Management

Grace Leonard

My name is Grace Leonard, I’m originally from Maralal in Samburu County, Kenya, which is a vibrant tourist town. I joined the Elewana Collection during the COVID-19 pandemic, and was fortunate to start at Elewana Tortilis in Amboseli and later moved to Elewana Elsa’s Kopje when a vacancy arose. I am now the General Manager at Elewana Elsa’s Kopje Meru, where I have the privilege of overseeing one of Kenya’s first luxury camps.

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Colleen Logan

My name is Colleen Logan, and I grew up in Edmonton, Alberta. I moved to Calgary, Alberta, after getting married and have called it home for almost thirty years. I am a fun-loving person, so the hospitality/tourism industry has been a good fit for me. I have been in the industry for close to 25 years in various roles.

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 Mohamed Benzakour

Hi, I’m Mohamed Benzakour, a former professional athlete who transitioned from the soccer field to the world of hospitality with the same passion, resilience, and drive. My journey has been about pushing boundaries, embracing challenges, and creating experiences that leave a lasting impact. Today, I’m the co-founder and CEO of Stay Here Group.

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DANIEL AFONSO

Are you steering your career, or just along for the ride? In this episode, Pat speaks with Daniel Afonso, Senior VP of People & Culture at Radisson Hotel Group, who shares his journey from finance to hospitality and how he seized every opportunity to shape his career. They explore what makes hospitality so engaging and how Radisson retains talent by offering hybrid roles focused on growth and development. Tune in for valuable insights on how to take control of your career and keep moving forward.

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Simon Mayle on LGBTQ travel trends on Smack

SIMON MAYLE

During the recent pridemonth, Phil sat down with Simon Mayle, Event Director at Reed Exhibitions, for, among others, PROUD Experiences and ILTM Cannes and discussed the status quo of LGBTQ travels.

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Djony Jaegers for SMack's Humans of Hospitality

Djony Jaegers

Hello, my name is Djony Jaegers and I am a member of the ROOM FOR CHANGE program by entrepreneurs’ collective The Present Movement. I have been working there as a Relations Manager for a year now. ROOM FOR CHANGE is a social responsibility program for hotels in which we use the power of the hospitality world to make a positive impact in the lives of people who are temporarily unhoused. This group is often also called “economically homeless people”. These are people like you and me, without any addictions or psychiatric indications, but without housing. Sometimes life just goes wrong – you lost your job, or you get a divorce and have to move out of your house.

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Rocco Forte Family- Preview Podcast guest

SIR ROCCO & LYDIA FORTE

Sir Rocco &Lydia Forte Chairman & Group Director F&B – Rocco Forte Hotels This is real, luxurious, family business! We had not only one but two guests on the show! Sir Rocco Forte, Chairman and Lydia Forte, Group Director of F&B at Rocco Forte Hotels brought some great topics and giggles to this episode with Fritz, recorded

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