Change at the top for Caterer wards venue
Ahead of Caterer & Hotelkeeper's eagerly awaited Cateys night on 1 July, the venue, Le Méridien Grosvenor House hotel in Park Lane, London, has made two changes to its senior management team.
Simon Kerr, previously regional director of sales and marketing for InterContinental Hotel Group London, has joined the hotel in the role of Le Méridien Hotel & Resorts' director of sales and marketing. In the new role he will deal with the sales, marketing and revenue strategy of the 488-bedroom hotel, taking responsibility for a team of 23.
Claire Keene, who has been working on this year's Catey event, has been promoted from executive, conference and banqueting manager to director, conference and banqueting at Le Méridien Grosvenor House.
People on the move
Cheryl Yue has joined Hong Kong's Le Méridien Cyperport hotel as director of sales and marketing. She previously held the same position at the Kowloon Shangri-La hotel, also in Hong Kong. Michael Tam, who originally joined the Le Méridien Cyperport as project manager last year, has now taken on the role of human resources manager at the Hong Kong-based property. The hotel is scheduled to open in December and will be marketed on the strength of its technology offering. It will feature a 42in television and wireless broadband access in every room.
Wayne Hatenboer has joined the Copthorne hotel Manchester as its head chef. Before this he was head chef at the Belmore hotel in Sale, Cheshire. Moat House Hotels has promoted Mike O'Mahoney to finance and commercial director, giving him direct responsibility for the group's 42 hotels. He was previously finance director within the group.
Isabelle Hooper-Jones has been appointed area accounts manager for the South-east at Corus hotels. She joins from Oatlands Park hotel in Weybridge, Surrey, where she was sales executive.
InterContinental Hotels Group has promoted Stephen Mulligan to the position of director of operations InterContinental Hotels London. He has also taken on the role of general manager of the InterContinental London hotel, Hyde Park Corner. Mulligan was previously area vice-president of operations, Northern Europe, for the group and will have responsibility for the InterContinental May Fair hotel and the InterContinental Churchill London in addition to the Hyde Park Corner property.
The Highfield hotel in Middlesbrough has a new general manager, Ray Gregory. He joins the hotel from the Green Howards, the Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment, where he held the rank of sergeant and was involved in the organisation of high-profile functions involving the Royal Family.
Triathlete Richard Davies has taken a breather from his training schedule to take on the role of leisure and activities manager at the Celtic Manor hotel and golf course in Newport, Gwent. He previously held the role of leisure development manager at the hotel and was involved in developing outdoor leisure activities and gym promotions. He will continue to manage and expand these services in his new posting.
England and UK combined services culinary arts team member David Waplington has joined the Greenbank hotel in Falmouth, Cornwall. He is fresh back from success in Chicago, where the team took a silver and bronze in the Culinary World Cup, but will now transfer his skills to the hotel's Harbourside restaurant as executive chef. He joins from Falmouth Beach hotel, where he held the same position.
London cheese wholesaler the Cheese Cellar company has appointed a new senior managerial team. Paul O'Shaughnessy has joined as associate director for purchasing. He was purchasing director at food wholesaler Brakes in Ashford, Kent. Darren Boyce has taken on the role of associate director of logistics, having been operations manager at logistics company Hayes. Geoff Hill has become associate director of finance. He was finance manager at Danfoss and Freightliner, a European freight company. All three join the company's executive board, which is headed by managing director Brian Baker.
Park Plaza Hotels Europe has recruited Hans Keller as vice-president, franchising, to head up the group's newly launched franchising operation. The scheme launched last month with the opening of the Park Plaza Trier hotel in Germany. Keller was previously president of hotel consultancy HSC.
Balmoral, the drinks system provider, has appointed Terry Bates as managing director. He joins from sister company Cabana, where he continues as managing director, and will now share his time between the Ketting, Northamptonshire-based companies.
- Please send your on the move stories to chris.druce@rbi.co.uk, giving the start date, details of the appointee's previous job and, if possible, a head-and-shoulders photograph.