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.


THE AMERICAS

Lodgian has promoted Dan Ellis to President and Chief Executive Officer, taking over from Peter Cyrus who has left the company. Ellis joined Lodgian in 1999, and has served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary since 2002.

Gary Schweikert is the new General Manager of the Jumeirah Essex House and Regional Vice President of Operations for the Americas. Schweikert was most recently with Flagship Hospitality Group. His previous experience includes Managing Director of the Plaza Hotel New York for Fairmont Hotels, and several senior management positions within Hilton Hotels. 

David Kloeppel has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer for Gaylord Entertainment in Nashville, taking over from John Caparella who has left the company. Kloeppel was most recently serving as Chief Financial Officer and President.

The Regent Bal Harbour is now the One Bal Harbour Resort and Spa, operated by One Luxury Hotels, with Charly Assaly as President & Partner. Assaly, a Cornell graduate, is a former President of Buddha Bar Hotels, and was the opening Managing Director of Miami's Shore Club.

Alphy Johnson has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer at Candela Hotels. He joined the company in 2006 as Executive Vice President of Operations. He previously spent fifteen years with Rosewood Hotels & Resorts as a Managing Director and later as Vice President of Operations.

Guenter Richter has returned to New York to run the Setai Fifth Avenue, slated for a late 2010 opening. For the past three years, he had been the General Manager for the former Regent Bal Harbour after spending two years as Managing Director for the St. Regis New York.

Gary Thomas has been promoted within the Morgans Hotel Group to General Manager of the Royalton in New York. For the past three years, he had been serving as Hotel Manager at the Delano in Miami Beach and the previous two years at the Sanderson in London.

Fairmont has transferred General Manager Nicholas Emery from the Fairmont Beijing, where he had been since December 2007, to Raffles L'Ermitage in Beverly Hills. Prior to Beijing, Emery was the General Manager of the Fairmont Royal Pavilion in Barbados, after originally joining the company in Chicago in 1999. At Raffles L'Ermitage, he replaces Jack Naderkhani, who has left, after nineteen years at the property.

Sholeh Kia has been appointed General Manager at the Grand Bohemian Hotel in Orlando. She previously worked for Kimpton, serving as General Manager of three hotels in the Washington, DC area; the Hotel Palomar Arlington at Waterview, the Hotel George, and the Topaz Hotel. Kia replaces Stuart Newmark, who has left the company.

Mark Kitchen has been named General Manager of Pink Sands in the Bahamas. He was most recently the General Manager of Karma Samui in Thailand. He had previously served as General Manager for the Namale Resort and Spa in Fiji, Longitude 131 in Australia and the Vatulele Island Resort.

Maria Contreras has joined Sunset Beach on Shelter Island as General Manager. For the past two years, she had served as General Manager for Pali House Holloway in West Hollywood.

Glen Valencia takes over from Maria Contreras as Director of Operations for both Pali House West Hollywood and Pali House Hollywood. He was most recently the General Manager at the Custom, also run by Palisades Development. He had previously held rooms management positions at the Standard Miami and the Standard Hollywood.

Wyndham Hotels and Resorts has appointed Roger Swadish General Manager of the Wyndham Nassau Resort & Crystal Palace Casino. He was most recently the Chief Operating Officer at Highland Hospitality in McLean. Previously, Swadish served as Managing Director at La Quinta Resort and PGA West, the Doubletree Pasadena, and the Doubletree Hotel Salt Lake City.

Thomas McAlpin has been named President and Chief Executive Officer of ResidenSea. He previously spent fourteen years at Disney Cruise Line, most recently as its President. Prior to joining Disney in 1994, McAlpin was the Director of Corporate Planning and Analysis for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line/Admiral Cruises for eight years.  

Álvaro Tejeda has been promoted by Meliá Hotels & Resorts to the position of Senior Vice President of the Premium Portfolio, based in Miami. He was formerly the Area Vice President of Meliá Hotels & Resorts EMEA and Managing Director of the Meliá White House London.

