Data-Driven Hospitality: Ian’s Journey from Chef to Industry Innovator

From Dining Rooms and Kitchens to Global Leadership

Ian’s career began in the dining rooms of the Canadian Rockies, with formative roles at the Banff Springs Hotel and a Michelin-starred restaurant in France. Realising that practical experience alone was not enough, Ian returned to Cornell University to deepen his expertise in the business side of hospitality, earning both a bachelor’s and master’s degree to learn more about finance, marketing, and real estate.

After completing his studies at Cornell University, he transitioned into hotel management with Canadian Pacific and Fairmont Hotels, where he introduced analytical approaches to revenue management and helped scale the Fairmont brand across Asia.

A defining chapter came with his move to Singapore, a place he had long dreamed of since childhood. “Growing up, my mom had a poster of the Raffles Hotel in our summer cottage, and I always imagined what this amazing, exotic place must be like.” At Marina Bay Sands, Ian built a data-driven operations team that transformed performance and earned the Singapore Quality Award, proving how analytics could revolutionise hospitality.

His influence extended beyond the private sector as well, having served as a Technical Advisor to the Singapore Tourism Board, where his expertise shaped national tourism strategies and affirm his standing as a respected leader in hospitality business analytics.

Reimagining Hospitality with Analytics

Ian believes hotels hold untapped potential when it comes to data. “Hotels are incredibly complex environments with vast amounts of data, but they haven’t leveraged it effectively. The hotel of the future will operate more like a digital business, where you measure, experiment, and continuously improve.”

He has often used analytics to challenge “sacred cows” of the industry, long-held assumptions about guest behaviour and operations that data ultimately proved false. For instance, practices once thought essential to guest satisfaction were shown to have minimal impact, allowing management to redirect resources toward what truly mattered. By grounding decisions in data rather than tradition, Ian helped shift hospitality from intuition-driven management to performance-driven innovation.

Analytics, he explains, not only identifies inefficiencies but also deepens understanding of the customer journey. Hotels can predict guest preferences, personalise experiences, and even anticipate needs before they are expressed. “With the right data, you stop guessing what guests value — you know.”

For Ian, analytics also empowers every level of staff by making contributions visible. With transparent metrics, hotels can align teams from top to bottom, foster a coaching culture, and focus on the 20% of actions that drive 80% of results. Looking ahead, he sees AI and robotics playing a supportive role: “It’s about taking the robot out of the human,” he says, automating repetitive tasks so people can focus on delivering the personal service that defines hospitality.