Journal of Tourism & Hospitality
Open Access

Wilfried Iskat

Biography

Wilfried Iskat started his career in the hospitality business as a pastry baker in Vienna in 1954. He immigrated to the USA in 1961 after having worked as a gardemanger and patissier in his native Austria and earned a GED in 1966 which eventually led him to earn a Bachelors and Master’s degree from the Hotel School at Cornell University.
Hired by InterContinental Hotels (IHC) in 1972 he trained the first Indonesian Food and Beverage Department Management Team at the first international hotel in Jakarta. In Manila, the Philippines he conducted operations research in restaurant management for IHC and was subsequently promoted to be a training director at the company’s Pan Am headquarters in New York. Responsible for skills and craft training, Iskat designed, planned and executed departmental workshops and seminars for the company’s 50 plus hotels around the world until 1978 when he accepted the position of Director of Training for Europe in the International Division of Holiday Inns.

Research Interest

The “Service Delivery Act” – procedure, dynamics, environment and training
Training and Human Resource Development activities in the Hospitality Industry
International Hotel/Lodging Development
Select Service/Lifestyle/Branded Boutique Hotel development and operations