Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/10149
NCBMP& FORM STRATEGIC ALLIANCE BY MICHAEL BENNETT O ver the past few years I have written numerous articles on the importance of strategic alliances. Such collabo- rations are excellent vehicles to pool resources for the common good. Big business has been doing this for decades with great success. Our industry has several notable alliances, many of which you are very familiar with. For example, the oneworld alliance is one of the world’s three largest global airline alliances whose members include American Airlines, British Airways and Cathay Pacific among others. These airlines offer global services to their customers on routes they wouldn’t ordinarily fly thereby increasing their indi- vidual footprint in the global marketplace. The Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association, along with the Fort Worth and Sacramento Convention and Visitors Bureaus have a strategic alliance? These three destina- tions share information about clients who have met in their respective cities. Since most meetings rotate locations and probably won’t return to a city for several years, the information sharing is a great way to increase their marketing outreach. An organization such as the Caribbean Tourism Organization is a strategic alliance of Caribbean member nations who’ve come together to promote the region. And now we have a brand new strategic alliance in our industry that will bring significant coordination of efforts to improve opportunities for African-Americans in travel, tourism and hospitality. The National Coalition of Black Meetings Planners (NCBMP) and the National Association of Black Hotel Owner Operators and Developers (NABHOOD) formed a Meetings and Hospitality Industry Collaboration to address the demands of education, training and workforce diversity. The mission of this alliance is a collaborative one to provide solutions and effectively implement strategies for improvement of the status of African-Americans in the meetings and hospi- tality industry. This includes; educational assistance, job oppor- tunities, hotel ownership, hotel development and support of Black-owned and operated venues. The idea of the alliance was promoted to NCBMP members during their December 2009 Fall Education Conference at the Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort in Daytona Beach, FL. Andy Ingraham, president of NABHOOD believes the tim- ing for this alliance couldn’t be better. “The multicultural mar- ket is still growing…this alliance combined with our major hotel brands already owned by African-Americans should prove to the corporate world that this is a solid growth business” that should be part of any future plans. “The current economic crisis has brought nonprofit mergers and other forms of collaboration into the spot- light. Organizations are exploring partnerships that will allow the shar- ing of resources and expertise for many reasons such as enhanced member services, cost savings pro- grams and other financial indicators,” says Stella Beene-Venson, president of NCBMP. Among the benefits to both NCBMP and NABHOOD are the enhancements of educational oppor- tunities for African-American meet- ing executives, hospitality students and industry professionals. This ini- tiative will offer guidance and train- ing for entrepreneurs who are inter- ested in hotel ownership and devel- opment. An added benefit will be for meeting executives to support Black- owned and operated ventures. An international database will also be ANDY INGRAHAM Stella Beene-Venson maintained to promote job opportunities for NCBMP members at NABHOOD hotels. Warren Fields and the Pyramid Hotel Group own the Hilton Daytona Beach, where the December meeting was held. It’s one of over 500 Black-owned hotels spanning 30 states, Mexico and the Caribbean. Black-owned hotels are under the banner of such major brands as Marriott, Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Renaissance and Sheraton to name a few. Despite the state of the financial markets there are several properties in development. Still others are drafting plans to purchase or develop new or distressed properties, thereby effec- tively increasing our stake in this business. Ingraham believes, “This is an extraordinary endeavor that will have a profound effect on African-American communities throughout the country. It will be a major step in ‘Taking Care of Our Own’….and follow the motto of the NCBMP –‘We Do Business with Our Friends’ and ensure the future of African- Americans in the meetings and hospitality industry.” At press time many of the intimate details of the alliance have yet to be worked out, but one area of emphasis for both parties is the use of African-American owned hotel venues by NCBMP member organizations. It not only provides a united front, but should go a long way towards proving the point many Black Meetings & Tourism March/April 2010: www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 55 NABHOOD