Day 3 – Wednesday, 21st March

　　The delegates met for the third and final day of the Young Hoteliers Summit 2012 with enthusiasm, excitement and intense motivation. The groups were given five hours throughout the morning to complete their work on the YHS Challenge, before presenting their ideas at the Case Presentations in the early afternoon. The challenge, designed by Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, was aimed at revamping the Graduate Program to better meet student expectations, whilst still meeting the needs of the business.

　　First thing in the morning, the delegates regrouped at the Q&A session with Hyatt, where they were given the opportunity to enquire and discuss the challenge with the sponsors from Hyatt International. Pertinent questions were asked and Hyatt representatives offered their guidance.

　　In the afternoon, a sizeable audience, consisting of students, VIPs and professors, gathered in the EHL Auditorium where the Challenge Case Presentations were to start. Tensions were high as each group was called up to present with a strict time limit of just seven minutes each in front of a judging panel consisting of: Mr. Ray Iunius, Director at INTEHL; Mr. Pascal Gauthier, VP Learning & Development for Hyatt Hotels & Resorts; Ms. Katrin Melle, Human Resources Director at Hyatt Intl. (EAME), and Mr. Kurt Straub, General Manager of Park Hyatt Zurich.

　　During the presentations, some teams concentrated more on the learning experience of the new graduates that the program was being created for, and others discussed the project from the point of view of Hyatt. With an intense five minutes of interrogation for each team by the panel of jurists, anxiety was rife. After all had had the chance to present, the jury left the room to deliberate and the YHS Executive Team, along with the rest of the organising team, gave the closing speech for this year’s Young Hoteliers Summit.

　　The participants of the Summit then moved to the aperitif at the bar and the delegates chattered nervously over a glass of champagne. The buzz continued to increase until silence was called to announce the winners of this year’s Creativity Challenge. Congratulations Team 3: Charlotte Chamot-Guzzo, from Glion Institute of Higher Education; Jian Owen Chang, from Beijing Hospitality Institute; Jenni Knaapila, from Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences; Laura Durst, from International University of Applied Sciences Bad Honnef; Mark O"Shaughnessy, from Shannon College of Hotel Management; and Bernard Nasrallah, from La Sagesse University.