Dubai's HMH appoint senior execs to drive growth

Dubai-based Hospitality Management Holdings (HMH) announced on Monday the appointment of three new senior executives as the company looks to increase its hotels portfolio by 25 percent this year.

Abdullah Melhem has joined the firm as director of operations, while Cristina Polo was named as director of business development and Akber Banaas as manager - Revenue & Distribution.

Making the announcement, Laurent A Voivenel, CEO, HMH, said: “I am truly delighted to welcome our new team members. We have got five new properties opening this year that will boost our existing portfolio of hotels by 25 percent.

"It is therefore imperative to strengthen the management team who will play an instrumental in success of HMH while executing our strategic vision."

HMH now manages a portfolio of 20 properties managed under four brands to suit all budgets across the Middle East and North Africa.

He added: "Our goal remains to continually achieve operational excellence and deliver superior service and results to both our owners and customers”.

Since Voivenel took the helm at HMH in October last year, he has set a new tone for the company and said it is time for HMH to "consolidate and accelerate".

"HMH is a fantastic organisation to do business with and has tremendous potential for growth. We have diverse brands, presence in some of the most promising destinations in the MENA region, highly experienced and talented people and exceptional products and service - all of which differentiate us in a unique way in the market place," he said.