihilism, anarchy, and revolution. The reverberations of Vietnam continued to echo throughout the land.

But on the technological front, watershed events would directly affect

the hospitality industry as it would all others. IBM introduced a "portable" computer, weighing 50 pounds and costing $9,000 for a 16K machine and a mere $20,000 for top of the line 64K models. A fellow named Bill Gates teamed with Paul Allen to start a company called Micro-Soft. And another proactive newcomer, Steve Jobs, sold his VW van to raise manufacturing funds for his creation, the Apple I computer.

The two companies would clash in gargantuan competition for decades to come. At the same time, Sony's Betamax and JVC's VHS video systems began their battle for the multi-million dollar home market. Sony would lose.

Competition in the hospitality industry was equally intense. To secure its place as a major player, HSMA was even more proactive in education and globalization in 1976. With the success of the previous year's six Regional Conferences, the association developed a series of nine regional events in 1976. The key goals of the conferences continued to be presenting high-quality education, facilitating interaction between buyers and suppliers, and offering an opportunity to meet HSMA's elected leaders and headquarters' staff.

The growing globalization of the association was evident in the 2nd Annual International Congress in Zagreb, Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia Government Tourist Board Secretary General Vojislav Djuranovic delivered the keynote speech "Profits Produce Growth." Other speakers included William F. Prigge of Hilton International; Paddy Fitzpatrick of Fitzpatrick Hotels in Ireland; Jaro Fisher of Trust House Forte Hotels; and Gerhard Mueller of the Hotel Winkler in Salzburg, Austria. To ensure continuation of the international thrust for HSMA, the next two congresses were announced

98

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

for Oslo in 1977 and Dublin in 1978.

HSMA held its 49th Annual Convention in Los Angeles at the storied Century Plaza. The drive to make marketing an integral part of the management process was reflected in the speech by AH&MA President-Elect Richard Holtzman, who energized his audience with a presentation on "Marketing in Management." At the same convention, HSMA celebrated the 20th anniversary of the HSMA Advertising Awards Contest boasting a record 650 entries and 140 awards, President Mike Leven, passed the gavel to newly-elected 1977 President Robert W. Phillips, CHME, at the convention. Leven then received his portrait from Philip Harrison, publisher of Successful

Meetings magazine, who had a tradition of presenting each of the association's past presidents with a handsomely painted likeness. Leven was known as a dynamic advocate of strong incentives as well as good salaries for sales executives. He believed that such incentives would not only reward productive salespeople, but also hold down the turnover of personnel that plagued both industry employers and customers.

New Challenges, New Markets Bob Phillips became HSMA president at a time when the national economy was in recession, combined with inflation and high energy costs. The hotel industry had expanded as had airlines, on the reasonable assumption that the economy would continue to grow. The recession caught travel and hospitality in a trap. Operating and

UNLI KE M0ST I NDUST RI ES that

capital expenses were increasing at the same time that travelers were finding it difficult to afford to tour, go to conventions, and attend business events.

But the industry was betting on the burgeoning number of Baby Boomers, now having matured, to turn the tide. The hospitality-travel industry projected that in the next 15 years, that group would grow to nearly 60 million people. As American Express President James Robinson observed, "These were the college students of the 60s. (They) grew up traveling. They are now generating enough income to stay in your establishments, rather than travel backpack style."

The Baby Boomers were marrying later if at all, having fewer children, enjoying two-to-four-week vacations, ten to 12 holidays a year, and providing an emerging singles market for travel.

Robinson also cited the recession's impact on the devaluation of the dollar to spur international travel to the United States. Europeans in particular, with tastes for fine hotels and restaurants, were taking advantage of favorable exchange rates to come to the United States rather than pay inflated prices on their own continent. This would play directly into the HSMA philosophy of building global bridges within the hospitality-travel industry.

pay their salespeople on the basis of what they produce, the hotel industry in almost all cases does not. Unless the compensation system of the industry changes from a straight salary to some type of compensation tied to production, we will forever be dealing with individuals who do not stay long enough in their jobs and continually look towards new companies or new positions for financial improvement. Icould site examples time and again of those hotels where sales staffs have been intact for many years and consequently have a very high repeat business factor.

MICHAEL A. LEVEN, CHME PRESIDENT, HSMA 1976

HSMA pursued this strategy aggressively by staging its 3rd Annual European THE 1970s: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

99

1GUR

....•

GffltlAL '

.,

__......-...----. --------__.....

THIS BABY BOOMER GENERATION Congress in Oslo, with a theme of "The Future Hotel Industry." Attendees from 12 countries discussed subjects such as "International European

is building a large singles market for travel, both male and female. These days you don't need a marriage certificate to get a room ... just a credit card.

JAMES D. ROBINSON, Ill, PRESIDENT,

Economic Analyses," "The Congress/Conference Market," "Personnel

AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY (IN A SPEECH TO THE

Management" and "How Norway Analyzes its Hotel and Restaurant

AMERICAN HOTEL & MOTEL ASSOC IATION)

Industry."

One of HSMA's most influential supporters of this period was Melinda Bush, the dynamic publisher of Hotel & Travel Index. A constant contributor to HSMA causes, she teamed with Robert A. Beck, dean of Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, to develop the first "Hotel & Travel Index/Cornell University Work-Study Scholarship Program." HSMA student chapter members were chosen to participate in ten weeks of on-the-job training, followed by a formal sales and marketing educational program. Hotel & Travel Index sponsored the program. HSMA and Cornell joined with the Institute of Certified Travel Agents as well as hotel companies such as Americana, Hyatt, Marriott, Sheraton, and Western International to produce a cutting-edge program that was to become an annual event.

In 1977, more than 700 people attended the memorable 50th Anniversary Convention in Washington, DC. The theme was "Sales-A Capital Investment." Wes Hooper, CHME, accepted the gavel from Bob Phillips as the association celebrated its milestone 50 years of service by welcoming leaders and CEOs of 14 major customer associations and presidents of 18 hotel companies to the convention. Time magazine rose to the occasion by delivering a highlight of the event ... a multi-screen audio-visual presentation, "50 years of HSMA," to a standing ovation.

Growing Together Demand for HSMA's Regional Conferences continued to grow, and President Hooper announced nine new sites for the 1978 series: Columbia, South Carolina; Hartford, Connecticut; Jackson, Mississippi; Louisville, Kentucky; Minneapolis, Minnesota; New York, New York; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Washington, D.C. The European Conference grew as well in size and substance. The 4th Annual European Conference at the Gresham Hotel in Dublin was developed around the challenging theme "Changes in the Eighties."

The keynote speaker at the conference was Padraig Faulkner, Ireland's minister for tourism and transport. The challenges of the Eighties were identified by Peter Rickmers of Airtours International in his session on "The Customer in the Eighties" and by David A. Troy, CHME of Sheraton Corporation, who spoke about "The Hotel in the Eighties."

In another part of the world, more than 100 members attended a conference hosted by the HSMA Northern Australia and Southern Australia chapters, in Thredbo, New South Wales. "Marketing for Profitability" was the theme and the thrust of THE 1970s: CHALLENGES AND DPPDRTUNITIES

101

HSMA programming worldwide.

HSMA's 51st Annual Convention in 1978 offered the theme "Our Mission-Self Improvement" to more than 600 in San Diego. Melinda Bush was given a special award for her long support to the association in her role as publisher of Hotel & Travel Index, and Robert D. McGrail, CHME,

...

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received the president's gavel from W. E.

.

"Wes" Hooper, CHME.

European leaders at a 1978 mid-year HSMA meeting at the Carlton Hotel in Amsterdam, Holland .

Closing Out a Decade of Change HSMA entered 1979 with 88 chapters in 18 countries throughout the world. The association was still struggling to match its aggressive educational and professional programming with the restricted financial resources at its disposal. Yet it could point with substantial pride to its industry contributions and leadership during the decade of the Seventies. Just as it had begun the decade, HSMA saw it end with a continued emphasis on education.

In April, the 7th Annual HSMA Student Convention was held at the University Dave Dorf delivered a seminar on "Techniques of Training" in 1979 in Zagreb, Yugoslavia .

of Massachusetts, with 125 students and faculty members attending from a record number of 15 colleges and universities. The theme was "Preparing for Professionalism" and the major courses were equally compelling for aspiring sales and marketing professionals. The sessions included "Understanding Our Industry," "Understanding Our Customers," and "Understanding ... and Improving ... Ourselves."

Meanwhile, in Europe, HSMA's Chapter Yugoslavia was taking the lead in continuing adult education. In the first quarter of the year, the chapter had produced no less than three major seminars on "Front Office Management and Sales," "Strategic Marketing," and "Techniques of Training." All three programs were produced by Branko Jakopovic, general manager of the InterContinental Zagreb, and Nadja Ebenspanger of the Association for Tourism Development. The effort was a model of management leadership in sales and marketing education, with more than 250 attending the three programs. And 6,000 miles away, HSMA held its Western Regional Conference in Seattle featuring the theme "Reaching Beyond Your Potential." HSMA's international influence had never been more apparent.

The annual membership directory took on a new look for the new

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7S YEARS OF SERV ICE ANO ACHIEVEMEN T

decade. The 1980 edition was renamed the HSMA Hotel

0NTHE FIR ST FU LL DAY of the (1979) convention there were

Facilities Digest, carrying the subtitle: A Basic Guide for

several subjects offered and Iselected the one featuring Bill Stanley ofTack Training International Ltd. of London, England .... His subject? "Human Relations in Selling - Establishing Lasting Company/Client Relationships in Face-To Face Situations:' Icouldn't think of a more vital subject for my field. He was basic, he was direct, he was incisive. Icame away with ideas and information and, most of all, guidance that is going to make me a better and more productive salesman. Every dollar that my company invested in sending me to the convention will be repaid over and over again in additional sales.

the Buyer of Hotel, Motor Inn and Resort Facilities. Over

the years the HSMA directory had become an extremely important resource for event planners to use in the booking of hotels and resorts. For the 1980 edition, 84 advertisers paid $92,690 for exposure to more than 25,000 industry professionals who received the HSMA publication.

To usher HSMA into the 1980s, veteran hotelier and educator, Thomas T. McCarthy, Jr., CHME, was welcomed as the new HSMA president during the 52nd Annual

SAN DFOR D "SANDY" LINDY, EXCER PT FROM A COLUMN IN HS MA WORLD

Convention in Toronto in 1979. "Internationally Speaking" was the theme. During the meeting, HSMA presented its first "Outstanding Chapter of the Year Award" to the New Mexico Chapter that had received its charter only six months before the HSMA convention and had dazzled the association with its aggressive educational and civic activities. This was no fluke . The New Mexico Chapter repeated its proud performance as chapter of the year in 1980.

HSMA's chapter network continued to grow with the addition of the Philippines Chapter, the Southern Arizona Chapter, and the Northern Arizona Student Chapter.

And the beat was on: a record 573 new HSMA members were recruited by the end of

Sanford "Sa ndy" Lindy has rec rui ted more new HSMAI members than anyone else in the history of th e associ ation. Ac tive in HSMAI for decades and now re tire d, he worked for Bill Bard Associates for many years .

the decade.

In his final report as president, McCarthy noted the growing number of industry meetings and conventions that were being held in November each year, conflicting with the ability of members and others to work the HSMA annual meeting into their schedules. Since a number of conflicting meetings were sponsored by buyer groups, the issue of priorities regarding attendance was obvious. He announced, therefore, that beginning in 1981 the HSMA Annual Convention would be held during the summer months.

H SMA was also positioned to elect its firs t fema le president of the association.

N ita Lloyd-Fore, CHME was moving up the ladder toward the presidency, a fulfillment of the growing influence of women in the industry. A veteran of Hilton Hotels Corporation, she dazzled the Toronto convention audience with a general session presentation describing the needs of female travelers entitled "The Three Faces of Eve ...And How She Travels."

The Seventies ended as they began- in an era of turmoil. For HSMA it was an exciting time as the industry and the association faced new challenges and opportunities, but with undiminished faith in the future . • THE 1970s : CHAL LE NG ES AND OPPORTUNITI ES

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With its growing international influ-

• CHAPTER EIGHT

ence apparent, the Board of Directors approved a change in name of the association to reflect its geographic breadth. The association became the Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI).

Moving Forward N LARGE MEASURE, AMERICANS ENTERED INTO THE 1980S ready to put the past behind them. Wearied by war and political scandal, the nation was ready to forget Watergate, Vietnam, the turmoil of Roe v. Wade, the convulsion of protest epitomized at Kent State, and inexplicable events such as the Jonestown massacre. The chokehold of the recession was about to be broken, and people sensed a fresh breeze across the land.

Ronald Reagan spoke to the people from the White House, and he spoke directly from Berlin to the Soviet leadership, demanding that they " ... tear down this wall!"

When they did so later in the decade, Americans anticipated an end to the Cold War. A new spirit brought with it a national sense of inexorable American dominance, both in its economy and its socio-political global significance. After more than two decades of wars and their aftermaths, people were ready to be liberated from the doldrums.

THE 1980s: MOVIN G FOR WA RD

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Moving Forward For many Americans it also gave precedence to coveting personal gain over the traditional principles of seeing to the common good. Industries began to thrive again. Big business was back in vogue. But the pursuit of happiness did not apply to everyone.

In the 1980s, unfettered markets were wide open to American industries. But it was not all good news. Under Reaganomics, disparities in the distribution of wealth nearly matched those of the Great Depression of 1929. According to Princeton professor Corne! West, the dramatic growth of these markets produced great wealth for the top one percent of families, significantly increased income for 20 percent, but caused an actual decline in real income for 40 percent of American homes. By the end of the decade, one percent of American families would control 48 percent of the nation 's financial wealth.

The decade became known as one of "glitz and greed. " In the first half of the 1980s the economic recovery was slow in coming for the majority of Americans. It would be the mid-80s before the bull market would return, and even then the market was largely built on a number of false promises and unrestrained hopes.

Why was this important to the hospitality and travel industry?

Because the seeds planted in many executive chambers in the 1980s gave rise to corporate greed that would lead to the devastating economic downward spiral of the early years of the new millennium.

Change at HSMA It must be said that the 1980s brought major changes to the fabric of American life and to the way associations serve their constituencies, including those in the hospitality and travel industry.

1980

The Minitel Telephone System Begins in France; Runs for Decades New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Publish Online

Sony Introduces the Consumer Camcorder Voyager 1 Sends Back Images of Saturn and its Moons, One Billion Miles Away From 3-M, Post-It Notes Appear

It is Finally Revealed Who Shot JR on Dallas

Public International Fax Service, lntelpost, is Launched

CNN Debuts, Begins 24-Hour Coverage of News

Black Entertainment Television (BET) is Added to Cable Programming FCC Gives Go-Ahead to Private Companies to Launch Communication Satellites

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75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

This was certainly a time of great change for HSMA. Frank Berkman announced his retirement in early 1981, after 17 years of guiding the association though turbulent times. A search committee selected Leonard "Buck" Hoyle, a Certified Association Executive (CAE) and Certified Meeting Professional (CMP), to succeed him as executive vice president.

Hoyle was emphatic in his belief that the association must attack the economic damage caused by the recession of the previous decade by forging a new financial profile for the organization and increasing communication with members and HSMA chapters, as well as developing partnership-marketing opportunities with other industry associations.

HSMA Moves to Washi ngton The first of a number of major changes came in late 1981, when HSMA closed its New York offices and relocated to Washington, D.C. Over the past two decades, Washington had evolved into the world's capital of association headquarters. It was home to a number of associations with a heavy impact on the hospitality industry, among them the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), the American Hotel & Motel Association (AH&MA ), the National Restaurant Association (NRA), the Society of Government Meeting Planners (SGMP), and the American Travel Association (ATA).

Equally important was the fact that the world's largest number of national and international associations was concentrated in Washington and that these organizations turned to members of the hospitality industry for their conventions, meetings and travel needs. HSMA's leaders were convinced that frequent interaction with sister associations and the association market itself was vital to the recognition of HSMA as a major player in the hospitality industry.

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d

Lasers are Used to Set Type for Printing The U.S. Boycotts the Summer Olympics in Moscow Ronald Reagan is Elected The MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, Catches Fire; Second Deadliest Hotel Fire in U.S. History The Film Airplane! Makes its Debut. It Would Later Be Honored as American Film lnstitute's Pick for "Funniest Film of All Time"

THE 1980s: MOVING FORWARD

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Hoyle fi lled his first permanent staff position by bringing association veteran Ilsa Whittemore on board as associate executive director. A former director of the Educational Foundation of ASAE and a professional with many years in association management, writing and editing, publishing, and fund-raising, Whittemore brought a wealth of experience to a new HSMA staff being assembled in Washington.

Two New Publications Debut To increase communication with members, and to add to the body of knowledge in hotel sales, two new publications were launched by HSMA in 1982. The HSMA Update was designed as a monthly newsletter, a quick-read bulletin of the associa-

tion's issues, events, member services, and chapter news. The HSMA Marketing Review appeared in early 1982 as a quarterly educational magazine. Originally

edited by Dave Dorf, the editing assignment was assumed by Whittemore in 1983.

The magazine has become a leading association periodical over the past 20 years with authors throughout the field contributing original writings on virtually all aspects of hospitality and travel sales and marketing. In annual membership surveys, both the Marketing Review and the Update are always ranked high as member benefits.

The HSMA Marketing Review and the HSMA Update debuted in the Eighties. The first issue of the Review was produced and distributed in summer 1982. The HSMA Update replaced the HSMA World in the early Eighties. Th e issue above marked the 60th anniversary of the association in 1987.

A New Dimension in Leadership HSMA took yet another step forward in 1981 by electing Nita Lloyd-Fore, CHME, veteran executive of Hilton Hotels Corporation, as its first female president. The move appeared to reflect the increasing number of women entering the profession of hospitality sales; however, Nita was quick to say that "I am not the first female president of

1981

At the Movies: On Golden Pond, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Chariots of Fire

Cats Opens on Broadway

American Hostages are Freed from Iran Donkey Kong, the Computer Game, Flies Off the She Ives MTV, the Music Video Channel, Hits the Airwaves on Cable

Prince Charles and Princess Diana are Wed IBM Begins to Manufacture Personal Computers "Pac Man" Debuts

Malls in Canada Begin Providing Touchscreens for Shoppers

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75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACH IE VEMENT

American Airlines Launches the First Frequent Flier Program: AAdvantage

HSMA .. .I'm the president of HSMA who just happens to be a female!"

The features of her first "Program of Work," approved by the Executive Committee, mirrored the new directions of the association. "We are going to stress the administrative matters necessary to allow HSMA to support growing services," she said, adding that "If we are going to truly represent and serve this dynamic profession, we are going to do what is necessary to build our financial reserves, modernize our systems, and provide adequate staffing." President Lloyd-Fore was elected to a second term in 1982 and served tirelessly during her time in office to keep these commitments.

Membership services were spreading globally as well. The 8th European Conference was held in Berlin in February 1982, featuring the theme "Selling Across the Continents." This event immediately preceded the 1982 Annual Conference of the International Tourism Bureau, and was one of many such HSMA efforts to mutually market its events with other related associations.

HSMA continued to emphasize its outreach programs by becoming a charter member of the Travel Industry Government Affairs Policy Council, formed by the Travel Industry Association of America. This placed HSMA directly in the center of efforts by the hospitality and travel industry to provide a unified voice in the wake of the newly passed National Tourism Policy Act. Implicit in this new direction for HSMA was that the association recognized its wider responsibilities of representing the interests of a constituency not limited to hotel sales practitioners. The association, therefore, focused on the needs of salespeople and marketers in other hospitality segments who generated business

Best Western is the first Major Chain to Have Computer-to-Computer Linkage Between its Reservation Center and Airlines Holiday Inn Introduces a Centralized Travel Agent Commission Program Choice Hotels Introduces the Concept of Market Segmentation, with the Luxury-Budget Comfort Inns Joining the Mid-Scale Quality Chain .

Board members and chapter presidents at the HSMA Convention in New York City, 1981.

1982

From Japan, a Camera with Electronic Picture Storage but no Film

Michael Jackson's Thriller Sells 20 Million Albums to Become the Largest Selling Record Ever.

E.T. : The Extra Terrestrial "Phones Home" Princess Grace of Monaco Dies

Sony of Japan and Phillips of the Netherlands Bring Out the Compact Disc The One-Button Point-and-Click Mouse is Born Sale of PCs in the United States Hit s.s Million

Columbia Completes its First Mission in Space; It is the First Space Shuttle that Allo ws Vehicles to be Reused in Space Missions.

The Vietnam Memorial is Erected in Washington D.C.

Alice Walker Writes The Color Purple THE 1980 s: MOV I NG FORWAR D

109

for airlines, car rental agencies, cruise lines, area attractions and theme parks, entertainment complexes, convention and visitor burea us, and more.

New Educational Packages Announced H SMA announced two major educational programs for chapters. "Developing the

"Sell the price ... as well as the dream" GRAHAM PHIL LIPS, OGILVY MATHER ADVERTIS ING

Marketing Plan" was produced as a slide/tape package with instructor's manual. A core program, including a presentation and discussion group, was made avail able to H SMA chapters at no charge for delivery to local members.

In addition, a highly productive and pop ular educational package was offered to HSMA chapters. "The Basics of Hotel Sales and Marketing" fea tured instructor's guidelines, textbooks, lesson plans, and test papers. Although Dave Dorf traveled across the country presenting the program to dozens of chapters, it was designed in such a way that allowed other chapters to effectively deliver the program on their own.

As HSMA invested in the education of its members, cautious optimism about the national travel and meetings economy was drawing more sales and marketing executives to the association and its chapters. "Wait and hope" was the advice of the travel industry forecasters during the 1982 Travel O utlook Forum. "We are on the way to a vigorous recovery, rocky as the road may be at times," said Dr. Murray Weidenbaum, chairman of the President's Council of Economic Advisors.

H is comments would prove prophetic. By the end of 1982, real growth in travel increased by more than five percent despite a decline in the firs t six months. The emphasis in his conference message was that people still needed to travel for both business and pleasure, and that the wise hospitality marketer should

~

...

David C. Dorf, HSMA director of education, delivers a sales seminar to students at the Paul Smith College in Saranac Lake, Ne w York .

encourage business travelers to plan vacations immediately before or after business

Four Seasons Creates Alternative Cuisin e, a New Menu Program with Healthful Items that are Lower in Calories, Cholesterol, and Sodium

1983

Television Series Hotel Debuts The Las Vegas Hilton Adds Nearly 400 Roo ms to Become the Large st Hotel in the World (3,174 Guestrooms) Marriott Introduces the First Frequent Gu est Program, the Marriott Honored Guest The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company is Formed

The Final Episode of 'M*A*S*H' Airs.

Adverti sing Costs More than During the Super Bowl that Year. The Episode Draws More Viewers than Any Other Showin History

Westin is the First Major Hotel Company to Offer Reservations and Checkout Using Major Credit Cards VingCa rd Invents the Optical Electron ic Key Card Time Names the Computer as "M an of the Year" Compact Discs Go on Sale for the First Time Audio Music Cassettes Outsell LP Records for the First Time Japan's NHK Introduces its Analog HDTV System in Switzerland THE 1980s : MOVING FORWARD

111

trips to enjoy the economies of two-purpose travel. In his words, the traveler was becoming a "smart shopper."

Streamlining HSMA's Leadership Structure The association announced that its Board of Directors, in what it called a "meeting of momentous significance," had approved major changes in the HSMA Bylaws designed to streamline the leadership by reducing the number of layers of elected officials. The Board voted to eliminate territorial directorships and the steering committee and to vest voting rights with chapter presidents as well as regional directors elected as members of the board. Prior to these changes the Board of Directors had no voting privileges; rather, it was utilized primarily for communication with the membership.

The Executive Committee, which was authorized to meet four times a year and act on behalf of HSMA subject to ratification by the Board of Directors, was scheduled to meet twice annually. The organizational and policy changes were included in a redrafted set of bylaws, which replaced the old HSMA Constitution.

The "momentous" vote to adopt the bylaws was just that. It meant that many Board members voted themselves out of leadership positions for the good of the organization. The inclusion of chapter presidents on the new Board was equally significant. Executive Vice President Hoyle noted that the "Chapter presidents will not only be responsible for representing the interests of their members in their votes, but also will be responsible for abiding by the majority and representing the interests of HSMA as a whole to their chapter members. This is critical to the democratic process, and to the two-way communication upon which that process depends."

The new Board approved an aggressive program of work, including a record $805,000 budget and a new joint project with the American Society of Association

Vanessa Williams, First African-American to Win Long-Segregated Miss America Contest ZIP+4, Expanded 9-Digit Zip Codes and Posta1 Bar Codes Introduced Internet Domains Get Names Instead of Hard-toRemember Numbers AT&T Break-Up Forced by Government.

Seven Baby Be11s are Born Cisco Systems Starts Manufacturing Network Routers

1984

The Cosby Show Premieres

App1e Computer Re1eases the Macintosh Persona1 Computer In Summer 01ympics in Los Ange1es, Mary Lou Retton Wins Two Go1d, Two Si1ver, and Two Bronze Meda1s Ho1iday Inn is the First to Offer a Centra1ized Trave1 Agent Commission P1an

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7 5 YE AR S 0 F 5 ERV ICE AND AC HI EVE MEN T

SALES AND MARKETING becamemuchmoretargetedinthelate

Executives to research changing patterns in the huge association convention and meetings market.

AChanging Industry Landscape; AChanging HSMA Profile The Eighties were also known for an evolution that directly affected the way hotels, convention and conference centers, and transportation companies did business.

Eighties. Prior to then we used a shotgun approach to marketing, thinking we could attract the business of all customers in the same way. Marketers began to realize that you had to identify the consumer groups that were right for your property and target those people. We also started to work a lot smarter and understand the power of partnerships. Instead of spending a small fortune to design and send out a direct mail piece, we found three or four partners and were able to significantly reduce costs, so that each got a bigger bang for the buck. The Eighties was an era of partnerships - alliances with people that had a common customer base.

The advent of independent conference planners and

JOHN J. RUSSELL, CHME, PRESIDENT 1988-1989

event management companies was changing the industry's landscape. In 1975, there were only five significant companies planning events on a contract basis for association and corporate clients.

By 1982, there were over 350 such independent planners for hire by the traditional clients of hotels and other hospitality entities.

These highly professional planners interacted directly with suppliers on behalf of their clients, negotiating contracts, booking space, driving hard bargains financially (since they represented many clients, their financial influence with suppliers was compelling), and demanding more innovative staging and production. They forced hotels and other suppliers to think "outside of the box." The closing night dinner did not have to be in the ballroom - rather, it could be produced as a fiesta in the atrium lobby or staged as a carnival on the hotel lawn or beach. Innovative staging, decorations, audio/video presentations, dazzling speaker introductions, and unique entertainment were becoming mandatory to make events memorable in a rapidly growing and more competitive meetings industry.

In response to these customer demands, hospitality sales specialists sought to gain more education, support, and recognition in order to compete for, and serve, an increasingly dis-

Choice Hotels Introduces the Concept of Market Segmentation

Portable Compact Disc Player Introduced

Choice Hotels Offers Non-Smoking Rooms

National Geographic Puts a Hologram on its Cover

Hampton Inn is the First to Offer a Set of Amenities Holiday Inn Debuts Embassy Suites Hotels, the First Nationwide All-Suite Hotel Chain, in Overland Park, Kansas.

The Final World's Fair Takes Place in New Orleans

Japanese Demonstrate High Quality Fax Over Phone Lines The 3 1/ 2 Inch Disc Drive is Developed AT&T Extends its Fiber Optic Cable from Boston to Washington

Marriott Enters Vacation Timesharing with Acquisition of American Resorts Group TH E I g 8 os: M 0 VI NG F0 RWA RD

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cerning and demanding market of buyers.

Disciplines such as convention operations managers, catering executives, association marketing executives, corporate marketing executives, religious market sales professionals, and special events coordinators became highly defined and refined, as well as more respected, in order to sell and service an increasingly sophisticated, well trained universe of meeting and travel planners.

HSMA recognized this growing trend primarily through its participation as a member of the Convention Liaison Council (CLC).

This coalition of industry associations began in 1948 as rhe Nita Lloyd-Fore, HSMA president 1981-1983, Clifford Johnson, her successor in 1984, and Executive Vice President Buck Hoyle (far right) congratulate Bruce Small upon his designation as a Certified Hotel Sales Executive (CHSE). Today, the designation is Certified Hospitality Marketing Executive (CHME), reflecting the broadened scope of the membership and the increased responsibilities of the profession.

Convention Liaison Committee with four association members, including HSMA. In the 1980s, as the Convention Industry Council, it had grown to 26 hospitality and meeting planner associations, a vivid manifestation of the growth of the industry and the associations that represented the new disciplines.

It was during this period that the HSMA leadership began contemplating its competitive position in the changing landscape and pondered the options of expanding its membership base and services beyond hotel sales. Communication among all suppliers to the group markets was becoming critical as was education and cross-industry representation.

If a hotel salesperson was to be successful, it was becoming more important to have collegial and educational contact with tour operators, convention and visitor bureaus, speakers associations, convention center executives, travel agencies, and international tourism bureaus among many others.

In the next few years, this change in philosophy by HSMA and its organizational paradigm would set the stage for a new membership profile that would change the face of the association forever.

1985

Sheraton Becomes the First Chain to Operate a Hotel in the People's Republic of China Bearing its Corporate Name, the Great Wall Sheraton Hotel Beijing Desktop Publishing Becomes Available

Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame is Opened

Cars are Sold with Cell Phones Built In Microsoft Ships the First Windows 1.0 Operating System Televisions Can Be Bought with Stereo Speaker Systems

Nintendo Enters Home Video Game Market; "Super Mario Brothers" Ente rtai ns Kids Everywhere.

America Online Founded as Quantum Computer Services

Cray-2 Supercomputer Now Does 1.2 Billion Calculations per Second

Japan Displays 3-D Television. No Spectacles Needed Fifty Newspapers Now Offering Online Access to News Texts

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HSMA Answers the Challenges of the Bos In the mid- 1980s, U.S. citizens wrestled with a Wall Street burdened with junk bonds, the threat of AIDS increasing throughout the country, burgeoning drug and gun cultures in the inner cities, the growing momentum of "glasnost," and the advent of the Moral Ma jority.

