Hotel Operations
Weekend 2022
Book now
Opatija, Hotel Ambasador, Liburnia Hotels & Villas, Croatia
Take Part in HOW Festival!
HOW Festival is the only European conference on hotel operations!
In today’s world full of rapid changes across our business, we are constantly pushed to explore, learn, discuss and build relationships day after day. Therefore, HOW Festival gathers various industry players, e.g. hotel directors, hotel operations managers and department managers (Food and Beverage, Sales and Marketing, Tech, Human Resources, Housekeeping etc.) to provide top-quality insights and examine ongoing trends in hotel operations.
2000+
250+
100+
15+
HOW Festival 2022 program
Day 1 – October 20th 2022
Networking and Registration
Opening
Interview: Global trends in hotel operations
Srđan Mileković, Senior Vice President Operations at Hyatt International EAME
Moderator: Marina Franolić, Managing Director Central and Eastern Europe at The Bench
What do leaders say; what can we expect from 2023?
Karl Eckerstorfer, President of the Management Board at Liburnia Hotels & Villas
Josipa Jutt Ferlan, Cluster General Manager at Hilton Hotels Zagreb
David Taylor, CEO & President of the Management Board at Adriatic Luxury Hotels
Moderator: Živorad Vasić, Managing Director at Kadena Properties
Boris Simm, Group Vice President Operations and Member of the Executive Board at Ruby Hotels
Moderator: Sandi Kovačević, General Manager at CUBO Group
Daniela Campos, Global Director of Operations at Selina
Diana Lukić Grandov
Yvonne Tesch, Director Quality, People Development & Operational Excellence at Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences
Moderator: Luka Berger, CEO at Flexkeeping
Lunch break
15:00 – 15:40
Marko Bačić, Room Division Manager at Kempinski Hotel Adriatic
Tea Pestotnik Prebeg, Quality Sector Director at Valamar Hotels
Moderator: Igor Nekić, Chief Business Development Officer at Liburnia Hotels & Villas
15:00 – 15:40
Hall B
Ivo Gasparič, Director of Finance and Accounting Department at WUD Hotel Slovenia
Mincho Pachikov, General Manager at Mövenpick Zagreb
Liutauras Vaitkevicius, Managing Director at The Zetter Hotel Group
Moderator: Christoph Irving, Head of Partnerships at RoomPriceGenie
15:50 – 16:30
Hall A
Attracting hospitality employees from EU countries and globally
Ana Gazić, HR Manager at Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences
Marko Pekčec, HR Consultant at Manpower
Moderator: Nikolina Lokmer, Assistant General Manager at Grand Hotel Brioni, A Radisson Collection Hotel
18:00 – 20:00
Crystal Hall
Pub quiz
20:00 – 21:30
Crystal Hall
Dinner
21:30 – 02:00
Crystal Hall
Day 2 – October 21st 2022
09:30 – 10:00
Hall A
Coffee with key-note speakers
Srđan Mileković, Senior Vice President Operations at Hyatt International EAME
Boris Simm, Group Vice President Operations and Member of the Executive Board at Ruby Hotels
David Taylor, CEO & President of the Management Board at Adriatic Luxury Hotels
10:10 – 10:40
Being intentional with language – body, words and emotions
Katrin Melle, Regional Vice President Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Talent, EAME/SWA at Hyatt
10:10 – 10:40
Hall B
The improvement of hotel apps
Tilen Albreht, Assistant Manager at NEU Residences
Alexander Haußmann, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Straiv
Moderator: Sergio Foti, Director at Hoteliers Inspiration
10:40 – 11:10
Coffee break
11:10 – 11:50
Hall A
Value-based leadership: How to contribute as a leader to a more positive working space and sustainable environment?
Katrin Melle, Regional Vice President Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Talent, EAME/SWA at Hyatt
Dominik Pažin, Director of Operations at Liburnia Hotels & Villas, Liburnia Hotels & Villas
Yvonne Tesch, Director Quality, People Development & Operational Excellence at Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences
Moderator: Martin Ykema, Chief Operating Officer at Vienna House Hotelmanagement Gmbh
11:10 – 11:50
Hall B
Which new technologies will be must-haves for guests?
