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Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin Says Data Should Feed Instinct, Not Overrule It
The head of one of the world's largest hotel groups says data sharpens big decisions but should never make them, arguing that gut feel, human impact and timing come first. He will lay out that framework for a travel industry audience in September 2026.
Sébastien Bazin, who has led Accor since 2013, describes a three-stage filter for major calls: instinct first, then the heart, then the brain. Instinct establishes what feels right, he says, the heart weighs how a choice will land on people, and the brain settles the question of timing.
Under that framework, data is treated as essential input rather than the deciding voice. Bazin argues that information should nourish instinct instead of replacing it, and that in a market moving as quickly as travel, waiting for perfect information often means the window for a decision has already closed.
He applies the approach across a portfolio spanning more than 45 brands and 5,800 hotels and resorts, a scale that gives the group an unusually large base of operating and customer information to draw on.
On traveler choice, Bazin says the customer journey is becoming longer and more fragmented, and that artificial intelligence is set to transform nearly every part of it. Discovery, trip planning and personalization are the areas he singles out as most exposed to change.
Bazin is scheduled to speak about how his decision rule holds up at that scale, and about where he draws the line between technology and the human side of hospitality, at an industry forum running Sept. 22–24, 2026.