MONTVALE, N.J. (Oct. 25, 2010) - Dolce Hotels and Resorts, operator of 27 upscale hotels, resorts and conference hotels in North America and Europe, has appointed Mark O�Brien of Ridgewood, N.J., as general manager of The Thayer Hotel, a 149-room, historic hotel and meeting center on the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

O�Brien, a 21-year lodging veteran, formerly was executive vice president of Impulsive Group, a lifestyle hospitality development company based in New York, where he responsible for overall strategy, management and growth.  From 2006 to 2009 he served Hampshire Hotels and Resorts as general manager of the 208-room Dream hotel, 193-room Time hotel, 72-room Night hotel and 7,000-square-foot Chopra Center and Spa, all in New York

He was general manager of The Maritime Hotel in New York from 2004 to 2006.  From 1999 to 2004, he was general manager of Quikbook Inc., an online hotels booking site, where he was responsible for sales, marketing, customer relationship management, the company�s call center, accounting, human resources and two websites.

From 1996 to 1999, O�Brien was general manager of Hotel Wales, an 89-room boutique hotel on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.  Prior to that, he served the Waldorf=Astoria hotel in New York as front office manager and director of rooms revenue maximization.  From 1989 to 1994, he served the Hilton New York as assistant director of front office operations and assistant manager and front desk supervisor.

O�Brien is a 1989 graduate of Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich., where he received a bachelor�s degree in food systems economics and management.  He was inducted into the Waldorf=Astoria Distinguished Alumni in 2007.

Constructed in 1926 to accommodate Military Academy personnel and their guests, The Thayer features 10 function rooms totaling more than 15,000 square feet of space that can accommodate groups of 15 to 300 for corporate retreats, training, seminars, team-building and weddings.

The Thayer Hotel�s amenities and services include a full-service restaurant, sports lounge, room service and fitness room.  The hotel has been a popular wedding venue for nearly 100 years, and its Sunday Champagne Brunch has been honored as "The Best Brunch in the Hudson Valley" by Hudson Valley magazine for the last seven consecutive years.

The Gothic Revival-styled building, designed by Caughey and Evans of New York, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  The hotel, which underwent a $26 million restoration in 1999 and additional renovations in 2003 and 2004, is named for U.S. Army Col. Sylvanus Thayer, "the father of the Military Academy," who served as its superintendent from 1817 to 1833.

Dolce Hotels and Resorts, founded in 1981, is majority-owned by Broadreach Capital Partners. The company, headquartered in Montvale, N.J., employs more than 4,000 worldwide. Additional information is available at www.dolce.com.

Dolce�s portfolio includes properties in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Colorado, California, Texas, Nevada, Ontario, Belgium, France, Spain and Germany.

As a leader in the meetings industry, Dolce hosts some 30,000 events and 4 million group clients globally every year.  The company�s founder pioneered the conference center concept and Complete Meeting Package, both now embraced as standards by the International Association of Conference Centers.

The company�s vision is to create inspiring environments that bring people together, and its mission is to delight its guests, challenge its associates, reward its owners and serve as a role model in its communities.