Global update of who is moving where and from where - keep track of old colleagues and friends or find lost ones, brought to you by The Boutique Search Firm.
Featuring: August 2020
THE AMERICAS
The Four Seasons Atlanta has named Nancy Chacon General Manager, taking over from Yvette Thomas-Henry. Chacon has been with the company for over 30 years, most recently as Hotel Manager of the Four Seasons Baltimore. She is the former Director of Rooms of the Four Seasons Buenos Aires and the Four Seasons Punta Mita.
The W Punta de Mita has appointed David Gauna General Manager. Most recently, he was the General Manager of the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, and remains Area General Manager for Marriott.
Roger Ploum has been promoted at the Irvine Company to President, Resorts Division. He was most recently serving the company as Senior Vice President, Resorts Division. Ploum is the former General Manager of the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim and Vice President, Hotels and Business Solutions of the Disneyland Paris.
Gerard Widder has moved to the Resort at Pelican Hill as Managing Director. He was most recently at the nearby Fashion Island Hotel Newport Beach as General Manager. Widder is the former General Manager of the W Times Square and the Westin New York at Times Square.
The Kimpton Pittman Hotel has named Jack Murray General Manager. Murray has previously been with The Joule, where he served as the Regional Director of Sales and Marketing for five years.
Greg Cook has moved to the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island as General Manager. He was most recently overseeing the Ritz-Carlton Fort Lauderdale and is the former General Manager of the Eden Roc Renaissance.
Chintan Dadhich is now the General Manager of the Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas. He is the former General Manager of the Conrad Fort Lauderdale, the Conrad Miami, and Resort Manager of the Arizona Biltmore.
Nadim Barrage takes over from Chintan Dadhich with his promotion to General Manager at the Conrad Fort Lauderdale. Barra was most recently serving as Director of Operations at the resort and is the former Director of Operations of the Conrad Miami.
Pablo Molinari has been named General Manager of the Hotel Haya in Tampa, opening in September. For the past two years, he has served as General Manager of the Hewing Hotel in Minneapolis.
Allison Streu has been named General Manager of the Surety Hotel in Des Moines, opening in October. She spent the past two years as General Manager of the Renaissance Des Moines Savery Hotel.
Aaron Black has been named General Manager of the Daxton in Birmingham, opening in January 2021. For the past two years he had served as General Manager of the Armstrong Hotel in Fort Collins.
Natalie Ward is the new General Manager of the Hotel Cerro in San Luis Obispo. She was most recently with the Main Street Hospitality Group as Regional Director. She is the former General Manager of the Mirbeau Inn and Spa.
Jorgen Jorgensen has been named Managing Director of the Riviera Nayarit Imanta outside of Punta Mita. He is the former General Manager of the Radisson Blu Dakar.
David Pearson has joined Meadowood in St. Helena as Managing Director. For the past 16 years, he had served as Chief Executive Officer at Opus One Winery and previously 6 years as Vice President and General Manager at Robert Mondavi.
Opening later this summer, the Mar Monte Hotel in Santa Barbara has appointed Ingrid Braun General Manager. Most recently, she was the opening Hotel Manager of the Santa Monica Proper Hotel.
Jorge Landa has joined the InterContinental – Houston Medical Center as General Manager. He was most recently serving as Area General Manager for IHG overseeing the Intercontinental Hotel Cleveland, the Intercontinental Suites Hotel Cleveland, and the Holiday Inn Cleveland Clinic. He is the former General Manager of the InterContinental Chicago Magnificent Mile.
Joe Hindsley is now in Jacksonville as General Manager of the Hyatt Regency Riverfront. He is the former General Manager of the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort and Spa and the Hyatt Regency Atlanta.
Matt Korsos has been named General Manager of the Magnolia Hotel, St. Louis. He is the former General Manager of the Hancock Hotel Findley and the Hotel Deco Omaha.
Patrick Fernandes has joined the Carillon Miami Wellness Resort as Managing Director. He was most recently with the Faena Miami as Hotel Manager.
Luis Arancibia has been named General Manager of the Aloft Orlando Downtown. He was most recently overseeing Homewood Suites by Hilton Orlando.
