Since 2000, Cris has been employed by Hotel Capital Advisers which manages the hotel investment activities for HRH Prince Alwaleed/Kingdom (www.kingdom.net). In early 2006, Cris moved from New York to London where he currently manages the company’s hotel investment activities for Europe, actively seeking hotel investment opportunities for the various hotel brands in which Kingdom has an investment (i.e. Four Seasons, Fairmont, Raffles, Swissôtel and Movenpick). Cris also leads the asset management effort for several of Kingdom’s hotels in Europe, including The Savoy in London, the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in Geneva and the Fairmont Hotel in Monte Carlo. Prior to joining HCA, Cris worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Hospitality and Leisure Practice, a global hospitality consulting firm based in New York and Strategic Hotel Capital (now known as Strategic Hotels & Resorts), a global hotel investment company based in Chicago, Illinois.

Elana is a Consultant & Valuation Analyst with the London office of HVS International (www.hvsinternational.com), a global consulting and valuation services organization focused on the hotel, restaurant, shared ownership, gaming, and leisure industries. Originally from Zürich, Switzerland, Elana moved from New York to London in 2005 and currently advises on hotel development projects and single asset and portfolio valuations in primarily Europe and the Middle East, with a client base ranging from hotel operators and developers to debt-providers and hotel investment funds. Prior to joining the firm last year, Elana worked for seven years in various operational front and back-of-house F&B roles across Europe and the US for renowned establishments such as Chef Daniel Boulud and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts.

Since arriving in London in April of 2006, Cristina has served as Conference and Government Sales Manager at two Taj Hotel properties in Westminster: 51 Buckingham Gate and the Crowne Plaza London St. James. Part of the Tata Group, India's premier business house, Taj Hotels is a collection of 57 hotels in 40 locations across India with an additional 18 international hotels. Prior to her move to London, Cristina spent four years working for The Pierre Hotel in New York City where she led the Conference Services Department. A Four Seasons Hotel since 1980 The Pierre’s management was taken over by Taj Hotels in July of 2005. Currently, Cristina is a member of both the American Women’s Club here in London and SITE International (the Society of Incentive and Travel Executives).

Erik is an Associate with HVS Hodges Ward Elliott. He joined HVS International in July 2005 to perform hotel valuations and feasibility studies across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Since 2006, Erik has focused on brokerage and financing assignments. Prior to joining HVS International, he worked for SuperClubs, a company managing all-inclusive resorts, in an operational capacity as an assistant Hotel Manager. Erik graduated in 2005 from the Master in Management for Hospitality program at the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University (USA).

Alison graduated from the Hotel School at Cornell University in 2000 and began her career working for InterContinental Hotels Group in London. As an analyst for their development team, Alison executed financial evaluation and analysis of hotel developments throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Subsequent to her position in London, Alison returned to the United States and worked as a senior consultant for Pinnacle Advisory Group. Her experience included market studies and valuations for proposed and existing asset portfolios and individual properties throughout the United States and the Caribbean. Alison joined PFK in London in 2005 and since then has undertaken market studies, valuations, operator searches and strategic analyses in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Since graduating from the Hotel School she has remained active in both the New England and London alumni chapters.

Philipp has been employed by HVS International in the position as Consultant and Valuation Analyst since 2006, specializing in hotel valuation and consultancy (www.hvsinternational.com). Since joining HVS, Philipp has conducted a number of valuations, feasibility studies and consultancy assignments, mainly in Central and Eastern Europe. Philipp previously worked as a mystery shopper, based in Bangkok, Thailand, and assessed international hotels in the four-star and five-star segments in over 50 countries. Philipp has six years’ operational experience, working in various positions at the Colombi Hotel, Germany, Château de Bagnols and Troisgros, France, The Mark Hotel, New York and Marbella Club Hotel, Spain. He holds an MBA from IMHI (Essec Business School, Paris and Cornell University) and spent one semester at Cornell University in 2003.

Jakob has joined Mountain Capital Ltd., a private equity investor in hotel and leisure real estate, as an asset manager in 2006. In his current position, Jakob seeks hotel investment opportunities in Europe and the UK and also asset manages a portfolio of 28 properties. Previously, Jakob worked for the HVS International London office and Treugast Solutions Group in Munich, Germany, a major German hotel consultancy firm. Jakob moved to consulting after six years of operational and managerial hotel industry experience in Europe and the US. Jakob is a native Austrian and while working in the US had attended several PDP courses at Cornell. He was also one of the founding members of the CHS Germany Chapter in 1997. Please feel free to get in touch with Jakob for London dining or running or the best mountaineering and skiing places on the continent.

Andreas is a Manager in the tourism, hospitality and leisure advisory team, which forms part of Deloitte's corporate finance practice. Andreas’ previous work experience includes strategy consulting and operational experience in Asia, Europe, and the US. He has lived and worked in Europe, Africa, Asia and the US. Prior to joining Deloitte Corporate Finance, he worked with Deloitte Consulting and Andersen for four years.

In addition to a strong knowledge of the European and US markets, he has undertaken assignments in a wide variety of international locations, including France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, Dubai, Mauritius, Hong Kong, Macau, The Gambia, and various others. Areas of specialisation include: strategic planning, mergers and acquisition support, unit and portfolio valuation, resort development, operational/performance benchmarking, and development feasibility