EMEA: Katerina Giannouka has been named chief executive of Jumeirah Group, succeeding former CEO Jose Silva when she takes the role in December.
Giannouka joins from Radison Hotel Group, where she served as president of Asia-Pacific. Here, she oversaw a portfolio of around 250 open and pipeline hotels with a plan to scale up to 2,000 properties since 2017.
Other notable brands Giannouka has worked with include Rosewood Hotel Group and Starwood Hotels & Resorts.
At Jumeirah, Giannouka will lead 25 hotels comprising 6,500 rooms across the Middle East, Europe and Asia. She said: “Jumeirah operates some of the world’s most iconic hotels and has redefined luxury hospitality with its exceptional and beyond-expectations service offering.
“The opportunities for Jumeirah are extremely exciting, and I eagerly look forward to commencing this new journey alongside the entire team to unlock the immense potential of the Jumeirah brand and sustainably secure its position on the world stage as the top luxury Emirati hospitality brand recognised and sought-after globally.”
Amit Kaushal, group CEO of Dubai Holding, of which Jumeirah Group is a member, said: “We are delighted to welcome Katerina as the new CEO of Jumeirah Group.
“Over the years, Jumeirah has become synonymous with excellence, providing guests from across the globe with unique and unrivalled experiences. Given Katerina’s impressive track record as a transformative business leader, as well as her luxury hospitality background and drive to create resilient teams and culture, I am confident that she will build on Jumeirah’s incredible success story and lead the business to new levels of sustainable and accelerated growth across the world.”
Dubai Holding is a global investment company with presence in over 13 countries.
