Atlantis Rising

A trio of experienced hospitality leaders join Atlantis Hospitality Group

. October 14, 2008

JULY 8, 2008. Three of the brightest minds in the hospitality industry have come together to form Atlantis Hospitality Group, giving hotel investment groups and developers a full-service consulting resource with more than 100 years of combined experience in providing cost-effective solutions to specific hotel operational needs.

The Atlantis Hospitality consultants - Ray Hobbs (Senior VP for Kelco Management and Development), Ray Burger (founder and president of Pineapple Hospitality) and Diane Bogino (President of Performance Strategies, Inc.) - bring specialized expertise in all facets of hotel and resort management, including turn-key operational support, sales development, marketing programs, asset management, franchise alignment and temporary hotel management.

'In the past couple of years, I've received a number of phone calls from hotel industry associates I've met in my 40 years in the hotel business who said 'I've got this problem. Can you help me fix this?'' says Atlantis Hospitality's Ray Hobbs. 'They are looking for experienced help to identify their issues and develop long-term solutions - not just put a band-aids on them.'

'We're not long-term management. We're here to help quickly identify and fix your problems,' Hobbs adds. 'We are a one-stop source for investment groups, financial institutions, small to mid-sized independent owners, or management companies to call on when they need special-project assistance.'

Short-Term Management,Long-Term Solutions

Atlantis Hospitality Group's consulting engagements typically range two to eight weeks, with an objective to create efficient and cost-effective long-term solutions for hotel operators.

Hobbs explains several scenarios where Atlantis Hospitality's expertise would be needed:

An investment group purchases a property, but members of the management team move on,
A certain department isn't performing up to expectations,
Costs overruns or inefficiencies become problematic,
A property wants to go green or implement a new project, or
Overall financial performance isn't what it should be.

In each of these cases, Atlantis Hospitality has the experience to come in and evaluate the organization, take charge of the circumstances and implement solutions.

'Hotel operators often find situations where they need somebody to come in and say 'Here's what you need to do,'' Hobbs says. 'We can identify the core issues, put a plan in place, then go through an analysis of the team and infrastructure to support the action plan to get them on the right track.'

The consultants with Atlantis Hospitality approach each situation and opportunity with fresh eyes and provide clients with working solutions. In-depth analysis with realistic, cost-effective solutions is what separates the Atlantis consulting group from competitors.

'Each of the consultants with Atlantis has his or her own individual specialties, but combined our expertise ranges across every facet of hotel management,' Ray Burger says. 'Beyond that, we have a pool of other professional industry consultants we can call on. Whether it's developing a Web site or assisting with purchasing or almost anything else, we help you fix your problems.'

'While we all have a great background in the business, it's critical we be able to identify quickly where the core issues are and create solutions that are effective long-term solutions in a short amount of time. That's what we can accomplish with our talented team of hospitality specialists,' Burger says.

Specialized services provided by Atlantis Hospitality include:

o Green Hotels,

o Human Resources,

o Management,

o Accounting,

o Operations,

o Real Estate,

o Renovation Oversight,

o Reporting Processes,

o Restaurants,

o Sales, and

o Marketing.

For more detailed descriptions of each of these categories visit www.atlantishospitalitygroup.com.

Ray Hobbs: Management & Operations

As Senior Vice President for Kelco Management and Development, a privately held hotel company in Jacksonville, Fla., Hobbs oversees and directs the operations of the company's managed hotels. Prior to his role at Kelco, Hobbs served as President and C.O.O. at Divi Resorts, a timeshare multi-use resort company with nine resorts on six Caribbean islands. Hobbs created strategies and an Executive Team to provide leadership and direction for the company's future growth.

Hobbs has acquired extensive experience in all hotel related disciplines. He has served in management roles for franchise affiliations such as Hilton, Sheraton, Holiday Inn, and Clarion Hotels. His success is a result of his unique ability to quickly define business issues and implement actions to direct cost-effective solutions toward improving results. Hobbs' background includes development of sales, marketing, and operations strategies to revive and/or reposition hotel operations.

Hobbs also serves on the Board of Advisors for Pineapple Hospitality's EcoRooms & EcoSuites (www.EcoRooms.com), the hospitality industry's leading directory and integrated booking agent of environmentally friendly hotels, inns, motels and B&Bs.

Ray Burger: Green Guru

Ray Burger, President and Founder of Pineapple Hospitality (www.PineappleHospitality.net) has more than 30 years of experience in the lodging industry, including 18 years as an award-winning general manager and multi-property manager of hotels including Hilton, Doubletree, Radisson and Holiday Inn. In addition, he has been supplying hotels with environmental products, programs and services for more than 12 years.

Throughout his career, Burger has maintained a consistent approach to enhancing guest satisfaction, while remaining focused on bottom-line profitability.

As a general manager, he consistently increased revenues at his properties by exceeding guest expectations, a philosophy that is fundamental to the operation and product offerings of Pineapple.

Diane Bogino: Leadership & Training

Diane Bogino helps organizations diagnose and solve problems within leadership and management, such as retention, performance improvement and training. Her cutting-edge diagnostic and assessment tools help identify and solve development issues. Bogino assists organizations with meeting today's challenge of producing more with fewer resources for customers who demand more for less. She helps companies become more productive and make better educated hiring decision in order to thrive in a highly competitive marketplace.

As President of Performance Strategies, Inc., a thriving consulting, coaching and training company. She understands what it takes to make a business profitable and help people perform at the top of their games. She has more than 20 years experience in training and speaking and has trained thousands of participants, in a variety of industries to change attitudes and behaviors, become leaders, public speakers, dynamic communicators, work through conflict and improve personal/professional development.

She is the author of four books. Her newest, What's in Your Hiring System, is scheduled to be published this year. She also has written several articles on customer service, communications, personal development, and leadership.

Atlantis In Action

Though his hotel and conference center hasn't opened yet, Bob McElwee, partner and marketing director for Green Mill Village, says that Atlantis Hospitality Group already has made a tremendous impact on the project.

Green Mill Village is a 100-acre 'green village' near Arcola, Ill., set to open in the fall 2009. The village will include a lodge/conference center, spa, restaurants, retail center and education center - all operated on wind turbines and solar power.

'Having Atlantis Hospitality Group involved in the start-up process has been great for someone like me who doesn't come from a hotel background,' McElwee says. 'I've had other consultants who haven't worked out. But Ray Hobbs and Ray Burger sat down with me and really examined the entire project and situation before they even decided they could help me. They've really been hands-on - they look at everything I do and give me real feedback on what I'm doing right and what we can do better.'

Styled in a 1940s theme, Green Mill Village will be an unprecedented Midwestern sustainable project, from both an environmental and an economic standpoint. Foods will be local and organic. The local Amish community will narrate tours of the countryside on electric trolleys or horse-and-buggy. An educational center will provide visitors with a snapshot of the region and the village, as well as offer interactive videos focused on agriculture, alternative energy and responsible tourism.

'Ray Burger's knowledge of the green world and what responsible travel is all about and Ray Hobbs's understanding of finances have been a tremendous resource to us,' McElwee says. 'They have so many years of experience in the hotel and travel industry - you can't just pick up all that knowledge in a book or on the Internet. They keep me from making mistakes because they've already been there - they've seen those mistakes in their careers - and know how to prevent those mistakes. .'

'Their expertise and thorough approach has been invaluable in moving this project along.'

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