Minneapolis, MN- June 15, 2022 – Minneapolis based GrandStay Hospitality, LLC, the franchisor for GrandStay Hotels, announces Brad Murphy as the General Manager at the GrandStay Hotel & Suites Mount Horeb-Madison.

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MADISON, Wis. (Jun 2022) - North Central Group (NCG), a leader in real estate development, and hospitality management, is excited to announce several new promotions within its senior leadership team. The organization has seen rapid growth in recent years, and these new leaders will help NCG continue its trajectory.

MADISON, Wis – June 2, 2021 – DoubleTree Madison East has been recognized by Hilton with a 2021 CARE Strong Award. The award is given to hotels that have a warm spirit of CARE and consistently create welcoming and comfortable experiences for their guests and their commitment to hospitality shows through in their strong SALT performance. 

Earlier this spring we learned of the passing of Kirk Drusch​, a longtime industry leader who served as a friend and a mentor to many of us. Kirk served as the Chairman of the WHLA Board of Directors in 2010 and as the President of the Greater Milwaukee Hotel & Lodging Association in 2002. He served on the Board of Directors of both organizations for many years, and his commitment to our industry was immeasurable. 

Does it matter to you that a prospective employer has 5,000 locations worldwide, or that it calls itself the No. 1 leader in hospitality? Probably not, yet it’s messages like these that I see on many hotel job ads. Similar to how properties need to battle for guests, these days they especially need to battle for employees as well.

As the travel and tourism sectors experience increased guest demand, recruitment and retention has become an increasingly important area of focus for hotel owners, managers, and operators. With the rise of the gig economy luring hourly workers away from entry-level jobs and record low unemployment levels, hotels are struggling to maintain minimum staffing levels to keep the doors open.

​With the labor shortage and a high turnover rate it’s no secret that the hospitality industry is struggling to find employees and retain them. Milwaukee Area Technical College Hospitality programs are working on being innovative to create a streamline of employees into the field. The programs are creating new ways of teaching and learning while providing students accolades with each step.

At last week's WHLA Board of Directors meeting our leadership approved changes to the structure of our conference and trade show that are intended to enhance the attendee and exhibitor experience, while also addressing the major increases we are seeing in costs to put on a successful event.