Partner News

NATIONAL REPORT—Whether it’s celebrating an anniversary, receiving an award, earning a certification, debuting a new product or expanding the business, hotel companies and vendors achieve new milestones on a daily basis. Here’s a look at recent accomplishments:

HSMAI Awards Bjorn Hanson and Lee Pillsbury with Lifetime Achievement Honors

The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association (HSMAI) revealed the recipients of the 2019 HSMAI Lifetime Achievement Awards in marketing and public relations. Bjorn Hanson, Ph.D., will be honored with the Winthrop W. Grice Award for Public Relations. Leland “Lee” Pillsbury, managing director of Thayer Ventures, will be recognized as the recipient of the Albert E. Koehl Award for Hospitality Marketing. HSMAI will celebrate Bjorn and Lee at the Adrian Awards Dinner Reception and Gala on January 21, 2020, at the New York Marriott Marquis.

The HSMAI Lifetime Achievement Awards recognize individuals who have spent a major portion of their careers in the hospitality and travel profession and have contributed to the betterment of the industry in a significant and lasting way, over an extended period of time.

Bjorn Hanson was the EVP of the entity that owns The Pierre hotel in New York and was a director of Summit Hotel Properties. In addition, he founded the hospitality & leisure practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he served as global industry leader of hospitality & leisure. He was responsible for hospitality & leisure audit, tax, and advisory services, globally. Hanson then retired from PwC in 2008 and joined the full-time faculty of New York University (NYU). In 2010 he was appointed dean of the New York University Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism, and Sports Management. He was also appointed co-interim dean of one of New York University’s 18 schools and colleges. After 10 years he retired from New York University.

Leland “Lee” Pillsbury is a managing director of Thayer Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments in technology companies targeting the travel and hospitality industry. He was also a founder and chairman of Thayer Lodging Group and was CEO from its founding in 1991 until its sale to Brookfield Properties in 2014. In addition, he is also was the founder of TenX Healthcare, a corporation focused on transforming the patient journey through surgery. Pillsbury began his career at Marriott, where he rose to become EVP and head of the strategy for lodging.

Fourth Enterprises Names CEO and CFO

Fourth Enterprises LLC, parent company of HotSchedules and Fourth, has appointed Clinton Anderson as its new CEO.

Clinton has a proven track record of innovation and success within the hospitality industry, most recently as president of the Hospitality Solutions business at Sabre, a global public company with over $4 billion in sales. Clinton joined Sabre in 2014, and has served in multiple roles from corporate strategy to managing the traveler experience business, to his most recent role leading Sabre Hospitality Solutions providing reservation and operations software to 40,000 hotels in over 160 countries. Previously, Clinton spent nearly 20 years at Bain & Company where he developed growth, operations and M&A strategy for clients across the United States and Europe.

In addition, Fourth Enterprises has named John Whitmarsh as CFO. He brings over two decades of financial management expertise to the executive team, having played a pivotal role in growing multiple private equity-backed SaaS and technology companies.

Prior to joining the team, Whitmarsh served as the CFO of Vyze, which was recently acquired by MasterCard. Previously, Whitmarsh was the CFO for Zenoss Inc., a provider of unified IT monitoring and management solutions for physical, virtual and cloud-based IT infrastructures.

Assa Abloy Expands Soft Close Hardware Offerings

Assa Abloy has released its Soft Close for the Pemko Stainless Steel Sliding Track Hardware. This optional product performance enhancement, available as the Pemko SFT-W60 or SFT-W100, provides a smooth, controlled stop to sliding doors in heavy-use environments, according to the company. It also serves to minimize pinch points, reduce noise and extend the lifespan of doors and related hardware.

Sliding door systems often face heavy and aggressive use with repeated opening and closing by guests or staff, but Soft Close technology offers an opportunity to mitigate heavy usage.

Soft Close brings the door to a gentle, controlled and quiet stop at open and close, thereby reducing damage and extending the life of sliding doors and its supporting hardware. The Pemko SFT-W100 is available for new installations, and the SFT-W60 can be installed as new or a retrofit option for existing Pemko W60 hardware. The brushed stainless steel finish and sleek design also complement wood doors in a variety of settings.

Courtleigh Hospitality Group’s Nicola Madden-Greig Receives Award

Nicola Madden-Greig, group director of marketing and sales for The Courtleigh Hospitality Group, was honored with the 2019 Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) President’s Award. A past president of the JHTA and current fifth VP of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), Madden-Greig is the only two-time recipient of the prestigious award.

A veteran of 20-plus years in the tourism industry, Madden-Greig carries a broad portfolio of experience encompassing aviation, cruise lines, attractions, hotels, and resorts. Notably, she is one of only three women to have served as JHTA President in the organization’s 60-plus years in operation. Additional JHTA positions held by Madden-Greig include: chairman of the membership sub-committee, chairman of the fundraising and PR sub-committee, and area chairman of the JHTA Kingston Chapter. Currently, Madden-Greig sits on the boards of the Jamaica Tourist Board, the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association, and the Jamaican Chamber of Commerce. She is also a member of the Tourism Linkages Council.