The business of hospitality

Hello. I'm Leora Lanz, and I'm honored and proud to present to you this personally curated series about the Business of Hospitality for Henry Stewart Talks.

I am the Assistant Dean of Academics at Boston University School of Hospitality Administration and I'm also an associate professor of the practice. This means I come from the hospitality industry, an industry I have appreciated for many years now and one in which I hope my contributions have been fruitful. I'd like to share a bit about my background because I want you to understand why I'm so passionate about sharing knowledge from some of the incredibly intelligent minds who I've met along my journey. My colleagues, now very much my friends at this point in our careers, are graciously offering nuggets of diamonds and gold for your learning and inspiration. First, let me share a bit about how my career path began. In college, there was one course which proved pivotal for my career, the hospitality marketing course taught by the legendary Peter Yesawich, a pioneer in the field put me on a track I hadn't anticipated. How fortunate for me. His lessons introduced me to new paths and pursuits. While in graduate school, I pushed myself with two simultaneous internships. One with the brand new Four Seasons Hotel in Boston, in its sales and marketing department. The other at the city of Boston's Destination Marketing Agency, which resulted from a class project. The team at the Four Seasons later moved to ITT Sheraton Hotels and they later brought me along as well.