Hyatt Hotels is pumping young blood through its veins. Travel Agent was on location last week in Chicago to take part in a Hyatt Hotels Think Tank, a meeting of the minds among the travel industry's youth.
Hyatt scoped out the best of the best agencies in the business to recruit millennial agents to attend a two-day seminar on how to better the relationship between Hyatt's brands, services to clients and the relationship with travel agents. Over the course of two days, Hyatt execs and agents, in conjunction with Stanford University's d.School, worked together in team building exercises to ultimately create a hypothetical product that would further bolster the triangular relationship between hotel, client and travel agent.
The overall sentiment throughout the event was excitement, as agents expressed their relief at being at an industry event with other like-minded people. It was more than just a typical "round table" type event, with a scribe listing takeaway points. It forced the agents to be active with their peers and with the community of Chicago.
This was the first event of its kind for Hyatt Hotels. But with such an enthusiastic attendance and response, we do not think it will be the last.