At the same time, the male couch potato glued to the TV screen had become a stereotype, and Trivial Pursuit was a staple of home entertainment. N ude encounter groups in pools and hot tubs became a favorite California pastime, people danced the "Electric Slide" at discos throughout the country, and aerobics became a national obsession at the same time short skirts came back in style.

H SMA, meanwhile, kept its focus on its mission. The 1984 annual convention in Winnipeg reflected the association's educational purpose with outstanding program-

Mervyn "Mickey" Levine, CHME, HSMA president in 1985, receives his portrait at the end of his term as a farewell gift from Successful Meetings magazine representatives .

ming. Among the seminars and general sessions aimed at a broadening membership base were: "Computerizing the H otel Sales and Marketing Function; H ow to Develop a Winning Sales Team; Anatomy of an Award Winning Advertising Campaign; T he Regional Sales Office: Its Role in the Marketing Plan; Situation Analysis: The System and H ow to Use It; Landing the Association Meeting: Understanding the Subtleties of Selling to Associations; Strategic Planning: Setting Priorities and Profitable Marketing Strategies; and Marketing Approaches for Smaller Properties."

H SMA continued its thrust into the international hospitality arena. Mervyn "Mickey" Levine, CHME, of Ca nada, received the HSMA president's gavel from outgoing 1994 President

1986

The Challenger Space Shuttle Explodes The Statue of Liberty Celebrates Her lOOth Birthday With a Face-Lift. Renovations Begin on the American Landmark The Oprah Winfrey Show Goes National Telde x Corporation Introduces the First Telephone Designed Specifically for Hotel Guestrooms

Days Inn is the First Hotel Company to Use a Satellite Communications System, the Tridom Clearlink Network, Providing an Interactive Reservations Capability Connecting All Days Inn Hotels The Economist Launches a New Way to Compare Currency: "The Big Mac Inde x", which Compares the Cost of a Big Mac Around the World Fox TV Network is Added , Joining ABC, CBS, NBC Lineup Phantom of the Opera Debuts on Broadway Laser Printers Begin to Replace Dot Matri x and Daisy Wheel Printers

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1st \-\.S.M.A· p AC\f\C coNfERENCE

Brisbane, Queeos\aod

Thursday, 'u\y 2, 1981 to Saturday, 'u\y 4, 1981

Clifford Johnson, CHME. Levine was the second elected president from outside the United States. HSMA also sponsored a major international education conference at Opryland Hotel in Nashville, aimed toward general managers as well as marketing executives. With 365 attendees on hand, the association presented "topic tables," a unique format designed to allow free-flowing peer exchange under the direction of discussion leaders, as well as two comprehensive educational tracks of seminars and workshops.

The evolution of HSMA into an inclusive and progressive association was recognized by other major industry organizations. For example, The American Hotel & Motel Association issued a letter to its 8,000 members supporting HSMA's commitment to the professionalism of sales and marketing executives. AH&MA President Jack Masteller told his general managers and property owners that " ... nothing happens in our industry until the sale of rooms and hotel facilities is made. A strong HSMA," he said, "will help increase those sales in the future."

At the same time, HSMA and the American Society of Association Executives completed their joint study on trends in association meetings, the first major partnership project for the two organizations.

Successful European Conventions were held in Venice and Stockholm, while HSMA's first European administrative office was opened in Deventer, Holland to serve a growing membership base in Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. And within the same year HSMA dispatched Dave Dorf to Australia and New Zealand, along with a team of industry experts and presenters, to deliver sold-out seminars on international marketing strategies.

The next step was a natural one. With its growing international influence apparent, the Board of Directors approved a change in name of the association to reflect its geographic breadth. The association became the Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI).

"Glasnost" Opens Mass Communications Within the Soviet Union Televisions in U.S. Homes Are On an Average of More than 7 Hours a Day Encyclopedia Americana is Published on CD-ROM

1987

The Stock Market Drops 22% on October 19th, Labeled as 'Black Monday' Wor1d Popu1ation Reaches s Bil1ion Les Miserables Wins 8 Tony Awards, Including Best Musical Marriott Tests Video Checkout from the Guestroom

Cable Shopping Networks Meet Two Public Desires: TV and Shopping Voyager 2 Sends Back Pictures of Uranus

Cable Now Reaches Half of All U.S. Homes Hotels, Motels Scramble to Catch Up; Advertise Cable TV as a Guest Amenity

Fox TV Introduces The Simpsons, a Series Sti11 Running U.S. Government Deregulates the Cable Industry IBM Introduces a Computer Monitor with VGA, with up to 262 Colors Excel, Page Maker are Born THE 1980s: MOVI NG FOR WA RD

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HSMAI Heads Toward the gos By the middle of the 1980s, as the national economy started to rebound, HSMAI began to enjoy the synergism of its broader scope and constituency. Major companies, such as American Airlines and American Express, supported its membership drives through incentives. Educational institutions, such as Boston College and New York University, partnered with HSMAI on projects, and key industry publications, includ-

With this Conference on Computers in Hospita1ity Sales

ing Meeting News, Successful Meetings, and Meetings & Conventions, collaborated with the association on many projects in both education and public relations.

HSMAI's broader membership and interest base was reflected in the educational programming offered at seminars and annual meetings. While hotel sales remained a

and Marketing, HSMAI has placed itself on the cutting edge of education related to the technological age in

central feature, other marketing disciplines were becoming more available at the HSMAI table. Topics such as press relations, public relations, market forecasting, strategic planning, and financial management were demanded by members representing many segments of the hospitality industry. And HSMAI answered those calls. For example, a record-breaking 665 attendees at the 1985 Annual Convention and Education Conference, held in Philadelphia, filled the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel's meeting and ballroom space to discuss subjects such as: "Working with Newspapers for

which we Jive.

PR and Publicity; How to Relate Sales to the P&L Statement; Tomorrow's Emerging

MICHAEL KASAVANA, DIRECTOR, SCHOOL OF HOTEL

Markets; Profiling Your Buyer Groups; Tax Planning Under the New Laws; How to Sell to Unions; Effective Telemarketing; How to Sell a Resort Hotel Effectively; Selling

MANAGEMENT, UNI VERSITY OF MICHIGAN

a "Second-Tier" Location: Turning a Disadvantage Into an Advantage; The Role of the Convention Bureau in Effective Marketing; Today's Law and Its Impact on Antitrust, Contracts, and Advertising; Tapping the Relocation Market; and Establishing the Automated Sales Office."

Legal issues? Financial accounting and profit-loss statements? Antitrust and risk management? Predicting emerging markets? Compare this educational emphasis to the

1988

Prodigy Launches its Dial-Up Internet Service

CDs Outsell Vinyl for the First Time Rain Man Wins the Oscar Sonny Bono Becomes Mayor of Palm Springs.

Extended Stay Segment Introduced with Marriott's Residence Inns and Holiday Corporation's Homewood Suites

In the U.S., 98 percent of Homes Now Have a TV Set

First Transatlantic Telephone Call over Fiber Optic Lines is Tested

Tammy Wynette's Stand by Your Man Tops the Country Charts, Enraging Feminists

Sony Introduces the Pocket Discman 118

7S YEARS OF SER VICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

Self-Service Fax Machine Accessed by Credit Card Installed in Hotels, Motels

early days of HSMAI, when hotel salesmen (and they were virtually all men) were told to hit the streets, knock on doors, and hope for a commission to make the day worthwhile. The topics reflected the dra matic growth in status of HSMAI members as an integral part of overall management strategy and corporate decision-making policy.

HSMAI was also reaching out to new technologies. It attracted genera l managers, marketing executives, and computer experts to its precedent-setting HSMAI Confere nce on Computers in H ospitality Sales and Marketing.

Subj ects such as "H ow to Tie Your Computer Into Existing Systems" and "Getting the Greatest Productivity From the Smallest Investment" were integrated with software demonstrations and hands-on applications.

The two-day program was a dynamic foray into the emerging world of automation and computerization, with the added advantage of H SMAI attendees experiencing the "shake-down cru ise" as the firs t group meeting to be held at the new Radisson Mark

William Volk, 1991 president, and Gary Leopold, president in 1996, display the "Golden Bell" award certificates that were presented to winners of the First Annual Public Relations Competition at the "Breakfast of Champions", held during the 1987 HSMA I Convention in Atlanta, Georgia . Now the award is one of three prese nted at the International Travel Awards Competition Di nner, held annually in Ne w York City.

Plaza in Alexandria, Virginia.

The Foundation Lights the Lights In 1985, the H SMAI Foundation lit up the social scene at the Omni Shoreham H otel in Washington, DC, with its "A N ight of a T housand Stars" gala. A sold -out black-tie crowd filled the ballroom, as the Foundation honored industry leaders and delivered a smashing big band finale of singing and dancing.

Dignitaries fro m the industry and the meeting planner community celebrated as fo rmer H SMAI president and executive director Adrian Phillips received a Lifetime Career Achievement awa rd , and vetera n marketer Edna Shavin of Chicago's H otel Continental was given the same award for her service to the industry since the age of 17, a time, she said, when the hotel industry was "a man's world. "

1989

Exxon Valdez Crashes into Alaska's Coast, Causing an Ecological Disaster U.S. Savings and Loan Institutions have been Failing and Losing Billions of Dollars.

The Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation Fails, prompting Ne w Government Control of the Crisis

Time Magazine and Warner Brothers Entertainment Combine to Become Time Warner Inc.

The Berlin Wall Crumbles Pan American Airlines Files for Bankruptcy Hyatt Introduces a ChainWide Kids Program for Children Ages 3- 12 and a Business Center at the Hyatt Regency Chicago Hampton Inns is the First Hotel Chain to Introduce the 100 percent Satisfaction Guarantee

Tiananmen Square Massacre Demonstrates Power of Media to Inform the World Voyager 2 Sends Back Images of Neptune Vacationers Can Buy Single Use, Throwaway Cameras

Ayatollah Khomenei Orders Death for Salman Rushdie, Who is Not in Iran Nintendo Racks Up $1 Billion Annual Profit on Video Games

TH E 1980s : MOV I NG FORWARD

119

ting to on Audience of One:

The Founding Members of the HSMAI Foundation's Corporate Membership Program American Golf Corporation Bass Hotels and Resorts Best Western International Cendant Corporation Choice Hotels International Citicorp Diners Club Disneyland Resort Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Hotel RevMAX International Association of Convention & Visitors Bureaus Irma S. Mann Strategic Marketing John Q. Hammons Manhattan East Suite Hotels Marriott International MeriStar Hotels and Resorts Millennium Hotels and Resorts Omni Hotels Opryland Hotels Passkey.com Price Waterhouse Coopers Prime Hospitality Radisson Hotels & Resorts RealTime Hotel Reports Ron Volper Group Smith Travel Research Sonesta Hotels, Resorts & Nile Cruises Starwood Hotels &Resorts TravelClick, Inc. Wyndham International

Techniques for Impressing Your Customer

and Winning the Salt

Research and Resources: The Foundation of the Hospitality Sales 6 Marketing Association International From the "Situation Analysis Workbook" in 1982 to "Current Value Drivers in Hotel Selection" in 2002, the Foundation of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International has produced 20-years worth of timely education and research. The Foundation was established in 1982 and officially launched in 1983 to serve as HSMAl's educational and research arm. With nearly 30 publications and research report titles under the Foundation banner and a new Web-based research clearinghouse, it continues to fulfill its mission of providing educational materials to keep members informed and give them the tools they need to stay current and move forward.

The Foundation has benefited from a long and strong relationship with the American Express Company. Barney Vavroch, director of marketing for the company's Card Division, challenged HSMAI members in 1983 to pledge matching contributions to the $10,000 he would commit from Am ex. Members donated almost twice that amount and the Foundation was off the ground. HSMAI chapters and individual members have continued over the years to support the Foundation through generous contributions.

American Express has, as well, continued its support of the Foundation. In recent years, it has earmarked generous funds for the Foundation's student scholarship program. The Foundation has provided funds to college students interested in careers in sales and marketing to help them pursue degrees in hospitality programs.

In 2001, the Foundation adopted a new approach to finding sustainable funding for research into the sales and marketing discipline by starting the Corporate Membership program. In its first year, the corporate membership program attracted nearly 30 of the leading organizations in the hospitality industry as members. Participating organizations receive one or two seats on a Research Advisory Council (RAC), depending on their level of funding. Topics of information to explore and develop are determined by representatives of the corporate member organizations who sit on the RAC. Sal Dickinson, HSMAI Foundation Chair in 2001, said "There is no other place, other than proprietary efforts, where sales and marketing executives can go to find benchmark studies that will help them stay ahead of the times." He added, "Participation in this corporate program actually allows members to influence the research agenda."

The first meeting of the corporate members was held in New York City on January 24, 2001. The group of top industry sales and marketing professionals reviewed the current research available to them and prioritized topics they would like to have studied. Three research projects were funded that year, and resulted in in-depth reports that were shared with the corporate members first, then with HSMAI members, and then with the industry at large. The three resulting reports were summarized in HS MAi's Marketing Review magazine. They are "Turnover in the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Profession: Causes, Costs and Cures," "Hospitality Sales and Marketing Performance Metrics," and "Current Value Drivers in Hotel Selection:' The corporate member organizations in the program during its second year decided to change the agenda somewhat. Although the findings of the three studies that were completed the first year were of great value, in the long run, the RAC representatives felt their funding would be best used to establish an ongoing clearinghouse that will serve as a repository of the latest research and resources needed by hospitality sales and marketing professionals.

The Web-based clearinghouse, which builds on the extensive HSMAI Foundation Online Resource Center spearheaded by Foundation board member Don Bender, debuted in the fall of 2003. The project, implemented by the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel &Restaurant Management at the University of Houston, provides resources in six major areas: Professional Development; E-commerce; Leading Travel Industry Companies & Organizations; Periodicals, Magazines and Journals; Research, Trends, News & Current Information; Customer Market Segmentation & Business

Development. The clearinghouse serves as a one-stop source of information relating to hospitality sales and marketing, continuing a 20-year tradition of meeting the educational and research needs of HSMAI members and the industry.

THE 1980s: MOVING FORWARD

121

The new Discount Room Rate Program is a total success. I have used it a dozen times, and appreciate the courtesy of being acknowledged as much as I do the savings.

Of course my employers enjoy the savings too. It is a tangible benefit of HSMAI membership which they can measure each week.

PAUL QUINTAVALLA

Arthur L. Johnson, legendary director of conventions and meetings for the American Bankers Association, received the third Lifetime Career Achievement award. At ABA, he was responsible for 400 meetings a year, including a 12,000-person convention. And he still had time to serve as an adjunct professor at the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University.

At the end of a great night, the HSMAI Foundation had raised over $10,000 toward future publications and educational programming and attracted unprecedent-

ARA LEISURE SERVICES, INC.

ed industry awareness. The Foundation followed the evening by announcing next year's edition of the event -

"A Night of Magic," scheduled at the close of the

HSMAI Educational Conference and the night before the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives annual "Springtime In The Park" conference and trade show, making the event an integral part of two other major industry events in a partnership marketing strategy for both organizations.

HSMAI Helps Members Help Themselves The association announced yet another innovative program, designed to help members find affordable travel accommodations and fill rooms at member properties as the industry continued its struggle to match occupancy with inventory. The HSMAI Member Discount Room Rate Program was launched in 1986. A directory of participating properties organized by state and city, complete with the discounts available and any limitations on the offer, was published and sent to all members. By 1988, more than 2,600 properties had signed on, with some properties offering as much as 50 percent off rack rate to fellow HSMAI members. It was a win-win situation for all who participated and those who took full advantage of the program were able to enjoy savings that were the equivalent or more of their annual association dues.

Changes in the Nation, Changes at HSMAl As the decade charged on, President Ronald Reagan was re-elected,

_..,,,..,.,.................................~ l

defeating Walter Mondale in a landslide victory. America faced a Soviet-block boycott of the U.S. Summer Olympics in response to the U.S.

boycott of the Soviet summer games because of the U.S.S.R's invasion of Afghanistan.

The United

ations celebrated its 40th anniversary, even as Mikhail Gorbachev

assumed the leadership of the Soviet Union and established a more conciliatory relationship with Reagan and other American leaders. That relationship would ultimately lead to the tearing down of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

Meanwhile at HSMAI, Thomas L. Knowlton, CHME, director of development for the Franchise Division of Sheraton Corporation, became the 48th president of HSMAI. 122

75 YE ARS OF SERVICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

'l President Emeritus Adrian Phillips was inducted into the prestigious Convention Liaison Council Hall of Leaders, and George Plimpton was announced as the keynote speaker at the 59th Annual HSMAI Annual Convention held at the Diplomat Resort in Hollywood, Florida.

The Annua l HSMAI International Advertising Awards competition, the oldest and largest of its kind in th e world, attracted a record 1,150 entries in hospitality advertising and public relations. And the association announced yet another member service: the "HSMAI Directory of Speakers." This publication listed industry experts and professional speakers available and willing to address HSMAI chapters and other industry gro ups with each speaker holding a particular expertise in management, marketing, and hospitality industry issu es.

Continuing its impressive growth and stable of publications, the Foundation

Shown at a 1989 meeting of the Connecticut Va lley Chapter at the Sheraton Inn-Springfield West (left to right) are An dre w Schwartz, HSMA Academic Committee Chair, Sullivan County Community College; Sandy Lindy, chapter leader; Elaine Grossinger Etess, president of the American Hotel 6 Motel Association; Michael A. Leven, president in 1976; and Da ve Dorf, director of education.

announced its two newest efforts. Collaborating with the prestigious accounting and research firm of Pannell Kerr Forster, the Foundation launched a study of operating expenses for hotel sales offices. Members were able to compare their financia l performances against industry norms. And on the heels of that announcement, the Foundation began production of its second edition of the popu lar text "Marketing Your Hotel Through Direct Mail."

Tomorrow's Education Today In 1987, newly elected President Neil W. Ostergren, CHME, emphasized continuing edu-

cation for HSMAI members. The association's Program of Work reflected that emphasis by featuring the heaviest lineup of educational programs in the organization's history.

Education Conference '87 offered tracks of topics centering on internal sales, corporate sales, and leisure travel. The Annual European Conference helped attendees to get ready for the marketing challenges of the year 2000. Virtually all of the speakers reminded European and American attendees in Dublin, Ireland, that the new century was a mere 13 years away and would present an almost mystical time of great change.

William Dowling, a featured speaker and president of Dowmar International, cautioned his audience that, while the year 2000 was more than a decade away, many of the predicted changes were in fact already occurring particularly in light of new technologies. This was underscored by Dick Brennan, manager of distribution systems for Aer Lingus, who impressed the audience with his description of coming computerization and automation.

As the Decade Comes to a Close The final two years of the decade brought dynamic events not only to the world, but also to HSMAI. THE 1980s: MOVING FORWARD

123

Warming relations between the United States and the Soviet Union continued, as the two super-powers signed nuclear arms treaties and began destroying weapons supplies.

Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev, who in 1986 announced twin policies of "glasnost" (open flow of information within the U.S.S.R.) and "perestroika" (economic restructuring), fascinated Americans. He was the most Western of Soviet leaders, and visited the United State often. He made top-of-the-fold headlines in American newspapers by walking among the pedestrians on the streets of Washington, working the crowds, creating "photo-ops," and demonstrating every facet of typically western politics. The ice was thawing in the Cold War, and HSMAI members would directly benefit from this astonishing international evolution.

The "Wall" was down, and the end of Soviet communism was imminent.

For the hospitality and travel industry, the changes in international relations had become dramatic. With relaxed Cold War tensions and fewer restrictions, travel between the Western world and Eastern Asia opened potentially prosperous markets. The globalization that HSMAI was pursuing was now stretching from Western Europe into previously closed societies. For the first time, Soviet hotel executives were allowed by their government to attend the HSMAI European Conference and discover marketing as a discipline -

a concept that was totally new to them. Marketing was an alien idea under

the previous communist rule where customers were assigned to various Soviet properties by the state, told not only where to stay, but also when to come and go. There was no "selling" in a capitalistic sense in the Soviet Union prior to Gorbachev. Instead, hoteliers took orders, accommodated guests assigned to them by the state, and turned over their money to the government. At that memorable 1988 European Conference in Austria, HSMAI members taught many unique, even startling, free-market concepts to their new colleagues from the U.S.S.R. HSMAI was teaching them how to survive in the competitive marketplace that they were entering for the first time. And many new international friends were made over a chilled glass or two of Russian vodka.

Here at home, the Washington Redskins beat the Denver Broncos 42-10 with Doug Williams becoming the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl and become its most valuable player. Business was booming on Broadway, with three Andrew Lloyd Webber hits leading the way. And the United States elected its 41st President, George Herbert Walker Bush.

For HSMAI, the struggle to break through the challenges of the 70s and mid-80s continued as the hospitality industry fought to bring business in line with an inventory of rooms dramatically expanded by the hotel and convention center building boom of the past decade. Second-tier cities became serious competitors for more glamorous convention venues by investing in new state-of-the-art convention centers, transportation facilities, and hotels. Choices for hospitality buyers had never been better and competition was fierce.

124

7 5 YE AR5 0 F 5 ERV ICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

HSMAI Takes On a New Look, and a New Presence inthe Industry To their great credit, HSMAI leaders recognized the changes within the industry and moved to answer the challenges that were presented by unprecedented com-

NEVER BEFORE HAS OUR SALES TEAM COME TO ME "RAV I NG" about the success of a trade show; that is, not until now.

Affordable Meetings struck a high note. From the follow-up report it was obvious that people came to discuss specific pieces of business. In short, let me say that our investment was returned to us in kind. Count on us in the future!

petition for consumer dollars. HSMAI membership

JUDI LAGES, VICE PRESIDENT,

was affected by these challenges that also impacted all

SALES AND MARKETING, OMNI HOTELS

hospitality, travel and buyer associations large and small. More than ever, associations were in dogged competition for memberships, recognition, and support from finite markets with common interests.

Under the leadership of President John]. Russell, Jr., CHME, HSMAI introduced a dramatic new logo designed to reflect its image as a fast moving, continually improving professional society of industry-wide marketing and management executives. A newly expanded version of the annual joint meeting with the Insurance Conference Planners Association was introduced, with a waiting list of eager HSMAI participants.

I

HSMAI's Education Conference became the first to attack the explosive issue of "AIDS In the Workplace," a session co-sponsored with the

ational Leadership

Coalition on AIDS, to explore individual workers' rights and corporate attitudes and responses to the growing health crisis.

And a major new initiative would captivate the imagination and participation of the industry.

AStar is Born In 1989, during the recession that gripped the nation, the association conducted a survey of its members to determine their level of interest in an HSMAI-sponsored national trade show and conference that aimed at the thousands of meeting planners who, among many other duties, book meetings, large and small, on limited budgets.

Many carried titles such as executive secretary, administrative assistant, or director of education . They were largely unknown to HSMAI members and very few appeared

s.

fhe lfote/ flforfreti11 oles ond UAssoc · lnternot.. tofion 101101

on their potential client lists because these planners were not active in the meetings and conventions industry and very few were members of meeting planner associations. In fact, they often did not think of themselves as planners, but rather as employees for whom meeting planning was only one of their organizational responsibilities. To many hospitality marketers they were difficult to find and so went

After a year of planning, HSMAI introduced Affordable Meeting's Exposition and Conference in September 1990.

Both meeting planners and exhibitors pronounced the show a "smash hit."

unsolicited. To HSMAI, they were diamonds in the rough.

HSMAI's research showed that annually these planners were booking tens of thousands of board meetings, seminars, and retreats, as well as full corporate events and association conferences and conventions. The markets researched included government THE lg 8 o s: M0 VIN G F0 RWARD

125

and military, social, fraternal, ethnic, religious, arts, sports, hobbies, special events and fairs, senior citizens and other tour groups, and more.

Again, though a diverse group, many of these event planners had two things in common. They were not interested in joining traditional buyer associations, therefore they had no buyer-seller home to which to go. And they worked on restricted budgets.

HSMAI members responded with enthusiasm to the concept of a trade show that allowed them to exhibit before a "fresh" audience of eager buyers who, with their multiple responsibilities and their need to save money and time, wanted a "one stop shopping" opportunity to book their meetings and events. For HSMAI members, it provided the venue at which to build business year-round and fill rooms during shoulder and off-season times.

Before launching the show in 1990, HSMAI held two focus groups of meeting planners who fit the profile of the intended buyers. These planners, largely untrained in the meetings and convention discipline, saw great value in a show that would offer educational seminars and workshops designed to help them make the most of their limited budgets as well as address their need to hone their meeting planning skills. They also were eager to meet exhibitors willing to offer them money-saving opportunities on their purchases of a variety of meeting planning products and services.

Although the idea of the show had been favorably received by HSMAI members, the meeting planners attending the focus groups, and the HSMA Board of Directors, the candid response from HSMAl's sister associations, both in the hospitality sector and among meeting planner groups, was one of skepticism. The consensus from these organizations was that "the last thing this industry needs is another trade show."

But they were wrong, because this one was different. First and foremost, the entire show was free to qualified meeting planners. Costs were covered by exhibitor fees and sponsorships. Given its launch at a time when the economy was in recession, its name "Affordable Meetings Exposition and Conference," "affordable" -

with the key word being

was compelling.

The first show sold out its exhibit space, and 2,450 meeting planners attended.

Twenty seminars and two genera l sessions were delivered to rooms packed with buyers and suppli ers. Exhibit aisles were crowded, and the electricity created by crowds of people with a common cause was palpable.

The event rook place in the Washington, D.C. Convention Center during Labor Day week, when attendees were less busy with their own meetings and therefore most able to attend. And the attendance established a better than three-to-one buyer to supplier ratio that every Affordable Meetings show has met to this day. It was a unique, and risky, concept, but the first HSMAl's Affordable Meetings Exposition and Conference was a smashing success and would go on to be one of the association's most valued and valuable assets. HSMAI was off and running into the 1990s. • 126

75 YE ARS OF SER VICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

Flash-Forward It is 6:30 a.m. in the nation's capital, September 1990.

HSMAl's Ilsa Whittemore is anxiously looking out the doors of the huge Washington, D.C. Convention Center prior to the opening of the registration desks, raising the curtain on the dramatically new concept of Affordable Meetings Exposition and Conference.

She had conceived of the concept, and now she is serving as project director for the greatest leap of faith by any association that the industry had witnessed in decades. She knows that HSMAI had invested nearly $250,000 in research, development, and marketing. She also knows that, since registration for the buyers is free, there is nothing to compel them to show up. She is understandably apprehensive.

Six hundred exhibitors are poised to man their booths. Dozens of presenters are ready to deliver their seminars. The band is ready. The ribbon, scissors, and velvet ropes are outside Exhibit Ha11 "C:' Everything is in place, except for the meeting planners whose buying power is the key to the success of the enterprise. At a moment in time such as this, no one can be sure that the promise of the movie Field of Dreams, "If you build it, they will come," is true.

"I wonder where everyone is?" Whittemore wonders aloud to her colleagues as she stares at the empty sun-drenched early-morning streets of Washington, hoping to see the first crowds of buyers heading toward them.

"Don't worry ... they'11 be here ... it's only 6:30 in the morning," she is assured by a bystander, with fingers crossed. "I'm not so sure," she says. "I had a horrible dream last night that only 16 meeting planners showed up.

I plan to stand in this spot until at least 17 buyers are in the door and then I may relax."

And they came 16, 32, 64, and then too many to count.

By 9:00 am, the registration lobby is full of eager buyers, exhibitors are applying last-minute touches to their exhibit booths, seminar rooms are filling up fast with happy people, pens poised and notebooks ready for action - and at the end of the day, atotal of 2,450 planners and suppliers are celebrating a great opening event at a gala reception.

It is a resounding success, the first of many in the history of this unique industry event. And HSMAI is glowing with pride.

• CHAPTER NINE

From the time that HSMAI became the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, it has attracted a wide variety of members from almost every segment of the hospitality industry. While hotel sales and marketing professionals remained the core membership of the organization, the demand for HSMAI membership and services by related groups was impressive.

Creating Relevance HE ELECTRONIC AGE OF COMMUNICATION WAS LAUNCHED in the Nineties. The World Wide Web appeared in 1992, changing the way people throughout the world communicate with each other and conduct their business. By 1994, three million were online and by 1998 that number rose to 100 million. "See you online" and "the server's down" became part of the everyday vocabulary. In addition, by the end of the decade, a good portion of the world's population used a cell phone to stay in touch with friends, family, and colleagues scattered around the globe.

There is no question that the "information superhighway" had a great impact not only on communications, but a lso on the economy. The vast Internet system drove millions to buy home computers and the dot.com industry made billions of dollars by taking investors for a financial joyride before crashing into virtual bankruptcy by the end of the decade.

THE 199 0s AN D BE YOND: CRE ATING RELE VA NCE

129

The 1990s and Be and: Creating Re 1evance In the Nineties, the United States engaged in a war and several military actions.

During the presidency of George H. Bush, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and the Persian Gulf War ensued. In 1993, in the early years of the Clinton administration there was an attempt to oust the bloodthirsty dictator, General Adid of Somalia. In September 1994, the United States sent troops to Haiti to overthrow a military dictatorship. In 1996, 20,000 American troops were deployed to Bosnia as part of a NATO peacekeeping force and in 1999 the U.S. joined NATO in air strikes against Yugoslavia due to its government's policy of ethnic cleansing in its province of Kosovo.

Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton defeated George H. Bush for the presidency in 1992 and was re-elected in 1996. A charismatic personality, President Clinton was admired by many Americans and scorned by others, especially after a sex scandal during his second term resulted in an attempt by members of Congress to remove him from office.

Terrorism reared its ugly head in 1993 when a bomb detonated in the garage beneath the World Trade Center. While the death toll was low, it foreshadowed the deadly attack that killed thousands eight years later. The shock of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995 was compounded when it was learned that the attack was the work of a home grown terrorist, U.S. Army veteran Timothy McVeigh.

