Celebrating Excellence: TPG Professionals Recognized in the 2024 Rhode Island Hospitality Anchor Awards

We are thrilled to share some exciting news! This year, five outstanding professionals from TPG Hotels & Resorts have been nominated for the prestigious 2024 Rhode Island Hospitality Anchor Awards. These awards recognize excellence, dedication, and leadership within our industry, and it is truly an honor to see our team members celebrated for their remarkable contributions.

The nominees, spanning several categories, have showcased what it means to lead with passion, provide exceptional service, and foster a sense of community both within their teams and for our guests. The state of Rhode Island has officially recognized these individuals as outstanding candidates in their respective categories.

Meet the Nominees

-Emerging Leader of the Year: Brandon Rivera, Newport Beach Hotel and Suites, Middletown

Brandon is the type of team member that embraces others in a way that instantly makes them feel at ease. In fact, Brandon refers to his team as family and his guests as his extended family. Brandon understands that one finds out what kind of leader they are not when times are easy, but instead when things are tough. Brandon has worked at three of our hotels over the last year – stepping in whenever and wherever needed – leading in sales and marketing, working at the front desk and most recently as the Assistant General Manager at the Newport Beach Hotel & Suites. His team knows that no matter what – they can count on him to be there. Brandon can be found cleaning and inspecting rooms, checking guests in, serving them breakfast, counseling a team member in need, delivering flowers to a team member who needs a pick me up – to so much more!  Brandon consistently demonstrates an unwavering commitment to going above and beyond, exceeding guest expectations with his warm personality, genuine attentiveness, and proactive problem-solving skills.

-Tourism Employee of the Year: Kirby Arsenault, Newport Harbor Hotel & Marina, Newport and Newport Beach Hotel and Suites, Middletown

Kirby is consistently described by her staff as an authentic leader, who goes above and beyond for her clients, team, and the hotel. She brings great energy and motivates others to be their best! Her ability to think outside the box and develop unique strategies has set her apart as a true leader. Kirby has such a positive influence on those around her. She can be counted on to support, guide, train, and develop - all while demonstrating solid leadership, teamwork, and so much more. Being a Director of Sales and Marketing – overseeing two hotels can be challenging – but not for Kirby. She shows up powerfully for both teams, her clients, our guests, and all those she encounters. She leads with such a positive disposition and confident nature that all that meet her instantly feel like they have known her for years – people simply want to be in her presence. Kirby exudes hospitality and embodies what true hospitality is – she understands that hospitality is all about being nice to each other and leading with a smile and kindness. Kirby can be found meeting with a client one minute to setting up a meeting room the next or helping fix the parking lot gate for a guest that is trying to exit the parking lot. Kirby has no boundaries when it comes to serving our guests and team.

-Lodging Employee of the Year: Jennifer Marvel, Holiday Inn, South Kingstown

Jen has been a trusted and loyal employee of TPG Hotels and Resorts for nearly 19 years. Jennifer started with our company as a guest service agent/night auditor, working her way up to Front Office Manager – to her most recent promotion as Assistant General Manager at the Holiday Inn South Kingstown. Not only will Jennifer do whatever it takes to get the job done, she does it with a calm, cool demeanor that exudes leadership. You can find Jennifer waiting tables, covering front desk shifts, cleaning rooms, picking up debris from the parking lot – to so much more. Basically, she does whatever it takes to support her team. With nearly 19 years at TPG Hotels & Resorts, Jennifer embodies dedication and leadership. Her ability to balance operational excellence with personal compassion makes her a standout professional who positively impacts everyone she works with.

Emerging Leader of the Year: Alison Bonsignore, The Shore House, Narragansett

Ali is dedicated and hardworking. She is organized and focused on continuously learning and developing best practices to manage routine activities both efficiently and effectively. She is positive, demonstrates high energy, and offers a personal touch that truly makes a difference to both guests and team members. She has implemented processes and systems that bring consistency and helps her team to operate and perform at a higher level. Ali consistently demonstrates exceptional leadership qualities by fostering an inclusive and positive work environment. She empowers team members to be their best, has a heart for making guests feel welcome and cared for – all while delivering exceptional financial results. She is positive, collaborative, and optimistic, making her a true inspiration to her team and organization. She leads by example – consistently jumping in and helping wherever and whenever needed. Ali shows up for her team and the organization consistently – working long days and weeks doing whatever is needed to support her team and guests.

-Food Service Employee of the Year: Lee Geoffroy, Holiday Inn, South Kingstown

Lee has been working in hospitality most of his life – and much of that is with TPG Hotels and Resorts. He is both committed and consistent in his efforts to deliver service committed to excellence to team members and guests. Lee understands that true hospitality is simple – it is about being nice to those around you. Showing up and making a difference is part of Lee’s everyday commitment to guests and patrons. This can be demonstrated by Lee delivering special birthday breakfast items to guests dining in the restaurant (consistently delighting and surprising those dining with us) to delivering a stuffed animal left at a table personally to a room to ensure a young child is not without their favorite toy. Not only does Lee understand that delivering exceptional service and hospitality requires going above and beyond – he lives and breathes this commitment every day; demonstrating this through covering shifts for others, so that they may have a day off, even if it means he won’t have a day off, picking up items on his day off (when he sees something that he thinks might delight and surprise a guest), to so many other ways he consistently makes a difference. Once Lee’s car broke down on the way to work. It was going to take a while for AAA to arrive. He knew that he was the only one to open the kitchen – so he walked nearly 3 miles to work to ensure everything would be taken care of and that the restaurant opened on time.

And the Finalists are...

We are beyond proud to announce that Alison Bonsignore (Emerging Leader of the Year) and Kirby Arsenault (Tourism Employee of the Year) have been selected as finalists for their categories!

The winners will be revealed at the Rhode Island Hospitality event on January 15, 2025, and we are eagerly looking forward to celebrating their incredible achievements.

Join Us in Celebrating

Please join us in congratulating Alison Bonsignore, Kirby Arsenault, and all our nominees on this well-deserved recognition. Their hard work, dedication, and passion for hospitality exemplify what makes our industry thrive.

Let’s spread the word and cheer for these outstanding professionals!

#HospitalityExcellence #RhodeIslandAnchorAwards #TeamTPG