Director of Transitions, Openings and Operational Initiatives

Davidson Hospitality Group•Atlanta, GA

1d•$135,000 - $145,000

About The Position

Davidson Hospitality Group is seeking an experienced hospitality leader to join our team as Director of Transitions, Openings & Operational Initiatives . This is an exciting opportunity for a highly experienced hotel operations professional who thrives in fast-paced environments and enjoys leading complex hotel transitions and openings across a dynamic portfolio of full-service, lifestyle, and resort properties. Reporting to the Senior Director of Openings & Transitions, this role plays a critical part in ensuring seamless hotel openings, property transitions, and operational readiness across Davidson’s growing portfolio. The Director will partner closely with General Managers, corporate leaders, ownership groups, asset managers, and brand partners to coordinate and execute every phase of a transition—from pre-development and onboarding to training and successful launch. This position is ideal for a hospitality “road warrior” who enjoys being on-site where the action happens. The role requires 80%+ travel, working directly with hotel teams to ensure successful transitions, operational excellence, and brand compliance. The successful candidate will bring deep hotel operations experience, exceptional project management and communication skills, and the ability to coordinate multiple stakeholders while keeping complex projects on schedule. Compensation: $135,000 – $145,000 base salary plus bonus.

Requirements

Extensive hotel operations experience, including leadership roles within rooms, food & beverage, and overall hotel operations.
Demonstrated experience leading hotel openings, property transitions, or large-scale operational initiatives within a hospitality organization.
Proven ability to serve as a trusted partner to senior executives, asset managers, ownership groups, and brand partners.
Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence and align diverse teams.
Strong project management and coordination skills with the ability to manage complex initiatives, multiple timelines, and cross-functional teams.
Experience developing and managing transition budgets, operational readiness plans, and project critical paths.
Ability to interpret operational and financial data to support hotel performance and transition success.
Strong leadership presence with the ability to guide General Managers and property teams through complex operational changes.
Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management, Business Administration, or related field, or equivalent experience.
Highly motivated self-starter with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-travel environment.
Willingness and ability to travel extensively (80%+ travel required) and spend extended time on property during critical phases of openings and transitions.
Passion for hospitality, operational excellence, and delivering successful property launches.

Responsibilities

Lead and oversee hotel openings and property transitions, ensuring operational readiness and successful launches across Davidson’s portfolio.
Serve as the primary coordination point between ownership groups, asset managers, brand partners, General Managers, and corporate teams throughout the transition process.
Direct and manage critical paths, project timelines, and transition strategies for hotel openings and management transitions.
Lead cross-functional teams to ensure all transition milestones, operational requirements, and brand standards are achieved.
Establish, refine, and manage pre-opening and transition checklists, project plans, and tracking tools to drive consistency and scalability.
Coordinate and lead recurring critical path meetings with corporate leaders, brand partners, and property teams to monitor progress and resolve issues.
Oversee development and management of pre-opening and transition budgets, ensuring financial discipline and alignment with company objectives.
Partner with Strategic Sourcing teams on OSE specifications, vendor selection, procurement strategy, and budgeting.
Ensure brand compliance and operational standards are met through audits, implementation support, and on-site engagement.
Provide operational guidance to Design and Technical Services teams during model room reviews and back-of-house planning.
Lead the development and execution of multi-week training programs and operational readiness plans for new openings and transitions.
Support property leadership teams through transition announcements, onboarding, operational ramp-up, and go-live execution.
Utilize project management tools to maintain accountability, transparency, and milestone performance across active projects.
Drive continuous improvement of openings and transitions processes, including development of best practices and operational playbooks.
Analyze operational and financial performance data to ensure successful integration and strong property performance post-transition.
Identify operational gaps and collaborate with corporate leaders to enhance standard operating procedures (SOPs), training programs, and operational processes.
Support broader Strategic Operations initiatives, including enterprise systems implementation and operational improvement projects.