Europe, Middle East and Africa hospitality hires and promotions: Jens Gmiat appointed as COO at Ruby Hotels

Read the latest roundup of hotel industry hires and promotions in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.

Jiwa has been appointed as general manager of the 447-room Queen Elizabeth 2 Hotel, a floating hotel moored in Dubai’s Port Rashid near to Sheikh Zayed Rd. The QE2 is a retired transatlantic ocean liner that was built and owned by Cunard Line and came to Dubai in 2018. It has been managed by Accor as a hotel since 2024.

Sorensen has been selected as the new resort manager at Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia. His role is a “disembarkation” from his role as pre-opening general manager for the 224-berth yacht, Ilma, part of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, and general manager for the collection’s first yacht, Evrima.

Thom has been named as general manager of the Radisson Blu Hotel Nairobi Upper Hill in Kenya.

Castøe has been appointed general manager at the H4 Hotel Wyndham Paris Pleyel Resort, which opened in July 2024 and is owned by Revo Hospitality Group.

Ozzán has been appointed general manager at the 141-room Viceroy at Ombria Resort Algarve. He has worked at Marriott International in Argentina and Brazil. Most recently, he served as general manager of the 128-room Tambo del Inka, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa in Urubamba, Peru, close to the archaeological ruins of Machu Picchu.

Zimmermann has been promoted at Munich firm LIP Invest, a provider of special real-estate funds, to be its second managing director. The firm has five funds.

Pritsiolas has started as complex director of sales and marketing at the 177-room Athens Capital Center Hotel-MGallery Collection, owned by Lampsa Hellenic Hotels. Pritsiolas arrives from similar roles at Secret Hotels and the Grand Resort Lagonissi.

Gmiat has been named as chief operating officer of Munich-based hotel firm Ruby. He has held two roles as head of operations at Zien Group and most recently Criterion Hospitality. He also has had another role as COO with Hotel Co 51.

Lynch has been promoted to deputy general manager of the 215-room InterContinental Dublin. He started his career at the Irish capital’s famed The Shelboune Dublin Autograph Collection, and he has risen through the ranks at his current hotel, starting there as director of rooms before being promoted to director of operations.

Dieguez has been named as general manager at the 440-room Hyatt Regency London-The Churchill in London. He has worked in London since 2018 where he has had roles as director of rooms at the W Hotel London Leicester Square and director of rooms at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House London.

Starting in November, Phillips will be regional president of premium, midscale and economy brands for the Middle East, Africa and Turkey at Accor. He will have responsibility for approximately 250 hotels in 27 countries. Phillips most recently has been CEO of the Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, but he did spend more than eight years working for FRHI Hotels & Resorts, right before Accor bought the hotel firm that included Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel.

Robinson has been appointed as general manager at the 293-room Anantara The Palm Dubai Resort, following the same role at sibling property Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort. His first general manager position was at hotel Caravelle Saigon in Vietnam.

Nannucci has been appointed as general manager of the Tivoli La Vie Muscat Hotel & Residences, which is planned to open in the first quarter of next year as the brand's debut property in Oman. Nannucci, a 30-year veteran of the industry, spent more than 15 years at Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts and once worked at the Rome Cavalieri, a Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

Click here to read more hotel news on CoStar News Hotels.