Robert J. Cataldo, vice chairman and chief operating officer, maintains responsibility for all operations of hotels, resorts and restaurants in the company’s management portfolio and development pipeline. Mr. Cataldo also directs the company’s relationships with hotel owners, financial and institutional fund managers and hotel franchise companies.

Mr. Cataldo’s experience spans four decades and includes posts as general manager and as director of food and beverage with various branded and independent hotels, including the post of General Manager at the famed Ambassador West Hotel on Chicago’s Gold Coast. Mr. Cataldo has developed and held operational responsibility for more than 300 hotels and resorts with asset value exceeding $3 billion.

Among his many accomplishments, which include leading a dedicated executive staff at Hostmark, Mr. Cataldo's vast experience and foresight into consumer trends prompted the launch of Amalfi, Hostmark’s boutique hotel concept, as well as the company’s international expansion, creating and bringing the Hostmark hotel brand to the global market.

Known throughout the industry as having a "hands on" approach, Mr. Cataldo is a respected leader among hotel operators internationally. In 2008, Mr. Cataldo was awarded the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association's J. Patrick Leahy Lifetime Achievement Award in its inaugural year, recognizing enduring excellence in the hospitality industry. Mr. Cataldo serves on numerous academic and industry boards, including those of Roosevelt University’s Manfred Steinfeld School of Hospitality Management, as well as the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association.

William D. Gingrich, II, executive vice president and CFO, began his career in the hospitality industry in 1979 after successfully working with a local CPA firm and obtaining his CPA certificate. His extensive hospitality experience includes new hotel development, business development, corporate financial and tax restructuring, acting as interim president of a national franchise company, and being the Chief Operating Officer for a Denver-based hotel company.

With Hostmark Hospitality Group, he maintains oversight over financing, budgeting, tax structuring and risk management. Additionally, Mr. Gingrich governs the acquisition and development components of all Hostmark Hospitality Group ventures. He holds a degree from Western Michigan University, is an active member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), and Hospitality Financial and Technology Professional Organizations, and is the past president of the Colorado Association of Hospitality Accountants.

Peter D. Connolly, executive vice president of operations and development, has had a distinguished career in a variety of legal and business roles with prestigious travel and hospitality organizations. Mr. Connolly was of counsel to Jeffer, Mangel, Butler & Marmaro in its global hospitality practice, where he designed and documented hotel financial structures, including hotel condominium and traditional hotel structures, and negotiated management agreements, hotel purchase and hotel finance agreements on behalf of various developer and management company clients.

From 1982 to 2000, Connolly was with the Hyatt organization as general counsel, where he was responsible for hotel operating legal issues, acquisitions, divestitures, financings, management arrangements and owner relationships. In 1996 and 1997, Connolly ran Hyatt’s development department, and was responsible for the acquisition and/or development of a number of Hyatt properties. Connolly retired from Hyatt in 2000 as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Information Officer of the company.

Mr. Connolly is a member of the bars of Illinois, the District of Columbia, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and the United States Supreme Court. He is a graduate of Providence College and Catholic University Law School.

R. Haydn Kramer, Vice President of Operations, has over 18 years of diverse hotel experience, including more than ten years with Marriott International, Inc., in roles that utilized his talents in sales and marketing, as well as in leadership. During his tenure with Marriott as Regional Manager, he was responsible for 30 Residence Inn and Courtyard brand properties in Detroit, MI; the state of Indiana; and Atlanta, GA, and he was instrumental in the design and management of Marriott’s multi-brand sales effort in the Detroit market. Haydn was a member of the Marriott 2000 Task Force responsible for design and implementation of the model for Marriott sales worldwide, which included systems, structure and computer database design. He also served Marriott as Full Service General Manager and as Area General Manager.

In addition, Mr. Kramer has held a variety of executive positions with Concord Hospitality, including Vice President of Operations. An outstanding example of hospitality community involvement, Haydn has served in Convention and Visitors’ Bureaus in Houston, Toledo and Detroit. Mr. Kramer holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California - Irvine in Planning and Public Policy with a minor in Journalism.

Peter Ehrenberg, Vice President of Operations, brings over 25 years of management and executive experience to the Select Group of Hotels within Hostmark Hospitality Group. The Select Group consists of branded properties located in the Midwest, which include Holiday Inn Express, Hampton Inn, Comfort Inn & Suites, Days Inn, Quality Inn and Super 8 hotels.

Over an eight-year period, Mr. Ehrenberg worked for Larkspur Hotels & Restaurants as Area Manager for five Hilton Garden Inns and was promoted to Vice President of Operations overseeing eleven Larkspur Landing Hotels located in the Pacific Northwest, Sacramento, California and the San Francisco South Bay area.

In addition Mr. Ehrenberg has held management & executive positions with Fairmont Hotels, Outrigger Lodging, Sunstone Hotel Properties and the CapStar Hotel Company. Mr. Ehrenberg is an accomplished executive and diverse professional who is results driven and ensures the highest standards of quality and maximum profitability.

Brian Tkac, Senior Vice President of Marketing & Sales  oversees sales, marketing and revenue management for Hostmark’s portfolio of hotels, resorts and restaurants. In this role, Mr. Tkac develops and implements initiatives that increase hotel market share, and continues to evolve Hostmark’s vision for SMART (Sales, Marketing & Revenue Team), by providing cohesive direction to deliver superior results in top-line performance. Mr. Tkac directs the firm’s international sales force, branding, communications and integrated marketing platforms including digital and social media.

Mr. Tkac has over twenty five years of sales & marketing experience in hotels and resorts, and joined Hostmark in 1994 after holding numerous executive sales and marketing positions, including corporate director of marketing and regional director of sales and marketing. In addition to these roles, Mr. Tkac has held executive positions with Interstate Hotels and Resorts, where he facilitated sales division transitions of all newly acquired hotels and resorts. He has extensive experience with Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, Carlson, InterContinental Hotels Group, Wyndham Hotel Group, and the development of independent brands. Mr. Tkac holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Illinois State University and attended the Booth School of Business graduate marketing program at the University of Chicago. He has served on numerous advisory boards including HSMAI - Digital Marketing and Carino Hotels.

Edward F. Richter, Hostmark’s vice president of sales strategic accounts, is a veteran of the field, and came to Hostmark from the Hilton Corporation. As Hilton's vice president of sales and marketing, he was in charge of all sales and marketing operations for corporate-managed Hilton Hotels in the Midwest and on the East Coast, as well as being directly responsible for Hilton’s national sales offices in the same areas. He helped in the development of conference center facilities at these properties, which created a new marketing thrust for the Hilton Corporation. Since joining Hostmark in 1987 as vice president of sales and marketing, Mr. Richter's cutting edge sales concepts have established Hostmark's group sales departments as the driving force within the convention and conference center industry. His involvement for over 30 years with association and trade show markets has also helped strengthen Hostmark's position in these key sales areas.