Hilton has been named the #1 Best Workplace in Asia by Great Place to Work and the top-ranked hospitality company for the 10th consecutive year. Hilton has over 99,000 team members across more than 1,300 hotels in Asia Pacific, with its workforce doubling since 2017. The recognition reflects Hilton's people-first culture and sustained investment in talent.
Hilton has announced the appointment of Kolin Pound as Area President for the Caribbean and Latin America (CALA), effective August 24, 2026. In this role, Pound will oversee Hilton's operations in the region, leading hotel teams and partnering with owners and key stakeholders to drive performance and support continued growth. He joins from Ares Management, bringing extensive hospitality, real estate, and investment experience. Hilton currently operates 315 hotels and resorts in the region, with 150 more in development.
Hilton has announced the appointment of Kolin Pound as Area President for the Caribbean and Latin America (CALA), effective August 24, 2026. In this role, Pound will oversee Hilton's operations in the region, leading hotel teams and partnering with owners and key stakeholders to drive performance and support continued growth. He joins from Ares Management, bringing extensive hospitality, real estate, and investment experience. Hilton currently operates 315 hotels and resorts in the region, with 150 more in development.
Amadeus released the Travel Dreams 2026 report, based on surveys of 6,000 travelers and 500 hoteliers. It finds travelers increasingly use travel as a mental health reset, with 41% aspiring to return with a calmer nervous system. Hotels can generate an additional US$1 million annually by retailing personalized attributes like early check-in/late check-out. Sustainability is a key differentiator, with travelers willing to pay an average 11.7% premium for eco-friendly hotels. AI investment is accelerating, but travelers still value human touch.
An SAP Concur blog post notes that COVID-19 has caused unprecedented disruption to the travel and hospitality industries: eight in 10 hotel rooms are empty, and 2020 is projected to be the worst year on record for hotel occupancy; ARC reported that airline ticket sales for the week ending April 5, 2020 fell 95.7% year-over-year. The article advises travel managers to take action to stabilize T&E programs, including adjusting T&E programs to support the changing business environment, ensuring reporting transparency, breaking down silos, preparing for the next disruption, and building stronger internal and external partnerships.
A SAP Concur blog post introduces sentiment analysis (also known as emotion AI), which uses natural language processing and machine learning to analyze positive, negative, or neutral opinions in text, applicable to survey research, social media analysis, and tracking psychological trends. Using the hotel industry as an example, it explains that hoteliers can aggregate and assess ratings and reviews to improve guest satisfaction. SAP Concur Labs and UX Analytics developed a sentiment analysis tool for user product reviews that automatically extracts themes to understand customer feelings and identify popular and frustrating features. The article also discusses the complexity of sentiment ana…