Contributing to Excellence through R&D

     EHL Group is dedicated to supporting and driving sustainable growth and innovation in the hospitality industry. Through a wide range of research and development activities, we work alongside industry partners to build knowledge, test solutions, and address the practical and theoretical issues facing today's professionals and organizations.

    Academic Research

    EHL faculty members are regularly awarded for their research projects and publications that apply academic methods to solve real-world challenges.

    EHL’s research is powered by a pioneering spirit — striving to redefine boundaries and drive innovation that shapes a brighter future for the hospitality industry and the people at its heart.

    Through corporate and academic partnerships, EHL’s faculty and experts lead research across technology, data analytics, customer experience, sustainability, food safety, crisis resilience, and beyond. These faculty-driven initiatives and data-powered insights are not just advancing hospitality—they’re redefining it. From elevating guest satisfaction to driving profitability, streamlining operations, and fostering sustainable growth, EHL’s research is shaping the future of hospitality with purpose and vision.

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    Our 10 Research Domains

    • Finance & Real Estate
    • Education
    • Economics
    • Human Resources & Leadership
    • Organizational Behavior
    • Marketing
    • Strategy & Entrepreneurship
    • Sustainability & Innovation
    • Revenue Management
    • Hospitality Competences 
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    Our Research Institutes & Sponsored Labs

    Our research institutes conduct in-depth studies and give you access to dedicated multi-disciplinary teams composed of faculty and staff.

    Their aim is to deliver solutions in a collaborative manner and provide valuable knowledge and recommendations to develop successful, sustainable businesses and projects. 

    Where research meets real-world transformation across industries

    At the intersection of academia and real-world complexity, EHL’s Institutes, Labs, and Centers of Excellence explore questions that define the future:

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    Hospitality Transformation

    What does a regenerative, inclusive hospitality model look like in the age of climate disruption and global inequality?

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    The Human Experience

    How can we design emotionally intelligent, tech-augmented experiences that build trust, connection, and meaning?

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    The Future of Food

    How can gastronomy lead systemic change, from cultural identity to sustainable food systems and health?

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    Human-centered Leadership

    What kinds of leaders - and organizations - will thrive in an era of hybrid work, automation, and values-driven transformation?

    Project spotlight

     

    RoboCake

    RoboCake is a prime example of innovation, collaboration, and creativity. This edible robotic cake was developed through an interdisciplinary effort involving pastry chefs and food scientists from EHL, researchers from EPFL (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne), and the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (Italian Institute of Technology). Created as part of the RoboFood project, the wedding cake was first showcased at Expo 2025 Osaka, paving the way for interactive and delicious gastronomic experiences that highlight the latest advances in robotic food research.

    Collaborate with us

    At EHL, we keep the doors open and lend our facilities for all sorts of R&D activities. Our collaboration ranges from testing the latest technologies and products on campus with students and staff, to hosting product pitch sessions to provide feedback on new ideas, all the way to founding long-term research institutes dedicated to relevant topics.

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    Innovation Services

    Located in the new EHL premises at Grand Chemin (Epalinges), EHL's Innovation Hub facilitates the experimentation and testing of technological innovations in the field of hospitality, as imagined by start-ups, partners, researchers, and EHL student entrepreneurs.