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Appointment

Dawna Naylor has been appointed as Director of Sales at Westin New York at Times Square

Naylor, who has an impressive sales-based hospitality background, will report in to Jim Mooney, director of sales and marketing, while also working closely alongside General Manager Sean Verney. An experienced Starwood sales executive, Naylor was most recently the director of group sales for the Westin Waltham Hotel in Massachusetts. Naylor took her first Starwood post just over 12 years ago when she joined the Sheraton Braintree team as an on-call sales manager. Her hard work and passion were quickly noticed and rewarded; Naylor moved into the director of catering and convention services role and then was once again promoted to director of group sales. Naylor also had a five-year run at the Boston Park Plaza hotel where she was the director of catering and convention services.

Starwood
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Michael Santoro has been appointed as Executive Chef at Andaz 5th Avenue

Joining the Andaz 5th Avenue team this season, Michael Santoro brings over 10 years of diverse culinary experience, most recently serving as Owner and Executive Chef of The Mildred Restaurant in Philadelphia. In his new role, Chef Santoro oversees the hotel’s seasonally inspired restaurant, the shop, and the hotel’s cellar bar, the bar downstairs, which serves seasonal, pre-prohibition style cocktails and delectable Latin-style small plate dishes. Chef Santoro also leads the culinary offerings at the hotel’s meetings, events and entertaining space, Apartment 2E.

Hyatt
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Gary E. Schweikert has been appointed as Managing Director at Trump SoHo

Mr. Schweikert comes to Trump SoHo with vast management experience, most recently serving as founder of Strata Hospitality Group and its sister company Arambys Inc, which provides owner relations and strategic advice to developers of hotel projects internationally. Previously, Mr. Schweikert served as president of Jumeirah Hospitality and Leisure USA, and concurrently general manager of the Jumeirah Essex House. His career also includes nine years as the regional vice president of Fairmont Hotels and Resorts and managing director of New York’s historic Plaza Hotel, and senior management positions within Hilton Hotels including at the legendary Waldorf Astoria.

Trump
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Shan Kanagasingham has been appointed as New York City Area General Manager at 1 Hotels

Shan Kanagasingham has been named New York City Area General Manager for 1 Hotels, a new luxury mission-driven brand debuting in early 2015 at the corner of Sixth Avenue and 58th Street. Kanagasingham brings 20 years of luxury experience to 1 Hotels where she will oversee leadership and direct daily operations for 1 Hotel Central Park, and 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge Park, opening late 2015, located on the water just south of the Brooklyn Bridge.

Starwood Capital Group
New York, New York, United States
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Appointment

Jennifer Rutkowski has been appointed as Area Director of Sales & Marketing at Baccarat Hotels & Resorts and 1 Hotels

Jennifer Rutkowski joins 1 Hotels from The London Hotels where she most recently served as Vice President, Sales & Marketing, for the brand’s hotels and restaurants in New York and Los Angeles. During her tenure, Rutkowski was responsible for consolidating and restructuring all sales, marketing and communication efforts to strengthen cross-promotion of the properties, resulting in a significant increase in room, and food and beverage sales. In addition to consulting for The Blackstone Group, Rutkowski has held various sales and marketing positions with Morgans Hotel Group, New Castle Hotels, Winfair Hospitality Management, and Renaissance Hotels & Resorts.

Starwood Capital Group
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Andrew Turner has been appointed as General Manager at Baccarat Hotel & Residences

Turner brings more than 20 years of luxury hospitality experience to this exciting new role. Prior to joining the Baccarat Hotel team, he was General Manager of Anantara Villas, in Phuket, Thailand, where his leadership was recognized with the company chairman’s Award of Excellence for outstanding contribution to service and financial results. Turner began his career at The Inter-Continental Sydney in his native Australia and proceeded to work his way up The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. ladder, holding management positions in Sydney, Australia; Atlanta, Georgia; Washington, DC; Shanghai, China; Doha, Qatar; and Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

Starwood Capital Group
New York, New York, United States
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Appointment

Executive Chef Ashfer Biju has been appointed as additional role of Director of Food & Beverage at The Pierre, A Taj Hotel

Celebrated for his innovative use of the freshest seasonal and regional ingredients during more than 12 years with luxury Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces around the world, Chef Biju began cooking at age 16. He was raised in a family of restaurateurs near the pristine backwaters of Kerala, India, and grew up with a passion for fresh fish and seafood. Today he is known for adding modern touches to traditional French, Mediterranean, Asian and Indian cuisines in a personal style influenced by his rigorous culinary training and extensive world travels. Chef Ashfer honors his heritage and his mother specifically by showcasing her Malabar Prawn Curry on his in-room dining menus. He joined The Pierre as Executive Chef in early 2012.

