Best Benefit Ever: Two Memberships Are Better Than One

What is it? The U.K.-based Hospitality Finance, Revenue Management and IT Professionals Association  (opens in a new tab) (HOSPA) and Chicago’s Hotel Technology Next Generation  (opens in a new tab) (HTNG) are entering into a joint membership agreement that empowers each organization’s members join the other association, though HOSPA members must pay a “top-up” fee of around £145 ($203) a year for HTNG access. The overlap between their memberships is obvious, as both include professionals tackling the technological and financial challenges of the hospitality industry. With their dual memberships, individuals and businesses can take advantage of either organization’s events, networking opportunities, and institutional knowledge. One HOSPA member, the Royal Automobile Club  (opens in a new tab), has already embraced the new benefit. “This gives key members of the team access to the rich technical library and workgroups for which HTNG is renowned. We see this as a great additional resource from which our small IT team will benefit,” the club’s head of IT, Bryan Steele, said in a statement  (opens in a new tab).

Why it works: For both HOSPA and HTNG members, the benefit is based on a simple notion: Give members more of what they want. And given the considerable demands of the finance, revenue, and IT fields, it makes sense that members want extra professional insights. “It provides an invaluable, additional opportunity for HOSPA members–especially those in hospitality IT, who continuously need technical information and updates in a fast-changing technological world,” Carl Weldon, chief executive of HOSPA, said in a statement  (opens in a new tab). “The global benefits created by HTNG membership include: access to HTNG technical information, specifications, workgroups, and major conferences in Europe.” And HTNG members can enjoy a similar suite of benefits from HOSPA.

Other benefits: Beyond the ones already mentioned, each organization offers unique perks. HOPSA has an extensive database of industry insights via EBSCO  (opens in a new tab). And HTNG allows technology providers to join workgroups  (opens in a new tab) to solve their problems, whether they’re tied to general tech troubleshooting or vendor-specific queries.

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