Carlson Hotels appoints Winston Chien as Vice President of China

Carlson, a privately held, global hospitality and travel company, announced the appointment of Winston Chien as vice president, China. Winston will be responsible for overseeing operations and spearheading strategic development projects in China. His appointment is part of Carlson’s strategy to invest in building capabilities to support its growth strategy in Asia Pacific which will see the group more than double its hotel portfolio to 150 hotels by end of 2015.

“We are delighted to have Winston on board to boost our growth in China as part of our Asia Pacific strategy. This senior appointment is part of our efforts to strengthen the operations structure in this region to drive operations excellence at our hotels. Winston brings a wealth of hospitality experience and expertise in China and will be a great asset to the team,” said Simon C. Barlow, president, Carlson Hotels, Asia Pacific.

Winston, a Chinese national, has been in the hospitality industry for over 25 years. He commenced his career at the Kahala Hilton, USA as a corporate management trainee and went on to hold various positions with Hilton, culminating to become the special assistant to the vice president, Operations for Hilton Greater China. Most recently he has been with the Jumeirah group as their China representative and in a project capacity with Hong Kong Resort International limited, based in Shanghai.

Winston’s appointment in China is part of a wider reorganization of operations at Carlson Asia Pacific. The new structure, effective 1 August, involves increasing the numbers of regional directors throughout Asia Pacific that will increase the focus on the management of hotel operations and engagement with owners.