Be inspired
HITT – the HospitalityInside Think Tank – is an unconventional, English-speaking
networking event on a solar-powered ship launched in 2018.
Casual, but with high-calibre experts from inside and outside the industry.
Limited in number, not in quality.
Inspiring deep thoughts instead of shallow PR talk.
Personal, direct, interactive and off-the-record.
The floating forum is a place to share knowledge, exchange ideas and develop solutions
for the industry’s most pressing issues: digitalisation, sustainability and human resources.
Senior executives and experts from hotel operation, hotel real estate, finance, sustainability,
digital transformation, legal and HR are most welcome.
Let’s take this journey to find answers together!
Testimonials
Wilhelm Luxem
“I see this event (HITT) as an inspiration day. It raises questions that I have not asked myself before and allows me to move forward in the development of our long-established hotel.”
HITT Workshop 2022
Drees & Sommer, Hamburg
Torsten Keppler
“As an IT specialist, I find it exciting to see what role AI or IoT will play in all these issues. After all, it can’t be the future to continue to thoughtlessly build concrete blocks in the inner cities.”
HITT Workshop 2022
Drees & Sommer, Hamburg
Erik Florvaag
“The hotel industry needs to open up: The hotelier must understand that he is one element in an organism and that he can also make use of the other elements for his own added value.”
HITT Workshop 2022
Drees & Sommer, Hamburg
Ascan Kókai
“The best possible mix of retail space, various offerings with gastronomy and the hotel – that’s what makes a quarter fit for the future. Care should be taken to ensure that everything is attractive, open and designed with a certain transparency.”
HITT Workshop 2022
Drees & Sommer, Hamburg
Andreas Lackner
“Great Event. Great exchange with industry peers and partners… very well structured program and line-up of great speaker providing the impulse for exchange and knowledge sharing.”
2021
Wilhelm Luxem
“The selection of speakers was excellent and of top level. It served as a perfect sharpening of the focus on the future topics… I found the dialogue in the round exceptionally enriching and inspiring.”
2021
Caro Brauer
“Eye-opening presentations with a hopeful outlook. It was great.”
2021
Dr. Michael Hartung
“All in all, extremely interesting and stimulating, especially with regard to ESG – I don’t want to be driven by politics.”
2021
Marco Nussbaum
“A circle peppered with top international speakers and top participants who did not come from the usual filter bubble of the industry…
The idea that I will implement for all future projects of mine, for example, is the CaFoPaR – Carbon Footprint
Per available Room.”
2021
Philipp von Bodman
“Renowned Wes Paul put the topics and their likely impact on global developments in the coming decades in a different
light once again, even if some of his predictions will hopefully not come to pass in such rigor.”
2021
Hans-Peter Hermann
“The entire industry still has a very long way to go, especially on the topic of ESG, which can only be successfully tackled together.”
2021
Wes Paul
“We have missed a number of opportunities. We need governments to regulate. We need someone to say you can’t do something. Capitalism needs to be moderated. We need to think big here.
Stand up, don’t wait. Collobaration, yes! At the moment, everyone is just working in isolation.
The hospitality industry can be an example of change. For how to do it right. We can show how leadership works. But we have to start now.”
Speaker 2021
Matthias Niemeyer
“Digitally, the event was also a win. I thought it was great that HospitalityInside dedicated two days to the probably most important future topic of sustainability. What I missed was the young generation, who will ensure that this topic is really taken seriously.”
2021
Volkmar Pfaff
“The HospitalityInside Think Tank has been an extremely exciting event for Accor from the very beginning, and in 2020 we were once again pleased to be a sponsor. We appreciate the high quality of the network and see the HITT as an ideal platform for qualitative exchange with colleagues from the industry. The burning issues and challenges of the future are addressed; last year, for example, the focus was once again on digitalisation – a topic whose relevance is greater than ever.”
2020
Gesa Rohwedder
“The global impact of Covid-19 will change our ways of living, working, trading and also traveling. The hospitality sector has to re-think its essentials and redefine many established business models, concepts and processes to be fit for the future.”
