Faculty & Research
Cornell alliance with D. K. Shifflet and Associates will create new knowledge for hospitality industry
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Linda Myers, 607-277-5035, lbm3@cornell.edu
ITHACA, N.Y. - Hoteliers and hospitality managers will soon get answers to key questions about the business and leisure traveler thanks to a new strategic data alliance between the Center for Hospitality Research at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration (CHR) and D.K. Shifflet and Associates (DKS&A), a leading provider of research and consulting services for all sectors of the travel industry.
The new alliance between the CHR and D.K. Shifflet and Associates is an opportunity for researchers to gain access to a wealth of data on consumer behavior in the travel industry. Hotel School Professor Gary Thompson, executive director of the CHR, said: "One of the center's objectives is to help the industry gain new knowledge on business and leisure travel patterns, and access to the D.K. Shifflet database will enable our researchers to explore a variety of key issues facing the industry."
Doug Shifflet, president and CEO of DKS&A, commented: "We are pleased with our new association with Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research and look forward to the exciting insights that are sure to come from this relationship. With over 10 years of trend information, our expansive database will easily supply a level of detail that will enable CHR to take its research to new heights. The entire industry should soon benefit from this alliance. "
DKS&A studies the global travel behaviors of Americans by conducting ongoing, monthly syndicated traveler surveys that form its DIRECTIONS Travel Intelligence SystemSM. Public and private sector organizations use DKS&A information to determine competitive hotel positioning, visitation to destinations, the economic impact of travel and tourism, and whether to invest in travel and tourism projects. DKS&A provides travel executives with tools to manage their performance in volume, market share and brand ratings for destinations, hotels, cruise lines, rental cars and airlines.
Based at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, the Center for Hospitality Research has 22 research fellows. The center sponsors research aimed at improving the hospitality industry's fundamental operating knowledge by bringing together the best insights of scholarship in hospitality and industry expertise. Development of the CHR's research efforts is augmented by an industry perspective through the center's advisory board and its 27 corporate sponsors. All studies are posted on the CHR Web site: http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu/research/chr..
The CHR also has strategic alliances with firms that collect data on lodging performance (Smith Travel Research and the Hospitality Research Group/PKF Consulting), the GDS (global distribution system) and Internet channels (TravelCLICK), and dining consumer behavior (Gazelle Systems). For more information on the CHR call (607) 255-9780.