Carlos Salazar is leaving Jumby Bay, where he had been the Managing Director for the past two years. Marcie Lieberman steps in to assume responsibility for the opening team as details wrap up for the November re-opening. 

The Sonesta Maho Beach Resort & Casino has appointed Rabin Ortiz General Manager. Most recently, Ortiz served as General Manager for Martineau Bay Vieques in Puerto Rico. From 2002 to 2005, he held the position of General Manager at the Cuisinart Resort & Spa in Anguilla. 

Lausanne graduate, Guillaume Warnery has taken on the new role of General Manager of Almond Beach Village on Barbados. He was previously the Hotel Manager at the Hotel Serena Islamabad after joining the hotel as Executive Assistant Manager. Previously he had served as Executive Assistant Manager for Le Méridien Cancun Resort & Spa and Le Méridien Pegasus.
 
Kerrington Hing has been appointed General Manager at the Ritz-Carlton Club, Aspen Highlands. For the past six years, he had been at the Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch, most recently as Hotel Manager. He had previously served as Director of Finance at the Camelback Inn in Scottsdale, the Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club in Florida, and the Calgary Marriott.

The Balsams Grand Resort in New Hampshire has named Jeff McIver General Manager. Formerly with East Coast Resort Management of New Hampshire, he had previously served as a partner at the Balsams from 2002 to 2005.

Nikheel Advani has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer and Principal for Grace Bay Resorts. He had previously served as General Manager of the Grace Bay Club in Turks & Caicos and in various food and beverage management positions for Raffles Singapore and the Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park.

Alan Goldschneider has joined the Crossings Austin as General Manager. He was most recently running David Geffen's Malibu Beach Inn. He had previously served as Rooms Division Manager for both Shutters on the Beach and sister property, Casa del Mar, prior to becoming the General Manager of the Mansfield in New York.

Bernie English has been appointed General Manager of the Orchards in Williamstown. English and his wife currently own the Jackson House Inn and Restaurant in Woodstock, Vermont.

John Douponce has joined Le Parc Suites in West Hollywood as General Manager. He was most recently opening the Hotel Palomar Los Angeles for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants as General Manager. He had previously served as General Manager at the Hotel Amarano in Burbank.

Benchmark Hospitality has appointed Greg Champion Chief Operating Officer. He had previously held the position of President for Noble House Hotels & Resorts and served as Managing Director for the Adolphus in Dallas and General Manager of LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort.

The Davidson Hotel Company has promoted Steven Margol to Chief Investment Officer. He has been with the company since 1994, most recently serving as Executive Vice President-Business Development.

Tracy Walker has been named General Manager of the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek, scheduled to open in October. Walker most recently served as General Manager of the Newark Airport Hilton.

Adam Shindler, a Cornell graduate, has established Wilshire Hospitality, based in Buenos Aires. Prior to launching WH, Shindler was the Development Director for Gettys, and worked for LXR Luxury Resorts & Hotels in development and asset management roles.

Desires Hotels has appointed Gary Sims Executive Vice President/Partner of the new division, Desires Hotels International. Sims was most recently the President and Managing Partner of Asmayda Holding Group. He had previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Nikki Beach Hotels & Resorts and as General Manager of the Westin Diplomat Resort& Spa.

Carl Meyer has joined Calistoga Ranch as Director of Operations. He had previously served as General Manager of the Salish Lodge and Spa as well as Director of Operations for the Statler Hotel at Cornell University.

Michele Reing has joined Interstate Hotels & Resorts as Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller. She was most recently the Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Finance for CapStar Hotel Company. Previously, she served as Vice President and Corporate Controller for Analex Corporation.

Mark Fioravanti has been promoted with Gaylord Entertainment to Chief Financial Officer. He was most recently serving the company as Treasurer.

The Waterford Hotel Group has named Gregory Smith Chief Financial Officer and Vice President, Finance. He was most recently serving as Chief Financial Officer/Chief Administration Officer for Boykin Management Company. Previously, he held numerous positions with Interstate, including Vice President of International Finance and Regional Director of Finance, Vice President and Corporate Controller and Hotel Controller.

