Sally Alkatat

Sally Alkatat is Development Manager for Middle East & Africa region at IHG^®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. She is responsible for developing IHG’s brands across strategic markets in the Middle East and Africa regions focusing on Saudi Arabia. Sally understands investors’ objectives and works collaboratively with them to create tailored solutions aiming at delivering strong returns for their projects.

Sally has over 6 years’ experience in hospitality in the MEA region. Prior to joining IHG, Sally led a variety of projects in her consultant role at JLL conducting financial hotel development studies and representing owners in contracts negotiations.

Sally holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Saint Joseph University in Lebanon.

Diego Alvarez

Diego Alvarez is Development Director for Iberia at IHG^®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. He is responsible for the development and growth of IHG´s brand portfolio across Spain, Portugal, Andorra & Gibraltar, with a strong focus on limited service, boutique, lifestyle and luxury brands.

Diego holds a Degree in Tourism Management from University of Asturias (Spain) and has obtained certifications from Cornell University in Hotel Real State Investments and Asset Management, Hotel Revenue Management, and Strategic Leadership for the Hospitality Professional.

Chris Anklin

Chris Anklin is Senior Development Director for South East Asia & Korea at IHG, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. Based in Singapore, Chris is responsible for supporting the strategic growth of the IHG brands in South East Asia & Korea, with a strong focus on both city and resort hotels in Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. 

Chris previously worked at Hyatt Hotels Corporation, which he had joined as part of its successful acquisition of Two Roads Hospitality in January 2019. At Hyatt, he was responsible for several key signings across Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Maldives, and South Korea. With Two Roads Hospitality, Chris had been responsible for development in Asia Pacific (minus China) and the Middle East. Prior to this, Chris had held a similar position for one of Thailand's leading hotel management companies. In addition to his expertise in hotel development, Chris has over eight years of consulting experience across EMEA and Asia Pacific, during which he advised major international hotel management companies as well as asset management and investment firms within the hospitality industry. He was also involved in a hospitality start-up company in Hong Kong which aimed to deliver exceptional experiences to high net worth individuals.

Chris earned a Bachelor’s Degree in International Hotel Management with a specialization in Hotel Finance from Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) in Switzerland. He has written and published several articles on the hospitality industry and previously served as the EHL Alumni Chapter President for Great Britain. As a dual Swiss/Norwegian citizen, Chris has spent over 28 years in Asia.

Charbel Boutros

Charbel Boutros is Vice President of Development for Middle East & Africa region at IHG^®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. He is responsible for leading and driving the strategic growth and distribution of IHG brands, focusing on priority markets within MEA.

Charbel brings in-depth experience in the region across major hospitality chains and expertise in the completion of major deals and transactions. Prior to joining IHG, he was with Roya International for 17 years, holding various roles covering development strategy, hotel development, hotel portfolio strategy, asset management, M&A, tourism, master planning, F&B services and franchising. He was most recently Senior Director of Hospitality and Development Strategy, where he contributed to growth and expansion of Roya’s services to become the leading hospitality consultancy practice in the region. He was also responsible for business development related to hospitality strategy and transactions, leading business sales, deal negotiations and closure of business practice assignments. During his tenure, he completed the development of several hotels such as St. Regis, Shangri-La Hotel Abu-Dhabi, W Doha and developed local brands such as Media One and Studio One hotels as a client representative and hospitality advisor. He also worked with renowned architects such as Jean Nouvel, Zaha Hadid, Oppenheim, PEI, Arquitectonica on landmark hospitality and mixed-use projects.

Daniel Bowen

Daniel Bowen is Development Manager for DACH at IHG^®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. Daniel is responsible for developing IHG´s brands across the DACH region through franchise and management agreements and working collaboratively with development partners to deliver strong returns for owners.

Daniel re-joined IHG in 2021, having worked within the IHG Headquarters in Denham supporting the Development Team in different functions, spanning various operational and analysis roles in Germany and the UK at both hotel and corporate level. Prior to IHG, Daniel worked in Hotel Development and Acquisition departments for IHG's business partners in Germany and the Netherlands, driving growth and expansion within Northern Europe.

Daniel is an honours graduate of Brighton University in the UK and IU Internationale Hochschule in Bad Honnef, Germany, where he has also been a guest lecturer.

Cameron Burke

Cameron Burke is the Director of Development for Australasia & Pacific at IHG®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. He is responsible for driving the expansion and execution of IHG’s portfolio growth strategy across the Australasia & Pacific region.

Cameron brings a wealth of corporate expertise in the hospitality industry. He began his career as a corporate lawyer, where he spent a number of years advising hospitality companies throughout Asia-Pacific, the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East, including with Delaware North in Australia and Wyndham Worldwide in London.

Prior to joining IHG in 2023, Cameron was the Director of Investments & Portfolio Growth at Choice Hotels, leading their corporate development function for Asia-Pacific. In this role, he was responsible for delivering non-organic cross-border portfolio growth through M&A, direct capital allocations and strategic partnerships targeting advanced and emerging markets across the region.

Cameron holds a Bachelor of Business majoring in Finance and a Bachelor of Laws from Queensland University of Technology. He has also attained a Certificate in Hotel Real Estate Investments and Asset Management from Cornell University.

Greg Childs

Greg Childs is Development Director for UK & Ireland at IHG^®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. He is responsible for growing IHG's development opportunities encompassing luxury, upscale and mainstream opportunities through managed and franchised deal structures in one of IHG’s key global markets.

Prior to joining IHG, Greg was an Executive Vice President in the JLL Hotels & Hospitality team with a specific focus on hotel operator selection, contract negotiation and development advisory. 

He has over 20 years of experience in the hospitality sector, having advised numerous clients on hotel developments and investments throughout the EMEA region. During his career, Greg has been involved in investment and advisory work for hotel schemes ranging from budget hotels to major mixed-use resorts and prime luxury hotels. 

Greg holds a MSc in Real Estate Management from The University of Exeter and is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Anna Church

Anna Church is Development Manager for Australasia & Pacific region at IHG®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. She is responsible for supporting the development and growth of IHG’s portfolio of brands across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.

Prior to joining IHG, she worked for PKF hotelexperts in London where she led feasibility studies and valuations in more than 15 countries across Europe and North America over the past four years. Anna also has operational experience having held supervisory positions in restaurant operations across three properties for the Dorchester Collection in the UK.

Anna is an alumnus of the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne in Switzerland, from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in International Hospitality Management with Honours, specializing in Finance.

François de Laveaucoupet

François de Laveaucoupet is the Development Director for Europe at IHG®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies. He is responsible for the development & growth of IHG’s brand portfolio across France.

Francois brings over 10 years of experience in hospitality property investment and hotel acquisition. Prior to IHG, he was most recently the Senior Vice President of Investment at GCP Hospitality where he was responsible for leading the hotel investment strategy in the Europe and Asia Pacific hospitality real estate markets. He participated in the acquisition of over 25 hotels around the world representing more than USD 2.5B in face value.

Francois holds a Masters in Finance from the ESSCA Business School.