Denis Gilles is now GM at Ottawa Downtown Hilton development. David Almond is RVP for Associated Luxury Hotels International. Other news about Murray Hennessy, Peter Strebel, Ryan McNeil and Tad Wampfler.
Morguard Corporation is pleased to announce the appointment of Denis Gilles to the position of general manager for the company’s Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood Suites by Hilton, Ottawa Downtown development. Gilles brings over 25 years of national and international operational experience with brands such as New World, Regal and Hilton. He most recently held the position of general manager for SilverBirch Hotels, a position he held in four different properties across Canada for the brands Quality, Hampton, Homewood and DoubleTree.
Associated Luxury Hotels International (ALHI) has expanded its Global Sales team with the addition of David Almond as regional vice president of sales – Midwest U.S. & Canada. Based in ALHI’s Global Sales office in Chicago, Illinois, he now leads and oversees ALHI’s Global Sales teams located in Chicago; Kansas City, Missouri; Louisville, Kentucky; and Toronto. Prior to joining ALHI, Almond served as the director of sales and marketing for the 792-room InterContinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, a member of ALHI’s portfolio. Previous to that he served as area director of sales and marketing for Starwood Hotels of Downtown Chicago, with area responsibility for the Sheraton Chicago, Westin River North, Westin Michigan Avenue, W Chicago Lakeshore, W Chicago City Center and the Tremont Hotel. His extensive experience also includes serving as director of sales for Hiltons of Chicago, where he represented Hilton Chicago, Palmer House Hilton, Hilton O’Hare, Conrad Chicago, Drake and Embassy Suites Lakefront.
Photo credit: Great Wolf Lodge.
Former Avis executive Murray Hennessy will take the reins as chief executive officer for Great Wolf Resorts. Hennessy is familiar with the family-friendly collection of indoor water park resorts, having served as advisor to Great Wolf Resorts’ senior management team during his tenure on the company’s board of directors. He was serving as interim CEO following the departure of Rubén Rodriguez in December and now officially assumes the permanent role. Hennessy’s previous positions include CEO for Avis Europe and, more recently, CEO of the United Kingdom’s largest online train ticket retailer, Trainline. In addition to his role on Great Wolf Resorts’ board, he has served as chairman of the board for a number of companies including the United Kingdom’s division of the popular restaurant chain TGIF and the out-of-home specialty advertising firm Talon Outdoor.
Omni Hotels & Resorts announced the promotion of Peter Strebel, a 30-year-plus veteran of the hospitality industry, to president effective immediately. The former chief marketing officer and senior vice president of sales has been appointed to the role after providing 20 years of senior leadership to the brand. In his previous role as chief marketing officer and senior vice president of sales, Strebel was charged with driving business development strategies to increase revenue and capture market share for the luxury hotel brand. Prior to this role, Strebel was the senior vice president of operations for Omni.
Ryan McNeil has now joined Sheraton Centre Toronto hotel as executive steward. Previously, he was chief steward with Westin Hotels and Resorts’ Prince Hotel property, with responsibility for hiring and/or train qualified staff to produce the right degree of public satisfaction, confidence and prestige in the service and quality of the property. He worked for two years at Old Mill Toronto as chief steward. McNeil also spent two years at G6 Hospitality as general manager of a property in Carollton, Tex., and five years as general manager for a Choice Hotels property in Port Hope, Ont.
Wyndham Hotel Group has welcomed a new franchise veteran to Wyndham’s executive bench. Tad Wampfler is the company’s new senior vice-president, global sourcing, design and construction. In this new role, Tad is leading a transformation of the company’s sourcing, design and construction organization and overall approach to how Wyndham Hotel Group leverages vendor and partner relationships in service to its franchisees and its managed hotel portfolio. Most recently serving as chief procurement officer at Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Wampfler’s more than 30 years’ experience leading major, global supply chain strategies and operations for franchisers including Wendy’s International and the Dunkin’ Brands made him an ideal fit for this role.
Dennis Meeches, president of Tribal Councils Investment Group, had announced the grand opening of Wyndham Garden Winnipeg hotel would take place on August 4, 2022. Due to supply chain disruptions, the grand opening has…
Choice Hotels Canada has announced the latest addition to its Ascend Hotel Collection with the opening of the newly built Halifax Tower Hotel & Conference Centre at 15 Lakelands Boulevard in the Bayer’s Lake region…