GM LEADERS FORUM
Exclusive peer to peer networking and learning for African Hotel GM’s
The GM Leaders Forum will gather hotel General Managers from around South Africa & the African continent, serving as a platform for hotel General Managers to discuss the most relevant topics affecting the industry and collectively find solutions. This will be the first peer-to-peer gathering of its kind on the continent, allowing participants to benefit from hundreds of years of shared experience in the sector.
What is the GM Leaders Forum?
The GM Leaders Forum is a peer-to-peer network event for African hotel General Managers; providing them with closed-door gatherings and relevant strategic insights to innovatively tackle their biggest challenges. The Forum will consist of one pan African Forum hosted in a hybrid format as part of The Hotel & Hospitality Show Africa (23 – 25 August 2021) as well as additional digital touch points throughout the year.
The GM Leaders Forum is an exclusive series of engagements between our expert partners and hotel GM’s from all over Africa offering year-round engagement. These engagements consist of one pan African Forum hosted in a combination of digital and live events with a strategic focus on industry and leadership content and key touch points.
The GM Leaders Forum engages with GMs to support them in their daily responsibilities with leadership and industry expertise through post-forum reports, regular newsletters and tailored content developed with and for the members.
What is the GM Leaders Forum?
This forum is for you if you are a GM of an African hotel or want to connect with other African hotel GMs and become part of an exclusive network of leaders shaping the future of Africa’s hospitality landscape. Joining this exclusive community means:
CONFIRMED MEMBERS
Please email Programme Director, Fran Smook, with topics you would like to add to the morning’s proceedings, and for any further information: [email protected]

We are providing a limited number of commercial partnerships to the GM Leaders Forum, allowing you to be party to this exclusive gathering, contributing to solving the problems of Africa’s top hoteliers.
Reinventing hospitality through the view of a new lens
*Forum programme subject to change
Monday 23 August
TIMES
TOPICS
09:30 – 10:00
Registration and arrival refreshments
10:00 – 10:10
Welcome by dmg events
10:10 – 11:00
Uncharted territories – What strategies will win market share in 2021?
Discussions around the recovery and re-opening of hotels raises more questions other than just how staff need to adapt and hotel design and business models need to evolve. Join this session and hear global leaders share their insights on how the region is experiencing and responding to the immediate environment, lessons they are drawing from during this period and what strategies may win market share as we emerge from the pandemic.
Blueprints reshaping the future hotels in the new reality, where to go from here
11:00 – 11:30
Morning refreshments and networking
11:30 – 12:30
Keeping your guests at the heart of your business strategies
With margins tightening across the market, savvy hotel operators are analysing and rethinking all aspects of their operations to identify new efficiencies. What are areas for improvements and what are the most impressive new innovations driving return and value on investment. Join this session and find new efficiencies in hotel operations – technology, staffing and outsourcing.
- From mobility to speed – what do your guests expect and how will this evolve
- A cyclical journey – enhancing the customer journey to keep guests on-side
- Creating the ultimate hotel experience – seamless and personal
- Investing in technology with a clear goal in mind – ensuring ROI for the business
- Data is the now oil – harnessing the power of data to improve profitability and engagement
- Investing in staff – keeping employees on-side to champion corporate goals and deliver seamless services
How can hotels reshape their operating models to drive demand and accelerate recovery
12:30
Lunch and networking
Gold sponsor
Topline sponsors
Knowledge partners
Strategic partners
Official media partner
Media partners