William O. Mackay
Vice-President and General Manager
Four Seasons Hotel, Hong Kong

Mr. Mackay is the Vice-President and General Manager of Four Seasons Hotel, Hong Kong . He started his hospitality career some 30 years ago. He first joined Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in 1982 as a Purchasing Manager in Four Seasons Clift Hotel, San Francisco in U.S.A. , and since then has worked in a wide variety of properties in U.S.A. , Canada , Japan , U.K. , Italy , and recently in Hong Kong .

He graduated in 1975 with an honors degree in Hotel & Catering Administration at University of Surrey , England , U.K. He had completed a Certified Diploma in Accounting and Finance at Polytechnic Central London and Summer Program at Cornell University , U.S.A.

Peter O'Connor
Professor of Information Systems, ESSEC Business School France &
Co-Director of Institute de Management Hotelier International, France

Peter O'Connor is Professor of Information Systems at ESSEC Business School , France , and co-Director of Institute de Management Hotelier International (IMHI), an MBA program specialising in international hospitality management. He received his Doctorate in Hospitality e-commerce from Queen Margaret University College , Edinburgh , holds a Master degree in Management Information Systems from Trinity College , Dublin and a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel and Catering Management from the Dublin Institute of Technology. Dr. O'Connor's primary research, teaching and consulting interests focus on the use of technology in the hospitality and tourism sectors. He is an active member of HITA (Hospitality Information Technology Association), HFTP (Hospitality Finance & Technology Professionals) and IFITT (the International Federation of Information Technology in Tourism).

Cathy Hsu
Associate Head & Graduate Programs Director
School of Hotel & Tourism Management
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Cathy Hsu is a Professor, Associate Head, and Graduate Programs Director in the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Prior to joining the Hong Kong PolyU in July 2001, she was on Kansas State University (USA) faculty for 3 years and on Iowa State University (USA) faculty for 9 years.

She is the editor and chapter author of the book, Legalized Casino Gaming in the US: The Economic and Social Impact , published in 1999, and of the book, Casino Industry in Asia Pacific: Development, Operations, and Impact , published in 2005, both by The Haworth Hospitality Press. She is the lead author of the Marketing Hospitality textbook, published in June 2001 by John Wiley and Sons. Her research foci have been services marketing, consumer behavior, economic and social impacts of casino gaming, tourism destination marketing, and hospitality/tourism education. She has over 100 refereed journal and proceedings publications. She has served as a consultant to various tourism organizations, such as the World Tourism Organization, Garden Hotels in Guangzhou , Kansas Travel and Tourism Development Division, and Lawrence Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Professor Hsu is the past Chairman of the Board and president of the International Society of Travel and Tourism Educators, and the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Teaching in Travel and Tourism . She also serves on 7 journal editorial boards. She is listed in Who's Who Among Asian Americans .

Dennis Reynolds
Ivar Haglund Distinguished Professor of Hospitality Management
College of Business and Economics, Washington State University

Professor Reynolds' research focuses on pathways leading to enhanced managerial efficiency and effectiveness with specific application to foodservice organizations through the application of operations-management tools and techniques. Recent papers have also addressed the related effects of management feedback on subordinate's self-efficacy and a new approach to evaluating operational efficiency for multiunit restaurant organizations.

Prior to joining WSU's College of Business and Economics, Dr. Reynolds was the J. Thomas Clark Professor of Entrepreneurship and Personal Enterprise at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration where he was the recipient of numerous honors including the 2002 Teaching Award. He holds a doctoral degree from Cornell University in hospitality management and a Master of Professional Studies degree with a concentration in restaurant operations also from Cornell University , as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in hotel, restaurant, and institutional management from Golden Gate University .

Prakash K. Chathoth, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
School of Hotel and Tourism Management
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Dr. Chathoth has 15 years of combined experience as an educator and as a professional in the hotel industry. He has a Bachelor's degree in commerce from the University of Delhi, India, and started his career as a Management Trainee with the Hotel Leela Venture Ltd. in Mumbai , India after completing his diploma in Hotel Management in India . After successfully completing his management training program, he worked at various management positions in operating departments for luxury hotels such as the Leela Kempinski, Mumbai and the Hotel Leela Beach , Goa , India .

Dr. Chathoth completed his Masters degree from the Institute de Management Hotelier International (IMHI), France, which at the time was jointly administered by Cornell University, USA and ESSEC Business School, France. He received his Ph.D. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University , Virginia , USA while specializing in Strategic Management and Corporate Finance applied to the hospitality industry. Dr. Chathoth served as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Hospitality Management in the College of Business at San Francisco State University , California prior to assuming the position of Assistant Professor of Hospitality Industry Financial Management at the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University . He has several publications to his credit and has made presentations at international business management, service management, and hospitality management conferences globally.