Rush Limbaugh on the right, Larry King on the left, and many others in between expressed their views on dozens of talk shows. Anita Hill's testimony against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas revitalized the issue of women's rights in the workplace, a lesson not lost on the hospitality industry.

Overseas, the age of open communication was flourishing in Eastern Europe. The Berlin Wall had been down since 1989, after 28 years of cutting off communication

1990

Theme Park Rides Premieres at Resort Hotels in Las Vegas

Celebrity Chef Emeril Legasse Opens his First Restaurant in New Orleans

Loews Hotels' "Good Neighbor" Policy Becomes the Industry's First and Most Comprehensive Community Outreach Program

Approximately 70 Percent of Americans Live in Cities

Former Priest Jean-Bertrand Aristide Becomes Haiti's First Democratically Elected President After Winning a Popular Election, Lech Walesa Becomes President of Post -Communist Poland

130

75 YEARS OF SER VICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

Mississippi Legalizes Gambling

Nelson Ma ndela is Released fro m a South African Prison After Serving 27 Years for Opposition to Apartheid

between East and West Germany. Poland had its first non-communist prime minister since the end of World War II, and democracy was emerging in formerly communist countries such as Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria.

The East and West were coming closer together than at any time in the past 40 years and the hospitality industry, both in the United States and abroad,

IT WAS VERY MUCH A BUYER'S MARKET IN THE EARLY NINETIES. So we negotiated. We sharpened the pencil. We sold harder to maintain the same level of business. We tried to expand the sales force on the leisure side of the ledger with incentive programs targeting the retail travel agency market - an opportunity for them to make more money by selling our packages. That was the start of the airline cut-backs on travel agency commissions. We also expanded our involvement with group representation companies in major feeder markets to capture more regional markets. Resorts that did well at the time had to be creative and flexible.

was about to sow the seeds that would provide a

JAMES P. TIERNEY, CHME, PRESIDENT IN 1990

profitable harvest for those involved in serving the international travel and meetings market.

At HSMAI, change also was inevitable. Director of Education and Training Dave Dorf announced his retirement at the turn of the decade after 34 years on the staff.

HSMAl's most prolific teacher and trainer, Dorf averaged more than 60 presentations a year to association audiences in every state in the U.S. and in many cities and college campuses around the world.

Organizational changes also were taking place. HSMAl's governance structure was further streamlined in 1990 with sweeping restructuring approved by the Board of Directors. The organization added an associate member category and established a House of Delegates composed of chapter presidents, empowered to elect members of the board. The measure removed geographic loca tion as a priority for board representation, and centered on an individual's level of involvement, willingness, and ability to serve. With chapter presidents responsible for nominating and electing candidates, the size of the board was reduced from 125 to 35 members.

The new structure was designed to provide more influence and greater communica-

IBM Sel1s its Selectric Division, Signaling the End of the Typewriter Era Space Shuttle Discovery is Launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida . Carries the Hubble Space Telescope East and West Germany are United as One Country for the First Time Since World War II

Michael Crichton Writes the Blockbuster Hit Jurassic Park In the U.S., 85 Percent of American Adults Had Completed High School Kodak Introduces the Photo CO Player

Many Telephone, Broadcasting Companies Move to Competition, Privatization

Tim Berne rs-Lee Writes the Program for the World Wide Web (WWW)

Entertainment Weekly Magazine is Introduced

THE 1990s AND BEYOND: CREATING RELEVANCE

131

tion among chapters, and to streamline the policy-setting responsibility of the board and Executive Committee.

James P. Tierney, CHME, vice president of sales and marketing for South Seas Plantation on Captiva Island, Florida, became president of HSMAI in 1990, succeeding two-term President John J. Russell, JR., CHME. One of Tierney's first priorities was computerization as an integral part of the association's educational offerings. He As attendees gathered for the 63rd HSMAI Annual Convention, bombs were falling over Baghdad at the start of the Persian Gulf War, the first real-time televised war in U.S. history . Although there were many cancellations, the convention went forward.

announced that the popular "Conference on Computer Applications in Hotel Sales and Marketing" would premiere as a series of regional programs set for Nashville, Cleveland, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. "Everything is changing in computerization and automation, and HSMAI is staying on the cutting edge of the revolution as the new technologies affect our members," Tierney said. His emphasis on computerization also was beneficial to the HSMAI Foundation.

One of the most supportive friends of HSMAI in the past two decades was Newmarket Software Systems, developer of Delphi, a popular sales and catering computer system designed for the hotel industry. Newmarket's sales director Chris Avery announced that his company would donate its Delphi system, valued at $25,000, to the HSMAI Foundation for a drawing by all contributors of $50 or more to the foundation's educational fund. The drawing was set for the 1991 annual convention in Washington, D.C.

It's All inthe Timing The 1991 annual convention took place in January in the nation's capital. The change in time of year was designed to move the convention away from the Thanksgiving holidays as well as a large number of competing events. "It's a great

1991

Hotel Industry Sees Record Losses - 61.8 percent

The Warsaw Pact is Officially Dissolved

Radisson Hotels International Opens the First U.S.-Managed Hotel in Russia

Westin is the First Hotel Chain to Provide In-Room Voice Mail

In South Africa, The Remaining Laws for Apartheid are Repealed The USSR Officially Ends, as the Baltic Republics Declare their Independence and the Communist Party is Stripped of its Power 132

75 YE ARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEV EMENT

Silence of the Lambs Wins the Oscar

time of year for the convention, and a great location," said President Tierney.

Neither he nor anyone else could know that this would align the convention's opening with the beginning of the Persian Gulf War, following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. And no one could anticipate that the threat of terrorist retaliation would paralyze Washington, D.C.

J

The United States and its allies began the air campaign over Baghdad on January 17, the night before the HSMAI Annual Convention was to begin. To increase the drama, and the impact on the convention, it was the first real-time televised war in U.S. history. Millions around the world were transfixed as images

A

G

H

T

of anti-aircraft fire and explosions over the capital of Iraq consumed television screens. Tanks moving across the desert were just hours away.

At HSMAI, the news was sobering. A deluge of phone calls from registrants alerted the association's staff that corporate travel restrictions were preventing travel to Washington, as well as many other places around the world. Attendees began to cancel their registrations, and speakers reported that they were not being allowed to travel to a site in risk of attack.

Washington, D.C. imposed travel restrictions on visits to public monuments and shut down certain downtown streets. It was not a propitious time or place to have a convention.

But HSMAI did hold the convention. Those who attended received every educational offering, every networking opportunity, and every social event promised. The crowd was small, but enthusiastic and appreciative. Speakers, seminar leaders, and panelists who made it to the event agreed to substitute for absent speakers. They took over willingly and presented magnificently, and the show went on.

1992 The Persian Gu1f Wa r Begins as the United States and its A11ies Bomb Iraq and Kuwait CNN Dominates On-Scene Coverage of Gu1f War Hote1s, Air1ines Suffer Devastating Losses as the Gu1f War Causes Corporate Trave1 Restrictions

Industry Breaks Even Fiscally after Si x Consecutive Years of Losses

A Miami Court Convicts Manue1 Noriega, Former Leader of Panama, on Drug and Racketeering Charges

Hospita1ity Franchise Systems (now Cendant Corporation) is Founded

The Church of England Allows Women to be Ordained Priests

The Internet Society is Chartered, and 1,000,000 Host Computers are Connected in a Network.

About One-Third of all American Businesses are Owned by Women, 4 Percent by African Americans, and SPercent by Hispanics

The Term "Surfing the Net" is Coined by Jean Polly as an Increasing Number of Peop1e Begin Exp1oring the On1ine Wor1d

TH E I g gos AN D BEY 0 ND: CREAT I NG RELEV A NCE

133

The HSMAI Awards Program Comes of Age For years the "Adrian" and "Golden Bell" awards recognized excellence in advertising and public relations during the annual conventions. In recent years, award recipients were honored at a convention event titled "The Breakfast of Champions."

There was an inherent problem with this scheduling. The awards were designed to recognize advertising and public relations firms for outstanding campaigns, however, most representatives of those firms did not attend HSMAI's annual meetings on a regular basis. While the "Adrians" and "Golden Bells" were prestigious, the actual presentations were almost anticlimactic.

The HSMAI staff decided to turn this weakness into a marketing strength. The first annual HSMAI Adrian and Golden Bell Awards Dinner was held as a stand-alone event at the Sheraton Carlton Hotel in Washington, D.C., following the annual convention in 1992. A sellout crowd of 216 honored the winners during a black tie gala in the Grand Ballroom.

The awards dinner subsequently moved to New York City, home to many of the same advertising and public relations firms entered in the competition. Over the next several years, the event grew in popularity and recognition, filling the ballrooms of the Marriott Marquis and the New York Hilton with over 1,000 advertising and public relations executives as well as HSMAI members. The expanded program included extensive audiovisual features, a pre-dinner reception complete with a display of all of the major winning entries, and a post-event dessert and cordials reception for networking and photo opportunities. It has since become one of the landmark awards programs in the hospitality and travel industries.

William R. Volk, CHME, received the president's gavel from Jim Tierney at the 63rd annual convention in 1991. During his acceptance speech, Volk lauded Tierney

First McDonald's Opens in Beijing, China Signed by Canada, Mexico, and the U.S., the North American Free Trade Agreement Establishes the World's Largest Trading Block The International UFO Museum Opens in Roswell, New Mexico

Rodney King Beating Sets off Riots in Los Angeles, Crippling Travel and Commerce Daniel Boorstin Writes The Creators, a History of Mankind Disney Opens Disneyland outside Paris, France ATMs Developed to Dispense Stamps as well as Cash Bill Clinton Elected President of the United States

Personal Computer Sales Reach 65 Million

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7 5 YE ARS 0 F 5 ERV I CE A ND AC HI EVEMENT

WHAT DO THE WEDDING PAGES of the Des Moines Register and the Houston Astros Basebal1 Club have in com-

for his leadership. During the past year HSMAI had delivered major initiatives for the

mon? They both joined HSMAI. From the

association, including the Affordable Meetings Exposition and Conference, the

time that HSMAI became the Hospitality

"Visions 2000" Strategic Planning Retreat, record attendance at the joint meeting

Sales and Marketing Association, it has

with the Insurance Conference Planners Association, the streamlining of the HSMAI

attracted a wide variety of members from

governance structure, and the first annual Adrian and Golden Bell Awards Dinner.

almost every segment of the hospitality industry. While hotel sales and marketing

More Open Societies, More Open Travel

professionals remained the core member-

By the end of 1991, the tri-colored Russian flag rose atop St. Basil's Cathedral in

ship of the organization, the demand for

Moscow, replacing the Soviet hammer and sickle and signaling the end of the Soviet

HSMAI membership and services by relat-

Union. At the same time, the leaders of Israel and the Arab nations gathered for peace

ed groups was impressive. By 1994, the

talks in Madrid. A new international openness and easing of tensions were generating a

scope of new members was comprehen-

rebirth of the travel and hospitality business and there was a bull market on Wall Street.

sive . Among their affiliations were:

HSMAI captured the sense of recovery from the recession of the Eighties with its

• U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame

1992 convention theme, "Master the Pursuit of Profits." HSMAI chapters were press-

• Collard Company (specialty advertising)

ing ahead with creative programs such as a new "Hospitality Supplier Show," spon-

• WCTV- The Welcome Channel

sored by the Phoenix Chapter and the "HOTELAROUND," planned by the Big

(hospitality TV)

Apple Chapter, a program that made it easy for members to tour new and dramatically refurbished properties. The Cape Cod Chapter ran a food donation program with

• Macy's Visitors Center (tourist information)

great success and sponsored grants to local colleges, and the Deep South Chapter held

• Foxwood High Stakes Bingo and Casino

its annual education conference, drawing more than 250 people to its seminars in

• Tennessee Hospitality Baskets

Biloxi, Mississippi.

(baskets and gifts) • Ethel M. Chocolates

Reflections of a Broadened Membership

• Sunshine Cab

The Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International officially became the

• Atlantis Submarines (underwater tours)

Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International during the 1992 annual

• Coors Brewing Company • The Letter Box, Inc. (bulk mailer)

1 3

Radisson Hotels Worldwide is the First to Offer Business-Class Rooms

Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List, a Movie about the Holocaust, is Released to Critical Acclaim. The Film Wins the Oscar for Best Picture of 1993

• The Little Plant Company (interior Queen Elizabeth 11 Announces that Buckingham Palace wil1 be Opened to Tourists in Order to Raise Money to Repair Windsor Castle, Damaged by a Fire the Previous Year Ritz-Carlton Becomes the First Hospitality Company to Win the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award

plantscaping) • Spirit Cruises, Inc. (harbor cruise lines) • Wet 'n Wild (theme park) • Driving Revenue (marketing consulting)

The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino Opens. At 5, 034 Rooms, it is the Largest Hotel in the World Best Western Launches the Industry's First Group Rate Program Targeting Travel Planners for Military, Educational, or Fraternal Organizations

THE 1990s AND BEYOND: CREATING RELEVANCE

135

convention in Orlando. Incoming President Karen Colliton-Thomson, CHME, noted that the new name reflected the broader sales and marketing interests of the association's constituency. "Today, the various elements of the industry are more interdependent than ever, " she said. "Whether you represent a theme park, a transportation company, or a convention bureau, you must understand the products, philosophies, and challenges of all of the players in order to effectively compete in the marketplace." At the same time the dues structure was overhauled and simplified. Dues would no longer be a function of hotel size and the "associate " and "allied" categories were officially eliminated, making everyone on the roster an equal member.

HSMAl also announced another new, precedent-setting event. The first The 1993 class of Certified Hotel Ma rketing Executives (now Certified Hospitality Marketing Executives) poses with President Bruce Timson (back row, far right). In the first row (left to right) are Past Presid ents, Dave Troy, Jim Tierney, Hoyt Bacon, and Bill Volk, who also served as Certification Commission Chair.

Conference on Hospitality Advertising, set for Chicago, was designed to increase knowl edge about the inner workings of hospitality advertising and public relations for the association's broader membership base. The conference offered a wealth of program features : 17 seminars, " topic table" breakfast sessions, consumer focus groups, and a conference workbook were the highlights of an information-packed three-da y event. Two subsequent annual conferences in Alexandria, Virginia proved to be equally successful.

HSMAI also introduced a more contemporary corporate logo to coincide with the new name of the association as it headed toward the year 2000. "We are extremely pleased with the new look," said incoming 1993 President Bruce R. Timson, CHME. "It expresses the motion and excitement that HSMAI is now experiencing." Adoption of the new logo was part of a redesign of all HSMAI graphics, coordinated by Gary Leopold, CHME of Irma Mann Strategic

Hilton Becomes the First Major Hotel Company to Drop Telephone Access Charges on Calling Card Calls The Maastricht Treaty Officially Forms the European Union, Building on the Previous Coalition Known as the European Economic Community (EEC) The Holocaust Memorial Museum is Dedicated in Washington, D.C.

136

7S YEARS OF SERVICE AN D ACH IE VEMENT

NBC News Causes Ethical Controversy by Staging a GM Truck Explosion Computer-Gene rated Dinosaurs Roam the Earth in the Movie Jurassic Park Intel Develops the First Pentium Computer Chip One in Three Americans Does Some Work from Home

HERE ARE JU ST A FEW of the rave reviews received by the HSMAl-PCMA "Critical Issues Forum": "It is very refreshing, motivating and encouraging to hear current issues discussed by competent, knowledgeable speakers. This is the type of program that enhances professionalism in this industry."

Marketing of Boston, Massachusetts. Executive Vice President Buck Hoyle announced the sweeping changes, saying "The purpose is to develop a look for HSMAI print materials that is as creative, fresh, and forward moving as the programs and services HSMAI now provides."

Among the new innovative programs announced by the association was the first-ever collaboration between HSMAI and the Professional Convention Management

"Orchids to HSMAI and PCMA for pulling off this strategic alliance. The entire Forum was beneficial, and well worth my time. You selected the 'creme de la creme' of speakers. Thanks for staying in line with our intelligence:' "The best educational program I've attended in 15 years in this industry. Programs such as this are critical to our survival:' "The finest group of speakers I have ever heard in any industry program:'

Association, (PCMA), a major national association repre-

"This was an outstanding seminar. It has relevance to the issues I deal

senting buyers and buyer organizations. The HSMAI-

with on a daily basis."

PCMA "Critical Issues Forum" was held at the Peachtree Plaza Hotel in Atlanta in October of 1993. The event

"I never knew there were so many potential pitfalls. Thank you for the eye-opening information."

included subjects such as music licensing issues; contracts and cancellation clauses; alternative dispute resolution; budgeting and cost controls; and the changing nature of the industry.

HSMAI launched yet another new program in 1993. "Selling in the 90s," a state-

SELLING IN THE NINETIES IS GREAT! lhavenodoubtthat

of-the-art two-day sales training program for marketers in all areas of the hospitality

this training will give our sales direc-

industry. The new approach included subjects such as customer relationship selling, an

tors an edge over the competition:'

anatomy of communications, understanding the sales cycle, creative prospecting, negotiations; and time management.

SCOTT PEARSON , REGIONAL VICE PRESIDENT OF TRAVEL INDUSTRY SALES

The educational program was packaged for delivery at the chapter level with out-

CHOICE HOTELS INTERNATIONAL

standing results. HSMAI's Bahamas Chapter and Iowa Chapter were among the first to deliver the package to their members, and bookings stretched through 1994.

The Channel Tunnel (Chunnel) Opens Between Britain and France First Online Hotel Catalogue Debuts Promus and Hyatt Hotels are the First Chains to Establish a Site on the Internet Best Western Unveils its Gold Crown Corporate Card, the First Corporate Program that Gives Frequent-Traveler Benefits to Companies as well as Employees Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Dies of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma Cancer

Microsoft's Founder, Bill Gates, Buys a Manuscript Written by Leonardo da Vinci for $30.8 Million.

The Work Records da Vinci's Theories on the Movement of Air and Water Israeli Leaders Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres and Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Leader Yasir Arafat are Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize For the Middle East Peace Accord of 1993

Days Inn Debuts Industry's First Chainwide Hotel Rating System for Consumers Westin Installs One-Touch Service Express, a Centralized Guest Access Department Nicole Simpson and Ronald Goldman are Stabbed to Death in Los Angeles, California. O.J. Simpson is Arrested for the Murders

THE 1990s AN D BE YOND: CRE ATIN G RELE VA NCE

137

AChanging of the Guard The year 1994 brought more progress and more change fo r H SMAI. The Conference on Hospitality Advertising drew record crowds to its third annu al edition, held in Alexandria, Virginia, in March. Six new HSMAVPCM A "Critical Issues Forums" were scheduled for Dallas, Tallahassee, Columbus, Philadelphia, Sacramento, and Denver as the two associations regiona lized the event for grea ter availability to members. The Adrian and Golden Bell Awards Dinners in New York were now regularly drawing more than 700 attendees (a far cry from 21 6 attendees at the first event).

Holiday Inn Worldwide added 151 of its executives to the H SMAI membership roster. Pamela M . Richardson, CHME, director of sa les of the Nassau-Ca ble BeachPara dise Island Promotion Board, was installed as HSMAI president for 1994.

The Convention Liaison Council entered into a partnership marketing venture with HSMAI, holding its prestigious Hall of Leaders Gala during another record-setting H SMAI Affordable Meetings Exposition and Conference at the Washington, D.C. Convention Center. The HSMAI Jim Pea rman, 199S chairman of the HSMAI Foundation Board of Tr ustees (cente r), is shown with recipients of the Foundation's 1996 Pacesetter Awards, from left to right, Earl Foster, Susan Sarfati, CAE, Katharine A. Stapleton, and Jonathan Howe, ESQ.

Foundation planned its first "Pacesetter Awards" event during "Meeting World " in New York City, to honor industry leaders who, as outstanding educators and mentors, have immeasurably benefited their colleagues.

It was also during this year that Buck Hoyle, HSMAI's executive vice president for

14 years, announced his resignation to pursue a career in the for-profit sector with Ray Bloch Productions, a leading conference industry production and special events firm.

Neil Ostergren, a 35-year veteran of the hospitality industry, HSMAI H all of Fame

In a Testament to the Escalation of Everyday Internet Usage, America Online Announces that it Has Reached One Million Subscribers U.S. Government Privatizes Internet Management He wlett-Packard Introduces Printer-Fax-Copier Machine for Homes and Offices Banner Ads Appear on Web Sites for the First Time Digital Satellite TV, DIRECTV, Launched in the U.S.

Country Music Becomes the Most Popular U.S. Radio Format Forrest Gump Grabs the Oscar Chain Bookstores Outsell Independents in the U.S. For the FirstTime Los Angeles Earthquake Rocks City, Further Depressing Hotel and Travel Business Amazon.com Becomes Web's Hottest Retailer

138

75 YEARS OF SERVIC E AND ACH IE VEMENT

inductee, and past president of the association, was named acting executive vice president while a search committee worked to select a permanent successor. The transition was a smooth one, as all H SMAI staff members pursued their responsibilities and HSMAI's programs proceeded without interruption.

In his parting statement, H oyle expressed his appreciation to HSMAI for his experiences during his tenure and for the support of the staff, the association leaders, and the members. "HSMAI has been too important a part of my life to ever leave it," he said, adding, "I'll still be close to the organization, except now it will be as a member."

In thanking him for his service to the organization, the Board of Directors voted unanimously to give H oyle a lifetime membership in H SMAI, and a vote of confi-

Immediate Past President Pamela Richardson presents the president's gavel to incoming 1995 HSMAI President Chris Avery .

dence in his new pursuits.

The Changing landscape Gets More Complex Board meetings in 1994 foc used not only on the search for a new executive vice president, but also on strategic planning for the association. The hospitality industry and the sales and marketing profession were changing and a transformation that would forever alter sales and marketing in hospitality, travel, and tourism was taking place.

H SMAI's leaders knew that from this point forward, the association also must transform itself. While HSMAI membership was now open to sales and marketing professionals in virtually every segment of the hospitality industry, in 1995 approximately two thirds of H SMAI mem bers still represented hotels. Meeting the needs of hotel and non-hotel members was, and is, H SMAI's mission. Chris Avery, CH ME, was installed as president at the 1995 convention in Nassa u, Bahamas- a memorable event hosted by the Bahamas Chapter.

1995

Choice Hotels International and Promus Become the First Companies to Offer their Guests "Real Time " Access to its Reservati ons System The First Rendezvous of a NASA Spacecraft with the Russian Space Station, Mir, Occurs in a Historic Advance of the Space Program

Shannon Faulkner Becomes the First Woman to be Admitted to the All -M ale Citadel College After a Protracted Legal Fight First Lady Hillary Clinton Publishes the Book, It Takes a Village, which Discusses Children's Needs in the Community The lditarod Dog- Sled Race Begins its Annual Tre k from Anchorage to · Nome, Alaska

Choice Hotels International and Holiday Inn are the First to Introduce Online Booking Capability THE 1990s AND BEYOND: CREATING RELEVANCE

139

The HSMAI German Chapter celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1995.

The Race to Keep Pace HSMAI membership at the end of 1995 was just over 3,500 in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. In addition there were nine active chapters in Europe. While the vision of diversifying membership from hotel-centric to other sectors of hospitality, travel, and tourism was still intact, changes affecting the core hotel sa les and marketing sector required a strong response from the association.

On November 1, 1995, Robert A. Gilbert, CHME, CHA, the newly appointed executive director, took over the reigns. Under Gilbert's direction, between 1995 and 2000, HSMAI raced to catch up with and manage the massive amount of information needed by its members.

The change experienced by the hotel industry in the mid-Nineties included consolidation of companies into mega-corporations that own, lease, manage, franchise, or otherwise control individual hotels. While independent properties continued to exist and prosper, 80 percent of the hotel industry had already consolidated under the mega-brands or their The 1996 board members of Chapter Holland are shown with Bob Gilbert (right) and lngunn Hofseth (center), chair of the European Region Board and executive vice president of Chapter Norway. (Left to right) Pauline Dielman, Hans Poortvliet, Chapter PresidentJurriaan J. De Mol.

parent corporations. These mega entities were now supplying most of the tangible benefits and services to these properties that once were provided to them by associations. This was the challenge HSMAI faced by 1995.

Societal changes impacting the industry also were taking place, both in the United States and throughout the world. Deregulation had driven demand but there was a cost to the industry. Frequent traveler programs, like those started by American Airlines in 1982, were designed to make customers brand loyal, but loyalty waned as all segments of the travel industry announced their own programs and consumers became mileage and point "j unkies."

Best Western Celebrates its Soth Anniversary, Making it the Oldest Continuing Operating Brand During the lOOth Anniversary of the Olympics, a Bomb Explodes in Atlanta's Centennial Park, Killing One and Injuring 111 Others After lS Years of Marriage, Prince Charles and Princess Diana of Great Britain are Divorced IIT Agrees to be Bought by Starwood Hotels Corporation for $13.3 Billion 140

75 YEARS OF SERVICE ANO ACHIEVEMENT

James Cameron's movie Titanic, Based on the 1912 Tragedy, Becomes a Blockbuster Hit In a Tragedy that Stuns the World, Princess Diana is Killed in an Automobile Accident with her Close Friend Dodi Fayed Mother Teresa Dies of a Heart Attack. Her Efforts Earned her the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979

Distribution and technology moved to the fo refront as companies looked for ways to do everything better, cheaper, and fas ter. The major global distribution systems (GDS ) themselves went through a consolidati on process with the seven dominant systems of 1995 shrinking to fo ur by 2001. Travel agents were the primary users of these electronic booking systems, but as the techn ology evolved, connectivity between hotel reservation systems and the GDS would become commonplace. It was a painful transition, but it happened. THISCO evolved into Pegasus, the massive switching company that connected all th e hotel reservation systems and allowed all global distributi on systems to have connectivity to inventory and rates.

Sales offices of hotels and convention and visitors bureaus also became automated.

The new generation of salespeopl e knew how to update an electronic record of an

Distribution and technology moved to the forefront as

existing or prospective account as we ll as merge infor mation and mine data that

companies looked for ways to

all owed them, in theory, to be more productive than ever before.

Technology finally allowed the hotel industry to ca tch up with the airlines in terms of reserva tion systems and inventory management. Few in the industry anticipated in 1995 the impact the Internet would have and the convergence it would crea te between consumers and all sectors of the travel and hospitality industry. Inventory and pricing

do everything better, cheaper, and faster.

would not only be integrated into fewer distribution channels, but technology allowed it to be deli vered directl y to the consumer. T he consumer became the cons umm ate " dea l shopper." These were issues discussed at the annu al conventions in 1995 in Nassa u and in 1996 in Dallas . Ever popular roundta bl e discussions facilitated ideas and solutions that could be shared by colleagues in attendance. Gary Leopold, CHME, was installed as president at the Dall as convention where "Technology Roundup " was the theme. Exhibitor demonstrations were held at the landmark Dallas Info mart-an incubator for new technology companies.

The Online Population Numbers Between 30-50 Million Users, and it is Estimated that There are Five Million Web Sites The Most Profitable Year Ever for the Lodging Industry, nets $20. 9 Billion in Pre-Tax Dollars.

Starwood Hotels Corporation Concludes its Acquisition of ITI Sheraton and Westin Hotels

Tourism Generates $495.1 Billion in Sales, Excluding Nearly $20 Billion in International Travele rs' Spending on U.S. Air Travel The Clinton Se x Scandal Explodes, Prompting Whitewater Investigator Kenneth Starr to Refocus his Investigation. The Explicit Starr Report is Released in September, and Clinton Becomes the Second American President to be Impeached Northern Ireland Acquires a Fragile Peace When the Good Friday Accord is Signed after 22 Months of Negotiations and 30 Years of Violence

St. Louis Cardinal Baseball Player Mark McGwire Breaks Roger Maris' Single Season Home-Run World Record and Finishes the Season with 70 Victorious Homers. Chicago Cub Sammy Sosa also Breaks the Record with 66 Home Runs Hurricane Mitch Pounds the Caribbean and Central America, Killing Thousands and Wiping out Much of the Infrastructure that had Taken Years to Build

TH E I g 9 os AN D BEY 0 ND: CREAT I NG RELE VAN CE

141

THE FUTURE 0F TRAVEL MARKETING was foretold at the 1997 convention in Atlanta.

• Database applications will be the foundation of sales and marketing in the hospitality industry. Database management, access, analysis, and applications will be more important than marketing communications techniques (direct mail, sales activities, mass advertising, media) . Network applications will be the infrastructure of hospitality sales and marketing .

• Database management and analysis of frequency, recognition, and promotional programs will refine, focus, and segment conventional frequent traveler programs.

• lntranets will be more important than today's Internet for hospitality sales and marketing activities (reservations, meeting planning, corporate travel management, etc.).

• Media advertising will be less important for hospitality marketers. However, media advertising will be necessary for brand communication and acquisition in a database-marketing environment.

• Public relations will be more important to the hospitality marketer, but printed trade directories will be less important.

• Hospitality companies will need new pricing models, criteria, and standards.

• Corporate marketing staffs will be "knowledge workers" responsible for integrating sales and marketing information/ programs to specific business needs. They will be increasingly accountable for financial controls, measurable results, and the return on marketing investments.

1999

Choice Hotels International is the First Chain to Test Making In -Room PCs a Standard Amenity for Guests Starwood Hotels and Resorts Takes the Boutique Segment Mainstream with the Opening of the "W" Brand

142

75 YEARS OF SERVIC E AND ACHIEVEM ENT

John F. Kennedy Jr., his Wife, Carolyn Bessette, and Carolyn's Sister Lauren Die when Kennedy's Private Plane Crashes off the Coast of Massachusetts

Specialties Emerge No longer was the hotel sales and marketing generalist able to know and do everything. Those in the profession faced new aspects of the discipline-revenue and yield management practices became a science with dedicated specialists, as did the discipline of Internet marketing. Highly specialized "one to one" marketers or data marketing specialists augmented traditional advertising strategies and "mass marketing was out."

