Industry career moves this week include appointments at new properties in Atlanta and Chicago, executive chefs in Fiji and Mexico City, chief technology officers, and sales and marketing executives.
Circ Hotel, a boutique hotel set to open this spring in downtown Hollywood, Florida named Heather Alexsa as director of rooms, Ann-Marie Khoury as director of human resources, Tom LaBau as director of engineering, Massimiliano Lozzi as executive chef, Ashley Macias as director of finance and Milan Markov as director of food and beverage.
Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront hotel in Jacksonville, Florida named Luis Aloma as general manager. Aloma has 34 years of experience with Hyatt, most recently as vice president of corporate operations for Hyatt Place and Hyatt House, overseeing the limited service sector for the brand.
Benchmark named Nour Asfari area director of revenue, based in the firm’s Orlando, Florida office. Asfari recently served as revenue management consultant overseeing a group of 10 hotels, resorts and vacation rentals.
New Castle Hotels & Resorts named Stephen Borecki general manager of the Fairfield Inn & Suites New Orleans Downtown French Quarter Area in New Orleans. Borecki departed JenCare Senior Medical Centers where he improved patient satisfaction by applying a hotelier’s approach to service.
The Gates Hotel South Beach – a DoubleTree by Hilton appointed Nicolas Bour as executive chef of the Miami Beach, Florida hotel. Bour will manage culinary operationsat the hotel’s Agaveros Cantina restaurant, as well as in-room dining, banquets and special events. Bour formerly served as executive chef of Ocean House Management in Westerly, Rhode Island.
Bryan Brown will be executive chef of Bourbon Steak, a new restaurant from James Beard award-winner Michael Mina opening late February at the Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, California. Brown most recently was executive chef at Bottega Louie, a restaurant, gourmet market, patisserie and café in downtown Los Angeles.
Noble House Hotels & Resorts appointed Chad Bustos as senior vice president of sales and marketing. Before joining Noble House, Bustos was senior vice president of sales and marketing with the Irvine Company focused on strategic positioning and rebranding initiatives.
The Ascott Limited appointed Jason Chen as general manager of Somerset Ekamai in Bangkok, Thailand. Chen previously worked with Ascott starting in Singapore in 2004 before assignments in Beijing, China, Bangkok and Hanoi, Vietnam.
Aparium Hotel Group named Emily Cornelious the director of sales and marketing for the St. Jane Chicago, which will open in Chicago’s historic Carbide and Carbon building in spring 2018. Cornelious has held sales roles at hotels groups including The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, The Morgans Hotel Group and The Peninsula Hotels.
John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts appointed Nigel Cossey to general manager at the company’s recently renovated Courtyard by Marriott Dallas Allen at the John Q. Hammons Center in the Dallas suburbs. Most recently, Cossey served as assistant general manager at the company’s Embassy Suites by Hilton San Marcos Hotel, Conference Center & Spa in San Marcos, Texas.
Mr & Mrs Smith appointed Julian Diment as the travel club’s first chief growth officer. Diment has run the England Football team’s operations at the Football Association, overseen the entertainment and digital teams at Orange, served as global marketing director at Alfred Dunhill and more.
Taras Ettl was appointed managing director and vice president of Middle East and Asia operations at Steigenberger DMCC in Dubai, a subsidiary of Steigenberger Hotels AG. Ettl formerly was vice president of development for Middle East and Africa at the InterContinental Hotels Group in Dubai.
Dori Familiant was appointed general manager of Hilton McLean Tysons Corner in Tysons, Virginia. Prior to his appointment, Familiant was general manager at DoubleTree by Hilton Washington D.C. – Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia.
McKibbon Hospitality announced Christopher Flanders as general manager of the Hampton Inn Suites Atlanta Buckhead set to open in early summer 2018 in Atlanta. Flanders has been with McKibbon for 16 years, most recently as general manager of the Residence Inn by Marriott Tallahassee North/I-10 Capital Circle in Tallahassee, Florida.
Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group appointed nine field directors within its development team. Supporting regions in the west are Ryan Foley, Charles Isola, Amit Patel, Jamie Pomeroy and Chris Stanley. Supporting regions in the east are Bill Balletto, Ray Bodnar, Greg Burgett and Joe Stokes. Dinesh Chandiramani, vice president, regional development will continue to lead the west regions and Mark Williams, vice president, regional development will continue to lead development in the east.
Ahmad Ghemrawi is senior vice president of finance and accounting at Enchantment Group. Ghemrawi joined the group in 2017 as a corporate hospitality finance leadership expert. Before that, he held the role of corporate regional director of finance at One Lodging Management.
Rosewood Hotel Group appointed Alissa Guler as corporate director of customer relationship management. Guler most recently served as an independent marketing consultant where she oversaw several large-scale projects for diverse brands and organizations.
The JW Marriott Denver Cherry Creek named Kathy Hastings food and beverage director, and Randall Baldwin executive chef at the Denver property. Hastings previously held the roles of area director of food and beverage at the Grand Hyatt Seattle, and director of food and beverage at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort & Spa in Beaver Creek, Colorado. Baldwin comes from The Westin Snowmass Resort in Snowmass Village, Colorado where he was executive chef.
Viceroy Hotel Group appointed Diego Fabian Heredia general manager of Viceroy L’Ermitage Beverly Hills in Beverly Hills, California. Heredia, who worked with Viceroy previously, returns to the group after his recent position at L’Horizon Resort and Spa in Palm Springs, California.