Sanja Mihaljević, Customer Success Manager at Hoteza Adria
Svetoslav Panev, Cluster General Manager at Best Western Hotels & Resorts
Moderator: Liutauras Vaitkevicius, Managing Director at The Zetter Hotel Group
12:00 – 12:40
Hall A
Outsourcing Housekeeping: the pros & cons (dependability on external partners)
Boris Simm, Group Vice President Operations and Member of the Executive Board at Ruby Hotels
Moderator: Aleksandar Vasilijević, General Manager at Hilton Belgrade
12:00 – 12:40
Hall B
How to achieve the “wow effect” – expectations of today’s guests
Tomislav Hrala, Director of Sales at One and Only
Sandi Kovačević, General Manager at CUBO Group
Mladen Ljubišić, Business & Partnerships Director at One66 Hotel
Moderator: Leonardo Buzov Vulas, Director of Sales and Marketing at Mövenpick Zagreb
12:50 – 13:30
Hall A
Gordana Kolenko, Career Coach at BHV Education, Croatia
12:50 – 13:30
Hall B
Building a unique, high – quality restaurant and bar concept
Dejan Majić, General Manager at Mama Shelter
Jason Wischhoff, Managing Director EMEA, CEE & Asia at Benihana
Moderator: Eljesa Saciri, Hotel Manager at The Zetter Townhouse Marleybone
13:30 – 15:00
Lunch
Book your place at HOW Festival 2022
hotelier pass FOR HOW 2022
Registration fee includes:
✓ All panel discussions and workshops
✓ Entertainment program on October 20th
✓ Dinner on October 20th
✓ Party on October 20th
✓ Coffee breaks
Registration fee does not include:
✗ Lunch on October 20th & 21st
BOOK NOW
*Accommodation and lunch(es) can be added to your booking via the registration form
**If you want to extend your stay over the weekend and book accommodation at special rates please contact: mice@liburnia.hr
Speakers
Yvonne Tesch
Director Quality, People Development & Operational Excellence at Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences
More About HOW Festival
The concept of HOW Festival is created with the aim to provide hoteliers with extensive and fresh knowledge, both practical and theoretical while encouraging them to utilize new services and products within their businesses and the hospitality industry. Throughout the event, significant attention is drawn to discussing global trends in hotel operations, ways of adjusting to the current situation and sustainability.
The program of HOW Festival is divided into two parts, where the first part consists of content designed for all participants, while the second part will take place in two parallel halls for the purpose of arranging topics by specific hotel departments. The new edition of HOW Festival also brings a greater number of workshops regarding various topics which will ensure more interactive content for our attendees.
So far, HOW Festival was held in 4 live editions, while 2 virtual ones were held in 2020. Every year the event gathers more than 500 participants, most of which are hotel directors, operational managers, and managers of various hotel departments. We were also accompanied by many other sponsors and speakers with whom we have transferred much knowledge through more than 100 panel discussions, workshops, or interviews.
Why Should You Attend?
Networking opportunities
Entertainment time
Broad range of industry insights
Examples of good practice
Advisory Board
Every year, we work towards developing a revised, enriched and up-to-date program that benefits our attendees in many ways. Our advisory bord members are experts in the field of hospitality and related industries that help us provide highly educational content to create a better environment within our industry.
HOW 2022 Sponsors
General partners
Partners
Patron
Media Partners
Testimonials
HOW Festival is being a really good way to get the industry back together. The selection of delegates is great. There's varied experience and lots to learn.
HOW is a perfect opportunity to exchange knowledge and experiences, but what's most important about it is that it brings us something new every year. It is a must-be-there place for everyone who wants to know what's happening in the industry and what are the new trends
You recieve a lot of new and useful information and additional know-how. It's good to get a perspective on different ways of thinking.
Conversations with people here help a lot with handling everyday challenges we face while working in the hotel industry. I highly recommend attending HOW Festival.
Get In Touch