CHARLOTTE, NC (September 24, 2009) — Kris Horacek, the new General Manager  of the Charlotte Marriott SouthPark, pulls double duty — she is also the General Manager of the Renaissance Charlotte SouthPark Hotel. While she’s not the only female general manager in Charlotte, she is the first and only one overseeing the operation of two hotels situated approximately two blocks from one another.  Now how is that for multi-tasking extraordinaire?

Ms. Horacek’s path to the hospitality industry was not a clear-cut one.  Hailing from a family who was firmly entrenched in the medical field, she originally wanted to be a doctor.  But she somehow found herself managing office buildings and shopping malls and before she knew it, she was giving a real estate class and met some guys from Marriott, and the rest, as they say, is history.
 
She began her career in the hospitality industry 21 years ago as a Director of Sales for two Residence Inns in Omaha, Nebraska and within six months, was a dual general manager for the same two Residence Inns in the city.  She later became the Senior Project Facilitator for the Lynx Project, an efficiency project for Marriott’s select service brands across the country, then the Regional Director for Marriott’s Extended Stay brands in New England. Kris was then promoted to Vice President, Extended Stay Lodging in 2000 and then in 2002 promoted to Vice President Market Strategy where she was responsible for pricing strategy in the Northeast Region for Marriott.  In May of 2007, Kris became the General Manager of the Renaissance Charlotte SouthPark where she was responsible for converting and opening a former Hyatt Hotel in suburban Charlotte.  In July of 2009, she was given the added responsibilities of managing the Charlotte Marriott SouthPark.

One defining quality of Ms. Horacek is the fact that she is a “hands-on” general manager.  One week you may find her working in the housekeeping department of the hotel, and the next in the banquet department or restaurant. And that doesn’t mean she is just observing the work of her team.  She is actually in the guest rooms making beds, clearing tables, and doing whatever a team member of that department would do.
 
Ms. Horacek believes that her gender provides an innate ability to be a great general manager.  After all, women are more likely to notice the little details like the special touches of design, the way things are arranged, etc. 
 
Her instinctive nurturing ability also directs her desire to manage her staff like a family with the philosophy that it is important that each team member take care of one another. As a result, she personally interviews every potential hire for both hotels to ensure they will be a good fit with “the family.”
 
While her leisure time is limited, Kris, who resides in South Carolina with her husband, John and is a proud mother of two children, grandmother to six grandchildren, and “mother” of four dogs, enjoys golf, working out with a trainer, and Yoga to de-stress.