Officially introducing the members of Airbnb’s Host Advisory Board

[Airbnb]

*Posted live: December 16th

Today, we’re excited to share a video officially introducing the members of Airbnb’s Host Advisory Board.

As we recently announced, Airbnb is launching a formal program to give hosts a seat at the table. The Host Advisory Board is a group of selected hosts that will not only keep the community informed, but share your feedback directly with Airbnb leadership.  The board will also help inform how  the Airbnb Host Endowment is invested in the community, and influence policies, programs, and new products.

These 17 selected hosts were chosen for their passion, their contributions to the hosting community, and their desire to create a better future for all hosts—among other criteria. Together, they’ve hosted more than 15,000 guests with a combined total of 86 years of hosting experience and an average star rating of 4.9!

*To add or change subtitles to the video, hover over the video and click on the little 'Settings' wheel in the bottom right corner. Then click 'Subtitle/CC' and select your language. 

Watch the video above to meet the community members serving on the board and learn about their individual passions and experience. To find out more about how the board will work together to advocate for the community, check out the latest Host Update article featuring our Head of Hosting, Catherine Powell.

Do keep your eyes peeled here in the Community Center as we will be introducing the board members in the new year. There will be regular opportunities for our new board members to respond to your questions and address important topics.

[Anne9831]

I'm a UK host, and strongly feel that if a legitimate person wishes to book stays 'honestly', there is no reason why they would have a problem in providing relevant government ID, along with a photo of themselves. How many places, ie hotels etc, insist on taking credit card info upon booking.... the majority I would say. Having to provide ID will help get rid of some of the more troublesome guests, that do sadly make up a profile, leave a mess , then use the host rating system to gently threaten you into not complaining about them etc. My worst non compliant booking was a nearby hotel manager booked my apartment, lying stating it was for 1 person, then throughout 2 nights a succession of various hotel staff came and went, never locking the door, then left a mess and no return of key! They'd been sleeping in bedroom and the lounge.  The booking looked like a legitimate booking, until after when I dig further and found out the truth. I spoke to the manager and told him in no uncertain terms, to ever try to book my place again. I didn't report him though.... I felt lesson learned for me and stopped taking Instant Bookings. I feel penalised for not taking instant bookings, but like the fact I can now ask guests a few questions before I accept a booking. Come on Airbnb Management, get ID and photos (of person, not a dog or suchlike) compulsory please, save lots of us hosts having these issues. Much appreciated..... look forward to more Community stories..... 🙂

[Melodie-And-John0]

@Catherine-Powell , thanks for launching this program, I wish the 17 members the best of luck dealing with the mass of challenges an Airbnb host planet can offer and they will be asked to consider almost daily once their connection links have been created, its going to be a rush for sure!!!!!   I'm guessing you can relate to that having been tagged and called to task more times in a day than most of us will be in a year!

I have to echo the concerns of @Brian462  and @Kade3 about the US composition, I have no problem with the hosts specifically, they seem like awesome people and are certainly solid reps of their own brand and AIrbnb's and have proven they care for their guests just like most repeat Superhosts do.  My concern is that California is a small fraction of representation of the US in reality,  its demographics, tax systems, municipal and regulatory concerns are not representative of Kansas, Arkansas, Oregon, Texas,  Montana, Alaska, Florida  or 40+ other states or territories. 

@Brian can testify that the NY population and even culture above the Hudson Mason Dixon line is not much like the one below it, I would have hoped the selection might be a little more sensitive to the variety of hosts and destinations the USA has to offer the rest of the world.    To be blunt (that might be what I do best), The US of A as a whole is getting a little tired of being marginalized by our own government as concerns and needs "Like San Fran, Atlanta, Seattle and NY City", our nations diversity and variety in reality is much less about what a sighted person could see and more the sum total of our different internal and external parts or even lack of them (those with disabilities). 

