International Council on Hotel, Restaurant,

International Council on Hotel, Restaurant, & Institutional Education

I-CHRIE Business Action Plan

2005-2009

2810 North Parham, Suite 230Richmond, Virginia USA 23294

Telephone: 01 (804) 346-4800FAX: 01 (804) 346-5009

Website: http://www.chrie.orgEmail: [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Contents

1. Background 31.1. The Strategy1.2. The Market1.3. Board of Directors

2. Association Summary 42.1. Vision2.2. Mission2.3. Values2.4. Strategic Plan2.5. Governance2.6. Membership2.7. Members Services2.8. Financial Summary

3. Growth Strategy 73.1. Operational restructuring3.2. Planning for growth3.3. Key to Success3.4. Marketing to our Key Market Segments3.5. Marketing I-CHRIE as a Global Authority3.6. Improving Membership and Retention3.7. Increase Attendance at I-CHRIE Sponsored Events3.8. Increase I-CHRIE’s Financial Resources3.9. I-CHRIE website www.chrie.org

4. Implementation 124.1. Predicted Revenue Spend4.2. Forecasted Return4.3. Personnel Plan4.4. Milestones

5. Conclusions 13

Appendices 14

A Financial Statement 31st December 2003B 2004 Year End BudgetC Marketing Action PlanD Membership Action PlanE Membership Marketing CampaignF Conference Action PlanG Financial Resources Action PlanH Predicted Revenue Spend 2005-2009

I-CHRIE Business action plan 2005-9 2

I Forecasted Returns 2005-2009


1. BackgroundIn developing this business action plan, the Board of Directors started from the first principles, by examining I-CHRIE’s Vision in that I-CHRIE will become the recognized global leader in hospitality and tourism education and research. Its Mission is that I-CHRIE is a nonprofit professional association, providing programs and services to improve the quality of education, research, service, and business operations in the hospitality and tourism industry and finally its Values. I-CHRIE, an inclusive, collegial association, values creative, ethical and progressive action aimed at the improvement of global hospitality and tourism education and research. We also examined our 2003 strategic plan that set out what we intended to do during the next 5 years, our priorities, who would do it, how we intended to do it, how we would measure progress and monitor the quality of our work, and the position we intended to reach by the end of the period. It acted as a road map of where the organization is heading.

However, after careful examination by the Strategic Planning committee it was determined that I-CHRIE needed a sharper and more focused approach over the next 5 years if I-CHRIE was to grow and flourish. The Board of Directors at their Board meeting in Philadelphia in January 2004 worked to develop a business plan for the future.

The areas where the I-CHRIE Board of Directors felt that the most improvements needed to be made would be based on the following goals; Marketing to our key market segments; Improving membership and retention; Increasing attendance at conferences; Creating new financial resources. The strategies and objectives to achieve these success factors will be made explicit in this business plan.

1.1. StrategyA growth strategy is being adopted over a 5-year period.

1.2. The MarketFounded in 1946, the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education is the global advocate of hospitality and tourism education for schools, colleges, and universities offering programs in hotel and restaurant management, foodservice management and culinary arts.

In recent years, International CHRIE's focus has expanded and its mission statement has evolved, making it a marketplace for facilitating exchanges of information, ideas, research, products and services related to education, training and resource development for the hospitality and tourism industry (food, lodging, recreation and travel services). Serving as the hospitality and tourism education network, we strive to unite educators, industry executives and associations


1.3. Board of DirectorsI-CHRIE is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors that is elected by the membership and is charged with the responsibility for policy decisions and oversight of all I-CHRIE activities.

1.3.1 Executive CommitteeThe Executive Committee consists of the following positions and meet formally on 4 occasions during the year. The Executive Vice President is the only salaried member of the Board of Directors.

President and Chair of the BoardVice President Secretary - 2-year appointmentTreasurer - 2-year appointmentImmediate Past President Executive Vice President – Permanent, full time paid appointment

1.3.2. Board of DirectorsIn addition to the Executive Committee the full Board consists of the following elected members who meet twice during the year, once at the annual conference in the summer and secondly in January

Canada CHRIE Federation President – annually electedEuroCHRIE Federation President – annually electedDirector of Chapters – 2-year appointmentDirector of Conventions - 2-year appointmentDirector of Industry Services - 2-year appointmentDirector of Information and Publications - 2-year appointmentDirector of Marketing - 2-year appointmentDirector of Member Services and Development - 2-year appointmentDirector of Professional Development - 2-year appointment

