Following the IH&RA Annual General Assembly held during the Congress, IH&RA members unanimously voted that the Association should focus on…
Following the IH&RA Annual General Assembly held during the Congress, IH&RA members unanimously voted that the Association should focus on two core membership categories: national hotel and restaurant associations (NACE) and international and national hotel and restaurant Chains. IH&RA currently counts approximately 30 national and international chain members representing over 40 brands, and 80 national associations representing over 100 countries.
A Chains Council of CEOs from international and national hotel and restaurant chains met for the first time at the IH&RA Congress to discuss strategy and set policy for the Association’s monitoring and lobbying activities on behalf of the Chains. NACE members also met and agreed to form regional satellites to comprise hospitality Associations in North America, Latin/Central America, Europe, Middle East/Africa and Asia Pacific in order to facilitate communication between NACE members and IH&RA. Regional NACE meetings will be held at least once a year to review IH&RA lobbying activities, as well as prioritise topics of regional and global concern to the industry. Like the Chains Council, the NACE Council will make recommendations to the IH&RA from the Association point of view.
Summary IH&RA 2003 Business Plan
I. Mission – To represent, protect, promote and inform the hospitality industry and to enable its members to achieve their business objectives.
Vision – To be recognized by inter-governmental organisations and the private sector as the sole representative of the hotel and restaurant sector at the global level, working to ensure our industry’s profitability.
II. Strategic objectives:
* To be the voice of the international hospitality industry, representing its collective interests before policy makers and international organisations
* To play a leadership role in gaining recognition for the economic, social and environmental importance of the hospitality industry
To achieve these objectives, IH&RA’s role is:
* To monitor continuously the on-going work of the international agencies whose work covers issues of concern to the industry,
* To position and express the interests of the industry after consultation with the National Association Chief Executives’ Council (NACE) and the Chains Council,
* To lobby the appropriate international policy-making agencies to ensure that the industry’s interests are understood and taken into account,
* to act as a networking/information platform for the Members and Industry as a whole.
III. Membership – IH&RA currently counts approximately 30 national and international chain Members representing over 40 brands, and 80 associations representing over 100 countries.
Membership organisation:
* NACE – Under the chairmanship of an elected National Association CEO, the National Association Chief Executives (NACE) will meet at least once every two years, during the IH&RA Conference, and, as need arises, once in alternate years.
* NACE Regional Groups – IH&RA will recognise and support Regional NACE groups who set up regional meetings as they see fit. They will set their own agenda necessarily including reports on IH&RA lobbying activities and discussion of topics of regional and global concern. IH&RA will always be represented at these meetings.
* NACE COUNCIL – A NACE COUNCIL will be comprised of heads appointed by the Regional Groups estimated to be 5 to 8 Groups. This Council will serve as a strategic policy-input body and will make recommendations to the Board from the Association point of view. It will meet face to face or via satellite communications and ensure consistent global representation.
* CHAINS COUNCIL – A Council bringing together the CEOs of the chains (or their appointed representatives) will meet once a year in conjunction with the IH&RA Conference (when applicable) or in a predetermined location in conjunction with an international industry event such as ITB Berlin, WTM London, etc. This Council will serve as a strategic policy-setting body making recommendations to the Board from Chain point of view.
* Task Forces – Task Forces from either NACE or Chains will be activated as needed to deal with specific issues on the international agenda requiring particular investigation and follow-up.
IV. Representation
Operating at the international level, IH&RA focuses its activities on monitoring and lobbying the UN and its agencies and the other inter-governmental organisations whose work directly or indirectly impacts the hospitality and wider tourism industry. These organisations are:
* The United Nations (including the Economic & Social Council – ECOSOC) and UN agencies
* Other relevant inter-governmental agencies
IH&RA is formally recognised as an accredited Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) by ECOSOC and has close and long-standing ties with a number of UN agencies, specifically WTO/Tourism, UNEP, ILO and UNESCO.
IH&RA enjoys international credibility, founded on its broad membership and a solid reputation based on the quality of its industry representatives, published research and contributions to the work of these agencies. IH&RA’s effectiveness is based on the quality and breadth of its relations with these inter-governmental organisations.
IH&RA’s representation activities take the following forms:
* scanning information and documentation produced by these agencies
* attending selected meetings covering topics of concern
* maintaining formal and informal contact with these organisations
* eliciting information on new initiatives and centres of interest before they are officially announced
* drafting appropriate responses – from informal correspondence to formal positions
* representing IH&RA and the hospitality industry generally at international conferences and key events
V. Exchange of Information and Recruitment
IH&RA’s communication activities take the following forms:
* informing Membership of forthcoming issues, using an e-Alert mechanism and soliciting reaction/comments
* regular e-newsletters
* consolidating members’ data and information to support an industry position
* publishing formal position papers on all key issues
* trimester reports on major topics (eg Food Safety)
* organising NACE, Regional NACE and Chains Council Meetings
* driving Membership Recruitment
VI. Operations/Services
IH&RA operations and services role is two-fold. First, to track and promote product and service utilization by Members and second, to coordinate the following:
* maintaining current database and informal contact on all issues on a proactive basis
* implementing Worldwide Partners (WWP) initiatives, i.e. AMEX
* soliciting new WWP and Industry supporter funding for special projects
* Managing Congress and Eurhotec logistics
* Setting up the Web Master Role
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