Our Team

Jenna Aragosa is a Vice President with CHMW, with eight years hospitality industry experience. She is a senior member of CHMW’s advisory team, supporting clients with strategic investment decisions ranging from hotel acquisition, development, and repositioning strategies to brand/management selection and capital planning, among others. Jenna brings expertise in economic, financial, and operational analysis, as well as organizational and general consulting for the hospitality and related services industries. Her expertise includes economic analysis, market demand studies and development consulting for all phases of hotel real estate.

Christine Baekey brings over 30 years’ experience to her current position as Controller for CHMWarnick. She is responsible for overseeing CHMWarnick’s accounting team in providing corporate-level financial reporting, audit and compliance, and risk-reduction services. Christine has a wide array of experience with hotel ownership groups and corporate structures (e.g., sovereign wealth funds, public agencies and private equity, etc.) spanning all major brands and product types from select-service portfolios to municipality-owned headquarter convention center hotels.

Alayna brings 15+ years of hospitality industry experience to CHMWarnick, with expertise in corporate marketing, advertising, social media and communications. She is responsible for increasing company visibility and creating awareness within the hotel ownership and investment community through targeted marketing campaigns, thought leadership initiatives and client communications. Alayna oversees all graphic design and placement of advertising campaigns including company collateral, website, and pitch decks. As part of CHMWarnick’s marketing and business development team, Alayna is responsible for supporting corporate efforts to identify new client relationships, as well as facilitate engagements to provide services to existing clients. Alayna is also an integral part of the CHMWarnick corporate team, building company culture through brand strategy, communications and strategic initiatives. Prior to joining the firm in 2010, Alayna was in hotel operations, working in the front office for a nationally branded property. She is an active member of the Castell Project, advancing diversity in hospitality leadership, and serves as a regular speaker for Castell@College.

Marcela Chrastecka is a senior member of CHMWarnick’s accounting team, specializing in ownership-level accounting and cash flow reporting. She brings 15 years of experience to her role as accounting manager and is responsible for providing services to both public and private-sector hotel owners. Marcela also oversees special research and analytical projects in support of CHMWarnick’s asset management team and company as a whole. She is fluent in Czech and German.

Chad Crandell is Chairman of the Board, holding the distinction of being a Certified Hotel Asset Manager (CHAM). He brings 40 years of hospitality industry experience in hotel asset management and ownership issues. He is responsible for overseeing CHMWarnick’s corporate functions and directing the efforts of the asset management team across seven offices nationwide. With extensive experience in structuring fair and equitable agreements pertaining to hotel ownership, Chad plays an active role in all contract negotiations and advises on key operational challenges, including risk mitigation, capital planning and expenditures and investor-funded capital projects.

Philip is a member of CHMWarnick’s accounting team, responsible for client services, including hotel ownership-level accounting, loan cash management, and forecasting. In addition, Philip undertakes special research and analytical projects in support of the accounting and asset management teams. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Alabama.

Joe DeFrank is Executive Vice President at CHMWarnick and holds the distinction of being a Certified Hotel Asset Manager (CHAM). Joe brings over 30 years in the hospitality industry, 20 years dedicated to hotel asset management, including a wide range of property types, brands and markets. As a senior member of the asset management team, Joe is responsible for overseeing and optimizing the value of a portfolio of hotels, including a wide range of property types, from convention center headquarter hotels to urban landmark assets. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, he served as Senior Vice President, Asset Management at Host Hotels and Resorts, responsible for a 40-hotel portfolio located within the southeast and central regions of the United States, as well as Mexico and Latin America. Prior to his 20-year tenure with Host Hotels and Resorts, he held numerous positions with Marriott International. He is a member of the Hospitality Asset Manager Association (HAMA) and serves on the Certification Designation Committee.

Kristie Dickinson is Managing Director/EVP of CHMWarnick, serving as a senior member of the leadership team and overseeing business development and corporate revenue strategy. Kristie has more than 29 years of hospitality industry experience, including property-level operations, asset management, acquisition due diligence and investment analysis. She brings expertise in the areas of revenue management, market positioning and strategic asset planning and is a regularly featured author on related topics. She also has worked with more than 200 hotels of all product types and brands to develop strategies for achieving investment objectives. Kristie serves as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of the International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC) and sits on the Castell@College Advisory Board.

