The travel and hospitality industry has been one of the most resilient industries in the world – indeed, it has weathered many catastrophic events and has bounced back every single time. The industry has evolved during Covid-19 and is likely to continue evolving after.
 

Prof. Kaye Chon, Dean and Chair Professor of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM), told the Wednesday Journal that a new Asian wave is emerging in the hotel and tourism industry, suggesting the potential for high growth especially in the Greater Bay Area. He added that SHTM is attracting outstanding students from all over the world because the School actively embraces new technologies in educating and training the next generation of Asian hotel industry experts and professionals, and adopts innovation-based learning at its unique and fully integrated teaching and research hotel, Hotel ICON.

Calista Kim, an SHTM alumna who moved from Korea to Hong Kong to study at SHTM and stayed in the city to develop her career after graduation, is now a W insider at W Hotel Hong Kong. She said, “Hong Kong is a place of opportunities and growth and is the place for me to settle down and build my career in the hotel industry.”

Prof. Chon told HK01 that in order to nurture industry talents with a global perspective to meet the growing challenges faced by industry, two new elements, namely “Artificial Intelligence and Data Analysis” (AIDA) and “Innovation and Entrepreneurship” (IE), have been incorporated into PolyU’s General University Requirements (GUR) from this new academic year. Three new specialisms: Hotel Management, Smart Tourism and Hospitality, and Event and Experience Management are also being offered to students selecting their Major in their second academic year.

More about Prof. Chon and SHTM alumni’s insights on the post-pandemic development of the hotel and tourism industry can be found in the interviews with Wednesday Journal, HK01, and Ming Pao JUMP.