ITHACA, NEW YORK, May 16, 2012 -- eCornell and affiliates of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, a global hospitality company, have signed a three-year agreement following a very successful first year delivering HR, International and Controller Leadership Development courses. The affiliates, Hyatt Corporation and Hyatt International Corporation (collectively referred to as Hyatt), decided to extend their relationship with eCornell.
"We are thrilled that after a very successful first year that Hyatt has decided to renew for a long term agreement through 2015," said Tom Abogabal, VP of Global Sales for eCornell. "It was impressive how the Hyatt team was able to successfully integrate eCornell into its employee development strategy and achieve success with HR, Finance and International. The results exceeded expectations and were a by-product of great executive sponsorship from Hyatt's senior management and global learning and development team, as well as clear goals and alignment of learning with business needs."
Of the three programs eCornell and Hyatt have configured from eCornell's portfolio of offerings, the Controller Leadership Development program, which has a custom certificate, has had great results in its first year. One student commented, "This course will definitely impact my direct job responsibilities. The insight will help me present projects, which will address the primary goals." The six-course certificate has been customized to target assistant controllers with three to five years of experience and controllers with ten or more years of experience.
"We have been very pleased with the success of this program and its ability to improve the strategic agility and influence of controllers at Hyatt properties," said Christy Sinnott, VP of Learning & Development, Hyatt Corporation. "This series of courses will help our controllers communicate better with property owners and managers, helping the properties become more efficient and connected with the accounting department."
Hyatt also offers over 20 certificate programs open to its associates. Certificates range in offerings from Financial Management to Human Resources Management to Hospitality and Foodservice Management. Offered primarily to general managers, these certificate programs help managers meet their personal development goals.
"Committing to a 3-year relationship will help us gain momentum with these programs and get the word out to Hyatt properties in more than 40 countries," added Sinnott.
eCornell's unique approach to e-learning combines the most effective elements of a world-class, Ivy League classroom with the flexibility of an online learning environment. eCornell courses—self-paced and 100 percent online—are "instructor-facilitated" to help guide a cohort of 20 to 30 participants through challenging, real-world exercises with practical on-the-job application. Classes enable learners to be immersed in learning that also fosters collaboration, interaction and networking.
About eCornell
eCornell, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cornell University, provides many of the world's leading organizations with online professional and executive development in the areas of leadership and management, human resources, financial management, healthcare, marketing and hospitality management. eCornell's proven course development model and asynchronous instructor-led course delivery provide for engaging, rigorous and interactive learning. The company has delivered online courses to more than 50,000 students in over 200 countries. For more information visit www.ecornell.com/enterprise (enterprise buyers) or www.ecornell.com (small groups and individual students).
About Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a proud heritage of making guests feel more than welcome. Thousands of members of the Hyatt family strive to make a difference in the lives of the guests they encounter every day by providing authentic hospitality. The company's subsidiaries manage, franchise, own and develop hotels and resorts under the Hyatt®, Park Hyatt®, Andaz®, Grand Hyatt®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt Place® and Hyatt House™. Hyatt House is changing its brand identity from Hyatt Summerfield Suites®. Hyatt Residential Group, Inc., a Hyatt Hotels Corporation subsidiary, develops, operates, markets or licenses Hyatt Residences™ and Hyatt Vacation Club®, which is changing its name to Hyatt Residence Club™. As of March 31, 2012, the company's worldwide portfolio consisted of 488 properties in 45 countries. For more information please visit www.hyatt.com.
