Mark Alvarez has been promoted to a newly established role at HP Hotels, while Zeppelin Hospitality, Crestline Hotels & Resorts and Gaw Capital Partners have also made personnel moves.
HP Hotels names Mark Alvarez as first chief people & culture officer
HP Hotels has named Mark Alvarez, formerly a regional director of operations, to the newly established executive position of chief people & culture officer. He reports to HP Hotels CEO Kerry Ranson.
In his new role, Alvarez is responsible for facilitating a range of internal and external engagement activities and programs that positively impact HP Hotels’ reputation, locally and beyond; team member recruiting, retention, training and satisfaction; and leadership development, according to the company.
A nine-year veteran of the U.S. Army with more than 20 years of hospitality and hotel operations experience, Alvarez first joined HP Hotels as GM of Comfort Suites Northlake Charlotte in 2016. Steady growth within the HP Hotels organization led to serving from his hometown of Miami as a regional director of operations. Prior to joining HP Hotels, he was a regional director of operations for the Merco Group Inc.
“Mark has the exciting opportunity to be promoted within the organization during a time of inflection, reflection and growth,” said Ranson. “Building on the momentum of a new strategic plan, as well as our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging within HP Hotels, Mark will reimagine and reshape the role of the human resources function and its impact on our organization and our people, our partners and, ultimately, our guests.”
Alvarez said, “I understand and welcome the responsibilities that come with setting the scope and tone for this new and important leadership position at HP Hotels. Our complex and exciting industry is first and foremost a people business, always has been, always will be. Respect, fairness and humility go a long way.”
For more on HP Hotels, see our exclusive cover story in the June issue of Hotel Business.
Zeppelin Hospitality names Antoine Moinard director of hospitality
The newly launched hospitality arm of Zeppelin Development has named industry veteran Antoine Moinard as its new director of hospitality. In that role, he is overseeing the company’s two upcoming Colorado property launches—31-cabin A-Frame Club in Winter Park and 16-key The Western Hotel & Spa in Ouray—as well as setting the tone for the group’s future hotel ventures.
“Antoine not only brings a wealth of hospitality experience and versatility to the Zeppelin team, he relates well with our vision of building high-touch, design-forward projects in compelling locations made for the year-round adventure-seeker,” said Adam Larkey, director, sales and leasing, Zeppelin Development. “He also cares deeply about delivering the highest level of the customer experience and building a cohesive team to deliver on this vision. He is a natural fit and we are thrilled to have him.”
Moinard, who has been in a director role at Zeppelin-developed The Source Hotel in Denver since 2018, was born and raised on a former vineyard owned by his grandfather in Charrais, France. He came to Colorado in 2010, and worked at the St Julien Hotel & Spa in Boulder, where he refined his service and sommelier skills as assistant general manager of Jill’s. From there, he found his way to Denver and The Source Hotel as food and beverage director, a position that allowed him to grow exponentially and ultimately align himself for the advancement opportunity with Zeppelin Hospitality, according to the company.
“I’m thrilled to find myself in this position with Zeppelin Hospitality,” said Moinard. “My love for travel started at an early age, and I spent much of my youth experiencing the world while on the hunt for dazzling food and wine plus memorable experiences. Zeppelin Hospitality is committed to transforming the point at which luxury and outdoor adventure meet, and I’m incredibly excited about being able to help the group to redefine what it means to travel—and travel well—in this new paradigm of hospitality.”
Crestline promotes Danny Johnson to SVP/taxes
Crestline Hotels & Resorts LLC has promoted Danny Johnson to SVP/taxes. He became part of the Crestline family in 1998 when he joined Crestline Capital Corporation as a senior tax manager ultimately rising to VP/tax for Barceló Crestline, and then moving over to Crestline Hotels & Resorts as VP/taxes in 2008.
“Danny’s recent promotion to SVP/taxes reflects his incredible dedication and contribution to assuring Crestline’s ongoing success,” said James Carroll, Crestline’s President & CEO. “Danny successfully leads the management of all aspects of taxation for our company which has management contracts in 29 states that include income and franchise tax planning, compliance, accounting, audits, as well as property and sales tax.
Johnson began his career with Host Marriott Corporation in 1991. He is a certified public accountant, a certified management accountant and holds a certificate of financial planning from Florida State University. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs and the Institute of Management Accountants.
Nitin Gupta appointed as managing director/head of India at Gaw Capital Partners
Real estate private equity firm Gaw Capital Partners has named Nitin Gupta to the role of managing dector/head of India. He will be based in Mumbai. He will spearhead Gaw Capital Partners’ foray into India market, building a professional team on the ground to capture investment opportunities.
Prior to joining Gaw Capital Partners, Gupta worked as managing director/head of India – real estate with Macquarie Asset Management. During his term with Macquarie, he led market-leading transactions of more than $7 billion, and advised global investors on their investments into India. Prior to joining Macquarie Group in 2008, he worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers (Corporate Finance Division) for 10 years and Industrial Development Bank of India (Merchant Banking Division) for more than four years.
