A number of hotels across the country and in the Caribbean have appointed new general managers since March began. Here are some names to know for spring.
Bobby Hotels
Independent hospitality brand Bobby Hotels appointed Tony Phillips GM of the Bobby Nashville.
Phillips joins the hotel following a tenure at Loews Hotels. He came to Nashville in 2008, initially taking on the role of director of rooms at Loews Vanderbilt Hotel. Subsequently, he became director of operations in 2012 and GM in 2013. Phillips also held various leadership roles across the U.S., including Loews Coronado Bay Resort, Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, Loews Santa Monica Hotel before returning to Nashville in 2021.
The Broadmoor
In Colorado Springs, Colo., The Broadmoor promoted longtime employee Ann Alba, a 37-year leader of the resort's hospitality team, to vice president and general manager.
Hailing from Michigan, Alba grew up in her family's bar and restaurant business. She has been a member of The Broadmoor team since 1987, when she started working at the Broadmoor as a banquet server. Today, she is second in command to The Broadmoor’s President and CEO Jack Damioli.
The Deer Path Inn
James Barnett is the new general manager and innkeeper at the Deer Path Inn in Lake Forest, Ill. Born in Australia, Barnett began his hospitality career at the Thredbo ski resort in New South Wales. He then became the general manager of the Soho House property Electric House in London, overseeing private member clubs, its on-site restaurant and an immersive cinema. After his time in the U.K., he moved to Chicago in 2014 to take the reins at Soho House Chicago. Barnett went on to become the global task force general manager for Soho House. Most recently, he was the VP of hospitality at Bonhomme Hospitality, overseeing a portfolio of seven locations with 11 concepts.
In his new role, Barnett will blend his hotel management background with his F&B expertise to evolve the hotel’s food and beverage program, which includes the English Room, White Hart Pub, the Bar and the Afternoon Tea service.
The Islamorada Resort Collection
The Islamorada Resort Collection, a group of boutique resorts in the Florida Keys, appointed Sean Leister resort manager at La Siesta Resort & Villas.
Leister has held multiple managerial roles across Hawks Cay Resort and Cheeca Lodge & Spa, where he led both event and guest experience teams.
JW Marriott St. Maarten Resort & Spa
The JW Marriott St. Maarten Resort & Spa appointed Todd Reichelt general manager.
Reichelt brings 52 years of experience to his new role. He started as a dishwasher and gradually climbed the ladder to become an executive chef, food and beverage manager and ultimately a general manager in 1991. For 16 years, Reichelt has worked with Marriott hotels in Albany, N.Y.;, Greensboro, N.C.;, Quincy, Mass.; and Baltimore before settling in St. Maarten.
The Maybourne Beverly Hills
The Maybourne Beverly Hills—the first U.S. property from Maybourne, operators of London’s Claridge’s, The Connaught and the Berkeley—appointed Sam Jagger general manager.
Most recently, Jagger was general manager at Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows in Santa Monica, Calif., where he was previously the director of sales and marketing from 2008 to 2010. In between roles, he was managing director and senior vice president at Mr. C Hotels & Residences for 10 years.
Nantucket Resort Collection
The Nantucket Resort Collection of boutique hotels in Old Nantucket Town appointed Alicia Hehir area general manager.
Originally from the Boston area, Hehir joined the collection in 2022 as innkeeper at Regatta Inn and worked her way up to director of operations in 2023 before being appointed area general manager. Before her time on Nantucket, Hehir was senior manager at Eaton House, a coworking space attached to the Eaton Hotel in Washington, D.C. She began her career in hospitality in 2013 as a server and star trainer at Bourbon Steak at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C.’s Georgetown neighborhood.
Novotel Miami Brickell
Sinem Kaya is the new general manager of the Novotel Miami Brickell. Having held leadership roles in Conrad and Four Points by Sheraton hotels as well as the W South Beach, Fla., Sinem has overseen guest services at the SLS South Beach and SLS Brickell, both in Miami, and was director of operations for SBE Global, helping to open the SLS Baha Mar and SLS LUX.