Alex Francis has joined the Radisson Blu Downtown Minneapolis as General Manager. He is the former Vice President of Operations for Graves Hospitality and the General Manager of the Radisson Resort Celebration.
Edean Kam has been promoted to General Manager at the Radisson Blu Mall of America. She joined the hotel in 2012 as Director of Operations before moving into her most recent role as Hotel Manager.
Laurent Boisdron has been named General Manager of the Sable at Navy Pier, a Curio Collection by Hilton in Chicago. He is the former General Manager of the Radisson Blu Cebu and the Conrad Manila.
Felix Schaller has been named General Manager of the Hacienda Beach Club & Residences in Cabo San Lucas. He was most recently the Hotel Manager of the 1 Hotel West Hollywood. He is the former Director of Rooms and Director of Operations at the St. Regis Washington, D.C.
Brandon Elliott has been appointed General Manager of the Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas. He is the former General Manager of the Marriott Vacation Club Pulse in San Francisco.
Michael O’Donohue has joined the Fairmont Grand Del Mar as General Manager. He was most recently the General Manager of the Pendry San Diego. O’Donohue is the former General Manager of the W San Diego.
Sean Carney is now in Big Sur as General Manager of the Ventana Resort. He was most recently the Managing Director of the Rosewood Miramar Beach Montecito. Carney is the former General Manager at Capella Hotel Group Lough Eske Castle in Ireland.
The Skirvin Hilton Hotel has named Skip Harless General Manager. He was most recently overseeing the Hilton Madison Monona Terrace and had previously served as Resident Manager of the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa.
Kunal Juneja is now at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis as Director of Operations. He was most recently the Hotel Manager of the Ritz-Carlton San Francisco. Juneja is the former Executive Assistant Manager of the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman.
Gervasio Filipe Da Costa has been named the Director of Finance of the Montage Palmetto Bluff. He is the former Regional Financial Controller at Belmond and Financial Controller of Belmond Reid’s Palace.
The Edgewood Tahoe has named Jim Hindman Director of Food and Beverage. He was most recently serving in the same role at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento. Hindman is the former Director of Food and Beverage of the Mystic Lake Casino.
Jeffery Axline is now at the Emporium Kitchen and Wine Market in Savannah as Culinary Director. He was most recently the Executive Chef of the Bobby Hotel in Nashville.
TaraLeigh Masterson has been named Vice President and Commercial Director, Brand and Franchise at Hilton. She has been with the company for over 8 years, most recently as Vice President & Commercial Director, Focused Service & All Suites.
The Radisson Hotel Group has appointed Phil Hugh Chief Development Officer for the Americas. Hugh was in the same role for Red Roof Franchising.
Jessica Hobbe has joined Davidson Hotels & Resorts as Corporate Human Resources Task Force and Regional Human Resources Director. She was most recently the Director of Human Resources of the DoubleTree by Hilton Los Angeles Westside.
The Rosewood Hotel Group has promoted Jared Mintz to Director of Global Sales. He was most recently the Director of Group Sales at the Rosewood Miramar Beach. He had previously served as Director of Convention Sales of Alon Las Vegas and spent nearly six years with Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas.
Stephanie Summerall has joined Daydream as Director of Corporate Sales. She is the former Area Director of Sales and Marketing for Destination Hotels & Resorts and Director of Sales and Marketing of the Eilan Hotel Resort and Spa and the Delamar Greenwich Harbor.
Alexis Kagan has been named Director of Sales and Marketing of the West Hollywood EDITION. She was most recently with Proper Hospitality as Corporate Director of Sales and Marketing. Kagan is the former Director of Sales and Marketing for the Thompson Playa del Carmen.
Thibaut Asso has been named Director of Sales and Marketing at Rosewood Le Guanahani St. Barth. He was most recently Cluster Director of Sales and Marketing, Americas for COMO Hotels and Resorts based in Miami Beach. Previously, Asso was the Director of Sales North America for Carlisle Bay Resort, Associate Director of Sales North America for Pineapple Luxury Hotels and Resorts, and spent eight years with Belmond Hotels (formerly Orient Express Hotels).
