On Wednesday, the nineteenth edition of the HotelloTOP Year Event took place during the Horecava in RAI Amsterdam. The theme of the HotelloTOP Year Event was 'The Power of Perspective'. Perspective opens the door to new insights, understanding and personal & professional growth. In a world that is constantly changing, the HotelloTOP Year Event offered a unique opportunity to learn and gain new insights through various perspectives.
The conference was successfully led by presenting duo Mandy Schild (HTH '07), owner of Present Savvy, and Niek van den Adel (SHMS '08), international speaker and author on hospitality. Together, they also own Speakers Club. Three Hotello's shared their stories with the 800 attendees: Renco Schipper (HMSL '16, co-founder SNACKWITHBENEFITS), Maud Martin-Bender (HTH '10, Director Bender Foodservice Equipment) and Robert-Jan Woltering (HTH '87, Managing Director De L'Europe Amsterdam). This was done in the TOP Talk format; a presentation of exactly ten minutes, in which twenty slides were visible for 30 seconds each.
After the TOP talks, The NXT GM Challenge was awarded, again in collaboration with Minor Hotels. The NXT GM Challenge is a challenge in which students or recent hotel school graduates participate with the aim of winning the prize of being General Manager of NH Schiller and NH Caransa for a year. The finals featured Vince Meurders (HMSL '24) and Constantin Benesch (HMSL '23). After an exciting battle, Vince Meurders may call himself General Manager as of September. Next, keynote speaker Jan van Setten took over the stage. A best-selling author and inspirational speaker on leadership, customer focus and organisational change. His keynote was absolutely surprising and a real eye-opener.
The Hotello of the Year Award 2024 was awarded to Iris Koning (HMSL '11). She left Melle Schellekens (HTH '09) and Ramez Ramzy (HTH '14) behind after a final one-minute pitch, where the audience in the room got to cast their votes. Iris proudly shared, "As Senior HR Manager within PepsiCo, I rolled out a mentoring programme aimed at attracting and supporting female talent from refugee backgrounds. My initiative has since been implemented globally within the company and awarded PepsiCo's Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Award in 2023. An important recognition that literally highlights hospitality. And I am extremely proud of that!"
Earlier in the day, at Future Hotello, the event for Hotello students, the Talent of the Year Award was presented to a young, promising Hotello. This award went to Judi Veldwijk (BUas '23), who, as a first-year student, is already building a very impressive career with her entrepreneurship in the wine world. The HotelloTOP Year Event ended with the well-known networking drinks, where the 5ACES turned the event into a true party with their music, attracting as many as 1,800 Hotello's and hospitality professionals.