IHRA #28: Congress Ushers in New Board of Directors and CEO to Lead IH&RA in 2005

IH&RA 41st Annual Congress: Highlights > Resounding Success - Superb Speakers, Outstanding Venue, Strong Attendance > New 2005 Board of Directors

Congress Ushers in New Board of Directors and CEO to Lead IH&RA in 2005

IH&RA is pleased to announce the names of its new 2005 Board of Directors which includes two Vice Presidents - one representing Restaurants & one representing Hotels. This new Board is joined by new CEO, Mr. David McMillan who recently arrived at the IH&RA HQ in Paris, to lead IH&RA in the New Year!

Congratulations to:

President re-elect:
John Bell, Director of International Affairs and former CEO
Caribbean Hotel Association

VP - Hotels:
Anthony Pollard, President
Hotel Association of Canada

VP - Restaurants:
André Daguin, President
UMIH - Union des Métiers et des Industries de l'Hôtellerie
(French Hotel & Restaurant Association)

Treasurer:
Joseph E. Spinnato, President
Hotel Association of New York City, Inc.

Secretary:
Abraham Rosental, Director General
Israel Hotel Association

Immediate Past President:
Eric E. Pfeffer, President
The Pfeffer Group LLC

National Hotel and Restaurant Association Representatives on the Board:
- Timur Bayindir, President, Touristic Hotels Investors Association -TUROB Turkey
- Florian Hew, Director, GastroSuisse Switzerland
- Oded Lifschitz, Vice President Australasia Hilton International, Australian Hotel Association Australia
- Christian Rey, President, Hotelleriesuisse Switzerland
- Sami Sawalha Jordan Hotel Association, Regency Palace Hotel Jordan

Chain Representatives to the Board
- Chairman of the Chains Council: Jean-Paul Herzog, Senior VP Nordic, Hilton & Scandic, Hilton International
- Stan Bruns, Senior Vice President International Lodging, Marriott International
- Nancy Johnson, Executive Vice President, Brand Leader Select Service Carlson Hotels Worldwide - Country Inns & Suites by Carlson Park Inn
- David Kong, President & CEO, Best Western International
- Yannick Rouvrais, COO and Member of the Management Board, Orbis S.A.

Chain Restaurant Representative: Richard Snead, President Carlson Restaurants Worldwide

National Restaurant Association Representative:
Bruce C. Cotton, Director Emeritus, NRA - National Restaurant Association of America - USA

Worldwide Partner Representative:
Kathryn Pretzel-Shiels, Director Hotel & Restaurant Industries, Establishment Services Group, American Express Europe Ltd

Independent Operators Representative:
Mats Östblom, Managing Director, Hotell Liseberg Heden, Sweden

Regional Vice President Asia-Pacific
Mark Lettenbichler, Chairman, Hong Kong Hotel Association - The Ritz Carlton Hong Kong

Regional Vice President Europe
Joan Gaspart Solves, President, Grupo Husa SPAIN

Regional Vice President Latin America
Jaime Alberto Cabal, CEO, COTELCO - Colombian Hotel Association COLOMBIA

Regional Vice President Middle East
Ghassan Aïdi, President, Cham Palaces & Hotels SYRIA

This announcement follows on the news that Mr. David McMillan has been named the new Chief Executive Officer of IH&RA as of 3 January 2005. In this post, Mr. McMillan also serves on the IH&RA Board and the IH&RA Executive Committee comprised of the President, Vice Presidents, Treasurer, Secretary and Immediate Vice President.

British-born McMillan has had many years of international hotel and resort management & development experience with Hilton Hotels Corp & Hilton International, Hyatt International, Commonwealth Hospitality, Holiday Inn Hotels, Four Seasons Hotels and several independent properties including the Hotel Meurice in Paris, the Waldorf Astoria in New York and most recently with Cirque du Soleil. He also served as President of Axis Hospitality, a Canadian-based hotel & resort consultant group and has held several positions with Canada’s largest hotel management company. On the association side, Mr. McMillan was elected to three terms as Chairman of the Board of the Hotel Association of Canada and is a former Director of The Canadian Restaurant & Foodservice Association.

"The concentrated leadership and raw talent of the 2005 IH&RA Board combined with the Mr. McMillan's proven track record of success means that IH&RA is set for dynamic growth in the coming year as we aim to enhance our member services and expand our membership base and strategic partnerships," said IH&RA President re-elect John Bell.

The 2005 Board of Directors is scheduled to meet in 2005 on 14 March in Berlin, Germany. This meeting will be followed on 15 March 2005 by the meeting of the IH&RA Chains Council also to be held in Berlin.

France
Tel: 33 (0) 1 44 88 92 20

Fax: 33 (0) 1 44 88 92 30
ih-ra.com