Beth Scott has joined Hilton Hotels as Vice President-Restaurant Concepts. She had previously served with Loews Hotels as Vice President of Food and Beverage, with the Olive Group Management as Director of Operations and oversaw venues for the House of Blues and Planet Hollywood.

Philippe Haddad has joined the Reefs Hotel & Club on Bermuda as Director of Food and Beverage and Executive Chef. He had previously operated Philippe's Bistro in Buckhead and The Abbey Restaurant in Atlanta. His island experience includes serving as Food and Beverage Director for the St. James Club Antigua.

The Hotel at Auburn University has named Arif Kor Executive Assistant Manager of Food and Beverage. For the past nine years, he had been with the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, most recently as Executive Assistant Manager at the Ritz-Carlton San Francisco.

Scott Siebert has been named Director of Food and Beverage of the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa, opening in early 2010. He had previously served as Director of Food and Beverage for the Eden Roc Renaissance Miami, and the JW Marriott Starr Pass in Tucson. 

Martin Mariano has been promoted to Director of Food and Beverage for the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia. He was most recently with the Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park as Assistant Director of Food and Beverage.

Hilton Hotels has appointed Matthew Schuyler Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer. He was most recently with Capital One Financial where he served as Chief Human Resources Officer. At Hilton, he takes the post left vacant when Mollie McKenzie-Swarts left a few months ago.

Greg Merrick has been named Vice President Human Resources for the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. He had previously served as Director of Human Resources at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach, the Ritz-Carlton Battery Park, New York and the Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach.

Karen Vallecillo has joined Dolce Hotels and Resorts as Corporate Director of Human Resources and Acquisitions. She had been with Starwood Hotels & Resorts for nine years, most recently as Corporate Director of Human Resources New Builds and Transitions. She had previously served as Director of Human Resources for the St. Regis Aspen and the Westin La Paloma Resort and Spa.

The Dow Hotel Company has promoted Randall King to Vice President of Marketing and Revenue Development. Prior to joining Dow in 2007, King was the General Manager and Regional Director of Operations at the Hilton San Francisco Financial District.  

Larry Tsoumas has returned to Chicago as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Sofitel Chicago Water Tower . He was most recently the Director of Sales and Marketing at the newly opened Mandarin Oriental Boston. Tsoumas previously spent four years as Director of Marketing for the Peninsula Chicago before moving to take over as Director of Sales and Marketing with the Taj Boston.

Cheryl Ferguson has been named Director of Sales and Marketing for the Hotel Contessa on the Riverwalk in San Antonio. She was most recently the Vice President, Sales, at Pinehurst. She had previously served as Director of Sales for the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa, a position she held for sixteen years.

Karen Butler has moved over as Director of Sales and Marketing to the Eldorado Hotel & Spa in Santa Fe. For the past two years, she had served as Director of Sales and Marketing at the Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza.

Harry Lunt has been named Director of Sales and Marketing for the Moonrise Hotel in St. Louis. He was most recently at the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in the same capacity.

The Royal Sonesta Boston has named Sheila Hayden Director of Sales and Marketing. She was most recently the Director of Sales and Marketing at the Lenox and the (former) Swissôtel Boston.

Jay Heidenreich has been appointed Director of Sales and Marketing at the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay. He was most recently serving as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Kauai Marriott Resort & Beach Club.     

Arlene O'Malley has been appointed Director of Sales and Marketing for the Magnolia Hotel Houston. She previously served as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Hotel ZaZa, also in Houston. Her experience also includes serving as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Warwick in Houston and, in the same role, at the Doubletree Hotel at Post Oak.
 
Scott Grigelevich has been promoted to Director of Sales at the Lenox in Boston. Before joining the sales office at the Lenox in 2007, Grigelevich served in sales and marketing roles at XV Beacon, Nine Zero, and the Charles.

Wendy Zapach has been appointed Director of Sales and Marketing of Tucker's Point Hotel & Spa in Bermuda. For the past three years, she had served as a Leisure and Entertainment Sales Manager at the Boston Harbor Hotel.

The Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa & Casino has appointed Nate Hardesty Director of Sales and Marketing. He had previously served as Associate Director of Sales at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare before moving to his most recent position with the Grand Hyatt Denver as Director of Sales and Marketing.

Mark Swetman has been named Corporate Director of Sales and Marketing for the Hotel Mela New York. He was most recently the Regional Director of Sales and Marketing at the Dolce Basking Ridge.

Dana Hubba has joined ETC Hotels as Regional Director of Sales, based in New York. She had previously held positions for the Ritz-Carlton New York, the Ritz-Carlton San Juan, and the New York Palace. Hubba takes over from Pamela Feick, now Director of Sales and Marketing for the Taj Pierre.

Dominique Debay has started Dominique Debay Hotel and Resort Marketing in New York. She spent the past several years as Director of Sales Americas for Grace Leo's GLA Hotels.

The Lancaster County Convention Center and Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square have named Jenn Schram Director of Revenue Management. She had previously served as Director of Revenue at the Sheraton Harrisburg Hershey Hotel before taking on her most recent role as Assistant General Manager at the Towne Place Suites Harrisburg. 

Kavin Schieferdecker has joined the Hilton Anatole in Dallas as Director of Sales, after thirteen years with Marriott including positions such as Area Director of Sales and Marketing for Marriott in Boston and Director of Sales and Marketing at the Marriott Pinnacle. 
 
The Warwick Melrose Hotel in Dallas has promoted Steve Sherman to the position of Associate Director of Sales. He was most recently a Senior Sales Manager at the hotel and had previously served as Director of Sales for the Magnolia Hotel Dallas.

Lawrence McCue has bee appointed Director of Group Sales for the Westin Bonaventure in Los Angeles. Since 2004, McCue had served as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Keystone Resort and Conference Center in Colorado. He had previously served as Vice President of Sales for Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina, and as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Cheyenne Mountain Resort in Colorado Springs.

The Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe has appointed Susan Redding Senior Sales Manager – Leisure. She has been with Hyatt for fifteen years, most recently at the Hyatt Westlake Plaza, as Senior Sales Manager – Business Travel.

Christian "Hitch" Albin, the jovial Chef at New York's landmark Four Seasons Restaurant, died unexpectedly at age 61. He had taken over from fellow Swiss Chef Seppi Rengli nineteen years ago, and managed that miracle of keeping the food at the Four Seasons of the highest quality without giving into trends nor becoming dowdy. He had originally joined the Four Seasons in 1973.

Gilles Arzur has returned to Southern California as Executive Chef with Four Seasons for the Beverly Wilshire. For the past year, he had been the opening Executive Chef of the Four Seasons Bora Bora. He previously served twelve years with Sofitel, overseeing the kitchens for the Sofitel Water Tower in Chicago, the Sofitel Montreal and the Sofitel Los Angeles.

The Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica has tapped Dakota Weiss as its new Chef, replacing Noah Rosen who has left the company. This is a return to Los Angeles for Weiss who was previously the Chef at the Tower Bar at the Sunset Tower Hotel in Hollywood before heading to Philadelphia, where she had helped restaurateur Stephen Starr (Buddakan, Morimoto) open Parc.

Philippe Reininger has joined the soon-to-open W Washington DC (featuring a restaurant by his former colleague Jean-Georges Vongerichten) as Executive Chef. He was most recently the Executive Chef for the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia. He had previously served as Executive Chef for the Ritz-Carlton Rancho Mirage, the Ritz-Carlton Naples and the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Arts Barcelona.

Michael Gilligan has been appointed Executive Chef at the new W South Beach. He was most recently in the same position for the Conrad Miami.

Stephen Starr has just opened his first South Florida restaurant, Oceanfront Steak 954, in the new W Fort Lauderdale and named Jason Smith Executive Chef. Smith was formerly of Table 8 South Beach.

Jeffrey Harris has been promoted to Executive Chef at Craft Dallas, located in the W Dallas-Victory. Harris moves up from his position as Executive Sous Chef to take over from Anthony Zappola who is now the Executive Chef for Craft Los Angeles.