Michael Doyle is Managing Director/Executive Vice President with over 30 years of experience in hotel operations, development and asset management. He leads a team of senior asset managers in the oversight of client hotel investments valued at $10 billion and possesses expertise in all aspects of hotel operations, with a focus on organizational efficiency, labor productivity and relations, sales strategies and capital planning. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, Michael served as General Manager at some of the world’s finest hotels and conference facilities. Additionally, he has extensive experience in new hotel openings and operational ramp-up strategies.

Marc Ellin is an EVP at CHMWarnick, with over  30 years’ experience including extensive knowledge of full-service, luxury, lifestyle and wellness segments of the hospitality industry. Marc serves as a senior member of CHMWarnick’s advisory team, supporting clients with strategic investment decisions ranging from hotel acquisition, development, and repositioning strategies to brand/management selection and capital planning, among others.

As Manager, Marissa is responsible for assisting the asset management team and advisory teams with financial analysis, performance benchmarking and market research aimed at identifying opportunities for enhancing hotel operating performance and asset value. She is actively engaged as a market and financial analyst for several of the properties under CHMWarnick’s asset managed portfolio and has experience in due diligence for potential new investments, including market research and analysis of industry trends, financial modeling, and valuation.

Elizabeth brings three years industry experience and a degree in Hotel Management to CHMWarnick. As Manager, Elizabeth is responsible for assisting the asset management team with financial analysis, performance benchmarking and market research aimed at identifying opportunities for enhancing hotel operating performance and asset value. She is actively engaged with several of the properties under CHMWarnick’s asset managed portfolio, attending monthly owner meetings preparing weekly, monthly and quarterly performance reports and presentations.

Robert Hayward is a senior member of the CHMWarnick team and a Certified Hotel Asset Manager (CHAM), specializing in asset management, feasibility, investment analysis, brokerage and litigation support across a wide variety of projects within the hospitality, gaming, recreational and leisure real estate industries. Bob’s 30-plus years of professional experience also includes an extensive operational management background within the food & beverage and hospitality industries.

Michael brings seven years of hospitality industry experience to CHMWarnick. As a Senior Associate, Michael is responsible for assisting the asset management team with financial analysis, performance benchmarking and market research aimed at identifying opportunities for enhancing hotel operating performance and asset value. He is actively engaged with several of the properties under CHMWarnick’s asset managed portfolio, attending monthly owner meetings preparing weekly, monthly, and quarterly performance reports and presentations. Additionally, Michael has experience in online travel platforms, technology, and revenue management.

As a senior member of CHMW’s asset management team, Sean is actively engaged with several properties under the company’s asset managed portfolio, with deep expertise in boutique/lifestyle hotels and food and beverage operations in branded, soft branded and fully independent assets. He also brings extensive experience in hotel openings, repositioning, capital planning, budgeting and renovation oversight, including direct responsibility for a single renovation project of over $50 million. Sean has a proven track record in collaborating with property management teams to identify opportunities for revenue enhancement, cost containment and risk mitigation.

As Senior Accountant, Tina is responsible for ownership-level accounting, month-end closing procedures, forecast reporting, account reconciliation and analysis. She undertakes special research and analytical projects in support of client services coordinated through both the accounting and asset management teams. In addition, she assists the human resource department with employee and benefit administration. Tina holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and is fluent in Khmer.

Lauren McCarthy brings over 12 years industry experience to her role as Vice President at CHMWarnick. Lauren is responsible for talent acquisition with a focus on profitability and productivity; development and growth of the asset management analyst team; and advancement and management of CHMW’s collegiate internship program. Additionally, Lauren is an integral part of the Asset Management team providing analytical support to senior level leadership. She is an expert in financial analysis and research aimed at identifying opportunities for revenue growth and cost containment to enhance hotel operating performance and asset value.

With over 35 years of hospitality experience, Rusty Middleton specializes in driving financial performance, operational efficiency, and owner satisfaction across multi-property hotel portfolios. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, he spent 27 years with Hyatt Hotels Corporation, excelling in property operations, corporate strategy, and owner relations. Rusty also founded Russell Lodging Advisors in 2020, focusing on hotel analytics and asset management.

