Hotel executive moves: AHLA, Mandarin Oriental, Meliá, Minor

Here is a compilation of the most important executive moves of the past week in the hotel investment world alphabetically (by company):

AHLA names new CEO. Rosanna Maietta has been selected to serve as the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s (AHLA) next president and CEO, effective November 14. Maietta most recently served as the chief communications officer and senior counselor to the CEO at the American Clean Power Association. Previously, she served as president and CEO of the AHLA Foundation and executive vice president of communications and public relations of AHLA. Interim President and CEO Kevin Carey will continue serving at AHLA as chief operating officer and senior executive vice president.

Hotel Co 51 names finance head. Amsterdam-based Hotel Co 51 has promoted Lesya Batsuk to group finance manager, where she will head up the operator’s finance department. Batsuk brings 17 years of strategic accounting expertise to the position. Before joining the hotel management company in 2021, she spent over eight years in a senior financial management role at Intertrust Group.

New CEO for HSMAI. The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) has named Brian Hicks as its new president and CEO. Hicks has more than 30 years of international experience and steps into this role as only the fifth CEO in HSMAI’s nearly 100-year history. Hicks replaces the late Bob Gilbert, who served as president and CEO for 30 years. Hicks was most recently senior vice president of commercial & revenue management for the Americas for IHG. He also worked for TMI Hospitality and Ritz-Carlton.

New CCO at Lux Collective. Singapore-based The Lux Collective has named Paul Mulcahy as chief commercial officer. Mulcahy has over two decades of leadership experience in commercial strategy and business transformation. He also worked for Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, Pierre & Vacances - CenterParcs Group, Orbitz.com and InterContinental Hotels Group. Before joining The Lux Collective, Mulcahy was managing director of North America at RCI – part of Travel + Leisure Co.

New COO for Mandarin Oriental. Hong Kong-based Mandarin Oriental has appointed Amanda Hyndman as COO, effective November 1, following the retirement of Christoph Mares. She will also continue in her current role as chief people & culture officer. Hyndman’s career spans over 30 years in the luxury hotel industry and she has been with Mandarin for 18 years. She was the group director of quality & rooms in 2020 for Mandarin.

Mayfair names new VP. Bhubaneswar, India-based Mayfair Hotels has named Randhir Gupta as vice president of commercial and business development. He has nearly 22 years of experience in the airlines and hospitality industries and has previously worked for Accor India & South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group and Sahara Airlines.

New exec at Meliá. Palma, Spain-based Meliá Hotels International has named Jordi Sanchis as senior development director, which the company says marks a significant step in its expansion strategy for the Middle East. He has over nine years of experience at Meliá and was previously head of development for Europe. He has also worked for Hotel Solutions, Horwath HTL, Ravalo BS, Physiomins and KPMG.

Minor names new exec. Bangkok-based Minor Hotels has named Omar Romero its chief development and luxury officer, a newly created position. Romero brings over two decades of experience to Minor Hotels. He most recently served as chief development officer at Six Senses, leading the global development team for over half his tenure.

PYR names new Chicago design exec. Paris- and Chicago-based Pierre-Yves Rochon (PYR) has appointed David Buffery as principal and senior design director. In the new role, Buffery will lead the creative vision for PYRʼs Chicago studio, bringing with him more than 27 years of industry expertise in luxury hospitality, gaming, F&B and retail. His career includes work on notable projects across Asia, including The Peninsula Hong Kong, The Ritz-Carlton Macau and Banyan Tree Macau. He also worked for Galaxy Entertainment Group.

Sereno names new CCO. St. Barthélemy-based Claudio Cadeddu has been appointed chief commercial officer at Sereno Hotels. Cadeddu brings over two decades of experience in luxury hospitality. He was most recently director of sales & marketing at The Westin Excelsior & St Regis Rome for Marriott International. He previously worked for Amandatour and SmartBox.