Your Hosts

In this interview, Lan shares her career journey and the importance of mentors and champions. We discuss the "Imposter Syndrome" and tips on overcoming that negativity. Lan reveals her learnings from setbacks and disappointments, and how she broke through a field traditionally dominated by men. She also offers advice to her younger self, and to students she meets at Castell @College.

Rachel Humphrey, Board Member / Speaker / Passionate Advocate for Elevating Women in Hospitality / Retired Hospitality Industry C-Suite Executive and Counsel

In this interview, Rachel shares her career journey and how she transitioned from a trial lawyer to becoming EVP, COO and Interim CEO at AAHOA. She discusses the mentors and champions in her life and how she built a vast network. She offers advice on public speaking, approach to challenges and work life balance. You won't want to miss Rachel's personal mantra and her advice to her younger self.

Justin Knight, CEO, Apple Hospitality REIT & Chair, AHLA

Justin discusses what he looks for in building a great team, how he evaluates and overcomes obstacles, and the importance of building relationships which then develop your network. He also shares how he strives to be present in both his career and with his family and why he'd tell his younger self to worry less about the future and maximize the present. Justin also talks about how his volunteerism with not-for-profit organizations and industry organizations has been invaluable for him and how he prepares for public speaking opportunities.

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Ted Zhang, Founder and CEO, DerbySoft

In this interview, Ted shares his vision of a connected world of distribution, his endeavors to help employees tie their daily work to company strategies, and how he builds inclusion and coalesces diversity in language, culture and business practices across the many different countries in which he operates. Finally, he offers advice to anyone who aspires to become a CEO.

Allison Reid, Chief Global Growth Officer, Aimbridge Hospitality

Allison shares the 4 questions that help her build teams, which has lead to happier, more productive team members. She explains why she avoids the jealousy, drama and comparisons that often swirl in corporate cultures, and how she handles negative thoughts. She also describes her technique for resolving a problematic issue (tip: ask the quiet person in the room), and the importance of developing your own, authentic style. Allison also explains how classic negotiation skills are key to advocating for yourself.

Lynette Montoya, President & CEO, Latino Hotel Association

Lynette shares how advocating for herself followed by her persistence led to her career in hospitality and the CEO role she holds today. She discusses mentors and champions who have and continue to provide her support and how she approaches public speaking. Lynette talks about overcoming obstacles and how organizational skills and designated time off help her manage to find work life balance. Lastly, Lynette shares some final advice and it's the same advice she gives her sons!

Lisa Checchio, EVP & Chief Marketing Officer, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Lisa discusses how she pivoted from a planned career as a doctor to a fulfilling career as a hospitality industry executive. She shares how champions behind the scenes and a well-selected support system have helped her as she has progressed through her career. Lisa talks about how being present in whatever she is doing at the time helps her manage her day and how hope and optimism played a key role in her leadership during the pandemic. Lastly, she shares what she'd tell her younger self and why she encourages everyone to BYOC (bring your own chair) in an effort to advocate for yourself.

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Suzanne Mellen, Senior Managing Director, HVS

Suzanne shares why and how she started the 2nd HVS office in the mid-80s, a time when it was rare for women to own businesses. She discusses how she handles contentious situations and how she has evolved her leadership style to match the person she’s working with. Suzanne also shares advice on how to advocate for yourself, why building and sustaining [business] relationships should be a priority, and the importance of finding balance in your life – because life goes quickly, but it’s also a marathon.

Monika Nerger, Chief Technology Officer, Mandarin Oriental

In this interview, she shares her career journey in a field traditionally dominated by men. She reveals her learnings from setbacks and her approach to challenges. We also have frank discussions as to why women and other underrepresented groups continue to face difficulties in landing executive leadership positions, and her advice on finding champions and on networking. She offers her perspectives on finding passion and her advice to her younger self.

Tori Emerson Barnes, EVP, Public Affairs and Policy, U.S. Travel Association

Tori talks about how the combination of being kind and compelling can take you far. She also shares her strategies for developing relationships with decision-makers on both sides of an issue, which of her character traits she relied upon in helping her lead through the pandemic, and which public speaking opportunities she thrives in as well as how she prepares for them. Tori also discusses how she overcomes self doubt and what she'd tell her younger self (and whether she's actually following her own advice now).

LIU XinXin, President of H World Group Ltd.

