Hotel Technology Next Generation (HTNG)
announced the election of two new board members.  Thomas R. Peck Jr.,
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer for MGM MIRAGE, and
Todd N. Thompson, Chief Information Officer for Starwood Hotels &
Resorts Worldwide, Inc., were elected at the June 29 board meeting,
filling two vacancies and restoring the board to its maximum size of ten
senior hotel technology executives. 

“We are delighted to gain the experience, perspective and commitment of
these two exceptional individuals,” said Barry Shuler, Senior Vice
President and Chief Technology Officer of Marriott International, Inc.,
who also serves as the current President of HTNG.  “Tom Peck and Todd
Thompson both bring important perspectives from a wide range of
technology leadership positions spanning several industries, as well as
travel and hospitality.  We have also seen their commitment to active
involvement by their companies in various HTNG efforts, which is
critical to our success.”

 

Commenting on his appointment, Tom Peck said “MGM MIRAGE is committed to
using standards-based technology wherever we can.  HTNG is the key
organization in the hospitality industry that is driving the adoption of
existing standards and helping to create new ones.  I look forward to
helping HTNG accomplish its mission of simplifying the integration,
deployment, and management of the technologies that we need.”

 

Peck joined MGM MIRAGE as CIO in March 2006, following eight years at
the General Electric Company (GE), most recently as Executive Vice
President and CIO for NBC Universal’s global entertainment business,
encompassing Television, Universal Pictures, Home Video, Studio
Operations, and Theme Parks and Resorts.  He is a certified Six Sigma
Master Black Belt, has graduated from several of GE’s executive training
programs, and is a published author.

 

Todd Thompson, based in suburban New York City, joined Starwood as CIO
in late 2006.  Todd has 25 years of experience in technology, including
system development and implementation, program management, business
process reengineering, and IT executive management.  Most recently, he
served as CIO of JetBlue, a company that has been widely recognized as a
technology innovator in the airline industry.

 

“We need our technology vendors to work better together if they are
going to meet Starwood’s needs, and HTNG is playing an important role in
that process,” said Thompson.  “At the same time, as an industry we need
to communicate with a common voice about technology to our hotel owners,
to ensure that the building design and capital budgeting process
incorporate critical elements for deploying and managing next-generation
technologies.  I believe that HTNG has the vision to carry this mission
forward, and will involve key people in the Starwood technology
organization in HTNG’s efforts to benefit our guests, associates, and
owners.”

 

HTNG’s board of directors consists exclusively of hotel company
executives with senior level technology responsibility, representing a
wide range of large, midsized, and small hotel companies operating in
every market segment and every geographic region of the world.  Current
board members include:

 

*      Barry Shuler, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology
Officer, Marriott International (President)
*      Robert Bansfield, Vice President - Information Technology, Hyatt
Hotels Corporation (Vice President)
*      Jane Durment, Chief Information Officer, The Marcus Corporation
(Secretary/Treasurer)
*      Jack Braman, Chief Information Officer and Vice President of
Information Technology, The Las Vegas Sands Corporation (The Venetian)
*      Jeffrey Edwards, Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice
President of Global Revenue Services, Wyndham Hotel Group
*      Fraser Hickox, General Manager, Research & Technology, The
Hongkong & Shanghai Hotels Limited (The Peninsula Group)
*      Thomas Peck, Senior Vice President & Chief Information Officer,
MGM MIRAGE
*      Gustaaf Schrils, Vice President, Hotel Technology & Services,
InterContinental Hotels Group
*      Todd Thompson, Chief Information Officer, Starwood Hotels &
Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
*      Wibecke Vinke, Senior Vice President & Chief Information
Officer, Kempinski Hotels S.A.
——-