Marriott names four GMs
Marriott International has announced the appointments of four General Managers across its Sydney and Melbourne portfolio.
In September, Bennath Evea joined Courtyard by Marriott North Ryde and Sudhir Yadav joined AC by Marriott Melbourne Southbank, both as first time General Managers.
Scott MacDonald makes the move from Courtyard by Marriott North Ryde to take up the GM position at Four Points by Sheraton Sydney Central Park, while Michelle Scott joins Moxy Sydney Airport Hotel as a first time General Manager from October.
Marriott International Area Vice President, Australia, New Zealand and Pacific, Sean Hunt, congratulated the four on their appointments.
“All four associates have been part of Marriott’s internal training and development program that allows us to develop the skills of our high-performing team members as they move through to senior management positions,” said Hunt.
Evea joined Marriott International in 2008 as Assistant Banquet Manager at The Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel. She has since held a variety of senior Event Management roles within the business in locations such as London, Doha, Hanoi and Bangkok, and more recently held the position of Director of F&B at The Stones Hotel, Legian Bali, Autograph Collection.
Yadav joins AC by Marriott Melbourne Southbank from Fiji, where he was Complex Hotel Manager for Sheraton Denarau Villas, Fiji and Sheraton Fiji Golf & Beach Resort. He played an instrumental role in the resort’s reopening in March 2022 after a $55 million renovation. He has worked with Marriott since 2007, when he joined as a Front Office Guest Service Agent at Sydney Harbour Marriott. He has been the recipient of two Manager of the Year awards through Marriott International in 2013 and 2017, and has recently completed the Marriott Development Academy GM Certificate.
MacDonald began his career with Marriott in 1999 as Banquet Manager at Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort, Gold Coast. Since then, he has held such roles as Food and Beverage Manager of Sheraton Grand Sydney, Hyde Park; Complex Director of Food and Beverage at Sheraton Fiji Resort and Golf Club, Sheraton Denarau Villas and The Westin Resort and Spa Denarau Island; and Hotel Manager of the Sheraton Resorts in Fiji.
Michelle Scott brings over 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry. She first joined Marriott International in 2007 and has since been a key driver of commercial strategy and sales team leader across Courtyard by Marriott Surfers Paradise, Surfers Paradise Marriott Resort and Spa and Brisbane Marriott Hotel.
Marriott is continuing to grow the number of female General Managers in the business. Currently, 42% of Marriott’s on-property leaders in ANZP are female. Globally, Marriott aims to achieve gender parity for all executive positions worldwide by 2023 – two years ahead of the original target.
Jetstar appoints new CEO
Stephanie Tully has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Jetstar, taking over from Gareth Evans, who had previously announced plans to step down from the CEO role at the end of the year.
Since joining Qantas Group in 2004, Tully has worked across operational, commercial, marketing and customer loyalty, and has held the role of Group Executive and Chief Customer Officer since 2019.
“Stephanie has worked across several different parts of the airline, from crewing to marketing, and has a deep understanding of customer experience,” said Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce.
“She’s an outstanding leader and she’ll be leading a very experienced senior team at Jetstar to keep building on the strengths of that business.”
Accor Pacific CEO Sarah Derry also welcomed Stephanie Tully’s appointment, saying it’s great news for the industry and for Jetstar.
“At Accor we have enjoyed working with Stephanie for a number of years on projects such as our Qantas Lounge partnership,” she said.
“Stephanie’s customer expertise and experience of leading high performing teams will be key to Jetstar’s future success.”
As a result of Tully’s appointment, Markus Svensson – currently Executive Manager of Network, Revenue Management and Alliance – has been promoted to the Chief Customer Officer role and becomes a member of the Group Executive Committee.
Joyce said the appointments come at an important time for the business.
“The team is working incredibly hard to overcome challenges facing the whole industry as it gets back on its feet, and the data shows we’re almost there,” he said.
“Managing this kind of executive renewal internally means we keep our momentum and can leverage a huge amount of corporate knowledge, including through the transition.”
Tully and Svensson will soon begin the transition to their new roles before formally taking up their positions in November.
Three Blue Ducks welcomes new Restaurant Manager
W Brisbane’s signature restaurant Three Blue Ducks welcomes Cedric Rinaldo as Restaurant Manager.
Rinaldo, who was born in France, has trained in Michelin-starred restaurants around the globe including three-Michelin-starred Flocons de Sel France. He will oversee food and beverage programming at the restaurant.
“I relish in the experience of cooking for friends, family and guests, and the special connection these moments shared over a meal can bring,” he said.
He has previously worked with Le Meridien Bangkok, Sofitel Paris and helped reopen and establish Sofitel Auckland after a period of refurbishment. His most recent role was as Restaurant Manager at Hilton, Auckland, which – under his management – earned one hat in the Good Food Awards for the first time in 20 years.
Colliers bolsters hotel team
Colliers has appointed of Julian Whiston as National Director of Hotel Investment Sales.
A former Managing Director and Joint Head of JLL Hotels and Hospitality’s national Valuation Advisory division, Whiston has worked across Asia and Europe, and has established himself as one of Australia’s leading specialists in the field of hotels and hospitality property.
Whiston will be based in Brisbane and will report to Colliers’ Head of Hotels Gus Moors.
“Julian brings with him a unique depth of experience,” Moors said.
“He is a known quantity, a successful and trusted hotel property professional with more than thirty years of experience throughout Australia and overseas. His experience and professional credentials will undoubtedly prove invaluable to our clients.”