Hyatt Hotels Corp. has announced plans to realign its corporate leadership team and operations to accelerate its strategy to put more focus on high-end traveler.
The key changes, expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2018, include the formation of a new commercial services portfolio at the executive committee level that will combine guest and customer engagement functions under a new chief commercial officer position. Further, the company is also consolidating managed and franchised hotel operations and owner relations into one portfolio, reporting to Chuck Floyd, global president of operations. The legal and corporate services portfolio is also being realigned under new leadership.
As a part of the realignment, two executives have decided to transition out of Hyatt later this year as the organization evolves. Global Chief Marketing Officer Maryam Banikarim and Global Head of Capital Strategy, Franchising and Select Service Steve Haggerty will leave Hyatt in the coming months. Their positions will be eliminated upon their departures. Banikarim will continue to lead the marketing organization through the end of April, and Haggerty will remain at Hyatt as a special advisor to the CEO through July focused on executing important transactions, among other things.
“To achieve our growth potential and capitalize on opportunities that come from rapidly-emerging consumer, industry and competitive developments, we must be leaner and more agile,” said Hyatt President and CEO Mark Hoplamazian. “This starts at the top with our leadership, and we are making changes to streamline the executive committee and to better enable us to maximize our core hotel business and continue our expansion into new lines of business.”
Hyatt said the changes will allow it to better focus, prioritize and coordinate its activities driving guest and customer engagement. The chief commercial officer will oversee a portfolio that includes global sales functions, global marketing functions, the global contact centers, and information technology, and it will report directly to Hoplamazian. Hyatt expects to complete the selection process for the chief commercial officer in the second quarter.
“The changes we’re making will better position us to grow with focus to serve our high-end customers and guests in the places and with the experiences that matter most to them,” Hoplamazian said.