President

Prof Cihan Cobanoglu, PhD is the President of Association of North America Higher Education International (ANAHEI), a non-profit organization with more than 1500 members from 50+ countries. Professor Cobanoglu is also a McKibbon Endowed Chair Professor of the College of Hospitality and Tourism Leadership(CHTL) at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee (USFSM), who also serves as the Director of the M3 Center for Hospitality Technology and Innovation and Coordinator of International Programs for the College of Hospitality and Tourism Leadership. He is a Certified Hospitality Technology Professional (CHTP) commissioned by Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals (HFTP) and Educational Institute of American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). He is the Editor of the Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology (JHTT), co-editor of International Interdisciplinary Business-Economics Advancement Journal (IIBA Journal), co-editor of Journal of Global Education and Research and a co-author of five textbooks and eleven conference proceedings. Dr. Cobanoglu served as the chair of the American Hotel and Lodging Association’s (AHLA) Technology and E-Business Committee from 2009 to 2011 and also a member of CHTP Advisory Council and Editorial Advisory Board of HFTP. Professor Cobanoglu received his PhD in Human Environmental Sciences from Oklahoma State University, USA, Master of Science degree in Hospitality Administration from Oklahoma State University, USA and Bachelor of Science degree from Mersin School of Tourism and Hotel Administration, Cukurova University, Turkey. He has a certificate in Behavioral Economics from Yale University, USA.

During his tenure at ANAHEI. Professor Cobanoglu has initiated and led numerous innovative programs. Some of these projects include:

In addition, Dr. Cobanoglu is a visionary board member of Hospitality Technology magazine and editorial board member of Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, International Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Administration and Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Education. Dr. Cobanoglu also serves the industry as consultant. He is the founder of International Interdisciplinary Business-Economics Advancement Conference (IIBA), Global Conference on Education and Research, Graduate Student Research Conference in Business and Economics and Global Conference on Services Management. Dr. Cobanoglu created curriculum for hospitality software: innRoad Property Management System, M3 AccKnowledge Hotel Accounting System, and M3 Link Hotel Business Intelligence System.

His research involves the use and impact of technology in hospitality and tourism industries. He is particularly interested in smart tourism within the scope of smart cities. He founded and managed the eXperimental Guestroom (X-Room) at the University of Delaware’s Courtyard by Marriott from 2007 to 2009. Dr. Cobanoglu’s work has been featured in national and international media outlets such as BBC, NBC, ABC, CN8, Futurist Magazine, New York Times, Boston Globe and Lodging Magazine. He published in scholarly journals such as The Service Industries Journal, Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, Tourism Management, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, International Journal of Hospitality Management, and International Journal of Market Research. His articles have been cited in more than 2500 times. He is a frequent speaker in national and international conferences and events. He received “Excellence in Research-Tenured” award from the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee in 2016. He received 13 best paper awards from International conferences. In 2013, he was named as a “Fellow” by Academy for Global Business Advancement (AGBA).

Prior to joining the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee, Dr. Cobanoglu served as an Associate Professor of hospitality information technology at the University of Delaware. Dr. Cobanoglu is the recipient of University of Delaware’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2009 and the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education’s (I-CHRIE) John Wiley & Sons, Innovation in Teaching Award in 2009.