Professor Adele Ladkin was an invited keynote speaker at the International Hospitality and Tourism Research Conference organised by the Hotel and Tourism Management Institute (HTMi) in Sörenberg, Switzerland.  The conference took place over two days in November 2012, with the first day being held in Luzern and the second day at the HTMi campus in Sörenberg.  The theme of the conference was ‘Preparing hospitality and tourism professionals for challenging and changing times’ which included two strands, 1) Learners, industry and educational institutions: together preparing for futures in hospitality and tourism and 2) The challenges of changing products and changing patterns of demand for hospitality and tourism.

Professor Ladkin’s speech was entitled ‘The people aspect of the tourism industry: current human resource trends and challenges’.  Dr. Ross Tinsley from HTMi opened the conference, and other keynotes were given by Professor Mike Osbourne, Professor of Adult and Lifelong learning from the University of Glasgow, And Mr. Yves Givel, Head of Performance and Talent Management, Hyatt Hotels Corporation.

The two days gave participants from academic, industry and HTMi students the opportunity to share ideas and participate in discussions.  Presentations by students were given on the second day of the conference, with hospitality and event management students taking part in the conference organization and facilitation.  Professor Ladkin says “human resources are an integral part of the tourism and hospitality industry and this was an excellent opportunity to learn about current issues and practices in developing people to work in the sectors”.