All that said, I will support the team as it has been formed 100%, I just ask them all to consider their nations citizenship as a whole and not their specific geographic locations as those they were selected to represent.  We all need this to work and depending on it to make sure Hosts become more than ever changing contract bound conscripts to the Mother Ship, bless you all and us all!   Be well, JR

[Danna-and-Carey0]

Would like to see host have the ability to exchange days with other host perhaps paying a transaction and cleaning fee.

[Katie]

Hi @Danna-and-Carey0, thanks for your suggestion here. Just to get a bit more clarification on what you're thinking: do you mean giving hosts the opportunity to stay with other hosts on vacation, as part of an exchange of stays?

[Sharon1014]

17 board members guarantees this advisory group will never get anything done.  I once had a board of 12, it was totally unworkable, meetings took forever, decision making was slow as a wet week, everyone wanted to have their say about every little thing and the decisions that did eventually result were the outcome of the lowest common denominator and not at all in the best interests of the organisation.

Solution = created an executive board of 4 plus me as the manager.  Worked a treat.  We could meet more frequently (weekly) and liaison with each other was simple.  Decisions were high quality and fitting for the needs, then ratified by the full board at monthly meetings.

The Host Advisory Board should have a similar Executive Board structure - 1 representative from each of the following, making a total of 7 maximum.

US

Canada

South America

Europe

UK

Australia/New Zealand

Asia

The remaining 10 advisory board members could run the CC as moderators so they have active engagement in the on-going issues of the wider ABNB community rather than their own little piece of the universe. which may or may not reflect the bigger issues affecting all hosts. 

And it would save the company a ton of money if SoG wasn't needed.  Some further company belt tightening is going to be needed over the northern hemisphere winter, this would be a good place to start - giving hosts real ownership over their own forum.

@Danna-and-Carey0 @Alexandra516  @Melodie-And-John0 @Anne9831 @Robin4 @Sarah977  @Ute42 @Anonymous  @Brian462  @Rebecca181 @Emiel1  @Ann72 @Keshav7  @Bonnie-And-Nilda0  @Barbara-and-Joe0  @Anne1005  @Ben3758  @Kade3  @Anthony712  @Mark-and-Gabriela0  @Cathie19  @Yvonne658 @Michael288  @Tosca-and-Edo0  @Jeremy-And-Rachel0 @Helen552  @Emilia42   @Angela980  @Airbnb  @Brian  @Catherine-Powell  (and anyone else I missed 😀 )

[Sarah977]

Absolutely. That old adage "Too many cooks spoil the broth" holds true.

But you've left out some entire regions of the world in your list (I'm impressed by your financial/economic knowledge and your general take on things, but maybe geography isn't your strong suit).

Mexico is part of North America, not South America. So I'd add "Mexico and Central America (Guatemala to Panama)" to that list. You've also left off Africa entirely and I would argue that "Asia" is too broad a region and should be further broken down. And how about the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands? So if there was a rep from each region, it looks more like 10 to than 7.

@Sharon1014 

[Sharon1014]

@Sarah977   Yep did think about Africa and other locations, e.g. Oceania generally, Japan, South Korea, India, there are so many that could be included but one has to draw the line somewhere - and those places can still have active representation via the other advisory board spots.

Thanks for the geography heads up, learn something new every day! 😀  

[Sarah977]

@Sharon1014  Well, Mexico has the 2nd largest economy in Latin America, ranks 10th in population (129 million to Australia's 25 million, for example) and 14th in surface area of all countries in the world, but on your list, it wouldn't be included anywhere, and should hardly be given just a little nod by other advisory board spots, as if it was some small island.  If you exchanged "South America" for Latin America, that would include Mexico and Central America, as well as South America.

[Sharon1014]

@Sarah977    Sold. 👍

[Ute42]

.

