Max Starkov
Cendyn
Max Starkov is a hospitality and online travel industry technologist, consultant and digital strategist with 30 years of experience in hospitality technology and digital marketing, hotel online distribution and revenue management, hotel CRM and branding strategies.
Until recently, Max was the Founder, President & CEO and more recently, Founder and Board Director at NextGuest (now merged with Cendyn) in New York City, the hospitality industry’s leading digital consulting, technology, CRM and marketing firm with 150 employees and offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. Recently NextGuest merged with Cendyn to form the global leader in hotel digital technology, CRM and data marketing solutions.
Max has co-founded and served as President & CEO of three consecutive online travel startups: Travelbreak.com (OTA and online travel marketplace), WhaleMedia Technologies (hotel SaaS technology - CRS and Website Booking Engine developer), and NextGuest (formerly HEBS Digital), now nerfed with Cendyn to form hospitality industry’s leading CRM, CRS, Digital Marketing and consulting services firm.
Max is a published author and recognized "thought leader" on travel and hospitality inventory distribution, technology and digital marketing strategies, and a recipient of many industry awards, including the HSMAI "Top 25 Most Extraordinary Minds in Hospitality Marketing.”
For over 20 semesters Max has been an adjunct professor on hospitality technology, online distribution in travel and hospitality, hotel digital marketing and CRM at New York University's Tisch Center for Hospitality & Tourism.
For over 30 years now, as a hospitality and online travel industry expert-consultant with all major expert knowledge networks, Max has consulted Wall Street analysts and investment bankers worldwide on the online travel marketplace, hospitality industry, online travel agencies (OTAs) like Booking Holdings, Expedia, Trip, HRS, etc.; bed banks like Hotelbeds.com; metasearch players like TripAdvisor, Kayak.com, Trivago; on Google Travel (Ex. Google Hotel Ads); Social media travel advertising (ex. Facebook's Travel Ads) and Amazon's travel initiatives.
Max has an MS in Economics of International Tourism & Hospitality and an MBA degree, Beta Gamma Sigma Honors, from Fordham University in New York.