A number of hospitality companies have announced new leadership appointments or promotions since October began.
Wyndham
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has promoted Shilpan Patel to EVP, North America franchise operations, and Gustavo Viescas to president, of Latin America and the Caribbean, and elevated both to the company’s executive committee. The two have nearly 45 years of experience between them.
In his new role, Patel now oversees franchise operations, brand operations, franchise services and managed operations. He has held various finance operations and franchise service leadership positions throughout his nearly 20 years at Wyndham, most recently responsible for leading its contract administration and relicensing efforts while driving economy retention rates across its brands. Patel is a certified public accountant who began his career as an auditor at Deloitte & Touche after graduating from Penn State University.
HVMG
Hospitality Ventures Management Group has named Sameer Nair SVP of acquisitions and development. Before joining HVMG, he was VP of investments and capital markets for Kolter Hospitality where he oversaw more than $600 million in transactions. As VP of hotel investments for Banyan Investment Group, Nair led or assisted in more than $125 million of closed transaction volume. He also held analyst positions with Aztec Group, Starwood Property Trust and HotelAVE. Nair founded Culture to Culture Pals, a nonprofit organization that provides computers to underserved children in Jamaica. Nair received his Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration.
Indigo Road
The Indigo Road Hospitality Group has appointed Christopher Amato to the newly created position of director of culture. His responsibilities include working alongside the company’s existing leaders to ensure they’re demonstrating and upholding IRHG's standards of internal hospitality and introducing these foundations to new IRHG employees.
Amato first joined the IRHG in 2015 as a member of O-Ku Atlanta’s opening team. In 2017, he moved to open another Indigo Road restaurant as assistant GM and then GM. He rejoined the O-Ku Atlanta team as GM in early April 2020.
Amato graduated from Johnson & Wales University in 2013 with degrees in culinary arts and food service management. Following graduation, Amato worked at Jean-George’s Spice Market in New York City before relocating to Atlanta and joining Ford Fry’s team. During his tenure with Fry, Chris worked at The Optimist before opening St. Cecilia in Buckhead and Superica (previously The El Felix) in Alpharetta’s Avalon development.
IRHG also recently made the following promotions:
- Stephanie Janow as benefits director;
- Christine Kennedy as assistant director of HR;
- and Alison Maniccia as employment manager.
Remington Hotels
Hotel management company Remington Hotels has hired Dan Falvey as SVP of business development. Falvey joins Remington Hotels with more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry. Most recently, he was head of real estate for The Demex Group, and before that was managing director with Cushman & Wakefield’s Hospitality Group. During his 16 years at Cushman, he worked with multiple teams, including the Equity, Debt, and Structured Finance Group; the Hospitality Tax Group; and the Valuation & Advisory Hospitality and Gaming Group. Earlier in his career, Falvey worked for Prism Hotels, opening its New York office and growing its management and receivership platforms. Falvey also co-founded Black Birch Advisors, a real estate consultancy advising institutional clients on how to drive savings across expense categories.
In his new role, Falvey will help expand Remington’s business pipeline by sourcing new management opportunities, supporting Remington’s partners in acquiring hotels, and developing new hotels and resorts with the company’s multiple institutional partners.
Caesars Entertainment
Caesars Entertainment has promoted Kelly Gleeson Smith to VP of sales, meetings and events. In this new role, Gleeson Smith will lead the global sales strategy for meetings and events for the enterprise and oversees a team of more than 120 sales executives.
Gleeson Smith joined Caesars Entertainment in 2017 and has more than 20 years of sales experience. In her previous role at the company, she led East Coast sales efforts.
PM Hotel Group
PM Hotel Group has appointed Bob Frost as SVP of people and culture. This role involves leading PM Hotel Group's human resources function and envisioning and implementing innovative systems and initiatives that align with the company's strategic goals and foster its core values.
Frost has experience in talent acquisition, workforce development, performance management, employee benefits and compensation and employee relations. Most recently, Frost served as SVP and chief people officer for Lerner Enterprises and the Washington Nationals Baseball Club. Before that, he held leadership roles in human resources with Starr Restaurant Group, Northwood Hospitality and Interstate Hotels & Resorts.
Frost is a graduate of Johnson & Wales University.
White Lodging
White Lodging has made two new senior-level appointments: AJ Brow will take on the company’s chief human resources officer position and Joe Pagone, a veteran Kimpton Hotels executive, joins the company as regional VP.
Brow will be tasked with modernizing the White Lodging’s strategic human resource capabilities and executing initiatives to support its Associate Promise—to “create an environment where associates can be their best selves through ongoing training, development and mentoring.”
Brow joins White Lodging from NiSource, a gas and electric utility company. Most recently he oversaw all human resource business partners and labor relations as VP. Previously, Brow held VP, director and manager roles at global organizations like CNA Insurance, AON, W.W. Grainger, Accenture, Sears Holdings and Target Corp.
Brow earned his MBA and bachelor’s degree from Baker College.
Pagone will report to White Lodging’s Chief Operating Officer David Lanterman and oversee a portfolio of urban and lifestyle hotels across the country, including the company’s first Kimpton hotel in San Antonio.
Pagone joins White Lodging from Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, where he spent the past 14 years at Hotel Allegro and Hotel Palomar in Chicago, Hotel Monaco in Baltimore and the Hotel Van Zandt in Austin.
Most recently, Pagone was a member of Kimpton’s executive team and served as VP of hotel and restaurant operations with responsibility for 48 company-managed hotels. He is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University where he earned a bachelor’s degree in hospitality.