1.4. I-CHRIE Headquarter StaffThe staff in the headquarters in Richmond Virginia USA consists ofExecutive Vice PresidentDirector of OperationsConference ManagerESD/Member Services CoordinatorPublications CoordinatorMembership CoordinatorOperations Coordinator

2. Association SummaryInternational CHRIE was founded in 1946 as a not for profit organization, the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (I-CHRIE) has


long been respected as the leading organization for educators and industry professional involved in the broad spectrum encompassing hospitality and tourism education

2.1. VisionI-CHRIE will become the recognized global leader in hospitality and tourism education and research.

2.2. Mission I-CHRIE, a nonprofit professional association, provides programs and services to improve the quality of education, research, service, and business operations in the hospitality and tourism industry.

2.3. Values I-CHRIE, an inclusive, collegial association, values creative, ethical and progressive action aimed at the improvement of global hospitality and tourism education and research.

2.4. Strategic PlanThe strategic plan for I-CHRIE includes explicit statements of our purpose, values and standards. This helps to promote an understanding of what we do, why we do it, the kind of organisation that we are, the values we hold, and the standards we set ourselves in the conduct of our work. Taken together the Strategic Plan offers transparency to the members and makes the Board of Directors accountable. The Strategic Plan takes a 3-5 year perspective and identifies the following goals:

Goal 1: Elevate the Quality of Global Hospitality and Tourism EducationGoal 2: Provide Professional Development for All MembersGoal 3: Expand Working Partnerships with Industry and Allied AssociationsGoal 4: Communicate Effectively with Internal and External ConstituenciesGoal 5: Strengthen and Grow International CHRIE

2.5. GovernanceI-CHRIE is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors who is charged with the responsibility for policy decisions and oversight of all I-CHRIE activities. The elected officers are supported by a professional staff (see Appendix B) that has been recruited from within the profession. The headquarted address for I-CHRIE is 2613 North Parham Road, 2nd Floor, Richmond, Virginia, USA 23294

2.6. MembershipI-CHRIE currently has almost 1,400 members in 58 countries, and that number continues to grow as the hospitality and tourism field evolves and expands. I-CHRIE’s interdisciplinary focus provides a distinct advantage that no other organization can offer by providing a powerful catalyst that blends the various disciplines within the hospitality and tourism industry through communications, volunteer programs, and worldwide conferences.


2.6.1 Membership Categories.There are three primary categories of membership in I-CHRIE: individual, institutional/ corporate/organizational, and premium. I-CHRIE’s membership is focused on hospitality and tourism education and is international in scope and includes: individual educators; industry professionals; colleges and universities granting baccalaureate and graduate degrees; institutions granting associate degrees, certificates and diplomas; high school/secondary schools; hospitality and tourism industry corporations; and related companies, associations and organizations. I-CHRIE also offers a graduate membership.

2.7. Member ServicesTo meet the varying needs of its members, I-CHRIE provides a wide range of member services, products and benefits that are designed to accomplish the organization’s goals and objectives. In addition the website www.chrie.org provides information to its members and electronic publications. The website currently has in excess of a ½ million hits per month. The products, services and benefits include:

Professional Publications

CHRIE Communiqué (monthly) electronically.The award-winning Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Education (each ¼).Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research (each ¼).HOSTEUR™ web magazine (semi-annual) electronically and open access.Guide to College Programs in Hospitality, Tourism & Culinary Arts (p.a.).Conference Proceedings from our annual conferences.

Networking OpportunitiesAnnual conferences (I-CHRIE; EuroCHRIE; ApacCHRIERegional Chapters.Student opportunities through Eta Sigma Delta.I-CHRIE Alligator Hour receptions.

Leadership OpportunitiesServe or chair one of the many Special Interest Groups (SIGs), committees, task forces, or serve as one of our member-elected Board of Directors.

Professional OpportunitiesReduced registration fees for our annual conferences.Reduced trade show booth rates.Advertisement and recruitment of faculty members through publications and website.Significant advertising discounts in I-CHRIE publications.Full-page program description in the ‘Guide to College Programs’

Professional Development


http://www.chrie.org/

Participation in the Career Academy, free of charge Faculty internships (open to I-CHRIE individual members)Ample opportunities to present papers and to publish.Career development resources including mentoring.

