UAE’s Global Hotel Alliance expands leadership team

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Three women have been promoted to executive roles

UAE-based Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the world’s largest consortium of independent hotel brands, has announced three internal promotions to further strengthen its leadership team.

These appointments come during a period of exceptional expansion for GHA, as the alliance added more than 30 new hotels to its portfolio in the first half of 2025, resulting in a 15A% increase in total global room nights and a 12% rise in member loyalty enrolments compared to the same period last year.

Notably, all three appointments are filled by female executives, with women now making up nearly two-thirds of GHA’s overall workforce and accounting for 60% of its leadership team.

Katharina Dein has taken on the role of Chief Commercial Officer, responsible for optimising the performance of newly integrated properties during their critical launch phase and overseeing brand onboarding.

She is also tasked with identifying and rolling out new products and services to the alliance’s member brands.

Katharina Dein, Chief Commercial Officer, GHA

Dein was the first member of the GHA Commercial team 12 years ago, starting as Membership Support Manager, and has served as Senior Commercial Director for the last few years.

She has been “instrumental in building the alliance’s portfolio of brands” and developing an online training platform for hotels used by tens of thousands of people across the world, GHA said in a statement.

Also with the GHA since 2013, Jelena Kezika has been appointed Vice President Strategy, and is tasked with developing and implementing new strategies, as well as “significantly growing” GHA’s partnerships area to xpand the reach of GHA’s loyalty ecosystem.

Described by GHA as a “results-driven business strategist”, Kezika has played a pivotal role in shaping the alliance’s growth story through the evolution of its award-winning loyalty programme, GHA Discovery, which generated US$ 2.7 billion in revenue in 2024.

Dubai-based Rotana joins Global Hotel Alliance loyalty programme

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She has also spearheaded the alliance’s sustainability efforts, implementing new CSR concepts and philanthropic activities.

Kezika joined GHA as Assistant to the CEO, before moving into increasingly senior strategy roles. Prior to GHA, she held marketing leadership roles with the Ultratravel Collection in Dubai.

Finally, Andrea Krenn has been appointed as Senior Vice President Communications. Since 2021, Krenn has led GHA’s global public relations, drawing on extensive international experience from Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai Tourism and her own consultancy.

Andrea Krenn, Senior Vice President Communications, GHA

Her strategic leadership has significantly enhanced GHA’s brand awareness and media presence, supporting growth in key markets.

In her new role, she will continue to drive GHA’s global communications strategy to further elevate the alliance’s visibility and reputation.

Chris Hartley, CEO of Global Hotel Alliance, commented: "At GHA, we are proud to recognise the exceptional talent of Katharina, Jelena, and Andrea, who each bring expertise, dedication and passion to their roles.

"Their leadership will continue to shape the future of our business, with each of them bringing a unique and powerful skill set that will help us sharpen our focus, deepen our impact, and create even more value for our hotel brands and loyal GHA Discovery members.”

These appointments come at a time of strong growth for GHA, with new brands such as Cinnamon Hotels (Sri Lanka), Sunway (Malaysia), and Rotana (UAE) joining in 2025.

Revenues generated via the award-winning GHA Discovery programme surpassed US$1.5 billion during H1 2025.

For more information, visit www.globalhotelalliance.com