H World Group Ltd. Is the 7th largest hotel group in the world with over 8,200 hotels in 17 countries, and is listed on NASDAQ. Miss Liu has been the architect of the group's transformation from a traditional hotel company to also being a leader in hospitality technology. In our interview, Ms. Liu shares her thoughts on formal education, how she broke into a field traditionally dominated by men, and her approach to challenges. She also provides advice on coaching and mentoring, networking and finding passion.

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Dorraine Lallani, Board Member of Red Roof Inns

Dorraine talks about her unexpected path into the hotel industry, why it's so important for women to advocate for themselves, and how she overcomes obstacles when faced with challenges. She also discusses how she builds relationships and continues to learn and grow and why it's so important for her to be a mentor and champion for the next generation of women in hospitality. Dorraine also encourages everyone to ask for help when you need it and why she wishes she had had that advice earlier in her career.

Terri Haack, Senior Vice President, Lowe

Terri shares her path to leadership and the role her family played in developing her character and career journey. She talks about the importance of leading with kindness first, her strategies for developing relationships and support systems, and how her courage helped her lead during the pandemic. Terri also shares how she can be impacted by her own negative self-talk and what she does to try to overcome that narrative to help her thrive in any situation she encounters.

Abby Murtagh, General Manager, Arizona Biltmore, a Waldorf Astoria Resort

Abby discusses how authenticity and kindness together are where real power comes from. She talks about how she was able to reopen the resort and quickly fill almost every open position by first establishing the key characteristics and values for certain roles and ensuring they had an inclusive list of qualified candidates. When leading diverse teams, Abby advises leaders to start by building trust, which encourages interesting conversations and allows teams to embrace healthy conflict.

Glenn Haussman, Podcast Host

Glenn shares his path from celebrity journalist to one of the industry's most recognizable faces as podcast host and public speaker. He discusses how he builds relationships in an authentic way, why and how he overcame his fear of public speaking to make it his career, and how his daily podcast keeps him up to date on the industry. Glenn also shares how he's built his personal brand, why he'd tell his younger self to stop worrying, and how he pivoted during the pandemic to forge a new path.

Kevin Jacobs, Chief Financial Officer & President, Global Development, Hilton

Kevin shares his intellectual curiosity and efforts to develop skills that made him valuable to his companies helped advance his career. He shares the stories of why he left Host, just as Chris Nassetta was becoming an important mentor to him, and how they reconnected when Chris joined Hilton. Kevin describes how he approaches and embraces challenges. He explains how seeking a mentor requires making an effort, the importance of finding a mentor that “clicks” with you, and the need to be a good mentee.

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Malaika Myers, Chief Human Resources Officer, Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Malaika shares how learning a lesson the “hard way” taught her to get support, buy in and alignment across the organization on her future projects, and how her mentors helped her understand the bigger picture at critical points in her career. She discusses the importance of figuring out what you want to do early on and setting goals for yourself beyond annual goals. She offers tips for creating an inclusive workplace and highlights the Hyatt DEI initiatives that are having the most significant impact.

Tina Burnett, Chief Development Officer, G6 Hospitality

Tina shares her path from assistant at G6 to the c-suite 24 years later. She discusses the mentors and champions who supported, how she advocates for herself, and the strategies to approach her public speaking. Tina also shares the intentionality she uses in networking situations, why it's important to celebrate your successes, and how executive coaching has impacted her leadership style. Finally, as final advice, she encourages everyone to support each other and empower yourselves in the process.

Mitesh Shah, Founder and CEO, Noble Investment Group

Mit shares how he led Noble Investment to spectacular success and how he faced challenges, setbacks and disappointments. He offers advice on coaching and mentoring and how he built the admirable culture at Noble. We discussed challenges that women and other underrepresented groups face and Mit offers advice on finding mentors, champions and advocates as well as how to feel confident in uncomfortable situations by being genuine. He also offers thoughts on finding passion and drive.

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Julienne Smith, Chief Development Officer Americas, IHG Hotels & Resorts

Julienne shares her personal journey to the c-suite, with initial stops in the tech world and construction and real estate, then landing in the hospitality industry. She discusses how pros and cons lists help her evaluate and tackle risks, the time she empowered herself by improving her public speaking skills, and the impact that mentors and champions have had on her career. She offers tips on relationship building, the importance of attending conferences, and where to find resources to continue your personal growth. Finally, Julienne shares the 5 non-negotiable self-care strategies she honors every day.