2.8 Financial Summary.The International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (I-CHRIE) is a nonprofit organization established for the purpose of fostering the international advancement of teaching, training, learning, research and practice in the field of hospitality and tourism management and encourages and facilitates the professional development of its members. I-CHRIE’s programs and services include memberships, conferences, and publication of journals, newsletters and directories. I-CHRIE’s revenues come from membership dues, conference registrations, advertisements and subscriptions to publications. The financial statements for year-ended 31stDecember, 2003 can be found in Appendix A and the 2004 annual budget in Appendix B.

3.0 Growth StrategyIt has been acknowledged that if I-CHRIE wishes to achieve its vision of being the ‘recognized global leader in hospitality and tourism education and research’ then changes have to be made in the way that the organization operates. For a number of years the membership has fluctuated at circa 1300 and the conference attendance at the annual conference has been in decline. These two areas are at present the main sources of revenue for the Association. Therefore it seems prudent to concentrate on strategies that focus on increasing revenue in these areas. It is recognized that to increase revenue things have to be done differently and the Association has to act ‘smarter’.

3.1 Operational RestructuringThe first stage in the process has been to reorganize the staff in the headquarters in Richmond and to review job roles and responsibilities. The appointment of a Director of Marketing and a Director of Operations will go some way to achieving the growth strategy within the organization.

3.2 Planning for GrowthAlthough the strategic plan has remained the same the I-CHRIE Board of Directors have developed particular goals and objectives to help achieve the growth. These are supported by 1,3 and 5 year strategies that need to be actioned over this period of time. In addition the resource implications have been determined to enable I-CHRIE to budget effectively year on year. It is worth noting, that we believe that no other organization of its kind exists in the world like I-CHRIE that has the collection of expert talent on Hospitality and Tourism Education in terms of the research and industry experience. In total this "brain power" and human capital correspond thousands of years of experience and knowledge. This uniquely positions I-CHRIE as the expert to add value to hospitality and tourism knowledge seekers.


3.3 Key to SuccessThe areas where the I-CHRIE Board of Directors felt that the most improvements needed to be made were the following:

Marketing to our key market segments; Improving membership and retention; Increasing attendance at conferences; Creating new financial resources.

The strategies to achieve these keys to success are now outlined.

3.4 Marketing to our Key Market SegmentsTo employ a marketing strategy that focuses on raising the profile of International CHRIE across the world as the association of choice, this will be achieved by marketing to these key segments:

3.4.1 Faculty members Collect information about the needs and expectations of I-CHRIE, for example 2-year directors have different value enhancers, as compared to graduate level faculty, who are more interested in research and scholarship opportunities, therefore, meeting faculty needs in teaching, research and training. An example would be to attend the I-CHRIE “Research” Academy for junior faculty to sharpen research and scholarship skills (A teaching Academy is also available for I-CHRIE members).

3.4.2 Industry members Continue to assess what industry sees as the value of I-CHRIE membership and how industry can add value to academics e.g. classroom visits, student internships, research and grant opportunities for hospitality and tourism researchers (e.g. access to data sets) and faculty internships and to determine how educators can add value to industry (e.g. training, research, etc.). An annual forum between industry and faculty members will be arranged to identify and develop how follow up communications can be cascaded to the entire I-CHRIE community.

3.4.3 Graduate Students Working to make I-CHRIE more attractive to graduate students by determining what they value as a member of I-CHRIE (research presentations, career contacts for faculty positions and industry connections for research projects, etc.). Graduate students will be linked with an industry member to identify research needs.

We will explore the holding of future I-CHRIE conferences on college campuses that have facilities and the desire to host and showcase their hospitality and tourism programs. This would help reduce costs by allowing savings to be passed on to graduate students and others that may be fiscally constrained. (These can be held on campuses – every


other or third year.) I-CHRIE has been promoted vigorously at the last three January Graduate Conferences.

3.4.4 Undergraduate Hospitality & Tourism StudentsUtilization of the Hosteur magazine as a vehicle for publishing undergraduate research but also as a promotional document for I-CHRIE to promote careers in hospitality and tourism education. A follow up a membership campaign for students who have graduated from Eta Sigma Delta and in general to promote closer links between ESD and International CHRIE. Personalised letter from the I-CHRIE President or VP to offer congratulations on their college and academic achievements will be considered.

