Lynn Griffith is now the vice president of human resources for Dream Hotel Group and its four lifestyle brands: Dream Hotels, Time Hotels, The Chatwal, and Unscripted Hotels. Prior to Dream Hotel Group, Griffith worked in the human resources departments for Two Roads Hospitality, Kimpton Hotels, and the Waldorf Astoria in N.Y.
Hospitality advisor and asset management company CHMWarnick welcomes Joe DeFrank to grow its business in the mid-Atlantic region as senior vice president and asset manager. DeFrank has 35 years of hospitality experience to lend to this position, and most recently served as senior vice president of asset management for Host Hotels & Resorts.
Joey Olivia is supporting Kokua Hospitality’s expansion as vice president of sales and marketing. Olivia’s 30 years of experience encompasses both larger hotel groups, such as InterContinental Hotels Group, Kimpton Hotels, and Starwood, as well as companies like Larkspur Hotels and Highgate Hotels, where she worked with boutique and independent hotels.
Ed Blair has been named general manager of The Curtis – a DoubleTree by Hilton hotel. Before joining the DoubleTree family, Blair spent three years in the same position with the Embassy Suites by Hilton Downtown and 10 years with The Oxford Hotel. All three properties are managed by Sage Hospitality.
As general manager of The Blackburn Inn, a boutique hotel in Staunton, Va., Lacy Peterson will manage daily operations and ensure positive guest experiences. Peterson has been in hospitality for 15 years, most recently serving as director of rooms for the Oakhurst Inn in Charlottesville, Va.
The Thompson Chicago, a Two Roads Hospitality property, has hired Onal Kucuk to transform the hotel’s operational team and guest experience initiatives as general manager. Kucuk is familiar with Two Roads Hospitality, having served as general manager for the company’s Hotel Lincoln in Chicago and The Camby in Phoenix.
Todd Sicolo is now responsible for banquet, room service, and in-house restaurant procedures as executive chef of the Westward Look Wyndham Grand Resort & Spa as Tucson, Ariz. Previously, Sicolo assisted in opening the Intercontinental Hotel Los Angeles and served as executive chef for the Shelborne Grand Resort & Spa in South Beach, Fla.
The Blue Mermaid Restaurant at the Argonaut Hotel in San Francisco, Calif., welcomes Gary Jones as executive chef. Jones has been in the restaurant industry for 14 years, most recently serving as west coast regional chef for Special Restaurants Corporation in Los Angeles, Calif., and executive chef of the Castaways in Burbank, Calif.
Antonio Palomares is managing a culinary team and overseeing food and beverage operations for room service, dining outlets, banquets, and event spaces as director of food & beverage for The St. Regis Atlanta. Palomares most recently served as general manager and food and beverage director of the Los Fuegos and Living Room at Faena Hotel Miami Beach, Fla.
Christopher Shiel will develop strategies and initiatives to drive revenue as director of sales and marketing for Hotel 50 Bowery, a Joie de Vivre Hotels property. Shiel previously held the same position for both the Refinery Hotel and Smyth, a Thompson hotel, in Manhattan. He also spent four years in the sales division of Denihan Hospitality Group.
Vision Hospitality Group has promoted Ellen Peavy to regional director of sales & marketing. Peavy joined Vision in 2013, and she has grown both the Lookout Mountain and downtown Chattanooga hotels’ revenue in multiple areas. Peavy also held various positions with the Marriott and Hilton brands over her career.
Michael Silberling will bring more than 30 years of experience to his new position as senior vice president and chief operating officer of Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment. In addition, Tom Smock is leading compliance and legal divisions as senior vice president and general counsel for the company.
Louis Gonzalez will lead a team of sales executives to generate more meeting and convention business for the Fontainebleau Miami as director of group sales. This is a promotion for Gonzalez, who started at the Fontainebleau in 2009 as director of national accounts and assistant director of group sales in 2013.
Dominic Pickering is joining The Grove Resort & Waterpark in Orlando, Fla., team as sales director, managed by real estate and investment development firm, BTI Partners. Pickering will create new strategies to generate revenue for the luxury vacation home resort. He previously served as president of Realty People.
In June of this year, Paul Reggio started as managing partner: rooms operations for Ithaka Hospitality Partners. Reggio has since been exceeding rooms division standards and delivering the right level of service to all employees and guests. Reggio was most recently the hotel manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe.
Gurney Resorts has added two hospitality veterans to fill operational and food and beverage-related roles: Jaime Stuyck will support employees and manage day-to-day happenings of Gurney’s Yacht Club & Resort in Montauk, N.Y.; and Kevin Maguire will oversee culinary experiences as director of food and beverage of Gurney’s Newport Resort & Marina in R.I.
Benchmark Resorts & Hotels has new hires for 3 different properties: Geoff Young is managing director for the Lake Arrowhead Resort and Spa in Lake Arrowhead, Calif.; Pete Page is executive chef for the Chaminade Resort & Spa in Santa Cruz, Calif.; and Jason Jonilonis is executive chef of the Doug Pitcock ’49 Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center in College Station, Tex.
The Northland Hotel is reopening in later this year, and five new hires will assist in the process: John Williams is general manager; Brandon Flitter is director of sales; Cherry Kiani is human resources director; James-Ryan Lundy is executive chef, and Peter DonKoncis is director of food and beverage.
DLR Group has named 2 principals – Joe Cicora and Jessie Johnson – and 26 new principals to represent different facets of the hospitality industry. Cicora and Johnson represent business development and architecture, respectively. All 28 executives feature the design, engineering, planning, and technology segments, as well as many others.
PurpleCloud Technologies, a privately held technology company that builds custom software solutions and data analytics for hotel operations and management, announced today that it has hired Nicholas Fraunfelder to serve as the company’s chief operating officer. In this role, Fraunfelder will oversee the day-to-day operations of the company, ensuring that the company grows revenue, scales operations and achieve strong investor returns.
