InnovaTur BA Holds First Breakfast on Digital Transformation

The city tourist board and Argentine Association of Hotels (AHT) yesterday organised the first breakfast to form part of the InnovaTur BA programme in order to reflect on digital advances as part of the solution to the challenges to combine continued growth with a more sustainable and responsible tourism sector. The event was held at the Hotel Intercontinental under the slogan set by the UNWTO for 2018: digital transformation.

AHT president Aldo Elías and Karina Perticone, director of promotion at the city tourist board, welcomed guests and those following the event's live streaming via Instagram, highlighting the importance of cooperation and partnership working between public and private sectors, as well as the relevance of technology and innovative thinking in the tourism industry since these offer opportunities to imporve and prepare the sector for travellers' continually evolving demands.

The panel comprised a specialist in smart cities, Luis Castiella, who made an introduction to the intelligent city model and visibilised the current state of Buenos Aires in comparison with other destinations, setting out the opportunities for businesses; Horacio Cuervo, head of development at IBM's technology ecosystem, who spoke about innovation in corporations; Tomás González Ruiz, chief Product and E-commerce Officer at Almundo and profesor of Digital Transformation at Digital House, who talked about disruption in communication with customers; and RockingData CEO Fredi Vivas, who involved the audience in a debate on the use of Data Science in the transformation of organisations.

The aim of the breakfast was to create a networking space for more than 10 directors of tourism companies and organisations. The city tourist board's InnovaTur BA programme has already gathered more than 70 organisations in spaces of reflection on different experiences in the tourism sector and other areas of knowledge to shape future leaders through a digital transformation that allows businesses to gain more potential while meeting sustainable development objectives.