Dr. Cihan Cobanoglu is the Provost at Virscend University, Irvine, California. Previously, he served as the Dean and the McKibbon Endowed Chair Professor of the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management (SHTM) in the Muma College of Business at the University of South Florida (USF), where he also held roles as the Director of the M3 Center for Hospitality Technology and Innovation, Coordinator of International Programs for the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, and Director of Global Partnerships for the Muma College of Business between 2010 and 2025. He is a renowned hospitality and tourism technology expert. Dr. Cobanoglu is a Fulbright Specialist commissioned by the Fulbright Commission which is part of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and World Learning (2018-2021). He is a Certified Hospitality Technology Professional (CHTP) commissioned by Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals (HFTP) and Educational Institute of American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). He is the Editor of the Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology (JHTT)(Indexed in SSCI IF=6.4), Journal of Global Business Insights (JGBI) and a co-author of 6 books, 11 edited books and more than 20 conference proceedings.

Dr. Cobanoglu served as the chair of the American Hotel and Lodging Association’s (AHLA) Technology and E-Business Committee from 2009 to 2011 and a member of CHTP Advisory Council and Editorial Advisory Board of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP). In addition, Dr. Cobanoglu is a visionary board member of Hospitality Technology magazine and editorial board member of Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, International Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Administration, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Cases, and Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Education.

Dr. Cobanoglu also serves the industry as a consultant. He is the founder and chair of Global Conference on Business and Economics (GLOBE), Global Conference on Education and Research (GLOCER), Global Conference on Business, Hospitality and Tourism Research (GLOSEARCH) and Global Conference on Services and Retail Management (GLOSERV). Dr. Cobanoglu created a curriculum for hospitality software: innRoad Property Management System, M3 AccKnowledge Hotel Accounting System, and M3 Insight Hotel Business Intelligence System. He is serving as the President of Association of Global Educators (AGE). 

His research involves the use and impact of technology in the hospitality industry. He published more than 100 peer-reviewed academic articles in top journals. He founded and managed the eXperimental Guestroom (X-Room) at the University of Delaware’s Courtyard by Marriott from 2007 to 2009. Dr. Cobanoglu’s work has been featured in national and international media outlets such as BBC, NBC, ABC, CN8, Futurist Magazine, New York Times, Boston Globe and Lodging Magazine. He published in scholarly journals such as Tourism Management, The Service Industries Journal, Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, International Journal of Hospitality Management, and International Journal of Market Research. His articles have been cited in more than 10,000 times and he has made numerous presentations in national and international conferences.

He received “Excellence in Research-Tenured” award from the University of South Florida in 2016 and 2019. He is the recipient of International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education’s Stevenson W. Fletcher Achievement Award in 2020. He has taught courses in six different countries. He has been invited as a keynote speaker to more than 50 conferences. He received 14 best paper awards from International conferences. In 2013, he was named as a “Fellow” by Academy for Global Business Advancement (AGBA).

Prior to joining the Virscend University and University of South Florida, Dr. Cobanoglu served as an Associate Professor of hospitality information technology at the University of Delaware. Dr. Cobanoglu is the recipient of University of Delaware’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2009 and the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education’s (I-CHRIE) John Wiley & Sons, Innovation in Teaching Award in 2009. He received his undergraduate degree from Cukurova University, Turkey, masters and doctoral degrees from Oklahoma State University, USA.

For more information, visit his website at cobanoglu.com or his LinkedIn page. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.