Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills promoted Vanessa Williams to general manager.
Photo credit: Hilton
With decades of global luxury hotel leadership and a specialty in leading marketing campaigns, Williams was chosen to oversee the overall operations of the hotel. Williams, whose career includes more than five years of spearheading business development and sales and marketing campaigns within the Hilton organization’s luxury and lifestyle brands, particularly Waldorf Astoria and Conrad brands, has served as the director of sales and marketing at Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills since before the hotel's opening in June 2017.
Williams is the second woman to be elevated to GM in one of Oasis West Realty's luxury hotels, following Sandy Murphy's appointment to helm the Beverly Hilton hotel, and is the first female GM at Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills.
"Vanessa has been at the forefront of property operations since before the Beverly Hills opening and has been instrumental in our accomplishments. Not only did she expertly position and drive the commercial success of the hotel, she developed collaborations with local and national partners to provide guests an unforgettable experience with unmatched amenities and service,” Beny Alagem, chairman and CEO of Oasis West Realty, owner of the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. “Her dedication and passion for this hotel has been unwavering. This is a well-deserved promotion, and I am confident that the hotel experience for guests will only continue to further impress.”
Williams' hospitality career has spanned nearly three decades at worldwide destinations, including a role in the renovation, relaunch and repositioning of the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, Raffles L’Ermitage Beverly Hills, Sandy Lane Barbados and Sukhothai Bangkok before joining Hilton to open Waldorf Astoria Beijing and Conrad Seoul. In 2018, Williams was named one of Southern California’s Top Nine “Woman of Influence” by LA Confidential magazine.
“We are thrilled to have Vanessa lead the team at this flagship property that has quickly established itself as one of the premier luxury hotels in Southern California, as well as the go-to place for local residents,” Pascal Duchauffour, VP of luxury operations at Hilton, said in a statement. “She has been an integral part of the opening success of the hotel and we look forward to her leading the team to continue to create authentic moments that become unforgettable memories.”