Janis Cannon
SVP, Upscale Brands at Choice Hotels International
Janis Cannon is Senior Vice President of Upscale Brands and a member of the senior executive team for Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH), one of the world’s leading lodging franchisors. In this role, she is responsible for the overall performance and growth of the company’s upscale portfolio and leads the brand strategy, positioning and performance of Cambria Hotels and the Ascend Hotel Collection.
Since joining Choice Hotels in 2016, Ms. Cannon has increased Cambria’s hotel openings and pipeline developments by more than 100 percent, driven revenue and top RPI performance in key urban and leisure markets, and grown the Ascend Hotel Collection, recognized as the industry’s first “soft” brand, to more than 300 properties worldwide with 200 open hotels and resorts in the US.
Prior to joining Choice Hotels, Ms. Cannon spent more than 25 years in branding, design and construction, sales, marketing and hotel operations. She most recently served as Vice President and Global Brand Leader of Upscale and Lifestyle Brands at IHG, where she developed and implemented brand strategy, and facilitated development projects and positioning efforts for the company’s portfolio globally. Previously, she held senior leadership positions as Deputy Commissioner in the Georgia Department of Economic Development, and Global SVP at Swissotel Hotels and Resorts.
She was named as Female Executive of the Year by Hotel Interactive Inc. in 2019 and recognized by Hotel Business Magazine as one of the industry’s “Top 10 to Watch” in 2018. She currently serves on the Executive Planning Committee for NYU’s International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference and is a lecturer at Cornell University. Ms. Cannon earned her bachelor’s degree in speech communication from Valdosta State University.
Fran is a courageous visionary that I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with for many years. She’s always been a pioneer, willing to take risks and create opportunities for our industry and individuals. When she reached out to me about joining the Travel Industry Executive Women’s Network (TIEWN) Board, I was honored and knew I wanted to embrace and engage, as I am committed to seeing more women and broader diversity in our industry’s leadership.
Fran asked me to prepare a Belief Statement as part of TIEWN Board service. It’s something I invite everyone to do. Thinking about the core beliefs that drive your personal purpose and committing them to words is powerful. It removes the noise from what truly matters and what we truly believe. It provides clarity for our personal role in being an advocate and agent for positive change.
My Belief Statement:
We all share responsibility for each other.
All people should be afforded the opportunity to develop to their full potential.
Diversity helps us grow and learn making everyone, our industry, and our world better and stronger.
We need to recognize wins and accelerate our diverse representation.
We must model change behavior and encourage open communication.
We must promote and advocate for others.
Janis’s LinkedIn Page