Marriott Executive Apartments Manama Hosted Hotel HR Leaders Meeting

In cooperation with the Specific Council for Training in Hospitality Sector, the Marriott Executive Apartments has recently hosted HR Leaders Meeting for 4 & 5-Star hotels in Bahrain.

More than 20 hotels’ senior Human Resources personnel and representatives of the Specific Council for Training in Hospitality Sector attended the meeting, as well as the Head of Corporate Service Bureau in the Ministry of Labour, Mr. Farooq Jaffar, the General Manager of Marriott Executive Apartments Hossein Garan, and Human Resources Manager, Loay Mamdouh.

The meeting started by a welcoming message from General Manager Hossein Garan and Human Resources Manager Loay Mamdouh, thanking the Ministry of Labour for their support during the opening of Marriott, as well as appreciating the government efforts and initiatives in the development of hotel industry.

On behalf of his Excellency the Minister of Labour, Mr. Farooq Jaffar expressed his sincere appreciation to all participants for their efforts to build two-ways communication between the government and private sector.

Discussion involved Bahrainization in hotel sector where Mr. Jaffar listened to the hoteliers’ concerns and showed his understanding to their challenges in the field of workforce. Mr. Jaffar said that the Ministry of Labour is keen to facilitate and work closely with all tourism stakeholders in order to enhance the Bahrainization program in hotel sector.

Head of Corporate Service Bureau Mr. Farooq Jaffar (centre) poses together with the General Manager of Marriott Executive Apartments Manama, Hossein Garan (left) and the Human Resource Manager, Loay Mamdouh (right) at the Apartment's lobby after the meeting.

“On behalf of the Ministry of Labour, I am glad to attend this meeting and I would like to thank the Marriott Executive Apartments, who proposed such a great initiative to host this valuable gathering that I believe would have a positive impact on the future of human resources development in tourism and hotel industry in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” said Mr. Jaffar.

Mr. Jaffar continued, he is looking forward to attending follow up meetings to generate more beneficial cooperation between the Ministry of Labour and the hotel sector.

Speaking from his office in Al Fateh, Human Resources Manager Loay Mamdouh expressed his gratitude to the Specific Council for Training in Hospitality Sector, especially the Executive Director Mr. Ali Sulaybeekh, for giving the Marriott Executive Apartments the opportunity to host the event.

“I appreciate the cooperation extended from the Ministry of Labour during our opening and we look forward to a continuous support for all the upcoming Marriott International projects in Bahrain," said Loay Mamdouh who chaired the meeting.

"I believe, this meeting was an eye opener and an opportunity for generating ideas from the HR professionals in the hotels sector, on how to create a mutual cooperation between the sector and the government with regards to the Kingdom initiative of Bahrainization. Thanks to all the Specific Council representatives and hotel HR leaders for coming and being actively participating in the meeting,” added Loay.

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Marriott Executive Apartments, the upscale serviced apartment brand of Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) will nearly double in size in the next 36 months to respond to a growing need in many emerging markets for long-term stay lodging for executive expatriates needing spacious housing and hotel amenities. Including Bahrain, Marriott operates 17 Marriott Executive Apartments in 14 countries outside the U.S., and 14 more hotels are planned in countries such as Qatar, Thailand, Egypt, China, India, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL, Inc. (NYSE:MAR) is a leading lodging company with more than 3,100 lodging properties in the United States and 66 other countries and territories. Marriott International operates and franchises hotels under the Marriott, JW Marriott, The Ritz-Carlton, Renaissance, Residence Inn, Courtyard, TownePlace Suites, Fairfield Inn, SpringHill Suites and Bulgari brand names; develops and operates vacation ownership resorts under the Marriott Vacation Club, Horizons by Marriott Vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton Club and Grand Residences by Marriott brands; operates Marriott Executive Apartments; provides furnished corporate housing through its Marriott ExecuStay division; and operates conference centers. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., and had approximately 151,000 employees at 2007 year-end. It is ranked as the lodging industry’s most admired company and one of the best companies to work for by FORTUNE®, and has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the 2007 Sustained Excellence Award and Partner of the Year since 2004. In fiscal year 2007, Marriott International reported sales from continuing operations of $13 billion. For more information or reservations, please visit our web site at www.marriott.com.