Read all of the highlights from the 2021 International Hotel Investment Forum, held Sept. 1-3 in Berlin, Germany.

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According to CEOs of some of the world's largest hotel companies, acceleration is needed across the board, from operations to sustainability and from diversity to branding.

Accor Chairman and CEO Sébastien Bazin said of the many difficult choices he had to make during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision to lay off or furlough 290,000 employees, made within a couple of hours at the initial onset of the pandemic, was the most difficult.

Marriott International’s Tony Capuano and Hilton’s Chris Nassetta, CEOs of two of the biggest hotel brand companies in the world, shared their blueprints for recovery and emphasized a need for sharing and cooperation.

Hotel industry players in Europe look to grow their companies both organically and via mergers and acquisitions.

The horizon is muddled for hotel investment in Europe and elsewhere, but opportunities still exist for investors who have a clear strategy and stick to it.

The rule books for hotel business models and operations rule have been completely rewritten due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in massive doses of flexibility, alignment and efficiencies.

European hoteliers finally met together again at a major conference, but the message from the first day of the International Hotel Investment Forum is that hoteliers cannot think of the industry in the same way again.

On the second day of the International Hotel Investment Forum, discussions turned toward new business models and increased alignment between operators, owners, third-party management and other players.