SGS hosted the first Hospitality Industry Forum in the Philippines on November 24, 2015. The aim of the event was to share information about the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) economic integration and its possible effects on the hospitality industry.

The forum was attended by over 65 representatives from the travel and hospitality sector, including major hotel, airline and restaurant brands.

Three perspectives were taken by the key speakers of the event. Peter Hvidberg, SGS Global Business Manager for Travel and Hospitality, flew in from Geneva, Switzerland, to share international trends and best practices. Peter provided insights on how participants can equip themselves with macro-environmental information to craft strategies and make their organizations more competitive.

Jordan Imutan, President of Whitehall Consulting, talked about the impact of the ASEAN economic integration on the Philippines and its industries, and how customer experience can play a big role in increasing an organization's competitive edge.

Finally, Sol Mohal, SGS East Asia Technical Manager for Food Safety, shared her thoughts on food safety management systems and the importance of eradicating food poisoning incidents in the context of today's digital world.

The event also hosted an open-forum, where guests were encouraged to ask the three key speakers about their topics. The wide-ranging debate included further discussion on the readiness of the private and public sector for the ASEAN economic integration and the impact on air and land traffic as tourism and business travel increases in the next few years. Overall, the discussion highlighted many issues, which will hopefully help the industry prepare for economic integration.

What Attendees Had To Say

'My congratulations on such a successful event. The Hospitality Without Borders Conference was well organized, informative, thoughtful, and enjoyable. I certainly learned relevant information regarding the importance of ASEAN integration'
Miguel Castillo, Training Specialist, Philippine Airlines.

'It was a fantastic forum with so much to learn.'
Gillian Legaspi, Area Hygiene Manager, Makati Shangri-La Manila

About SGS

SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 80,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 1,650 offices and laboratories around the world.

SGS SA issued this content on 2015-12-14 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 2015-12-17 03:08:23 UTC

Original Document: http://www.sgs.com/en/Our-Company/News-and-Media-Center/News-and-Press-Releases/2015/12/SGS-Hosts-First-Hospitality-Industry-Forum-in-the-Philippines.aspx