Basic sales techniques were still needed by the generation of sales professionals who entered the business from 1995 to 2000 but few had formal or proper training. Most salespeople were trained earlier on by answering the phone and taking orders, as "managing the volume" became the most well known mantra for the sales office of the late 1990's and into the new millennium.

In 1996, HSMAI's first Web site debuted, two new HSMAI programs were launched, and a new partnership formed. The advertising conference started earlier in the decade evolved into the Advertising University and was held in conjunction with the Adrian Awards Dinner in New York. Don Peppers, author of the best-selling book, "One to One Marketing," was a keynote speaker at that event. "HSMAI Resource System 2000" was developed by Washington, D.C. entrepreneur Jim Dunn (a past president and Hall of Fame member of the Washington, D.C. chapter) . The automated lead generation system was a concept ahead of its time. However, Jim Dunn's Meetings Quest trade shows grew from three to seven the following year and a marketing partnership branded each of the shows as the HSMAI Meetings Quest shows.

Meanwhile, a little department at Microsoft called Expedia (featured in a 1996

HSMAI Marketing Review cover story) tried to communicate to the hotel and travel industry that technology was an "enabler," not a threat or competitor. The bulk of the hotel and travel industry was slow to adapt, however, and the evolution of intermedi-

The Venetian Opens in Las Vegas. Las Vegas Now Offers Nine of the Top Ten Largest Hotels in the World After 13 Years as a Star Guard for the Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan Announces his Retirement from Basketball As the Year 2000 Approaches, the World Prepares Itself for the Various Perceived Challenges of Y2K

TH E I 9 9 0 s AN D BEY 0 ND: CR EAT I NG REL EV AN CE

143

aries that capitalized on the Internet and the technology boom of the mid-to-late N ineties began to steal customer share away from the bra nds. Intermedi aries were profiting from the identification of customer sub-segments and new niche markets as well as developing portals to better meet their needs. Some intermediaries focused exclusively on price and, fo r the first time, created transparent pricing models for the public at large. In 1998, priceline.com was the first intermediary to sell hotel room inventory without the brand being identified. The consumer could now buy based on price alone. The industry struggled with the qu estion of whether or not the hotel room of the future would only be a commodity.

The 1997 convention theme was "Crea ti ve Leadership: A Vision fo r the Future."

Bob Pittman, the president of a new company called America On-Line and Erik Blachford, the travel product manager of Expedia.com, spoke about the future of Dawn D' Flannery-Walzak receives the president's gavel from Immediate Past President Gary Leopold at the 1997 con vention.

travel marketing. Dawn C. O 'Flannery Walza k, CH ME, was installed as president at the 1997 convention in Atlanta.

The Internet also facilitated a new communication method - electronic mail or email. Now sales and marketing departments could instantly send free messages to customers and others anywhere in the world. But the " need for speed " created an inbound email flow that even the best sales and marketing practiti oners fo und difficult to contro l. Customers now sent out requests for proposals to many more hotels and destinations than ever befo re . They no longer wanted the proposa ls sent to them via express mail or even via fax, they wanted them emailed -

now! The volume of

proposals being produced by sa les and marketing people snowballed and they entered an era of information overload; more work fo r the same or even fewer results.

Albert Einstein is Named Time Magazine's 'Person of the Century'

Hilton Unveils Plans for the First Lu xury Hotel in Space NASDAQ, the Over-The-Counter, Technology Heavy Stock Inde x, Declines 39 Percent over the Year, the Worst One-Year Slide in its History

Pope John Paul 11 Travels to Israel, the First Pontiff to do so Since Paul VI in 1964 Republican George W. Bush is Finally Declared the President-Elect more th an a Month after Electi on Day MGM Grand Announces the Acquisition of Mirage, Inc., Creating the Largest Corporate Buyout in Gaming History

144

7 5 YE AR S 0 F SERV I CE A ND AC HI EVEMENT

RESULTS FROM THE 1997-98 THINK TANK SESSIONS were reported in a white paper authored by Dean Lalia Rach of New York University and published in the HSMAI Marketing Review. Predictions for the sales and marketing discipline that were certain to have a significant impact on the industry and profession included: • Partnerships and alliances will dominate and brand loyalty will continue to erode by the expanding "commoditazation" of products and services • Home-based and part-time salespeople will be the norm • Performance will replace the traditional measure of hours worked • The quality of the customer will be evaluated over the short and long term and their impact on the return on investment (ROI) will be assessed • The services of the future will be customized

The movers and shakers in

• Customer reward and recognition will be the key to loyalty • The customer of the future will want to see immediate benefits and will call one number to assess an entire destination's inventory • Customer acquisition and retention strategies will replace mass rewards

hospitality sales and marketing predicted the future of the

• Efficiency will rule

industry during a series of six

• The transition from database to network orientation will soon be complete and consumers will have seamless access to inventories • Unassisted sales distribution systems will dominate and in the case of the meetings business, the first guest contact could be upon arrival at the destination

"think tanks" that were held in cities across the country.

• Due to technology, there will be a greater need for human interaction • The number of meetings will increase but delivery will be different with more immediate return expected • The general manager and sales positions may merge • The role of the convention services manager will become much more important • Inefficiencies of having a director of sales and marketing at each business unit will be identified • Human resource challenges will drive unconventional solutions • The scope of sales and marketing duties will focus on service and encompass knowledge of a destination • There will be a transformation of required skills and abilities. Director of marketing/director of sales skill sets will include revenue management functions • Managing time with clients will be paramount • Information will be the success driver of the future • The need to understand global issues of business and society will be necessary • Customer profiles will perfect the timing of the sales process • Individuals will make fewer, but higher quality, sales calls • Two skills will dominate - technology and client relationships • Technology will diminish the subjective basis of sales and the customer may eventually determine the salesperson • An extensive knowledge base will be necessary to sell to the world.

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Record Profits for the Industry Globally, more consumers traveled for leisure, meetings and conventions, and business. Airline deregulation opened up many more air routes and created cheaper fares that made traveling just about anywhere easier. Another societal change that fueled demand occurred as a large number of Baby Boomers reached their peak earning years in the N ineties and could buy whatever they wanted, when they wanted, and at Mayor Rudy Giuliani, recipient of the Big Apple Chapter's Frank Berkman Tourism Achievement Award, displays his trophy as chapter members and HSMAI President Bob Gilbert (far right) and 1997 President Dawn O'Flanner-Walzak (third from right) look on.

the price they wanted to pay. This, of course, included travel.

The years 1998 to 2000 saw record profits for the hotel industry. Demand for hotel rooms had finally caught up with rapid supply growth in the earlier years of the decade. The economy was booming and the stock market rise fueled unprecedented paper profits. Salespeople and marketers remember this period as the " manage volume " period because revenue and yield management were the key focus areas for maximizing profits. Also in 1998, the second generation of www.hsmai.org was released.

HSMAI conventions in 1998 in Anaheim and 1999 in M iami provided a forum for addressing these new issues -

but the need for speed, pressure for more corporate

profits, and lack of time kept many sales and marketing people from attending. Hoyt W. Bacon, CHME, was installed as chairman of the board, a new designation for the highest official of HSMAI. In Anaheim, where the theme was "New Marketing Paradigms," the keynote speakers included Alan Webber, founder and publisher of the newest success magazine, Fast Company, and Rich Hanks, senior vice president of global sales for Marriott International.

In 1999, Peter Warren, CHME, became the chairman of the board at the 71st convention in Miami, where the theme was "Gateway to a Changing World." Scott Anderson,

2001

Disney's California Adventures Theme Park Opens Dale Earnhardt, Kno wn as "The Greatest Driver Ever" in NASCAR, Dies at the Daytona soo California's Energy Shortage Worsens, Evidenced by Rolling Blackouts and the State's Need to Buy Electric Power from Other Companies

14 6

7 5 YEA R5 0 F 5 ERVI CE A ND ACHI EVEMENT

Hillary Rodham Clinton Wins her Bid forthe U.S. Senate, Becoming the Only First Lady to be Elected to Public Office Hijacked Planes Crash into the World Trade Center and Pentagon. Terrorism is Confirmed

executive vice president of marketing for Cendant Corporation, wowed the group with his live demonstration of a vacation booked on the Internet via audio response.

Change was everywhere and HSMAI faced more competition than ever before.

Other niche organizations (both profit and non-profit), conventions and visitors bureaus, and the hotel companies themselves were offering relevance and resources that a large umbrella organization found difficult to match. The competition for time was fierce and many industry companies, doing well because of the strong economy at that time and driven by the expectations of their owners, became greedy for profits and as a result failed to see the same value in HSMAI membership as they had in previous decades.

Establishing the New Agenda for a Changing HSMAI In 1997 and 1998, a series of six think tanks were held in cities across the country that captured the essence of the future of the hospitality industry in general and sales and marketing in particular. Attendees who were senior level industry executives provided ideas and insights that led to the development of a new long-term strategic plan for the association. The plan focused on creating relevance for members, growing and developing chapters globally, and enhancing the brand called HSMAI. This plan was formalized in the adoption of a new long-term strategic plan in 2000 that was developed by a committee chaired by William E. Weld, CHME. In that year, Weld was elected HSMAI president.

The Big Apple Chapter in New York City was the host for the 2000 convention, "The Future is Now, Are You Ready?" Having entered the new millennium, attendees prepared for the future . Keynote speaker Seth Godin, vice president of permission

Inco ming HSMAI Chai rma n Bill We ld accepts the presiden t's gavel from 1999 Chairman Peter Warren .

marketing for yahoo.com and best-selling author of "Permission Marketing,"

2002

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Recognition for his Work to Promote World Peace

The Airbus A320, the First Computer-Controlled Passenger Airplane, Takes Off

Corporate Confidence Begins to Evaporate aft er Scandals Rock Corporate Giants Enron and WorldCom

The FIFA World Cup Kicks Off in Seoul as International Soccer Teams Meet for the Most Popular Sports Tournament in the World

Almost 54 Billion Meals were Eaten at Restaurants or Cafeterias, According to the National Restaurant Association

The Mars Odyssey Probe Discovers Reservoirs of Ice, Indicating Life Might Have Evolved on Mars

THE 1990s AN D BE YON D: CRE ATIN G RELE VAN CE

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mesmerized the group with a futurist view of the power of the Internet and marketing that asked the customer's permission to receive promotional messages.

Creating Relevance for Members The stage was set for the "new" HSMAI when the decision was made in 1999

-

to again reduce the size of the board from 35 to 28 (and later to 21) to make it more efficient and able to respond quickly to the changing needs of the association's members. HSMAI developed a plan to move from an education-based to an information-based organization. While educational programs continued to be important, the need for information by members and the industry at large led to the creation and

,~1Rouuc.n~G tfS!'f.Ai

re-design of a number of member benefits.

One of the first new programs, approved by the streamlined board and developed

by HSMAI, was targeted to the industry's senior executives. The board agreed that the association must be well perceived by industry leaders in order for them to support HSMAI membership for their sales and marketing staffs. To demonstrate the association's ability to deal effectively with major issues affecting the hospitality industry, HSMAI Executive T.H.1.N.K's were developed. T.H.1.N.K, an acronym for Travel, Hospitality, Innovation, Networking, and Knowledge, are one-day programs presented by renowned experts on subjects of interest and importance to senior executives. Held in unique venues, these sessions are highly evaluated and regarded by those who have participated in them at HSMAI's invitation. The first programs, delivered in 2000, included presentations on branding, e-commerce, and future technologies.

Creating relevance took on a new meaning when the third generation of www.hsmai.org debuted with the most comprehensive member resources ever amassed. The Internet and the corresponding email revolution gave, and continues to give, the association a way to offer members timely access to information. In seven short years since the launch of the association's first Web site, technology has taken a quantum leap forward, and HSMAI stays on the cutting edge, placing more online information and community-building tools at the fingertips of Web surfers around the world.

Relevance in terms of education was enhanced with the introduction of the HSMAI University, which offered a variety of educational seminars, allowing participants to select from a menu of relevant topics. In 2002, HSMAI U evolved into

Affordable Meetings National was launched in Septembe r 1990. Seven years later, the associa ti on introduced Affordable Meetings West in San Jose, California.

In 2001 the Mid-America show was adde d to series .

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7 5 YE ARS 0 F SERVI CE AND ACHI EVEM ENT

e-conferences, an easy and cost effective way for sales and marketing professionals to interact with peers, and better understand key issues and niche market segments.

Creating relevance took on a new

Relevance Through Communications In 1999, the already highly acclaimed HSMAI Mark eting Review went to four-color production permanently and the array of article topics and authors was expanded. In addition, the HSMAI Update newsletter was modified to include more frequent, targeted communications to members, chapter leaders, students, and faculty.

meaning when the third generation of www.hsmai.org debuted with the most comprehensive

Growing the Trade Show Businesses

member resources ever amassed.

Relevance in lead generation was a key focus of HSMAI with the expansion of the already successful Affordable Meetings event. Affordable Meetings West in San Jose, California, debuted in 1997 and the Mid-America show in Chicago was added in 2001.

These three shows attract about 4,000 meeting planners and 1,000 exhibiting companies each year and have continually provided a 3: 1 ratio of buyers to sellers. They also add significantly to the association's financial base.

The expansion of the HSMAI Meetings Quest shows and partnership with JTD Enterprises made headlines in 1999 when HSMAI was identified as the largest operator of meetings industry trade shows in the country. The three original Meetings Quest shows grew to seven in 1999, and in 2002 an eighth was added. HSMAI now had its name on 11 meetings industry trade shows, with approximately 6,000 meeting planners in attendance each year.

Relevance of the HSMAI International Travel Awards Competition rose to new heights and by 1999 entries reached another milestone of 1,800 from 53 countries. The international competition, wh ich included the Adrian Advertising and Go lden Bel l Public Relations Awards, had become the largest and most prestigious travel competition of its kind in the world. The annual awards dinner also increased in prestige and attendance, with industry leaders gathering in New York each January to honor and showcase the best in hospitality and travel advertising, marketing materials, and public relations.

The awards competition entered the age of e-commerce in 2000 with the introduction of the Golden Click Awards for excellence in Web design and marketing. The first Golden Click Best of Show Award went to The Greenbrier Resort and ad agency, Boyd, Tamney, Cross Marketing. The Golden Clicks now incorporate email marketing, pop-up and banner advertising, and interactive marketing elements, such as Flash programming.

An att endee at the HSMAI Sales & Marketing Su mmi t 2001 held in Scottsdale, Arizona, ge ts a demonstration of one of th e latest business-building techno logy applications.

THE 1990s AND BEYOND: CREATING RELEVANCE

14 9

Right : "Win one and you know you've truly arrived", declares an ad calling for entries in the 2002 HSMAI International Travel Awards Competition. The competition attracts some of the most creative and powerful marketing work from around the world, vying for awards in the prestigious Adrian advertising, Golden Bell public relations and the Golden Click Web contests.

Win one and you l<now you've truly arrived.

The 2002 HS MAI International Travel Awards Competition Call for Entries

In 2001, the HSMAI Marketing Review began a popular feature, providing case studies of the Platinum and Best of Show winners in all three awards competitions.

In 2002 and 2003, the winter issues at the magazine included the case studies, and

were distributed to attendees of the International Travel Awards Competition dinners. The case studies serve as documentation of what it takes to be recognized as the best of the best in hospitality, travel, and tourism marketing, public relations, and Web design.

Growing and Strengthening Chapters Globally Chapters have always been an important part of HSMAI, but in the Nineties, HSMAI put a new emphasis on growing and strengthening them. A department of three fully dedicated staff members was created to provide support and communication to the volunteer boards of the chapters. Many new programs have been initiated by the staff over the years to help promote good practices and smooth volunteer leadership transitions from year to year.

In order to elevate the overall image of HSMAI chapters internationally, a new and level field of operation has been created. Chapters that do not meet the chapter charter criteria are encouraged to comply or leave the association. Seventeen chapters were disenfranchised between 1996 and 1998. By enforcing the chapter charter and 2002 Florida Keys Chapter President Cheryl Roll, CHME, (center) accepted the 2002 chapter awards for Awards & Recognition, Educational Programming, and Web Sites in the Small Chapters category from Americas Board chair Sal Dickinson and Fran Brasseux, HSMAI vice president, chapter relations and membership.

strengthening chapter support, the association now has 41 chapters in the Americas region, each operating with higher standards to complement the branding and image of HSMAI. To recognize the best in chapter programming and membership development, the annual Chapter of the Year program was expanded and completely revamped. The Frank W. Berkman Chapter Awards, as it is now called, consists of best practices in nine disciplines of a chapter's operation and is broken into two parts, one for large

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75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

and another for small chapter competition. The winning entries are honored at the annual Chapter Leadership Forum and put on the Web in the Chapter Resource Center, making the entries available to all chapter board members.

An Annua l Leadership Forum is held for chapter board members and managing directors. A chapter presidents' orientation program, including a Web-based teleconference, was implemented and a managing director's orientation program was put in place, featuring a visit to the HSMAI headquarters office. A matching funds program also was started to financially assist chapters in the acquisition of a managing director and programming for members. In addiHSMAI Board members assemble at the entrance of the exhibit hall during the 1997 Affordable Meetings show in the Washington, D.C. Convention Center.

tion, the Web-based Chapter Resource Center has been expanded to include access to chapter reports, a speakers bureau, and 55 educational programs that are now available.

Changes in Europe and a New Global Board HSMAI's European colleagues have faced many of the same challenges that impacted the industry in the United States. In 1996, a formal structure was established for a new European Division model. HSMAI had been in a position to "think globally, act locally," but never before has technology been available that enabled members around the world to communicate so easily. The Internet changed the way people interact and conduct their business, and "globalization" is a happening in every industry, including travel.

Norwegian Chapter Managing Director Ingunn Hofseth successfully reunited the European Chapters and revived the European Conference. The 1997 event was held in Oslo in conjunction with Euro-CHRIE. Subsequent conferences were held in Vienna, Austria, in 1998 and Maastricht, Holland in 2000 and a commitment was made by the HSMAI Board to have one board meeting every other year in Europe. The board has subsequently met in Oslo, Budapest, and Maastricht.

The board's understanding of the unique nature of each of the national chapters in Europe led to another major governance change that took three years to implement.

The new HSMAI is a federation of regions with the Americas and European regions being the first two . Each region has authority over its dues structures and the chartering of chapters, as well as for enforcing the requirements set forth in the new global chapter charter. In addition, each regional board elects delegates to a global board.

HSMAI leaders in Europe and the United States believe that the association has found an operating structure that has set the stage for true global growth. A model is in place allowing regions in other parts of the world to use the HSMAI name and operate with a localized dues and business model.

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The mission of the association was updated at the first meeting of the new global board in October 2002. It is: "To be the leading source for sales and marketing information, knowledge, business development, and networking for professionals in tourism, travel, and hospita lity."

Enhancing the Brand Called HSMAI HSMAI retained a public re lations firm to communicate the many changes in the organization and to promote association activities to the industry. This strategy was designed to assist with external communications about the brand to the decision-makers who control the purse strings of membership dues. Press releases were significantly increased and a monthly column, bylined by Bob Gilbert, was secured in Lodging magazine (the trade magazine of the American Hotel & Lodging Association).

HSMAI also developed relationships with other industry associations and began producing educa tiona l content regu larly at key industry events such as the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show in New York, CHRIE, HITEC, and AH&LA educational programs.

Interrupted - Hospitality in a Post September 11 World The association streamlined and modified its governing structure, expanded its portfolio The HSMAI Board of Directors vi sit Heroes' Sq uare in Budapest, Hunga ry at the end of a two- day mee ting in tha t cit y.The dra ma tic site con tains the graves of unknown Hu nga ri an soldi ers from the two Wo rl d Wars.

of successfu l trade shows, developed specific forums for sa les and marketing exec utives in the indu stry, created a formalized European Division to better communicate and support chapters and members on the continent, and acti ve ly pursued other partnerships that enhanced the brand, increased membership, and built the organization's financial assets base. The stage was set for growth.

These plans and acti vities were well under way when the world was rocked by a devastating terrorist assau lt on the United States on September 11, 2001. The fear of flying crippled the airline industry as passenger loads plummeted overnight.

Major airlin e carriers teetered on the edge of bankruptcy. The economic ripp le effect of September 11 changed the way businesses viewed required and discretionary travel.

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Leisure travel rebounded the quickest after September 11 but the drive vacation quickly replaced the fl y vacation, crippling international travel from the United States to Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean -

popular destinations

for Americans. Demand for hotel rooms dropped 20 percent for the remainder of the month of September 2001.

The sluggish U.S. economy prior to Septemberl 1 led to a free fall of industry jobs. International travel dropped by more than 30 percent. The year 2002 found many major

(Left to right) Shown at the 2001 HSMAI Summit in Scottsdale, Arizona are President and CEO Bob Gilbert, outgoing 2000 Board Chairman Bill We ld, 2001 Chairman Bruce Himelstein, and Chairman-elect, 2002, Sal Dickinson .

airline carriers facing bankruptcy.

HSMAI Responds to the Crisis HSMAI quickly assessed the need for information and within five weeks of September 11 hosted an Industry Strategy Conference in cooperation with New York University. HSMAI was the first industry organization to orchestrate a major event in response to the attacks. Over 250 people attended -

50 percent were company

presidents and CEOs. The chairman for 2001, Bruce Himelstein, CHME, opened the strategy conference by welcoming key presenters: Jonathon Tisch of Loews Hotels and chairman of the Travel Business Roundtable; Bjorn Hansen of PriceWaterhouseCoopers; Mark Lommano, president of Smith Travel Research; Peter Yesawich of Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown, & Russell, and well-known author of the "Yankelovich Business and Leisure Travel Monitor;" and Betsy O'Rourke, the president of marketing for the Travel Industry Association of America.

Marketing guru Peter Yesawich reported that the industry was experiencing a "triple witching hour" - the convergence of a stagnant economy, the Internet, and changing consumer values. He declared that no one could predict the future because the industry and world had never before experienced a combination of these factors.

At the 2001 strategy conference, the industry decided to go "back to basics."

A second strategy conference in January 2002 reiterated that same theme in terms of selling.

HSMAI also anticipated and quickly responded to the needs of its members for successful strategies and tactics that would deliver business during a time when demand was down. For many, this was the first time they were selling in a sluggish economy.

The third generation of the HSMAI Web site, in development the previous year, debuted in January 2002 in spite of the looming economic crisis. HSMAI leaders knew that Web resources would continue to be key regardless of the economic outlook.

This issue of the HSMAI Marketing Review was devoted to articles dealing with strategies and tactics for conducting business in the aftermath of September 11.

THE 1990s AND BEYOND: CRE AT I NG RELEVANCE

153

A "Crisis Marketing Center" was added to the Web site and updated daily with news reports, surveys, and tools relevant to sales and marketing people. An Industry Update newsletter summarizing key issues affecting the industry was implemented and

faxed to the entire membership.

In addition, managing distribution channels, pricing, and inventory became paramount as additional Web portals capitalized on the industry's low occupancy and pushed rates over the Internet in an attempt to stimulate demand. A merchant model emerged and hotel companies were finding that contracted inventory intended for leisure markets was being cannibalized by all types of travelers. Not only did occupancy plummet in 2002 but so did revenue yields. Hotel occupancy in the United States for year-end 2002 was 59.1 percent -

a 31 year low.

Companies used September 11 as an opportunity to restructure and, in many cases, downsize dramatically.

In the fall of 2002, HSMAI responded by instituting a new dues structure under the leadership of 2002 Chairman Salvatore Dickinson, CHME. For the first time since becoming an individual membership society, multiple dues price HSMA I membe rs sho w the ir appreciatio n fo r the direc tio n HS MAI is taki ng as it enters th e new mille nni um.

points were made available in the Americas Region. Dues were set for the first member from an organization, and a lower dues rate was established for each additional member at the same address. Companies also could purchase membership packages for ten or more individuals anywhere in the company. After a flat year of membership growth in 2001, the first half of 2002 witnessed increases in membership once again.

In June 2002, HSMAI moved its headquarters from downtown Washington, D.C. to suburban McLean, Virginia. This was an effort to minimize fixed costs and leverage cost efficiencies by moving into a shared office suite with 15 other associations.

Fortunately, the Affordable Meetings portfolio generated record profits in 2002 and 2003 and the restructuring of the headquarters office allowed additional staff and resources to be deployed in order to assist chapters and the members worldwide.

The association was prepared for whatever opportunities lay ahead of it as the largest organization of hospitality industry and sales and marketing professionals in the world.

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75 YE ARS OF SE RV ICE AND AC HIE VEMENT

What Does the Future Hold?

Currently, membership in HSMAI is predominantly in the Americas and Europe, but a significant opportunity for membership growth exists in both regions. HSMAI is working hard to acquire more members, form more chapters in regions worldwide, and to enhance and expand its services to sales and marketing professionals in virtually every segment of the hospitality industry.

The association knows that sales and marketing will continue to evolve as a science. Therefore, it is committed to helping its members study their craft and increase their value to their employers, especially now that the sales and marketing discipline is becoming more specialized. Not only will sales and marketing competencies continue to include direct sales, advertising, public relations, and reservations sales, but newer

skills will be needed, such as database mining, distribution management, Internet marketing, revenue management, and more to come.

The ability to foresee, communicate, and respond to such trends will be key to

One thing will remain constant.

The travel industry will

member satisfaction. The management of information and the ability of the associa-

need sales and marketing

tion to synthesize it into educational offerings and knowledge is essential. Global trends and information about customers, technology, best practices, and world events that affect the hospitality industry must be identified and translated into usable strategies and tactics for members now and in the future .

The enhancement of the association's Web site will continue to be an essential benefit of membership. It must be all-inclusive and provide members with information as

professionals to communicate and distribute the plethora of options available to business,

soon as they need it. It must help them identify, target, and acquire customers;

leisure, and meetings

increase their productivity; keep them well informed; and ensure their success.

The need and opportunity to "think globally but act locally" will always be a fundamental mission of HSMAI. The association's chapters and regional boards must

travelers worldwide.

ensure the success of their destinations by maximizing all opportunities to secure more business. If they do it collaboratively through networking and education, they will succeed and enjoy the camaraderie along the way.

One thing will remain constant. The travel industry will need sales and marketing professionals to communicate and distribute the plethora of options available to business, leisure, and meetings travelers worldwide.

Over the past 75 years, the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International has changed to adapt to the needs of its members and the industry. It has survived the repeated highs and lows of the economy and the ever-present up-and-down cycles of the hospitality, tourism and travel industry. The association is resilient, and as long as there are travelers, HSMAI is sure to enjoy many more years of service to sales and marketing professionals and to the travel, tourism, and hospitality industries at large. •

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• CHAPTER TEN

Today, there is only one hotel under the sea, the two-bedroom Jules Underwater Resort in Key Largo, FL, and just two restaurants. Four decades ahead, underwater hotels and restaurants will be almost common. Most will appear in shallow water, where sunlight penetrates to illuminate abundant life; the most spectacular will be located on Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

Next 75 Yea rs of Travel

BY MARVIN J. CETRON, PH.D., PRESIDENT, FORECASTING INTERNATIONAL

ICTURE YOUR NEXT VACATION AS IT MIGHT BE IN 2075. IN

0

early July, you and your family ride the space elevator to a port terminal 62,000 miles over the equator. There you join nearly 2,000 other budget-conscious tourists on an interstellar cruiser the size of an ocean liner. After a stately embarkation, you sail out through interplanetary space, past the giant storms of Jupiter, close enough to

Saturn to walk on its rings, and on into the inky blackness beyond. Just four luxurious days later, you arrive at alpha Centauri, the star closest to our own sun, tour a small but spectacular system of planets, and get out at ... well, probably at a theme park in Orlando, where the whole journey took place in a few hours of virtual reality.

Alas, the smart money in physics is still betting that Einstein was right about not going faster than the speed of light. We will never travel to the stars unless we learn to hibernate and spend centuries en route. E=mc 2 : It's not just a good idea, it's the law.

FORECASTING THE NEXT 7S YEARS OF TRAVEL

157

..... Next 75 Years of Travel Nonetheless, many other changes will come to the hospitality industry over the next few decades. None will be as dramatic as star travel, but some may be nearly as important to the participants.

What follows is a timeline of probabilities. Unlike the brief science-fiction scenario above, the developments below are rooted in today's realities. A majority deal with new technologies, for obvious reasons: Technology changes a lot faster than social factors, and it often is the driver that eventually forces societal change. Our dates are "guesstimates;" they could be a few years off in either direction. However, we at Forecasting International will be surprised if many of these predictions fail to materialize.

And when we are wrong, it is likely to be because even bigger changes made them obsolete. When forecasters peer out into the further distances-say, beyond the next ten years-our mistakes are usua ll y fai lures of the imagination. The far future is always stranger than we can anticipate.

2010

Invisible idiot. That is how one early language-translation program, converting from English to Russian and back again, interpreted the phrase, "Out of sight, out of mind." The software available online today does not do much better, as anyone who has tried to read foreign-language e-mail can attest. But within a few years, wellequipped tourists will be carrying pocket computers capable of translating idiomatic speech from any of half a dozen major languages into any of the others, in real time.

Just talk into the box, and that Parisian waiter will know exactly what you want.

Whether he likes your accent well enough to bring it is another matter.

Who are you? In the age of terrorism, governments want to know for sure. During this period, probably by 2012, passports and visas will be replaced by biometric identity cards that carry records of your fingerprints, retinal blood vessels, and other permanent, unique proof that you are really you.

Watch the birdie. Or not. If you can see it, the tiny digital camera built into your sunglasses will capture it for your friends back home. Expect basic VGA resolution by 2008, higher quality snaps a couple of years later.

Condo cruising. The first cruise ship with apartments owned by the passengers (pricetags from about $900,000) is already sailing from one luxury destination to another, with

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75 YEARS OF SERV ICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

stops at the Olympics and other major tourist events planned. How quickly other ships follow its lead depends on the global economy, but Forecasting International expects that half a dozen of these ultimate RVs will take to the water by 2012.

Superclothes. For adventurous vacationers headed to deserts, mountains, and other hostile areas-one of the hottest areas in tourism, sometimes literally-industrial-strength couturiers are developing "active" attire that cools or warms the wearer, as needed, and collects and stores solar energy to keep your GPS going without heavy batteries.

