Online knowledge sharing continues: Scott Loretan as a guest lecturer in a joint HTM class for students from Dubrovnik and Rochester

April 20, 2020

On Friday, April 17, HTM students from prof. Besim Agušaj's class had a joint class with their colleagues from the Rochester campus, taught by prof. Muhammet Kesgin. Total of 63 students and faculty were connected to jointly take part in a guest lecture delivered by Mr. Scott Loretan ('84 RIT Alum Hotel/Resort Management and Penn State '92 MBA Alum) who is a Vice President for Global Initiative Deployment for Sodexo. Mr. Loretan talked about his career in hospitality and he also touched upon "Sharing economy" business model.

Connectivity between the campuses and knowledge sharing is even more important in times like this, when students are deprived of in class experience and the opportunity to network in person. When asked what he thinks of joint online guest lecture, our HTM student Toni Belin said the following: "This session was exceptional. I enjoyed it since I felt being a part of a large global community. RIT family is an environment where ideas are shared and valued, this class was exactly that. The format of this class was comfortable yet very engaging. We were able to ask questions, voice our concerns and offer our ideas. For me this approach was a highly valuable experience. Having Mr. Scott Loretan as our guest speaker gave me an insight on how global hospitality industry operates - both in "normal" but also in extraordinary times. Mr. Loretan talked about supply chain management challenges that they have at the moment and solutions that they are employing. The message sent to us was clear: the tourism industry will learn its lessons and emerge wiser and stronger than before".

"One of the strong points in being a RIT global campus is the ability to pool the resources available. This initiative was generated in order to connect two classes (Rochester and Dubrovnik) and bring our students together: in real time, on several continents, from many countries (Croatia, France, Bolivia, UK, Albania, USA, Montenegro etc.). Virtual class enabled us to talk about relevant global business developments and exchange ideas from different perspectives. Specifically, Mr. Loretan (Vice President for Business Development) and RIT students/professors were able to discuss new trends in Hospitality and explore ways how should Hotel sector move on once COVID-19 crisis ends", prof. Besim Agušaj concluded.