Gonzalo Rivera has been named Executive Chef at the Tides South Beach. He was most recently the opening Executive Chef for the Nemi Restaurant in Mexico City, the Mina Group's first (and short-lived) international restaurant.

Farid Oualidi has joined the Trina Restaurant in the Atlantic Hotel in Fort Lauderdale as Chef de Cuisine. For the past six years, he had presided over the kitchen at La Cigale in Delray Beach.

Shannon Swindle moves over to Craft Los Angeles as Pastry Chef, taking over from Catherine Schimenti. Swindle was most recently in the same position for Craft Dallas.

Frédéric Moreau has moved to the Park Hyatt Chicago as Pastry Chef. He was most recently in the same position at the Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach, California.

Dallas Marsteller has joined the Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City as Executive Pastry Chef. For the past two years, Marsteller had been at the Ritz-Carlton Orlando Grand Lakes, most recently as Assistant Pastry Chef.

William Douillet has joined Alinea in Chicago as Sommelier. He was most recently overseeing the Bazaar at the SLS Beverly Hills. His previous restaurant experience includes stints at Daniel Boulud Brasserie at the Wynn Las Vegas and db Bistro Moderne in New York.

John Cunin takes over from William Douillet as General Manager of the Bazaar at the SLS at Beverly Hills. A well-known restaurant operator, Cunin recently opened Café Deco at the Wynn Macau and was previously the General Manager of Mix Las Vegas.

Regie Brown has left the Grand Del Mar to join Rancho Valencia as Director of Guest Services. Prior to joining the Grand Del Mar as opening Director of Rooms in 2007, Brown was the Assistant Resort Manager at La Costa. 

 
EUROPE

Paul Van Wijk has moved as Managing Director of the Dolce Munich – Ballhaus Forum. He was most recently serving with Dolce as Senior Vice President of Operations, North America. Van Wijk had previously held the role of opening Managing Director of the Dolce La Hulpe in Belgium.

Kai Lamlé has been promoted as Area Vice President of Meliá Hotels & Resorts and Managing Director of the Meliá White House London. He was the former Area Vice President of Meliá Hotels & Resorts America and Managing Director of Meliá México Reforma in Mexico City.

The Vila Vita Portugal has named Luís Fernandes Chief Executive Officer. He was most recently the Executive Vice President of Hotel Operations for the Kor Hotel Group and previously the Managing Director of Las Ventanas al Paraíso. 
  
The Chia Laguna Resort has named Raffaele Solferino General Manager. He had previously served as Project Development Manager for Palmerston Hotels & Resorts and as Vice President, Director of Operations with the Domina Hotel Group.

The Capella Schloss Velden has named Elmar Greif General Manager, taking over for Roland Paar who is now Vice President Development EMEA for parent company, West Paces. Greif had previously served as General Manager at the Grand Hotel Europe St. Petersburg.

Nicolas Kipper has returned to the Moscow Marriott Grand Hotel as General Manager. He was most recently the General Manager of the Marriott Tverskaya for two years after serving as Director of Operations at the Grand Hotel.

Stéphane Marcet has moved as Director, Global Sales, France, for Preferred Hotel Group based in Paris. He previously served as Sales Manager at Concorde Hotels in Paris.

The Lanesborough in London has appointed Stephanie Navatto Associate Director of Sales, to be based in New York. She previously held the title of Senior Sales Manager at the Grande Lakes Orlando, the Ritz-Carlton Orlando, and the JW Marriott Orlando.

Gisella Torresala has been appointed Senior Sales Manager of the soon-to-open W Barcelona. She was most recently the Business Travel Manager for the W Midtown Atlanta. She previously worked at the Sheraton Midtown at Colony Square, also in Atlanta and at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center Lima.

Charlotte Delemarle has transferred to Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester in London as Food and Beverage Manager. She was most recently in a similar position for Ducasse in New York.

The Réserve de Beaulieu, on the French Riviera, is getting a new Executive Chef in Olivier Samson. Coming from the Two-Michelin-Starred Parc des Eaux-Vives in Geneva, he will take over from current Réserve Chef Olivier Brulard in September.

