Find out aboutThe Master Innholders

To apply to be a Master Innholder, candidates must:

• Be based in the UK.
• Submit a paper (around 1,500 words) on a provided topic.
• Demonstrate a minimum experience of five years in significant hotel general management during their career to date, as a general manager or hotel manager.
• Be making a significant contribution to the work of industry organisations and/or industry education initiatives at local, regional or national level.
• Clearly demonstrate not only their hotel management ability, but also continuing support for improving standards within the industry.

Applications should be made by using the form, accompanied by a CV and a recent colour photograph.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to discuss their application and suitability for membership with a current Master Innholder, and the application should be supported by a letter of endorsement from a current Master Innholder. We request that a current Master Innholder provides a letter of support for just one applicant each year.

Candidates are considered by the Chairman’s Membership Panel and shortlisted applicants will be invited for interview.

The Master Innholders is a well respected, prestigious force within the hotel industry – an elite corps which is publicly recognised as a standard bearer for the industry.

It aims to influence standards and extend professionalism within the industry; to promote consideration, study, discussion and research in the areas affecting hotel management including management development, training, education and recruitment.

The Master Innholders organises and manages the annual General Managers’ Conference which is held each January in a prestigious hotel in London. It attracts over 450 delegates, the vast majority of whom are hotel managers. It is unquestionably the largest and most prestigious conference organised for general managers by general managers in the UK hotel industry’s calendar. It attracts speakers from all walks of life, including many from other sectors.

Other activities during the year are restricted to members. They include an Annual Dinner (and AGM) and a Spring Meeting, held in a member’s establishment away from London. Members are invited as guests to an annual Court Dinner hosted by the Worshipful Company of Innholders. An annual educational trip to the champagne region of France, sponsored by Moët and Chandon, is organised for sommeliers each year.

It is not the remit of the Master Innholders to emulate the fine work being undertaken by other worthy organisations in the fields of training, recruitment, professional development or trade relations. Having said this, it does encourage its members to work with such organisations. More importantly, through its members whose establishments are spread throughout the country, it can assist other organisations to “spread the word” and to host gatherings from time to time.