InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has appointed Jo Dean to the newly created role of meeting & events development manager in a bid to motivate its teams across the Holiday Inn and Crown Plaza brands.

Dean will drive the importance of the department to the hotels, guide and develop managers to learn from each other and ensure the 65 Holiday Inn and Crown Plaza hotels are at the forefront of meeting and event bookers’ minds. She joins IHG from Hilton Group, where she spent 15 years in a variety of roles including conference and banqueting development manager.

Dean said: “I’m developing a community of M&E managers, who are now talking to each other more, sharing information and supporting each other. Our hotels attract large corporate groups and it is crucial that they get the same quality experience at each Holiday Inn they visit - ensuring consistency in standards is absolutely key to building loyalty and reputation.”

Dean added that the teams have just embarked on a new initiative called The Personal Touch. “The initiative encourages local business to put their personality back into business meeting. We are currently providing training to our staff on how to put theory into practice, so they are able to get fully behind our customers’ objectives.”

The appointment reflects IHG’s plan to become "the market leader within the meetings and events sector", following a restructure of the meetings team earlier this year.

Pictured: Jo Dean