Marriott International has appointed Chris Buckner as senior vice president of loyalty, effective immediately, a company spokesperson confirmed to Hotel Dive.
Buckner takes on the role after most recently serving as executive vice president of product, loyalty and design at travel website The Points Guy, according to his LinkedIn profile. He previously held loyalty-related executive leadership positions at PayPal and JetBlue.
“Chris’s extensive background with airlines, loyalty, and customer experience will be a tremendous addition to our team and our mission to continue to evolve Marriott Bonvoy as a lifelong travel partner,” Peggy Roe, executive vice president and chief customer officer at Marriott, said in a Wednesday LinkedIn post.
Buckner will bring a “fresh perspective, customer focus, and new energy” to Marriott, as the company continues on a “mission to create value for hotels, owners, and even more meaningful experiences for our members through our loyalty and card offerings,” Roe added.
Buckner joins Marriott as the company taps into experiential loyalty offerings to cater to shifting guest preferences.
Specifically, Marriott is focused on partnerships across sports, music, culinary and the outdoors to offer unique loyalty experiences to Marriott Bonvoy members, Lucy Werner, senior vice president of global partnerships at Marriott, said last month during a Hotel Dive virtual event.
Earlier this month, Marriott partnered with the NFL on a loyalty collaboration to bring Marriott Bonvoy members curated travel guides, featuring personal recommendations from current and former football stars.