Sponsor 2020
Roland Schwecke
“The Think Tank 2020 has created many qualified contributions that provide an overview to the industry, especially in difficult times. Orientation through high-quality information is created by HospitalityInside not only through the weekly reporting – the HITT format also provides exceptional contributions for the hotel industry.”
2020
Tom Seddon
„Corona accelerated existing trends. AI can help in rapid learning. Realize how important it is to be in a position to learn from short-term trends.“
Speaker 2020
Michaela Papenhoff
“My participation in the HITT Think Tank in 2020 was extremely helpful. We were at the very beginning of the pandemic. The speakers provided valuable insights. This helped us to better assess the situation, if that was possible. Furthermore, I liked the content and the possibility of networking (afterwards). A very successful event in a time of radical change. Rethinking the hotel industry – this is what HITT does excellently!”
2020
Torsten Keppler
“My full respect for the conversion of this in the past completely analogue event into a new digital one! Certainly, compromises had to be made in terms of direct exchange with other participants, but the selection of topics and speakers was excellent and the view beyond the horizon to other industries was very inspiring. And the professional preparation and follow-up also helped to leave a lasting impression.”
2020
Stefan Leser
„Covid-19 kills the city centers. How can I convince my customers to come to my hotel in prime location?“
Sponsor & Speaker 2020
Georgios Ganitis
“The HITT has always been a very good event to get information on the latest technical developments focused on hospitality. It is always interesting to think outside the box and see what other hotel groups are working on. In addition, the exchange among like-minded is good, among other things, to be able to discuss hurdles in the field of digitalisation.”
2020
Georg Schlegel
“The reality check did us all a lot of good and forced us to see that other sectors are facing much greater challenges. We have “the final mile”, i.e. in the end, we still have the guests in our hotels and can use this to our advantage!”
2019
Duncan O'Rourke
“The speakers and presentation at HITT were at a very high level, inspiring discussions among hospitality professionals and giving food for thought for our everyday challenges. However, for me the most important learning was how essential it is to take some time to sit, exchange, network and create a platform. We are already looking forward to meeting with the HITT participants again and to continue being part of this special hospitality community.”
Sponsor & Speaker 2019
Jan Hein Simons
“The HITT, Edition 2 was yet another step-up from the first version in 2018. The Hotel-Tech world has a love-hate relationship, and the legacy system landscape has still many hurdles to take without aligned industry standards. The input of ‘out-of-the-box’ speakers created an environment of active and open interaction. The 2020 HITT will be enriched with hotel asset owners and investors as well. Great prospects for deepened exchange.”
2019
Kai Gehrmann
“2. HITT – next level. Very fruitful collaboration and helpful discussion with senior executive colleagues regarding a topic, all of us are putting a lot of efforts in. Let‘s face the challenge together. Very much looking forward to our upcoming workshops and next year’s meeting.”
2019
Martin Kemmer
“Not bullshit bingo, but a deep, forward-looking exchange of ideas.”
2019
Jörg T. Böckeler
“The Think Tank stimulated me to open up to the discussed topics and to leave my personal comfort zone several times in the discussion, in an environment with like-minded, creative industry colleagues and carefully guided by competent moderators. The Think Tank has given me a valuable new perspective, something that inspires me in my daily routine.”
2019
Michael Struck
“For those who want to know which conference could be a useful investment of time: for me, the HITT is definitely one of them. Important topics; presentations with new contents worth knowing; panel discussions on a high contextual level; and a conference location and setting, which is an experience in itself and offers good opportunities for establishing new contacts.”
2018
This was HITT 2022
This is the programme of the last HospitalityInside Think Tank, which took place in Berlin in June 2022.
The programme of HITT 2023 is currently in progress…
Embrace ESG for people, planet and prosperity.
