01. Rudi Jagersbacher, President, Middle East & Africa, Hilton Worldwide (Last year 1st)
Rudi Jagersbacher’s grass roots experience, strong relationships, business acumen and drive to succeed, with a team of more than 21,500 employees, including 69 GMs in 19 MEA countries, has snagged him the number one spot on Hotelier Middle East’s Power 50 for the third consecutive year.
After graduating from hotel school in Innsbruck, Austria, Jagersbacher joined Hilton in 1974 as a trainee at the London Hilton on Park Lane, and one of his proudest moments came 20 years later when he was appointed general manager of the same hotel.
“My four-decade long career has brought many challenges and highlights including managing hotels such as The Langham, The Savoy and Claridges,” states Jagersbacher, who has worked his way up the ladder across a number of different functions and countries.
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By the numbers
Number of years in role: 4
Number of years with company: 40
Number of Middle East operating hotels: 50
Number of Middle East pipeline hotels: 63 (1/3 in the mid-market segment)
Top inspiration
“The person who has inspired me in my career journey is my grandfather, Rudolf Ager, owing to his gentlemanly approach to life, which inspired my love of hospitality and encouraged me to follow my dream. In the Middle East, the opportunities in our industry are endless, which reminds me of a memorable quote from our founder, Conrad Hilton: ‘To accomplish big things… you must first dream big dreams’”
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