Luca Depalo has been appointed Executive Chef at Starwood's Cervo Hotel on the chic Costa Smeralda, Sardinia. Depalo was most recently overseeing the kitchen at Numero in Manchester, England.


ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

Ricco De Blank moves to Hong Kong to Sun Hung Kai Properties as Chief Executive Officer. A long-time Ritz-Carlton man, he was most recently the pre-opening General Manager for the Ritz-Carlton Tokyo. He had previously served as General Manager at the Ritz-Carlton Osaka and the Ritz-Carlton Sharm El Sheikh.

Rainer Burkle has taken over as opening General Manager at the Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong, opening in April 2010. He was most recently an Area Vice President and General Manager for the Portman Ritz-Carlton, Shanghai.

Manfred Weber takes over for Burkle as General Manager for the Portman Ritz-Carlton, Shanghai. He was most recently the General Manager of the Ritz-Carlton, Beijing.

David Wilson transfers as General Manager to the Ritz-Carlton Beijing. He was most recently the General Manager at the (former) Ritz-Carlton Bali Resort & Spa.

Gert Noordzy has been appointed opening General Manager of the Crowne Plaza Kaohsiung E-Da World in Taiwan, slated to open at the end of the year. Noordzy was most recently the Director, Hotel Openings, for InterContinental. Previous postings include General Manager of the Holiday Inn North Chongqing and the Anahata Villas & Spa Resort, Bali.

Anthony Mirza has joined Regal Hotels International and will be opening their hotel in Chengdu in November, the Regal Master Hotel . He had previously served as General Manager of the Sunset Beach Resort & Marina in Saudi Arabia, as well as the Grand Mercure Baolong Shanghai.

Jonathan Wise joined the Gayana Eco Resort in Borneo in February, as General Manager. He came from Taunovo Bay in Fiji. His background also includes the position of General Manager of the Delamar in Connecticut and the (former) Villa del Sol in Mexico.

The Gloria Resort Sanya has appointed Sergio Bretti General Manager. Bretti was most recently the Hotel Manager of the property.

Michelle Ford and Cyrille Stegmann have been appointed to oversee the Life Resort Danang in Vietnam. They were previously the general management team at the Life Wellness Resort Quy Nhon.

Adith Raharjo has been named General Manager for the Swiss-Belhotel Batam and Swiss-Inn Batam in Indonesia. He was most recently the Executive Assistant Manager of the Grand Swiss-Belhotel Medan. 

Bill Vincent has been appointed General Manager of the Golden Palm Tree by Swiss-Belhotel Sea Villas and Spa. He was most recently the General Manager of the Holiday Inn Nanjing.

Bertrand Courtois is the new General Manager for the Sofitel Wanda Chengdu, replacing Patrick McDermott who has left the company. Courtois was most recently the General Manager of the Sofitel Wanda Harbin.

Fredrik Genberg steps in for Courtois as the new General Manager of the Sofitel Wanda Harbin. He was most recently serving as General Manager at the Canton Club, Guangzhou.

Gilbert Madhavan has been named General Manager of the Raffles Tianjin, scheduled to open in February 2010. Madhavan has been with the group for fifteen years, most recently as General Manager of the Raffles Canouan, The Grenadines. Previous positions within the group include Area General Manager of the group's properties in Asia Pacific, Indo China as well as General Manager of Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor.

Philip Smith has been appointed General Manager of the Fairmont Yangcheng Lake, Kunshan. Most recently Smith was the General Manager of the Fairmont Algonquin.

Kamal Naamani has been appointed General Manager of the Fairmont Peace Hotel, Shanghai. He was previously with the Fairmont Dubai as General Manager.

James Y.J. Kim has been named General Manager of the Plaza Royale Furongguo Changsha. He was most recently the Director of Operations in Renaissance Tianjin and Sanya Hilton Resort.

Kevin Qin has been named General Manager of the Sofitel Zhongshan Golf Resort Nanjing. He was recently the General Manager of the Panorama Shanghai.