Look for them at trendy outfitters around 2010.

Going, going, almost gone. Travel agents, that is. They already are an endangered species, their numbers down from 35,000 in the United States at the end of 2000 to only 26,000 by mid-2002. That is the latest number, but if there are more than 20,000 agents left today, it would be amazing. Only the cruise industry still relies on travel agents for their bookings, a throwback to the days when cruises were reserved for the wealthy. Though some prominent executives are reluctant to accept the obvious, the patronage of the elite is not enough to support even those agents who have survived this long. Neither can their distaste for online booking and other agent-less forms of customer service long offset the economies and efficiencies of direct sales. By 2015, tourists could visit travel agencies as they would tour the back country of New Guinea, to see a vanishing way of life.

'

Altered airports. Those self-service ticket kiosks appearing in major airports will proliferate rapidly and spread to train stations, sports arenas, concert venues, and other transportation hubs and destinations. As a result, airport personnel rosters will shrink by 20 percent no later than 2010. At the same time, radio ID tags will guarantee that luggage arrives where its owners do. And to compensate for the loss of ticket agents, who now act as a first screen for possible terrorists, airport security departments will grow by 10 percent.

See the world-from above. The X-Prize competition is offering 10 million to the first private team that sends three people on a suborbital junket into space and manages to repeat the feat within two weeks. At least three entrants have made atmospheric test flights, and one is almost certain to make near-space flight practical within the next five years. After that, it will take less than a decade to build the first large-scale space tourism industry. Seats will sell for a lot less than the $20 million paid by Dennis Tito and Mark Shuttleworth to visit the International Space Station. The hardest part is likely to be getting insurance for the flights.

FORECASTING THE NEXT 7S YEARS OF TRAVEL

159

Generations of entrepreneurs. Throughout the world, people age 40 and under are starting businesses at a record rate. Among the younger dot-corns, twice as many say they would prefer to own a business rather than be a top executive, and five times more would prefer to own a business rather than hold a key position in politics or government. Many of the companies they start will be in the hospitality industry. Expect a huge wave of new resorts, restaurants, tour operators, and other travel services in the next two decades.

End of immigration. Travel, and almost every land will open its arms to you. Threaten to stay, and you'll be as welcome as a two-cent tip. Throughout the industrialized world, native citizens complain that guest workers and other immigrants are taking jobs, soaking up public resources, and refusing to integrate into the local culture. And though many of those jobs are positions that no one else would willingly accept, there is enough truth in the other complaints to make this movement a powerful political force. Add post-September 11 security concerns, and it's all but inevitable. Under tomorrow's immigration policies, "your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" can darned well stay home.

2020

Faster than a speeding Bullet Train. The world's fastest trains today operate at a paltry 200 mph or so, though magnetic levitation trains running on closed courses have topped 300 mph. By 2020, the first 500-mph maglev trains will finally carry tourists around Japan, from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, and along other flat, high-density routes. The technology should be available by 2010 or so, but economic and political problems will stall its use for years.

Build it, and they will come. A host of tourist attractions ha ve proved it in recent years.

These include the 60-story Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai, with a seafood restaurant submerged in the Red Sea; the fabulous new Bibliotheque in Alexandria; the ice hotels rebuilt each winter in Greenland and Swedish Lapland; and the spectacularly popular

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75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

London Eye. By 2020, we expect to see at least 60 new destinations built. Most will have some unique appeal, but six of the world's major cities will erect their own versions of the London Eye.

How do you spell Kaopectate in Russian? Point your camera at a sign or label, and it will tell you what is written there. IBM already is working on the technology to translate text written in Cyrillic, Arabic, Hebrew, and Chinese characters into Western languages. Suddenly, we won't have to speak the local language to identify the drugstore and find what we need. By 2010, automatic translators for written material, probably built into cameras and other digital hardware, will be standard cargo for wellequipped tourists.

Vacation offer you can't refuse. It's a way of life in Europe. Cities empty in the summer as workers head off for a month of R&R that is guaranteed by law. The day will come when American workers also enjoy shorter workweeks and mandatory vacations, despite the objections of politically influential employers. The reason: the jobs lost from manufacturing in recent years are just the beginning. Automation and global competition will continue to squeeze jobs from the American economy until, in the long run, it becomes impossible to create useful work for all who need it. The only answer will be to cut the workweek, add time off, and open new jobs to fill in for vacationing workers. The result will be a burst of growth in tourism like nothing the industry has ever seen.

Note that this is the most "iffy" forecast in this report. A combination of dramati-

At some point in the future, much-expanded leisure seems all but inevitable. The late 2020s are our best guess at when this will occur, but no more than a guess.

cally reduced birth rates, limited immigration, much better public education, rapid economic growth, and other changes might conceivably forestall a job crisis indefinitely. Yet what we are experiencing is high immigration, unexpectedly high birth rates, generally ineffectual public education, and the threat that exploding government deficits could weaken our economy for years. And it seems likely that the day will come when few noncreative tasks still require human hands. At some point in the future, much-expanded leisure seems all but inevitable. The late 2020s are our best guess at when this will occur, but no more than a guess.

Advertising in 30. Today, holographic videos are cutting-edge technology. Twenty years from now, they will be consumer products. For tour operators, hotels, and other segments of the hospitality industry, 3D videos Internet -

delivered either by mail or over the

will be the ultimate advertising medium, showing potential visitors

exactly what they will experience at their destinations. Of course, in a few years

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they will be supplanted by virtual reality systems that recreate the vacation experience even more vividly.

UN uber alles. America's go-it-alone foreign policy is an aberration that cannot last. A global economy calls for global institutions, and that means power will inevitably flow toward the United Nations, the International Court of Justice, and the few other bodies with worldwide jurisdiction. To provide broader representation in those bodies, India and one of the Scandinavian countries will finally be admitted to the U.N. Security Council. This will gradually provide much more uniform laws, regulations, and standards for the hospitality industry and other multinational businesses.

It's a gas, gas, gas. Technologically, hydrogen-powered cars are just over the horizon.

Economically and societally, they will not make the grade until some environmentally minded government mandates a change to hydrogen power. Once that happens, industry will ramp up hydrogen production and put fueling stations in every community. Then bigger things will happen. By 2025, ecotourists visiting the Arctic, Antarctic, and other pristine destinations will arrive by hydrogen-powered jets that emit only water as their exhaust to avoid contaminating sensitive environments.

Eco-backlash. Yet having hundreds of tourists trampling the Arctic tundra and other fragile environments will not sit well with committed environmentalists, even if the vacationers do travel by eco-friendly aircraft. Global protests against this perceived despoiling of our common heritage will quickly give rise to stringent limits on the number of tourists who can visit what little true wilderness remains in the world.

2030

Beanstalk to the stars. The science fiction scenario that began this chapter contained one bit of future reality: the space elevator. First envisioned some 40 years ago, the elevator will climb an enormous cable, like Jack up the beanstalk, to a terminal where passengers and cargo can board spacecraft for the trip further out. Until recently, this was just a fantasy; there were no materials strong enough to build the cable. Today, socalled carbon nanotubes up to 20 times stronger than steel are approaching mass production, and engineers say a space elevator could be completed within 15 years.

Unfortunately, economic and political factors probably will double that lead time.

According to current estimates, the first space elevator could be built for about $10

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billion. Cost for a trip to space would be $200 per pound or less, compared with $40,000 per pound for the Space Shuttle. At that price, the space elevator will make space tourism routine.

2040

Room service? Today, there is only one hotel under the sea, the two-bedroom Jules Underwater Resort in Key Largo, FL, and just two restaurants. Four decades ahead, underwater hotels and restaurants will be almost common. Most will appear in shallow water, where sunlight penetrates to illuminate abundant life; the most spectacular will be located on Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

However, at least one small, spartan, and incredibly expensive hotel will provide accommodations more than five miles down, where guests can see forests of giant tube worms, "volcanoes" of hot, mineral-rich water, and luminescent fish swimming past the tiny, foot-thick portholes.

Think it, and they may not come after all. Scientists have dreamed for years of building computers that understand our thoughts and send data directly into our brains. But that means a kind of artificial telepathy. Think into your computer in San Francisco, and someone in Bangalore will "hear" the thought over the Internet. And that offers the ultimate virtual reality. If one person swims in the sea, walks on the moon, or runs a three-minute mile, the rest of us can share the experience from the comfort of our own living rooms. It brings up the obvious question, why leave home at all? One answer is snob appeal. Virtual reality will be good enough for many, but the rich will display their wealth by taking the time, and spending the money, to go in person.

You too can be the man in the moon. Or at least on it. The first permanent moon base is likely to appear in the 2030s. A decade later, it will be capable of accommodating up to 350 people, including 50 tourists. Thanks to a growing array of space elevators circling Earth's equator, a lunar jaunt will even be relatively affordable. As demand grows, a space elevator on the moon will bring the price within reach of solidly middle-class families.

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2050

One world after all. Five decades ahead, the dollar and euro will be supplanted by a single world monetary unit, ending exchange problems forever. Biometric identity cards will be issued soon after birth, and the data stored in banks accessible by any government. This will make it nearly impossible for terrorists and other criminals to move around undetected, but routine tracking of our daily movements will further erode what little is left of the old-fashioned concept of privacy.

Universal English. Those automatic translators will be useful for only 40 years or so. English already is the de facto language of business, as French once was the language of diplomacy. By 2050, 90 percent of the people in the world will speak English, at least as a second language. In major tourist destinations, the number will be even higher.

2060

Jobs aplenty. Today, an estimated 14 percent of the world's people work in the hospitality industry.

Tomorrow, it will be 25 percent. In part, we will owe this dramatic growth to the explosion of leisure time when shorter workweeks and forced vacations spread from Europe to the rest of the world. But this also is in the nature of the industry. Sixty years from now, personal service could be the only job category that still requires human workers.

Meet and greet. With a global Internet, lifelike virtual reality, and even computerized telepathy available to all, who needs in-person meetings? Nearly everyone, as it turns out. Full-contact telecommunications will do for routine conversations, but to meet new business associates, conduct difficult negotiations, or just build relationships over a round of golf, people will need to "press the flesh" for many decades to come. The meetings and expositions segment will continue to struggle with economic, social, and technological issues as far into the future as the eye can see. But there will be more corporate and industry-wide meetings in 2060 than in 2006.

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In 2075, as today, HSMAI will be a leading association in what will then be the world's largest industry.

2075

Water, water everywhere. At least in the low places of the world. At the rate things are going, global warming will raise the seas by two to three feet in the next 75 years.

That will mean hard times for lands like Bangladesh and the Louisiana lowlands, which are barely above sea level even now and are sinking as the water rises. It will also modify our travel habits, as temperatures and rainfall patterns change. Expect what is left of Florida to turn into baking jungle, while crops bloom in parts of Canada and Siberia that today hold little more than ice.

Atoms in space. Nuclear power is banned from space by international treaty.

Nonetheless, by 2075 long-range space tugs powered by nuclear reactors will be ferrying cargo and very patient tourists out to Mars, the asteroid belt, and even beyond.

Travel time: about 3 months each way for Mars, more than a year for Jupiter.

Oldies but goodies. Some of the hottest destinations tomorrow would probably be familiar to today's travel agents. As we have seen, fast, overwhelming technological change will bring a host of new options for tourism. However, it also will strengthen our taste for old, familiar things and our need to reconnect with the past. Crowds will still surround the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China, and the pyramids; visit the Grand Canyon and Old Faithful; tour the fjords, the Yangtze River dam, and the Amazon; and throng the halls of the Hermitage and the Acropolis.

Old friends as well. Whatever other changes buffet the hospitality industry, it will still need the same fundamental services that all industries need: somewhere to gather to make contacts and win contracts, someone to provide job-related education, common standards, and certification. These are the province of industry associations, which can bring competitors together on common ground. And in hospitality sales and marketing, one organization is preeminent: the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International. Its expertise will continue to make it not only prominent, but durable.

In 2075, as today, HSMAI will be a leading association in what will then be the world's largest industry. •

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• CHAPTER ELEVEN

The past is not simpl~ the past, but a prism through which the subject filters his own changing self-image .

DORIS KEARNS GOODWIN

Remembrances and Re fl ecti ans o add a personal touch to the history of HSMAI, the authors invited several long-time members to add their voices to this book by writing about their experiences in the association or about their most admired HSMAI colleagues. Twenty-two people responded. Some submitted interesting stories about their careers in sales and marketing. Others wrote about people who have had an impact on the profession, and still others shared fond memories of HSMAI leaders who have passed away.

The "Remembrances " in this chapter are in the latter category - tributes to deceased members, who each in his way helped to shape the future of the association and the profession of hospitality sales and marketing. The "Reflections" are just that - thoughts that the writers have about interesting people, memories of amusing incidents, and recollections of important events that deserve to be noted.

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Frank W. Berkman, CHME A Mentor and a "Man of the People" With Frank Berkman, what you saw, was what you got, whether he was at his desk at HSMAI Headquarters or at home in Seaford, New Jersey. He always had a twinkle in his eye and a stockpile of old jokes that would make you cringe (because you knew what was coming), groan (because they were usually so corny), and ultimately laugh aloud (because he had so much fun telling them and that was infectious).

Frank was a mentor to anyone who walked in or called his office looking for help.

His door was always open and he always seemed to have the answers and, if he didn't, he knew who to call.

Frank was truly "a man of the people" and he was the consummate family man.

He was in the Navy in World War II, and his wife Catherine was home with two small children and after the war, the family grew and so Frank worked two jobs to make ends meet.

After his family, his next great love was the hotel business. He started his career as an elevator operator at the Knights of Columbus Hotel in New York City and rose through the ranks to eventually become general manager of the Henry Hudson Hotel.

Bob Tisch, then president of Loews Hotels, wanted to get Frank to work for him and Frank would kiddingly say, "Build me a hotel and I'll come and run it for you." A few years later, when Loews opened the new City Squire (now the Sheraton Manhattan), Frank was the hotel's general manager. But in 1965, after having been president of both HSMA's New York Chapter and the national HSMA, he left the City Squire to become the executive vice president of HSMA, replacing Adrian Phillips, CHME, who was retiring.

While he was general manager at the City Squire, he received a request two months in advance for the entire Mormon Tabernacle Choir to arrive on a Tuesday and depart that Friday. Frank didn't have one room available on Tuesday but didn't have anything booked for Wednesday and Thursday nights. He asked the Choir manager if they could delay their arrival by one day. The conductor said that he had promised everyone Wednesday in New York for shopping and sightseeing, so he couldn't delay the arrival. Frank told him he would get back to him and came up with a possible solution, albeit a long shot. He called a contact he had at the White House, told him when the Mormon Tabernacle Choir would be on the east coast and asked him if the president would like to have them at the White House for a concert on the Tuesday night. The Choir was delighted to be invited to the White House to sing for the President and his guests. Of course, Frank was in the lobby with a big smile on his face to welcome the Choir when they arrived the next day

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from Washington. Frank was a never-say-never guy who always thought outside the box.

Watching him put together an HSMA convention was, in itself, an education. His imagination and drive spurred many of the industry leaders to commit themselves and the resources of their companies to this annual event. The top people at Marriott, Hilton, Western International (now Westin), Sheraton, and Loews, just to mention a few, were always there for Frank. Maybe his biggest accomplishment was taking the HSMA convention to Ireland in1973. The Irish Chapter had vowed that they would pull out all the stops and indeed they did. The convention was a great success and truly established HSMA as an international association. At his request in 1970, Rudy Muenster had spearheaded the formation of the chapter in Germany and there were other chapters in Europe as a result of Frank's vision. The 1973 convention in Ireland had attendees from both sides of the Atlantic and that made it an historic event for HSMAI. In 1981, the HSMA convention was held in New York and it was a time of mixed emotions because that convention also was Frank's "swan song" and he was retiring at its conclusion. From the negotiations with the Waldorf through the planning, he worked tirelessly to make his farewell an event that would not soon be forgotten. One of his favorite expressions was, "You sell the sizzle, not the steak" and did that convention sizzle. There was a record number of attendees and the final banquet was a "New Year's Eve in July" celebration making it a fitting end to a great career.

The next day, the elevator operator who rose to the top of his industry was honored at a retirement luncheon at the Waldorf and all the well-wishers (friends, colleagues, and family) were there to say thanks and goodbye. Frank's job was over. He had built HSMA into a strong association expanding the membership numbers domestically as well as establishing a solid base internationally for global growth. He was credited with putting the "I" in HSMAI.

-Frank]. Stapleton

Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME The P.T. Barnum of the Hospitality Industry Bud Grice was the consummate salesman from his days on the Cornell campus to his final hours in a nursing home in Washington, DC. He was affectionately referred to by many as the P.T. Barnum of the hospitality industry.

Credits to Bud during his tenure at Marriott include opening the first hotel liquor operation at the Twin Bridges Marriott. He did this in order to facilitate the banquet business that was virtually non-existent when he joined the company. He was challenged to sell more rooms during the winter months when the tourist trade was slow.

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The convention business led to a specific design criteria for space to be sold. Bud's ability to meet the guests and fulfill their expectations better than the competition was a hallmark of his ability to listen to their requirements. He insisted that the chandeliers in the banquet space be at a height that enabled exhibitors to get their wares in and out without the hassle of a lot of breakage, for both the hotel and the exhibitors.

Of course this was in conflict with what the interior design people had projected for this new concept.

Bud's greatest sale was his enthusiasm for a young company known as the Hot Shoppes. In 1963, at a Cornell Smoker in New York City, he and Bus Ryan asked why I was still a part of the Stouffer Corporation when there was a high-flying, energetic, Washington-based company that was growing faster and having more fun doing it. Well, the sales pitch worked, and I visited with the chairman,]. W. Marriott, and his son, J.W., Jr. (Bill), several times before signing on in November of 1964.

Bud's impact on the hospitality industry was far-reaching and most memorable by his ability to attract and recruit executives for Marriott. He taught a course in sales and marketing at Cornell and, during that time, lured many more Cornellians to this fine company to fill its many slots in sales and marketing throughout the world.

In addition to his accomplishments at Marriott and as a teacher at Cornell, Bud was also very active with the Hotel Sales Management Association. He served as president of HSMA in 1971 and traveled more than 50,000 miles to talk with literally thousands of people on behalf of the association. For his accomplishments in the industry, Bud received the association's Albert E. Koehl Award for his contributions to advertising; he was the first recipient of an award named for him, the Winthrop W. Grice Award for his contributions to public relations; and he was inducted into the HSMAI Hall of Fame in 1973.

Bud's practice of the basics in terms of the interests of others, on the job, or at home while entertaining with his wife Clay and their three lovely daughters, left an indelible impression. His legacy lives on in the minds and hearts of those he touched throughout his lifetime.

Bud Grice did in fact help shape the hospitality industry that we know today. He did this by identifying future leaders, many of whom became key players themselves within the Marriott organization. Some of the major hotel companies today, as well as other privately held companies, are headed by men and women brought into the industry by him.

Beyond that, his contributions of lasting value can best be summed up by Mike Leven who has said of Bud, "His achievements were punctuated by a successful implementation of the convention services delivery system that has been recognized as second

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to none in the business. Bud's commitment to market segmentation, sales leadership, and skill in developing executives to follow him is without parallel in our business." In addition to that, he was a visionary who not only played a significant role in his company by aggressively pursuing the meetings market and the building of large convention hotels in major cities, but also helped create an environment in which other hotel companies began to actively pursue the meetings market themselves. This led to the even more rapid development of similar hotels, and changed the face of the industry.

Bud Grice was a teacher, a mentor, a master at public relations and promotion, a visionary who changed the industry and who thought outside the box before there was a box. There is no question but that the hotel industry would not be what it is today if he had chosen another profession.

-Peter H. Plamondon

Philip Harrison Publisher, Artist, Industry Leader The year was 1946 and a window decorator named Phil Harrison envisioned a new industry that seemed to be emerging in Atlantic City and other large cities on the East Coast and in the Midwest.

Phil decided to distribute Conventions Magazine to convention delegates as they arrived in town for their meetings. The magazine contained information on where to go, where to dine, and what to see while attending the convention.

It was so successful after the second issue that Phil decided to make it a national publication and Robert Letwin was named editor in 1947. After several more issues, it became evident that the news about conventions was important but that the real need was for an exchange of ideas on how to make meetings and trade shows more effective. For that reason, Phil pushed the magazine slowly into a "how to" publication for meeting planners.

Conventions evolved into Conventions and Trade Shows and in 1952 Phil sold the publication to Ray Bill to supplement his own Sales Management magazine. Sales Meetings became Successful Meetings and, in 1982, the office moved from Philadelphia to the Big Apple.

Phil had realized in the 1970s that hotels were not well organized to serve meetings so he started speaking at HSMA about the need to have specialists to serve the conventions. In 1978, he developed the "Convention Services Manager of the Year" award program, which gave much deserved recognition to HSMA's members in that position.

Seeing a need for training both the planners and the suppliers, Phil became actively involved in many of the associations within the industry and, with others, launched a society for meeting planners in the early 1970s which became Meeting Planners

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International (now Meeting Professionals International) in 1972. Phil worked closely with Ralph Wynn and Rudy Wright to get the new organization off the ground.

Phil and Successful Meetings started Meeting Management Workshops which SM then followed with Exhibit Institutes, co-sponsored with the Exhibit Designers and Producers Association. Phil then helped launch Site Inspection Seminars which became the White Glove program and was later followed by International Site Inspections.

In 1970, SM helped the Convention Liaison Council, now the Convention Industry Council, of which HSMA was one of the four founding organizations, develop its first manual on the convention industry. SM continued to help CLC publish subsequent editions for many years.

I had the privilege of knowing Phil for more than 30 years, from my early days as an HSMA member, and later as a board member and president of the Washington, D.C. Chapter. His creative mind and constant desire to invent more productive ways to operate, educate, and service meetings catapulted this fledgling profession into a multi-billion dollar industry... proud ly listing itself as the largest educator of adults in the world.

When Phil fina lly retired in the early 1980s, his creativity continued but in a different direction ... primarily as a "found object artist" of which I was the recipient of several pieces. Phil cou ld take computer chips and other small objects and make some of the finest jewelry that included brooches and tie pins. He even decorated an impressive front door of a neighbor's home in Long Beach Island, New Jersey. And his skill in designing jackets and blouses that were hand painted brought numerous offers from clothing manufacturers. But Phil was not inclined to become a commercial artist, preferring instead the enjoyment of presenting his friends with some incredible original art.

Phil was definitely one of a kind. He is missed by all those who knew him, and were so proud and truly happy to learn that he was inducted into the CIC Hall of Leaders in December of 2000.

All of us in this incredible industry are indebted to Phil Harrison for his leadership, intuition, and friendship. He firmly believed that, by providing training and recognition to both supp li ers and planners, the entire industry would be the profession that it is today. His forethought and unselfish dedication to both buyer and seller played a crucial role in the development of what is today a multi-billiondollar industry.

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-Roger Smith

Robert W. Keilt, CHME AMan of Integrity and High Ethical Standards Robert W. Keilt was the complete and perfect example of an executive who loved sales, enjoyed every aspect of the hotel industry, and exemplified the enormous success story one can have in hotel sales. He accomplished that success during the years when hotel sales was in its infancy as a profession, but began to grow quickly in the early 1950s.

Bob began as a salesman in New York City following an exciting and rather dangerous stint as a U.S. Navy aviator in the South Pacific during World War IL He came back from that war determined to prove himself in civilian life, and well he did.

He worked at Hilton for 14 years as director of sa les at The Roosevelt and The Waldorf-Astoria in New York. He then served as executive manager of the Waldorf before moving to the Loews-owned Americana Hotels where he stayed for another 14 years, in senior positions, before joining Sheraton where he was vice president of sales for ten years.

Here are some of the qualities that helped Bob Keilt rise above the crowd, ones we should all emulate as we guide our respective career paths.

Bob was friendly to everyone as he moved swiftly from place to place. Janitor or president of a company, it made no difference to him.

His personal integrity, sincerity, and high ethical standards were qualities revealed in everything he did, and he insisted that his team follow his example.

Bob told Tom McCarthy in an interview a few years ago that he did not detect the hunger that salespeople once had when jobs and business were harder to get in his earlier days in sales. There was no question in his mind that all great sa lespeople have a keen sense of both urgency and hunger to book business.

Bob took a strong personal interest in each customer from his earliest years when many of those contacts were near his age. Over the years, those contacts became good friends who also rose up in their companies and associations as he did within his hotel. He was a solid and reliable customer's man, on whom they could rely to deliver an excellent and exciting experience for their important guests and groups.

He was loyal to the people for whom he worked. During his career, Bob must have had a gripe or two about his bosses, but you would never know it. He never complained.

He was always there for his friends, employees, and peers. When someone asked for a favor, he always tried to help. It wouldn't cross his mind not to.

When he rose in the ranks of the hotel industry in New York at the Roosevelt, Waldorf-Astoria and Americana during the 1950s and 1960s, he began to become a leader within the hotel sales field in that city. As president of HSMA's New York

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Chapter (now HSMAI's Big Apple Chapter) and a director of the international organization, he became well-known throughout North America as an outstanding leader.

A Certified Hospitality Marketing Executive, Bob Keilt was inducted into the HSMAI Hall of Fame in 2000 for his many accomplishments in the industry. There is no doubt that he adds prestige and dignity to the Hall of Fame as well as to our entire industry.

Although he died in 2000, Bob Keilt's friends believe he is still around today. He is in the minds and actions of many people he helped mold into successfu l executives and leaders. That is all the tribute he ever wanted. All of us should use his qualities as a checklist for our own careers. That is because his life was indeed a life to emulate.

-Sig S. Front, CHME, and Thomas T. McCarthy, Jr., CHME, CHA

George J. "Jack" Neumann Hoteldom's First Vice President of Marketing One word describes what everyone's first impression was of George]. "Jack" Neumann ... "Ebullient." He was full of enthusiasm. He was smart, and it was a pleasure to work with him .

When I met Jack, he had first been appointed to the position of midwest sales manager for Sonnabend Operated Hotels, the company for which I also worked.

Events in our company were moving at a dizzying pace during the late 1950's. A.M. Sonnabend, the founder of what is now Sonesta Hotels, Resorts, and Nile Cruises Corporation, was assembling an impressive group of hotel properties in key cities.

Sonnebend's acquisitions would become the Hotel Corporation of America (HCA).

I was eastern sales manager and joined Harold Lafrenere and Jack Neumann supervising and directing the sa les activities of our corporate offices as well as the coordination of the sa les function between individual hotels. During the 1950s, independently owned and operated hotel properties were facing fearsome competition from hotel chains'sa les juggernauts. To combat this, Robert F. Warner, a leading hotel representative firm, invited selected hotels from HCA to join with his "Distinguished Hotels of America," a sales affiliation of independent hotels. It was during that period that Jack moved into the assistant national sales manager's position, which allowed him to come forward as a true leader on the national hotel sales scene.

HCA, in working with the Distinguished Hotels group, revealed a serious weakness in our corporate sa les system. Our focus was entirely on the direct selling function and its results. Hardly any attention was paid to the advertising efforts, its budgets, the agencies we were employing, or the return on our investment. Advertising programs and budgets had been managed by the hotel general managers, many of whom

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hadn't the foggiest idea about what they were doing in this important area. A central coordinator in the advertising area was needed, and that job fell to Jack Neumann.

The move from the sales post to the advertising position proved to be professionally profitable for Jack, as well as excellent preparation for what lay ahead. It was also beneficial for HSMAI. As Jack accelerated his activities within the association, he became chairman of the Advertising Advisory Committee, and the Publications Committee. He formalized a process for the selection of judges, and he set up a procedure for the advertising awards program, now known as the HSMAI International Travel Awards Competition. He served as a member of the HSMAI Certification Committee and he chaired a committee to develop the association's first marketing plan. He also created the "Breakfast of Champions" at the HSMA Convention, the forerunner of the current HSMAI International Travel Industry Awards Dinner.

New York City's Savoy Plaza, a magnificent hotel owned by Western International, was sold by its owners. The building was to be demolished to make way for the construction of the General Motors building. Western wanted to maintain a presence in "The Big Apple" so it looked for a replacement property, focusing their attention on HCA's "Grande Dame" hotel, the Plaza, the world-famous property across the street.

The hotel was not for sale, but during several very friendly meetings between HCA's President Roger P. Sonnabend, and Western lnternational's President Edward C. "Eddie" Carlson, a revolutionary (for the hotel industry ) marketing idea emerged.

Western was strongly represented from Chicago to the West Coast, Asia and in some South American locations. HCA was strong from Chicago to the East Coast and at that time was emerging as a presence in Europe. Why not join together in a joint marketing venture? It made so much good sense. Both companies had similar properties, the same high operating standards, similar goals and objectives, and comparatively cohesive cultures. And so, a separate and distinct marketing company was created to serve two separate hotel companies under one banner. The new company, financially supported by HCA and Western, was named "HCA/Western Marketing, Inc. " An advertising theme was created (HCA and Western, one world of fine hotels) and the plan rapidly went forward.

Jack Neumann was elevated to the position of vice president and director of marketing for the company, the first such appointment in the history of the hotel industry.

Jack moved quickly to reshape the company's sales effort, creating within each hoteloperating unit a centrifugal marketing force that embraced sales, advertising, and public relations under one director of marketing. This was a revolutionary development for the industry. The director of marketing was charged with full involvement, not only in direct sales but also in advertising, public relations and anything else that had to do

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with the selling of the hotel services. An integral member of the hotel's top operating committee, the image of the marketing director changed dramatically for the better.

There had always been a block to advancement out of the sales department which was often expressed as "He/She is in sa les, not in management." That expression seemed to evaporate from the vocabulary. This led to increased compensation, incentive bonuses, and career opportu nities never before available to salespeople. Jack Neumann was in the forefront, both within his company through his growing influence in the hotel industry, forever extolling the virtues of the centrifuga l marketing thrust, and the wise investment in good people to carry out that vital function.

