The Great GM debate kicks off today

Hotelier Middle East is holding its first ever conference today aimed at providing GMs with a forum to discuss issues, challenges and opportunities facing hoteliers in the Middle East.

The Hotelier Middle East Great GM Debate, held at Jumeirah Beach Hotel, will see GMs participating in workshops most suited to their needs, with each workshop leader then presenting key findings back to the assembled group.

So overwhelming was the demand for such an event that registration for The Great GM Debate was over-subscribed more than a month before the conference.

Majid Sager Al Marri, director of classification at the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) will be the first keynote speaker this morning.

Al Marri is set to outline some recent developments at DTCM, including the Dubai Green Tourism Awards and the new hotel classification system, which he says will be introduced in Dubai by the year end.

“The GMs will have a better idea about the new classification criteria and types of classification, such as the new five-star accolades (platinum and gold) and also how the hotel industry will benefit from that new system,” said Al Marri.

Meanwhile, Nasser Saif Al Reyami, director tourism standards, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority, will also be presenting to the GMs to provide an update on developments within the Abu Dhabi hotel industry.

“They will be given a full update of all that is new in terms of our regulatory systems which impact them and also our plans for the future, which we will fully engage them in,” said Reyami.

The findings of the debate will be covered online at www.hoteliermiddleeast.com and in next month’s issue of Hotelier Middle East.