Hyatt Hotels has appointed longtime hospitality executive Julienne Smith as its new head of Americas growth, the company announced Thursday.
In her role, effective immediately, Smith “will advance Hyatt’s brand growth across its luxury, lifestyle, classics and essentials brands, deepen relationships with owners and developers, and accelerate the company’s long-term growth strategy,” according to a company release.
Smith takes over the role from Dan Hansen, who will continue to lead Hyatt’s newly formed Global Growth Strategy & Operations team, a company representative told Hotel Dive.
Hansen will work closely with Smith, as well as global brand leaders on the GGSO team, which was designed to “drive alignment and faster, more effective execution across Hyatt’s global development organization,” the company detailed in the release. According to the representative, Smith’s role complements Hyatt’s global brand leadership structure.
While Smith is responsible for advancing Hyatt’s brand growth across its luxury, lifestyle, classics and essentials brands in the Americas, designated brand leaders for those segments remain focused on defining strategy, standards and profitability at the global level, the representative said. In December, Hyatt appointed Jason Ballard as global brand leader for its essentials portfolio and Tamara Lohan as global brand leader for its luxury segment.
Smith rejoins Hyatt after serving as chief development officer for the Americas at IHG Hotels & Resorts for six years. Smith departed IHG last fall, after which the company appointed Mark Sergot to the Americas CDO role.
Prior to that stint, Smith worked at Hyatt for 14 years, most recently holding the title of senior vice president of development and owner relations, according to LinkedIn.
“Julienne is a highly respected industry leader with deep expertise and a proven ability to deliver results,” Hyatt CEO Mark Hoplamazian said in the release. “Her experience across development, brand strategy and owner engagement positions her exceptionally well to drive Hyatt’s next phase of growth in the Americas. She leads with a strong sense of care that embodies Hyatt’s purpose — supporting colleagues and fostering trusted relationships with owners.”
Smith’s appointment “further strengthens Hyatt’s focus on intentional growth as a key driver of long-term value creation, including brand expansion into new markets and increased brand presence across segments,” according to the release.
In the U.S., 2025 represented Hyatt’s strongest year of signings over the past five years, with half of those signings in markets where the company does not currently have a brand presence, Hoplamazian shared during fourth-quarter earnings.