3.4.5 I-CHRIE Conference The conference will add to all market segments in 2004 from high school teachers (NRA, Pro-Start, etc.) to Researchers (Research Career Academy - Professional Development) by providing such membership benefits as the I-CHRIE educational materials, professional development “Academy’s”, the web site, the I-CHRIE conference, the journals, etc

3.5 Market I-CHRIE as the Global Authority on Hospitality and Tourism KnowledgeMarket and promote I-CHRIE as the worldwide source, or repository of information on careers, education and training tools, and research data. A portal will be developed with a "clickable" map of the world where people can visit the I-CHRIE information portal and click on the state, or country they want information from. The plan can be found in Appendix C.

3.6 Improving Membership and RetentionTo double the membership of I-CHRIE, over 5 years in each of the existing categories, whilst retaining 85% of existing membership each year.

3.6.1. Increase membership in each of the existing categories I-CHRIE will increase current membership to a total of 1500 by January 2005. It will achieve this by developing a promotional CD that includes member benefits/testimonials of long standing I-CHRIE members and so on. The 2004 Membership Marketing Campaign will be implemented as seen in Appendix D.

3.6.2. Double the size of our current membership of I-CHRIE in the next five years.

Membership will be doubled over the next 5 years by developing a system for Direct Deposit/Debit Card for payment of dues thus encouraging an ‘opt out’ rather than an ‘opt in’ system. We will offer discounts to multiple members of same institution who renew all at same time to save administrative costs. To promote premium memberships, with more $’s


resulting in more members. By establishing a five year membership pattern (perhaps a lifetime membership $ cost) that is supported by long term member appreciation certificates in recognition of those members who have been loyal to the Association. We will promote and encourage sponsors to move up to a level of sponsorship by providing increased benefits. This campaign will take on a benefits model rather that a pricing strategy. The plan can be found in Appendix E

3.7 Increase attendance at I-CHRIE sponsored eventsTo provide business conferences that supports the mission and vision of I-CHRIE as a forum for developing intellectual, personal and networking opportunities of the highest standard.

3.7.1 Market the conference more effectively to members and non members

A survey will be conducted focusing on individuals who are not returning to the conference to ask ‘what do you need us to do in order to return to the I-CHRIE conference”. Based on this data and analysis changes will be considered and implemented as appropriate. To attract new markets we will improve marketing material and target specific categories of industry and education from outside the membership. We will consider publishing conferences proceedings using an ISBN number as the advertising tool for promoting future conferences. This will improve our circulation of readers and promote I-CHRIE toward its overall vision of becoming the recognized global leader in hospitality and tourism education and research.

3.7.2 Develop conference themes based on three tracks that will benefit all members

The conferences will continue to promote and better disseminate relevant and high quality research across the world. Three tracks will be developed and will focus on education, training and research. These tracks will consider a more ‘hands on’ approach and will focus on best practice in both industry and academia. In doing this a fresh view of the conference scheduling will be completed and I-CHRIE will produce a catalogue on an annual basis as a quick reference for members to access material on the website.

The career academy will be supported through a grant and will offer participants a ‘knowledge exchange’ in a teaching and learning environment. It will be part of the I-CHRIE Annual Conference and preference and free registration will be given to members who register for the whole conference. A long-term objective will be to develop the I-CHRIE Diploma and find an accrediting body. This will involve developing criteria for attending career academy sessions and then to award an overall diploma to the individual based on credits achieved. This will support the membership retention objective, as credits will be accrued over a period of time.


3.7.3 Provide opportunities for IndustryThe conference committee will ensure that it sensitively raises industry involvement in all conference activities. Workshops will be developed and panels from educators will provide forums specifically based on industry needs. These will be based on providing up to date information about student internships, student admission procedures and selection processes and student characteristics. The plan can be found in Appendix F.

3.8 Increase I-CHRIE financial resources through a variety of strategies including, but not limited to, sponsorships, grants, and endowments.

To ensure the financial viability of I-CHRIE by sourcing existing and new stakeholders using a project based approach, the following categories will be used.

3.8.3 Increase gift giving to I-CHRIEEncourage individuals to make contributions through a separate form and direct mailed letters culminating with a year-end appeal letter to all members asking for gifts and funds. This letter can be sent under the name of the past president. In addition connect with the global campaign of United Way as 501 (3)c organization so that individuals and businesses can give through this model. In the longer term create a planned giving campaign, ‘leave a legacy programme using endowments’

3.8.4 Increase and diversify sources of revenues for I-CHRIEDevelop a model of revenue sharing between Federations and I-CHRIE (or chapters and I-CHRIE) that is mutually beneficial and oriented towards maximum revenue growth and optimum for both I-CHRIE and the Federation. Encourage faculty sabbaticals to write and prepare materials that can be sold and revenue shared with the faculty. This will be promoted annually at the Deans and Directors Luncheon. We will create an E store with I-CHRIE logo products and merchandize and will turn some of our current articles (from our periodicals and the Guide) into saleable products. The cost benefits of an I-CHRIE branded credit card will be investigated.