Dr. Lalia Rach, Corporate executive, educator, speaker, executive coach, and author

Lalia shares highlights of her Amazon Best Seller "Managing The Book on You" including the need to communicate who we have become, advocating for self, correcting first impressions, embracing our uniqueness, jumping to conclusions, the contagion of mediocrity, fear of failing, finding inspiration, and shifting from the public us to the private us. Lalia also comments on Carol Burnett's quote - "Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me."

Rupesh Patel, Award-winning hotel owner, investor & industry advocate

Rupesh shares his journey and his secret to his tremendous success on social media. We discuss how his parents as immigrants have shaped him and the evolution in thinking from generation to generation. Rupesh also offers advice on dealing with setbacks and challenges, building networks and finding inspiration and passion.

Michelle Russen, PhD. Assistant Professor of Hospitality Management at Cal State, San Bernardino

Based on Michelle's recent research on DEI in the hospitality industry, these distinguished professors from hospitality programs discuss the importance of first creating an inclusive culture, so diverse hires can add value and thrive in their new companies. They also discuss the need for individuals to establish a supportive network and become allies for others, and they encourage managers and leaders to remind themselves of the value of inclusion, because it is harder to run a diverse team - and to talk to their people.

Miranda Kitterlin-Lynch, PhD, Associate Professor

Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Florida International University

Based on Michelle Russen’s recent research on DEI in the hospitality industry, these distinguished professors from hospitality programs discuss the importance of first creating an inclusive culture, so diverse hires can add value and thrive in their new companies. They also discuss the need for individuals to establish a supportive network and become allies for others, and they encourage managers and leaders to remind themselves of the value of inclusion, because it is harder to run a diverse team - and to talk to their people.

Stephanie Linnartz, President, Marriott International

The first woman appointed President of a major hotel brand, Stephanie shares her spectacular career journey at Marriott International, and how surrounding herself with diverse teams has been one of the keys to her success. She describes what she looks for in potential leaders, and how humor can be useful in defusing difficult situations. She encourages women and underrepresented groups to advocate for themselves, to be authentic, and not to be so tough on themselves when things don’t go well.

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Rob Palleschi, CEO, G6 Hospitality

Rob shares his career journey and offers learnings on how he overcame setbacks and challenges. We discuss the current inequity and lack of inclusion and diversity in our industry and how individuals can empower themselves to achieve their aspirations. Rob also offers advice on networking, finding mentors and advocates, and how he developed talent.

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Keith Barr, CEO, Intercontinental Hotel Group

Keith shares IHG's 10 year "Journey to Tomorrow" plan and strategies in implementing ESG and DEI initiatives globally. Keith offers advice on finding mentors/advocates, and how to overcome challenges in one's career progression. We also discussed Keith's transition from Bristol Hotels and how he distinguished himself, the factors contributing to his success and how he approaches challenges, setbacks and disappointments.

Fran Kiradjian, Founder and CEO, Independent Boutique Lifestyle Leaders Association

Fran shares her journey in hospitality including the launch of TIEWN and BLLA, both now very impactful industry organizations. She talks about the critical importance of public speaking skills, having a positive mindset to accomplish anything you set your mind to, and relying on the right people around you. Fran also discusses overcoming obstacles and taking risks and why you should always bring forward the experiences you've had.

Cindy Estis Green, CEO and Co-founder, Kalibri Labs, LLC

Cindy shares how she became an entrepreneur, founding three hospitality companies focused on data analytics and co-authoring over 10 industry books on topics related to the digital space and data analytics. She discusses how advocates propelled her career forward, how she chooses the people who are part of her support system, and her approach to advocating for herself. Cindy also advises people to determine what their strengths are and play to them, and the importance of a development plan.

Mitch Patel, Founder & CEO, Vision Hospitality

Mitch shares his personal journey to leadership and the many lessons learned. He discusses the impact his parents, both immigrants, have had on his life and how he has evolved into the parent and spouse he is today. He discusses the critical importance of having a personal brand, which enabled him to build deep relationships, and how those two combined helped him lead through the pandemic. Mitch also shares how Vision Hospitality Group has developed and lives its world class reputation for the best corporate culture.

Amy Jakubowski, IIDA, ISHC, LEED AP

Principal and Managing Director, PYR ( Pierre-Yves Rochon)

As the first woman to lead PYR’s hospitality design practice in Chicago, Amy shares her journey, and how leaning into discomfort and saying yes to opportunities has propelled her career. She shares the importance of networks and explains how different mentors can come in and out of your life. Amy also provides insights on managing diverse teams and creating an inclusive culture, and why vulnerability can be an asset.

