Radisson’s properties in Riga will henceforth be overseen by the hotel group’s new general manager, Gerard Kelly
This summer, experienced hotelier Gerard Kelly (Gerard Kelly) became the new general manager of the international hotel chain Radisson and will henceforth also be responsible for several Radisson Hotel Group properties in Riga. After spending more than 10 years as a hotel manager in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Germany and Russia, he will now also oversee the management and business development of the following hotels in Latvia: Radisson Blu Daugava Hotel, Radisson Hotel Old Town Riga, Park Inn by Radisson Riga Valdemara and Park Inn by Radisson Residence Riga Barona. Kelly will oversee these operations from the company’s central office in Riga.
Gerard Kelly has more than 13 years of experience in the hospitality industry and, throughout his professional career, has overseen the opening and renovation of numerous European hotels. In 2006, he joined the Radisson team as bar manager at the Park Inn Dundalk hotel in Ireland. Three months later, he was promoted to operations manager, and just six months after that he was appointed general manager. Since then, Kelly has opened the Park Inn by Radisson Belfast hotel in Ireland and transformed the Park Inn by Radisson hotel at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow, where he worked for six years from 2010, while also opening a new Radisson Blu Sheremetyevo hotel, which continues to operate successfully.
Gerard Kelly’s previous position was that of general manager at Radisson Blu Berlin—a four-star upper-upscale hotel in Germany—where he spent the last two and a half years, building the international hotel group’s brand, ensuring profitability and significantly increasing the company’s growth indicators. In addition to his native English, he also speaks German and Russian. Over the years, the new general manager has completed several training courses, ranging from a leadership excellence programme to Kenyon crisis management training and a general manager certification programme. He is also a mentor at Radisson Hotel Group and has trained five new general managers since 2008. This is a strategic approach that ensures quality and satisfaction for guests, employees, senior management and owners. Kelly believes that the company’s success depends on its ability to inspire colleagues.
“Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to serve as a mentor and train at least one new general manager every year. In my view, this is the highest possible reward, reflecting the opportunity I have been given and providing immense satisfaction—to see how people can grow and develop in this industry if they have sufficient passion and a desire to succeed. I centre my leadership philosophy on building teams that understand the hotel’s purpose; this must be balanced with an operational and commercial focus, while also being sufficiently bold to provide guests with an outstanding experience and foster loyalty at every level,” says Gerard Kelly.
ABOUT RADISSON HOTEL GROUP
Radisson Hotel Group is one of the world’s largest hotel groups, with seven renowned hotel brands and more than 1,400 hotels worldwide, either actively welcoming guests or soon to be opened. The Radisson Hotel Group brand portfolio includes Radisson Collection, Radisson Blu, Radisson, Radisson RED, Park Plaza, Radisson and Radisson Country Inn & Suites. More than 95,000 international team members work for Radisson Hotel Group and hotels licensed to operate within its systems.