3.8.5 Increase sponsorship Revenue for I-CHRIEClarify further the pineapple document that explains the benefits of being sponsors at different levels and consider a new set of benefits (which means putting company names in front of more people) for sponsors at various levels. We will analyse the list of previous sponsors and re-invite them to the table by developing a plan to publicise and disseminate information about I-CHRIE sponsors to give them a bigger impact for their money. Platinum members will be given access to ESD alumni and platinum sponsors will be provided with a complementary I-CHRIE membership for a person that they choose, such as the CEO in recognition of their valued support.


We will encourage our current sponsors to move up the giving ladder – from bronze to silver, from silver to gold, from gold to platinum and from platinum to Patron (placeholder). In turn we will price more competitively the mailing list with lower rates for higher-level sponsors; sell the list only to loyal members and sponsors and build on developing a strategy for colleges to see themselves as sponsors. We will be looking at offering and promoting joint sponsorship activities at the annual conference.

3.8.6 Develop Grant Revenue for I-CHRIEWe will develop our grant raising capacities through the I-CHRIE office. The Executive Vice President will undertake professional development in this area. We will identify and target companies that have grant giving foundations or subsidiaries and potential organization that offer grants for pedagogic development across continents for instance the European Union.

Consideration will be given to grants that can be awarded for developing new products and services such as modules/courses, texts, and training programs in business etiquette, wine and dine, diversity management, career finding for high school students, career finding for college graduates, and so on. The plan can be found in Appendix G

3.9 I-CHRIE website www.chrie.orgThe I-CHRIE website will be redesigned to facilitate the growth strategy. This will involve an increase in server capacity and the appointment of a part time Webmaster so that further electronic communication, sales and storage capacity can be realized.

4.0 Implementation This business action plan will be implemented from January 2005 although strategies will start to be put into position after the annual conference in Philadelphia in July 2004. The implementation strategies are identified for a five-year period until 2009. However like any action plan it will be utilized as a working document and will be changed and updated as situations and circumstances change. The Board of Directors will own the business action plan and the staff at the Richmond Office will support its operationalization.

4.1. Predicted Revenue SpendThese predictions are based on the actions plans that have been developed and will span a 5-year period. It will inform the annual budget accordingly. These predictions do not include any fixed costs such as additional staffing or the call on staff time to support the plan. This part of the business action plan still needs to be developed.

4.2 Forecasted ReturnsThese are based on the action plans and will be used as performance indicators in relation to the revenue spend. These too need further development.


http://www.chrie.org/

4.3 Personnel PlanThis part of the business action plan is missing. A personnel plan needs to be carefully considered by the Executive Vice President in conjunction with the Executive Committee. This will then be approved by the Board of Directors and built into the annual budgets.

4.4 MilestonesEach year the business action plan will be measured according to the revenue spend and the returns that have been forecasted. Each Director on the Board will take responsibility for a component part of the plan. The Richmond office will provide the data to enable this measurement to take place.

5.0 ConclusionsThis business action plan is evolving. It is based on a growth strategy for International CHRIE for the next 5 years. The goals will focus on:

Marketing to our key market segments; Improving membership and retention; Increasing attendance at conferences; Creating new financial resources.

These goals and objectives have been translated into the predicted revenue spend and forecasted returns. These will be measured on an annual basis from the data generated from the Richmond office. The Board of Directors will take responsibility for helping to achieve the goals together with the Executive Vice President, the Director of Marketing and the Director of Operations.

There is still work to carry out in terms of developing a personnel plan to support the increase in membership and the changes to products and services. In addition the over haul of the website will be a crucial factor in achievement of this business action plan. Nevertheless this will be a useful document to start the process and can be considered as being long overdue. This document will communicate our objectives to the Finance Committee in terms of what the Governance of I-CHRIE want to do in the future and the additional budget that will be required to take the Association forward to grow and be visible. This will take us some way to achieving our vision in that I-CHRIE will become the recognized global leader in hospitality and tourism education and research and to fulfill our mission as a nonprofit professional association, providing programs and services to improve the quality of education, research, service, and business operations in the hospitality and tourism industry.

25th June 2004



Documents

International Council on Hotel, Restaurant,