Morgans Hotel Group Co., New York City, announced Jason Kalisman has resigned as interim chief executive officer to spend more time on personal matters, effective immediately, but he will remain a member of the board.
Real estate investor Howard Lorber, a member of the Morgans board, has been named chairman. The board said it will continue its CEO search, and in the interim Chief Financial Officer Richard Szymanski will temporarily assume the duties of the principal executive officer for securities law reporting purposes.
“After careful consideration and discussions with the board, I have decided it is in the best interests of the company to resign from my position as interim CEO to attend to personal obligations,” Kalisman said in a news release. “I am incredibly proud of what we achieved during my time as CEO at Morgans and did not want my obligations to inhibit the strategic review process or slow the strong momentum our team has worked so hard to build over the past two years. With the annual meeting and first-quarter earnings behind us and other key developments underway, I am certain that now is the right time to make this transition in order for them to complete the process and determine the best path forward for the company.”