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Krissy Gathright, Apple Hospitality REIT Board Member, COO (Retired);

Senior Advisor Derive Ventures

Krissy shares her journey into hospitality, culminating in the c-suite as well as public company board seats. She talks about how to start and then grow the critical skill of public speaking and how she tackles taking risks. Krissy also discusses how she balances her career and her family and other aspects of her life, the role mentors and champions have played in her life and why she takes such pride in serving in those capacities for others, and why you should always do what you love.

Pat Pacious, President & CEO, Choice Hotels International

Pat shares his background and the contributing factors to his success at Choice Hotels International. He talks about his approach to challenges and advice to his younger self. Pat also touches on the inequity he sees with the lack of women and minorities in executive leadership positions and his advice to them to achieve their career aspirations.

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Ashli Johnson, Executive Director, Marriott-Sorenson Center for Hospitality Leadership, Howard University

Ashli discusses having a plan for your career and to advocate for yourself. As the inaugural Executive Director at Howard University, she offers explanation for why black enrollment in hospitality programs has been low, and her future plans. She encourages women and minorities not to delay, but to “just get to it” as there is “Power in Now.” Her final advice is a challenge to young people: whatever it is you want to pursue . . . 10X it!

Chip Rogers, President & CEO, American Hotel & Lodging Association

Chip shares his path from entrepreneur to senator to hospitality industry executive. He shares his strategies for managing his love of and commitments to his career and his family, how he identifies talent and builds great teams, and how he has formed deep relationships across the industry. Chip also discusses, among other great advice, which skills he relied on in leading through the pandemic, how he tackles challenges generally, and what lessons he learned from his parents which helped shape who he is as a leader today.

Gilda Perez-Alvarado, Global CEO, JLL Hotels and Hospitality

Gilda shares contributing factors to her success. She discusses the importance of building a network, and finding mentors and advocates. She also talks abut the required skills and qualities of great leaders. Managing a hectic job and the needs of a young child can be daunting. Gilda offers her advice for working moms. We also have a frank conversation about the lack of women and minorities in executive leadership roles and what companies can do to improve the situation.

Nicolas Graff, Associate Dean, Tisch Center for Hospitality, NYU

Nic offers a solution for the industry's labor crisis. He discusses his approach to challenges and difficulties. In addition, he shares how he adapts as a foreigner to fit in and lessons from working in complex and political situations in his career. He ends with some advice for aspiring individuals.

Juliette Boone, Co-Founder Managing Director, AETHOS Consulting Group

Juliette is the managing director and co-founder of an executive recruiting firm. In this episode, Juliette shares her advice for those looking to advance their careers. She also gives pointers for drafting a resume, the importance of LinkedIn, and how other social media channels may play a role in hiring decisions. Juliette also talks about interview preparation strategies and her advice to candidates and hiring managers in the hospitality industry.

Amanda Hite, President, STR

In 5 years, Amanda rose to President of STR, the leading provider of data to the global hospitality industry; and she's been leading STR for the last decade. In this interview, she shares her journey to leadership, how her leadership style helped her guide STR during the early days of the pandemic, the advice she learned from her mentors, and why she seeks out people who will tell her the hard truths that she needs to hear.

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Mark Hoplamazian, President & CEO Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Mark discusses Hyatt's purpose statement - "To care for people so they can be their best," and how it guides Hyatt's ESG and DEI initiatives. Mark gives details of Hyatt's focus on hiring, retaining and promoting diverse talent, its RiseHy program to provide job opportunities in under-priveleged communities and purchasing from/partnering with diverse suppliers. Mark also offers advice for aspiring women and minorities.

Radhika Papandreou, Managing Partner, Korn Ferry

Radhika shares recent trends and provides helpful tips to prepare for interviews. Radhika also offers advice to women and minorities with high career aspirations on building a network, finding champions/mentors, improving and broadening skill set, taking calculated risks and being agile and empathetic.

Rosanna Maietta, Former EVP Communications & PR, American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) Former President & CEO of the AHLA Foundation

Rosanna shares her path from reporter to hospitality industry executive. She shares the AHLA Foundation's DEI vision - “to build an industry as diverse as the guests we serve.” Rosanna also shares lessons learned along the way, including the importance of public speaking skills, advocating for yourself, and finding champions to advocate for you, and the need to focus on your personal and professional growth.

