TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION OF INTERNATIONAL HOTEL CHAINS IN UKRAINE AND THE STRATEGY OF THEIRS DEVELOPMENT ON THE EXAMPLE OF HILTON WORLDWIDE

The article considered the constructive and geographical aspects of the development of international hotel chains in Ukraine with an emphasis on the strategic prospects of strengthening the presence of Hilton Worldwide in the hospitality industry of Ukraine. The hotel chain is a form of association of hotel companies to ensure economic efficiency and competitiveness in the market through quality services. A brief digression into the company’s history was made. The principles and fundamental standards of Hilton Worldwide were outlined. The geography of Hilton’s establishments at the beginning of 2019 numbered 6,100 hotels and was represented in 114 countries. The Hilton hotel chain ranks fourth in the world among international hotel chains in terms of number of rooms and fifth in number of hotels. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. operates as a holding company and provides services through subsidiaries. The article describes the 17 well-known Hilton brands. This company entered the national market of Ukraine with the appearance of the Hilton Kyiv hotel in the capital. Today Hilton Kyiv is one of the leaders in the hotel market of Kyiv and Ukraine as a whole. Hilton Kyiv provides guests with the necessary conditions for business trips and comfortable rest, providing quality service. Based on the SWOT analysis, the most appropriate type of Hilton Worldwide strategy in the current competitive environment of Ukraine has been identified. However, competition takes place not only at the level of individual hotels, but also at the level of international hotel chains. Some of them have ambitious plans to expand their presence in the Ukrainian market. This fact has complicated the competitive environment. And this factor should be taken into account when developing a strategy for the development of the Hilton chain in Ukraine. We offer a strategy to expand the Hilton chain in Ukraine by effusion as a result of bringing such brands to the hotel business market: Canopy by Hilton, Signia by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Home2 Suites By Hilton, Motto by Hilton. Proposals were also made for a set of strategies to ensure the competitiveness and sustainability of Hilton Kyiv.

The Story of Success Istanbul

Between the East and the West - The Istanbul Hilton bore many colloquial names, the press called it ‘Conrad’s Palace’, Hilton’s employees called it ‘Little America’ and the people of Istanbul called it ‘The Ship’. Irrespective of the name, there is no doubt that the hotel changed the social scene of 1950s’ Istanbul and opened its oriental door to the West. Most visitors to Istanbul these days arrive at one of the city’s international airports, but it is still quite easy to imagine that one gets off the Orient Express and is suddenly transported to the oriental world of bright colours, a myriad of smells, the buzz of the Grand Bazar and the sound of muezzins calling for the evening prayer. When you arrive at the Sirkeci Station, you find yourself just a step away from the Eminönü harbour where local men wait for their daily catch on the Galata bridge. You can stop for a minute to taste grilled fish sandwiches served directly from the fishing boat. Head north, up narrow cobbled streets, leaving the monumental Galata tower on your left, and reach Taksim Square where local socialites meet for coffee and a slice of pistachio baklava. You can also accept a shopkeeper’s invitation for a quick glass of çay – he won’t charge you a penny, it is merely a local way of saying “hello, you are welcome”. One can easily imagine going back in time, men wearing their finest suits and ladies showing off expensive pearls and fashionably tailored hats. You can hear İlham Gencer playing piano in one of many fancy coffee houses. Men are busy competing in a round of Okey while ladies catch up with daily gossip. The time moves slowly here, the air is hot and sticky, people hide from the sun in the shade of Judas trees. Leaving the Republic Monument behind you, head into Cumhuriyet Street. Passing lush Gezi Park and the offices of many international airlines and shipping companies shaded by the alley of trees, and look to your right. There it is, the majestic Hilton Hotel, symbol of modernity, comfort and globalization. This is Conrad’s Palace in Istanbul.

The Current Practice of Corporate Social Responsibility in Ethiopia

The responsibility of the organization for the impacts of its decisions and activities on the society and the environment, called Corporate Social Responsibility is evolving investment approach aimed mainly to contribute for sustainable development and welfare of the society. CSR is being integrated with economic and investment policy of different countries and practiced in different modalities. In Ethiopia, literatures indicates that only limited local as well as international or multinational organizations have been practicing CSR in a fragmented ways. Accordingly, this research was aimed to examine the practice of corporate social responsibility in Ethiopia, specifically in Hilton Hotel located at Addis Ababa. Up on the nature and purpose, the research is led by qualitative approach. Key informant and in-depth interviews were used as main data collection techniques. In addition, document review and systematic observation were also used to get supportive data. In-depth interviews were conducted with beneficiaries whereas key informant interviews were employed with managers of organizations. Totally 20 research participants: four employees, four key informant interviewees, and twelve beneficiaries were participated in this study. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the research participants based on the predetermined objectives of the research. The finding of the study shows that Hilton Hotel has several corporate social responsibility programs (CSR) in relation to employees support, community service, environmental protection, and customer handling. Provision of health insurance, freedom of associations for labor, facilitating continues skill based training, support to local NGOs, offering scholarship opportunities, and providing charity and other emergency support are some of the involvements Hilton Hotel has made through its CSR program. This research concluded that though there are several CSR made by the hotel but these have been made without regular budget as well as working procedures.

Highlights of a Cursory Study of Behavior of Three Instrumented Buildings during the Mw 7.1 Anchorage, Alaska, Earthquake of 30 November 2018

This is a cursory study of the recorded responses of three buildings instrumented by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in Anchorage, Alaska, during the Mw 7.1 earthquake of 30 November 2018. The earthquake caused the strongest shaking in Anchorage since the well‐known 1964 Mw 9.2 Great Alaska earthquake. Since the 1964 event, several structures (buildings and bridges) in Anchorage have been instrumented by the USGS, and their responses have been recorded during multiple events. For each of the three buildings (the 14‐story Frontier Building, the 20‐story Atwood Building, and the 22‐story Hilton Hotel) studied herein, essential dynamic characteristics and significant behavioral aspects such as beating and torsional motions are identified. Recorded peak accelerations and displacements are provided, and average drift ratios are computed using the peak displacements at the roof levels with respect to the ground level. These average drift ratios imply that the motions are at levels expected not to cause damage to the buildings. Visualization videos of both the 14‐story Frontier and the 20‐story Atwood Buildings have been developed to display overall shaking of the buildings during the earthquake.

Pokey O’s: Determining the Location and Future Structure of a Dessert Food Truck

This case recounts the story of the start-up in 2015 of a food truck named Pokey O’s that sold ice cream and cookies in downtown Waco, Texas. The couple who owned the truck, Julia and Austin Meek, had a very successful beginning; but by the summer of 2018, they were considering several options for the restructuring of their business. One possibility was to move their business inside at a local downtown Hilton Hotel. Other possibilities were to take the truck out of operation for maintenance and then vary its location from downtown to some of the municipalities outside of the downtown area. They were also considering purchasing another food truck and leaving one downtown and the other floating between several suburban areas. The couple wondered about the sustainability of a dessert food truck that relied only upon one downtown location.