Professional Experience
Gerald Lawless, born in 1952 in Ireland, joined Jumeirah in June 1997 as Managing Director. Prior to joining Jumeirah, Mr. Lawless spent 23 years of his professional career working with Forte Hotels. During this period he spent a number of years in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Ireland and Dubai and he was also responsible for the Caribbean and later the Middle East region. Mr. Lawless established the Middle East office for Forte Hotels in Dubai in 1991 where he oversaw the development of Forte Hotels from three properties in 1991 to over twenty when he left in 1997 to join Jumeirah. Mr. Lawless has spent sixteen years in the Gulf, having worked in Dubai originally from 1978 to 1982 and later in Bahrain.

Mr. Lawless joined Jumeirah in June 1997 to oversee the opening of Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Wild Wadi Water Park and Burj Al Arab. Since then, Jumeirah Emirates Towers, Jumeirah Beach Club Resort and Spa, The Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management, the Jumeirah Carlton Tower and Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel in London, Madinat Jumeirah – The Arabian Resort, Dubai, Jumeirah Bab Al Shams Desert Resort & Spa and Jumeirah Essex House in New York have been added to the Jumeirah portfolio.

Area of Expertise - Hotel Operations

Professional Experience
Guy Crawford, who is British, joined Jumeirah in May 2002 as Corporate Director of Operations. Before taking up his assignment in Dubai, Guy held the position of Managing Director for Macdonald Hotels in the United Kingdom where he managed a portfolio of over a hundred hotels. Guy brings more than thirty years of hospitality experience to Jumeirah having worked for Forte Hotel Group for 23 years. During his career with Forte Hotel Group, Guy held various senior management positions in the United Kingdom, Bahamas, Morocco and Belgium and left the group as a member of the main hotel board.

Guy was promoted to Chief Executive Officer for Jumeirah Group in February 2007.

Area of Expertise - Human Resources

Professional Experience

Tim Savage, who is English, joined Jumeirah in February 2008 as Acting Chief Human Resources Officer, Jumeirah Group. In April 2008, he assumed the role of Chief Human Resources Officer, and is based in Dubai. Tim is responsible for all Human Resources activities and operations for the Jumeirah Group.

Prior to joining Jumeirah, Tim ran his own organisational development consultancy firm for six years where he focused on effectively developing human capital in organisations through the design and delivery of high value processes, programmes and workshops. He worked with a number of esteemed clients in a wide variety of sectors including the hospitality and tourism industry. Before setting up his own company, Tim worked in senior executive positions in the field of Human Resources for, amongst others, Le Meridien Hotels & Resorts, where he was the Group Human Resources Director for the company, Marriott Vacation Club International, Scott’s Hotels Limited (franchise for Marriott hotels for the UK), and Forte Hotels International.

Frank van der Post, who is Dutch, joined the Jumeirah Group in November 2005 in the capacity of Senior Vice President, Americas and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer of the Jumeirah Group in June 2008. Frank joined Jumeirah from the InterContinental Hotels Group where he worked for over 20 years in various positions and most recently in the capacity of Regional Vice President Operations, Eastern US and The Caribbean and General Manager of The Barclay in New York. In his role with Jumeirah, Frank is responsible for all aspects of the Group’s operations. Frank is a graduate of the Florida International University, School of Hospitality Management where he obtained a Bachelor of Science (BSc.) in Hotel & Restaurant Management and a Master of Science (MSc.) in Hotel Administration.  

Professional Experience

Marco Nijhof, who is Dutch, joined the Jumeirah Group in June 2006 in the capacity of Senior Vice President, Gulf for Jumeirah, based in Dubai. He was promoted in June 2008 with his regional responsibilities being extended to also include the wider Middle East region, Africa and South Asia.

Marco joined Jumeirah from Serena Hotels in France where he held the position of Director of Operations & Development in charge of 22 hotels in 9 countries. Prior to this he served as Chief Operating Officer and Director of the Board of Boscolo International in Italy. In his new role with Jumeirah, Marco is responsible for all aspects of the Group’s operations in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia and he leads the regional support team for the Group.  

Professional Experience
Marwan Al Ali, who was born and raised in the United Arab Emirates, joined Jumeirah Group in May 2007 in the capacity of Chief Technology Officer. Marwan joined Jumeirah from parent company Dubai Holding where he most recently held the position of Deputy CIO and Executive Director in charge of business agility and IT portfolio management. During his tenure with Dubai Holding since the inception of the company in 2004, Marwan has quickly and successfully moved up the ranks and was responsible for the development and deployment of business process transformation and IT projects for all entities within Dubai Holding.

Prior to joining Dubai Holding, Marwan held various management positions in information technology in some of Dubai’s most successful organizations including Emarat Petroleum and DUBAL Aluminum. He brings with him vast experience in all aspects of information technology having worked in a number of different industry sectors throughout his career. Marwan is a graduate of the Etisalat College of Engineering with a Bachelor (Honors) Degree in Engineering in Communications and a National Diploma in Engineering and attended the Cranfield School of Management in the United Kingdom in a general management programme.

Professional Experience
Robert Swade joined the Jumeirah Group in October 2005 in the capacity of General Counsel. He was promoted to Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel in July 2007.

After qualifying as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales at a City of London law firm, Robert moved to Dubai to work for Clyde & Co where he set up and ran the firm’s Dubai Media City office. After four years at Clyde & Co, Robert moved in-house, initially to a Middle East telecommunications company as Director of Legal Affairs and then, in October 2005 to the Jumeirah Group. Before qualifying as a solicitor, Robert was a researcher at the House of Commons and worked for a Government Minister.

Robert holds a LLB degree in English and European Law from the University of Essex and a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the College of Law in London.

Tony Cousens, who possesses dual British and Canadian nationality, joined the Jumeirah Group in April 2008 in the capacity of Senior Vice President Asia Pacific. In his role, Tony is responsible for all of the Group’s activities and operations in the Asia Pacific region and is based in the Group’s regional office in Singapore.

Tony has over 30 years of luxury hospitality experience of which he has spent a significant part in the Asia Pacific region. Tony has managed some of the world’s greatest hotels including The Marina Mandarin Hotel in Singapore and Le Royal Meridien King Edward Hotel in Toronto, Canada. During his career, Tony has worked in senior positions for some of the world’s leading hotel companies including Le Meridien Hotels Group and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts before joining Jumeirah.