Suphot Prakitjanuruk has been named General Manager of the Amari Don Muang Airport, Bangkok. He had previously served as General Manager of the St. James Hotel, an Amari Associate Hotel.

Gottfried Bogensperger has been appointed General Manager of the Hyatt on the Bund in Shanghai. He was previously the Director of Food and Beverage at the Grand Hyatt Singapore, before taking on his most recent position as opening General Manager of the Hyatt Manila Hotel and Casino.

Tom Cross has been promoted to Resort Manager of the Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu. He joined the resort over three years ago, most recently serving as Director of Operations. Cross had previously held the position of Director of Food and Beverage for the Kona Village Resort, and the Hawaiian Regent.

Stephan Faessler has bee appointed Director of Food and Beverage at the Mövenpick Hotel Saigon. He was most recently the Assistant General Manager for the Darasamui Beach Resort & Spa Villa, after joining the resort in 2007 as Executive Assistant Manager Food and Beverage. His previous food and beverage experience includes positions for the Sofitel Phokeethra Krabi Resort & Spa and the Amari Emerald Cove Resort Koh Chang.

Mathias Weigmann has been appointed Director of Food and Beverage for the Langham, Yangtze Boutique, Shanghai. He had been at the Presidential Beijing as Director of Food and Beverage.

The Saujana Kuala Lumpur has appointed Didier Belmonte Director of Food and Beverage. He had previously served as Director of Food and Beverage at the One&Only Reethi Rah in the Maldives and the InterContinental Al Bustan Palace in Muscat.

The Hilton Waikoloa Village has appointed Frank Manchen Director of Sales and Marketing. Manchen has been with Hilton for twelve years and was most recently the Director of Sales at La Quinta Resort and PGA West.

The Hilton Sanya Resort & Spa recently announced the appointment of Sharon Wang as its new Director of Business Development. She was most recently the Director of Business Development at the Hilton Hefei.

The St. Regis Bora Bora has named Rowena Tucker Director of Leisure Sales. She was most recently the Director of Sales at the Hotel Twin Dolphin now the Montage Cabo San Lucas. She previously served as National Travel Industry Sales Manager at the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay.

Jacques Monteil has been named Director of Catering and Events at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. Monteil hails from La Quinta Resort and PGA West where he most recently held the position of Assistant Director of Events.

Pierre Burgade has rejoined Raffles Singapore as Executive Chef. He was previously the Executive Sous Chef for the hotel before moving to his most recent position as Executive Chef for the Imperial New Delhi.

Christian Bruhns is now the Executive Chef at the Beijing Hilton. He was most recently in the same position for the Hilton Sanya Resort & Spa.

Vietnam's Sheraton Nha Trang has named Tom Drange Executive Chef. He was most recently the Executive Chef for the Sheraton Hua Hin Resort & Spa.

Stéphane Soret has joined Raffles Singapore as Wine Director. He had previously served as Head Sommelier for the Imperial New Delhi and the Grand Hyatt Dubai.

Michiel de Kleer has moved as Food and Beverage Manager to the Sheraton Nha Trang in Vietnam, slated to open in October. He was most recently the Director of Food and Beverage at the Sofitel Silom Bangkok.

Simon Lee has been appointed Food and Beverage Manager at the Prince Hotel, Hong Kong. He was most recently the Food and Beverage Manager for the Gateway Hotel.  

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

Peter Finamore has relocated to Ryiadh as Managing Director for Rosewood's Hotel al Faisalah and al Khozama. For the past two years, he had been in Las Vegas as Senior Vice President, Operations, for Echelon Resorts. Finamore had previously been with the Peninsula Group for fourteen years, overseeing the Peninsula Chicago, the Peninsula Palace Beijing, the Peninsula Hong Kong and the Peninsula Manila.

 
Jean-Stéphane Grasset, the General Manager of the Mövenpick Resort and Spa Mauritius, died in a boating accident in June. He had taken his position less than a year ago, and was previously the General Manager of the Santiburi Resort in Koh Samui. Grasset had also been the General Manager of Les Pavillons in Mauritius from 2002 to 2006.
 
