Dive Brief:
- The American Hotel & Lodging Association and the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International Americas division struck a partnership to align their organizations and members around common industry goals, according to an AHLA announcement.
- Through the partnership, AHLA and HSMAI will connect their membership bases — 32,000 and 7,000, respectively — collaborate on events and campaigns, address workforce challenges and promote diversity, equity and inclusion.
- AHLA Senior Executive Vice President and COO Kevin Carey called the partnership a “big win” for both organizations and their members.
Dive Insight:
The two organizations first collaborated last year when HSMAI was brought on as a content partner for AHLA’s On The Road state hotel conference series. With the enhanced partnership, AHLA members will gain access to research and educational opportunities as well as HSMAI’s network of sales, marketing and revenue optimization professionals at a time when commercial strategy is accelerating in hospitality, Carey noted.
“We are always strongest as an industry when we speak with ‘one voice’ and support each other,” Carey said in a release. “This relationship advances that objective significantly.”
The organizations also intend to address industrywide issues regarding DEI and labor.
In a May 2022 survey of AHLA members, 97% said their hotels were understaffed, and 49% said they were severely understaffed. While employment in the broader leisure and hospitality industry has rebounded by nearly 900,000 jobs since that time, it’s still below pre-pandemic levels by approximately 370,000 jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
AHLA and HSMAI operate separate charitable foundations with different workforce and DEI initiatives. For example, AHLA Foundation currently offers career development resources through an apprenticeship program, entry level recruitment and training program and others. The organizations will work to align their initiatives to address workforce challenges and promote DEI.