A graduate of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Rusty holds a Bachelor of Science in Hotel Administration. He has been recognized with multiple General Manager of the Year nominations and has served in leadership roles with organizations like Visit Seattle CVB and the San Francisco Union Business Improvement District.

Khalil Mossadak is responsible for supporting CHMWarnick’s accounting team, actively assisting with multiple aspects of corporate and client accounting, including account payables, receivables and ownership-entity reporting. In addition, Khalil undertakes special research and analytical projects in support of the asset management and advisory teams. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, Khalil was a member of the accounting department at the Omni Parker House Hotel, the longest continuously operating hotel in the United States. He is fluent in Arabic and French.

As Managing Director/EVP, Derek Olsen serves as a senior member of the leadership team, overseeing a wide range of advisory and asset management engagements. Derek brings more than 25 years hospitality experience with expertise in investment underwriting, operational assessment, property and portfolio valuations, contract negotiation and value creation through asset management. Derek has a BS in Hospitality Management from Cornell University and a Master of Science in Real Estate from M.I.T.

As an Associate, Anne-Sophie is responsible for assisting the asset management team with financial analysis, performance benchmarking and market research aimed at identifying opportunities for enhancing hotel operating performance and asset value. She is actively engaged with several of the properties under CHMWarnick’s asset managed portfolio, attending monthly owner meetings preparing weekly, monthly, and quarterly performance reports and presentations. Anne-Sophie is fluent in French, holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Growth and Innovation and a Bachelor of Science degree in Hospitality Management from the University of New Hampshire.

As a Vice President, Tracey Scalzo is responsible for creation and enhancement of financial models and reports utilizing CHMWarnick’s proprietary business intelligence platform, Proph+IT™. Using her analytical and technical skills, she supports the asset management team on financial analysis, market research, benchmarking, and monthly reporting to identify opportunities for optimizing operating performance and value across CHMWarnick’s asset management portfolio. Tracey holds a Certification in Hotel Industry Analytics (CHIA) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics.

David Sherf is a senior member of the CHMWarnick team with over 40 years of experience in the hotel industry. Dave specializes in asset management, hotel development and management and franchise negotiations. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, Dave was Senior Vice President of Hilton Hotels Corporation, responsible for asset management of the company’s owned and joint ventured $8 billion real estate portfolio.  In that position, Dave also functioned as Hilton’s general partner in roughly 25 jointly-owned hotels, and oversaw and established owner relations with 250 managed hotels, as well as oversight of hotel retail shops and leases.

Chad Sorensen is Managing Director/CEO of CHMWarnick. With over 25 years of experience in virtually every aspect of the lodging industry, Chad is responsible for directing the efforts of the asset management team. He is the CHMWarnick specialist in performing hotel and resort operational assessments as well as process improvement implementation. Chad is a regular speaker at industry conferences around the world. Chad is a member of the International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC) and is a Certified Hotel Asset Manager (CHAM).

As Office Manager, Erin provides a full range of administrative support to the CHMWarnick team. Based in Boston, Erin brings nearly 15 years of hospitality industry experience to CHMWarnick. She is responsible for the company database, travel planning, coordination of company calendars and vendor relations. She provides a wide range of support to the asset management team, including on-going data management for over 70 hotels in the portfolio. She is responsible for maintaining CHMWarnick’s proprietary financial database, coordinating property team meetings and assisting with various research projects, analyses and client presentations. Erin has a background in hotel and waterpark operations, and a specialization in group sales and marketing. Erin is an appointed Notary Public for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Maxine Taylor brings 30 years’ hospitality industry experience to her role as Executive Vice President at CHMWarnick, including luxury hotel operations, international hospitality consulting and hotel asset management. Based in San Francisco, she is responsible for overseeing a portfolio of hotels located in major markets on the west coast and in Hawaii. As Asset Manager, Maxine serves as fiduciary and owner representative for owner-related decisions and activities, management oversight, capital expenditure operation and budget review, disposition responsibility, renovation programming and oversight, management contract negotiation and investment strategies. She has a successful track record  implementing turnaround strategies for underperforming assets and strategic repositioning of big-box hotels and resorts. She is a Certified Hotel Asset Manager (CHAM), a regular speaker at industry events, and is involved in a number of hospitality organizations, including serving on the Board of Directors as President for the Hospitality Asset Managers Association. Prior to Maxine’s hospitality career, she spent three years in the military stationed overseas in Korea and Germany as a telecommunications specialist.

