FOUNDER & PARTNER TREUGAST SOLUTIONS GROUP

Prof. Gerhard founded TREUGAST Solutions Group more than 30 years ago and currently acts as CEO of the Mother Company Solutions Holding.

Prof. Stephan GERHARD is also Managing Partner of Horwath HTL Austria and owner of Solutions Holding. The Solutions Holding has, in addition to TREUGAST, investments in innovative hotel groups, such as "25hours" hotels, but also traditional businesses such as Arcona hotels, which are partly managed under the brand Steigenberger.

With over 30 years of consulting experience in the tourism industry and as a Certified Rating Advisor, especially in Central Europe he is an acknowledged industry expert.

He started his career in 1974 with an apprenticeship in hotel management and after a couple of years of practical experience in the hospitality business, he started his academic studies in Business Administration. Within this period he identified soon the need for impartial and highly specialized advisory services.

Because of his expert knowledge, Prof. Gerhard was called Resident Professor for "Hospitality Development" at FHM/University of Applied Sciences. Furthermore he is an active member of the hotel & tourism industry for several decades in the following institutions:

• Board member to spearhead the foundation of FBMA e.V. (Food & Beverage Management Association e.V. – the national association of executives in the hospitality industry)
• Member of the tourism committee of the IHK Berlin (Chamber of Commerce & Industry Berlin)
• Member of the board of Deutsche Hotel & Resort Holding (which runs AROSA Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Louis C. Jacob, etc.
• Expert advisory committee of the International University Bad Honnef, which ranks among the leading hotel schools worldwide and many others 

To honor his exceptional achievements for the hospitality industry Prof. Gerhard was awarded with the special award ’’Hotelier of the Year 2011“.

Qualifications

• 1973 German Baccalaureate
• 1974 - 1977 Apprenticeship in hotel management
• 1979 - 1982 Academic study: Business Administration Degree: Diploma graduate of Business Administration 

Experience (selected examples)

• 1977 - 1979 Management functions in hospitality business
• 1982 - 1985 Junior consultant/ consultant at bbg consulting GmbH
• 1985 - 1988 Managing partner at K&P Consulting GmbH (junior partner)
• 1988 - 2015 CEO of TREUGAST Unternehmensberatungsgesellschaft mbH
• Since 2005 Founder & CEO of Solutions Holding GmbH
• Since 2012 Managing Partner Horwath HTL Austria

Lectureship 

• Since 1986 Lecturer at the University of Cooperative Education and DHBW (Baden-Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University), Germany
• Since 2007 Lecturer for the MBA course on „International Real Estate Management“  at the Bauakademie Biberach, Germany
• Since 2012 Lecturer for tourism-, sports- and eventmanagement at the Free University Bozen, Italy
• Since 2010 Oridinary Professor for "Hospitality Development" at FHM/University of Applied   Sciences

Publications

• Investment Ranking Germany and Austria
• Hospitality Trend Survey
• Operative Comparison for Hotels and Gastronomy
• Health Resort Industry Report
• Hotelinvestment-Attractiveness-Index
• Benchmark Survey International (Horwath HTL)
• Benchmark Survey National (TREUGAST & Horwath HTL)

 FORMER TOURISM MINISTER OF EGYPT

After his departure from public office in 2016, Zaazou returned to the private sector as a consultant working with a number of international and local prestigious organizations. Lately, he was appointed on October 2017, as the special advisor for the Secretary-General of the UNWTO (UN World Tourism Organization). 

Zaazou holds the following posts: 

• Chairman of Marina Management Company (a multiple billion dollar investment in the Egyptian Mediterranean Coast
• Group Advisor of the owning company of Rixos Hotels in Egypt (Latif Group) 
• Group and Board Advisor for Travel Group powered by Latif Group
• Advisor – TH Solar ( a Collaboration Company with Samsung CT in the field of renewable energy) 
• Board member in Orascom Holding (ODE) Owner of the famous El Gouna Development 
• Tourism Advisor for Sabbour Group in Oman
• Board Member of the newly formed Egyptian Council for Tourism Affairs ( Think Tank ) 
• Governor & Board Member of the Mediterranean Tourism Foundation (MTF) in Malta. 
• Above among others Education
• Advisor to Marriott Group Egypt and St. Regis Cairo
• Advisor to MC Group
• PR Consultant German Government

Education

• Beside his Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting from the University of Ain Shams in Cairo, Zaazou earned a specialized Certificate in Public Private Partnership (PPP) from Harvard Kennedy Business School.
• MBA & Phd from The International Business Academy (IBA), Delaware, USA. Verificaiton Code : PHD00012407EGY  

Zaazou, who attended many seminars and workshops both locally, regionally and internationally in the field of tourism was the first Egyptian Travel Pioneer that specialized in Green Tourism projects and the first to head the Green Tourism Unit at the Ministry of Tourism as well as Green related projects, he was the Ministry of Tourism representative for the mobilization of the Dahshour World Heritage site for community development project a model for development of cultural and natural dimension with a social perspective in partnership with UN agencies (lead by UNDP). He was also the Head of the Supreme Committee for transforming Sharm El Sheikh into a green the city. 

Zaazou served on the boards of various prestigious associations including the Egyptian Tourism Federation, Egyptian Tourism Authority, Tourism Development Authority, and the Arab Tourism Organization, in addition to being a member of The UNWTO, (Vice Chairman of the Business Council), was chosen as the supervisor of the Arab tourism strategy by the council of the Arab ministers of tourism in 2014 among others. 

Awards 

Zaazou earned several awards from different organization such as e International Public Relations Associations (IPRA) 

• The International Public Relations Associations (IPRA)- Paris man of the year (2013)
• He has been selected as the best minister of tourism worldwide in March 2014 (Patwa ITB-BERLIN). 
• Received QTA’s Award in 2014 
• Received the memorial shield in 14.2.2014 to say thanks to the Egyptian tourism minister from The Federation of Italian tour operators (Astoi) for his efforts in tourism field in such difficult time for Egypt 
• The Best Development Award in 2015 from German Travel Industry Club.
• Zaazou was awarded by Mr. Thomas Boesl, President of Germany’s leading travel agency organization, the Quality Travel Alliance (QTA) recognizing his outstanding contribution to improve the image of Egypt as an attractive tourist destination for German Tourists. 
• The QTA has grown to include nearly 8,000 German travel agencies through a network of partnerships and cooperation agreements between different travel agency chains. Their combined revenues increased by 3% to €4.3 billion this year 
• German Travel Industry Award (2015)

GG Value Management GmbH

Advisor for the portfolio management

MAS Deutsche Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH

Extensive competence in management, development and administration of investment funds.