As part of the experiential learning programme promoted by the university, Miss Coco Hu Yikou and Miss Taylor Ma Qian Lin from FHTM were awarded a trip to Beijing, participating in the Future Hoteliers Summit (FHS). Dr Man Tat Cheng took part as an advisor. The event took place at Beijing Hospitality Institute (BHI) from 10th to 12th October 2018. BHI joined the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne network certified schools in 2009. FHS has kept the tradition of the annual Youth Hoteliers Submit originated by Lausanne. Core to this tradition is that the event is organised by students. It offers a platform for collaborative exchange of industry insights. FHS 2018 has attracted participants from more than 30 institutions, industry practitioners such as Hotel Jan Beijing, Rosewood Beijing and Sanlitun Chao, and academics Prof Zvi Schwartz from University of Delaware and Dr Nathan Zhang from Oxford Brookes University. Prof Schwartz’s seminar on revenue management particularly caught the attention of the audience.
The keynote speeches and panel discussions have helped participants to understand some current issues of the hotel industry. Students from different institutions were randomly grouped into 10 teams. These teams took on the challenge - designing a hotel business model. They were given less than 24 hours to develop their idea and present it in the final day. Coco’s team, Green Plus, worked on the sustainability concept and delivered it without sacrificing feasibility. Their idea was logical, reasonable and evidence-based, which has made them the winner of the competition. Taylor’s group were strong competitors, as they brought about a new idea that unsold rooms could be sold with complimentary offers. To Coco and Taylor, the most valuable reward of the event was the networking opportunity. They especially found that working with people from a different cultural background was a good experience.
