Westfield, NJ - Employee training and employee retention is vital, and in this tough economy for the hospitality industry where people are the principal resource, we have to maximize the return of investment in training programs. Members and guests of the Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers (CHART, www.chart.org) will gather in Cleveland, Ohio, July 25-28, 2009 to share, network, and learn effective training and development practices that can quickly improve operational performance and increase support for employee training programs. This 78th semi-annual CHART conference will be held at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel. The full agenda can be viewed at www.chart.org/conference.php.

The 3 day conference (and the pre-conference sessions) is the premier event where hotel trainers, restaurant trainers and human resource professionals gather to learn from inspiring keynote speakers, participate in interactive educational break-out sessions, network together, and share best practices. The informative sessions are designed to help hotel and restaurant training professionals best solve issues facing the hospitality industry. Effective employee training programs and management training programs are key to improving employee retention.

In addition to the learning sessions, attendees will again participate in community service events off site to work side by side giving back to the host community.

Key issues to be discussed in Breakout Sessions are:

·     Leveraging your most Important Asset – Employees

·     How to Win, Respect and Influence Others

·     Moving from Manager to Leader

·     Using Play as Efficient, Engaging, Effective Training Tool

·     Strengthening your Brand through Philanthropy

·     Proving Return on Investment

·     Effective Training Approaches to Break through the Tough Economy

·     Leadership Training with Limited Resources

• What’s the Secret? Providing World Class Customer Experience, John DiJulius; Author, Presenter, Founder of The DiJulius Group
• Forging New Directions: Becoming Proactive in Face of Turbulent Change, Laura Berman Fortgang; Author, Personal Coach
• Zap the Gap! Working with Multiple Generations, Meagan Johnson, CSP; Generational Humorist

Pre-conference Workshops – Saturday, July 25

These four-hour Certificate Workshops are based on CHART’s Blueprint for Trainer Development: A Customized Competency Model for the Hospitality Industry.

• Communication and Influence
• Coaching and Development
• Program Design
• Participant Management

During the conference, the CHART Commitment to People Award will be presented to a member company’s President/CEO who has demonstrated his/her pledge to putting people first. The Spirit of CHART Award will also be announced and presented to a deserving member and scholarship award winners will be recognized.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to visit one-on-one with top training resource vendors during the Resource Gallery trade show.

To download the CHART Cleveland Conference brochure or to view the full agenda with descriptions, as well as register, visit www.chart.org/conference.php.

CHART, a non-profit professional association founded in 1970, is the leading resource for the development and advancement of hospitality training professionals. With more than 700 members from more than 400 multi-unit restaurant and hotel companies, CHART represents a workforce of almost five million. CHART includes all facets of hospitality training, learning and performance professionals; from entry level to senior executive. CHART’s mission is to develop hospitality training professionals to advance industry training practices and improve operational results by providing access to education, tools and resources.