�The Corporate Membership program has met with great enthusiasm in its first year, garnering membership from 28 of the leading companies in the hospitality, travel and tourism industries,� according to Sal Dickinson, vice president of marketing for MeriStar Hotels & Resorts and HSMAI Foundation Chair. 

Robert A. Gilbert, CHME, CHA, President and CEO of HSMAI added: �We are very encouraged by the response we have received to our Foundation Corporate Membership program.  There is a great need for research with direct relevance to the hospitality sales and marketing profession.  We now have the means and a mechanism to fund such research projects.� 

The HSMAI Foundation formed a Research Advisory Council to develop strategies in support of the Foundation�s new Corporate Membership program and to set priorities for research projects to be funded by the Corporate Membership dues. 

Members of the Research Advisory Council met recently to discuss current research in the industry and prioritize topics to receive funding from the Foundation in 2001. 

�We are looking to come up with a solid base of information that can be used to identify trends and issues that are important within the hospitality sales and marketing discipline,� commented Cindy Estis Green, vice chair of the Foundation.  �The result will be a foundation of research we can count on.� 

The Advisory Council identified seven potential research topics for funding by the Foundation in 2001.  They are: 

1. Turnover in the sales and marketing profession within hospitality, travel and tourism. 
2. What are the current value drivers by market segment? 
3. Collection and management of information to maximize customer relationships. 
4. What changes preferences in loyalty programs and what is their value dimension? 
5. Which metrics are being used for marketing business performance? 
6. What is the ROI of pure branding communications? 
7. What is the correlation between brand awareness, brand perception, advertising spend and distribution (by segments)? 

�Being a member of the HSMAI Foundation�s Corporate Membership program will give industry leaders unprecedented access to groundbreaking research in the hospitality sales and marketing discipline,� said Gilbert.  �This is a very exciting time for the HSMAI Foundation.� 

Corporate Members in the HSMAI Foundation consist of a cross section of the most prominent leaders throughout the hotel, travel and tourism industries. They include: Bass Hotels and Resorts, Choice Hotels, MeriStar, Marriott, Accor, Cendant, Omni, Opryland, Starwood, John Q. Hammons, Manhattan East Suite Hotels, Prime Hospitality, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Smith Travel Research, RealTime Hotel Reports, The Ron Volper Group, Sonesta, Radisson, TravelClick, American Golf Corporation, Citicorp Diners Club, Irma S. Mann, HotelRevMax, Disneyland Resort, Fairmont Hotels, Millennium Hotels, Passkey.com and Wyndham International.  Participants will also be recognized in all published research and press releases about the findings. 

The Corporate Membership program was created to enhance the body of knowledge of HSMAI and its positioning in the industry by directing research initiatives and objectives to be implemented by the Foundation.  Participation in the Corporate Membership plan allows hospitality and travel executives to be pro-active in determining and directing research initiatives by providing input on objectives and the content of research studies. 

Dickinson said: �There is no other place, other than proprietary efforts, where sales and marketing executives can go to find benchmark studies that will help the hospitality industry stay ahead of the times.�  He added: �Participation in this Corporate Program actually allows members the ability to influence the research agenda.� 

Once the research is completed, the findings are published and distributed complimentary to Corporate Members well in advance of the industry at-large. 
Both levels of membership provide the following: 

• A seat on the HSMAI Foundation�s Research Advisory Council that sets the Foundation�s annual research agenda.  Supporter membership offers one voting representative on the Council that establishes research priorities, while Benefactors are entitled to two voting Council members; 
• Advance receipt of research studies; 
• Recognition in all marketing and promotional materials and forums as well as corporate name logo identity positioned in the same realm as timely and cutting-edge research; 
• Complimentary attendance to each one-day symposium, to review research results. 

• Two complimentary registrations to one HSMAI Executive Travel and Hospitality, Innovation, Networking and Knowledge (THINK) forum and discounts on other THINK forums.  In 2000, HSMAI held three Executive THINK forums on Future Technology, Branding and E-Commerce.  Planned topics for the 2001 sessions are Globalization, Adaptive Management and E-Commerce; 
• Free access to the HSMAI Foundation Online Resource Center that links the Foundation�s web site to more than 2,000 hospitality-related organizations; 
• Access to raw data will be made available to Corporate Benefactors who wish to use it to supplement their own research projects or for other research purposes.