Hotel industry icon Sharp gave a keynote speech addressing operating in the down economy. Loveman’s presentation followed, covering topics from managing in a down economy to questioning age-old industry practices. The two-day program included a “State of the Las Vegas Industry” address by Marc Falcone (class of ’95) of Goldman Sachs, who also ran through a brief history of the Las Vegas Strip. Later that night, HEC guests gathered in the lounge for a speakeasy-inspired “afterglow,” where they were joined by Las Vegas executives.
The weekend, which took place at the Statler Hotel on the Cornell campus in Ithaca, New York, started on Thursday evening with a nightclub-themed opening cocktail party featuring addresses by Gailey and Hotel School Dean Michael Johnson. The conference hosted over 250 guests despite the economic downturn, a testament to the draw of Las Vegas and the interest in learning more about gaming. This year’s HEC featured a lineup of speakers that included Harrah’s Entertainment CEO Gary Loveman, Echelon Place CEO Bob Boughner, former Las Vegas Sands executive Brad Stone (Cornell class of ’77) and Four Seasons founder Isadore Sharp. “I truly believe that Hotel Ezra Cornell is a hotelier tradition that brings to life what we learn here at the Hotel School.” “It has been an amazing experience to lead such a talented group of individuals,” says Kira Gailey, managing director of HEC. Students do everything from cooking and serving meals to marketing and public relations to turndown service and a “Personal Concierge” program. Every year, 400 students-over half of the Hotel School-are involved in Hotel Ezra Cornell. Harrigan is one of 17 members of the 84th Annual Hotel Ezra Cornell board of directors, appointed annually to lead the organization. Everyone who works in this industry can truly learn something from the large scale of the Las Vegas community.” “What’s great about Las Vegas is that it has everything-food and beverage, design, operations, ties to Wall Street-but bigger and better than anything anywhere else in the world.
Harrigan, a Cornell senior, is in charge of the educational and leisure programming for the weekend. “We chose the theme because Las Vegas encompasses a variety of different aspects of the hospitality industry,” says Program Director Alison Harrigan. In the past, Hotel Ezra Cornell, or HEC, has had themes such as “Sustainability Through Innovation” and “A New Era of Leadership.” This year, the HEC board of directors decided to focus on the Las Vegas industry with a tagline of “Illuminating the Possibilities: Learning from Las Vegas.”
The purpose of the weekend is for students to practice the skills they have learned in the classroom and to showcase their talents to industry professionals. Comprised of educational seminars, leisure activities and food-and-beverage events, the weekend strikes a thoughtful balance between education and entertainment. Hotel Ezra Cornell is an annual, weekend-long educational conference hosted by the students of the Cornell School of Hotel Administration for leaders of the hospitality industry.
What happens in Las Vegas came to the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration in April for the 84th Annual Hotel Ezra Cornell.