How do the people who run the world's best hotels and restaurants scout out new talent? They come to Hotel Ezra Cornell (HEC) at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration and take careful notes.

Considered the premier event at the premier hospitality program in the world, HEC is an extravaganza designed to dazzle hospitality industry pros, many of whom are graduates of the Hotel School themselves. Think of it as the equivalent of the college all-stars for hotel students, with all the big-league recruiters in attendance.

This year's event has the theme of "Once in a Lifetime" and runs from April 7 through 9. The students began preparing for it a year ago and are now working at a whirlwind pace to pull it off flawlessly, partly because they know that some of the people who observe them might just offer them jobs. Guests this year include such prominent people as John Sharpe, former chief operating officer of Four Seasons Hotels; Dennis Sweeney, vice president of Joseph Baum Restaurants, the company that owns Windows on the World; Michael Sansbury, vice president and managing director, Loews Hotels and Universal Studios; and Steve Weisz, president, Marriott Vacation Club International. All of them are Hotel School alumni and HEC veterans who consider their presence on campus for the annual event de rigueur.

Their presence is noticed by the students. "It's an opportunity to network as well as polish your skills," said Hotel School student Deniz Omurgonulsen, managing director of this year's HEC. About 750 students take part, close to 90 percent of the school, and "almost everybody gets a summer job out of it." Omurgonulsen herself was lucky enough, or savvy enough, to talk to Sharpe when she was an HEC function manager as a sophomore. That led to a job at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Chicago last summer and an offer to be assistant manager of the rooms division at the Pierre Hotel in New York City when she graduates.

"There's a lot of pressure to make each succeeding HEC even better than the last one," said Jeffrey Manno, student publicity and education director. That's a tall order since the first

one, in 1925, was impressive enough to inspire hotelier E.M. Statler to fund the original Statler Inn - the predecessor of the current Statler Hotel, where the event takes place.

To dazzle the hyper-demanding clientele, there will be no fewer than 12 food-related events this year, with 78 appetizers and main courses and 28 desserts from which to choose, each one spectacularly presented. The highlight is likely to be "Tables of Tbilisi," a Friday evening banquet based on the cuisine of the Republic of Georgia. "The menu has Mediterranean and Middle Eastern influences and is really innovative," said Seth Adler, student executive chef. "It features cuisines that people don't hear about or ever get to taste," such as cinnamon- and cardomom-flavored oils to dip special breads in, lobo tkemali (kidney beans in plum cilantro sauce) and red snapper in pomegranate and walnut sauce.

Other once-in-a-lifetime culinary events include La Habana, cocktails and hors d'oeuvres in an atmosphere that evokes the glamour of Cuba in the 1950s; and Salamou Alaikum, a Middle Eastern-style brunch, complete with Bedouin tents.

The biggest event of all, the Saturday night banquet titled "A Royal Affair to Remember," is so key to HEC's overall success that it had its own dress rehearsal March 9 to enable the students to test out every element: decorations, flowers, linen, the skill level of the staff and the timing between each course. The menu includes smoked salmon terrine with caviar sauce and squab stuffed with shiitake mushrooms and preserved lemons. "Everyone was surprisingly relaxed, and things went smoothly," reported Omurgonulsen.

For most of the students involved, the biggest challenge has been juggling Hotel School studies with HEC planning and preparation. Omurgonulsen, Manno and Adler are among the 17 students who make up HEC's board of directors. They routinely have put in 30 to 40 hours a week since last September and will probably accelerate the pace as they get closer to showtime this April. "It's hard work, very labor intensive, with a lot of attention to detail," said Adler, "but also fun" and superb training for a career in hospitality management.

In addition to managing the hotel and planning all the receptions, events and dinners, the students have lined up a series of educational programs tailored to hospitality executives. One such discussion will focus on how the Internet is reshaping the hospitality industry. "The web is fundamentally altering the way the industry does business, reshaping every aspect, from marketing to managing multiple properties to taking room reservations," said Roy Alvarez, a lecturer in hospitality information management at the Hotel School. Panelists include Jeff

Sampler, an associate professor at London Business School and leading researcher on e-commerce; Jules Sieburgh, director of hotel automation at Priceline.com, a web-based travel and leisure firm; Lawrence Hall, president and chief operating officer of hsupply.com, the world's largest online source of hospitality products; and Peter Yesawich, CEO of Yesawich, Pepperdine & Brown, an international marketing and consulting agency.

Also part of the educational component is a panel discussion on spas - a hot new trend in hospitality - including how to integrate them into established hotels and make them profitable. Hotel School Professor Mary Tabacchi, an authority on spas, will lead the discussion. Panelists include Jerry Cohen, president and chief operating officer, Canyon Ranch; Raoul Sudre, co-president and chief operating officer, Aspen Spa Management; Mary Elizabeth Gifford, director of communications, Rancho La Puerta and Golden Door; and others.

For more information contact the HEC office: (607) 255-3824; or Mark Adams: (607) 255-6157, mla12@cornell.edu; or visit this web site: http://hotelschool.cornell.edu/HEC.