Bob Harter is the new Director of Sales and Marketing for Alila Marea Beach Resort Encinitas, expected to open in early 2021. Harter was most recently the Director of Sales and Marketing at L’Auberge Del Mar.
Nathan Lingle has joined the Mar Monte Hotel as Executive Chef. He is the former Executive Chef and Director of Food and Beverage at the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia, Chef de Cuisine at the Sagamore Resort and Spa, and Vice President of Food and Beverage at L’Auberge Del Mar Resort.
Devin Walline has been named Executive Chef of the Harpeth Hotel in Tennessee. He most recently was Executive Sous Chef at QED Hospitality. Walline is the former Executive Chef and General Manager at the Edgehill Café in Nashville.
EUROPE
Starhotels has named Antonio Ducceschi Chief Commercial Officer. He is the former Regional Director Sales and Marketing Europe for Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, and Cluster General Manager for Starhotels Collezione.
Gaetano Gatti has been named Chief Operating Officer at Starhotels. He was most recently serving Starhotels as Cluster General Manager in Firenze.
Stéphane Gras has been named General Manager of both the Four Seasons Megeve and the former Les Chalets du Mont d’Arbois. Gras is the former General Manager of the Four Seasons Prague, Hotel Manager of the Four Seasons Baku, and the Director of Food and Beverage of the Four Seasons Cairo at First Residence.
Claus Pedersen has joined the InterContinental Park Lane as General Manager. He was most recently in the same position at the InterContinental Hong Kong.
Ian Richardson has joined 11 Cadogan Gardens in London as General Manager. He had previously spent 9 years as General Manager of the Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel.
Klaus Kabelitz has joined the Biltmore Mayfair as General Manager. He was most recently the General Manager of the Belmond Cadogan London.
Xavier Lablaude is the new General Manager of the Belmond Cadogan taking over from Klaus Kabelitz. Lablaude is the former Area Manager Southern Africa for Belmond and General Manager Belmond Mount Nelson Hotel in South Africa.
George Avgoustis takes over for George Vlachopoulos at the Santorini Grace. He was promoted from his current position as Hotel Manager.
Janet Schroeder has been named General Manager of the Schlossgut Gross Schwansee in Lubeck. She is the former General Manager of the Arborea Marina Resort.
Britta Beringer is now overseeing the Steigenberger Hotel & Resort Camp de Mar in Mallorca. She has been with the hotel since 1999 first serving as Director of Sales and Marketing, and then as Deputy General Manager.
Alexandre Maia de Carvalho has joined the Lake Resort in Portugal as General Manager. She was most recently serving as Cluster General Manager overseeing the Tivoli Palácio de Seteais and the Tivoli Sintra in Lisbon.
Andreas Keese has been promoted to General Manager at the Sacher Hotel Vienna. He takes over from Reiner Heilmann who has been managing the hotel since 1991. Keese is the former Executive Food and Beverage Manager at the Hotel Sacher Salzburg.
Oliver Key has joined the Ritz-Carlton Penha Longa in Portugal. He is the former Managing Director of the St Regis Bali & The Laguna and General Manager of the St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort.
Eckart Pfannkuchen has joined the Steigenberger Treudelberg in Hamburg as General Manager. He was most recently overseeing the A-ROSA Resort Sylt and is the former Hotel Manager of the Mandarin Oriental Bodrum.
Marc Hoffmann takes over from Eckart Pfannkuchen as General Manager of the A-ROSA Resort Sylt. Hoffmann is the former General Manager of the Casa Cook Ibiza and the Casa Cook Kos.
Steffen Opitz has joined the Frankfurt Sofitel as General Manager. He is the former General Manager of the Kempinski Hotel Barbaros Bay Bodrum and Hotel Manager of the Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates.
Georgios Daskalakis has been appointed General Manager at Abaton Island Resort & Spa in Crete. Most recently, he was the General Manager of the Grecotel Caramel.
William Kirby is now in Dublin as General Manager of the Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links. He was most recently the General Manager of the Lough Erne Golf Resort in Enniskillen. Kirby is the former General Manager of the Lyrath Estate Hotel.
