Name: Luis Gallego Title: Chief executive officer Company, city: Iberia; Madrid, Spain Number of employees: 16,000 Recent project: In 2012 Iberia’s transformation began. At that point, the airline was losing $1 million per day. I joined in 2013 to help turn the company around; with more than 30 initiatives
Name: Janelle Anderson Title: Vice president, global marketing Company, city: American Airlines; Fort Worth, Texas Number of employees: 100 people on AA’s marketing team and 130,000 worldwide Recent project: Developing AA’s Flagship program as the only domestic airline with a truly first-class product First job: I was a swimmer in
Name: Thomas Kochs Title: Managing director Company, city: Corinthia Hotel London Number of employees: 500 Recent project: Working with Tom Kerridge to open Kerridge’s Bar & Grill and the new London and Garden suites First job: I worked in a restaurant in my hometown. Little-known fact about you: I enjoy cooking
Name: Rafael Lizarraga Title: Chief commercial officer Company, city: Grupo Posadas; Mexico City, Mexico Number of employees: 18,200 Recent project: We expanded outside of Mexico, opening two new Fiesta Americana hotels in Cuba. First job: I started in reservations with Grupo Posadas 24 years ago. Little-known fact about you: When possible,
Name: Jess Peterson Title: Director, itinerary and revenue planning Company, city: Windstar Cruises; Seattle, Washington Number of employees: 1,800 (140 at the Seattle headquarters) Recent project: Launch of Wind Surf’s Grand Caribbean voyage, a 56-night voyage to every corner of the Caribbean. Our flagship will visit many places for
Name: Peter Ingram Title: President and CEO Company, city: Hawaiian Airlines; Honolulu, Hawai’i Number of employees: 7,153 worldwide Recent project: Integrating the Airbus A321neos into our fleet; we will have 11 by the end of 2018 and 18 by 2020. Also, 10 Boeing 787-9s will join our fleet starting
Name: Charles E. “Chilly” Ewing, Sr. Title: Director of concessions Company, city: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport; Atlanta, Georgia Number of employees: 63,000 employees overall; 6,000 in concessions Recent project: Completing request for proposals for new concession vendors, and our Global Runway event First job: As a youngster, I worked at
Name: François Luiggi Title: General manager Company, city: The Pierre, a Taj Hotel; New York City Number of employees: 500-plus Recent project: Launch of our new signature restaurant, Perrine First job: Assistant manager of room service at the Essex House in New York when it was managed by Nikko Hotels Little-known
Name: Kristen Bowdoin Title: Managing director Company, city: Chase Bank Credit Cards; Wilmington, Delaware Number of employees: 12 Recent project: Relaunching the United MileagePlus Explorer Card from Chase June 1; now called the United Explorer Card, it offers two times the miles on dining and hotel stays, up to
Name: Morten B. Andersen Title: General manager Company, city: SIGNIEL Seoul Number of employees: 300 at SIGNIEL Seoul; 120,000 with Lotte Recent project: Opening of the L7 properties in various cities First job: Steward at a hotel, responsible for filling the minibars Little-known fact about you: I am a diverse music
Name: Mert Dorman Title: Senior vice president, corporate marketing & distribution channels Company, city: Turkish Airlines; İstanbul, Turkey Number of employees: 24,075 Recent project: Corporate Help Desk First job: Financial consultant, Aviva Life and Pensions Little-known fact about you: I graduated from Istanbul University with a bachelor’s degree in economics and
Name: Luc Bondar Title: President, MileagePlus Holdings; vice president, loyalty Company, city: United Airlines; Chicago, Ill. Number of employees: 90,000 Recent project: With Chase, we launched the new United Explorer Card, now the best $95 travel card in the United States, allowing MileagePlus members to accelerate their earning power
Name: Heather Geisler Title: Vice president, Global Brands, Full Service Company, city: Hyatt; Chicago, Ill. Number of employees: 110,000 colleagues Recent project: We recently launched (ANDAZ)RED Cabanas across Andaz hotels in West Hollywood, Mayakoba, Costa Rica, Scottsdale and Maui, with a portion of each cabana booking going directly to
Name: George Liu Title: Chief marketing officer Company, city: Hong Kong Airlines, Hong Kong Number of employees: 3,500 worldwide and 12 in the United States, with more to come as we expand Recent project: Hong Kong Airlines launched its first continental U.S. destination at LAX in December, followed by SFO in March.
Name: Ashley Gochnauer Title: General manager Company, city: Kimpton Everly Hotel Hollywood; Los Angeles, Calif. Number of employees: About 125 First job: My first hotel job was with W Hotels as a guest services agent. Little-known fact about you: I am a coffee enthusiast, and it is a true hobby.
Name: Marc Ferguson Title: General manager, Delta Sky Club Experience Company, city: Delta Air Lines; Atlanta, Ga. Number of employees: More than 80,000 Recent project: Launch of our third Asanda Spa Lounge, in our Delta Sky Club at ATL First job: Retail manager at Federated Department Stores (Rich’s, now Macy’s) Little-known