Ndack Toure brings over 10 years experience and a degree in Accounting to CHMWarnick. As Staff Accountant, Ndack is responsible for client services including hotel ownership accounting, audit/tax schedule preparation, loan cash management and forecasting. Ndack also undertakes special research and analysis project in support of CHMWarnick’s clients, as well as for the accounting, asset management and advisory teams. In addition to English, Ndack is fluent in French.

Larry Trabulsi is Managing Director/EVP and part of the senior leadership team at CHMWarnick with 25 years of experience in hotel investment advisory and asset management. Larry has extensive capital planning and renovation oversight experience and has been involved in single renovation projects of over $30 million. He also has experience asset managing a wide range of property types, brands and markets, bringing collective expertise and time-tested best practices to the assets he oversees. He has a proven track record in collaborating with property management teams to identify opportunities for revenue enhancement, cost containment and risk mitigation and is regarded within the industry as a thought leader in asset management.

Stephanie Trenter is a Vice President at CHMWarnick with 20+ years in the hospitality industry. She is a member of the advisory team specializing in strategic advisory, hotel development, and operational assessments. Her areas of expertise include market and site analysis, concepting and positioning, brand and management selection, and marketing and brand strategy. Stephanie also serves on the asset management teams of several hotels in the CHMWarnick portfolio. As part of the marketing and business development team, Stephanie develops and facilitates new leads, proposals, client relationships, and strategic growth initiatives. Stephanie is an integral part of the CHMW corporate team, building corporate culture through brand strategy, resource deployment oversight, strategic initiatives, and West Coast operational oversight.

Mark VanStekelenburg is Executive Vice President of CHMWarnick. With nearly 20 years industry experience, Mark leads CHMWarnick’s advisory team, supporting clients with strategic investment decisions ranging from hotel acquisition, development, and repositioning strategies to brand/management selection and capital planning, among others. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, Mark was led CBRE’s Northeast and MidAtlantic hospitality advisory practice (formerly PKF Consulting). While there, he advised on more than $100 billion in hospitality assets, including providing market, feasibility, appraisal, economic impact and advisory services for private clients and public entities. He has advised on all types of income-producing asset classes, including hotels, casinos, golf courses, ski resorts and mixed-use hospitality projects in markets throughout North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia.

Dan Walsh brings 15 years of experience in hotel asset management and development. Dan possesses broad knowledge in all aspects of asset management, with a focus on financial analysis, revenue management, hotel operations, acquisitions/dispositions and capital planning. He brings an expertise in a wide range of property types, including Resort operations and publicly‐funded convention center hotels. Additionally, he has experience in new hotel openings and operational ramp‐up strategies. Prior to joining CHMW, Dan served as Director of Asset Management at Pyramid Hotel Group with responsibilities inclusive of the oversight of a seven‐hotel portfolio valued at $4 billion.

Richard Warnick is Managing Director and Co-Chairman of CHMWarnick.  Richard serves as an advisor to many of the world’s leading hotel and real estate companies, private investors, financial institutions and government agencies. He has been involved in virtually every aspect of the hotel industry for over 40 years, including operations, development, finance, brokerage and brand and business strategy. He is an industry thought leader and has authored numerous articles and chapters on hotel ownership and investment.

Ken Wilson is Managing Director and Co-Chairman of CHMWarnick, with over 40 years of experience encompassing all aspects of hotel investment and ownership. Ken has expertise in debt and equity financing, asset acquisitions and dispositions, investment strategy and management and franchise selection and negotiation. He has advised owners and facilitated many principal-to-principal deals throughout his career and is regarded as a company and industry visionary.

As Manager, Matt is responsible for assisting the asset management team with financial analysis, performance benchmarking and market research aimed at identifying opportunities for enhancing hotel operating performance and asset value. He is actively engaged with several of the properties under CHMWarnick’s asset managed portfolio, attending monthly owner meetings preparing weekly, monthly and quarterly performance reports and presentations. Prior to joining CHMWarnick, Matt worked as a Brand Ambassador for von Trapp Brewing where he specialized in Sales & Marketing.