Opening General Session
Bridgitta Witt, Vice President, Environmental Affairs
Hyatt Hotels & Resorts
Wednesday, 29 July | 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Topic: Sustainability in the Hospitality Industry
Brigitta Witt serves as Vice President of Environmental Affairs for Global Hyatt Corporation. Since her appointment in December 2007, Witt has assisted in developing and implementing a corporate environmental policy that expresses the company’s commitment to minimizing its impact on the global environment. Witt’s employee-oriented approach to environmental policy emphasizes awareness and education to promote and reinforce a culture of environmental consciousness through all facets of Hyatt’s global operations. She reports to John Wallis, Senior Vice President of Product and Brand Development.
Witt brings to Hyatt more than a decade of experience in marketing, change management and strategy consulting. Prior to joining the company, she served as Senior Director of Business Development and General Manager for GreenDimes, an organization dedicated to reducing the production and environmental impact associated with junk mail. Her responsibilities included managing daily operations and establishing partnerships with global companies and organizations.
Witt has spent the greater part of her professional career developing and implementing large-scale programs and initiatives at a variety of organizations, ranging from global corporations and state governments to Silicon Valley start-ups. At Wayport, Inc. she managed the deployment of company technology and WiFi connectivity to over 8,000 restaurants for their largest client, McDonald’s Corporation. For Epylon Corporation she implemented a strategic sourcing program for the New York City Board of Education, and in the early stages of her career, she developed global marketing programs for Hyatt’s (international hotels?).
The recipient of a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the University of California, San Diego, Witt also earned a Master of Science degree in Integrated Marketing from Northwestern University.
Originally from Mexico City, Mexico, Witt currently resides in Chicago, IL with her husband.
Second General Session
Robert Grimes, Chairman
Accuria
Thursday, 30 July | 9:00am to 10:00am
Topic: Trends in Hospitality Technology
Robert Grimes is Chairman of Accuvia. Headquartered in Potomac, Maryland, Accuvia provides information technology services for the hospitality, foodservice and retail industries through its Consulting, Events and Publishing entities. Accuvia’s information and educational services are delivered through consulting, publishing, research services and the production of exhibitions, conferences and networking events internationally.
In 1996, Rob co-founded, with Nation’s Restaurant News, FS/TEC, the foodservice industry’s largest technology tradeshow and conference. In 2000, he launched HOSTEC, a technology-focused exhibition and conference for the hospitality and foodservice industries in the U.K, which in 2002 joined forces with the IH&RA and is now called the HOSTEC-Eurhotec Exhibition and Conference. Rob has been a regular technology columnist for Nation's Restaurant News and has contributed articles to many other industry publications in the U.S. and abroad as well as co-authored and contributed to a number of books. He has spoken at over 500 industry shows, conferences and events around the world.
In addition to Accuvia, Rob serves is a Partner and serves as Chairman of The Sergeant’s Program, an internationally known military-style fitness program headquartered in the Washington, DC area. Rob also is the Founder and CEO of Capitol Fresh, a multi-unit foodservice operator/franchise off the Boston based Fresh City concept serving the Maryland, Virginia and DC region; prior to that, he also served as President of That’s Amore Restaurants, a Washington D.C. based operator of family -style Italian restaurants. Rob was also previously the Founder and Chairman of Cyntergy; a global technology services company in the hospitality, foodservice and retail industries which was sold in 2001.
Rob has received many industry and company awards over the years. In April 2000, Rob was honored with the Maryland Executive of the Year Award sponsored by the Maryland High Technology Council. His companies have been awarded the 1999 & 2000 Deloitte & Touche Maryland Technology Fast 550 Award and the 1999 FastTrack Revenue Growth Award; sponsored by Arthur Andersen. Other awards include: the Joseph A. Sciulli Entrepreneur of the Year Award (1996), sponsored the Suburban Maryland High Technology Council; the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year Award (1994), World Young Business Achiever Award (1994), sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and presented by His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh; and the Penn State Alumnus of the Year Award (1994).
Rob is a Conti Professor in the Program of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HR&IM) at Penn State University and also serves on the Advisory Boards of the HR&IM Programs at the University of Delaware and the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Rob has served on the Board of the National Restaurant Association as an Industry Representative and is an active member of the Global One Chapter of The Young Presidents Organization. Rob is a triathlete, having completed the Ironman in Lake Placid, New York in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2007 and Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii in 2005.
Third General Session
Michael Johnson, Ph.D., Dean and E.M. Statler Professor
Cornell University
Friday, 31 July | 9:00am to 10:00am
Topic: Meek's Path: The Evolution of Hospitality Education
Michael D. Johnson has served as the sixth dean of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration since July 1, 2006. Dean Johnson also holds the E.M. Statler Professorship of Hotel Administration. Founded in 1922, Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration was the first collegiate program in hospitality management. Today it is regarded as the world leader in its field. The school is dedicated to excellence in teaching, research, and service.
Among his accomplishments, Johnson has overseen a new branding initiative for the school, with a focus on Hospitality Leadership through Learning. He has also led the development of the Leland C. and Mary M. Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship. The institute was made possible by a $15 million gift from the Pillsbury, the largest single gift in the history of the school and one of the largest ever in hospitality education. Additionally, Johnson is working with the school’s real estate faculty to build the Center for Hospitality Real Estate Studies, which will showcase faculty expertise in the real estate and finance fields. Johnson came to Cornell from the University of Michigan, where he was the D. Maynard Phelps Collegiate Professor of business Administration and Professor of Marketing at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business. He spent 24 years at Michigan.
Johnson has also consulted for a diverse range of companies and public agencies, including Promus Hotels, Northwest Airlines, the National Association of Convenience Stores, Dell Corporation, Dow Chemical, Schering Pharmaceutical and Volvo. His consulting work has focused on marketing strategy, services management, service excellence, customer portfolio management, new service development, customer satisfaction measurement and relationship management.
Born in Bottineau, North Dakota, Johnson grew up in Madison, Wisconsin. He holds a PhD and MBA from the University of Chicago, and a BS with honors from the University of Wisconsin. Johnson is married to Jill Kobus Johnson. The Johnsons have three sons, Alex, Andrew, and Thomas.