@Sharon1014  

I was surprised that the boardmembers were appointed by airbnb. I was under the impression that the advisory board is ment to be a board to lobby for the interests of hosts in their relationship to airbnb and that the boardmembers would be elected by the hundred thousands of hosts out there. Appearently I was wrong. Maybe they introduce that procedure for the 2022 board.

[Sarah977]

@Ute42 Doesn't exactly inspire confidence in hosts being fairly represented when they were hand-picked by Airbnb, does it?  Reeks of cushy political appointments for one's sycophants. And how does 3 out of 17 members being from California (friends of the corporate bigwigs?) accurately represent the interests of a platform that claims to be world-wide inclusive? What do they know about hosting in Alabama, let alone anywhere else in the world?

[Melodie-And-John0]

@Sarah977 , well said, unfortunately Commiefornia  (and New York, the other left coast) has has way too much influence in and over the USA and they shouldn't be considered the posterchildren of success for how to do anything.  Their state burns like a fire pit every year, they have to ration clean water often, they depend on way too many others to power their grid, their nearly bankrupt most of the time and have the largest homeless and indigent populations in the nation.   As giants of industry like movie makers, Elon Musk and others desert the state en mass (NY has the same thing going on), its purely because the state is not friendly to any business (including Airbnb hosts).   A recall petition is currently circulating as we speak against its malevolent and hypocritical governor and vineyard owner (he shut down everything but vineyard and pot farms) and likely going to happen like Grey Davis in 2003.   Maybe Arnold "will come and save the day again?   Not likely, I think he's given up on trying to influence the Sheeple to stop drinking and watering their gardens with Gatorade (see idiocracy), just like most of us.    I will stop my rant about CA cause there are allot of good people there but they definitely don't represent many folks in the USA or the planet for that matter.   Just my 3 pesos for what that will buy.  Stay well, JR

[Sharon1014]

@Ute42  I think the initial round of appointments were always going to be that way, which isn't altogether unreasonable in the first instance at least.  But yes, in "creating a world where everyone belongs", democracy didn't get a look in the door this time round.  Perhaps a year in, it may be a different story.

I'm not sure a demonstrated history of advocacy for hosts was a selection criteria either.  But I think we should give them a chance, see how the dust settles and whether they cope with being inundated with cranky hosts wanting resolutions to things. 

I would however like to see a Host Advisory Board Executive group (per above) appointed from among the existing contenders, and I'd also like to know if any board members are going to be paid a stipend or receive compensation of any other kind (e.g. travel credits, free stays, corporate freebies etc).

The company is entering a whole new phase of its existence, one that cannot now be hidden from public view as is possible when a privately held entity.  The dynamics of this new transparency will no doubt require some adjustment from all senior execs, including engaging in what we can only hope will be a meaningful and real partnership with hosts. 

If it fails the "pub test" on that count, then engagement from the rest of the host community will evaporate.  People who have no real equity in the process are unlikely to engage.  "Consultation" is so often used to quell the masses, a strategy often used by politicians, but it does so often alas turn out to be the quintessential toothless tiger.  Let's hope this one isn't just another PR exercise.  Time will tell the story.

[Katie]

Hi @Sharon1014, thanks for your comments (and the vote of confidence there 😉 ).

I just wanted to come back to you on your question around if the board members will be compensated for their time and effort: the answer is yes. Members of the Host Advisory Board are taking on a significant amount of work on behalf of the host community, and we believe it is important to acknowledge their efforts.

The idea is that these 17 selected hosts truly value a strong hosting community, so they’re motivated by more than just their individual success, but also the success of the community collectively.

@Ute42 @Sarah977 I know you have also commented on the selection process for the board, and I wanted to reiterate that members will serve on the board for only one year, and will be responsible for determining the criteria and selection process for future Advisory Board members.

[Sharon1014]

@Katie   Good to hear they will be compensated, they should be.  The first year of rolling out a new program is always something of a headache - things don't always turn out the way it might look on paper and there are often endless "adjustments" needing to be made to the grand plan.