Earlier this year, InterGlobe Enterprises and Accor announced that they would consolidate their Indian efforts into a single entity to expand in India and South Asia. As the attempt gains momentum and prepares for launch, a significant appointment has been made in this regard.
Accor appoints Ranju Alex as Chief Executive Officer for South Asia.
Accor, in a significant leadership move, has announced the appointment of Ranju Alex, Marriott International’s (now ex-) Regional Vice President for South Asia, as the CEO of the consolidated India entity it is in the process of setting up. According to some reports, Ranju has already signed off from Marriott International and is now headed to the new setting shortly. Ranju will cover India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Ranju Alex
Marriott has expanded to 170 hotels in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka under its leadership. She began her career at the Oberoi Group, where she remained for 15 years, before moving to Marriott International in 2010. She has since risen to the top, accumulating a total of three decades of experience in hospitality. As recently as last week, she was at a Marriott General Managers conference in Goa, and now she is out of the system.
This is a significant appointment for Accor, as you can imagine, as they have managed to swing Ranju from the market leader in Indian hospitality over to themselves, which should be an indication of their ambition. Marriott has over 30,000 rooms operational in India and is on track to reach 50,000 by 2030. Similarly, Accor plans to expand to 300 Accor-brand hotels in India by 2030, which would triple Accor’s current footprint in India. Accor currently operates 70 hotels in the region with over 30 in the pipeline.
InterGlobe offers the Ibis, Novotel, and some other brands in India, while Accor directly manages some other brands, such as Raffles and Fairmont. Accor and InterGlobe announced earlier this year the creation of a new joint venture, consolidating all their businesses into a single entity, subject to receiving the necessary regulatory approvals.
Gaurav Bhushan, Chairman of the proposed Accor/ InterGlobe JV, said:
We are extremely pleased and excited to welcome Ranju to the Accor and InterGlobe Family. She brings a wealth of rich experience, skills and relationships into our business and we look forward to building the foremost hospitality platform in the region under her leadership.
Ranju Alex said: “
I am delighted to join an organization with the most comprehensive and exciting portfolio of brands in the region. It will be an honor to lead the Group’s vision in this region, and I eagerly look forward to this exciting role.
Bottomline
Accor, which is taking significant steps in India to catch up and pursue massive growth, has just scored one of its most substantial and highest-profile hires in India with Ranju Alex, who until earlier this week was the head of Marriott in South Asia. Ranju Alex will lead the combined operations of the InterGlobe and Accor hospitality entity in India, which is set to go live soon.
What do you think of Accor’s ambition in India given this hiring appointment in India?
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Ummm…no non-compete clause in that contract?
@Prashant, good one.