AccorHotels, a leading international hotel operator, has appointed Puneet Dhawan as the new vice president of operations economy and midscale for the Gulf and Levant.

Dhawan brings with him a wealth of experience gained while working in the Asia Pacific region with AccorHotels, including in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam and India. In his previous role, Dhawan was AccorHotels’ area general manager for Bengaluru and Chennai in the South of India, where he was in charge of several operational hotels and projects under development, including midscale and upscale brands.

Commenting on the appointment, Olivier Granet, managing director and chief operating officer of AccorHotels Middle East, said: “Puneet has been a valuable member of AccorHotels for almost 15 years, serving as a keen ambassador of our brands and values. He has contributed to the successful development of AccorHotels in the Asia Pacific region, and accumulated considerable international management experience in the economy and midscale segments.

“I am pleased to welcome him on board our expanding Middle East team. Puneet will be instrumental in further strengthening our economy and midscale operations with his expertise. He will look after more than 30 opened hotels from brands such as Novotel, Novotel Suites, Mercure, Adagio, ibis and ibis Styles, encompassing over 7,500 rooms. His charge will soon include over 2,500 new rooms from another dozen hotels that we will add in those segments over the next few years.”

In addition to holding a diploma in Hotel and Restaurant Administration from Switzerland, Dhawan is a Hotel, Restaurant and Travel Administration graduate from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in the US.

AccorHotels currently operates 75 hotels in the Middle East, encompassing close to 20,000 rooms across the luxury to economy segments. The group’s network also includes more than 50 hotels under development in the region, bringing over 13,500 additional rooms to the Middle East. - TradeArabia News Service