Florian Steinmaier has joined Rocco Forte’s Villa Kennedy Frankfurt as General Manager. He was most recently with Roomers Munich as Hotel Manager. Steinmaier had previously overseen food and beverage at the Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski München and the Mandarin Oriental Munich.
Thomas Wilken has joined the MAXX Sanssouci Potsdam. He is the former Executive Assistant Manager of the Hotel Baltschug Kempinski Moscow.
Pierre Laurent has been promoted to General Manager at Relais & Châteaux’s Park-Hotel Egerner Höfe. He was most recently serving the hotel as Assistant General Manager after joining the hotel in 2018 as Rooms Division Manager. Laurent is the former Rooms Division Manager of the Brenners Park-Hotel & Spa.
Isabella Cillerai has joined the Armani Hotel Milano as Director of Sales and Marketing. She was most recently with Baglioni Hotels & Resorts as Corporate Director of Sales. Cillerai is the former Director of Sales of the Mandarin Oriental Milan, Villa d’Este, and Me Madrid.
John Kouphou has been appointed Executive Chef of the Hurlingham Club in London. He was most recently in the same role at the Wentworth Club in Surrey and is the former Executive Chef at Elea Estate in Cyprus.
Claire Martin has joined the Bürgenstock Hotels & Resort Lake Lucerne as Spa and Wellness Director. She was most recently in a similar role at sister hotel La Réserve Genève – Hotel and Spa.
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
Nicolas Ilikovic has joined Amanpuri Phuket as General Manager. He is the former General Manager of Amanjena in Marrakech and Amandayan.
Marco Groton has been named Area Vice President Indonesia for Hyatt Hotels and General Manager of the Grand Hyatt Bali. He is the former Head of Operations of Alila Asia Pacific (now a brand of Global Hyatt)
Matthew Bailey is back in Hawaii as General Manager of the Montage Kapalua. He was most recently overseeing the Carmel Valley Ranch. Bailey is the former President and Chief Operating Officer of Aqua Hospitality, Chief Operating Officer at Aston Hotels & Resorts, and Managing Director of the Grand Wailea Resort Hotel & Spa.
Stefan Schmid has moved to the Hilton Shenzhen Shekou Nanhai as General Manager. He is the former General Manager of the Hilton Beijing and the DoubleTree by Hilton Beijing.
Boni Mansi takes over from Stefan Schmid as General Manager of the Beijing Hilton. Mansi was most recently the General Manager of the Hilton Beijing Wangfujing. He is the former Director of Operations of the Conrad Hong Kong and the Hilton Kuala Lumpur.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
Kerzner International Holdings has named Philippe Zuber Chief Executive Officer, taking over from Michael Wale. Zuber was most recently serving the company as Chief Operating Officer. He joined the company in 2015 as President and Chief Operating Officer of One&Only Resorts.
Astrid Killian takes over from Nicolas Ilikovic as General Manager of Amanjena. She was most recently the General Manager of Amansara.
Pelin Ulusoy has been named Complex General Manager to oversee both the Sheraton Hotel Bursa and the Aloft Bursa. She was most recently the Hotel Manager of the Sheraton Istanbul City Center.
Nicolos Pezout has joined the Sofitel El Gezirah Cairo as General Manager. He is the former General Manager of the Mövenpick Hotel du Lac Tunis and the Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah.
Cedric Darthial has been named Vice President of Culinary Operations for Atlantis The Palm and Atlantis The Royal and Residences. He was most recently serving as Executive Chef of the Palm Jumeirah and is the former Executive Chef at City of Dreams Manila.
Claudia Dascalu has joined the Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah as Director of Spa and Recreation. She was most recently the Spa Manager of the Waldorf Astoria Dubai International Financial Center.
Do you have news for us? Please do not hesitate to send us an e-mail at benoit@boutiquesearchfirm.com
Edited by Susana Parks, Benoit Gateau-Cumin & Lisa Leroy
susana@boutiquesearchfirm.com / benoit@boutiquesearchfirm.com / lisa@boutiquesearchfirm.com
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