Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals has rejected a recent unsolicited merger offer by the American Hotel and Lodging Association. The HFTP Global Board of Directors determined that a global association with members from the entire hospitality spectrum would not help its membership by merging with a North American association with an advocacy focus whose constituents are primarily hotels. HFTP instead made a counteroffer to AHLA to work via memoranda of understanding as the Austin-based association does with other hospitality industry associations.
Currently, HFTP works with the Asian American Hotel Owners Association, Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association, Hotel Asset Managers Association—Middle East, Hotel Controllers and Accountants Association of Hong Kong, National Club Association and the Association of Private Club Directors.
“As a former director of AHLA, I know they do good work for the industry and their recent takeovers of HTNG and HAMA will definitely help these smaller associations,” HFTP CEO Frank Wolfe said in a statement. "But HFTP is a global association with global brands: HITEC, PineappleSearch.com, the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry and global certifications/certificates, not to mention our members from non-hotel segments. Our mission is education, not advocacy.”
HFTP is set to host HITEC Dubai from May 24-26 and HITEC Orlando from June 27-30. Plans for HITEC Europe will be announced in June and HFTP, along with its partner dmg events, are in the due diligence stage for HITEC India in 2024. Two other major projects that will be completed this year will be the publication of a global Club Accounts Dictionary with KPIs and the release of the 12th revised edition of the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry which is currently being developed in conjunction with AHLA and some of its members.
“HFTP is and wants to be a good corporate association partner," said Michael Levie, HFTP global immediate past president, who also is partner and COO of citizenM Hotels. "At the end of the day, we all are ambassadors in hospitality and with close cooperation we achieve the most."