ON THE MOVE
Planners
Wester hired at Impact Unlimited
Alan Wester has been hired as corporate vice president at Dayton, N.J.-based Impact Unlimited, an exhibits and meetings company. Based in Dallas, Wester previously worked for firms such as The Freeman Companies, producing programs for the likes of IBM and Oracle.
Krugman joins George P. Johnson Co.
Carol Krugman, CMP, CMM, has been hired as director of client services for event marketing company George P. Johnson Co., based in Auburn Hills, Mich. Krugman, who will have an office in Boston, has more than 25 years of experience, most recently heading up her own meetings and incentives company, organizing events and trips for companies such as Pfizer and Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America.
Suppliers
Giorgia AuRelian has been named director of convention services at the 1,511-room Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas.
Brooke Bankhead has been appointed event sales manager at the 508-room Sawgrass Marriott Resort & Spa in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Also, Rob Booth is the new sales manager.
Fallon Burns has joined the Natchitoches (La.) Area Convention & Visitors Bureau as groups/events consultant.
Don Cummings has been hired as national sales manager, Midwest associations and corporate groups, at the 1,200-room Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn.
Deanne Fair Schell is the new sales associate of meeting and convention sales, international, for Tourism Vancouver, the city’s convention and visitors bureau.
Travers Johnson has started as associate director of sales and marketing at the 800-room Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando.
Katrin Lucas has been named director of sales at the West Hollywood (Calif.) Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Deborah Nelson has been named director of private events at the 255-suite Platinum Hotel & Spa in Las Vegas, which opens this month. Terry Sanchez is group sales manager.
“It was really satisfying to do a little
to help the city rebuild.”
Kevin Rupert is vice president of
marketing and strategy at Parsippany, N.J.-based Wyndham Hotels
& Resorts, which earlier this year was spun off from parent
company Cendant. A native of Canton, Ohio, Rupert previously held
marketing positions with firms such as Kodak and Revlon.
What was the attraction in
working for Wyndham Hotels? I felt that it was a unique
opportunity to work for a company that was turning itself around,
to help revamp how the business was run. Cendant included such
brands as Days Inn, Ramada and Super 8, all now part of Wyndham
Worldwide, as well as Fairfield Timeshare, the largest timeshare
management company in the world, which also soon will adopt the
Wyndham name.
What other changes are
afoot? We hired architect Michael Graves, who helped
reposition the Target chain. He has designed clean, functional,
stylish prototypes of what will be standard Wyndham furniture and
amenities; these will be implemented in all Wyndham rooms in the
next two years. We also are strengthening our Wyndham By Request
program, where guests can personalize their stays.
How was your recent corporate
powwow in New Orleans? It was great. We gathered the
corporate brand team, management and directors of sales from all
our hotels. The main goal was to share the new vision of the brand
and the company’s expansion plans. We also had 100 participants
helping out with a Habitat for Humanity project in the city. It was
really satisfying to do a little to help the city rebuild.