BU SHA Hospitality Leadership Summit Highlights Innovation for the Future of Hospitality

 

Hospitality Leadership Summit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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(February 8, 2022) Boston, MA – Boston University School of Hospitality Administration (BU SHA) is proud to announce that its annual Hospitality Leadership Summit will take place in-person on Friday, April 1, 2022, at the Hotel Commonwealth in Boston. The Hospitality Leadership Summit brings together students, alumni, faculty, and the community to hear from world-renowned industry leaders on topics and trends shaping the future of the business. The Summit, which is produced by a committee of student leaders with guidance from SHA faculty, also serves as the capstone event of the BU School of Hospitality Administration’s year-long 40th Anniversary celebrations.

For registration and information, visit BU SHA Hospitality Leadership Summit | School of Hospitality Administration.

“In these fast-changing, complex times, hospitality is more important than ever. This one-day Leadership Summit showcases the expansiveness of hospitality and the magnitude of its impact on the way we live,” said Arun Upneja, Ph.D., Dean of Boston University School of Hospitality Administration. “The Summit is a reinvigorating opportunity to derive inspiration and ideas from visionaries and trailblazers in our industry. We need moments like the Summit to collaborate with one another so we can imagine, and ultimately build, a sustainable path forward together.”

The program for the day of Friday, April 1, 2022, 9 am-5:30 pm features inspirational leaders giving motivational talks and sharing their vision for the future. 

Schedule and Speakers

  • 8:00 AM Registration (coffee & pastries)
  • 9:00 – 9:30 AM Welcome | Summit Student Co-Chairs: Caitlin Nguyen and Olivia Lizza | Leora Lanz, Assistant Dean of Academics and Chair of the Hospitality Leadership Summit
  • 9:30 – 10:00 AM Selina: Denis Drossart, Vice President of Education & Talent
  • 10:00 – 10:30 AM Elizabeth Carducci, former Chief Revenue Officer at Medallia
  • 10:30 – 11:00 AM REEF Technology: Jared Goldberg, SHA’20, Senior Launcher – Special Ops and Nick  Anastasiades, Vice President of Growth, Hospitality
  • 11:00 – 11:30 AM Coffee and Networking Break
  • 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM The Culinary Edge: Graham Humphreys, CEO and Maureen Simmons, Head of People 
  • 12:15 – 12:45 PM SDS Ventures: Sanjeev Shetty, President
  • 12:45 – 2:00 PM Lunch and Networking Reception
  • 2:00 – 2:30 PM Toast: Daniel Iannucci, SHA’12, Mid-Market Sales Leader
  • 2:30 – 3:00 PM WeWork: Quendrida Whitmore, Head of Community
  • 3:00 – 3:30 PM Google Travel: David Pavelko, Global Travel Business Development   
  • 3:30  – 4:00 PM ICON Award: Presented by Dean Arun Upneja
  • 4:00 – 5:30 PM Reception and BU SHA 40th Anniversary Celebration

“We are proud to see this Summit grow in span and scope each year as it draws top-tier leaders from around the world to share wisdom and insights,” noted Leora Lanz, Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs and Chair of the Summit. “The Summit exemplifies how our School remains current and even a step ahead to motivate our undergraduate and graduate students to innovate for the future of our business.

ICON Award

The Summit culminates with the much-anticipated annual ICON award announcement and ceremony. The ICON award is presented to a leader who has been a pioneer in the industry and whose accomplishments have paved the way for enduring, transformative contributions of deep value in the world of hospitality and in our society as a whole. Past ICON awardees include in 2021, restaurant pioneer Danny Meyer, Founder and CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group and Shake Shack; and in 2020, Richard L. Friedman, President and CEO of Carpenter & Company Inc., credited, among a long list of accolades, for reshaping the Boston skyline with The Four Seasons Hotel & Private Residences at One Dalton. Stay tuned for the announcement of the 2022 ICON awardee.

Summit Sponsors

BU SHA is grateful for the generous support from our Summit Sponsors* 

Summit Sponsors 2022

*The Sponsor List is current as of January 19, 2022 

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About Boston University School of Hospitality Administration: Established in 1981 and now celebrating 40 years of Innovating the Business of Hospitality, Boston University’s School of Hospitality Administration (SHA) offers students a combination of rigorous academics, liberal arts curriculum, and international experiences for the pursuit of success in lodging, restaurants, food service, and other avenues of the hospitality industry. SHA has a unique relationship with the city of Boston, where the area’s hotels and restaurants provide students with numerous opportunities for internships to satisfy work experience requirements for their degrees. For more information about the powerful SHA undergraduate program, visit https://www.bu.edu/hospitality/academics/undergraduate/ and to learn more about the internationally recognized MMH program, visit https://www.bu.edu/hospitality/academics/graduate-programs/mmh/ .

About Boston University: Founded in 1839, Boston University is an internationally recognized institution of higher education and research.  With more than 34,000 students, it is the fourth-largest independent university in the United States. BU consists of 17 schools and colleges and the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences, along with a number of multi-disciplinary centers and institutes integral to the University’s research and teaching mission. In 2012, BU joined the Association of American Universities (AAU), a consortium of 62 leading research universities in the United States and Canada. For more information, visit https://www.bu.edu/about/

MEDIA CONTACTS

Mara Littman, Dir. of Corporate & Public Relations

mlittman@bu.edu / 617-353-4496

Leora Lanz, Assistant Dean, Academic Affairs
lhlanz@bu.edu / 516-680-8529