TURKEY: Guenter Gebhard Named General Manager At Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group has announced the appointment of Guenter Gebhard as General Manager of Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum.

Guenter Gebhard joined the Group in January 2016 from One & Only Hayman Island, an Australian resort located on the Great Barrier Reef. Mr Gebhard brings with him over twenty years of experience in the global luxury hospitality industry, with senior management roles at Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort in Morocco, Atlantis the Palm in Dubai, St. Regis, Bangkok and a global role as Director of Operations, Restaurants & Food and Beverage Operations at Jumeirah Group, together with other assignments in the Middle East, Germany and New York.

Mr Gebhard studied at Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne and New York University Stern Business School in New York. A German national, he speaks a variety of European languages and has a good understanding of Arabic.

UAE: Jumeirah Encourages UAE Nationals Into Hospitality Careers

Jumeirah Group has launched a new Emiratisation initiative on social media to encourage UAE Nationals to pursue careers in hospitality. The campaign is called #BeTheHost and will be launched through the Jumeirah Arabic account on Instagram @Jumeirah.Arabic.

Nabil Ramadhan, Group Chief Human Capital Officer, Jumeirah Group, said: “Hospitality is an excellent career choice that enables its workforce to develop new professional skills. Through the #BeTheHost initiative, we hope to show UAE Nationals that hospitality is a diverse industry in which you can pursue your personal passion, whatever it may be. As an outsider’s first gateway to the city’s culture, hotels provide a platform to showcase our traditions and serve as ambassadors of national heritage.”

Resonating with UAE’s proud tradition of hospitality, the initiative is aligned with the objectives of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing’s #AnaDubai (‘I am Dubai’) Emiratisation campaign. The aim is to increase the number of UAE Nationals working in tourism by 15 per cent every year until 2020. The initiative also seeks to contribute to the tourism sector in the Dubai Vision 2020 as envisioned by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

UAE National colleagues including members of Jumeirah’s Emiratisation programmes, will share their career development stories across the Instagram account. #BeTheHost provides UAE Nationals the opportunity to be mentored by those with a shared cultural background. Another essential element of #BeTheHost will be an exchange of dialogue with UAE students considering careers after university.

Dubai’s hospitality industry is expected to be the key driver of the job market ahead of EXPO 2020, given that 70% of the 25 million visitors expected during EXPO 2020 will originate from outside the UAE.

As a premier partner of EXPO 2020, Jumeirah is at the forefront of hotel development in the UAE offering growth opportunities for personal and professional development.