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 Hyatt Hotels Sets Up Management Succession Plan 
 
CHICAGO - June 9, 1999--Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced today a management succession plan which will become effective on January 1, 2000. At that time, the following will occur: 
  1. Douglas G. Geoga, President of the company since June, 1994, will become a partner with Pritzker Family interests and assume management responsibility in a new entity which will provide mezzanine financing in the hospitality industry for both Hyatt and non Hyatt projects; 
  2. Scott D. Miller, Executive Vice President of Hyatt Development Corporation since August, 1998, will become President of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, and 
  3. Edward W. Rabin, Executive Vice President of Hyatt Hotels Corporation since 1990, will assume the additional title and responsibilities of Chief Operating Officer for the company. Until January 1, 2000, Messrs. Geoga, Miller and Rabin will continue in their present roles.
"Effective succession planning is an essential element of a well-managed company," said Thomas J. Pritzker, Chairman of Hyatt Hotels Corporation. "Our objective is to assure that Hyatt always has the benefit of a management team that is dynamic in continuing the evolution of the company, while providing the benefit of our considerable operating experience and preserving the best of our cherished company culture. Setting this succession plan in advance allows us to achieve these objectives with a smooth and seemless transition."

Mr. Geoga first joined Hyatt in 1983 as counsel in its development department. "It has been an privilege to be a part of this organization for the last sixteen years," said Mr. Geoga. "I am extremely proud of what has been accomplished at Hyatt in recent years, very pleased to have the opportunity to continue to be associated with the Pritzker Family in new endeavors, and happy to know that Hyatt Hotels Corporation will be in such good hands." Mr. Geoga's new partnership with Pritzker Family interests will be focused on making hospitality related investments, including providing mezzanine debt and other forms of financing to both Hyatt and nonHyatt hospitality projects and entities.

Mr. Miller, who joined Hyatt Development Corporation in 1998 following his work as President of United Infrastructure Company, a partnership of Bechtel Enterprises and Peter Kiewit  Sons, and previous work as a partner of The John Buck Company, indicated that he was very pleased to undertake the challenges of his new position.

"Hyatt has a well-deserved reputation for providing superior service to its guests and superior financial returns to the owners of Hyatt Hotels. Ed Rabin and I are anxious to preserve and enhance that reputation and to continue to improve the performance of the company," he said. "The continued progress of the company is made possible by the many dedicated and highly talented professionals who work for Hyatt around the country and the world and with whom I am proud to be associated."

Mr. Rabin, who has served Hyatt since joining the company in 1969 as an assistant manager at Hyatt Regency Atlanta, also indicated that he was looking forward to assuming his additional responsibilities.

"Hyatt is a unique blend of entrepenuerial spirit and experience," he said, "and I look forward to working with Scott to continue to build on the sound platform of our current position and our successful operations."

Hyatt Hotels Corporation has recently been recognized for the quality of its customer services, including ranking "Highest in Guest Satisfaction Among Upscale Hotel Chains" in the J. D. Power and Associates 1999 Domestic Hotel Guest Satisfaction Study, and receiving a number one ranking in the upscale segment in the 1999 Business Travel News Top U.S. Hotel Chain Survey. In addition, Hyatt Gold Passport, Hyatt's frequent guest program, received six 1999 Freddie Awards from Inside Flyer magazine, more than any other hotel company. And in Recommend magazine's 1999 Annual Readers Choice Awards, travel agents across North America voted Hyatt their Clients' Favorite Luxury Hotels and Resorts. The company has announced a significant number of new additions to the Hyatt chain, including two new hotels added within the last several weeks, three additional properties to open later this year and ten additional hotels to open within the following eighteen months.

"It is consistent with the reputation and traditions of our company that succession be planned well in advance and be smoothly and effectively executed at an appropriate time of our choosing. It is a great luxury to be able to work toward that end with good friends," said Mr. Geoga.

There are 190 Hyatt hotels and resorts around the world. Hyatt Hotels Corporation and its subsidiaries operate 111 hotels and resorts in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean. Hyatt International, through its subsidiaries, operates 79 hotels and resorts in 34 countries. 

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Contact:
Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Gary Ross
312/750-8091
http://www.hyatt.com
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Also See: Toronto and Calgary Sites for Two New Hyatts / Feb 1999 
350-Room Hyatt Regency Hotel to Be Built on Hudson River Pier by Mack-Cali Realty Corp. / May 1999 

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