Having engaged the trust of the company’s dynamic president and CEO Eric Danziger, Haddad propelled the company’s development in the region, driving aggressive growth of the Ramada brand.

　　Gaining a wealth of operational experience at Disney — arguably the hotel operator most obsessed with creating an unforgettable guest experience — Haddad moved into development, first introducing Holiday Inn Express in the Gulf with a company called Hospitality Management Services and then, in 2007, joining Wyndham Hotel Group in Dubai. As the driver of brand debuts in the region, are there more to come? We talk to Bani Haddad, Wyndham's Vice President. 

　　Of the change in career, he comments: “I quickly figured out that the key to being a successful development person is mastering the human relationship, which is very similar to what the general manager would do, and so that was how easy it was for me to transition from an operational role to a development role”.

　　Having engaged the trust of the company’s dynamic president and CEO Eric Danziger, Haddad propelled the company’s development in the region, driving aggressive growth of the Ramada brand, and more recently, introducing Days Inn and Super 8 in the economy and budget segments, and the group’s flagship brand, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.

　　In 2012 his remit was expanded to include operations too and in the past 12 months alone, Haddad has overseen the opening of seven hotels and signing of 10 more. Momentum is expected to continue, with Wyndham Grand Manama and Wyndham Grand Riyadh both anticipated to open by the end of summer 2014.

　　The group is also increasingly focused on deploying its management capabilities in the region, shifting from being a pure play franchisor to being a successful operator as well, investing in F&B development — with Brazilian outlet Fogueira setting Dubai’s churrascaria scene alight — and rolling out Wyndham Rewards in the Middle East.

　　"The most important things are our growth with the different brands; being able to capture the different segments within the region, we are probably the only company who will do this because of the large spectrum of brands we have,” says Haddad, referring to the 15 hotel concepts.

　　"We have been extremely successful with Ramada in the region but as we’ve started increasing our presence we’ve also realised that now was the time to start introducing other brands to satisfy the needs of other market niches and other segments,” he explains, leveraging the strength of the company for owners and also guests, through Wyndham Rewards.

　　"I would love to see Wyndham in all major cities in the region. We have it under development in Dubai, Bahrain, Riyadh, and already have it in Doha,” says Haddad.

　　"We are getting there and that’s our namesake and that will create tremendous awareness for us.”

　　He is currently actively seeking opportunities to introduce the Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham extended stay product, a solution to travel needs from both large GCC families and expatriate relocations.

　　"I think this will be an answer and an amazing success in this part of the world,” asserts Haddad.

　　However, he is quick to add that the company will “definitely will not develop the 15 brands in this region”.

　　"Every brand that we develop will be an answer to a market need and will deliver both to the owner but also to the customer in terms of what they are looking for —product, service, value for money,” he says.