Sloan Dean, President & CEO, Remington Hotels

Sloan became CEO at the age of 38. In this interview, he talks about his career journey, and factors contributing to his success to include risk taking, finding mentors and advocates and establishing networks. He offered advice to his younger self, and discusses leading with empathy and curiosity. He expresses how unconscious bias and other factors result in a lack of DEI. He ends with some advice to aspiring women and minorities.

Heather McCrory, CEO Accor Hotels, North and Central America

Heather shares her journey from her humble beginning to her current role the past thirty some years, and the lessons learned along the way. Heather also reveals findings of her research project to understand why women are opting out of leadership roles and how they can achieve their career aspirations.

Geoff Ballotti, President & CEO Wyndham Hotels & Resort

Geoff shares his journey from dishwasher to CEO of one the largest hotel companies in the world. He reflects on the key inflection points, lessons learned and how he overcame disappointments and setbacks. Geoff also shares his experience We discuss Wyndham's unwavering commitment to ESG and DEI and Geoff's advice on some of the barriers to women leadership. Finally, Geoff shares his thoughts on mentors and advocates, and the importance of taking risks.

Melissa Maher, Senior Leader in Travel + Tech, Inclusion & Diversity Change Agent

Melissa shares her personal journey to leadership and lessons she’s learned along the way. Melissa discusses the importance of asking for what you want, seeking out new challenges to advance your career, and staying positive and asking for help to overcome challenges. She also shares her tips for networking, maintaining a trustworthy support system, and developing a personal brand.

Mary Beth Cutshall, Founder & Managing Partner, Amara Capital

Mary Beth shares her path from hotel real estate and operations to founding her own firm, Amara Capital, a real estate DE&I investment platform. Mary Beth also discusses the lessons she’s learned along the way, including the importance of taking risks, why women should set dreams and execute upon them, and why she’d tell her younger self to listen to and trust her own voice. And don’t miss hearing which is the one book Mary Beth suggests all women read today.

Renie Cavallari, Award-winning Author, Global Speaker, Executive Coach, Entrepreneur

In Part I, Renie gives the framework of her Amazon Best Seller "Head Trash" and how we can dump those ugly voices that inhibit us from realizing our potential. Learn to develop the proper mindset and to be introspective of the "Big Lies".

In Part II, Renie gives details on how to shift the mindset when we encounter negativity and to proactively develop a positive frame of mind. She offers advice on working with people with "Big Lies".

Jagruti Panwala, President & CEO Wealth Protection Strategies; 2019-2020 AAHOA Chair

Jagruti shares her journey from her childhood in India to the first Chairwoman in AAHOA’s then 30-year history. Jagruti also shares how she manages two careers and her family life, her reliance on her personal and professional support systems, and her passion for the hospitality industry. She also discusses how she overcomes negativity, builds her relationships and network through connecting with people, and how her desire for furthering her education and growth helps her achieve her goals.

Sylvia Douglin, Founder and Principal, Refined Training & Consulting

Sylvia explains what personal branding entails and why it’s important. She also offers thoughts on how to ask for advice, how to speak up and share your ideas in a way that gets heard, and why learning how to write for business can further your career. Sylvia explains the difference between a mentor and an advocate, how to select a mentor or advocate. As a trainer for over 20 years, she explains the significant differences in what diversity encompasses today.

Clara Carter, President and Founder MCCSN

Clara shares how she took a risk by leaving her corporate job to start her own business, eventually bringing $5 million of new event business to San Diego within 3 years, the challenges she had to overcome and the advice her mentors have offered her along the way. She also discusses how she built her network and launched the Women in Tourism & Hospitality Conference to celebrate the achievements of women.

Peggy Berg, Founder, Castell, an AHLA Foundation Project

Peggy shares how she overcame adversity to become the first women elected to PKF Consulting’s partnership as well as the surprising (for some!) P.I.E. elements for success and advice for introverts. She also shares the story of how Castell Project, the nonprofit she founded to advance women in hospitality leadership, got started - and what’s next to continue helping women advance in hospitality leadership.

Tracy Prigmore, Founder TLTsolution, 2021 LODGING Person of The Year

Tracy shares how she became one of the hotel industry’s first African American female owners, and how she built a network that includes the industry’s top CEOs, just 6 years after moving from healthcare into hospitality. She shares the inspiration behind the She Has a Deal pitch competition, a non-profit that encourages and teaches women how to become hotel owners. She also discusses some of the challenges that women and minorities face in accessing capital to become hotel owners.

