Cora Stuart, Paul Bridger, Janet Fitzner, Stephan Vanden Auweele, Simeon Olle, Henning Fries and Peter Blackburn
In the latest Hotelier roundtable, hotel GMs gathered at The Address Downtown Burj Dubai to discuss their mentors, leadership approaches and the role of the 21st century GM in steering the staff to success.
GETTING TO KNOW YOU: HOTELIER’S TEAM OF EXPERTS
Cora Stuart
General manager
Media One Hotel, Dubai
Having started her career in food and beverage as a supervisor at the Westin in Singapore, Cora Stuart moved to Shangri-La briefly and then to Ritz-Carlton where she worked for 13 years in sales and marketing. Prior to moving to Dubai to take up the role of hotel manager at The Address Downtown Dubai, Stuart was working at the Bulgari Hotel in Bali. After the successful Address launch, she moved to Media One Hotel to open it as general manager last year.
Paul Bridger
General Manager
Premier Inn Dubai International Airport
Starting in the airport, retail and catering sectors, Paul Bridger began his career in food and beverage. He has run restaurants, bars, fast food outlets and duty free shops in airports up and down the UK. Bridger then moved to Whitbread five years ago and ran a large Beefeater restaurant and Premier Inn hotel. He moved to Dubai in September 2009 to open Premier Inn Dubai International Airport.
Janet Fitzner
General manager
Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Deira Creek
Another new face in Dubai is Janet Fitzner, who has been in her role at Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Deira Creek for six months. Fitzner has spent the last six years in Poland as area general manager for Radisson and previously worked for the company at various locations in her home country of Germany. Fitzner started her career with InterContinental in Germany.
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Stephan Vanden Auweele
Complex general manager
Aloft Abu Dhabi / Element Abu Dhabi
Belgian-born Stephan Vanden Auweele left his home country after 22 years to work in the hotel industry in Luxembourg and then in Copenhagen, where he worked for Radisson. He then moved to Far East, working in food and beverage for periods in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Seoul and Vietnam for companies including Sofitel, Hilton and Regal Hotels. In 2001, Vanden Auweele joined Starwood in Portugal for The Luxury Collection before opening two Sheratons in the Canary Islands. He moved to the Middle East to start up the Aloft brand in Abu Dhabi. Located at ADNEC, Vanden Auweele will also be responsible for the opening of Element Abu Dhabi next year.
Simeon Olle
General manager
The Address Downtown Dubai
Simeon Olle has been GM of The Address Downtown Dubai for nine months. Previously, he worked with Hyatt International for 23 years, located most recently in Beijing, China, Seoul, Korea, Bangkok, Thailand, and South America. Olle began his career with Hyatt in Australia.
Henning Fries
General manager
Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, Abu Dhabi
New to the Abu Dhabi hotel scene is Henning Fries, previously opening general manager of The Monarch in Dubai where he worked for three and a half years. He joined Fairmont Bab Al Bahr at the start of June. Previously, Fries worked for nine years with InterContinental in London, Berlin and Munich, and prior to that spent five years in Hong Kong and Jakarta with Mandarin Oriental. Fries also worked with Fairmont in Canada for five years, and started his career in food and beverage with Mövenpick in Germany.
Peter Blackburn
General manager
Cristal Hotel, Abu Dhabi
With a background as a mechanical engineer, Peter Blackburn joined the hotel industry in the mid-1980s with InterContinental in London and Egypt. He moved to the Peninsula Group based in Beijing in the 1990s and returned to the Middle East with Rotana Hotels in 1998. Over a period of nine years, Blackburn opened 23 Rotanas. In 2007, he founded the Cristal Hotel brand and opened the first Cristal in Abu Dhabi in July 2009.
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