ATLANTA—IHG has named Jay Caiafa, COO, Americas, and Brian Hicks, SVP, commercial and revenue management, Americas.
“Jay and Brian are well-respected hospitality leaders, and we are fortunate to have them guiding these key functions in IHG’s largest region,” said Elie Maalouf, CEO, Americas, IHG. “Jay brings an exceptional blend of skills and experience and is an innovative thinker who combines strong leadership abilities with operational focus and a proven track record for delivery. Brian brings a deep wealth of commercial expertise and is a strategic, results-driven leader who has managed several high-performing teams at IHG across multiple functions, regions and brands. I am confident that they will deliver tremendous value for our hotels, owners and colleagues in their newly appointed roles.”
Caiafa has been with IHG since 2013 and has held multiple leadership roles with the company. In his previous role as SVP, hotel lifecycle and growth, he led multiple teams across all aspects of the hotel lifecycle, including architecture, design, construction, hotel openings, hotel ramp-up, renovations and quality assurance, and also oversaw teams responsible for the delivery of the Americas growth strategy.
With his promotion to COO, Americas, he will lead the Americas operations leadership team, with oversight of more than 4,000 IHG hotels across the U.S. and Canada, and will further strengthen and cultivate relationships with owners. In addition, he will continue his role as IHG’s representative on the Metro Atlanta Chamber Board of Directors, driving engagement with the broader business community in the home of the company’s Americas headquarters.
Prior to his time with IHG, Caiafa led teams at companies across multiple industries, including legal, commercial real estate finance, strategic consulting and biotechnology. Caiafa graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy and is a decorated Air Force pilot and officer. He is also a licensed attorney with a JD from Duke University School of Law, and he has an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.
Hicks has more than 30 years of international hospitality experience—the majority of which has been with IHG, including more than 10 years working in the Americas region. He was promoted from his previous role as VP, global revenue management strategy.
In his new role, Hicks leads the revenue management function and the commercial team in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Latin America and the Caribbean, and will be responsible for overseeing and integrating all revenue-generating strategies, initiatives, programs and plans to drive competitive commercial performance across the region. In addition, he will lead the Americas revenue strategy committee, working with global and regional revenue leaders.
Hicks’ broader leadership experience includes time as the COO of TMI Hospitality, a developer and management company of select-service and extended-stay hotels, where he managed nearly 200 hotels across 26 states in the U.S. Earlier in his career, he also gained hotel operations experience in multiple on-property roles at Ritz-Carlton.