Scott Hyden joined RoomIt, Carlson Wagonlit Travel’s hotel division, as senior vice president and chief experience officer. Prior to joining RoomIt, Hyden was global vice president of the Enterprise Customer Group for Travelport.
Dennis Jackson was promoted to executive vice president of finance at M3. He was formerly vice president of accounting at McKibbon Brothers, Inc. where he helped develop M3’s Accounting Core solution. Carolyn Hollum was promoted to senior vice president of professional services. Hollum will continue to grow M3’s professional services department.
Atrium Hospitality appointed Hector M. Jeyakaran as general manager of Embassy Suites by Hilton Charleston, West Virginia. Jeyakaran’s appointment represents his return to the brand after a year as general manager of Residence Inn by Marriott Raleigh Downtown in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Capital Hilton in Washington, D.C. appointed Brian Kelleher as general manager. Kelleher was general manager of Hilton McLean Tysons Corner in Tysons, Virginia, a role he had held since 2009.
Playa Largo Resort & Spa, an Autograph Collection beachfront property in Key Largo, Florida, named Kerem Kendigelen as general manager. Kendigelen started his career at The Ritz-Carlton Istanbul in Turkey, and went on to serve at multiple Ritz-Carlton properties, as well as at the St. Regis in Washington D.C.
Maxime Kien was named executive chef of the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza in downtown Cincinnati where he will oversee Orchids at Palm Court, the Bar and Grille at Palm Court as well as catering and banquets for events. Kien most recently was the executive chef at the Hilton Cleveland Downtown Hotel in Cleveland.
Choice Hotels International promoted Brian Kirkland to chief technology officer. Kirkland has been with the company since 2015, previously holding the title of vice president of engineering.
Hotel Zephyr, a boutique waterfront property in San Francisco, appointed Reggie Kumar as director of operations. Kumar had been general manager of Sanctuary Beach Resort in Monterey, California.
The St. Regis Mexico City appointed Sonia Lokun as pastry chef in charge of pastry and dessert production at the hotel’s food and beverage outlets. She’ll also oversee in-room dining and catering services. Lokun hails from Paris where she was the pastry chef at Pershing Hall hotel on the Champs-Elysées.
Kimpton Solamar Hotel in San Diego appointed Devin Mahoney as general manager. Mahoney comes to Kimpton Solamar Hotel from Kimpton Amara Resort and Spa in Phoenix where he was general manager.
Teneo Hospitality Group named Jennifer Milliron director of sales for the southwest region, including markets in Colorado, Utah, Texas and Arizona. Milliron was global account director for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.
Juan Peña was named chef de cuisine of modern-American steakhouse AG at The Ritz-Carlton, Atlanta. Peña has more than 20 years of culinary experience and most recently was chef de cuisine at Fern Restaurant at the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort in Río Grande, Puerto Rico.
Dallas-based UniFocus appointed Aline Riemenschneider vice president, marketing. Riemenschneider came from Willow St. Agency where she was vice president of account management. Michael Wayne Greer was named vice president, sales and Alex Coleman assumed the role of digital marketing coordinator. Greer was formerly with Elements where he was director of sales and marketing, while Coleman had been a market development representative for ACTIVE Network, LLC.
McKibbon Hospitality promoted Erik Rowen to president of development and renovation services. A registered architect who joined the company in 2003, Rowen was promoted from his role as vice president of development.
Mii amo, a destination spa in Sedona, Arizona, appointed Jim Root as general manager, overseeing operations of the 16-room, 24,000-square-foot property. Root most recently was consulting director of wellness at The Westmoor Club in Nantucket, Massachusetts.
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants appointed Todd Ryan as regional director of sales and marketing for the group’s 16 Mid-Atlantic hotels. Ryan hails from Starwood Hotels & Resorts where he was area director of sales and marketing in eastern Canada.
Nanuku Auberge Resort in Pacific Harbour, Fiji appointed Oliver Scarf as executive chef. The New Zealand native has worked at the Laucala Island Resort in Fiji, as well as at New Zealand properties such as the Te Waonui Forest Retreat in Franz Josef and the George Hotel in Christchurch.
Greg Seregi is now executive chef of The Kitchen and The Kitchen Counter by Wolfgang Puck at Amway Grand Plaza, Curio Collection by Hilton in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Prior to joining Amway Grand Plaza, Seregi served at several of Nobu’s international outlets, including opening Nobu’s first London location.
Kathleen Shea was named vice president of sales and marketing for Chatham Bars Inn on Cape Cod, Massachusetts and the Inn at Perry Cabin in Michaels, Maryland. Shea has worked with brands including Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, Taj Hotels and Canyon Ranch.
George Tanzman was named vice president of finance, Americas and Europe for Rosewood Hotel Group. Tanzman previously was the chief financial officer for Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas and has also spent 22 years with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts where he held several senior managerial positions around the world.
Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Al Maryah Island, United Arab Emirates named Olivier Thomas as general manager. Thomas hails from Four Seasons Hotel Casablanca, Morocco where he also held the title of general manager. He’s also worked at Four Seasons properties in Amman, Jordan and Prague, Czech Republic.
Florida’s recently reopened Amara Cay Resort in Islamorada appointed Miguel Waldo as general manager. Waldo, who speaks English, Italian and Spanish, had been general manager of the Courtyard by Marriott Key Largo in Key Largo, Florida.