Cihan Cobanoglu is the dean of the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. He holds the McKibbon Endowed Chair Professor of the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at USF's Muma College of Business in Sarasota-Manatee. He also serves as the director of the M3 Center for Hospitality Technology and Innovation and is the coordinator of international programs for the college. Additionally, Cobanoglu is the director of international partnerships for the college, responsible for coordinating global affairs.

Cobanoglu is a renowned hospitality and tourism technology expert and a Fulbright specialist. He is a Certified Hospitality Technology Professional and is editor of the Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Technology , the Journal of Global Business Insights; is associate editor of Tourism Review and a co-author of six books and 10 conference proceedings. He serves as president of the Association of North America Higher Education International. He is a board member of Hospitality Technology magazine and an editorial board member of Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, among many others.

His research involves the use and impact of technology in the hospitality industry. His work has been featured in national and international media outlets such as BBC, NBC, ABC, and Futurist magazine, The New York Times, the Boston Globe and Lodging magazine. His work has been published in scholarly journals such as Tourism Management, The Service Industries Journal, Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, and many others. His articles have been cited more than 4,000 times, and he has made numerous presentations at national and international conferences. He received the “Excellence in Research -- Tenured” award from USF in 2016. He received 14 best paper awards from international conferences.

Cobanoglu earned a PhD and master's degree from Oklahoma State University and an undergraduate degree from Cukurova University in Turkey.

Postdoctoral researcher in Urban and Tourism Studies (Geopolitics and Governance of Tourism) at the Université du Québec à Montréal / UQAM. Postdoctoral researcher in Sociology (Social Theory and Critical Realism) at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro/UFRJ. Ph.D. in Social Sciences from the Federal University of Juiz de Fora/UFJF. Master in Administration from the Federal University of Minas Gerais/UFMG. Bachelor’s degree in Tourism/UFMG. Associate Professor at UFJF, teaching in the graduate programs in Social Sciences, Administration, and Public Administration at UFJF and in the Interdisciplinary Master's Program in Tourism and Heritage at UFOP. Teaches undergraduate courses in Tourism and Human Sciences at UFJF. Member of the International Association of Scientific Experts in Tourism (AIEST) and the International Sociological Association (member of the RC17 Steering Committee – Sociology of Organizations). Visiting scholar in Canada, Mexico, the USA, Cuba, and Ecuador. Director of the Latin American Tourism Center (CELAT) and the Economic and Social Observatory of Tourism (OEST). Former member of the State Tourism Council of Minas Gerais. Former vice-president of the Municipal Tourism Council of Juiz de Fora. CV Lattes: http://lattes.cnpq.br/9841188234449467 Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1889-069X EW-mail: thiago.pimentel@ufjf.br