PARIS, September 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Gilles Pelisson, Director and Chief Executive Officer, has strengthened his Executive Committee by appointing four new executives and assigning new responsibilities to some of the other members:
Appointments For Accor Services: Oswaldo Melantonio Filho Chief Operating Officer, Accor Services Brazil, 56 years old, Oswaldo Melantonio Filho is a Brazilian citizen. He has been a part of the Accor Group for 27 years, helping to develop Accor Services' leadership in Brazil, the most important market. For Accor Hospitality: Olivier Poirot Chief Executive Officer, Motel 6/Studio 6 And Chief Operating Officer, Accor North America, 40 years old, He has joined Accor in 1992 and has held finance positions in the United States since 2001. Since 2007, he is in charge of Motel 6/Studio 6 in the USA, Canada, Mexico, as well as of support fonctions for Accor North America. For the support functions: Jean-Luc Chretien Executive Vice President, Hotel Distribution, 51 years old He has joined the Accor Group after working for EuroDisney, Pierre et Vacances and SNCF Voyages. He is in charge of the different distribution channels, such as sales, the Internet and call centers, as well as the new customer loyalty program. Pascal Quint Corporate Secretary and Secretary of the Board of Directors, 50 years old, He will take up his functions by the end of September 2008, after having served as Corporate Secretary for EuroDisney and Cegelec. He will be in charge of Legal Affairs, Insurance and Risk Management, Security/Safety Management as well as of ensuring the efficient functioning of the Group's corporate governance bodies. New Responsibilities For Accor Hospitality: Yann Caillere Chief Operating Officer France, Southern Europe, Africa and Middle East, Latin America and CEO Sofitel Worldwide, 55 years old, He is in charge of the region that includes France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Israel, and the Africa/Middle East region. His responsibilities have now been extended to the Latin America region. For the support functions: Philippe Adam Executive Vice President for Hotel Design And Construction, and Group Purchasing and Group Sustainable Development, 51 years old, He is in charge of a new unit combining Innovation and Design, Hotel Technical Services, Group Purchasing and Group Sustainable Development. Jacques Stern Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Strategy, Hotel Development and Information Systems, 44 years old, In addition to his responsibilities concerning Group Finance, and Information Systems, Jacques Stern will be in charge of Group Strategy and Hotel Development. Following these changes, the Accor Executive Committee around Gilles Pelisson now comprises: Philippe Adam Executive Vice President for Hotel Design and Construction and Group Purchasing and Sustainable Development Yann Caillere Chief Operating Officer France, Southern Europe, Africa and Middle East, Latin America and CEO Sofitel Worldwide, Accor Hospitality Jean-Luc Chretien Executive Vice President, Hotel Distribution Oswaldo Melantonio Filho Chief Operating Officer, Accor Services Brazil Michael Flaxman Chief Operating Officer, Northern Europe, Accor Hospitality Michael Issenberg Chief Operating Officer, Accor Asia Pacific, Accor Hospitality Cathy Kopp Executive Vice President, Human Resources Eric Lepleux Executive Vice President, Hotel and Brand Marketing Olivier Poirot Chief Executive Officer, Motel6/Studio 6 and Chief Operating Officer, Accor North America Pascal Quint Corporate Secretary and Secretary of the Board of Directors, Serge Ragozin Chief Operating Officer, Accor Services Worldwide Jacques Stern Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Strategy, Hotel Development and Information Systems In an internal memo issued today, Mr. Pelisson noted: "The strategy implemented over the past three years has led to profound changes for our Group: - In our business base, with the disposal of non-strategic assets enabling us to return significant funds to shareholders. - Our repositioned brands. - Our revitalized teams. - Our increased performance. However, as economic conditions tighten and encourage us to reassess our operating costs and manage them very carefully, we need to continue driving growth in our two core businesses. This growth will involve the following challenges: - In Accor Services, the challenge of both deploying our expertise and winning new markets in new geographies, even as this expertise is evolving very quickly with the shift to electronic media and the use of new technologies. At the same time, the business has to seamlessly integrate the many new companies acquired in recent months. - In Accor Hospitality, the challenge of expanding on five continents in line with the new business model, which now combines owned/leased properties and, increasingly, management contracts and franchise agreements. This is why we need strong brands that are widely recognized, complementary and well distributed. To succeed, we need to redefine our operating performance depending on the hotel ownership structure, focus on hotel design and construction, and, more than ever, pool our eight platforms, which serve as centers for our expertise and capabilities."
Accor, a major global group and the European leader in hotels, as well as the global leader in services to corporate clients and public institutions, operates in nearly 100 countries with 150,000 employees. It offers to its clients over 40 years of expertise in two core businesses:
- Hotels, with the Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel, Mercure, Suitehotel, Ibis, all seasons, Etap Hotel, Formule 1 and Motel 6 brands, representing 4,000 hotels and nearly 500,000 rooms in 90 countries, as well as strategically related activities, such as Lenotre.
- Services, with 30 million people in 40 countries benefiting from Accor Services products in employee and public benefits, rewards and loyalty, and expense management.
