The American Hotel & Lodging Association announced today that President and CEO William “Chip” Rogers has resigned “to pursue other professional interests.”
Effective immediately, Kevin Carey will take over as interim president and CEO while continuing in his role as senior executive vice president and COO, AHLA said in a Tuesday statement.
Carey, who has served as AHLA’s COO since 2017, will report directly to AHLA’s board of directors until a permanent president and CEO is selected and onboarded.
AHLA’s board is in the process of forming a committee to identify and evaluate potential replacement candidates.
“As we begin our search for a permanent AHLA president & CEO, the association is in capable hands,” AHLA Board Chair Kevin Jacobs said in a statement. “Kevin’s deep knowledge of AHLA’s operations and his relationships with hospitality stakeholders throughout the industry make him the right leader for AHLA during this transition.”
Rogers steps down after five years at AHLA’s helm. He took to LinkedIn Tuesday to thank the “incredible industry leaders and thousands of hoteliers” he met during his tenure at the association, which has more than 30,000 members. He also thanked his colleagues, noting several “victories” AHLA made while he was CEO.
These include the launch of a global campaign to stop human trafficking and opening “the largest first year trade show in the history of our industry,” Rogers wrote.
Additionally, Rogers made moves on the legislative front, calling out policies he believed would harm hotels, like a proposed Department of Labor rule to expand overtime eligibility.
He also protested the Los Angeles Responsible Hotels Ordinance, which would have required hotels to house those experiencing homelessness in their spare rooms. Following industry opposition, that measure was later pulled from ballots.
Rogers also led AHLA’s Hotels on the Hill event in Washington, D.C. in May, where more than 200 hoteliers lobbied for the expansion of the legal H-2B guestworker program and the passing of other labor-related bills.
