ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to attempt to break with the past and offer another view of the future and how the customers of tomorrow will differ from those of our near past. These views have been developed over five years through a series of ‘Visioning the Future’ workshops and think-tanks, which have been conducted by the International Hotel & Restaurant Association. These sessions have produced ideas, feedback and discourse from more than 5000 industry professionals who have either participated in, or received the messages from, the results of these efforts. The task put forth to participants in each case was to try to answer the questions in Box 18.1. In other words, attempts were made to solicit their foresight regarding the future. As such, their views represent a collective view of emerging patterns from professionals in more than 20 countries across the globe. This chapter is a synthesis of those ideas.