IHCL
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Sanjay Bedi has been named Regional Vice President of Operations at Real Hospitality Group (RHG)

Prior to joining RHG in 2013, Bedi was recognized by brands such as Marriott, Starwood and Hilton in his role as a Regional Director with another large Hospitality Operating Company. He previously spent a substantial tenure with a national executive search firm where he developed a keen eye for identifying talent well matched to hotels. He holds an MBA from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. Sanjay was hired in 2013 and has served as a Regional Director of Operations, handling a portfolio of the company's high profile hotels in New York City. Bedi will be based at the company's midtown Manhattan Regional Corporate Office.

Real Hospitality
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Leon Pellicer has been appointed as Food & Beverage Director at Mandarin Oriental, New York

Leon Pellicer comes to Mandarin Oriental, New York with more than 15 years of experience in hospitality, most recently as Director of Food & Beverage at St. Regis Princeville, Kauai, Hawaii. Pellicer has held key management positions with St. Regis Hotels & Resorts Worldwide since 2009 including St. Regis Deer Valley and St. Regis Bahia Beach. Previously, Pellicer held positions with Four Seasons Resorts in Hawaii and Mexico. He is a graduate of Universidad del Valle de Atemajac in Puerto Vallarta Mexico and was recently accepted as a Certified Sommelier by The Court of Masters Sommeliers in 2013.

Mandarin Oriental
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Candice Cancino has been named General Manager at Hyatt Herald Square

A veteran of the hospitality industry, Candice Cancino comes to the hotel with over 20 years of experience ranging from boutique hotels to major luxury hotel brands. Prior to joining Hyatt Herald Square New York, Candice most recently served as the General Manager of The High Line Hotel in New York where she oversaw the opening of the property. Cancino started her hotel career at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company and from there, went on to hold leadership roles at The Milford New York, the Normandy Hotel in Washington D.C., Tribeca Grand hotel in New York and W Hotels. In her new role, Candice will be responsible for all the pre-opening stages of development and for running the fashion and publishing-themed hotel as well as overall, day-to-day operations following the property's opening.

Real Hospitality
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Catherine Johns has been appointed as Director of Sales at Sofitel New York

Johns comes to Sofitel from Hyatt Hotel Corporation, where, most recently, she was director of catering and convention services for the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa in Honolulu. Her positions with Hyatt also include meeting and events director for the Andaz Fifth Avenue in New York and director of catering at the Park Hyatt Washington in Washington, D.C. Before joining Hyatt, she served as catering sales manager for The Hay-Adams in Washington, D.C.

Accor
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

John J. DePaul has joined JLL as Executive Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer

In order to better service and further expand its worldwide asset management portfolio of more than 40 hotels, JLL has added industry veteran John J. DePaul to lead the Hotels & Hospitality Group’s asset management and advisory practice in the Northeast United States. DePaul will report to Greg Hartmann, who was recently promoted to Managing Director and leads the hotel asset management and advisory practice in the U.S. and Canada. During DePaul’s more than 32 years of hospitality management and advisory experience, he served as Managing Member and founder of NHH Capital Advisors LLC, a fully-integrated hospitality advisory, asset management and investment platform executing more than $4.5 billion in project assignments since 2006. He also served as Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Melrose Hotel Corporation LLC, an independent upscale real estate hotel platform within Berwind Property Group LTD. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in management with an emphasis in marketing from Philadelphia University.

JLL
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Greg Hartmann has been promoted to Managing Directors at JLL

In order to better service and further expand its worldwide asset management portfolio of more than 40 hotels, JLL has added industry veteran John J. DePaul to lead the Hotels & Hospitality Group’s asset management and advisory practice in the Northeast United States. DePaul will report to Greg Hartmann, who was recently promoted to Managing Director and leads the hotel asset management and advisory practice in the U.S. and Canada.

JLL
New York, New York, United States
Appointment

Mureka Walcott has been appointed as Director of Human Resources at M&R Hospitality Management

An 11-year hospitality industry veteran, Walcott previously was area human resources manager for the Residence Inn New York Manhattan/Midtown East and Courtyard New York Manhattan/Times Square, both in New York, from 2013-2014. From 2008-2013, she was market human resources manager at the Renaissance Meadowlands Hotel in Rutherford, New Jersey, where she earlier was an accounting manager. Prior to that, she served in two capacities at the Saddle Brook Marriott in Saddle Brook, New Jersey: front office manager and accounts receivable manager. M&R Hotel Management operates three hotels in Manhattan, four near John F. Kennedy International Airport, one near LaGuardia Airport and two in Staten Island. A third Staten Island hotel is scheduled to open in September.

M&R Hotel Management
Great Neck, New York, United States