Rachel Humphrey interviews David Kong

David tells his story as an immigrant, how he progressed up the ladder to become the CEO of one of the largest hotel companies in the world, and how he intends to use his time during retirement to help women and minority groups achieve their career aspirations. He reveals how he took risks, built networks and found champions to achieve his success. Finally, he offers advice he would give to his younger self and to the audience.

Bios and Interviews with DEI Advisors

We interview established industry leaders, life coaches and executive recruiters and bring you stories of their triumphs and failures. Learn how they overcome their challenges and setbacks and excelled to their present stature. Use the links below to access their valuable insights and perspectives.

Talene Staab
SVP & Brand Leader
HOME 2 Suites by Hilton

Talene Staab has spent 25 years with Hilton. She currently serves as the chief strategist for Home2 Suites by Hilton, one of the fastest growing brands in the industry. Previously, Talene served as Global Head of Tru by Hilton, was the Vice President for Owner Experience & Engagement, helped to launch the Canopy by Hilton brand, and had extensive experience on the Embassy Suites brand team. She credits her passion for hospitality to her parents’ restaurant in Boston, where everyone became a “regular” and home cooking was the specialty. Talene was recent;ly named one of the “Most Influential Women in Hospitality by Hotel Management Magazine and currently sits on the board of directors for Castell, an AHLA Foundation Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to accelerating the development of high-potential women in hospitality.

Interview Coming Soon

Justin Knight
Chief Executive Officer
Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc.

Justin Knight is Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors of Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc., a publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns one of the largest portfolios of upscale, rooms-focused hotels in the United States. Justin has led the various Apple REIT Companies for two decades. Within the industry, he currently serves on the Marriott Owners Advisory Council, as President of the Residence Inn Association Board, and as Chair of the Board of Directors of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and a member of its Executive Committee. He is also very active in supporting the community, serving as a member of the National Advisory Council for the Marriott School at Brigham Young University (BYU), the Board of Trustees for The Valentine, and the Board of Trustees for Venture Richmond.

Kevin Carey
EVP & Chief Operating Officer
American Hotel & Lodging
Association

Kevin Carey has served as AHLA’s Chief Operating Officer since 2017. In this role, he is responsible for all revenue generating operations including, membership engagement, partnership & business development, and conferences & events. Kevin is also responsible for strategic planning and oversight of financial operations for AHLA and the AHLA Foundation. Kevin works closely with AHLA’s CEO to guide the association. Prior to joining AHLA, Kevin held senior executive leadership roles at American Express Company and American Express Global Business Travel. Kevin has a breadth of experience across the travel and hospitality industries through his service as a board and executive committee member in numerous travel and tourism industry associations, including the US. Travel Association and the Travel Business Roundtable. He also presently serves as an advisory board member at both Johns Hopkins University and Penn State University.

Andrea Belfanti
CEO
International Society of
Hospitality Consultants (ISHC)

Andrea Belfanti is the CEO for the International Society of Hospitality Consultants. Andrea has been with ISHC since 2009 and has over 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry. She is a regular speaker and presenter at industry events and currently serves on the planning committees for numerous hospitality industry investment conferences. Andrea co-founded the ISHC & Questex Diversity and Inclusion Council and is the Podium Committee Chair and serves on the Marketing Committee for Castell, an AHLA Foundation Project. Andrea sits on the Advisory Board for the University of South Carolina’s School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Management, where she earned her bachelor’s degree.

Seema Jain
Founder & CEO
Seva Global

Seema Jain has years of experience with helping companies become more culturally competent when engaging with people from different backgrounds. Seema is the Founder and CEO of Seva Global, Growing Business Through Cultural Competency. She is a frequent speaker at hospitality industry conferences. In her past role as Senior Director, Multicultural Affairs at Marriott International, Seema had responsibility for developing tools and resources for Marriott associates and hotel properties to enhance cultural competencies to better serve the company’s broad diversity of guests and customers. Prior to joining Marriott, she spent several years in healthcare where she focused on acquisition analysis of physical therapy centers and had her own independent consulting business. Seema is the co-founder of two non-profit organizations – Supporting Excellence in Education Foundation (SEED), which awards scholarships to high school students and the Young Jains of America (YJA), a national youth organization created to share Jain heritage and culture.