Day 1, Monday 27 June
HITT ON THE SHIP anchoring at the quay wall
Start in the early afternoon, boarding the event ship Orca Ten Broke
in Berlin Alt Moabit 91, next to Ameron Hotel Abion Spreebogen
14.00 Register
14.45 Welcome on board
- Tim Davis, Founder & Managing Director, Pace Dimensions
- Maria Pütz-Willems, Editor-in-Chief, hospitalityInside.com
15.00 Key note
Unprecedented times call for unprecedented actions.
- Glenn Mandziuk, CEO, Sustainable Hospitality Alliance
15.45 Break
16.00-18.00 Impulse 1
Sustainable Finance & New Ways to ROI. Where’s the hoteliers’ access to monetary resources?
- Sascha Kullig, Member of the Management Board and Coordinator Sustainable Finance,
Association of German Pfandbrief Banks (vdp) - Ross Petar, Head of EMEA Hotel Valuation Advisory, JLL London
19.00 Relax! Get-Together at Restaurant Ship PATIO (5 min. walk)
Day 2, Tuesday 28 June
HITT ON THE SHIP floating across the waterways
8.30 Boarding the event ship Orca Ten Broke
9.00 (sharp!) Departure of the floating think tank.Welcome on board!
9.30-11.30 Impulse 2
Make Sustainability the best choice! How can operators offer sustainable choices and encourage sustainable behaviour on- and offline? And how do they line up with suppliers?
This session will include three topics: Nudging Behavior, Supply Chain, Franchise
- Dr Crispian Tarrant, CEO, BVA-BDRC Consumer Research
- Philip Halanen, Head of Sourcing & Sustainability EMEA, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts
- Best Practice: Ulrike Rabmer-Koller, Managing Partner, Rabmer Gruppe
11.30 Lunch on board
12.30-14.30 Impulse 3
Eliminating Emissions. How to construct, convert and operate properties that pay off for the environment and stakeholders.
- Anthony Williams, Program Director Tourism & Sustainability Development, Buro Happold
- Thomas Kraubitz, Director and Head of Sustainability & Climate Europe, Buro Happold
- Patrick Lüth, Architect, Managing Director & Partner, Snøhetta
14.30-15.30 Break
15.00-17.00 Impulse 4
Social, the “S” in ESG. The importance of social sustainability for corporate structures. Talk labour mobility, search for talent, working conditions, fair compensations and equality.
- Katrin Melle, Regional Vice President Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Talent EAME/SWA, Hyatt International
- Carmen Castillo Lopez, Head of People, Upday
- Garry Levin, Founder & CEO, LHC International Recruitment Consulting
17.00-17.15 Break
17.15-18.00 Summary & Preview HITT 2023
18.00 Planned arrival with the ship in Moabit
Followed by a Farewell dinner nearby. Relax!
Speakers 2022

Ulrike Rabmer-Koller
Managing Partner,
Rabmer Gruppe
Review
A serial event
HITT edition 5, 2022: “Embrace ESG for people, planet and prosperity.”
HITT edition 4, 2021: “Sustainability & Digitalisation: The Change Drivers.”
HITT edition 3, 2020: “Boost your Service Delivery.”
HITT edition 2, 2019: “Digitalisation. The New Value Creator.”
HITT Premiere 2018: “Emerging Technologies. Friend or foe?”
Be part of it!
We invite you to participate in HITT 2023. At the 6th Think Tank, you can once again expect cutting-edge topics, well-versed instigators and exciting discussion and talks.
Please register with this form and note the early bird rates and member benefits. We look forward to your participation! Your HospitalityInside team.
If you have any questions or problems concerning the registration, please contact office@hospitalityInside.com.
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Contact

Michael Willems
phone +49 821 885 880 20
eMail michael@hospitalityInside.com

Maria Puetz-Willems
phone +49 821 885 880 10
eMail maria@hospitalityInside.com
About us
The story of HospitalityInside starts in 2004 when founder and editor-in-chief Maria Puetz-Willems, a specialized international hotel trade journalist, and her husband Michael Willems, a business economist, consultant and today’s Managing Director of the publishing house decided to focus on delivering quality content for the top management in the hospitality industry.