Cendant Appoints April R. Urbine and Jeff Smith to Vice President Posts for Wyndham Worldwide
PARSIPPANY, NJ, November 30, 2005. Cendant Hotel Group today announced the appointments of April R. Urbine as vice president of national sales and Jeff Smith as vice president of operations for Wyndham Worldwide.
April R. Urbine, who will lead the hotel chain's group sales efforts, had served Wyndham International since 1987 in a variety of sales capacities, most recently as regional director of national sales based in Irving, Texas, managing a national sales team of 32 professionals responsible for soliciting group and meeting business for the entire Wyndham(R) portfolio.
She earned her bachelor's degree in hospitality management from East Stroudsburg University, East Stroudsburg, Pa., and will be based in Dallas.
Jeff Smith will be responsible for owner relations, managing the field-based directors of business development and providing operational support to all Wyndham hotels. He previously served Omni Hotels in several operations and franchise support roles, most recently as vice president of operations.
From 1990 to 1999 he worked at the property level for several hotels including the Westin Crown Center Hotel in Kansas City, Mo.; the Omni Houston Hotel; the Omni Mandalay Hotel in Irving, Texas; and the Radisson Hotel Akron City Centre in Akron, Ohio.
Smith earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich., and his master's degree in business administration from Rockhurst College, Kansas City, Mo. He will relocate to Parsippany.
Peter Strebel, Wyndham Worldwide president, said Urbine and Smith are veteran hoteliers who will help improve the financial performance of Wyndham hotels. "While April will concentrate her efforts on driving business to the Wyndham system, Jeff will focus on improving the brand's standards and positioning it as a strong competitor in the upscale market," Strebel said.
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