Executive Profiles

Senior Management

Naveen P. Kakarla, President and Chief Executive Officer

Naveen Kakarla is the President and Chief Executive Officer and also on the Board of Directors for HHM, which manages more than 110 hotels in the Northeast, Southwest, Florida, Georgia and California. Naveen is responsible for HHM’s investment and fund management, acquisitions and development, accounting, human resources, along with brand and owner relations. Naveen previously led the New York City region for HHM and also oversaw its construction and technical services division. Prior to joining HHM in 2005, Naveen worked with a private equity firm and its portfolio companies on early stage investments and “roll ups” in various industries. Naveen had been an active real estate investor in the multifamily space prior to joining HHM.

Outside the real estate sector, Naveen was previously a partner specializing in corporate and securities law at the national law firm of Jenkens & Gilchrist, P.C., and was previously associated with Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer Feld, LLP in Washington D.C. Naveen earned a Bachelor of Arts from Austin College and a law degree from Cornell Law School.

Michael Murray, Chief Operating Officer

As Chief Operating Officer, Michael is responsible for all of the company´s operational functions at the corporate and property levels. Michael is a 28-year hospitality veteran who has in-depth operations expertise throughout the United States and Caribbean. Previously, Michael was the operations leader at Sage Hospitality Resources with responsibility for 48 hotels, $600 million in annual revenue and 6,000 associates across the United States. At Sage, Michael worked with high net worth individuals, family trusts, and institutional owners like JP Morgan Chase, Citibank, LNR, and JER as clients. Michael’s early years were spent operating full service hotels, resorts, and casinos (at the 4 diamond quality level) in Florida, California, and the Caribbean. Michael earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management from Michigan State University, and currently serves as Chairman Emeritus of MSU´s Executive Alumni Board of The School of Hospitality Business. He was named Alumnus of the Year in 2008. Michael has served on the advisory boards of Sheraton Hotels, Renaissance Hotels, and Hilton Garden Inn.

Joann Weber, Vice President Human Resources

As Vice President Human Resources for HHM, Ms. Weber joined the HHM team in July of 2011. Previously, Ms. Weber was Vice President Human Resources and Senior Vice President Human Resources for Sugar House Casino in Philadelphia and Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket Connecticut. Ms. Weber also served in various leadership capacities for 12 years with Carnival Hotels and Casinos based out of Miami Florida. She received a bachelor’ degree in Management/Labor Relations from LaSalle University.

Simon J. Little, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing

As Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Simon works directly with our COO in overseeing all of the company’s sales and marketing disciplines at the national, regional and property level. Simon brings with him over 22 yrs of hospitality experience specializing in Staff development and retention, hotel repositioning and re-branding. He has worked with all major brands to include Hilton, Starwood, Marriott, Wyndham, IHG, and Hyatt representing key assets in gateway cities. Previous to his joining HHM, Simon was the Vice President Sales & Marketing for Highgate Holdings, a position he held for six years. He was charged with the responsibility of building a sales culture while implementing an infrastructure to support the company’s unprecedented growth in markets which included NYC, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Washington DC, and Toronto. During Simon’s 22-year career, he has led sales/marketing efforts for Marriott International in London, for Hilton and Millennium Hotels in New York, and for Fairmont Hotels in Bermuda.

Gregory Ade, Executive Vice President of Operations

As Executive Vice President of Operations, Greg works very closely with our Chief Operating Office in overseeing all of the company’s operational functions at the corporate and property levels. Greg has over 30 years of experience in the hotel industry, and previously was the Chief Operating Officer for Millennium Hotels Europe, based out of their Global Headquarters in London. In this role he oversaw 25 European properties where he established brand standards and reorganized management structure. He concurrently was responsible for North American operations where he oversaw 15 properties in the US and established the brand by implementing new service standards that introduced record setting profits. Greg previously served in multiple senior management positions with Interstate Hotels, overseeing major portfolios such as the Goldman Sachs owned portfolio. In Greg’s early years he held both General Manager and Regional Manager roles in hotels such as the New York Palace Hotel, Wyndham Seaworld in Orlando and various Hyatt hotels in Florida. Greg earned his B.S.B.A from the University of Denver’s Hotel Management program.

Sal Shahriar, Executive Vice President of Operations

As Executive Vice President, Sal is responsible for overseeing the administrative process our Purchasing and CapEx departments from planning to execution. Prior to joining HHM, Sal spent six years at intercontinental as director of field services where he oversaw 589 hotels and 17 field service managers. Previously, he was general manager with Winegardner & Hammons and with B.F. Saul Company as assistant vice president of the hotel division. Sal received his Bachelor of Science from Mississippi State University and his MBA from Norfolk State University.

