Court Williams

Experience

Court Williams is Chief Executive Officer of HVS Executive Search based in New York and has over 32 years of retained Hospitality Executive Search experience within the Hotel, Restaurant, and Travel/Leisure industries. He also leads the global growth strategy for HVS Executive Search. Court directs his team in senior hospitality executive searches across all functional areas including Operations, Human Resources, Sales/Marketing, Finance, Real Estate, Franchise Development, Technology, and Supply Chain/Logistics, working with clients in the private equity, hotel management, restaurant, hotel investment/REITS, travel technology, and leisure venue industries. Court is on the Advisory Board of Shift One and remains an active Cornell alumnus through student coaching with Cornell University’s Hospitality Leadership Development Institute. Court began his career in the restaurant industry after graduating from Cornell’s Hotel School gaining multi-unit operational experience prior to launching a career in Human Resources/Recruiting. Having gained experience in executive recruitment from the brand side, the desire to work with a broader range of hospitality clients led Court to a career in retained executive search beginning in 1990. Court and his wife reside in both Connecticut and Vermont and have two young adult children. He enjoys boating and fishing on the Long Island Sound, skiing and fly-fishing in Vermont, travelling, and food/wine. Court earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the Cornell School of Hotel Administration from Cornell University.

Press Coverage

Hotel appraisers adapt methods to COVID-19 uncertainty, 2020

How to Minimize the Cost of Emotional Labor, 2018

My Articles

First to the Finish Line: How to Attract Top Talent to Your Hospitality Organization

As the pandemic eases, the hospitality industry faces multiple challenges in recruiting talented employees. This situation is likely to result in some exciting hiring trends in 2022, including a stronger focus on technology use and the overall employee experience. Organizations will have to deploy innovative solutions to attract the human capital they need in this competitive environment.

• February 11, 2022 By Court Williams

• Human Resources , Executive Search & Recruitment , Hotel Companies , COVID-19 , United States

How to Resolve the Current State of Emergency in Hospitality Employment

The hospitality industry has seen a decrease in staff as many people have found alternate career paths as a result of the impacts of COVID-19. The hospitality industry needs to re-focus their efforts to meet future staffing requirements in order to see an increase in demand for hospitality industry seekers.

• July 26, 2021 By Court Williams

• Human Resources , Executive Search & Recruitment , Hotel Companies , COVID-19 , United States

COVID-19 Recovery HVS Global Hospitality Employer Survey

HVS Executive Search executives reached out to hospitality employers across US, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa to understand the current employer sentiment as the industry embarks the recovery zone. The objective of the survey was to “check the pulse” and address the unified response that is critical for the hospitality industry at this stage.

• June 4, 2021 By Court Williams , Bhavna Bhatia

• Travel & Tourism , Executive Search & Recruitment , COVID-19 , Middle East , South America , North America , Europe , Asia , Africa

How Hotel F&B Pivoted in Response to COVID-19, and What the Future Holds

COVID-19 has affected the hospitality and tourism industries in a number of ways, and hotel food and beverage operations is one of the most affected areas. A decline in travel, low occupancy rates, and guests shifting to either cooking at home or preferring drive-thru, curbside, and delivery over eating out has led to hotel F&B rapidly evolving and adjusting their models. Hotels are marketing their eateries to locals, offering contactless food delivery, and enhancing gift card sales.

• August 12, 2020 By Court Williams

• Human Resources , Food & Beverage , Executive Search & Recruitment , Hotel Companies , COVID-19 , North America , United States

Organizational Restructuring in the Restaurant Industry Post COVID-19

In an ideal world, the restaurant industry would reopen after the Covid-19 pandemic to hordes of diners hungry to make up for lost time. The reality, however, is that a large percentage of former customers simply won’t have money to spend dining out.

• May 13, 2020 By Court Williams

• Human Resources , Food & Beverage , Executive Search & Recruitment , COVID-19 , United States , Canada , North America

Generation Z: What Do They Want from their Hotel Stay Experience?

Generation Z currently comprises more than a quarter of the U.S. population and delivers a hefty contribution to the economy. They may not be booking hotel rooms yet, but they already have a significant impact on their parents’ choices of accommodation.

• June 26, 2019 By Court Williams

• Travel & Tourism , Executive Search & Recruitment , North America

The Impact of Technology on Hotel Sales and Marketing

Hotel sales and marketing has evolved vastly in recent years, mainly as a result of technological advancements. With the proliferation of new brands leading to stiffer industry competition, hotels are increasingly adding technology to their marketing strategies in an effort to stay abreast.

• June 26, 2019 By Court Williams , Rachel H Levitt

Understanding the Resistance to Change Within the Hospitality Industry

What can change leaders do to overcome the resistance to change? Sheetal Singh, Ph.D. and Court Williams, CEO at HVS Executive Search address this question in their latest article in Hotel Business Review.

• April 3, 2019 By Sheetal Singh , Court Williams

Technology in the Hospitality Industry – Have We Gone Too Far?

With the advent of technology, many activities previously performed by live humans have been replaced by automated methods. Is it really an improvement, or has the industry gone too far?

• March 20, 2019 By Court Williams , Paul Savage

• Executive Search & Recruitment , North America