PEOPLE update as of May 14, 2019

Azher Razvi is the new general manager at Radisson Calgary Airport. Razvi brings over two decades of hospitality experience to Calgary Radisson, having worked in Pakistan, Dubai, Ireland, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, England and Canada. Razvi delivered results in sales, service and leadership in organizations such as Sheraton, Forte, Jury’s, Lynch, Best Western, Al-Hamra, Radisson Park Plaza and Sandman Hotel Group. He came to his new position from Sandman Hotel in Edmonton, where he was GM for two and a half years. Prior to that he spent more than four years working for Sandman's parent company, Northland Properties, after coming to Canada from London, England where he worked in event management and F&B. Razvi has an MBA from Hult Business School in England and Hotel Management from Shannon College of Hotel Management (National University of Ireland) and many other certifications.

David Woodward has joined Tourism Calgary as executive director, Meetings and Conventions Calgary (MCC) as of May 1. Woodward joins Tourism Calgary team following a distinguished 32 year career at Fairmont. For the past 10 years, Woodward has been the director of sales and marketing at Fairmont Palliser, and previously served as director of group sales at Fairmont Banff Springs and director of group sales and director of incentive sales for the Fairmont Mountain Properties in Alberta.
He will be joining Tourism Calgary at a critical time, as the MCC team transitions to Tourism Calgary in the middle of this year.

Efrem Berman has been promoted to the position of vice-president, Global Loyalty, at Radisson Hotel Group. Berman previously served as head of Global Loyalty and Engagement at RHG. In this new role, Berman develops and oversees the global loyalty strategy while ensuring the current business is operating effectively. Berman joined Radisson Hotel Group in 2017. During this time, he has rebranded the loyalty program to Radisson Rewards and repositioned the program as a strategic enabler of the company. Originally from Montreal, Berman worked with Aimia, a global leader in loyalty management, in a number of global and regional capacities that exposed him to many aspects of the Aeroplan and Aimia businesses. Immediately preceding his role with Radisson Hotel Group, Berman was the head of Loyalty Consulting, Americas.

American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) has appointed Gerardo Tejado as general manager of American Express Meetings & Events, a division of GBT. In his new role, Tejado will report to GBT’s executive vice-president of Global Supplier Relations, Michael Qualantone, and be based in Jersey City, New Jersey. Tejado replaces Issa Jouaneh, who after leading the globalization and expansion of the American Express Meetings & Events business over the last decade, is leaving to pursue other interests.

Accor has announced Heather McCrory as its new CEO, North & Central America. She will also serve as a member of the company’s executive committee. McCrory will have strategic oversight for more than 115 hotels and 28,000 employees across North and Central America. She will be based in the Accor regional office in Toronto. With more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, McCrory most recently served as EVP of Operations, North & Central America Region for Accor, overseeing hotel operations, technology, design and technical services, spa, retail, rooms, food-and-beverage and integrations and openings.

Mo Fajro is now senior hospitality consultant at Horwath HTL Montreal, where he will work on the Quebec market and also participate in asset management services. Educated in France and at Cornell University, he has more than five years of work experience in the lodging industry. His focus includes pre-opening, financial performance monitoring, sales and market analysis, asset management plans, operational reviews, forecasting and valuation. Prior to joining Horwath HTL, Fajro served as an asset manager, managing a portfolio of five full and select service hotels in the upscale, upper upscale and luxury segments with a value excess of $120 million, including Marriott International and Accor. Fajro also opened two five star properties (Sofitel and Marriott) in Morocco.

Hans Stierli is now executive chef at Sun Peaks Hotel Grand Hotel and Conference Centre. Stierli has honed his craft in the mountains of his native Switzerland and joins the Sun Peaks Grand team after decades of experience running kitchens around the world, including the Westin Resort & Spa, Whistler, the Royal Hawaiian a Luxury Collection Resort, and most recently he oversaw the dining operation of Sun Peaks Resort’s mountain and golf course facilities.

Patricia Morrison is now regional general manager, TownePlace Suites by Marriott, Fort McMurray, Alta. Prior to joining the new hotel, she was regional general manager at the 
Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham Fort McMurray, general manager of the Super 8 Fort McMurray and GM of the Yellowknife, NWT, Super 8. She came to Western Canada from Newfoundland, where she was employed for 13 years as banquet manager at the Delta St. John's Hotel & Conference Centre.

Vivek Sharma is the new CEO at Fairmont Hot Springs Resort in B.C.'s Columbia River Valley. With more than 25 years of global and national experience managing hotels, resorts and corporate operational teams of international hospitality brands, Sharma is perfectly suited for his new role. Sharma succeeds interim CEO Tom Tittel, who provided valuable leadership throughout the resort’s search for a permanent CEO over the past year. Sharma comes to Fairmont Hot Springs Resort from Sun Peaks Grand Hotel & Conference Centre in B.C., where he served as general manager and led the company through extensive upgrades and its transition to an independent hotel. Prior to Sun Peaks, Sharma held leadership positions at SilverBirch Hotels & Resorts, Fox Harb’r Golf Resort & Spa, Sandals Resorts, Hilton Hotels, and a variety of international hotels, including the Oberoi Group.

Kris Crundwell joins RLH Corporation as associate vice-president Franchise Development. Crundwell is an award-winning executive and humanitarian with over 20 years successfully leading and supporting high impact global sales and marketing strategies, innovative business development programs, and consistently exceeding targets for multi-million dollar corporations in the Tourism & Hospitality Industry. Crundwell comes to RLH Corp. after five years operating his own company, KC Hospitality, specializing in hospitality operations, sales and revenue leadership. Before that, he was vice-president of sales, Trade Centre Limited, Halifax; vice-president, sales and marketing for Pacrim Hospitality; and director of global sales, Canada for IHG.

Clark Squires has joined Inspire.World in the role of executive vice-president of business development. Squires has held several senior management positions in sales, marketing, and business development including as a director at Applied Information Technology USA, leading hospitality organizations, as well as, Travel USA, Industry Canada – Tourism Canada, Hong Kong and Mexico Tourism offices. He directed sales and marketing for Fortis Hospitality, was the director of sales and marketing with Pacrim Development and was later appointed as president and COO of Intergy, an international reservation and customer care centre that is a division of Pacrim Hospitality.