Jolyon Bulley will succeed Elie Maalouf as CEO of InterContinental Hotels Group’s Americas business, the company announced today. 

Bulley has been IHG’s Greater China CEO since 2018. Before that, he was IHG Americas’ COO from 2014 to 2017, as well as the group's transformation lead for Luxury & Lifestyle and a member of IHG's executive committee.

“Over the last five years, Jolyon has guided Greater China through the pandemic and into the recovery, further strengthened our owner relationships and continued to grow the business at pace,” said Maalouf in a company statement. “I am pleased to be able to move into the Group CEO role knowing that Jolyon will further strengthen the Americas leadership team.”

In his new role, Bulley will be based in Atlanta. Bulley takes Maalouf’s former role after Maalouf was announced as IHG Group’s CEO following the departure of outgoing CEO Keith Barr. 

Bulley first joined IHG in 2001. The company news release credits him with accelerating growth and driving profitability in Greater China, IHG’s second-largest market. 

“I am proud to have the opportunity to lead our Americas business alongside our many talented colleagues and in partnership with our hotel owners,” Bulley said in the company announcement. “I have worked in the hospitality industry my entire career and I'm looking forward to building on Elie's legacy in the region, remaining focused on capitalizing on strong owner and guest demand for our amazing brands and our attractive enterprise platform.”

Bulley has bounced back and forth between the two markets previously. Before he joined IHG Americas as COO in 2014, he was COO in Greater China, where he oversaw the region’s hotel portfolio, new openings and owner relations. 

A successor for Bulley in Greater China has yet to be announced. In the meantime, Daniel Aylmer, the region’s managing director, will continue Bulley’s responsibilities. 

This is a developing story. Check back at Hotel Dive for further updates.