Anu Saxena
President and Global Head
Hilton Supply Management

Anu Saxena leads the world’s largest hospitality supply chain organization, overseeing services for more than 11,000 properties and over 120 brands across 125 countries, influencing $11 billion in global spend with over 3,000 suppliers. She is the Leadership Advocate for Hilton’s Asian & Pacific Islander Resource Group, which promotes professional development, inclusion, and diversity. Additionally, Anu leads an award-winning Supplier Diversity Program that has been recognized by Women’s Business Enterprise National Council’s 2021 Top Corporations Resiliency Edition, by National Business Inclusion Consortium’s 2021 Best-of-the-Best Corporations for Inclusion, and was ranked Top 15 by DiversityInc’s 2022 Supplier Diversity Specialty List. Anu serves on the board of the AHLA Foundation to advance efforts in developing the next generation of hospitality leaders. She also serves on the board of Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing artistic and educational programs to diverse audiences.

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Shruti (Gandhi) Buckley
Global Head
Hampton by Hilton

As Global Head of Hampton by Hilton, Shruti (Gandhi) Buckley is responsible for the overall brand strategy which includes driving brand growth and development, diversifying and increasing revenue, and sustaining customer loyalty. Shruti is a seasoned brand management and marketing leader with over 20 years of experience in the areas of global business management, brand strategy and analysis, and consumer marketing and public relations across a variety of industries, most recently, hospitality. Prior to joining Hilton she was the global brand leader for Fairfield and Protea Hotels brands with Marriott International and also held marketing and brand management positions with leading organizations including Nestle, Unilever, Estee Lauder, Chanel Inc., and National Geographic. Shruti has been named one of the “Most Influential Women in Hospitality” by Hotel Management Magazine.

Allison Reid
Chief Global Growth Officer
Aimbridge Hospitality

Allison Reid is Chief Global Growth Officer of Aimbridge Hospitality and is responsible for the company’s global growth pursuits and empowering Aimbridge’s business development teams to fuel the company’s global development pipeline. Allison joined Aimbridge with 35 years of hospitality operations, finance, real estate, brand management, and development experience, including at Kimpton and Starwood. Allison served in several executive leadership positions at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide including CFO at W Hotels, Vice President of Investment Relations, and SVP-Real Estate Investment Management. Earlier in her career, she held property-level and regional Finance/Controller positions with ITT Sheraton and Interstate Hotels.

Monika Nerger
Global CIO
Mandarin Oriental

Monika Nerger is the Global Chief Information Officer for Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, overseeing all aspects of the group’s global technology.

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group is the award-winning owner and operator of some of the most luxurious hotels, resorts and residences located in prime destinations around the world. It operates 33 hotels and seven residences in 23 countries and territories.

Prior to joining Mandarin Oriental, Monika worked internationally with Pan Pacific Hotels, KPMG Consulting, and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines.

She holds an MBA and an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from the University of Miami. Monika is currently a Board member and past President of HTNG (Hospitality Technology Next Generation) and sits on the Advisory Board of CHTA (China Hospitality Technology Alliance) and well as the Jardines Digital Leadership. In 2017, Monika was inducted into the International Hospitality Technology Hall of Fame.

Lynette Montoya
President & CEO
Latino Hotel Association

Since 2015, Lynette Montoya has served as the CEO of the Latino Hotel Association, which focuses on providing Latino entrepreneurs hospitality industry resources, education and training, and networking opportunities to build wealth through hotel ownership and investment. Lynette has been in the hotel industry for more than 25 years, working as a hotel broker for properties throughout the United States. She is the founder of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Santa Fe, New Mexico and served as its founding executive director. She is a board member of Architecture 2030, a non-profit think tank tackling climate change, serves on the Advisory Council of the California State University Hospitality and Tourism Management Education Alliance, and volunteers extensively in her community. Lynette is a member of the Board of Directors of Tourism Diversity Matters and has been a speaker at hospitality colleges and universities as well as for Castell@College.

Ted Zhang
Founder and CEO
DerbySoft

Mr. Ted Zhang is a graduate of University of Science and Technology, Beijing, and University of South Dakota, USA, with Material Science degree and Computer Science master degree. After graduation, Ted worked for Oak Technology as Information Systems Manager in USA. In 2002, Ted and his partner Mr. Feng Ou founded DerbySoft. They believe that the electronic distribution world is flat—that in the future, each travel-related company will have its own system(s) enabling it to work with other companies in the travel space. Those individual systems will exist equally and independently and will connect through the internet, eventually forming a next-generation travel distribution network, or Global Data Network (GDN). In fact, DerbySoft’s mission is to “Make the travel business easier”.

In Q4, 2021, DerbySoft has 240,000 hotels’ data, 400+ integrated partners, 700+ global connection, and 12 Million room nights booking per month.

