Most of the articles in this issue’s HSMAI section are providing perspective on future-focused trends and what’s to come: travel in the metaverse, the urgency of sustainability in hospitality, the future of revenue management, looking at market type to forecast future performance. In looking toward the future, HSMAI and the HSMAI Foundation have also been tackling a challenge that impacts how we as an industry move forward: the shortage of commercial sales, marketing, and revenue optimization talent.

Over the past few months, we’ve created content that explored how we got here and facilitated conversations with key audiences such as hospitality school faculty and industry leaders that dove deep into what we do now to advance the profession and engage our next generation. And what we learned is that creativity is crucial in how we attract new professionals to the industry. Real-world experiences — be it through internships, mentorship, practitioners in the classroom — are a must. And flexibility and career path reassurance will go a long way.

As you read this edition of articles, it’s important to think about how our future players fit into this scene. How will our next generation of leaders impact destination travel via virtual reality? Anne Niemec and Evelyne Oreskovich discuss metaverse tourism in this issue. What role will current students play in ensuring hospitality becomes (and stays) sustainable? John Burns gives perspective on reducing hospitality’s environmental impact in his article. 

In addition, Kelly McGuire and Roy Madhok discuss the dangers of revenue management slipping into myopia, while Jennifer Hill goes into what market type can tell us about performance, and Michael J. Goldrich explains how to increase wedding planner conversion on your website.

The future of our industry depends on the ability to attract and retain good people who are passionate about the work. As we think about the trends and opportunities of days ahead, we all need to think about how to engage those who will drive these trends forward to ensure our profession’s longevity.