HQ Radisson SAS Hotels & Resorts has beefed up its regional Middle East & Africa headquarters in Dubai with two senior appointments.
Swiss-born Werner Kondig, 54, senior vice-president and member of the companyÕs executive committee, has now set up his office in Dubai. Kondig was formerly based in Kuwait. He is joined by 32-year-old Dutch national Michiel Schroeder, regional director operations, Middle East. Schroeder was earlier in Belgium with the Radisson SAS Business Development team at the corporate office. The two are charged with streamlining and directing the chainÕs regional expansion, including the launch of a regional reservations centre. ÒWe are planning to launch a Dubai-based reservation centre dedicated to Middle East travellers who seek the true hospitality that we offer at more than 100 hotelsÓ, said Kondig. The new centre would complement the Arabic-speaking service of our existing international reservation centre in Ireland, allowing us to provide even greater flexibility to our Middle East-based customers.Ó Meanwhile, Radisson SAS Hotels and Resorts has appointed Jordanian Hasan Haitham Barakat as district sales manager, Saudi Arabia. Barakat, 27, joins from Marriott, where he was regional sales manager in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. His Middle East hospitality industry experience includes a sales manager position with Abu DhabiÕs Inter-Continental hotel. For three years prior to that he held various positions at the Radisson SAS Hotel, Amman. Barakat is a graduate of Elite International AcademyÕs hospitality sales and management course and will soon obtain a BA in International Hospitality Management. * In Jordan, the group has made two key appointments. Michael Ezzat has been named director of sales and marketing and Wael Makahleh as assistant director of sales for the Radisson SAS hotels in Amman and Aqaba. Egyptian Ezzat, 37, has extensive hospitality industry experience at various positions with Radisson SAS and other hotel chains. Most recently, he was the groupÕs director of sales for the Levant region. Ezzat began his industry career in 1987 as a front office supervisor at the Holiday Inn Downtown in Houston. After spending six years in US hotels, he moved to Cairo in 1994 as director of sales for ESTA (Egyptian Scandinavian Travel & Aviation). Jordanian Makahleh, 30, has worked in sales and marketing positions in the UAE and Jordan. He joins Radisson SAS from Sheraton Amman Al Nabil Hotel & Towers, where he was deputy director of sales and marketing. His experience includes managerial positions with MovenPick and Forte Grande hotels.