Todd Cilano has transferred as General Manager to the Four Seasons Alexandria at San Stefano. He was most recently the General Manager at the Four Seasons Chiang Mai and previously served as Resort Manager at the Four Seasons Nevis.

Anders Dimblad has returned to the Banyan Tree Seychelles as General Manager. He had previously served as Rooms Division Manager for the resort, before taking operational positions for the Angsana Resort & Spa Maldives, and the Angsana Hotel & Suites Dubai. He was most recently the Resident Manager at the Banyan Tree Bangkok.

Mina A' Salam, part of the Madinat Jumeirah resort in Dubai, has named Mahmoud Sakr General Manager. He has been with the Jumeirah Group for ten years, previously as Hotel Manager in the Burj Al Arab.

The InterContinental Phoenicia Beirut has named Georg Weinlaender General Manager. He had previously served as General Manager of the Grand Villa Argentina and Hotel Croatia.

Khaled Helmy is General Manager for the Jumeirah Messilah Beach in Kuwait, which is scheduled to open in 2010. He was most recently the General Manager, Gulf Operations, for Jumeirah, after serving in Islamabad as General Manager of the Serena.

Bernard de Villèle has joined Habtoor Hotels-Lebanon as Area General Manager. He was most recently President and Chief Executive Officer for JMJ Hospitality Dubai. He previously served with Guoman Hotels as an Area General Manager, and also served seven years with Taj as Vice President in charge of United Kingdom and United States Operations.

Patrick Camelia has moved within the Rezidor Hotel Group to take on the role of General Manager of the Radisson Blu Resort Taba, in Egypt. He was most recently the Executive Assistant Manager for the Radisson SAS Hotel Dubai Deira Creek. His previous roles include Director of Food and Beverage at the Royal Mansour Méridien in Casablanca, and Executive Chef of Le Royal Méridien Nile Tower in Cairo.

Erich Kaiserseder has transferred to the Shangri-La Doha, Qatar as opening General Manager. He was most recently with the Shangri-La Jakarta as Resident Manager. He had previously served in various food and beverage positions for the Shangri-La Dubai, the Shangri-La Manila and the Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey.

The Kempinski Hotel Aqaba has named Alejandro Bernabe opening General Manager. He has been with Kempinski for over ten years and has held upper management positions at the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg and at the Ciragan Palace in Istanbul.

Patrick Martinez has been appointed General Manager for the opening of the InterContinental Mauritius Resort Balaclava Fort. Martinez had worked for Marriott Hotels across Asia for the past twelve years with his last posting as General Manager of the Bangkok Marriott Resort & Spa.

Ammar Hilal has rejoined the Burj Al Arab as Hotel Manager. Hilal was previously with the hotel as Executive Assistant Manager Food and Beverage, before joining the Mardan Palace in Turkey, where he ended up being the opening General Manager. In addition, he had served as Director of Food and Beverage for the Lanesborough London and the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong.

Hyatt International has appointed Richard Griffith-Jones Director of Technical Services – South West Asia, based in Dubai. He was previously the FF&E Project Manager for the Park Hyatt Beijing, as well as the Hyatt Saigon, the Grand Hyatt Dubai and the Hyatt Regency Kathmandu.

Starwood Hotel & Resorts has appointed Wael Rashed Area Director of Sales and Marketing based at the W Doha Hotel & Residences. He had previously served as General Manager of the Sheraton Gold Mohur Hotel in Yemen and Director of Sales and Marketing for the Sheraton Abu Dhabi.

Rohit Rattan has been appointed Director of Sales and Marketing for the Arabian Park Hotel. He had previously served in sales and marketing positions for the Chedi Muscat, the Taj West End in Bangalore and for the Six Senses Spa in Doha.

Sushma Shetty has been named Assistant Director of Sales - Leisure for the Yas Hotel Abu Dhabi. Shetty was most recently the Business Development Manager for the Essque Palm Jumeirah in Dubai.

The Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel and Resort has appointed Fabien Martinez Executive Chef. He had previously served as Executive Chef for the Sheraton Creek and Towers in Dubai.

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