Jack Neumann shaped many of the programs now considered to be standard operating procedures in the sa les promotion segment of the industry. But he never sought the spotlight. He never held an officer's position with HSMAI. He was never a president or a board member. He told me, many times, that he could accomplish more from behind the scenes than he could in what he felt to be the restricted position of an officer. He sure cou ld. He was a recipient of the HSMAI Albert E. Koehl Award (1978) and was inducted into the HSMAI Hall of Fame (1986) . Jack also chaired the committee that wrote two editions of "Marketing Your Hotel through Direct Mail," published by the HSMAI Foundation.

When Jack Neumann passed away, Michael A. Leven, chairman and chief executive officer of U.S. Franchise Systems, wrote an eloquent farewe ll to this happy warrior. "Throughout his career, Jack mentored many young inexperienced sales and marketing people. Many of the famo us names in our business were associated with Jack as employees or as friends. Throughout his active career as a teacher, a writer, an advisor, consultant and confidant, Jack never took his eyes away from the importance of marketing and every element of it. He gave freely of his time to an association he loved, to a company he cared for, and to the individuals who brought in business in a variety of ways, to the hotels he represented."

-Earl G. Duffy, president 1962

Adrian W. Phillips, CHME The Conscience of HSMAI Adrian Webster Phillips was one of the pillars of what became the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International. Born in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania on September 11, 1898, he moved to Atlantic City, New Jersey at an early age in order to help an aunt and uncle with the operation of the St. Claire Hotel, a small property located off the Boardwalk on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Adrian served in the U.S. Army during World War I. He then attended Dickinson

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Law School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania from which he graduated in 1921. Although he had his law degree, Adrian knew that he was destined for a career in the hotel industry. In 1922, he joined the staff of the Chalfonte- Haddon Hall, then one of Atlantic City's great beachfront hotels, where he handled sales promotion.

During the next 20 years, Adrian created and headed the hotel's sales department as sales manager and member of the executive committee. He also helped manage the hotel until 1942 when it was taken over by the U.S. Government to become England General Hospital for military casualties during World War II. Adrian then managed the Hotel Morton, also located in Atlantic City, before he acquired and operated the Beck Creek Ranch, a resort in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina.

Adrian Phillips' active involvement in HSMAI began in 1936 when he and a number of like-minded hotel sales executives saw the need to reactivate what was to be renamed the Hotel Sales Managers Association, an organization that had been inactive for three years. The following year, 1937, also was a milestone for HSMAI because the association's first chapter was chartered in Atlantic City. Adrian played a significant role in the chapter's launch and development. The chartering of the New York Chapter, now the Big Apple Chapter, followed several months later.

In 1940, Adrian took his first step in hotel education at the college level when he established a sales promotions course at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration in Ithaca, New York. He worked closely with Howard B. Meek, dean of the Hotel School, and through Adrian's efforts, leading industry executives became guest lecturers over the years.

In addition to his sales class at Cornell, Adrian had also taken on a more active role with HSMAI and was elected president of the association for 1942. (One of his four sons, Robert W. Phillips, CHME, would later serve as HSMAI president in 1977.)

HSMAI had a number of executive secretaries in the years following its reorganization. But in 1952, it was decided by the association's leadership to upgrade that position to executive vice president. That same year, Adrian assumed the new position and the HSMA national headquarters was relocated to Atlantic City. Coincidentally, the office was in the Boardwalk Arcade Building, the same building in which the Miss America Pageant was headquartered. Adrian was involved with the pageant for many years and had served as its president.

Early in his 14 years as HSMAI's executive vice president, Adrian hired a number of Cornell students to create the association's new Research Library. One of them, David C. Dorf, was to become a permanent staff member as HSMAI's director of education and training and editor of the association's publications. He remained on the

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staff for thirty-five years until his retirement in 1990.

Many of the programs that were offered by HSMAI in subsequent years were initiated and developed by Adrian. Among these was the HSMA Advertising Contest, started by Adrian in 1957, at the suggestion of William Morton, a Sheraton marketing executive who was then the HSMA president, to get advertising samples for use in the sales course at Cornell.

A prolific author, Adrian wrote extensively for the HSMA Bulletin (the newsletter that was the forerunner of the HSMA World and HSMAI Update) and countless other industry publications. He also created seminars, meeting programs, and conventions that provided networking opportunities and educational benefits for the association's members. Adrian also participated in other industry organizations as a speaker, panelist, and member.

Adrian also was a friend, confidant, and mentor to many of HSMAI's leaders and active members over a period of many years, even after his retirement. Because of his long commitment to the association, he also became known as "The Conscience of HSMAI." He always made sure that whatever changes came about or whatever new programs were developed, they were for the good of the association, as he saw it.

Looking back on his career, Adrian was particularly pleased by the success of the annual awards competition that he and Bill Morton had started. Adrian saw it grow to become a major factor in the improvement of advertising throughout the hospitality industry and the largest competition of its kind in the world. When, shortly before his death, HSMAI changed the name of the Advertising Award to the Adrian Advertising Awards, class act that he was, he responded by asking that his name not be emphasized by the use of large letters.

In retirement, Adrian had more time to spend at his home in Absecon, New Jersey with his beloved wife of 68 years, Ernaline. Known as The Phillips Place, consisting of 300 acres with an 1810 farmhouse that he restored and enlarged, the property includes 217 different species of trees and countless birds. (The Phillips Place is now owned by New Jersey Green Acres and is maintained by the New Jersey Audubon Society.) And because of his role with the Miss America Pageant and his many other accomplishments, there is the Adrian W. Phillips Ballroom in the Atlantic City Boardwalk Hotel.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote that "an institution is the lengthened shadow of one man." For HSMAI, that man was indeed Adrian W. Phillips, CHME ... a legend in his own time.

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-Neil W Ostergren, CHME, president 1987

The First Hotel Sales Management Course at Cornell Saturday classes, now a long forgotten phenomenon at the Cornell Hotel School, was the assigned class time for Hotel Sales Management. It took a mighty stalwart and undaunting individual to face 40 or 50 less-than-fully-awake students for two hours on a Saturday morning, and it took a student extremely devoted to the study of hotel sales to face the challenge, or at least to feign interest after a TGIF party the night before.

Adrian Phillips, who undertook this assignment as instructor of the Hotel Sales Management course, was indeed the stalwart and undaunting individual that was called for. He traveled biweekly to Ithaca, New York, from Absecon, New Jersey-no mean feat in itself-at his own expense and without a fee to extol the intricacies of hotel sales management. I am not sure just how long Adrian taught at Cornell but it must have been close to twenty years. I believe he was followed by Dewitt Coffman and then by Frank Berkman, who were both highly regarded in the field of hotel sales and marketing.

Witt Coffman was a dynamic, energetic individual who, on occasion, would shoot a starter's pistol in the air if he perceived less than full attention by the members of his class. His book, "The Full House" was the first text on hotel sales management in the United States, and perhaps the world since hotel sales was virtually unknown in Europe and Asia at that time. The book was published with the help of the Cornell Hotel School and Coffman graciously and generously awarded all royalties to the school, which, in turn, used the money for scholarships for those students evincing interest in hotel sales management.

His later book, "Marketing for the Full House," was also published through the School of Hotel Administration and, again, royalties were assigned back to the school.

To my knowledge, this was the first text of its kind in the field of "hotel marketing" which was a concept that was rather slow to be utilized, or understood, by much of the hotel industry.

Frank Berkman followed Coffman, who had moved on to teach the same course at Florida International University. Berkman was an enthusiastic instructor and he related very well with the students. He was an excellent teacher and was a toastmaster without par at business and social gatherings.

Winthrop Wellington Grice, universally known as Bud Grice, who had been a student at Cornell of both Adrian Phillips and Dewitt Coffman, was a virtual whirlwind in hotel sales management. After leaving Hilton to join the then-emerging Marriott Hotels, he was responsible for much of the rapid growth and the development of mar-

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keting for that company. He was very active in HSMAI, too. On the occasion of one of the association's annual conventions held in Ireland, to which I was invited, he entertained the entire planeload on the Aer Lingus flight to Shannon. As one wag said, "Bud Grice walked all the way from New York to Ireland."

Through the years, HSMAI has played an important role at the Cornell Hotel School as well as at other colleges and universities with hospitality schools and programs. I am sure this will not change in the years ahead.

-Robert A. Beck, Ph.D., Second Dean of Cornell's School of Hotel Administration

Bringing East and West Together in HSMA I have thought often about my experience in the Southern California Chapter of the Hotel Sales Management Association, as HSMAI was known in those days. It all began in 1965 when I moved to Los Angeles as the pre-opening sales manager for Western International Hotels' new Century Plaza Hotel, and it ended in 1973 when I returned to Seattle to become the company's corporate director of sales, and a year later, vice president.

When I arrived at the Century Plaza, I joined HSMA and its Southern California Chapter as a first order of business. Geographically, that chapter was the largest in the country since it stretched from Santa Barbara to San Diego and included Los Angeles, Anaheim, Palm Springs, Long Beach, and everywhere else in the area.

In the summer of 1966, when I became the Century Plaza's director of sales, before attending my first HSMA annual convention in 1967, Harry Mullikin, the hotel's managing director who was then my boss, gave me my best advice. He told me, "When you attend the convention, identify the key players, get to know them, and learn from them."

At that time, HSMA was perceived primarily as an eastern organization, and logically so, since it was founded in Chicago and early development was in that part of the country. But geography entered the picture as well. Since the Rockies divide east and west, this was a natural barrier so it became necessary for HSMA's Northern California and Southern California chapters to be on their own. This became evident when I attended HSMA national conventions where we were viewed as "those guys (and one or two women) from out west." I had the feeling that we would have to change the impression that those in the "eastern establishment" had towards those from the "far west."

Because they were often thought of as "rebels," it was only occasionally that the chief executive of a California association became the chief executive of the national

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organization. And because the HSMA situation in California was a microcosm of this environment, I realized that it was important for us to change the imbalance and bring more awareness and interest into the far west.

When I was elected president of the Southern California Chapter in 1969, I felt that we needed to make a statement to the national organization and that this could be done by having both of the California chapters create a meaningful event. What was to become the first annual "Western Regional HSMA Sales and Marketing Conference" came to mind. I approached Ed Merling, then the director of sales for the San Francisco Hilton, who was president of the Northern California Chapter. Ed was a visionary and, although the two chapters had been going their separate ways, Ed jumped on it when I told him of my idea for the Western Regional.

The first Western Regional HSMA Convention was held on June 10-13, 1969 at the Delmonte Hyatt House in Monterey, California with more than 150 HSMA members from both chapters, and members from other western states, attending. It was a wonderful three-day program, and the best part was that Frank Berkman, HSMA's executive director; Lennie Oakes, HSMA's general manager; and the dynamic and forever affable Bud Grice, vice president of Marriott and HSMA's national president, were all actively involved. This was the first time that the HSMA leadership had participated in an association activity of this scope outside of the national conventions. This first Western Regional, which was the beginning of a long series held in Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and Utah, was an exciting milestone for HSMA. The Western Regional Conference changed HSMA forever and the organization became truly national. Frank Berkman's reaction to the conference was to tell me "This is the best thing that's ever happened to HSMA. We are now truly a national association and the far west will not just be a 'kissing cousin' any longer."

After my two terms as president of the Southern California Chapter ended in 1971, I became a territorial director and later a member of HSMA's national board of directors. Mike Leven was HSMA president in 1976 and participating on the HSMA board during Mike's leadership is one of the highlights of my career. I also think it was the apex of HSMA's success at that time.

I am pleased by the role I was able to play in creating the Western Regional which I think led to a better, bigger and stronger HSMA. And looking back, I really believe that my career would not have been as successful as it was without my active involvement in the association and the interaction with other members who were my competitors and became dear friends. I extend a big thank you to HSMA and my exceptional mentors along the way.

-David R. Evans, CHME

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Serving HSMAI as a Volunteer Leader; A Labor of Love My first encounter with what was then HSMA took place in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1968. I had joined the staff of the Airport Hilton there in 1967 and had become acquainted with Jack Alumbaugh, who was then in sales at the St. Louis Statler Hotel.

Jack was a well-known salesperson within the city and surrounding area and he knew some of the top management at the Hilton. Jack recognized me as a novice in the sales field, and over many years he helped me become an experienced and professional salesperson. One of his first steps was to make me aware of HSMA and what the association offered regarding networking, educational opportunities, and professional career development.

After joining the Missouri Chapter of HSMAI, my understanding of hotel sales increased dramatically. Between the educational opportunities offered through the association and the career opportunities offered by Hilton Hotels Corporation, I continued to grow within both entities. I worked my way up the ladder of officers of the Missouri/St. Louis chapter and helped plan and execute a joint meeting with the new chapter in Kansas City, which was spearheaded by Pat Tierney, another peer from the area. When a decision was made to hold the HSMAI annual convention in St. Louis in 1970, I made a vow to myself that I would become more active in the International organization and try to give something of myself to the organization that had become so important to my success.

I was subsequently elected to the HSMAI board of directors and I served on several committees. Through HSMAI, my horizons broadened dramatically. I was introduced to the "personification" of the organization, the person who brought HSMAI to the attention of the industry and the academic world - Adrian Phillips. He was a true gentleman with the intelligence and foresight to make HSMAI not only a recognizable force in the industry but one which offered so much to members and sponsors in the way of education and guidance. Adrian became the "Godfather" of the group, and also my mentor who I respected immensely.

HSMAI continued to grow and prosper, increasing membership, broadening the scope of education in the industry, and providing much needed recognition and acceptance of HSMAI and what it stands for. HSMAI became the only organization specifically designed to provide the answers to questions, solutions to problems, and guidance for the sales and marketing arm of the hospitality industry. It also became the leader in offering a legitimate certification program which was spearheaded by Jim Knauff. Through his efforts, the Certified Hospitality Sales Executive (CHSE) program became a goal and inspiration for those within the sales and marketing disciplines in the hospitality industry. This important program continues to add validity to

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membership along with recognition not only among peers but among customer groups as well.

I was elected president of HSMAI in 1981 and served for a year and a half because of a change in the annual convention schedule. One of my primary goals was to increase awareness and membership development not just in the United States but also in other parts of the world. I traveled extensively on behalf of the association and chartered new chapters in Canada, Mexico, Italy and the Philippines. I also spoke to almost every chapter already established to bring the HSMAI message directly to the members. The people I met in every country I visited were hungry for the help provided by HSMAI. They wanted leadership and guidance as well as information in trends, innovations, and educational development. Through this organization, they received it.

During my term in office, my employer, Hilton Hotels Corporation, provided me with a virtual "sabbatical" or leave of absence from my primary job in national sales based in Atlanta. The company provided me with a secretary as well. These actions indicated the company's support for HSMAI and gave me the opportunity to literally work for the association on a full-time basis. I was able to be a true representative for HSMAI wherever and whenever I was needed.

I would be remiss if I did not thank certain people within the Hilton organization for making this opportunity possible. Among those most involved were Bill Edwards, a 1979 member of the HSMAI Hall of Fame, and Jim Collins. Without their support and approval, I could never have been as involved as I was.

I count myself fortunate to have three firsts for a woman in HSMAI. I was the first woman to receive the CHSE designation; the first woman to be elected HSMAI president; and the first woman to be inducted into the HSMAI Hall of Fame.

To all who helped HSMAI and have helped make it what it is today, and to those who aided me in my efforts, I salute you and thank you for being a major part of my life.

-Nita Lloyd-Fore, CHME, president 1981-1982

How It All Began For Me I became a radio and television news announcer following a tour in Korea in 1951 and 1952. I went to Miami wanting the warm climate and a chance to be successful and found a job at WQAM, until one day a family friend said, "You should consider coming into the hotel business. Hotels are beginning to expand and are looking for sales executives. Resorts are going to be open the year round and they will need capable salespeople. You would make a good salesman."

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"What do you sell?" I asked, thinking people just found a hotel and called for a reservation. When I learned that half of the guests were at hotels because of a tour, a convention, or a business conference, I realized the opportunity.

I was hired by David Schine, president of Schine Hotels, in 1956. His family owned the Boca Raton Hotel & Club, in Boca Raton, Florida, and the Roney Plaza, a leading Miami Beach resort on the ocean, where the top celebrities spent the winter.

I trained for months to learn how to pursue group prospects for hotels that were always in need of filling slow periods of occupancy. No university had courses in hotel sales or marketing. Adrian Phillips, Frank Berkman and a few other senior hotel sales executives gave lectures at Cornell and other schools in the mid-1950s, but it was mostly a job where you were trained in a hotel by a director of sales. You learned through osmosis, or you were lucky enough to become a member of the Hotel Sales Management Association, attend their meetings and annual conventions, and learn from your peers what it took to sell group business successfully. In those years, new sales executives were starved to learn from more senior sales executives about what was required to book various types of group meeting business. HSMA was the only place to look to for knowledge and help.

I was with Schine Hotels in Florida; Fred Harvey Hotels in Los Angeles, California as director of sales and advertising; senior vice president of Del Webb Hotels in Las Vegas, Hawaii, California, and Asia for 13 years; and senior vice president, director of marketing worldwide of ITT Sheraton, for 12 years. All of that, after first realizing the great potential of the hotel industry, and seizing the opportunity to get in on it. It was a magnificent decision at age 25.

In 1958, after moving to Los Angeles, I was hired as the first director of sales of the Beverly Wilshire. This famous hotel was positioned in the heart of a luxurious shopping and business area, but fell on hard times when the Beverly Hilton opened.

The Beverly Wilshire slipped from 80 percent occupancy to 61 percent the first year of the Beverly Hilton opening, and the owners realized they had to create a full sales and marketing effort to salvage this landmark hotel. I was appointed the hotel's first director of sales in 1958. A secretary and I made up the sales department.

I did the one thing, and the only thing, that could help the hotel rebuild occupancy.

I made personal sales calls on hundreds of offices, asking secretaries and executives to come and visit the hotel, see its rooms and facilities, and place their incoming visitors at the Beverly Wilshire. These offices had never been called on by the Beverly Wilshire in the past, and many, especially those within a mile of the hotel, began sending business visitors to the hotel.

I became very active in HSMA in Los Angeles, attended AH&MA social outings and conferences, and joined the Chamber of Commerce in order to get referral busi-

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ness from hotels and business from industries. The effort was more of a challenge than a job, and my reward was to see occupancy begin rising nearly immediately.

Within 14 months, the hotel reached 81 percent occupancy and remained at that level for several decades.

I became president of HSMA International in 1973, where I presided over HSMA's first international convention in Dublin, Ireland. I had two goals: one, to convince more women to come into hotel sales as a career and two, to convince ownership and management of hotels and hotel corporations that their most important asset was their sales department and their productive sales executives. I wrote articles, had interviews with newspaper writers, gave speeches to large groups of hotel and travel executives, was interviewed on national television travel shows, all to promote and communicate those two goals. I heard from CEOs of large hotel chains, college professors and industry leaders who agreed that more women executives were needed as was a higher regard for frontline hotel executives filling otherwise empty rooms. It was the highly respected CEO of Fairmont Hotels, Richard Swig, who told me he had sent a story of mine to all of his general managers and senior corporate staff saying he wanted each of them to become active in sales and help each property not only obtain business, but also refer it to sister properties.

As vice president of Del Webb Hotels in Las Vegas in 1966, I convinced my corporation to build the largest conference and ball room in the United States. It opened in 1968 with 40,000 square feet in unobstructed space, which could handle a meeting for 4,800 people and feed 4,000 for a sit-down luncheon or dinner. It was not long before other Las Vegas hotels, and later some elsewhere, built even larger rooms.

-Sig S. Front, CHME, president 1973

Looking Back at the First HSMAI Student Convention My introduction to Cornell and HSMA was through Robert Keilt, director of sales and marketing for the Americana Hotel in New York (now the Sheraton Hotel & Towers New York). Bob was a friend of my late father and he introduced me to Frank Berkman in the fall of 1969. In my freshman year, I attended an HSMA student chapter meeting. I remember how impressed I was with both the commitment to hotel sales and marketing of the students attending, but also by the support of the HSMA national organization. Not only was Frank Berkman active in supporting the student chapter, but Sandy Lindy of Bill Bard Associates and David Dorf, director of education for HSMA, were frequently on campus for student chapter meetings. I sat next to

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Pam Williams at that first meeting and we agreed to join and to work together to make certain our class continued the strength of Cornell's HSMA chapter.

In 1972, my predecessor, chapter president Ken Mosig and our Board raised the possibility of a student convention. A date was set for March 1972, and "hold the date" cards were mailed. The plans never quite came together and the event was cancancelled, but one student chapter never received the notice and eight students from the University of Oregon arrived in Ithaca. Despite the lack of a convention, they seemed to have a great visit and were gracious about their trip to Ithaca.

I was elected chapter president for the 1972/1973 administrative year and wanted to again pursue the possibility of a student convention. I met with Dean Robert A. Beck, Cornell, I explained the challenges of the prior year's planning, and convinced him that the student chapter officers were ready to host a spectacular event. I asked if he would provide support for mailing and meeting rooms, hoping for a few hundred dollars, and I hope my surprise was not too obvious when he offered $5,000!

The event was held on March 8-10, 1973 and attracted over 100 students from nine colleges and universities from the United States and Canada. It commenced with a reception (the drinking age was 18 in 1973) that immediately set the tone for the event: social but serious, educational but practical, professional but fun. HSMA's support, along with that of Donal Dermody, William Kaven, Sandy Lindy, David Dorf, and Dean Beck, was extraordinary.

The program included a panel titled "Everything You Wanted to Know About Hotel Sales ... But Were Afraid to Ask" (based on the title of Woody Allen's recent movie), the filmed highlights of the CLIO awards, and presentations by Frank Fisher of Lex Hotels, H. Victor Grohmann of Needham & Grohmann, and David Dorf of HSMA headquarters, as well as from two faculty members, Prof. Don Dermody and Prof. Bill Kaven.

Ann Wold, of the Irish Tourist Board in New York, showed a slide presentation on Ireland, which would be the site of the next HSMA Annual Convention in November.

The final event was another reception (although it was a little more like a student party). I volunteered my band because the budget provided by Dean Beck had been expended; "Lindy & Klak" played 1950s rock and roll with Keith Clark, Dick Rathbone and Jim Petersen.

When we said our good byes, everyone who attended said that meeting students who they might otherwise not have met, the education about HSMA and hotel sa les and marketing, exposure to industry leaders, and the exchange with faculty made for a major event in our student and industry experiences.

I was also named a recipient of the Adrian Phillips scholarship that year. I met Mr. Phillips at the HSMA convention in Mexico City. He was in his natural surrounding, encircled by hotel sales executives hoping for pearls of wisdom from the world's

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renowned luminary on the subject of hotel sales and marketing. He was explaining how by looking at a prospect's thumb he could tell a great amount about the person and how to approach the sale. There we all were, taking notes about lengths and shapes of thumbs.

It was a thrill to see him and observe his influence and celebrity, and his humbleness despite his renown as the founder of modern hotel sales and marketing.

-Bjorn Hanson, Ph.D.

Having Fun Along the Way Looking back on the many years when I was active with HSMA, there were lots of moments of humor and hope ... and I don't mean just Frank Berkman's world of "pun-ography."

Jim Bearce, HSMAI president in 1969, Bud Grice, and I had a great deal of fun playing practical jokes on each other. Here is one that was a running joke that started in Jim's year as president of HSMA. At the 1969 spring board meeting in Williamsburg, Bud and I supplied the audience with newspapers before Jim arrived. After he entered the room and took the podium to begin his talk to the HSMA Board of Directors and the members of the Virginia Chapters, all of us opened up our newspapers and started to read them, ignoring Jim completely. As yo u can imagine, it was a good laugh at his expense.

In 1970, when I was president, I began wondering just what was in store for me as I arrived for the spring board meeting in Colorado Springs. It didn't take long to find out beca use Jim and Bud had arranged to have the entire audience get up and walk out of the room as I began to talk. When they finally returned, I got a moment of revenge when I said, "Thank you for your attention," before leaving the podium to sit down as if I had completed my remarks.

In 1971, Bud, who had succeeded me as president, was a little concerned because nothing happened to him at the spring board meeting. But he was caught off guard and wasn't prepared when the summer board meeting was held at the ChalfonteHaddon Hall in Atlantic City. We had made arrangements with Dill Parrish, the head of sales at the hotel, to have a sound technician stand by with a record by the Andrews Sisters. When Bud began to speak, the record was played over the public address system as Art Taylor, Adrian Phillips, Jim, and I started mouthing the words of the song as we came out wearing long woolen mop heads as wigs.

We had fun with our practical jokes. But beyond that, all of us who were active with the association also were serious about developing programs and benefits for the

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members not just in the United States but also in other parts of the world. It is a good organization and I am proud to have been a part of it during my hotel career. I hope that others in the industry today are just as proud and that they help make HSMAI even more meaningful in the years ahead. -Frank Hignett, CHME, president 1970

HSMAI, A Springboard to Success In traditional European Hotel schools, sales and marketing was not part of the curriculum until the Seventies. With the arrival of international hotels like Hilton, Holiday Inn, and Sheraton in Europe during the '60s, it was clear that sa les and marketing activities were needed to fill the hotels with guests. It was the Hilton Amsterdam that appointed Rudy Pauws, the first Dutch hotel sales manager. When I was offered a job in sales, being new to sales and marketing, I paid him a visit. He gave me the popular book 'The Full House" by DeWitt Coffman. With the knowledge I gained from this book, I started as sa les manager at the Postilijon Motor Hotels in Holland.

My colleagues and I would spy on our neighboring hotels to find out who had reserved function rooms, and on the parking lot to see where the buses came from.

We traced the addresses of the tour operators in order to make them our customers.

That was our competitive analyses.

In 1970, Hilton Amsterdam invited HSMA's Frank Berkman and Leonard Oakes to Amsterdam for a sa les seminar. Hilton invited eight Dutch hotel sales managers and six from Belgium. It became a real ed ucationa l sa les happening. Shortly after, the HSMA Chapter Benelux and Netherlands was founded with 15 members. There we learned to network and share ideas and experiences. Every year, HSMA's Director of Education David Dorf passed by to help us brush up our knowledge.

In 1975, HSMA organized its first European Congress in Miinchen. During this special congress the presidents of the European chapters met for the first time. The need for European cooperation and professionalism increased. Meanwhile, we had found out that not every American sales technique was successful in Europe. It became essentia l to apply more market techniques aimed at the European market.

During this historic meeting on the roof of the Hilton Hotel in Miinchen, there was a confrontation between Europe and America. Frank Berkman had great difficulty in accepting the fact that we wanted to organize our own European Congresses.

After debating, we reached a compromise: under the guidance of HSMA we would produce European Congresses on our own.

With the establishment of a European Office, in the late Seventies, that helped

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organize Cornell seminars and HSMA conferences all over Europe, we have expanded to a joint venture of which we can all be proud. HSMAI is now recognized by professional organizations in the European hospitality industry as a worthy partner.

Looking back at all those years, we can say that after Mi.inchen, HSMAI moved forward to become a stable organization that laid the foundation of sales and marketing in the European hospitality industry.

-Henk Kloosterhuis, CHME, past president, Chapter Netherlands

Michael A. Leven, CHME, CHA: Always a Star Performer This is about Mike Leven, the chairman, CEO and founder of U.S. Franchise Systems.

He was HSMA International president in 1976 and he is one of the association's most active members. If a list of HSMAI's most dedicated, most productive, and most influential members was compiled, Mike's name would be high on the list. That's because he's one of the best in the hotel business.

Mike has an abundance of good qualities, but, in my opinion, his most valuable qualities are the positive attitude he has toward the product he sells and the work he is involved with, coupled with his tendency to act decisively and boldly. Simply put, I think his formula for success is: Think positively about your goals and objectives, and when action is called for... act boldly.

When I was national sales manager for the Hotel Corporation of America, now Sonesta Hotels, Resorts, and Nile Cruises, I bumped into Mike who was working at a dead-end job in the public relations department of the Roosevelt Hotel, one of HCA's properties. I asked him if he had any interest in sales. He answered in the affirmative ... anything to get out of what he was doing. Before too long, I learned that Mike was on board, working as a sales representative.

Although I had no direct connection with Mike in his early days on The Roosevelt sales staff, I did receive favorable comments, unsolicited, regarding his diligence and about how he was successfully selling and serving those sometimes very elusive, very demanding, New York City accounts. My primary responsibility at that time was to keep in constant contact with the directors of sales at each of our properties. When consulting with the Roosevelt's director of sales regarding a major account that they may have lost and sought to regain, or about a big important account they were competing for, I would invariably inquire about who was assigned to the account. Based on what I knew of Mike's ability, I would often suggest, "Why not give it to Mike?"

As a result of my suggestion, Mike was given the ball to carry on many of the tougher

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assignments and more often than not, he came up on the winning side.

His name was quickly emerging throughout the company as a potential star performer. He was not only earning a reputation for outstanding salesmanship, but also for customer service.

Mike was then, and he continues to be, a stickler for customer service. He has learned, through experience, that there are both rewards and punishments connected with customer service. To this very day, he evangelizes the religion of satisfying the customer from the customer's point of view. He pounds this basic philosophy across to his employees, his peers, his shareholders, to everyone connected with the success of his company. His message is simple, direct, and easy to comprehend; and it is based on a sound premise.

Mike's rise to vice president of marketing at Sonesta, and later with Dunfey/Omni Hotels, was just the beginning. Prior to his present position, he served as president and COO of Holiday Inns Worldwide. Earlier, he was president of Americana Hotels & Resorts and president of Days Inns of America . If he ever has to move his office, some guy who makes his living by moving things is going to get a hernia from carrying all of the trophies, citations, plaques, and other awards that Mike has received as a result of his service to the hospita lity industry and the community at large. Mike Leven is a busy guy. He continues to do what he does best and he is at the top of his game. As chairman and CEO of U.S. Franchise Systems, which includes the Microtel, Hawthorn Suites, and Best Inns & Suites brands, he is their best salesman and their best man for crafting a good deal for all concerned. -Earl G. Duffy, president 1962

Winning the Battle for Marketing I am indebted to Bud Smith, director of sales and promotion for Sheraton Hotels, and a past president of HSMA, for his introduction to the association. At the time, I was his assistant. It wasn't long before I also shared his enthusiasm for HSMA, which led to my eventual election as vice president of the association and then president at the 1956 national convention in Dallas.

