AAHOA in 2011

For AAHOA, New Year brings resolve to create new awards

The holiday and New Year season is a time of nostalgia as we remember and respect the rich traditions of our past. It's also a time of inspiration as we optimistically anticipate an abundant future. Also, most certainly, it's a time of resolution as we make plans to dream bigger and live bolder.

That's true for each of us as individuals, and it's also true for us at AAHOA as we focus on our activities during the year ahead.

In 2011, doing business in the hotel industry will continue to mean complexity, complications and change. AAHOA will help hoteliers adapt to this challenging marketplace in four meaningful, measurable ways.

First and foremost, our advocacy with franchisors and government bodies at the national, state and local levels will remain strong. Our work on behalf of fair franchising as well as fair banking, fair taxing, and fair competition are unchanging and unyielding priorities.

Second, our professional development will enable our members to learn, improve and build an even firmer foundation for themselves as well as for future generations. Ongoing education and improvement can't be overemphasized. In good times, they help you to succeed while in difficult times, they enable you to survive.

Third, our products and services will provide valuable benefits to our members and continue to create revenue streams that keep AAHOA financially healthy. For example, an online travel agency and a purchasing cooperative are two important in-house services that are currently under development.

Fourth, our commitment to serving the community must continue to remain a top priority. One example of how we are currently reaching out to serve is the AAHOA "Salute to Soldiers" program through which members donate free hotel nights for use by returning military personnel and their families. Another example is AAHOA's involvement with the Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, which aims to improve education in rural and underprivileged areas around the world.

The spirit of volunteerism is vital to the success of AAHOA. We are successful as an association when hoteliers are not just members, but when they are active members – when YOU are involved and engaged.

AAHOA's strength comes from our members. We at AAHOA will continue to count on you – and call on you – to be the real voice, the real strength, the real difference that is AAHOA. As we celebrate the start of a new year, it's useful to remember that AAHOA started in 1989 with just a couple of hundred members. Today, we number more than 10,000 members and we are the pre-eminent voice of hotel owners.

While we have come a long way and we are proud of what we are, we know that we haven't become all we want to be. In short, AAHOA is not perfect – but we aren't done yet. Our world and our industry will continue to change in 2011, and AAHOA is sure to change with it – so our members can adapt and prosper. For now, we wish you a memorable holiday season and a new year that is rich in new opportunities, new happiness, and new rewards.

(C.K. Patel serves as Chairman of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA), which has more than 10,000 members who together own more than 20,000 hotels with a combined market value of almost $130 billion.)

- By C.K. Patel