Most recently, Sinem was complex general manager at SLS Brickell Miami and SLS LUX Brickell Miami before assuming her current position.
The Ranch at Rock Creek
The Ranch at Rock Creek appointed Chance Gibson general manager.
Gibson held notable roles in Houston, Denver, Nashville, Las Vegas and Sanya, China. He held positions with MGM Resorts International and the Hakkasan Group, where he developed an understanding of the intricacies of luxury hospitality.
Salterra, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa
Melina Forla is the new general manager of Salterra, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa in the Turks & Caicos
Forla has been an integral part of JEM Worldwide's leadership team since 2022. A native Argentinian, Forla has worked at resorts in the Caribbean, United States and Latin America, including 12 years with Marriott International's Westin Brand in the Caribbean, specializing in sales and operations. She has spent most of her hospitality career in the Cayman Islands, where her efforts were concentrated on sales for leisure, corporate and incentive group segments. Leading a team of experts from JEM, Forla is planning and executing Salterra's grand opening, scheduled for 2025.
Sophy Hyde Park
Michael Falkenstein has been appointed general manager of the Sophy Hyde Park in Chicago.
Falkenstein began his career on the West Coast at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco and went on to open the first new-build W Hotel, the W San Francisco. He held subsequent leadership positions at the W Lakeshore Chicago; the W New Orleans – French Quarter; the Joule, a Luxury Collection Hotel in Dallas; The Westin Buckhead in Atlanta; and, most recently, The Iron Horse Hotel in Milwaukee’s warehouse district.
The Source Hotel + Market Hall
Crescent Hotels appointed HC Noll general manager of The Source Hotel + Market Hall in Denver’s RiNo Art District.
Noll joins The Source team from Sonder Inc., where he most recently was a senior operations manager. A graduate of Chico State University, Noll previously spent more than eight years with Marriott Vacations Worldwide, where he held multiple positions, including director of room operations and western region operations manager.
TownePlace Suites by Marriott Denver West/Federal Center
Ryan Phillips is the new general manager of TownePlace Suites by Marriott Denver West/Federal Center, managed by Spire Hospitality. Phillips will oversee all hotel operations, including administration and revenue management. He will report to Steve Neth, Spire Hospitality’s vice president of operations.
Phillips brings 14 years of hospitality industry experience to his new role. He joined Spire in 2021 as the front office manager for the Embassy Suites by Hilton Denver Tech Center North, where he focused on team building and staff retention while navigating pandemic-related industry shifts. Before his tenure with Spire, Phillips held several operations roles of increasing responsibility at the Hyatt Regency Denver before serving as the operations supervisor at Hotel Teatro, also in Denver. His first hotel job was as a front desk agent for the Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz.
W Aspen
In Colorado, the W Aspen appointed Martin Magdeburg general manager. Beginning his hospitality journey at a young age, Magdeburg assumed an apprenticeship in his hometown of Berlin at The Ritz-Carlton Schlosshotel. He later worked at the Hôtel Plaza Athenée in New York, l’Ermitage in Beverly Hills and the Setai Miami Beach.
He supported the opening of The Ritz-Carlton, Riyadh in Saudi Arabia in 2011 and later to the Mandarin Oriental, Singapore. From there, Magdeburg joined the W Hotels brand and led the culinary and food & beverage operations at W Singapore on Sentosa Island until 2017. Magdeburg assumed the position of global food & beverage leader for W Hotels at the end of 2017, supporting many of the global properties in various stages, from development to openings, renovations to concepts. From here, Magdeburg became hotel manager of the W Shanghai in 2021, overseeing all property operations. Following his time in Shanghai, he transitioned to the role of director of operations at The Jaffa, A Luxury Collection Hotel in Tel Aviv, Israel.