As was his custom, Adrian Phillips, who always hit the ground running, called for a meeting with the Washington, D.C. host chapter, where the 1957 convention was to be held, immediately fo llowing the convention in Dallas. The meeting was held at the Statler Hotel in downtown Washington, located on a corner facing the Sheraton Carlton Hotel. While crossing the street between the two hotels, Adrian was hit by a Washington taxicab. It was a very serious accident and he was rushed to the emergency room of a Washington hospital.

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7S YEARS OF SERVICE ANO ACHIE VEMENT

The HSMA office in Atlantic City was made aware of the accident and its seriousness, and a staff member called me in Boston for directions as to the operation of the office. A quick trip to Atlantic City was in order. A working procedure was put into place, with the understanding that I was immediately available by phone. Our followup sessions were conducted in the same manner. The office staff did an outstanding job during this emergency.

The plans for the HSMA Convention in Washington proceeded in a very orderly fashion, and the moment Adrian could get to a telephone, he was once again in charge of planning a smooth-running convention.

One of the most successful functions generated by HSMNHSMAI is the annual advertising and public relations awards competition. Adrian had mentioned to me that no matter how hard he tried, he could not get the hotel sales managers to provide him with samples of their advertising materials. I said that I thought the solution to the problem was a simple one: hold an advertising contest.

Who can forget the Sheraton 800-325-3535 campaign? It was the first national 800 campaign, which everyone now imitates, even to this day. Harold Geneen, then president of ITT, which owned Sheraton, called from Europe to say that he didn't like the advertising campaign and wanted to know what I was going to do about it. My answer was a simple one. At the end of 30 days, if he still didn't like it, he could fire me! Well, he didn't fire me because he obviously found out that the advertising was working.

Early on in my relationship with HSMA, I suggested that the association should sponsor a seminar on "Marketing for Service Industries." We invited the American Management Association to conduct a "marketing" education seminar in Atlantic City. This was my opening shot on the subject of marketing for the service industries.

Have you ever wondered how the archaic hotel accounting phrase was changed from "advertising and promotion" to "marketing"? It only took a year of pressure on our comptroller to have him introduce the subject to the hotel accounting firms . There was opposition at first, but then they saw the light and agreed to the name change.

Unfortunately, it was the untimely death of Al Koehl, a New York City advertising executive and part-time guest lecturer at the hotel school, and who taught a course in advertising, that provided a real opportunity for change.

Bob Beck, dean of The Cornell Hotel School, called to tell me of Al's death and asked if I would teach the course on advertising. I said, "No!" Dean Beck responded by saying, "You've never turned me down before, why now? " I told him that I would be doing him and his students a disservice. However, I also told him that, if he agreed to a course on marketing, which would include advertising, I would be pleased to join the faculty. That was how marketing became a course at Cornell.

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191

It is my belief that I made my point about the need to implement a course of "Marketing for the Service Industries" and that it was time to take the next step which was to appoint a full-time professor to carry on the program. Dean Beck agreed with my suggestion and William Kaven was selected as the first full-time professor of marketing shortly thereafter and he quickly proved to be an excellent choice. I was pleased when Bill Kaven was tenured. Just another battle fought and won for marketing.

-William Morton, president 1957

The Early Years of HSMAI For a number of reasons, primary of which is to more accurately identify its membership and goals, HSMAI has changed its name several times. First it was "Hotel Sales Managers Association," which was followed by "Hotel Sales Management Association" and "Hotel Sales Management Association, International." Then came "Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International" and the current "Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International."

Although perhaps somewhat subtle, the various names of the association, to some degree, identified not just the industry job classification of most of the members, but also an interesting method of defining where a good part of the membership stood in the organizational chart of their companies.

In the early days of what was to become HSMA in 1937 (the original name for the association's first ten years was "International Conference on Business Promotion"), the great majority of hotel salespeople were looked upon by hotel managers as "goodwill ambassadors." The presumption, perhaps with merit, was that they did not know much about the operation of their hotel and, conversely, the hotel managers did not really understand the sales manager's function. So, to a large degree, they ignored each other.

The path leading to the position of hotel manager was first, accounting; second, accounting; and third, accounting. Trailing behind was food and beverage manager; front office manager; and hotel engineers. Yes, there were some salespeople who became hotel managers but they were few and far between.

This management selection process, to a large degree, continued through the 1940s and 1950s. There were exceptions and among the few who used "sales" as the path to management were DeWitt Coffman, Frank Berkman, Tex Carlton, Nick Bicking,

Jim Bearce, Ed Sansovini, Frank Hignett, James Knauff, David Troy, John Russell, and Mike Leven.

To my best knowledge, early on there were only three women in the entire United

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7S YE ARS OF SER VICE AND AC HIE VEMENT

States who headed up major hotel sales departments. They were Aida Taylor at the Claridge Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey; Ann Kroger at the Sheraton in Cincinnati, Ohio; and Mary Hesse at the Netherland Plaza, also in Cincinnati.

Compare this with the number of women who today hold the position of vice president of marketing, vice president of sales, director of marketing, director of sales, and sales manager.

Back then, there was no such thing as a "motel." Highway properties were called "tourist courts." Most of them had no food and beverage facilities. Many had no inroom telephones and certainly no air conditioning and television. If you were lucky, you might find a radio without a coin slot that could be listened to for free.

A few of the major factors that helped create the motel industry were the movement of many companies and industries out of the center city and into suburban areas; the creation of the almost unbelievable network of interstate highways; and the manufacture of automobiles that offered comfort, safety, and convenience almost beyond belief.

Last but not least, David Dorf and Neil Ostergren, the co-authors of this book, have both made positive contributions to the industry and our association. Dave, almost by himself, created programs for both students and professors at a number of schools of hotel administration on the importance of understanding how the sales and marketing position is vital in the successful operation of a hotel. In addition to showing how the discipline is a viable path to becoming a general manager, Dave also showed students that sales and marketing offers a rewarding career. Neil was the leader and primary motivator in getting HSMAI to embrace "marketing" and to change the association's name from "Hotel Sales Management Association International" to "Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International." During the same period, he was also the founder of the HSMAI Marketing Review.

-Leonard R. Oakes, CHME, president 1965

Rememberigg the First HSMAI Student Chapter at Cornell When I first matriculated to the Cornell Hotel School in the fall of 1953, having been a graduate of the University of Washington in economics and a lieutenant in the U.S. Coast Guard, I looked forward to two years of intense studies in hotel administration for my degree, which I received in the spring of 1955.

During 1953, a number of students became interested in the concept of hotel sales within the industry. We then contacted Adrian Phillips to see how we could work with

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his organization, then called the Hotel Sales Management Association. Mr. Phillips periodically visited the school as a guest lecturer and he was impressed with our interest in that segment of the industry.

We then established a junior chapter of HSMA at Cornell, which was a first for the association. HSMA's national convention was scheduled to be held in Miami Beach in ovember 1954 and arrangements were made for members of the Cornell Junior Chapter to attend. We stayed at one of the small hotels on the beach and enjoyed attending all the sessions. As president of the chapter, I was asked to speak at a convention luncheon held at the new Fontainebleau Hotel, to outline our plans and objectives. My remarks were well received and I am pleased to know that there is still an active student organization at the Cornell Hotel School.

In the spring of 1955, when I was completing my studies at Cornell, I was contacted by Mr. Phillips, who asked me if I would be interested in working for the association. However, it was my intention to continue my career in hotel operations and eventually return to my home in Seattle. Bob Beck, then dean of the school, was kind enough to get me a position in Toledo, Ohio with the Commodore Perry Company that had three excellent hotels there and where I served as assistant to Henry Williams for three years.

During my later tenure in that job, I worked with Bill Tiefel, a graduate of Michigan State University, who later joined Marriott and subsequently became that company's president and vice president, and then chairman of Ritz-Carlton. My career took me back to Seattle where, in January 1960, I became corporate sales director for Westin International, now Westin Hotels, and, in June of 1961, I formed Parker Pacific Company, now a leading west coast convention sales representation firm.

Forty years later, I am still very pleased to have been involved with HSMA.

-john Parker

Recr1:litin_g Members, Finding Friends, Feuding tor Fun To this day I have always maintained that joining HSMA in the early post-World War II days was a wise decision and provided a firm basis for a successful career. Albeit graced with handsome features and superior intelligence, I knew little about hotel sales when I was virtually catapulted into that position, but to my early rescue came two industry colleagues, Bill Morton and Bud Smith, who urged me to sign on.

With HSMA clearly delineating the path to be followed, I was encouraged to take short, related courses at Cornell and Harvard. Once active in the association, I

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7S YE ARS OF SER VICE AND ACHIE VEMENT

became fast friends with two other helpful members. Adrian Phillips, one of the finest gentlemen I have ever met, and Frank Berkman, whom I invariably referred to in public in less generous terms (as old-time members will recall). From the early 1950s until his death, Frank and I were to indulge in a pseudo "feud" that became a standard feature at many a meeting.

Made aware of what HSMA could do for those in the industry, my earliest efforts concentrated on recruiting members, particularly in Canada, where, like myself, hotel sales colleagues had been essentially "flying by the seat of their pants." While the results of these efforts proved gratifying, I never cease to marvel at the year-after-year success of Sandy Lindy whose overall member recruitment record is remarkable.

However, unaccountably, in 1959 I was to find myself serving as HSMA president.

At my term's end, I was grateful to the Montreal Chapter for having staged such an outstanding convention, one feature of which had been publication of a daily newspaper expressly for the delegates -

a "first " in association annals. Another was the

unusual presence of the presidents of both the American and Canadian Hotel Associations. But one of the more significant aspects of the event was its widespread media coverage, both locally and nationally, which served to firmly establish the role and importance of HSMA in the minds of Canadian hotel executives.

Over a span of more than three decades, a "feud" developed between two past presidents of the association that became something of a legend in the annals of HSMAI. The antagonists were Frank Berkman and myself who were very close friends for many years. Our witty exchange of £leers and jeers in earlier days provided welcome diversion for HSMAI members at appropriate moments during informal sessions, and the joshing gradually evolved into a full-blown, fake vendetta that became an anticipated feature of virtually every association event. To serve up "remembrances of things past" which is the purpose of this book, and at the same time acknowledge that speeches on paper cannot begin to live up to their oral presentation, I will provide readers of this book with one sample of the invective of all those years ago . At the 1973 HSMAI convention in Dublin, Ireland, I delivered a presentation at the closing luncheon titled "From Antigua to Zaire: HSMAI 1973" that reviewed the association's achievements over the past several years, and the significance they had for the future. Despite the serious topic, the delegates fully expected some vestige of the "feud" to manifest itself... and they were not to be disappointed. My introductory remarks were as follows: "The privilege of addressing our HSMA family in convention is certainly a highlight of my long and otherwise undistinguished career, and I must convey heartfelt thanks to Lennie Oakes, Mr. Brockman's headquarters associate, for his courage in making it possible. By a stroke of great fortune, Mr. Brickman was out of town at the time Lennie and I swung this deal; he was away lecturing the New Orleans chapter on the

REMEMBRANCES AND REFLECTIONS

195

importance of executives keeping firm control on development of meeting events, such as this one, lest they be faced with unpleasant, last-minute surprises, such as this one.

"During his visit, our football-mad executive director dropped in on the local team and was given an autographed football. Poor benighted soul! He has long fantasized about a gridiron career, probably encouraged by his misinterpretation of that so often expressed phrase: 'Fink Jerkman- he's the end.' If I may inject a personal note, I very much regret that the New Orleans team did not recruit him. Quite frankly, I've been looking forward to his joining the Saints for many, many years.

"It has been said that Mr. Berkstein never forgets, a not surprising characteristic in

a man of such elephantine proportions. But, sad to relate, it is a false memory of his that engendered the enmity between us ... one that is based on a gross misunderstanding that I would like to clear up here and now. Never, and I say this as if on oath, did I ever refer to him as a 'windbag.' All I ever said was that, in his own interest, I hoped he would never have to undergo acupuncture treatment.

"Ladies and gentlemen. I have not come all these miles just to hurl invective at Mr. Murkman. On the other hand, if you can think of a better incentive for travel I'd certainly like to hear it. Meanwhile, I now move on to a more palatable topic which is the remarkable growth and progress of HSMAI over recent years, and the significance that it holds for the future."

-George W. Powell, president 1959

Tohn J. Russell, Jr:., .CHME: A Leader with Energy and Creat1v1ty to Spare It all started in 1978 when John and I first met. An adult friendship began, although many of our friends didn't consider us adults (well, at least they didn't consider John an adult). John was a salesperson at the Sheraton Boston and I was the general manager of the old Philadelphia Sheraton. (They tore it down when I left. Can't imagine why.)

I really don't remember where we met, but I assure you it wasn't in a boardroom.

In every solid friendship there are differences between the people that somehow allow a bond to be created. They say opposites attract. I guess that's true. For example, one person is responsible and the other not; one may be sober and the other one not; one might always be on time and the other one not; one might be crazy and the other one not. You get the idea. And if you know John, you can guess who is who in this picture. But that was the old days.

The bond was strong enough and my respect for John's innate leadership ability, energy, and creativity led to our working together for the first, and only time (once

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75 YE ARS OF SER VICE AN D ACHIE VEMENT

was enough). I was transferred to the Sheraton Washington as managing director and John came along as the director of sales and marketing. It was a huge challenge for both of us . He had to assemble a team and fill 1,500 rooms. I had to manage the operation, the construction of a new 1,000-room tower (we never closed), and I had to manage John. To this day I'm not sure which of these challenges was greater!

As it turned out, we had great successes with the new property and John and his team were wildly successful in filling it. It was during our year together at the Sheraton Washington that I could see what a very special talent John was and still is. A great leader, he always put his team, his peers, and his customers first; an incredibly creative individual, he would come up with an idea a minute or he would know a good idea when he heard one (and give other people the credit, by the way). He had an exhaustive work ethic to go along with his similar "play" ethic-but, no matter how hard he played he was "Johnny" on-the-spot the next day. He's very smart and contributed to the overall success of the business as he has done in each position he has held. John brings all of this and much more to the table no matter if it's for a company-held position or a voluntary position. People recognize his talents and that's why he's held so many senior or top positions in the business as well as the association world.

In the association world, John has been very active for a number of years. He served as president of HSMAI in 1988 and 1989, the first to serve two one-year terms since 1944. John, who is also a Certified Hospitality Marketing Executive, was also responsible for making the association more inclusive, bringing in all segments of the industry, which resulted in a name change to "Hospitality" from "Hotel." And HSMAI recognized him for his many accomplishments in the industry with its Albert E. Koehl Award and his induction into the HSMAI Hall of Fame.

John is just as involved with the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), which officially changed its name from American Hotel & Motel Association (AH&MA) during John's term as the association's chairman. John was also responsible for the appointment of representatives from other industry associations to have seats on the AH&LA board and one of them is from HSMAI. Today, John says he's "retired," but don't believe it. He not only currently holds the position of immediate past chairman of AH&LA, but is also involved with an Internet company and is on the prowl for more things to do. I'm not sure he'll ever retire. I hope not. If he does, he might try to play more golf, which would not be good for John or the game itself! Besides, the business and volunteer communities would surely miss him.

-Paul O'Neil

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197

John H. Sienold: "Never Argue Mit the Chef in the Kitchen" In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the Savoy Plaza Hotel, located in New York City on Fifth Avenue was one of the preeminent luxury hotels in the city. Its elegant French country chateau facade looked out on Central Park and at the Austrian chateau fac;:ade of its rival across the avenue-The Plaza. For a number of years, the hotel was known as the Savoy Hilton. Unfortunately, the hotel was torn down so that the General Motors Building could be built on the site.

The Savoy's interior also was a triumph of understated and gracefully elegant public rooms, lobbies, and restaurants. There were also approximately 1,000 large, higbceilinged sleeping rooms and suites, most of which had views of the park. Many suites had large terraces as well. Because of its reputation, the Savoy was "home" for a number of permanent residents, including some who were world famous at that time.

George Zuker, a Hollywood motion picture magnate; Zsa-Zsa Gabor; George Sanders; and Rock Hudson were among them as were several leading social and cultural leaders in the city.

The Savoy's director of sales at the time was John Sienold who had an excellent hotel background in banqueting and sales and was well known in the New York hotel industry. Originally from northern Germany, Sienold had lived in the United States for many years and had served in the U.S. Merchant Marines during World War IL After the war, he became one of the pioneers in the sales and marketing segment of the hotel industry which was just beginning to develop into one of the driving forces necessary for a successful hotel operation.

At that time, I was a fledgling sales representative at the Savoy, having been hired

by Sienold to "go out and knock on doors" and "bring back the business." Sienold promised to teach me the business, which he did, and he told me that I would learn about banqueting, food service, and the details of menu planning as he also had an extensive banquet background.

As it developed, my routine as a "sales rep" started promptly at 9:15 a.m. every day when Sienold would order me "out" to do the following: check all hotel bulletin boards in the area and make a list of all corporate meetings and functions for each.

(Primitive marketing but surprisingly effective); make at least eight to ten sales calls, mostly "cold calls" but some pre-scheduled from my bulletin board "spy" list; return to the hotel in the late afternoon to brief Sienold on my peregrinations around the city. At approximately 5:30 p.m., we would repair to Reubens Bar and Restaurant across the street for what Sienold called our "sales meeting."

One cold December morning Sienold told me, "I'm going down to see that idiot chef of ours and find out what he thinks he is doing to our menus." After only 30

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75 YE ARS Of SER VICE AN D ACHI EV EME NT

minutes, the sales office door burst open and a red-faced Sienold rushed into his office and slammed the door.

Moments later the door burst open again and in stalked the very French Chef Dubonet with his toque askew and a large knife in his outstretched hand. He marched into Sienold's office and I followed. Sienold stood behind his (fortunately) large desk with arms folded across his slightly heaving chest.

The knife-wielding chef stood glaring at him until finally Sienold said, "Now chef, we are in my office!" The nonplussed Frenchman hesitated for a moment before lowering the knife and then hissed "German pig!" With an exaggerated motion the chef adjusted his toque, turned on his heel and stalked out. Without missing a beat or changing his stern expression, Sienold turned to his young apprentice and said, "Learn something Rufer. Never argue mit the chef in the kitchen!"

John Sienold was one of the best in hotel sales and he was a great teacher for many young people in the industry. He was also very active in a number of professional associations, especially HSMA. In 1960, he served as president of the association and earlier he had been president of its chapter in New York. After leaving the Savoy Plaza, Sienold headed up the sales department at the Hotel Biltmore in New York before relocating to the Arizona Biltmore. New York's loss was Arizona's gain. That's because John Sienold really was a hotel sales and marketing pioneer.

-Terrence W. Rufer

David A. Troy:f CHME: From Trainee to Director of Sa es in 11 Days David Troy has been a symbol of success in hospitality sales and marketing for the past 40 years. He has held executive positions in a number of major hotel companies and, in more recent years, has served as a valued consultant and educator. Dave also was elected president of HSMAI in 1983.

It all began when Michael A. Leven, HSMAI president in 1976, stopped by my office. I was then national sales manager for Hotel Corporation of America, now Sonesta, and among my responsibilities was the supervision of a sales training program. He wanted to chat about a young man he knew, a fellow alumnus of Tufts University: David A. Troy.

"I recommend Dave highly," said Mike Leven. "He's a hard worker, and he was active in the student campus social activities program. He will soon be discharged from the Army and is looking for a career opportunity. I think he would fit in well here."

After telling Mike that Dave sounded interesting, I asked him to have Dave con-

REMEMBRANCES AND REFLECTIONS

199

tact me. When he called, we set up an appointment for September 10, 1963. When he arrived at my office exactly on time, my first impression was very favorable indeed. He had an expansive smile, a healthy ruddy complexion, and bright alert eyes.

As I think back to that moment, I wish I had had access to H. G. Welles' time machine so I could have pressed the "fast forward" button and saved a lot of time. It would have revealed that he would become HSMAI president in 1983, a perennial member of its board, and a member of the HSMAI Hall of Fame. It would also have shown that he would be the author of a textbook, a teacher, a lecturer on hotel marketing, a hotel general manager, a senior vice president of marketing for Sheraton, and a president of a small hotel company. But when we met, all I could see was a raw recruit.

The interview with Dave went well and he sailed right through it. He was quick and responsive and honest with all his answers and I learned a good deal about Dave in a hurry. I quickly realized that he was people-oriented and a natural salesman. He also indicated that he was a hustler, was accustomed to hard work, and had worked as a busboy while in high school. And during his college years, he sold spring weekends as a campus representative for the old Rockingham Hotel in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

I sent Dave around to other corporate people and, after receiving very positive feedback, I asked Dave one final question: "What do you do when you come up on the losing end of a competitive situation?" He immediately slammed his hand down hard on my desk and said firmly, "I get damned mad at myself."

I offered Dave an opportunity to join our company, one of the best business decisions I ever made, and we put him to work immediately. He dove into the work stream with enthusiasm and was a fast learner. I thought that with six months of training and close supervision, he would emerge as a strong candidate for a permanent position somewhere in our organization.

Dave was in the program just 11 days when I received a frantic call from Michael Schweiger, then general manager of our Charter House Motor Hotel in Euclid, a suburb of Cleveland. He said, "Earl, I've got a big sales problem here and you've got to help me. There are no salespeople out here that I can find. Can you help me?" I told Mike that I had a new sales trainee who was very bright and catches on fast. But I added that he was far from being ready. Mike responded with, "If you think he has the potential, that's all I need. I know the systems and can train him on the job. You can check on his progress during your trips here. Believe me, it's important."

Dave was an immediate success in Euclid and was promoted to director of sales which, after only eleven days as a trainee, must be an industry record. Dave was so productive that he was penalized for his success. Because his bookings created sold-

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out situations, he had to give up his hotel room and sleep on a cot in the food and beverage office. But there was a bright side to that because Dave told me, "I'm learning a lot about food and beverage because I practically live in that office."

I was on the phone with Dave two weeks before Christmas, and I asked him what he was going to do over the holidays. In a dejected tone of voice, he said, "I'm stuck here because I've been selected for the 'manager on duty' program. I have to cover for the married people who will be home with their families." He added that he was homesick for Boston.

I mentioned this to my colleague, Jack Neumann, then the corporate director of advertising and sales, who was also very high on Dave. Jack immediately reacted by saying, "Well, Dave can't be tied down in Euclid. He's got to attend the meeting."

"What meeting?" I asked. Jack answered with, "Our Christmas party, of course. We start with our meeting, then we have a party."

That was it! I called Mike Schweiger and advised him that Dave was needed in Boston to represent the motor hotel units at our annual planning session which would take place from December 23rd to January 3rd with time out for the holidays. That saved the day for Dave Troy and, as I found out many years later, it saved Dave for the industry in which he has served so well. •

-Earl G. Duffy, president 1962

REMEMBRANCES AND REFLECTIONS

20 1

Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients HSMAI PAST PRESIDENTS 1927-1953

1927-193 0

1930-1933

1936-1937

1937-1939

John C. Burg

Wil liam C. Ro yer

L.E. Pierce

Hugh ]. Connor

1939-1940

1940-1941 F. Burton Fisher

1941-1942

1942-1944

Adrian W. Phillips, CHME

Clayto n S. Hicks

G.E.R. "Dick" Flynn

-

'

1945

1946

Willia m G. H as tings

Leo nard Hicks

.

1947

C ha rles T. Craddock

1948 C. DeWitt Coffman, CHME

1949

1950

1951

1952

1953

Duane W. Carlton, CHJV!E

H.M. Smith

Gregory R. Lucy

Charlie L. Bird

icholas C. Bicking

FOOTNOTE 1933-1936: Assoc iation in acti ve. 1942: Osgood Roberts (President for four months before entering the service in World War II )

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75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

HSMAI PAST PRESIDENTS 1954-1970

1954

1955

1956

1957

E. D. Parrish

Elmore C. Bacon, Jr.

Jack M. Stone

William Morton

1958

1959

1960

1961

Frank W. Berkman, CHME

George W. Powell, CHME

John H. Sienold

Arthur F. Taylor, CHME

1962

1963

1964

1965

Earl G. Duffy

Victor E. Barrett

Louis E. Rogers

Leonard R. Oakes, CHME

1966

1967

1968

1969

1970

Angus R. MacDonald

Charles V. Grigsby, CHME

Donald B. Martin, CHME

Jim Bearce, CHME

Franklin B. Hignett, CHME

DISTINGUISHED LEADERS AND AWARD RECIPIENTS

203

Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients HSMAI PAST PRESIDENTS 1

1971 Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME

1972 Edmund Sansovini, CHME

1973 Sig S. Front, CHME

1974 David B. Evans, CHM E

1975 William E. Worsham

1976 Michael A. Leven, CHME

1977 Robert W. Phillips, CHiVIE

1978 W.E. Hooper, CHM E

1979 Robert D. McGrail, CHME

1980 Thomas T. McCarthy,

1981-1982 Nita Lloyd-Fore, CHME

1983 David A. Troy, CHM E

1986 Thomas L. Knowlton,

1987 Neil W. Ostergren, CHME

CHME

1984 Clifford M. Johnson, CHME

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7S YEARS Of SERVICE ANO ACHIEVEMENT

1985 Mervyn M. Levine, CHME

CHME

HSMAI PAST PRESIDENTS 1988-1997

1988-1989

1990

1991

1992

John J. Russell, Jr., CHM E

James P. Tierney, CHME

William R. Volk, CHME

Karen CollitonThomson, CHME

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

Bruce R. Timson, CHM E

Pamela M. Richardson,

Chris Avery, CHME

Gary Leopold, CHME

Dawn O'FlanneryWalzak, CHME

CHM E

PAST CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARD * 1998-PRESENT

1998

1999

2000

2001-2003""''"

Hoyt W. Bacon, CHM E

Peter Warren, CHME

William E. Weld, CHME

Bruce S. Himelstein, CHME, Chairman of the Global Board, and Chairman of the Americas Region Board

2002-2003

2002-2003

Salvatore Dickinson, CHME, Chairman of the Americas Region Board

Ingunn Hofseth Chairman of the European Region Board

*Please Note: In 1998, HSMAI's president's title was changed to chairman of the board. ** In 2002, a global board was formed with two regional divisions, each has its own chairman.

DISTINGUISHED LEADERS AND AWARD RECIPIENTS

205

Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients THE HSMAI FOUNDATION CHAIRS

HSMAI HALL OF FAME

The HSMAI Foundation conducts research and publishes the findings of its research. It is tax exempt under the provisions of the 501-C-3 code of the Internal Revenue Service and may receive tax-deductible grants and contributions from individuals and corporations.

The following association leaders were elected by the Board of Trustees to lead the foundation as chairpersons of the board and each brought invaluable ideas and insights to the position, ensuring the Foundation's success over the last 20 years.

The HSMAI Hall of Fame, announced at the 1968 HSMAI Convention in New York City, was established to honor outstanding achievements and contributions in the field of hotel/motel sales and marketing.

The hospitality industry executives who have been accorded this singular honor for their "pioneering" activities and active involvement in sales and marketing education, training, and industry advancement are:

1983-1984 1984-1985 1985-1986 1986-1987 1987-1988 1988-1989 1989-1991 1991-1993 1993-1995 1995-1996 1996-1997 1997-1999 1999-2002 2002-2003

206

David A. Troy, CHME Clifford M. Johnson, CHME Mervyn M. "Mickey" Levine, CHME Thomas L. Knowlton, CHME Neil W. Ostergren, CHME Chad Martin, CHME Hoyt W. Bacon, CHME Lyn Matthew, CHME William Gehron Jim Pearman Gordon Rockwell Michael Pusateri Salvatore Dickinson, CHME Cindy Estis-Green

75 YEARS OF SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

1968 1968 1968 1968 1969 1971 1971 1972 1972 1972 1972 1973 1973 1974 1974 1975 1975 1976 1977 1978 1978 1979 1980 1982 1984 1985 1986 1986 1987 1989 1989 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1996 1998 1999 2000 2000 2001 2001 2003 2003

Adrian Phillips, CHME C. DeWitt Coffman, CHME G.E.R. "Dick" Flynn Leonard Hicks E.D . "Dill" Parrish Frank W. Berkman, CHME Duane W. "Tex" Carlton, CHME Nicholas C. Bicking Donald B. Martin, CHME Leonard R. Oakes, CHME Robert Quain Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME Arthur F. Taylor, CHME Jim Bearce, CHME Edmund Sansovini, CHME Daniel Amico John H. Sienold H.M. "Bud" Smith William Morton Sig S. Front, CHME William F. Prigge William H. Edwards E.C. "Buzz" Sherry Hugh Connor Sanford "Sandy" Lindy, CHME Frank Hignett, CHME Nita Lloyd-Fore, CHME George J. "Jack" Neumann James E. Knauff, CHME Albert Bard Neil W. Ostergren, CHME Michael A. Leven, CHME Howard Feiertag, CHME Thomas T. McCarthy, Jr., CHME David A. Troy, CHME Michael J. Dimond, CHME Mervyn "Mickey" Levine, CHME John J. Russell, Jr., CHME David C. Dorf, CHME Irma S. Mann, CHME Robert W. Keilt, CHME Peter C. Yesawich, Ph .D. David R. Evans, CHME Robert "Bob" Stein James C. Collins Richard P. Degnan, CHME

ALBERT E. KOEHL AWARD

WINTHROP W. GRICE AWARD

In 1975, the Albert E. Koehl Award was established by the HSMAI Advertising Advisory Committee to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to advertising in the hospitality industry. It is named in honor of Albert E. Koehl, founder of Koehl, Landis & Landan, a New York based advertising agency specializing in hotels, resorts, and travel.

In 1989, the Winthrop W. Grice Award was estab lished by the HSMAI Adrian/Golden Bel l Awards Committee to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to public relations in the hospita lity industry. It is named in honor of Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME, a long-time senior marketing executive at Marriott International, who was the award's first recipient.

