ALAN J. MICHAELS
Chief Executive Officer

Alan Michaels has a background includes investment, finance, asset management and disposition, marketing, management, and market research in various areas of real estate. He applies his experience to the field of hospitality to assist in analysis, acquisition, and management of hotel properties. Mr. Michaels is is a Joint Principal in GLA, and is the current principal and Chief Executive Officer of Merit Hotel Group. Mr. Michaels has experience in successfully arranging debt and equity financing for several major commercial real estate transactions with Merit Hotel Group and other organizations. Mr. Michaels uses his wide array of skills and experience to enhance the success of Merit Hotel Group and its clients. 

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Mr. Michaels' involvement has spanned from project conception through entitlements to completion, and he plays a major role in the success of each operational phase of projects. He regularly handles a diverse range of issues including land use and zoning, joint venture structuring, financing, leasing, and other management and operational responsibilities. Mr. Michaels also manages companies with over 75 full-time employees. 

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Mr. Michaels currently owns and operates the Merit Hotel Group, a company he founded in 1988. The Merit Hotel Group has owned and operated several mainstream brand and independent hotels. Merit currently owns and operates the SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Aberdeen, Maryland.

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Our asset management engagements assist in maximizing the performance of the management company, as well as the value of the hotel asset. Joint engagements with Global Lodging Advisors included a 900-room convention hotel in Washington, D.C. and a full-service chain with eight hotels in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Other engagements have included development of a land valuation model for an affiliate of Morgan Stanley Real Estate Services. Further engagements have included reviews of several Washington area full service hotels such as Sheraton and Hyatt. 

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Mr. Michaels has also successfully arranged a $60,000,000 debt, equity, and construction financing for a variety of real estate developments throughout the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore marketplace. Mr. Michaels majored in Electronic Technology and Business Administration at the City University of New York, Queensborough College (1969-1972). He has also attended numerous managerial technical and behavioral seminars.

 
MARK ELAWADI
Principal

Mark Elawadi is an international hospitality veteran with over 25 years of industry experience. His experience encompasses hotel management, project development and asset management. He also has specific experience in turnaround, contingency and crisis management, as well as financial workouts in complex situations.

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Whether planning new development projects still in their infancy, or implementing revenue management strategies for established companies, Mr. Elawadi approaches each project from a value-creation and asset performance standpoint. Among his career accomplishments, he has been recognized and praised for his leadership abilities in turning around underperforming hotel assets to create successful enterprises. Additionally, his expertise in crisis management, contingency planning, and profitability planning provides an added level of management capability and strategic planning that is highly valued within the industry. He has worked on 5 continents.

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Prior to founding GLA, Mr. Elawadi held executive positions -including pre-opening, opening and operating experience - with some of the finest hotel management companies worldwide. His roles have included executive positions with Conrad Hotels & resorts, Marriott Hotels, The Cumberland Hotel (London, UK), Resort Properties Group (Spain), Grand Hyatt Hotel (Washington DC), as well as Renaissance & Ramada for the Middle East, Africa, and Central Asia. Most recently, Mr. Elawadi led the development for a Luxury Resort, Spa and Marina in Turks & Caicos and a Luxury Resort & Spa Condominium project in the Dominican Republic and overseeing a portfolio of Hilton and Marriott hotels.

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Other career highlights worldwide include:

  • Managed hospitality funds of over $250 million that were invested in hospitality assets.

  • Responsible for setting up the acquisition, asset management and restructure of the Kuwait Hotel Company hotel assets valued at over one billion US$.

  • During his operating career, his large-sized hotels achieved some of the highest GOP, REVPAR and EBITDA.

  • Selected by George Washington University to develop educational hotel financial management courses for Hotels general managers for the continued executive education programs.

  • Recipient of numerous industry excellence and service recognition awards, including a nomination for Hotelier of the Year in 2002. He has also served on numerous industry association boards.

  • He served as an expert witness for a major international arbitration case that involved one of the largest hotel operators.

  • Sales and marketing of Real Estate residential, condo resort, fractional and whole ownership totalling over 983 million USS in Tenerife Spain.

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Mr. Elawadi holds a Bachelor of Science degree from a leading University in Cairo and he is an American Hotel & Lodging Association Certified Hotel Administrator. He has also successfully completed executive education and professional development programs at George Washington University.

 
TAMMY PARROTT
Vice President, Operations

Tammy Parrott has over 20 years of experience with all aspects of hotel property operations, and has been a mainstay of Merit Hotel Group's Operations. 

 

Ms. Parrott is a highly focused and experienced manager whose greatest strength is her strong commitment to providing the highest level of loyalty and service to her employers, colleagues, and hotel guests. 

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Ms. Parrott has honed her ability to develop and maintain a close working relationship with senior managers, which has allowed her to gain an in-depth understanding of an employer's needs, goals, and ambitions. She prides herself on her habit of constantly reviewing processes and identifying ways to improve efficiency and service, thereby reducing her overall operating costs and, by extension, increasing the profitability of Merit Hotel Group and its investors. 

 
CHRIS MCGEE
Employee Relations Specialist

Mr. McGee, our Employee Relations Specialist and a US Army veteran, provides coaching to line managers and staff across our platforms on issues of employee relations, compensation, benefits, wage and hour, training, staffing, workforce planning/job re-leveling, performance management and skill assessment. Partnered with and helped them to determine and execute organizational objectives and strategies that supported the culture, company direction and business needs of their organizations, as well as across functions. 

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Chris also conducts thorough, confidential investigations of complex employee issues and recommends course of action with effective resolutions with applied knowledge and understanding of HR guidelines and employment laws, ensuring ADA compliance while reducing liability to company.   Chris McGee partners with Benefits to streamline and consolidate the leave of absence policies for paid and unpaid leaves, supports managers with Reduction in Force actions including guidance with developing and writing business cases and supporting documentation, and conducting notification meetings. 

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 Chris also prepares wellness activities proposals for our hotel sites, and facilitates Lunch and Learn sessions, drop-in counseling appointments and activities in partnership with Benefits and outside vendors.

 

© 2018 by Merit Hotel Group