Amadeus appoints ex-Wyndham CIO Jeff Edwards to lead rapidly expanding hotel division
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Amadeus appoints ex-Wyndham CIO Jeff Edwards to lead rapidly expanding hotel division
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Category: Worldwide - Careers
- Appointments
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2012-02-08
• Edwards brings to Amadeus extensive global experience in hotel distribution and IT systems, an exceptional network and a strong track record in building successful business organizations
• New appointment underlines Amadeus’ further commitment to growing its New Businesses portfolio
Amadeus, a leading travel technology partner and transaction processor for the global travel and tourism industry, today announces the key strategic appointment of hotel industry veteran Jeff Edwards to head up its growing hotel business.
Edwards, formerly Chief Information Officer and EVP Distribution of Wyndham Worldwide, joins Amadeus with a clear brief to quickly expand its burgeoning hotel division; which incorporates both distribution and IT services.
Prior to Wyndham Worldwide, Edwards spent more than five years at Micros Systems Inc where he held a variety of senior roles including President and Chief Executive Officer – Micros Fidelio, as well as Executive Vice President-Micros Distribution for North America. Both before and after his time at Micros Systems, Edwards was an entrepreneur who ran his own hotel and hospitality consulting business, creating numerous new enterprises whilst at the same time winning business from a wide range of leading hotel chains across the globe.
Francisco Pérez-Lozao, Amadeus’ Senior Vice President of New Businesses said of Jeff Edwards’ appointment: “Jeff is quite simply a fantastic appointment for Amadeus and frankly speaking, his record speaks entirely for itself. However, what most attracted us to Jeff is his unique experience on both sides of the commercial fence. As well as holding a senior position in a major global hotel chain and leading one of the most important IT providers in the hotel industry, he has also spent time running his own consulting business, which shows his ability to understand and breach the divide between supplier and customer with ease. Moreover he brings to Amadeus an exceptional network, a deep understanding of the hospitality industry, and a strong track record of building and developing a new business. We are very excited for Jeff to get started”.
Jeff Edwards, Amadeus’ VP of Hotels, commented: “I’m delighted to join Amadeus to develop the company’s hospitality business. I look forward to starting work with the excellent team of professionals that Amadeus has and keep delivering the technology solutions and distribution reach that have made Amadeus one of the most credible and reliable players in the hotel industry to date.”
Edwards officially joined Amadeus on 1 February 2012 and will be based in Madrid, Spain. With the addition of Jeff to the newly created New Business division in Amadeus, the company has completed the incorporation of three industry heavyweights – Thomas Drexler for Rail, John Jarrell for Airport IT and Jeff Edwards for Hotels - bringing unrivalled experience in the travel industry that will contribute to the company’s effort in diversifying the business.
About Amadeus
Amadeus is a leading transaction processor and provider of advanced technology solutions for the global travel and tourism industry.
Customer groups include travel providers (e.g. airlines, hotels, rail, ferries, etc.), travel sellers (travel agencies and websites), and travel buyers (corporations and individual travellers).
The group operates a transaction-based business model and processed 850 million billable travel transactions in 2010.
Amadeus has central sites in Madrid (corporate headquarters), Nice (development) and Erding (Operations – data processing centre) and regional offices in Miami, Buenos Aires, Bangkok and Dubai. At a market level, Amadeus maintains customer operations through 73 local Amadeus Commercial Organisations covering 195 countries.
Amadeus is listed on the Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao and Valencia stock exchanges and trades under the symbol “AMS.MC”. For the year ended 31 December 2010, the company reported revenues of EUR 2,683 million and EBITDA of EUR 1,015 million. The Amadeus group employs around 10,000 employees worldwide, with 123 nationalities represented at the central offices.
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