Letter from the Dean – November – December 2023

There is no greater responsibility for every institution of higher education than cultivating the next generation of leaders. At Boston University’s School of Hospitality Administration (SHA), we view this as our mandate. I believe we must empower our students and all within our industry today by inspiring new ideas, embracing change and leading by example.   

To inspire, we must be unafraid to challenge convention. At SHA we recognize the multi-billion-dollar hospitality industry is rapidly evolving. The foundational pillars of lodging, restaurants, travel, and tourism have proven resilient even through the most challenging of times and have also catalyzed hospitality as a business strategy for other customer-facing businesses. Sport & entertainment venue management, assisted living, healthcare, online and virtual experiences, and so much more are now applying the tenets of hospitality with a clear objective – to maximize the bottom line. This sea change provides a unique opportunity to think differently. Collectively, we can even redefine what hospitality means. 

Our contention is that hospitality is all about experience innovation. The act of being hospitable is rooted in meaningful human interaction and making people feel welcome. This is the very bedrock of the experiences we value as individuals and as a society. We also live in a time when innovation has never been more transformative. The combination of purposeful technology and openness to new ways of thinking has enabled a competitive advantage for those businesses that harness these tools to innovate experiences.  

This special edition of The Boston Hospitality Review, edited by Jonathan Katz, Lecturer at Boston University School of Hospitality, focuses on the meaning of hospitality and experience innovation. The featured contributors come from a wide range of professional backgrounds and disciplines. The common thread? Experience innovation. It’s expressed from different perspectives, but it is unmistakable that caring for one another is not only good for humanity but makes sound business sense. 

What happens when we rethink hospitality and excel beyond expectations? We become transformative. We develop loyalty by raising our relevance. We create memories that can last a lifetime. We build businesses that profit by making a difference. And we become true experience innovators. 

Warmly,

Arun Upneja, Ph.D.
Dean of Boston University School of Hospitality Administration