LIU XinXin
President
H World Group Ltd.

Liu Xinxin has served as the President of H World Group Limited since Sep. 2021. She is responsible for information technology, sales and loyalty, e-commerce, online direct sales channels, corporate operations, and organizational transformation of the Group. Previously, she served as Co-President, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Information Officer.

She was the founder and CEO of H World Cloud Information Technology Co. Ltd., which is an IT company incubated by H World Group in November 2013. Prior to joining H World Group Limited, she worked as the IT head of Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell from July 1999 to September 2012.

Under the leadership of Liu, H World Group Limited has become a digital-driven hotel group. The H World Cloud is an independent company spun off from H World Group that provides IT solutions on a SaaS platform to create operations efficiency and sales & marketing effectiveness for other hotel chains as well as other service industries such as long-stay Apartment, catering, spa, gyms etc..

LIU received her Master of Business Administration from Fudan University in January 2008, and her bachelor’s degree in economic information management from Beijing Technology and Business University in June 1999. She also holds an IMBA Master’s degree from MIT-Solan.

Glenn Haussman
Podcast Host

Glenn Haussman hosts No Vacancy News Today, a news and analysis program focused on hospitality headlines, and Friday Night Audit, a comedy focused show capturing the energy of the post conference bar scene and more. The podcast attracts the biggest names in hospitality and was chosen by USA Today as a “best podcast to listen to while traveling.” Glenn has been recognized as one of the top 100 Most Power People in Global Hospitality and the #1 Global Social Media Influencer in Hospitality, and his podcast was named the #1 podcast in hospitality. Additionally, he received the Leadership Excellence Award from SKAL USA for his tireless work bringing the hotel industry together during the Covid crisis and his podcast received the Davey Award. Glenn also publishes novacancynews.com, an industry news site, and serves as a keynote speaker and moderator throughout the industry and as a speaker/media trainer.

Ama Romaine
Managing Director,
Global General Counsel,
Real Estate Asset Management
Blackstone

Ama Romaine is Managing Director, Global General Counsel, Real Estate Asset Management at Blackstone. Before joining Blackstone, Ama served as the General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer at G6 Hospitality, the parent company for the Motel 6 and Studio 6 brands and also was previously the General Counsel & Head of Risk Management at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab. She has held a number of positions with increasing responsibility in the hospitality industry, including as the Vice President & Senior Counsel for Brands at Hilton Worldwide. Ama is the chair of the AHLA ForWard Advisory Committee and also serves as the Chair of the Initiative: Advancing the Blue & Black Partnership, a non-profit organization that she co-founded to foster healthy communities for all. She also serves on the Board of the International Franchise Association and previously served two terms as an advisory board member of the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Leadership Academy.

Suzanne Mellen
Senior Managing Director
HVS

Suzanne is the Senior Managing Director of HVS. Having appraised thousands of hotels, gaming assets, and related real estate throughout the world over the past 41 years, she specializes in complex hotel and casino feasibility issues and is nationally recognized for her industry expertise. Suzanne opened the second office of HVS in 1985 in San Francisco and led HVS’ expansion to Las Vegas (2009) and Los Angeles (2013). She developed innovative appraisal methodologies such as a mortgage-equity income capitalization formula for variable income properties, and a refinancing model for hotel investments. She has authored numerous articles on hotel valuation and has spoken at numerous industry events, including annual appearances at JMBM’s Meet the Money and ALIS. Suzanne holds the following designations: MAI (Appraisal Institute), CRE (Counselor of Real Estate), FRICS (Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors), and ISHC (International Society of Hospitality Consultants).

Lisa Checchio
EVP & Chief Marketing Officer
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Lisa Borromeo Checchio is EVP and Chief Marketing Officer at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, the world’s largest hotel franchisor, and champions Wyndham’s portfolio of iconic brands and its award-winning loyalty program, Wyndham Rewards. Lisa has been recognized as Global Business Travel Association’s “Top 50 Women in Travel,” Ad Age’s “40 Under 40,” Hotel Management’s Most Influential Women in Hospitality, 15 Women Making their Mark in Hospitality by Lodging Magazine, and HSMAI’s Top 25 Extraordinary Minds. She serves on the Board of Trustees for the AHLA Foundation and is a Board Member of AHLA and HSMAI. As the daughter of an immigrant, Lisa strives to inspire and advance diversity, equity, and inclusion through her career and volunteerism.