Best Western Hotels & Resorts has announced the promotions of three members of its executive leadership team. Dorothy Dowling has been named senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Mark Straszynski will now serve as senior vice president and chief financial officer, and Greg Adams has been promoted to vice president and chief digital officer. These appointments come at an exciting time for Best Western, following major announcements at the end of 2015 and heading into the company’s 70th anniversary year.
With a diverse collection of more than 4,100 properties in more than 100 countries, Best Western recently introduced its new contemporary master brand Best Western Hotels & Resorts, as well as unique new logos for several of its seven individual hotel brands. The company is also in the midst of deploying more than $2 billion in property improvements and renovations across North America, and rolling out two new boutique brands, Vīb® and GLō℠.
“It brings me great pleasure to announce the promotions of Dorothy Dowling, Mark Straszynski and Greg Adams, as they have each played a key role in shaping the exciting evolution of this incredible family of hotel brands,” said David Kong, president and CEO of Best Western Hotels & Resorts.
A 30-year hotel industry veteran who joined Best Western in 2004, Dorothy Dowling is responsible for overseeing all marketing and sales strategies, as well as directing consumer and field marketing activities, advertising, public relations and e-commerce. Since joining the company, Dowling has reenergized Best Western’s loyalty program, grown the brand’s market share and undertaken several other major groundbreaking initiatives. This included a comprehensive global brand refresh in 2015, a complete redesign of the brand’s digital platform, and the implementation of a “mobile first” strategy that will continue to evolve in the year ahead.
Under Dowling’s leadership, Best Western has earned numerous accolades including Best Western Plus being named the No. 1 Upper Mid-priced Hotel Company by Business Travel News for two years running. Dowling herself was recognized at the end of 2015 by Forbes, being named their 18th most influential chief marketing officer in the world.
Mark Straszynski brings extensive experience in global finance to Best Western. As senior vice president and chief financial officer, Straszynski oversees all finance operations, accounting, treasury, risk management, and strategic planning. As part of the company’s senior executive team, he is also instrumental in setting the strategic financial direction for the brand, including developing and managing short- and long-term growth initiatives.
Greg Adams is a hospitality industry sales and marketing veteran with more than 20 years of leadership experience. In his recently expanded position, he now oversees all aspects of the company’s global eCommerce footprint. Since joining Best Western in 2013, Adams has led his team in the completion of numerous strategic projects, including the launch of new property websites for more than 2,000 hotels and resorts across North America. Currently, Adams is leading development of a new, fully responsive bestwestern.com, which is expected to be unveiled in spring of this year.
