19. Noel Massoud, VP, Operations & Development, Middle East, Swiss-Belhotel International
Massoud has made significant headway in the region, despite having been in his role for just 20 months.
With 40 years of hospitality experience behind him, including 25 years with InterContinental Hotels Group, Massoud has driven more than 70% growth in development of new hotels and projects, and the company witnessed 150% growth in revenue last year.
A result of its positive performance in the region in 2014, this year Swiss-Belhotel International announced it would open another 10 hotels in 2015 across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Iraq.
Earlier this year the company launched its first Abu Dhabi property — the 189-key Swiss-Belhotel Corniche, and several more are to open in the coming months.
At the end of last year, Swiss-Behlhotel further strengthened its UAE portfolio with the takeover of the Concorde Hotel Fujairah and also moved its service centre to Ras Al Khaimah, underlining the group’s particular focus on the Emirates for expansion activities.
Commenting on the future of the company in the region, Massoud says: “My vision is to have 20 hotels in the region for Swiss-Belhotel by the end of 2016.”
By the numbers
Number of years in role: 3
Number of ears in the company: 17
Number of Middle East operating hotels: 5
Number of Middle East pipeline hotels: 9
Number of Qatar hotels: 1
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