Meyer Jabara Hotels is reorganizing how it manages its properties, creating two operating divisions and appointing a new senior vice-president to lead its Full Service and Lifestyle portfolio.
Jared Karras has joined the hotel ownership and management company as senior vice-president of operations for the new division. James Kirkland, already an SVP of operations with the company, will oversee the separate Focus Service Division.
A management structure built around hotel segments
The company says the revised structure is intended to bring operational leadership closer to the distinct requirements of its hotel categories. Under the arrangement, the two divisions will provide oversight at the operating level, leadership within individual properties and support for continued expansion across a collection that includes both branded and independent hotels.
For travellers, such a change is not necessarily visible at check-in. Its effect is more likely to be felt through the systems that support a stay: how properties are supervised, how teams are developed, how new hotels are opened and how a hotel responds when service or financial performance needs improvement. The company has not announced any immediate changes to guest bookings, hotel brands or property amenities.
| Division | Leadership | Operational focus |
|---|---|---|
| Full Service and Lifestyle | Jared Karras | Oversight and support for full-service and lifestyle hotels |
| Focus Service | James Kirkland | Oversight and support for focus-service properties |
Karras brings experience across major hotel brands
Karras arrives with more than 20 years of hospitality leadership experience. Before joining Meyer Jabara Hotels, he served as regional vice-president of operations for TPG Hotels & Resorts, where he provided strategic direction for a national group of full-service, select-service and independent properties.
His previous roles included work with OTO Development, Marshall Hotels & Resorts and Sun Development & Management Corp. During his career, he has supervised 14 branded and independent hotels operating under the Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt names.
That background covers several of the issues hotel owners must balance at once: financial results, guest satisfaction, the launch of new properties and the repositioning of hotels that are not performing as expected. Karras has also worked with owners, asset managers and brand leadership teams, giving him experience across the different groups involved in running and developing a property.
People and performance are linked, company says
In announcing the appointment, Meyer Jabara Hotels president Justin Jabara pointed to Karras's operational experience as an asset for the division's next phase. He also emphasized the connection between business results and workplace culture.
“Sustainable performance starts with people.”
Jabara said that results, accountability, leadership development and culture would all be important as Karras leads the division. The company is preparing to enter its 50th year of operations, making the reorganization part of a broader growth plan rather than simply a change in title.
Kirkland's new assignment completes the two-part leadership model. He joined Meyer Jabara Hotels in November 2024, following the merger of Griffin Hotel Management into the company. With Karras responsible for Full Service and Lifestyle and Kirkland leading Focus Service, the business says each segment will have dedicated operational oversight.
- Travellers: the announcement does not identify immediate changes to reservations, brands or amenities.
- Hotel employees: the company says leadership development and culture will be part of the new division's priorities.
- Owners and managers: the structure is designed to align support more closely with each property's operating model.
The practical test of the reorganization will be how consistently those priorities reach individual hotels. For guests, that may ultimately mean whether a property's service, staffing and day-to-day standards remain dependable as Meyer Jabara Hotels grows. For the company, the new divisions provide a clearer framework for managing different types of hotels while it approaches its next milestone.