1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

H . Victor Grohmann Hans Hannau William Morton George]. "Jack " Neumann Joseph P. Smyth William F. Prigge Michael A. Leven, CHME Winthrop W. "Bud " Grice, CHME Norman R. Tissian C. DeWitt Coffman, CHME Neil W. Ostergren, CHME Robert " Bob " Stein Howard A. Heinsius Eleanor C. Leslie Irma S. Mann, CHME Peter C. Yesawich, Ph.D. Robert C. Hazard, Jr. Melinda Bush Richard Branson Gordon " Butch " Stewart Michael D. Eisner Robert M. Campbell Michael W. Gunn John]. Russe ll , Jr., CHME Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace Horst H . Schulze Peter Warren, CHME

1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME Morris Silver Lou Hammond Karen Weiner Escalera Herbert D. Kelleher Priscilla Hoye Donald]. Trump Aaron D. Cushman Stephen A. Wynn Virginia M. Sheridan Jack A. Vaughn, CHA Alan Fredericks Eric Friedheim Ricel le "Bunny" Grossinger

AL BARD AWARD In 1986, an award was created to recognize the contributions made by those individuals who have played significant roles in the annual HSMAI International Travel Awards competition, the largest of its kind in the hospitality industry worldwide.

This award is named for its first recipient.

1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1993 1995 1995 1996 1997 1998 1998 1999 2000 2002

Al Bard Cass Falis-Bullock Peter Warren, CHME Gary Leopold, CHME Neil W. Ostergren, CHME William R. Volk, CHME Albert Falis Alan Fleschner Iris Reisner Sara "Sally" Ostergren Joel Ann Rea Annie Berger Jamy Flynn Donald E. Bender Nora Conway James R. Reid

DISTINGUISHED LE ADER S AND AW ARD REC IP I ENT S

207

Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients

THE BEST OF THE BEST CHAPTER AWARD WINNERS The Best of the Best Chapter Awards program was launched in 1997. A compilation of entries from this annual competition are reprinted in the "Best of the Best" manual which is produced and distributed as a chapter resource.

The Frank W. Berkman Chapter Award program established in 1998, replaced the Chapter of the Year program. In response to the evaluations from previous programs, an award structure for large and small chapters was implemented. In addition, it was agreed to institute a Chapter Hall of Fame designation.

1997 WINNERS CATEGORY CHME Community Service Education Fundraising Membership Newsletters Public Relations

CHAPTER Phoenix Big Apple Phoenix Phoenix Phoenix Dallas Phoenix

1998 WINNERS CATEGORY Awards & Recognition Chapter Management Fundraising Education Membership Newsletter Public Relations

CHAPTER Dallas Big Apple Big Apple Florida Keys Phoenix Dallas Vail Valley

1999 WINNERS CATEGORY Awards & Recognition Chapter Management Fundraising Education Membership Newsletter Public Relations Trade Shows

CHAPTER Norway Norway Phoenix Phoenix Norway Phoenix Big Apple Cancun

2000 WINNERS CATEGORY Awards & Recognition Communications Educational Programming Fundraising and Community Service Marketplace Events Membership Development S.U.P.E.R.B. Website

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7 5 YE AR 5 0 F SER VICE AN 0 ACHIE VEMENT

CHAPTER Phoenix Big Apple Phoenix Phoenix Norway Georgia Phoenix Southern California

HSMAI HONORARY LIFE MEMBERS

2001 WINNERS CATEGORY Hall of Fame

CHAPTER Norway

LARGE CHAPTERS: Awards & Recognition Communications Customer Event/Marketplace Educational Programming Fundraising/ Community Service Leadership/ Partnership Membership Development/Retention

Big Apple Dallas Phoenix Dallas Phoenix Big Apple Dallas

SMALL CHAPTERS : Communications Customer Event/Marketplace Educational Programming Fundraising/Community Service

Southern California Vail Valley Virginias Oregon

2002 WINNERS CATEGORY

CHAPTER

LARGE CHAPTERS: Award & Recognition Communications Community Involvement Educational Programming Fundraising Programs Leadership Development Membership Development/ Retention Partnership Development Website

California Desert Big Apple Big Apple California Desert Dallas Phoenix California Desert Central Florida Los Angeles

SMALL CHAPTERS: Awards & Recognition Communications Community Involvement Educational Programs Fundraising Programs Leadership Development Membership Development/ Retention Partnership Development Website

Florida Keys Northeast Florida Missouri Florida Keys Oregon Oregon Magnolia Maryland Florida Keys

The following distinguished individuals have been awarded Honorary Life Membership in the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International for distinguished service and contributions: Frank L. Andrews H.B. Callis George Dahl Harry J. Dooley David C. Dorf, CHME Howard Dugan Nadja Ebenspanger Eugene C. Eppley Hans Hannau Leonard Hicks, Sr. Charles Horwath Leonard H. Hoyle, CAE, CMP Richard Huntington Howard P. James James E. Knauff, CHME Franklin Moore John Moreau Alice (Mrs. Elsworth M.) Statler John R. Stubblefield Members of the HSMAI Hall of Fame who did not serve as an HSMAI president or chairman also are honorary life members.

DISTINGUISHED LE ADER S AND AW ARD REC IP I ENT S

209

Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients

THE CERTIFIED HOSPITALITY MARKETING EXECUTIVE PROGRAM (CHME)

CERTIFIED HOSPITALITY MARKETING EXECUTIVES

In 1974, the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International established a certification program for hospitality sales and marketing professionals. The Certified Hotel Sales Executive (CHSE) program was designed to recognize those individuals who, through education, experience and service to the industry, demonstrate the highest qualities of professionalism, conduct and performance.

Under the direction of James E. Knauff, CHME, its founding chairman, the HSMAI Certification Commission developed the qualifications necessary for certification and implemented the new program.

More recently, the American Hotel & Lodging Association's Educational Institute also established a sales and marketing certification program: Certified Hospitality Sales Professional (CHSP). Because CHSE and CHSP were two very similar programs, it was subsequently decided that there should be a two-level program with El's CHSP at level one and HSMAI's re-named Certified Hospitality Marketing Executive (CHME) at level two.

To date 524 people have earned the CHME designation.

They are an elite group of industry professionals and HSMAI congratulates them all.

Thomas Abbott, CHME Aisha Abdul-Wahid, CHME James L. Adams, Jr., CHME Karen Adderley, CHME Jennie Agee, CHME Benu Aggarwal, CHME Allen L. Albury, CHME Catherine I. Allen, CHME Cherie Allen, CHME Shane Anthony Allor, CHME Penny Allphin, CHME Robert A. Amundson, CHME Julie Andrews, CHME Roland Ansorge, CHME Ronald Antonucci, Sr., CHME Douglas E. Artusio, CHME Charles Ashman, CHME Hiltrud Augustin, CHME James T. Ausmus, 11, CHME Chris Avery, CHME Hoyt Bacon, CHME Cecilia Baker, CHME Quinn A. Ban, CHME Christopher M . Baum, CHME Jim Bearce, CHME Maryjo Belnap, CHME Kenneth A. Benjamin, CHME Kathleen M. Bennett, CHME Linda Berardi, CHME Andre Bergeron, CHME Frank W. Berkman, CHME Melissa J. Boelkins, CHME Dennis Bond, CHME Peter J. Bonell, CHME Sandra K. Boswell, CHME Daniel A. Botkiss, CHME Susan Boyle, CHME John W.R. Bradley, CHME John P. Brady, CHME George J. Brice, CHME Amanda Britt, CHME Lenore Broadley, CHME Charlie Brown, CHME

210

7 5 YE AR S 0 F SERVICE AND ACHIEVEMENT

Gary Brown, CHME Mimi Brown, CHME Richard H. Brown, CHME Dick Brunnengraber, CHME Tara M. Bull, CHME Monica Buring, CHME Charmaine Burrows, CHME Henry L. Butler, CHME Mohamed Buzizi, CHME Siobhan M. Byrne, CHME Eddie Canaday, CHME Jon Canas, CHME Jeff Canham, CHME Duane W. Carlton, CHME Julie A. Carpenter, CHME Kim Carpenter, CHME Noelle M. Carroll, CHME David Cartier, CHME Joseph S. Carton, CHME Brenda A. Cassese, CHME Homer Caswell, CHME Roger S. Cauchi, CHME Michael R. Chamberlin, CHME Rex Chambers, CHME Richard Champ, CHME Charles Wai-chung Chan, CHME Suzanne Marie Chantal, CHME Jenean Chavey, CHME Win Chesley, CHME Ann M. Chestnut, CHME Donald J. Chevalier, CHME Robert Chlebda, CHME Christine Clyburn, CHME Denise Cmiel, CHME Alice Pace Cockrell, CHME Jay M. Cohen, CHME C. DeWitt Coffman, CHME Karen Colliton-Thomson, CHME Jane Coloccia, CHME Kelly Commerford, CHME Bill Conerly, CHME Lee Conlon, CHME Michael Consuelo, CHME

Linda Copenhaver, CHME Patricia Corbin, CHME KC Costa, CHME Alicia Cox, CHME Bradley ]. Cox, CHME James V. Cunningham, CHME ]. Michael Curran, CHME Howard Dahling, CHME Connie B. Dalton, CHME T. Blake Danner, CHME Harvey Paul Davidson, CHME Claudette Davis, CHME Donna Sue Davis, CHME Shirley Davis Conner, CHME Dawn Dawson, CHME Jordonna DeBerry, CHME Richard Degnan, CHME Cindy Delaney, CHME Eltha F. Deleveaux, CHME Jan DeMets-Underwood, CHME Miranda Dempsey, CHME Laura Despins, CHME Salvatore Dickinson, CHME Joe DiGirolamo, CHME Michael Dimond, CHME Nick Dominijanni, CHME David C. Dorf, CHME Edward Dramberger, CHME Joyce Draper, CHME John R. Dufour, CHME Juan B. Martinez Dugay, CHME Cathy Dutton, CHME Ralph H. Earnhardt, CHME Edward E. Eicher, CHME Thomas Elbe, CHME Linda Elland, CHME Dale Encinosa, CHME Sandra Eneas, CHME Mahesh K. Enjeti, CHME Craig Evans, CHME David B. Evans, CHME David R. Evans, CHME Lou Evans, CHME

Jennifer Fain, CHME Glenn M. Faria, CHME Douglas Farley, CHME John Fareed, CHME Allan C. Federer, CHME Howard Feiertag, CHME Linda L. Ferguson, CHME Donna D. Field, CHME Pam Fields, CHME Darlene Fike, CHME Howard Fine, CHME Virginia Finnegan, CHME Michael ]. Fiorentino, CHME Kenneth Fischang, CHME Shari M. Fisher, CHME Susan Cecere Fisher, CHME Ruth Fitzgerald, CHME James S. Follett, CHME Bill Fontgivell, CHME John Foster, III, CHME Nancy Foster, CHME Raymond Maxwell Francis, CHME Diane Franklin, CHME Robert Franklin; CHME George Frees, CHME Evan F. Friedman, CHME Sandy Friend, CHME Kay Fries, CHME Jim Friscia, CHME Sig S. Front, CHME Patricia Fuller, CHME Tom Gale. CHME Janet Gallagher, CHME Tulio Garonzi, CHME Don Genhart, CHME Rose Genovese, CHME Paul Gerbino, CHME Robert A. Gilbert, CHME Cheryl Gilbertson, CHME Anne Giles, CHME Jane Gillespie, CHME Richard Gold, CHME

Cynthia C. Golden, CHME Ken Golder, CHME David Goldfein, CHME Sally P. Gomez, CHME Vicki Gordon, CHME Vincent Grandinetti, CHME Peter Grant, CHME George B. Graves, CHME Richard Graves, CHME David Green, CHME Judy Green, CHME David A. Greenwood, CHME Winthrop W. "Bud" Grice, CHME Charles V. Grigsby, CHME Emil Gudmundsson, CHME Shelley Gudzak, CHME Richard B. Guggenheim, CHME Janet R. Gurnsey, CHME Deborah Hahn, CHME Ursula Hahn, CHME Garry Hale, CHME David L. Hall, CHME Lori L. Hall, CHME Nancy L. Hall, CHME Tanya Hall, CHME Jeffrey Halpern, CHME Sarah Hamm, CHME Jon Hanover, CHME Dore B. Hanson, CHME Marina Gonzalez Hardin, CHME Linda S. Harper, CHME Antoinette C. Harris, CHME William T. Harris, CHME Jim Harvey, CHME Michael Hausman, CHME Andrea Haugen, CHME Ronald G. Haven, CHME William M. Hawes, CHME Mary Hayes, CHME Judy Heckerman, CHME Jorge Hernandez, CHME Sandra Hernandez, CHME

Eileen Higginbotham, CHME Ingrid P. Knowles Higgs, CHME Franklin B. Hignett, CHME Brian Hile, CHME Mary Brady Hill, CHME Bruce Himelstein, CHME Howard Hinton, CHME Lita Hitchcock, CHME Lynn Holland, CHME Lin Holzinger, CHME W.E. "Wes" Hooper, CHME Ray Hoover, CHME Patricia Horne-Pate, CHME Judy Houston, CHME Debbie C. Howarth, CHME Regina Howell, CHME Jeffrey S. Hubbell, CHME Denise Hunter, CHME Mickey K. Hsuing, CHME Brent S. S. Ingraham, CHME Joanne Istorico, CHME Larry Jackstien, CHME Peter A. Janssen, CHME Patricia L. Jekic, CHME Clifford M. Johnson, CHME Lowell Johnson, CHME Malinda Johnson, CHME Sally Johnson, CHME Phyllis Jones Gholson, CHME Kathy Kane, CHME Richard B. Kannapell, CHME Edd Karlan, CHME Jeff Karlson, CHME Erica S. Kasel, CHME Kristine L. Keesling, CHME Robert W. Kei!t, CHME Kevin F. Kelly, CHME Lynn ]. Kesler, CHME Katherine Kettle, CHME Carolyn Kidrowski, CHME Beverly W. Kinkade, CHME Peter Kipp, CHME Ronnie Kirschner, CHME

DISTINGUISHED LEADERS AND AWARD RECIPIENTS

211

Distinguished Leaders and Award Recipients

CERTIFIED HOSPITALITY MARKETING EXECUTIVES CONTINUED Deborah A. Klein, CHME Henk Kloosterhuis, CHME Leslie A. H. Kluttz, CHME James E. Knauff, CHME Joseph C. Kneen, CHME William A. Knopp, CHME Matthew L. Knowles, CHME R. Danielle Knowles, CHME Thomas L. Knowlton, CHME Graham M. Konrad, CHME Eugen Krebs, CHME Joseph K. Krings, CHME Michael Krouse, CHME Ginger Krup, CHME Michael Kryzanek, CHME Rajeev Kumar, CHME Thomas G. La Vaccare, CHME Karen Lanthier, CHME Kathy Lanthier, CHME Jeffrey Lasher, CHME George Lavie, CHME Marilynn C. Leathers, CHME Peggy E. Lee, CHME Jon E. Lemke, CHME Gary Leopold, CHME Michael A. Leven, CHME Fran Levin, CHME Mervyn "Mickey" Levine, CHME George Lewis, CHME Sandy Lindy, CHME Charles F. Linn, CHME Scott C. Littleson, CHME Nita Lloyd-Fore, CHME Nancy Long, CHME Allen Lonstron, CHME Phyllis Looney-Adkins, CHME Alma Lopez, CHME R. Scott Lorenz, CHME Susan Lutton, CHME Robert Mackey, CHME Kathleen T. Mahoney, CHME David Maier, Jr., CHME

212

?S YE ARS OF SER VICE AND ACHIE VEMENT

Irma Mann, CHME S. Mark Marker, CHME Katherine Markham, CHME Sue Maroney-Smith, CHME Robert Marshall, CHME Michael Martelon, CHME Chad A. Martin, CHME Donald B. Martin, CHME Sonia Martin, CHME James Mastrangelo, CHME Bonnie J. Mathias, CHME Mary Mathurin, CHME Lyn Matthew, CHME Mary McCarter, CHME Thomas T. McCarthy, Jr., CHME Arlene McDaniel, CHME Ellie McFadden, CHME Neal McFarland, CHME Ronald K. McFarland, CHME Patrick M. McGarry, CHME Diane E. McGee, CHME Timothy J. McGill, CHME Robert McGrail, CHME John J. "Jack" Mcintyre, CHME Paul J. McKenzie, CHME Deanna McKean, CHME Linda L. McNeill, CHME Richard McNeill, CHME Dinyar Mehta, CHME Jose Luis Menchelli, Jr., CHME John F. Metcalfe, CHME Phyllis Meyer, CHME Jerry Mika, CHME Ted Miller, CHME Jim Mills, CHME Lori Mi llwood, CHME Marc Minoff, CHME Franklin A. Moe, CHME Kelly M . Moneyhan, CHME Tommy Morel, CHME Odette G. Morrow, CHME Gunther Matzke, CHME Joan Moulsdale, CHME

Renea C. Moxey, CHME Neil J. Mullanaphy, CHME Kelly Murphy, CHME Roger J. Murphy, CHME James H. Murray, CHME Maurice Murray, CHME Martha J. Musteen, CHME Nancy Nagle, CHME Harvey Nairn, CHME J. Les Nasciszewski, CHME Barbara Nau, CHME Carolyn M . Neblett, CHME Andre R. Newbold, CHME Dorothy Nicholson, CHME Karol Norris, CHME Perry Norris, CHME Roger A. Nuss, CHME Leonard A. Oakes, CHME William R. O'Boyle, CHME David O'Connor, CHME Dennis C. O'Flannery, CHME Dawn O'Flannery-Walzak, CHME Dave O 'Lenick, CHME Kathryn O lney, CHME Jennifer O'Loughlin, CHME Mark O'Neal, CHME Gary R. Orswell, CHME Neil W. Ostergren, CHME Kjell L. Ostrom, CHME Yulita Osuba, CHME Keith S. Otzen, CHME Linda J. Packham, CHME Peggy B. Pa lmer, CHME Calee Palmer-Ranger, CHME Warren K. Peter Parker, CHME Bill Parr, CHME Rosemarie Payne, CHME Burt Peake, CHME Michael Pemberton, CHME Rick Perez, CHME Linda Croft Perry, CHME Caryl Peters, CHME

Irene Peterson, CHME Mark Peterson, CHME Gigi M. Petticrew, CHME Adrian W. Phillips, CHME Robert W. Phillips, CHME Donald H. Pierson, CHME Phillip S. Pool, CHME Hans Poortvliet, CHME

Edmund Sansovini, CHME Peter P. Schaaff, CHME Andrew D. Schmidt, CHME

George W. Powell, CHME Robert Preece, CHME Jerome R. Provencher, CHME Edward A. Psioda, CHME Cesar F. Quijas, CHME Paul Quintavalla, CHME

James F. Scully, CHME Mary A. Seger-Caswell, CHME Lawrence A. Sena, CHME

John Rafferty, CHME Delton L. Rames, CHME Peter Rems, CHME Dawn B. Richard, CHME Dick Richard, CHME Pamela M. Richardson, CHME Rose Richardson, CHME Cheryl Ricossa, CHME Barbara Ritts, CHME Dana K. Robertson, CHME Lloyd Roczniak, CHME Jorge Apaez Rodal, CHME Deborah Roderick, CHME Rodolfo Rodriguez S., CHME Sonja Roeder, CHME Jean McDermott Rogers CHME Thomas Rohlfing, CHME Cheryl Roll, CHME Margaret Rose, CHME Peter Rose, CHME Dan Rosen, CHME David G. Rosenbaum, CHME Lawrence Barret Rosenfield, CHME Michael]. Rosenthal, CHME Linda A. Ruby, CHME John Rusk, CHME John]. Russell, Jr., CHME Gary C. Sain, CHME

Sheila S. Schofield, CHME Florence Schrank, CHME Carol Schroder, CHME Bernard H. Schwentick, CHME Lorin A. Scott, CHME

Joan Serot, CHME Christopher X. Shakalis, CHME Ashok Sharma, CHME Lynn Shatterly, CHME Terri Shaughnessy-Platz, CHME John Sheard, CHME Margie Sheffer, CHME Mark Shine, CHME Susan "Sam" Shockley, CHME Dottie Shomin, CHME Merrill S. Shupnick, CHME Yvonne Simmons Sickles, CHME Mary Max Silk, CHME Julie K. Skierkowski, CHME Bruce Small, CHME Hedda Smith, CHME Joy A. Smith, CHME William F. Smith, CHME John M. Snyder, CHME James E. Sochin, CHME Robert S. Somerville, CHME Martin Soran, CHME Luellen Sorget, CHME H. Edward Spangler, CHME Michael S. Srdjak, CHME Camille Stallings, CHME Mark Stein, CHME Steven J. Steinhart, CHME Walter]. Stencil, CHME Ron L. Stephens, CHME Theresa M. Stewart, CHME Merrit Storr, CHME

Cheryl Street, CHME Randall Stuart, CHME Carol ]. Summerfield, CHME Denise Swanson, CHME Garneta Swenson, CHME Kathy Ann Swindle, CHME Jacquiline Swinney, CHME Shirley Talbert, CHME John S. Taluskie, CHME Colin Tatem, CHME Arthur F. Taylor, CHME Solomon Tejpar, CHME Tara Nicole Thain, CHME Jean-Albert Thiel, CHME Dirk Thomas, CHME Timothy H. Thomas, CHME Ted Thompson, CHME Jim Tierney, CHME Nahed A. Meguid Timani, CHME Bruce R. Timson, CHME Axel K. Traugott, CHME

DeEtra Warchola, CHME Peter Warren, CHME Richard ]. Welch, CHME William Weld, CHME Bruce Whitaker, CHME Eileen Anne White, CHME Raymond T. White, CHME Iris Winburn, CHME Debra]. Woodrow-Leon, CHME Craig A. Woods, CHME Tim Yabor, CHME Lucille Yokel\, CHME Tom Yorke, CHME James M . Ziereis, CHME Gina Zinni, CHME

Noel]. "Al" Treadaway, CHME David A. Troy, CHME Carrie Turner, CHME Cam Usher, CHME Debra Van Every, CHME Anita Vanaman, CHME Cynthia Yannucci, CHME Maryellen Douglas VanRoyen, CHME Cynthia Veale, CHME Dean M. Victorson, CHME William R. Volk, CHME

J. P. Vowles, CHME Fred P. Wahl, CHME Chris Walker, CHME Jeffrey Walker, CHME Michael Walker, CHME Nell Wallace, CHME Ron Wallach, CHME Heidi Walters, CHME Jesse Walters, CHME

DISTINGUISHED LEADERS AND AWARD RECIPIENTS

213

HSMAl's Executive Vice Presidents 1950 to the Present Adrian W. Phillips, CHM E Adrian W. Phillips, CHME, whose hotel career included many years with the Chalfonte-Haddon Hall in Atlantic City, became active in what is today HSMAI when the organization was re-activated in 1936. He taught a sa les promotion course at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration each year, beginning in 1940. He also served as the association's seventh president 1941-1942 and as executive vice president from 1950 to 1965. Phillips, with William Morton, HSMA president in 1957, started HSMAl's annual advertising awards competition, a contest that now includes public relations and Web site awards as well. Adrian Phillips remained actively involved in the association until his death in 1991 at 91 years of age. For all that time, he continued to be the "conscience of HSMAI."

Frank W. Berkman, CHME Frank Berkman, CHME, began as an elevator operator at the Knights of Co lumbus Hotel and rose to assistant manager. He left the hotel to serve in World War II as a radio operator in the U.S. Navy. Upon discharge in 1945, he was named night manager at the 1,200 room Henry Hudson Hotel, was promoted to assistant manager, then to executive assistant manager, director of sales, and finally to general manager.

During that time, he joined the Hotel Sales Managers Association New York Chapter, and served as director, officer, and its president. He was elected to the Board of HSMA in 1954 and became president in 1958.

In 1963, he was selected as the pre-opening general manager of the highly successful Loews City Squire (now Sheraton Manhattan) and, in the same year, was chosen by the Partridge Cl ub as "Hotel Man of the Year." Berkman remained at the City Squire until he accepted the position of executive vice president of the Hotel Sales Marketing Association in 1965, where he continued until his retirement in 1982.

Berkman received numerous honors and awards including being named Sigma Iota Fraternity/Washington State University's "Hotel Man of the Year" in 1970 and was elected to the HSMAI Hall of Fame. In 1994 the Franklin W. Berkman Tourism Achievement Award was created by the Big Apple Chapter in his honor.

214

75 YEARS 0 F SERV I CE AND AC HI EV EMEN T

Leonard H. "Buck" Hoyle, Jr., CAE, CM P Leonard H. "Buck" Hoyle, Jr., CAE, CMP, is president of Accolade Communications, an events production and business communication company. A 31-year veteran of association and convention management, he served as director of conventions and then as executive vice president of the American Society of Association Executives. He was executive vice president of HSMAI for nearly 14 years, from 1981 through 1994.

Hoyle also was elected chairman of the Convention Liaison Council, a coalition of 2 7 major conference and hospitality associations throughout the United States.

A frequent speaker, teacher, and writer for industry and professional associations, Hoyle has served as dean of ASAE's School of Association Management, and chairman of the Professional Convention Management Association/ASAE Meetings and Exposition Technology Conference. He is the author of two books, his most recent,

Event Marketing, a professional text published by John Wiley and Sons, New York.

In addition, he serves as adjunct professor for the School of Events Management at the George Washington University, Washington, D.C. His professional credentials include the Certified Association Executive (CAE) and Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designations.

Robert A. Gilbert, CHME, CHA As president and chief executive officer of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, Robert Gilbert has been guiding HSMAI through an exciting period of change in order to reaffirm the organization as the definitive hospitality and travel marketing association in the world.

Prior to joining HSMAI in 1995, Gilbert was the vice president of marketing for Richfield Hospitality Services, Inc., the largest hotel management company in the world, where he was responsible for overseeing corporate marketing support for all Richfield hotels, which included products from every price tier in the industry.

Gilbert attended the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, and has been a member of HSMAI since joining the student chapter at Cornell. He is a frequent guest lecturer at the school. Recently, Gilbert was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the World Tourism Foundation and to the Travel and Tourism Coalition of the Travel Industry Association of America. He is also a member of the HITEC Advisory Board for the Hospitality Finance and Technology Professionals, the Board of Directors of the Convention Industry Council, and the Board of Directors of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

DISTIN GUISH ED LEADE RS AN D AWA RD RECIPIENTS

215

About the Autho-rs David C. Dorf, CHME As HSMAI Director of Education, Dave Dorf prepared over 20 different full-day educational seminars and workshops, traveling nearly 3 million miles a year to deliver them to chapters in over 40 countries around the world. He also wrote or edited many of HSMA's early books and pamphlets, including Marketing Your Hotel Through Direct Mail; The Basics of Hotel Sales; Front Office Selling Tips; and Hotel/Motel Letter Writing Tips.

A prolific author, Dorf wrote one of the first textbooks on marketing, Marketing for the Hospitality 'Industry (1967) for the Canadian Department of Manpower; two separate courses on Hotel-Motel Sales Promotion for the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association; coauthored two books on convention management for the EI; co-authored a college level text, Contemporary Hotel Sales, for Prentice Hall; and was the contributing author to a Spanish language text on strategic marketing for the Universidad de Baja California (Mexico). These publications were used by the appropriate HSMA Chapters and student groups.

In the 1960s and 70s, he was the editor of the annual HSMA Directory and Facilities Guide, the monthly HSMA Bulletin and Idea Exchange (later renamed the HSMA World), and the original editor of the HSMA Marketing Review. He was a regular instructor for 20 years at Cornel l University's Center for Professional Development and upon his retirement in 1990, he pursued a full-time academic career as professor of hospitality management at the International Institute of Tourism and Management in Semmering, Austria. He also taught at ITM's branch campuses in Prague, Czech Republic, and Bastad, Sweden.

Fully retired, he resides one minute from the beach on the Mediterranean in Protara, Cyprus.

Neil W. Ostergren, CHME During his 45-year career in the hospitality industry, Neil Ostergren has held marketing positions with Roger Smith Hotels, Hilton International, Americana Hotels, and Wyndham Hotels. He has been a consultant to Quatro Rodas Hotels in Brazil, the Ministry of Tourism in the Dominican Republic, and Hilton Hotels, suggesting and researching the Conrad name. He has also been involved with a variety of hotel and travel clients at two marketing agencies, Chenau lt and Robinson, Yesawich & Pepperdine.

As an active member of HSMAI since 1960, Ostergren served as president of both HSMAI and its Big Apple Chapter in New York, and is also a former chairman of the HSMAI Foundation. He is the founder of the HSMAI Marketing Review and writes regularly for a variety of publications on subjects related to the industry. He is a recipient of HSMAI's Albert E. Koehl Award, Northwest Airlines Distinguished World Traveler Award, and Murdoch Magazines' Hotel Marketing Executive of the Year Award. He is also a member of the HSMAI Hall of Fame.

Ostergren also has been active in other industry organizations including the Travel and Tourism Government Affairs Council, the Academy of Travel & Tourism, and the New York University Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management Advisory Board. He considers a highlight of his career being one of President Bill Clinton's first 42 delegate appointments to the White House Conference on Travel and Tourism.

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75 YE ARS OF SER VI CE AN O ACH I EVEMENT

One of the oldest advertising messages ever was found on a marble column at an ancient Roman health spa. A hand-carved "billboard" proclaimed, "Thermae M. Crassi Frugii. Aqua-Marina Et-Canin Dulci. Januarius. L:' Translation: proprietor Januarius

L. wanted Romans to know his establishment offered warm sea and fresh water baths. Just as any modern marketer would do, Januarius. Lwas touting the luxury features of his property. cHA PTE R oNE

Today, holographic videos are cutting-edge technology . Twenty years from now, they will be consumer products. For tour operators, hotels, and other segments of the hospitality industry, 30 videos - delivered either by mail or over the Internet - will be the ultimate advertising medium, showing potential visitors exactly what they will experience at their destinations. Of course, in a few years they will be supplanted by virtual reality systems that recreate the vacation experience even more vividly. CHAPTER TEN

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Published by the Foundation of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International