Z. Steve Kovats, Vice President of Operations

As Vice President of Operations, Steve has 25 years of full service operations experience and currently oversees the North East Region for HHM. Previously, Steve was RDO for 11 upscale full service hotels at Procaccianti Hotels. During his career, he has also worked for White Lodging and Winegardner and Hammons. Steve earned an International Baccalaureate degree from the International School of Brussels Belgium in Europe and attended college at Southwest State University Minnesota and was enrolled in their Hotel Restaurant and Institutional Management program.

Joe Delguidice, Vice President of Operations: Texas and Starwood Capital Group Portfolio

As Vice President Operations for the Texas region and Starwood Capital Group owned properties, Joe possesses over 18 years of progressive leadership experience in the hospitality industry. Previously, Joe was the Regional Director of Operations for 14 HHM hotels in the Philadelphia region and New York City. He also worked for Hilton Hotels in various rooms division leadership positions prior to joining HHM.

Stephanie Esposito, Vice President of National Sales

Stephanie Esposito, Vice President of National Sales, has over 15 years’ experience in hospitality sales & marketing. Since the company’s inception, Stephanie has been integral in the development of HHM’s sales organization. Over the past ten years, she has assisted in the development and implementation of companywide sales initiatives affecting key market segments for HHM’s portfolio of hotels. Stephanie is a member of numerous Hospitality organizations and currently serves on multiple advisory boards. Stephanie is a Certified Hospitality Sales Professional and holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Villanova University School of Commerce and Finance.

Scott Dahl, Vice President of Revenue Management

Scott Dahl joins HHM as the Vice President/Revenue Management, leaving behind his own consulting practice called Hotel Revenue Resources, Inc., where he worked with clients on strategic revenue management tools and actually was involved in software development for revenue management in the hospitality industry. Scott’s career includes 13 years in various roles in Rooms Operations, Revenue Management, and Sales at Interstate Hotels and Resorts. He held the Director of Sales/Marketing position at Marriott’s Fisherman’s Wharf and The Lexington – Phoenix, for Interstate, before becoming the Regional Director of Revenue Management for 42 full-service hotels. Post-Interstate, Scott became the Vice President/Revenue Management for Sunstone Hotels where he was responsible for 51 owned/operated hotels within a REIT/management structure, similar to HHM’s current organizational set-up. Sunstone’s portfolio included full-service and select service hotels in the Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, and IHG brand families. All revenue management and e-Commerce functions will report to Scott.

Wayne Carney, Vice President of Financial Services

As Vice President of Financial Services for HHM, Wayne Carney leads all aspects of finance, accounting and business intelligence for the company. Wayne brings more than 30 years of experience from positions held all over the world. Prior to HHM, he was Vice President of property finance at Dolce Hotels and Resorts where he provided financial leadership for all business units. Wayne spent the majority of his career at Marriott International, including three years as Senior Director of Finance and Accounting for The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company for the Southeast, Caribbean and Latin America.

A Certified Public Accountant and member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Carney earned his Master of Business Administration degree from Loyola University Maryland and his of Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Duquesne University.

Jillian Dunn, Director of Human Resources

As Human Resources Director, Jillian is responsible in assisting with the recruiting, employee relations, compliance, compensation and benefits and all other functions within Human Resources. Prior to joining HHM, Jillian was an HR generalist for The Ritz- Carlton Hotel Company where she worked with both union and non union hotels in New York City. She assisted in opening The Ritz-Carlton, Westchester as a key member of the hotel’s pre-opening team in which she assisted in various Human Resources functions, including sourcing and staffing 250 employees, implementing human resources processes and policies, and implementing timesaver and payroll procedures at the property level. Previously, Jillian assisted in opening The Trump SoHo Hotel in New York City as an HR generalist in which she facilitated hotel opening in areas of recruiting, employment and training and partnered with business and department heads to develop and execute strategic recruitment plans. Jillian received a BA in Psychology from Penn State University.

Jason Shane, Director of Information Technology

Jason Shane has 18 years of experience in the information technology field, focused primarily on helping businesses leverage their investments in information technology for strategic advantage. Prior to joining HHM in 2004, Jason served as Vice President of DataWare, Inc. an IT services and consulting firm. Jason attended Pennsylvania State University and York College of Pennsylvania for Computer Science and Information Systems.