Jumeirah has announced the executive team tasked with managing the 1 December opening of Madinat Jumeirah’s newest hotel Jumeirah Al Naseem, the 430-room ‘resort within a resort’ that completes the ‘Arabian Resort of Dubai’.
Announcing the team, Margaret Paul, Resort General Manager of Madinat Jumeirah, said: “The team we’ve assembled for the opening of Jumeirah Al Naseem comprises hospitality experts with years of experience operating and managing hotels both in the Jumeirah portfolio and for other luxury operators. The mix of existing and new Jumeirah Al Naseem management colleagues will deliver the reassuringly familiar but refreshingly different guest experience for those who already know and love Madinat Jumeirah and those looking for a new experience in luxury hospitality at the Arabian Resort of Dubai.”
General Manager, Richard Alexander, returns to Dubai and Jumeirah Group after eight years working internationally in the Caribbean, Las Vegas and London.British national Richard has more than 30 years’ luxury hotel experience and is very familiar with Madinat Jumeirah having been Jumeirah Mina A’ Salam’s General Manager in 2008.
His career has taken him and his family around the world, from Spain to Greece, Japan, USA, Australia and Indonesia. Richard brings a fresh approach to service and a desire to surprise and exceed guests’ expectations and perceptions of the Dubai of today.
Jumeirah Group’s “The Place to Grow” colleague promise is fully apparent in the management team in Jumeirah Al Naseem. Starting with South African Ben Ackhurst in the role of Director of Food and Beverage moving to the beach from Jumeirah Creekside Hotel after seven years across other Jumeirah hotels in Dubai, Ben will oversee the operations of nine new and exciting bars and restaurant concepts within Jumeirah Al Naseem. Ben is joined by German-born Executive Chef Tobias Pfister, whose career history includes an impressive nine years at Burj Al Arab Jumeirah. He returns to Dubai from his latest post in China as Executive Chef at Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel, Shanghai. Chef Tobias will lead a culinary team of 145 colleagues.
The final example of Jumeirah’s internal growth and talent development strategy is Saskia Polhout,Executive Housekeeper of Jumeirah Al Naseem. Born in the Netherlands, Saskia will lead one of the hotel’s largest teams in the housekeeping department and will oversee exciting projects such as developing the new floral style for Jumeirah Al Naseem and curating a fun and creative children’s amenity programme, for which she will draw on the inspiration of her own three children. Saskia joined Jumeirah in 2005 as Assistant Executive Housekeeper in Jumeirah Beach Hotel and was promoted in 2007 to the position of Housekeeping Manager in Madinat Jumeirah until the promotion to her current role.
New to Dubai, Kremi McCabe has moved from London with her family to take on the role ofExecutive Assistant Manager of Rooms for Jumeirah Al Naseem. With a strong background in rooms divisions, revenue, sales and marketing across various five star hotels in the UK, The Lanesborough and Dorchester Collection to name a few, Kremi will use her exceptional knowledge and pre-opening experience to bring leadership to Jumeirah Al Naseem’s front of house operations and introduce new best practices in guest facing interactions.
Mohamed Morgan has taken on the role of Chief Engineer in Jumeirah Al Naseem. Mohamed has spent the last eight years working across the United Arab Emirates in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Ras Al Khaimah. Most recently, he worked as Chief Engineer at Meydan Hotel in Dubai. Mohamed’s current focus is on the hotel’s pre-opening with particular attention towards safety, security and asset protection. Working closely with Mohamed, Frederick Pelser has been appointed as Director of Security of Jumeirah Al Naseem and will ensure all security and safety measures are taken pre and post Resort opening.
Jumeirah Al Naseem will be fully supported by the existing functions of Sales, Marketing, Finance, Human Resources and Finance currently in place across the existing hotels within Madinat Jumeirah.
